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    The Hypnotist
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    The Hypnotist
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    The Hypnotist
    Ebook434 pages6 hours

    The Hypnotist

    By M J Rose

    3.5/5

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    About this ebook


    Haunted by his inability to stop the murder of a beautiful young painter twenty years ago, Lucian Glass keeps his demons at bay through his fascinating work with the FBI's Art Crime Team. Investigating a crazed collector who's begun destroying prized masterworks, Glass is thrust into a bizarre hostage negotiation that takes him undercover at the Phoenix Foundation dedicated to the science of past–life study. There, to maintain his cover, he submits to the treatment of a hypnotist.

    Under hypnosis, Glass travels from ancient Greece to nineteenth–century Persia, while the case takes him from New York to Paris and the movie while the case takes him from New York to Paris and the movie capital of the world. These journeys will change his very understanding of reality, lead him to question his own sanity and land him at the centre of perhaps the most audacious art heist in history: a fifteen–hundred–year–old sculpture the nation of Iran will do anything to recover.
    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarperCollins Publishers Australia
    Release dateJul 1, 2012
    ISBN9781460839454
    Author

    M J Rose

    New York Times bestselling author M.J. Rose grew up in New York City exploring the labyrinthine galleries of the Metropolitan Museum and the dark tunnels and lush gardens of Central Park. She is the author of more than a dozen novels, the founder of the first marketing company for authors, AuthorBuzz.com and cofounder of 1001DarkNights.com She lives in Connecticut. Visit her online at MJRose.com. 

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    Reviews for The Hypnotist

    3.5/5

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    • 3/5
      You start out feeling very sorry for Lucian Glass. He’s late picking up his girlfriend; she ends up dead. He meets with an important witness; he gets bashed over the head and the witness ends up dead. He has nightmares, compulsions, crippling headaches. But what if it is all his fault? What if this is all related to his past…his past lives.In The Hypnotist, Lucian Glass is a member of the FBI’s Art Crime Team. He is caught up in the case of Malachi Samuels, a renowned reincarnationist who is searching for Memory Tools, artifacts which may finally prove that reincarnation exists and help us access our past lives.It’s a complicated plot, with much of it is centered in New York, at the Metropolitan Museum of Art. There are stolen paintings, artwork with shady origins, espionage and an assortment of plots and subplots, designed to keep a reader guessing. There’s a Matisse, a statue of a Greek god, and a Trojan horse. Throw in some startling coincidences, some past-life drama and a little romance, and you’ve got a pretty entertaining mystery.You can read my full review on my website, Alive on the Shelves.
    • 4/5
      The Hypnotist is book three in The Reincarnationist's series. It is a mystery suspense thriller with mild to moderate expletives and violence.Lucian Glass works for the FBI as part of their Art Crimes Team who has a past surrounded by murder and mystery. At nineteen, he returns from his artist studio, to find his girlfriend murdered and hanging amongst the picture frames of her father's framing business. However, before Lucian can react, he too is attacked and left for dead, now twenty years later, that past is coming back to haunt him.Dr. Malachai Samuels is a long-standing reincarnationist who is obsessed with proving that people's souls do, in fact, reincarnate into other bodies. His speciality is working with children, like little Veronica who begins her tale in ancient Persia, he hypnotizes the children and does past regression therapy upon them. However, Veronica's tales are tying into the memory stones that he desperately seeks, and he will stop at nothing to obtain them.Emeline Jacobs is a cousin of Solange's who has been adopted by Solange's parents, shortly after her murder. In a desperate need to feel wanted, her family was killed in an accident, Emeline begins to take on the persona of Solange. Causing her aunt and uncle to whisk her from doctor to doctor trying to uncover the secret of Emeline's uncanny mannerisms of her late cousin.Samimi is an Iranian who is working to return a statue of the God, Hypnos, back to his country. He and his people know the secrets of the statue and will cheat, lie, steal and murder to regain control of the piece, which now sits in the restoration department of the New York Metropolitan Museum. Samimi works for a boorish, murderous oaf and wishes to displace him, fearing he will be called home to Iran or worse, murdered, he works to bring salvation to his people while keeping his own self alive and intact.Each person moves separately towards their destinations not realizing they are all being directed to the same point in time. As each of the characters come to realize they are but a small piece in a bigger game, they must come to terms with their past, in order to preserve their futures.I absolutely enjoyed the book and loved all the historical references to the art pieces mentioned throughout the story. My favourite painter is Monet and reading about his work was very interesting, as