PROFESSIONAL BOOK REVIEWS

To access all posts on this blog: https://digitalbloggers.com/articles/elysiumspassage
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Through a miscommunication with the publisher, an earlier version of the book were sent for professional review before final editing and proofing. This was a little annoying and embarrassing to me since I've spent five months working to complete the novel and make final corrections so it would be at its best.
In spite of this, the reviews were, I think, were more favourable than I expected since the novel was not being completed. I was disappointed, however, that some of the major facts in the plot were badly misrepresented. In fact, very far off the mark, which is a bit concerning considering these reviewers are supposed to be professionals.
In any case, the book is to receive new professional reviews now that it is completed. That could be a few months yet.
BLUEINK REVIEW
Elysium’s Passage: The Summit N. G. Meyers iUniverse, 502 pages, (paperback) $26.99, 978-1-5320-2308-8 (Reviewed: October, 2017)
A fusion of philosophy, fantasy, and spiritual speculation, N.G. Meyers’ novel is comparable in theme and tone to Carlos Castaneda’s landmark books that revolve around the author’s metaphysical journey into the spirit realm with the help of his teacher Don Juan, a Yaqui shaman. In Elysium’s Passage, the first instalment of Meyers’ Elysium saga, the narrator is James Phillips, a London philosophy professor. Disenchanted with his existence, Phillips decides to travel to Chile during a university holiday and climb to the summit of a remote mountain in the Andes. After a fall nearly kills him, his spirit embarks on a journey that ultimately leads him to his divine Self and existential enlightenment. Ever the skeptic, Phillips at first finds his “new reality” hard to believe. While his comatose body is back in a London hospital bed after a helicopter fatefully spotted it while flying overhead, his essence is at the Summit existing in a log cabin with two enigmatic beings, Eli and Mo, who are teaching Phillips about the true nature of the universe and his unique place in it. Mind-blowing statements and speculation (“…everyone is a non-physical thought form conceived in the Mind of God, preserved for all eternity because God’s thoughts never die…”) ultimately lead Phillips to accept his situation and, at novel’s end, he’s ready to reenter his body. This is a deep read—in other words, a novel not to be tackled quickly. Because of the plethora of abstract ideas and the almost complete lack of any significant action, pacing suffers mightily in some spots. Those seeking nonstop action and adventure will want to seek their literary kicks elsewhere. Readers who enjoy their literary escapism mixed with a heaping helping of philosophy and allegory, however, will find Meyers’ journey up the Mountain intriguing—and possibly even life-changing.
FORWARD CLARION REVIEW
Elysium's Passage: The Summit N.G. Meyers iUniverse (Jun 14, 2017) Softcover $26.99 (518pp) 978-1-5320-2308-8
This first book in a series raises questions that have echoed throughout the ages but whose answers remain elusive. Elysium’s Passage: The Summit by N. G. Meyers follows a philosophy lecturer’s physically challenging and mind-bending climb up a mountain in search of wisdom. As the main character, James, struggles to break free from his work rut and his confusion about forging authentic connections with women, he literally and figuratively tumbles off the edge into a chasm. His spirit separates from his mangled body, which is recuperating in a London hospital. He spends time in a spiritual “paradise,” searching for greater understanding, meaning, and happiness. In a situation that moves like a “crazy dream,” James is called to leave the “Lowlands” and seek higher grounds, where he can experience deeper awareness. Two mountain guides, Mo and Eli, mysteriously appear; they offer food and lodging while raising critical points about self-discovery and the importance of leaving mistakes in the past. Written in a confessional style, the book focuses on James’s world-weariness, leftover from his days spent marking term papers and dealing with “incompetent” university administrators engaged in power struggles. James is an often unlikeable character if he is also aware of his own shortcomings. He knows that his objectification of women makes them bristle but remains befuddled about his lack of meaningful relationships. Still, it is taxing work to push through the narrative’s constant references to women’s physical appearances and James’s egotistical assessments of his personal and professional prowess. Educational footnotes and appendices about famous philosophers ground this summit-in-the-clouds tale, packed with interesting information about Carl Jung, Friedrich Nietzsche, Albert Einstein, Thomas Mann, and others. Terms such as “solipsistic” are also defined, providing a useful foundation for the book’s ongoing inquiries into, and comparisons of, physical versus spiritual lives. The epilogue reveals that this first of five books is a “long introduction” to