Silver Monk Time - A Tribute To The Monks - Various Artists

Advantages: Dark lustful devilry, excellent story telling.
Disadvantages: It is the only book written by Mathew Lewis.

...A real masterpiece of gothic fiction; it is my all time favourite read. The Monk offers a dark and intriguing insight into human nature through the lustful desires of a popular and much admired Capuchin monk. There are many stories that tie into one and it is very pleasing when you reach the end of the book to see them and the characters come together. It is my favourtie method of excitement in story telling to leave you wondering as you move onto a different story or character perspective. It is also all the more intriguing and satisfying at the conclusion as the writer; Mathew Lewis uses parrallels in the different stories as a way of foretelling things to come. I don't want to give too much of the plot away as I enjoyed the mystery of its direction. I am looking forward to rereading it as I believe I will enjoy it all the more now... Read review

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Advantages: An amazingly written, addictive read.
Disadvantages: -

...also indebted to Matthew Lewis. The fact that it does not rank alongside the likes of Dracula and Frankenstein is perhaps due to the fact that Lewis never wrote any other popular fiction, or more likely is a result of the anti-religious (and particularly anti-Christian) nature of the story. It is easy to see why The Monk created such a sensation at the time of its first publication back in 1796. Even some of today's readers may be shocked at some parts of it. What is less easy to understand is why it is not regarded in quite the same bracket as other classics of the genre. It's the best gothic novel I have ever read, better even than the marvellous Vathek. One small note of caution: If you buy the Dover Thrift edition (very reasonably priced on Amazon) DO NOT READ THE BACK for it gives a full synopsis of the plot right up until... Read review

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Advantages: Really, really gory; nice moves and cool fatalities; lots of extras, especially for MK fans.
Disadvantages: Unimpressive visuals; hammy voice acting; can become repetitve; short story.

...only if you do so yourself. If you use any of the numerous environmental hazards, you get squat. Experience points can be used to purchase new special moves and combos, and there are a pretty good number of them available throughout the game. There are even a few team moves you can pull off when playing in co-op. Even with the upgrades and combos, the basic combat is pretty simplistic. Apart from the tougher boss fights near the end, all you really need to do is smash your way through enemies, sometimes stopping to block or uppercut a bad guy into a puzzle-based trap from time to time. This doesn't make boss fights bad, just more challenging. Shaolin Monks is a fairly simple beat-'em-up that turns MK moves into one-to-two-button mashes. Most of the basic attacks and combos can be strung together by simple button pressing but there... Read review

Ciao members have rated this review on average very helpful