were the informative pieces about Matisse, Van Gogh and the mythology behind the statue of Hypnos was equally enthralling to read. I wish there had been more of it dispersed throughout the book. I loved the blending of the past with the present with the past life transgression therapy and appreciated the tales being told through both Veronica and Lucian. The tie-ins of all the participants was well-written and convincing.The story is both slow and fast paced and it works to build momentum within the story, making you turn the pages in order to finish the tale that M.J. Rose has choose to tell. I wasn't much impressed with Emeline and wished she had been kept as an associate instead of a love interest. I don't think good stories need such and I'm often left wondering why, in times of horror, do authors have a need to throw a love story into the fray, it just doesn't make sense to me and often takes away from a story, The Hypnotist falls into such a category, unfortunately. In my honest opinion, its the books only real downfall to the plot. A small hindrance however, to a great story.
    • 4/5
      This was my first novel by M.J. Rose. This book is the third in a series, I have not read the previous two. While I could tell that there was quite a bit of back story that I had missed, it was not so much that I could not figure out what was going on and enjoy the story.I always enjoy thrillers that are centered around interesting subject, in this case, high end art theft and reincarnation. The Metropolitan Museum of Art is central to the story and the author shares quite a bit of information about the facility. I knew the basic concept behind reincarnation theory, but I admit that I learned quite a bit more about the history and how believers use hypnotism to explore a person's previous life.Don't let the museum atmosphere fool you into thinking the book is slow. There is plenty of action and twists with this one. Add in the political intrigue and you have a first-rate thriller. I do not like to give away any endings in my reviews, so I will just say that there are several interesting decoys along the way and a surprise ending that I enjoyed very much.I love discovering interesting new authors. I will check out the first two books in this series and then explore some of the earlier novels.
    • 2/5
      To sum up this book, I could use the old saying, “Too many cooks spoil the broth.” I really, really wanted to enjoy this book. I think the subject matter was very interesting: hypnosis, re-incarnation, and art. It had a lot of promise, using mystery/crime and tying it in with real world places. Where it failed, was in the multitude of characters. There were so many random unnecessary characters with minor subplots that I felt it tended to distract me from the main story itself. It kind of reminded me of a screen-play writer writing bit parts in a movie so their friends could each have a line or two and qualify for a SAG card. It took about ten chapters before I could remotely get interested in the story, but was then able to stay interested after that. All in all, the main story itself was good, and the idea and thought put into the story was interesting and thought provoking, but it would have been much better with less characters.
    • 1/5
      The Hypnotist by M.J. RosePublished by Mira BooksISBN-13: 978-0-7783-2675-5At the request of Media Muscle The Book Trib, a HC was sent, at no cost to me, for my honest opinion. Synopsis (from the book jacket): Haunted by a twenty-year-old murder of a beautiful young painter, Lucian Glass keeps his demons at bay through his fascinating work as a special agent with the FBI's Art Crime Team. Currently investigating a crazed art collector who has begun destroying prized masterworks, Glass is thrust into a bizarre hostage negotiation that takes him undercover at the Phoenix Foundation-dedicated to the science of past-life study-where, in order to maintain his cover, he agrees to submit to the treatment of a hypnotist. Under hypnosis, Glass travels from ancient Greece to nineteenth-century Persia, while the case takes him from New York to Paris and the movie capital of the world. These journeys will change his very understanding of reality, lead him to question his own sanity and land him at the center of perhaps the most audacious art heist in history-the theft of a 1,500-year-old sculpture from the Metropolitan Museum of Art. My Thoughts and Opinion: The first chapter of this book pulled me right in where a young artist arrives late to a meeting only to find Solange, a friend, clinging to life due to what appears to be a vicious attack. The next thing he feels is pain, his own pain as he gets attacked. How could I not be pulled in to this plot? On to Chapter Two, and it starts to take another turn. The characters and story line are now very confusing to me. I also find, and this is only my opinion, the detailed descriptions of art history became quite boring. I try to continue reading but the book is just not holding my interest. Unfortunately, I did not realize when I accepted to read this book, that it was the third of a series. Maybe if I had read the first two books, I wouldn't have had this outcome. Regrettably, I had to put this book aside, it just wasn't for me. I can not say if I would recommend this read or not, since I was unable to finish it. Rating: 1
    • 3/5
      I didnt enjoy this one as much as I did the others. Still a good read just not what I was expecting. This will be one of those I pick up again and retry.