an “ongoing story” without a clear ending. At the conclusion of this book, enlightenment remains elusive. In its effort to grapple with fundamental questions about the meaning of life, it raises questions that have echoed through the ages, including about where we come from, where we are going, who we are—and whether we are truly able to find contentment. In a fitting allusion to Sisyphus pushing his boulder, James struggles to the end to find answers. During his surreal free-fall into a new level of consciousness, he discovers that fear of failure drives his swagger. With the promise of a new woman on the horizon, upcoming books may determine whether James can find greater happiness when his spirit is reunited with his body. ANDREA HAMMER (October 12, 2017)
KIRKUS REVIEW
ELYSIUM'S PASSAGE N.G. Meyers iUniverse (518 pp.) $26.99 paperback ISBN: 978-1-5320-2308-8; June 14, 2017 BOOK REVIEW
A debut novel tells the story of a jaded philosopher’s journey in a symbolic otherworld. Dr. James Phillips, a London-based philosopher and professor, has been drifting through life mostly on snark and self-satisfaction. Then a strange dream shakes him from the stagnation of his routine: a voice encourages him to leave the Lowland, climb the Mountain, and reach the Summit. Unrelatedly (in James’ mind, at least), the professor elects to travel to a remote peak in the Chilean Andes in the hopes of making it to the top. In that wilderness, he meets two unexpected strangers, Mo and Eli. (“Short for Moses and Elijah,” notes James. “Those were the two with Jesus on the Mount of Transfiguration.”) The pair provides James with food and lodging, displaying a deep interest in his quest and a preternatural knowledge of his dream. Though James is highly suspicious of them, they insist on sharing with the professor their challenging views on the nature of reality, rationality, and the wrong ways that he has been looking at the world. Most surprisingly, they reveal to James that he has transcended to a spiritual plane; while climbing the mountain’s upper section, he fell into a chasm and his soul separated from his comatose body. Now, to return to his body, he must reconnect with the philosophy he purports to teach. “And that, James, is why you are here,” reveal his ghostly mentors “to KNOW THYSELF!” Meyers writes in a dense, scholarly prose that mimics the bookish voice of his narrator, laden with verbose descriptions and literary allusions (“The dream came to me as a flicker of light, dimly shining through the cracks of my broken life. A line in Leonard Cohen’s lyrics from “Anthem” speaks of how the light enters through the crack. And Rumi, the Persian Sufi poet, made a similar observation centuries ago: the wound is the place where the Light enters”). This is a philosophical novel, which means that its cerebral dialogues and emotionally flat characters are pretty much par for the genre. Even so, the didactic book’s profound length (nearly 500 pages) and achingly slow pace will make this a difficult read for all but the biggest fans of Robert M. Pirsig and Hermann Hesse.
My response: Yes, maybe so, but it's not that difficult once you take the plunge.
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READER REVIEWS
The following comments are from readers including the first Amazon reviews of Elysium’s Passage: The Summit. All are Five Stars! To read the full reviews, go to READER REVIEWS on this blog at www.elysiumspassage.com
"Quietly, gently, and without imposition, the Author unfolds the pages, creating an intricate, interlocking bridge spanning the chasm between mind and heart. Renewing, refreshing, restoring. In my bereavement, it was vigil and light…"
"A delightful mix of fantasy, reality, conjecture and humour; Mr Meyers draws the reader into the story with a gentle narrative that captures the imagination, leaving one anxious to get to the next page drawing you into his exceptional world.”
“Excellently written with an exceedingly deep understanding of this world and the next. The characters are very well written and engaging. I can't wait to complete this book!"
“Takes the reader on both a philosophical and spiritual journey, a journey that at times is both disquieting and tranquil. James, a British Philosopher can be irreverent and caustic, traits that should have left me cringing, but instead made me laugh out loud. Elysium’s Passage is a fun, enlightening and remarkable book.”
“This is a masterful fantasy, becoming a real possibility, as the reader is drawn into the story. The Summit leaves you anxious for the next book in the series, yet also leaves you totally satisfied with the world you have just visited. Genius! An exciting, yet calming, experience that is not to be missed."
"There was hardly a page on which I did not find at least one sentence worthy of hi-lighting for future reference. In addition, I thoroughly enjoyed the main character, James, whose personality and passionate verbal exchanges with the other characters, kept me coming back for more. I am reading the book for a second time while I wait for the next one in this series to be made available."
