Showing posts with label cadence of gypsies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cadence of gypsies. Show all posts
The Clock Flower (The F.I.G. Mysteries Book 3) by Barbara Casey
Cashmere JL

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Book Description

Dara Roux, abandoned when she was seven years old by her mother. 
Exceptionally gifted in foreign languages. Orphan. 
Accepted to Yale University. 

Mackenzie Yarborough, no record of her parents or where she was born. Exceptionally gifted in math and problem-solving. Orphan. 
Accepted to MIT.

Jennifer Torres, both parents killed in an accident when she was sixteen. 
Exceptionally gifted in music and art. Orphan. 
Accepted to Juilliard.

The three amazing FIGs-Females of Intellectual Genius-as they are known, have graduated from Wood Rose Orphanage and Academy for Young Women after returning from their action-packed trip to New York City. In book 3 of The FIG Mysteries, Mackenzie-due to her exceptional genius at problem solving-is personally chosen to work on a top-secret project. The goal: immortality. The exotic location-a remote village in China-is uncannily close to the archaeological site where Dara is working. Is this just a coincidence? After her arrival, Mackenzie must not only get to the bottom of an impossible mystery, but must also face the razor-sharp claws of an ancient, blood-thirsty dragon. Her closest friends-the FIGs and Carolina-must rely on their unique genius and remarkable talents as they race to save Mackenzie as she tries to discover the heart-stopping truth about her birth parents

Book Review

The adventures of Dara, Mackenzie and Jennifer continue in this third book of the F.I.G. mysteries. This time round Mackenzie is chosen to lead a project that is top secret and may lead to amazing advancements in the field of science. The project is based in China. Dara is being asked to help out at an archaeological site which is also in China. There is no doubt that both Carolina and Jennifer will accompany them there.

The trip is overshadowed with a warning of danger for Mackenzie sent out by Carolina's gypsy mother in Italy. She needs to be protected from the dragon who means her bodily harm. Will her friends be able to keep Mackenzie safe, even as her genius shines in solving the problems of her secret research project?

There are old friends from New York revisited, and Carolina's boyfriend is again trying to run to their rescue as soon as his Gypsy senses twitch. The discovery of Mackenzie's origins and family was interesting. 

I enjoyed reading the book, there were a number of twists and turns that led to you wondering what was coming next. Although I could have done with a little less of the repetition from the first couple of books. For someone following the series it was boring, however I suppose for someone who picks up the book as a standalone, it would be fine.

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UPDATE ON THE VOYNICH MANUSCRIPT IN THE CADENCE OF GYPSIES By Barbara Casey
Cashmere JL
GUEST POST BY BARBARA CASEY


One of the major themes in The Cadence of Gypsies involves the Voynich Manuscript, considered to be the most mysterious document in the world. Dara, Mackenzie, and Jennifer, the three teenage orphans who call themselves the FIGs (Females of Intellectual Genius), travel to Italy to help their teacher, Carolina find out what the connection is between a letter she received supposedly from her biological parents on her 18th birthday and the Voynich Manuscript. That was also when she learned that she was adopted.
In reality, the Voynich Manuscript is believed to date to the early 15th century, possibly from northern Italy. It is named after the book dealer Wilfrid Voynich, who purchased it in 1912.
The original manuscript is composed of 240 vellum pages, most with illustrations which seem to present information about aliens, and plants and their possible uses for medical purposes. However, most of the plants do not resemble any known species. And even though the Voynich Manuscript has been studied by many professional and amateur cryptographers, including American and British codebreakers from both World War I and World War II, the manuscript's script and language has remained unknown and unreadable.
Now, once again the Voynich Manuscript is in the news as scientists have attempted to use the power of artificial intelligence to unlock its ancient secrets. The first stage of the research was working out the manuscript’s language. The experts used 400 different language translations from the “Universal Declaration of Human Rights” to identify the language used in the text. Initially, it seemed like the text was written in Arabic, but the researchers’ algorithms revealed that the manuscript is written in Hebrew. The next step will be to decipher it using ‘alphagrams’ that use one phrase to define another in order to build an algorithm to unscramble the text.

Interestingly, while this is taking place, Viekko Latvala, a businessman from Finland who professes to be a “profit of god,” says he has decoded the manuscript, describing the written characters as “sonic waves and vocal syllables.” He believes the creator of the Voynich Manuscript was a scientist of plants, pharmacy, astrology, and astronomy, and that the Voynich Manuscript contains prophesy hundreds of years ahead of the time it was created.
And so, the mystery continues…

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