    • 4/5
      Of the three books in the Reincarnationist series, I liked this one the best. The plot was tighter (if still on the very edge of believable) and the characters were more developed. Also, this one tugged at my emotions more being directly about art, which is a passion of mine. I'm still not a fan of when the author tells us too much instead of showing us, or by giving the protagonist information that we don't have, but it does keep you reading. This book more clearly showed the effects of karma on the reincarnated people, and it's nice to see the bad guys get their comeuppance. I appreciated the behind the scenes look at the museum and I wished I could be the librarian hired by the Phoenix Foundation. Like the previous books, this story mixes history and fiction well, and the author isn't afraid to put her characters in peril.Received as an eARC through the LT Early Reviewers program and Netgalley.
    • 4/5
      Suspended disbelief is a must with unique, fast paced mystery. However, if the reader can accept reincarnation theory and extreme coincidences, he will become fully immersed in the originality of the carefully crafted plot, the creative artistic and historical atmosphere and the well-defined characters. There are a few flaws: too many characters, deus ex-machina twists, abrupt ending. The general story, however, gives the sense of a well-researched book without too much moralizing and great suspense. A fabulous summer read.
    • 5/5
      When I signed up for this book, I had no idea it was a third in a series.That didn't matter, I fell right into the characters. I admit in the beginning it was different, flipping back and forth between the stories, but when it came together it was beautiful!This book took forever to get to me, but it will stay with me forever.I can only compare it to The Da Vinci Code, but honestly, I liked this one better.Definitely one I'm adding to my recommendation list!
    • 4/5
      I was first introduced to M.J. Rose's writing through her crime fiction series, featuring a sex therapist Dr. Morgan Snow. I enjoyed the series and so was excited when she came out with the Reincarnationist series, especially given the subject matter. Like so many books, however, the series went on my wish list, and I hadn't had the opportunity to read any of the books until now, beginning with the third book in the series, The Hypnotist. Although labeled a series, the Reincarnationist books (The Reincarnationist, The Memorist and The Hypnotist) can be read in any order. Their only connection seems to be the fact that they deal with past lives at their heart. The stories and the characters are independent of one another.The above synopsis only covers a piece of what can be found in The Hypnotist. So much is going on that I would not recommend setting the book aside once you start for days a time before returning to it. You may lose a thread or forget an important detail. I had the luxury of reading most of this book in one sitting and found it captivating all the while. It was never dull and each thread of the story seemed carefully crafted to create a suspenseful and fascinating ride. As I read, I could hardly wait to see how everything would come together in the end.The idea of past lives has long interested me, and so I was especially drawn to that aspect of the book. I haven't done nearly as much research into the subject as the author has, but my interest has been piqued. While the novel itself stretches believability, it does not do so in a way that interferes with the suspension of disbelief. I was hooked from the start and lost in the novel right through to the end. The characters were well developed, some more complex than others.Art history has never been one of my strong suits, but I am fascinated by history itself and find the world of art theft intriguing. One issue the novel brought up that especially caught my interest was the trail of ownership a piece of art may leave, the complexities of it and just how difficult it could be to trace the art back to its origin. History is full of its own mysteries. It is no wonder I love it so.Having been reading so many books about the Vietnam War recently, The Hypnotist was a nice change. I look forward to reading the rest of the books in the series.