“N.G. Meyers has clearly put a great deal of research and thought into what the afterlife may look like and I like his perspective. It’s an altogether welcoming and exciting vision. The book gives one a great deal to think about and a reassuring confidence that the end of our lives is truly the beginning of life in the next. I highly recommend it."
“The humour interjected into a serious discussion makes me laugh out loud. Totally unexpected....l may be in the presence of at least a master, if not a genius. A fair ride into reality... seeking that which is unseen, yet absolutely real.”
“An engaging story of adventure embracing man's deepest desire to search for meaning and purpose, N.G. Meyers takes the reader on an adventurous thought-provoking journey. This book has substance. It is a perfect blend of adventure and fantasy combined with spiritual philosophy. It ignited my imagination. The author magically weaves a good story laced with wit and humour together with deep philosophical wisdom. This book has it all!”
“An evolution in thought is triggered by many fresh philosophical themes which could inspire readers to re-think their reality and former ideologies that have dictated their lives… the author fires readers’ imaginations to view what could be possible when spirit vacates the body.”
“This is the book spiritual seekers have been waiting for. For me, it granted a great read as well as increased inspiration to live every day with a heightened sense of purpose. I highly recommend it.
“The Summit is capable of hooking readers and luring them to search for Book 2 to discover more about Dr. Philip’s surreal trek into the mysterious unknown universe. This thick book is well worth the read and to share…”
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PENDING PUBLICATION OF ELYSIUM’S PASSAGE SERIES
Amazon in 2024
THE ASCENT: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
THE SUMMIT: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
QUANTUM LEAPS: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
SURREAL ADVENTURES: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
MYSTICAL ROMANCE: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
THE ELIXIR: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
THE RETURN: Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage
1. The Ascent is the first novel in the Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage that’s foundational to everything that happens in the following narratives that embark on an adventure that will surprise and delight the reader like no other book.
It all begins with an extreme adventure of climbing a remote and challenging mountain somewhere in the Andean Mountains. Just as James, the protagonist, is about to reach the mountain summit, he falls into an abyss that leaves him in a coma for almost a year.
After being airlifted by a forestry helicopter and flown back to London, where his body remains for almost a year. Eventually, he learns it was not him but his body that was rescued. Several days later, without understanding what happened, he continues to climb to the summit in an alternate dimension of higher consciousness.
Fortuitously, he meets two adventurers on the summit ridge who are no longer of this world. After that, his surreal life leads him to several new adventures in the subsequent chronicles that include a rich mix of adventure, romance, and fantasy, along with profound discussions of philosophy, spirituality and the afterlife.
2. The Summit, the second novel in the Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage, carries on where James, the narrator and protagonist, is taught more about a multidimensional reality that he finds difficult to comprehend.
Not only does he find he’s not as clever as he imagined, but his off-world companions on the summit demonstrate that much of what he believed about life was not just parochial but wrong. At first, he finds this difficult to comprehend since their teachings are contrary to his limited understanding of non-material reality.
After being tricked into teleporting off a ledge where he was trapped, James becomes aware of the new reality that makes him capable of far more adventures than could have ever been experienced previously in his physical body back home.
Now, if only he would win over the only woman in this life who matters, the nurse on the other side of the veil, who continually demonstrates her unconditional love toward his healing.
Warning: This book may also open the reader’s eyes to a much vaster reality than most might be aware. As with the other Chronicles, there are discussions of philosophy, the spiritual afterlife and what might seem like fantasy.
3. Quantum Leaps is the third novel in Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage, where James, the philosopher-protagonist, teleports back to London to visit his body and make contact with the special nurse taking care of it in his absence. Immediately, he feels an inexplicable spiritual bond with her for reasons he remains unaware of.
Now aroused by a renewed interest in matters of love, the beginnings of a relationship begin to emerge as he attempts to reach across the chasm of their worlds. But it’s not until the fifth novel, Mystical Romance, that he encounters her in a way that he finds difficult to believe.
However, before that can happen, there is much about his failed relationships that must be resolved before he is ready to move forward in his new life in Elysium’s Passage. It is during this time he christens his comatose body as the fall guy since it took the fall for him down the abyss so he could learn the lessons he’s now learning.
