And All The Time It Was Me

The Firm by John Grisham

About the book: He thought it was his dream job. It turned into his worst nightmare.

When Mitch McDeere qualified third in his class at Harvard, offers poured in from every law firm in America. Bendini, Lambert and Locke were a small, well-respected firm, but their offer exceeded Mitch's wildest expectations: a fantastic salary, a new home, and the keys to a brand new BMW.

Except for the mysterious deaths of previous lawyers with the firm. And the FBI investigations. And the secret files.

Mitch soon realises that he is working for the Mafia's law firm, and there's no way out - because you don't want this company's severance package.

To survive, he will have to play both sides against each other - and navigate a vast criminal conspiracy that goes higher than he ever imagined.

The Firm is a 1991 legal thriller by American writer John Grisham. It was his second book and the first which gained wide popularity. In 1993, after selling 1.5 million copies, it was made into a namesake film starring Tom Cruise, Gene Hackman and Jeanne Tripplehorn. Grisham's first novel, A Time to Kill, came into prominence afterwards due to this novel's success. (Wikipedia)

About the author: Beginning with The Firm in 1991, John Grisham has published at least one No 1 bestseller every year. His books have been translated into 45 languages and have sold over 350 million copies worldwide. Ten have been adapted to film, including The Firm, The Pelican Brief, and A Time To Kill. His Theodore Boone series for young readers is now in development at Netflix.

Rating: 5/5

Anatomy Of Autumn Reading

The Exchange (The Firm Series) by John Grisham

About the book: #1 New York Times bestselling author John Grisham delivers high-flying international suspense in a stunning new legal thriller that marks the return of Mitch McDeere, the brilliant hero of The Firm (1991). What became of Mitch and Abby McDeere after they exposed the crimes of Memphis law firm Bendini, Lambert & Locke and fled the country? The answer is in The Exchange (2023), the riveting sequel to The Firm, the blockbuster thriller that launched the career of America’s favourite storyteller. 

Mitch McDeere has cheated death and come out the other side. Fifteen years ago, he stole $10 million from the mob and disappeared. Now, with his enemies jailed or dead, he has fought his way to the top of the biggest law firm in the world.

When a new case takes Mitch to Libya, danger awaits: he is soon in the biggest hostage negotiation in recent history with terrorists who have murdered and will murder again. Their demand is staggering: a ransom of $100 million must be paid within ten days.

But this is not a random kidnapping - it is personal. And no one, not even Mitch's wife in New York, is safe.

With the clock ticking, can Mitch stay one step ahead of his enemies? This time, there is nowhere to hide.

The Exchange is John Grisham's epic follow-up to his phenomenal global bestseller The Firm, the novel that launched his career as the world's favourite storyteller. It will take you on a rollercoaster journey across the globe, from New York to London, and Rome to Marrackech.

About the author: Beginning with The Firm in 1991, John Grisham has published at least one No 1 bestseller every year. His books have been translated into 45 languages and have sold over 350 million copies worldwide. Ten have been adapted to film, including The Firm, The Pelican Brief, and A Time To Kill. His Theodore Boone series for young readers is now in development at Netflix.

Rating: 4/5

Happiness No 1510

 

The Secret of The Rosary by Saint Louis de Montfort

About the book: Do you pray the Rosary well? 

With well over 5,000,000 copies sold, The Secret of the Rosary (1954, 2018) is one of the most beloved classics of Catholic literature as it teaches its readers this very important and spiritually vital thing. 

Written by St Louis de Montfort, this short and revelatory book describes the many mysteries of the Rosary and teaches us how to pray it with proper devotion to Our Lady and her son, Jesus Christ.  

St Louis discusses the numerous intricacies and beauties of the Rosary with topics like:

- Origins of the Rosary 

- Mysteries of the Rosary 

- Miraculous effects of the Rosary 

- Prayers of the rosary

St Louis’s humble but inspiring writing is the perfect way to reencounter the Rosary, or to try the devotion for the first time. A perpetual advocate for the Catholic Church’s honouring of the Blessed Virgin, St Louis reveals her love for the Church in a new way in his meditations on the Holy Rosary.  

St Louis de Montfort lived in the 17th century, but his many works of holy Catholic literature have lasted and grown in popularity, even till the present day. Author of the eternal classic, True Devotion to Mary, St Louis has been teaching the Church and its members valuable lessons about Marian devotion for centuries with enormous spiritual fruits to show for it.  With the holy instruction of St Louis, you cannot fail to appreciate the greatest gift of Mary - the Holy Rosary. With it, we are sanctified and brought into the presence of God now and at the end of our earthly lives.