    • 1/5
      This book is third in a series of books written by M.J. Rose. However, this is the first one I have read.Agent Lucian Glass is on the trail of Malachi Samuels of the Phoenix Foundation who is trying to find the Memory tools that could prove whether people are reincarnated. Lucien’s first love Solange was killed during a heist of a Matisse that was stolen 20 years earlier which may be tied to Samuels’ quest for the artifacts. Lucien becomes involved with Emmeline, who is Solange’s cousin and Lucian starts to believe that Solange has been reincarnated as Emmeline. Unfortunately, it took me a very long time to get through this book. I don’t know if it was because it was about artifacts and the art world (of which I’m not a connoisseur) or that I had not read the previous two books, or that the story itself seemed to drag on for me and I kept getting everyone mixed up. Nevertheless, it was not a good read for me.
    • 4/5
      This latest novel by M.J.Rose is the third in the Reincarnationist trilogy. Phoenix Foundation, a group that specializes in past-life research is the main focus of the story along with the theft and recovery of four famous paintings and a sculpture that has not seen the light of day in 2000 years. Agent Lucian Glass does not believe in reincarnation but as events occur he becomes aware of a past life through hypnosis, that has its basis with the statue, Hypnos, a sleep chamber of sorts. Lucian is on the trail of Malachi Samuels of the Phoenix Foundation who is after the Memory tools that he wants that could prove whether people do come back. Some people believe that a person gets the chance to do things right each time they are reincarnated and that even though it may be in a different time and place, the same people could be involved. Lucien's first love Solange was killed during a heist of a Matisse that was stolen 20 years earlier. Lucien becomes involved with a young woman, Emmeline, who is niece to Solanges father Andre. Lucian starts to believe that Solange has been reincarnated as Emmeline. I had a bit of a hard time getting into this story as it is the third in the series and I had not read the previous two books. I did get into it though and it turned out to be an enjoyable, suspenseful read. This is a story that shows man's greed, even 2000 years in the past and how this greed can destroy lives, loves and careers. I would recommend reading all the books in order to get the entire concept of the story.
    • 3/5
      This book is the third in a series written by M.J. Rose. I have not had the opportunity to read the first two books and started reading this one, hoping it would work out without any background.What struck me was the almost lyrical language at times. Descriptions are almost poetic. The story itself could not quite grip me but for some reason I did keep on reading.It did make a very good impression and I have to admire the way past and present in the story entwine.I do have to admit however I did not have a lot of time these past few months and I did not give the book the attention it deserves. As english is not my first language I do need some extra time to really grasp and fully get a story. It was a hasteful job and I will have to re-read it once my personal life settles down.
    • 5/5
      Like sparks growing into a flame, the bits and pieces of this suspenseful puzzle meld together to engulf the reader in a fascinating tale of past life reincarnation. Lucien Glass, an FBI special agent on the Art Crime Team, is brought into the Metropolitan Museum of Art to investigate the destruction of an almost priceless work of art that had been missing for years and then shows up in tatters. Glass and his team are faced with the task of meeting a blackmailer's demand for an exchange of four other stolen masterpieces in trade for a Greek statue of Hypnos, the god of sleep. Unbeknownst to Glass the statue is also coveted by two other unscrupulous men, each with their own agenda. This coupled with the past life experiences touching on the same statue, that Glass continues to deny to himself, adds up to a twisting surprise ending that will keep the reader guessing. A highly entertaining, smooth flowing, and very suspenseful story.