That will be the next focus of his life, where in his next Surreal Adventures, he is given virtual lessons to release many of his past beliefs about life.
4. Surreal Adventures is the fourth novel in the Chronicles of Elysium’s Passage, which finds James, the protagonist and narrator, escorted by his companions to a remote South Pacific Island, where he is left to reflect on what he’s learned.
During the next forty days, he battles the demons of his past as he works through some rather painful issues from his early youth. Here, in a tropical storm, he encounters an eery suspended spectre of the one he loved yet still resents for abandoning him as a child.
After this, he achieves peace of mind and is ready to return to his lodge to join his off-world companions on the Andes summit. However, just when it seemed things couldn’t get any stranger, a sixteenth-century sea captain sails his ancient ‘ghost’ ship onto the beach. Together, they sail off on a mystical ocean voyage to a couple of virtual islands supposedly in the South Pacific, where he witnesses and, at times, participates in several important life lessons.
Near the end, these encounters help prepare him for a new challenge within the interior of a mountain, where he falls deep into a dark tomb of fear. After being rescued by a mysterious stranger wielding his Excaliber, he continues on to where his life is about to be transformed in the following chronicle, Mystical Romance.
5. Mystical Romance is the fifth chronicle in Elysium’s Passage, which will surprise the reader with a romantic twist of how love is expressed in higher realms. From this lofty perspective, everything about intimacy is understood as within, so without.
After escaping his tomb, James, the narrator and protagonist, makes his way through a maze of tunnels until he arrives at a large oak door, which he opens with the golden key he had been given. There, he steps into Elysium’s Passage’s Great Hall, where his life and recent achievements are celebrated now that his eyes have been opened to perceive a fascinating interior world of wonderment… and romance.
To say more might risk diminishing the multitude of delightful surprises as circumstances begin to open to The Elixir, where James is about to re-enter his earthly body’s existence.
6. The Elixir is the sixth chronicle of the Elysium’s Passage series that prepares James, the narrator-protagonist, to awaken and return to his body in London. Before that can happen, however, his off-worlder friend presents a mysterious equation enshrouded with a light code frequency that will stimulate multidimensional DNA strands within him.
Much of this narration is centred in London, where his nurse unknowingly becomes involved in how the Elixir’s equation finds its way from a taxi cab driver to higher echelons of science. There are many twists in how she unwittingly brings the Elixir to the attention of mathematicians and physicists, after which they eventually discover how to code the equation into a laser ray to stimulate his fall-guy body into full consciousness.
Ostensibly a new Adam, he is destined to return humanity to a higher multidimensional existence. How this happens is filled with intrigue, as is his shocking return to his earthly body.
7. The Return is the seventh and last chronicle in the series where James, the narrator and protagonist, has re-emerged from Elysium’s Passage as he readjusts to life in the third dimension. Many of the events experienced in the previous novels are tied together in an exciting, fast-moving, action-packed narrative over several countries.
At first, it seems all memories have been lost, with his fall guy’s brain not being aware of what happened to him while in his coma. As a consequence, it takes a while for him to be convinced he had been out of his earthly body for almost a year.
Through some rather unexpected events and evidence, along with his girlfriend’s urging, he is brought to an awareness of much of what occurred. It takes a while for his mind to catch up with the changes made in his heart during his stay in the alternate realm. But after experiencing several harsh realities, he discovers what he became within while out of his body. Gradually, he comes to understand the many challenges that lie ahead for him in fulfilling his future mission on Earth.
This book is filled with adventure, romance and personal intrigue that ties together all six previous narratives of the Elysium’s Passage series.
CONTACT INFORMATION
WEBSITE: www.elysiumspassage.com
FACEBOOK: Elysium's Passage Novel Series, Elysium's Passage Public Group page, Elysium's Passage Author's Page, or to my personal page Neil Meyers
INSTAGRAM: meyersneil
LINKEDIN: Neil Meyers
EMAIL: nmeyers@shaw.ca
BLOG POSTINGS: https://digitalbloggers.com/articles/elysiumspassage or the Elysium's Passage website
YOUTUBE: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCXpzFH6VNMQLOtqOK2SrXpg
PRESS REVIEW: https://www.prweb.com/releases/2018/05/prweb15515775.htm
* Also, if you wish to read about the series' intriguing Back Story, I invite you to write to me at nmeyers@shaw.ca and request your free ebook How it Came.
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