The Secret of the Rosary is translated from the French by Mary Barbour TOP.

About the author: Louis-Marie Grignion de Montfort (1673-1716) was a French Roman Catholic priest and confessor. He was known in his time as a preacher and was made a missionary apostolic by Pope Clement XI. As well as preaching, Montfort found time to write a number of books which went on to become classic Catholic titles and influenced several popes. Montfort is known for his particular devotion to the Blessed Virgin Mary and the practice of praying the rosary. Montfort is considered one of the notable writers in the field of Mariology. His most notable works regarding Marian devotions are contained in Secret of the Rosary and True Devotion to Mary. The Roman Catholic Church, under the pontificate of Pope Pius XII, canonized Montfort on 20 July 1947. A "founders statue" created by Giacomo Parisini is located in an upper niche of the south nave of St Peter's Basilica.

Revelations: The Hidden Secret Messages And Prophecies Of The Blessed Virgin Mary by Xavier Reyes-Ayral

About the book: From 1846 to the present day, the Vatican has maintained quite the same message brought forth from Heaven by different messengers across time and across vast distances and continents. 

This message echoes the gravest of admonitions and calls mankind to convert and find refuge through the knowledge of the truth, which today threatens the very basis of world peace.

Today, the message of La Salette, La Fraudais, Tilly, Fatima, Garabandal, Akita and Medjugorje, and their secrets take a meaning of the greatest importance, as the admonitions brought forth by the Blessed Virgin Mary warn of a cataclysmic global disaster which has now become imminent. 

The Church's apprehension of frightening the masses, inspired inaction and Rome's decision to silence - founded more on fear than on caution - led millions of faithful to the darkness of ignorance and, therefore, to a lack of necessary conversion, prayers and intercession for peace. 

This book, Revelations: The Hidden Secret Messages and Prophecies of the Blessed Virgin Mary (2022) proposes unveiling the light and, thus, asking humanity to respond to the call of a warm and loving mother who merely seeks the salvation of her children.

His Holiness Pope Paul VI abolished Canons 1399, § 5 and § 2318 of the old Canon Law Code, which prohibited the publication of books relating to new apparitions, visions, prophecies and miracles, and which excommunicated their authors (14 October 1966 Decree of the Congregation for the Doctrine of the Faith, Acta Apostolicae Sedis, 29 September 1966, page 1186).

About the author: Xavier Reyes-Ayral is a French author who has worked since the 1990s on Marian apparition sites through books he published in France, Germany and Italy. Having, for a few years, briefly collaborated with world-renowned Msgr René Laurentin, Xavier Reyes-Ayral has continued to study apparitions of the Blessed Virgin Mary throughout Europe, Canada and Latin-America. 

In 2013, Xavier wrote and published in France as well a book entitled Héroïsme relating to the extraordinary World War II adventures of his uncle, Jean Ayral; a highly decorated Free-French officer, whose missions during the occupation and liberation of France have been recorded in the annals of the British and French intelligence services. 

Xavier Reyes-Ayral is today a fourth degree Knight of Columbus and Grand-Knight of his own council, and since Msgr Laurentin's passing away in 2017, has decided to write more books on Marian apparitions and on the extraordinary but alarmingly urgent messages they bring to an oblivious human society; unaware of the impending threats that are about to reshape the 21st century.

Evidence Of Satan In The Modern World by Msgr Léon Cristiani

About the book: Terrible noises, screeching voices, objects moving inexplicably, and the sense of a presence lurking, though there is no one to be seen.

Modern man tends to fall into two traps when considering Satan: many either ignore his existence or become enthralled with demonology. 

This classic book, Evidence of Satan in the Modern World (2022), heralded as one of the best ever written on demonic possession, offers chilling accounts of possessions, both dated and recent, and exorcisms that are strikingly similar, whether conducted in France, Italy, Vietnam, or elsewhere.

You will discover the signs of possession and how they differ from those of obsession and psychological illnesses. You will also learn the variety of evil spirits and how our minds are maliciously influenced through the media, eroticism, and “art.”

In these fascinating pages, you will also learn:

- How a young mother nearly died due to possession - and the remedy that cured her

- How dabbling in the occult, sorcery, spells, “healers,” and spiritualism could lead to possession

- The ways in which collective possession manifests itself (e.g., in atrocities under Nazism and communism)

- Techniques for arming yourself against the wiles of the devil and his manifold devices

- You will read about the gripping case of a young boy who, once freed from evil, was cured of deafness - and how his brother was delivered from possession through the intercession of the Immaculate Conception.