    • 3/5
      From My Blog...The Hypnotist is the third book in M.J. Rose’s Reincarnationist series and the first one I have read. The previous two novels are The Reincarnationist and The Memorist, which inspired the television series, Past Life, which I have never seen, and a rather round about way of me stating that while the genre was not for me, the writing is absolutely brilliant. The Hypnotist opens with the death of Lucian Glass, which occurred twenty years ago, but now Lucian is an F.B.I. agent and part of the Art Crime Division who will travel through time and space, his past lives via hypnosis. Meanwhile, in Manhattan the Iran and America cultural exchange is not going quite as planned. The Metropolitan Museum of Art happens to have the statue of Hypos and claims it was bequeathed to them and they have the proper documentation of the lineage of this piece of art. Iran wants Hypos returned, first using legal channels through Vartan Reza and then devolving to Farid Taghinia and Samimi being ordered to recover Hypos. Rose writes extremely well and her characters are quite well developed and her plot lines and twists are solid, well placed, suspenseful and strong. The history of Hypos and the plans to steal a gigantic statue from Metropolitan Museum of Art intrigued me; unfortunately the paranormal aspects of this story were lost on me. I believe that had I an interest in this genre I would have truly enjoyed The Hypnotist. However, even the strength of M.J. Rose’s writing could not change my opinion of paranormal romance, hypnosis and reincarnation. The Hypnotist is a strong book, and even though I have not read the previous two, guessing based on the strength of this novel, I would hazard to guess that if one was interested in a mystery/thriller steeped in the paranormal then this would be a series to read.
    • 3/5
      The book is well written - nice sentences, lots of details, an interesting premise.Unfortunately, there are a lot of characters with "foreign" names which makes it difficult to recall which is which and what they're doing. And... none of the characters make you want to connect with them - it was like reading about interesting cases from a clinical point of view. Someone got killed? Wow, but who cares since we never "knew" the dead guy anyway? A piece of art was destroyed, that's bad, right? Right? Logically, it's a bad thing, but emotionally? the storyteller didn't seem to care.That's the other part of this story I didn't really like - too much artsy-fartsy stuff - I don't know who these artists are, and I don't care. I don't care that the author knows X from Z... so please stop the art history lesson and continue with the story, k?More story, fewer art lessons, fewer politics and the addition of some emotional attachment to at least one character and this would have been a much better book.
    • 5/5
      This is the third book in M.J. Rose's Reincarnationist series. I have not read the first two, but received a review copy of this one from the publisher through NetGalley.com. A reader can easily jump into the middle of this series, though, after having read The Hypnotist, I will definitely go back and read the first two!The plot is intricate, full of twists and complications that require the reader to be paying attention. While reincarnation is the central theme, we're taken through an ancient world of artifacts and the modern world of stolen artwork. Everyone's lives seem to be intertwined, with the past bleeding into the present.The characters are each unique, struggling with their own demons as they find their way. Rose's writing easily dropped me into this made-up world and held me there until the last page.
    • 2/5
      This book was difficult for me to stick with. There are many, many characters to follow (some of which I found unnecessary) and twists and turns throughout the plot that I wanted to follow, but just couldn’t. I honestly think I might have been able to follow along better had it been an actual copy of the book. This was an e-book and I read it on my computer. I do think the premise of the book is interesting. Stolen art, reincarnation, mystery and intrigue…all things I usually like in a book. I will give it another chance, but I will definitely find a hard copy for that read.
    • 4/5
      Interesting and fast paced.
    • 4/5
      Lucian Glass is an FBI agent with the Art Crime Team, a long suffering artist, and a man damaged by not only his past but his job. Working though a recent head injury, headaches plague him along with dreams of unknown women and the love of his life --- a woman murdered at 19 years of age. Attacked in the same robbery where his girlfriend lost her life, Lucian lives with guilt over not being able to save her and surviving. That guilt pours over into his job tracking and retrieving stolen art. When he is pulled into a case involving his dead girlfriend’s family, his life takes one stumble after the other pulling him into a game with too many players all wanting the same thing.The Hypnotist is the third book in The Reincarnationist series. I haven’t read the two previous books: The Reincarnationist and The Memorist. As a standalone book, The Hypnotist worked but as a person who loves a series, I wished I had read the two earlier ones but was already into this one when I realized that was the case. Lucian is a tortured person and one who doesn’t seem to want much help either. As a character, he can be frustrating but it also lends him the sad artist persona, sketching away in his notebook trying to ease headaches that only cease when he’s frantically drawing women he doesn’t know. A sculpture with a mythical power that no one understands fully is at the center of the story but the focus is on its heist, however, I wanted to know more about what it could do. It was a part of the story I started to get into when it ended. In fact, a few of the story lines ended abruptly for me but also left me wondering if another book is in the works.I liked this book and moved through it fast. I’m a lover of museums and staring at art for no other reason than to admire its simple beauty and I found myself getting entranced by that aspect of the story. I haven’t been to the MET in years (much of the story takes places there) and this book made me want to go back. It also made me want to pick up the other two books to get the back story.I won this book through LibraryThing’s Early Reviewers Program. The ARC was downloaded as an ebook from NetGalley.
    • 3/5
      Lucian Glass has had a hard life. A talented artist, he is rocked by the death of his lover, Solange Jacobs in her father’s gallery. Mr. Jacob restored art and, after closing one evening; someone breaks in and steals a priceless Matisse, killing the girl in the process. Nearly killing Glass as well which might have been a blessing since he obsesses with Solange and cannot find a way to let her go. He is with the FBI Art Crimes Team and researches art theft, fraud, etc. Someone wants a statue that is in the care of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. A very, very old statue of Hypnos, the god of sleep. Nothing sleepy going on here, though. A group of folks called Resurrectionists, thinks the statue contains certain gems to help people recall their past lives. They will stop at nothing to get their hands on it, and some folks right in New York also want it for the same reason – it contains what they refer to as Memory Tools.The best way for Lucien to investigate the New York contingent is to pose as someone in need of help. The hypnotist he sees isn’t involved in the plot but is determined to help Lucian find his past lives. And find them he does.In a very interesting tale which is part of a series beginning with The Reincarnationist followed by The Memorist, we learn quite a bit about memory regression and if you are immersed in this it’s a great way to gain some knowledge. Rose has violence, murder, history and art all married into this novel and it works perfectly. I could not put this down until the final page and am now looking for parts one and two to satisfy my curiosity. Excellent work!
    • 4/5
      I read the first book in this series and thoroughly enjoyed it. The third book took me more time to get interested in the characters and by the time it had me hooked I was about ready to give up on it. The chapters themselves are short by the time you become invested in the character your reading about, the chapter ends and you're thrown into another character. It was easy for me to put the book down when I have to switch from one character to another so quickly. When I read I want to stay invested in the character. And with so many characters to "care" about at times it got a little confusing for me. Character hopping is not something I like to do.The plot itself was engaging. The central theme revolving around Memory Tools (tools to help people revisit their past lives) and the statue of Hypnos, a statue whose origin and ownership are greatly contested throughout the book. You don't have to read the 1st two books in the series to understand what's going on. But it helps to give a background. All in all, I finished the book and enjoyed the twist at the end. I became invested in the characters although it took way to long in my opinion. I would recommend this book if only to those who believe the idea of reincarnation is a fascinating topic.
    • 2/5
      I really wanted to like this one. Really interesting premise and the writing was excellent. But I couldn't handle the constant influx of new characters. When I finally thought I had gotten used to it, the author introduced the undercover name of the main character. Seriously, you couldn't live with 50 or so characters, you had to start giving them two names!? Interesting premise, good execution, but the raw number of characters was just too distracting for me to fully enjoy this.
    • 4/5
      This novel is the third in a trilogy. Having read the first two books, I was ready to delve into the third. While this book continues with the theme of reincarnation and revisiting the past lives, I didn't find it as instantly engaging as the others. That being said, once I got about half way through the book, I was hooked. Once you pass the mid-way point, buckle in for a heck of a ride. I have seen other reviewers say that it is unnecessary to read the first two books in the series, but I would advise against that. I don't believe the reader can develop a true appreciation for this story without the background.All In all I felt it was a satisfying end to a thrilling trilogy.
    • 3/5
      I read the first book in this series, The Reincarnationist, and really enjoyed the combination of past lives and modern day mystery. The idea of going back in time to witness events surrounding an ancient artifact is compelling especially set against the backdrop of human drama and tragedy. I did not read The Memorist, the second book, and while it did not detract from the main mystery I felt I had missed something. Despite this, the author does a good job of relating what's necessary to understand the relationships between the characters.In The Hypnotist, I connected right away with the main character but I felt the execution of the premise fell a bit flat. Some of the villains (middle eastern terrorists) seemed almost superfluous to the main storyline except as a device to introduce more suspense. I found that particular piece of the plot rather uninteresting. However, the main character was well drawn and the mystery of the memory tools hidden in various works of art was fascinating. I still enjoyed the past life regressions and the connections to present day events. The author leaves a certain amount of that unexplained and I find that makes it a bit more believable. The last 60 pages or so were a bit predictable but the resolution of the main characters personal mystery was still very satisfying. Recommend.