You will learn how the Evil One attacked St John Vianney - a master in prayer and one of the holiest confessors in Church history - with temptations and demonic infestations. Many witnessed his presbytery shake and heard horrifying sounds, especially when he would hear the confession of a great sinner the following day.

Amid our current crisis of truth, the Father of Lies is at work promoting various forms of atheism, which all lead to death. But Christ came to defeat the devil, wielding a crushing authority over evil spirits that is employed by His exorcists to this day.

Evidence of Satan in the Modern World (2022) is translated from the French edition, Présence de Satan dans le monde moderne (1959) by Cynthia Rowland. This book was published in England under the title Satan in the Modern World by Barrie Books Ltd in 1961. 

About the author: The Reverend Monsignor Léon Cristiani was a French priest who sometimes used the pseudonym Nicholas Corté. He was a prolific author of the twentieth century and wrote extensively on the reality of evil, possession, and spiritual warfare. His book Who is the Devil? is available from Sophia Press.

Autobiography of St Gemma Galgani edited by William Browning CP

About the book: The name of St Gemma Galgani is almost a household word among Passionists. But while her various biographers quote frequently from her writings, it is unfortunate that, so far as we know, none of St Gemma's own writings have ever appeared in English. It may even be a cause of surprise for some to learn that this humble and hidden Saint wrote a great deal. There are two large volumes of her writings published in Italian. One volume, Lettere di S Gemma Galgani contains 459 pages of her letters alone. Another, Estasi-Diario-Autobiografia-Scritti Vari di S Gemma Galgani contains 316 pages of her other writings. One does not have to read far in either of these volumes to be completely captivated by the simple and humble saint.

Gemma wrote her autobiography at the insistent request of Father Germanus CP who became her director in January, 1900, approximately three years before her death. The autobiography thus written in obedience to Father Germanus filled 93 pages of a notebook, all written in her own hand. It covers the years from her infancy until September 1900, when she was 22 years old. She began writing the autobiography on 17 February 1901 and finished it in May of the same year. Since she died two years later on 11 April 1903, it does not cover the last two years of her life. 

The manuscript copy of the autobiography still exists and is on display at Sts John and Paul in Rome. Gemma's beautiful handwriting is still plain, but a remarkable fact about the notebook is that every page has the appearance of having been burned. Father Germanus' explanation of this phenomenon is contained in the book.

Autobiography of St Gemma Galgani was first published in 1955 and republished in paperback in January 2022.

About the author: Gemma Umberta Maria Galgani (1878-1903), also known as Gemma of Lucca, was an Italian mystic, venerated as a saint in the Catholic Church since 1940. She has been called the "daughter of the Passion" because of her profound imitation of the Passion of Christ. She is especially venerated in the Congregation of the Passion of Jesus (Passionists). Galgani's relics are housed at the Sanctuary of Santa Gemma associated with the Passionist monastery in Lucca, Italy. Since 1985, her heart is housed in the Santuario de Santa Gema, in Madrid, Spain. Gemma Galgani's confessor Germano Ruoppolo wrote a book about her. (Wikipedia)

Mysteries Made Visible: Praying the Rosary with Sacred Art by Fr Lawrence Lew

About the book: This glorious work will help you to pray the Rosary more deeply with Father Lawrence Lew’s stunning photographs of sacred art, which in turn inspire his rich contemplations of each of the 20 Mysteries of the Rosary. 

The profound words and beautiful images in this book make the 20 Mysteries that we contemplate on the life, death and resurrection of Christ more vivid and real.

Beginning with a foreword by the Master of the Order, Fr Gerard Francisco Timoner III OP, this combination of scriptural meditations and lovely art will help all - those who pray the Rosary faithfully and those who struggle with this devotion - to pray with deeper reverence and understanding.

About the author: Lawrence Lew OP is a Dominican friar and serves as Prior, Parish Priest, and Rector at the Rosary Shrine at the Priory Church of Our Lady of the Rosary and St Dominic in Haverstock Hill, London. He earned his License in Sacred Theology from the Dominican House of Studies in Washington DC. He is currently appointed to the General Curia of the Dominican Order as the Promoter General for the Holy Rosary. He is an avid photographer, and his photos are regularly featured on book covers, in magazines, and in online publications.

Massacre

Grateful For The Moments

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Happiness No 71023