    • 2/5
      Received an Early Reviewers copy in 2010. Forgot to write my review earlier! The premise of the story in The Hypnotist is everything Iove about a book: timeslip, paranormal elements and hint of romance. Unfortunately, I just could not get onboard with the author's writing, which was too disjointed for my taste.
    • 4/5
      I've read all three in this series so far now, and find them quite uneven as to quality. The first, The Reincarnationist, was the weakest of the three by far. The pacing and plot were unimpressive, and it felt too much like a tract written to persuade the reader of the truth of reincarnation. Polemical books of any stripe just aren't as interesting to read, whether one agrees with the viewpoint they are espousing or not. In my case, I was wonderfully excited about reincarnation at age twelve when I discovered it. It seemed so much more sensible than heaven and hell decided by one short life. Now, at age 52, some days I believe it, some days not, but on all days the argument is not that attractive - feels too much like "been there, done that."The first book was about the theft of some gemstones from a burial vault dating to the late Roman Empire. The stones are reputed to allow people to remember their past lives. The next two books expand on the idea of these memory tools. In the 2nd book, The Memorist, the tool is a bone flute which Beethoven had for a while and hid. It is found and used to devastating effect, and then broken. In the third book, The Hypnotist, the tool is something hidden in an ancient statue of the Greek God Hypnos. The statue was found in Persia in the 19th century and lost in the bowels of a museum until the present. In each of the three books, there are bad guys desperate for the tools, who don't hesitate to kill for them. In the third book we find there is a list of the ancient memory tools, though it is not complete, but that there are 12 of them.The plots in the 2nd and 3rd books are much better, much more tightly written than in the first book. Although the three books are called a series, they are more related books than a series, as they focus on different characters with some carryover. Worth reading all three, although the read the first mostly for background. It is an interesting series and I'm looking forward to the next books in the series.
    • 4/5
      Welcome to spoilerville! Malachi is front and center again and this time presents as a malevolent figure, not a avuncular one. He’s still driven to steal another Memory Tool in hopes that he will manifest some kind of past life memory despite having not done so when the rest of the concert hall did when the flute was played for all of them and all hell broke loose. He’s so determinedly delusional. This installment has another convoluted plot involving past lives, buried memories and conspiracy. It was choppy and disjointed and I have to attribute that to its complexity. For example I still don’t know how Shabaz knew about the Hypnos statue and what it hid which was the reason for his decades-long art theft. I put the timeline together and it makes no sense. I enjoyed the book despite its faults. With novels like these you have to really suspend disbelief in order to go with the flow, but once in the flow it can be a lot of fun. There are others that follow these three, but I’ll be giving them a miss.
    • 3/5
      I received this as an e-book by way of Library Thing Reviewers.Allow me to begin by saying I had a slight disadvantage while reading this book because it is the second in a trilogy and I've not read the others. This caused me to be not as familiar with characters as the author presumes you to be. Having said that I still thoroughly enjoyed the book. I love a variety of plot lines tied up in one novel and The Hypnotist does not disappoint. It was an enjoyable, thrilling read and I will be sure to look for the rest of the trilogy.
    • 4/5
      Essentially the books in M.J. Rose's Reincarnationist series are romantic thrillers with past-life plot elements. Each novel focuses on a "Memory Tool," some historical artifact sought after as an aid to recovering past-life memories. The three books can each stand alone, so it's not necessary to read them in order or to read the others before this one. In 'The Hypnotist' the "MacGuffin" is a statue of Hypnos in the Metropolitan Museum of Art that brings together several characters who are associated with it through their past lives and others in the present-time storyline who are attempting to procure it. Recommended especially for fans of 'The Da Vinci Code' genre.