Book Description
Practical, real-world solutions to lockouts. Learn to open doorknobs, deadbolts, car doors, padlocks, handcuffs, et cetera. This book sold out as "Lock Bypass Methods," and has proven to be the best manual on keyless entry available. Since your resources are usually on the other side of the door when you're locked out, it shows how to improvise tools from garbage and common, everday items. Multiple entrance options are provided in case of stubborn doors or limited materials. Thousands of people have successfully opened doors using techniques they learned in "Lock Bypass Methods." This expanded edition has more illustrations and new techniques.
This book will not waste your time trying to explain how to pick sidebar locks, or activate magnetic-stripe readers without a key card. It DOES explain how to open doors protected by these locks, simply and without damage, through bypass techniques. A latch holds something shut, and a lock is a gateway to that latch. This book teaches ways to climb over the fence and ignore the gate. You will learn how to pick locks, a skill that works 60-70% of the time. More importantly, you will learn methods to trip actuators, move linkage rods, take advantage of mechanical design flaws, exploit tolerances in a lock's setting, and other practical means of entry.
The book's focus is on problem solving, not presenting methods that are too difficult to accomplish. Many other books in this field suffer from too much theory and too little delivery. If it doesn't work, it isn't in here. This book is designed to give the reader skills that open locks without keys or damage. It is not a whitewashed or glossed-over set of instructions that leave a reader feeling as if failure is his fault and he just hasn't developed some special esoteric talent. Difficulties encountered in opening methods are identified, explained, and solutions are given to cope with them. The book is clearly written and illustrated, and covers problem solving, how locks work, picking, bypassing, and tool making. If you are interested in opening locks without keys, you should have this book.
Customer Reviews:
Good ideas.......2007-03-09
Helped me understand various lock systems better. I appreciated the innovative ideas the author presented, many of which actually may have a hope of working in the real world. Definitely has a MacGyver-esque quality to it, without being hokey and completely unfeasible.
Far from easy ...........2004-12-09
I had been trying to open an old S&L moneybox for some time - the lock mechanism is "simple" per this book. Curiosity can be frustrating. I didn't want to spend any money on tools for a one off project (I ended up doing this and bought another book). The intellectual satisfaction was worth it. I'm interested in antiques so may get some payback for learning in the future. (I can now also open simple padlocks, and furniture locks, with an improvised tool in fairly quick time.)
The information on getting into a locked car is easy to follow; I knew some of this before buying the book but the process will be easier in future. The stuff on handcuffs also appears straightforward - if you use them for business or pleasure - I don't - this could be worth reading.
This is a practical book but hard work and requires practice. Worth reading if you have a real interest in locks and will practice. Not for beginers; I bought this book first then came back to it.
Just about there........2004-09-20
personally im only interested in picking locks and this book does help abit, but it focuses more on bypassing security systems and teaches you how.
the paragraphing is kinda compact and so are the instructions and diagrams for me- someone with little technical background.
a good read for the hot and lazy afternoon or those boring plane trips.
Informative book.......2004-02-25
Even though it is quite a small book, it's one that is highly recommended. Some of the items are obvious, while others are helpful and make you think about your surroundings or for just utilizing cheap alternatives to professional tools that might not be in your bag of tricks. For example, the author says to use a cut out of a clear 2liter bottle for a plug remover to hold the pins & springs, while seeing what is going on through the clear plastic. Neat idea and not obvious to all.
I'm just a novice at picking, but learning quite rapidly. There are exercises to improve your skills.
The only thing bad I can say about the book is the first chapter. Long winded, but basically states the following: 1) picking what you aren't supposed to is illegal and will get you into trouble, 2) don't be egotistical and show off to your friends thinking you can pick anything, and 3) practice practice practice, that's the only way you'll be proficient in lock bypassing & picking.
Lockpicking 301.......2004-02-12
This book ought to be the third level for someone who is interested in learning how to pick locks though it contains
information which may be useful to anyone. From this book one can learn how to develop and use a number of common items to unlock locks of a variety of sorts whether the lock be on a car or a house. Though I am not a locksmith, I have been practicing lockpicking for some time because somebody always forgets the keys. Conkel's book contains a number of ideas which will open locks easily which had never occurred to me.
Amazon.com
Oprah Book Club® Selection, August 2000: The narrator of Elizabeth Berg's Open House calls divorce "a series of internal earthquakes ... one after the other." She ought to know. Samantha is abandoned by her husband in the opening pages of this three-handkerchief special, and the resultant tremors keep her off-balance for most of the novel. There are practical problems aplenty, of course, including a shortage of money and an 11-year-old son to raise. But Sam's sense of emotional bereavement is far worse, despite the fact that her husband had been giving her the conjugal cold shoulder for years:
I miss David so much, yes I do, I miss the presence of another person in my bed at night, even if he doesn't touch me; the reliability of someone else being there in the morning, even if they only shave and stare straight ahead into the mirror while you lean against the bathroom doorjamb with your cup of coffee, chatting hopefully.
The loneliness in her "as constant and as irrefutable" as circulating blood, Sam begins to rebuild her life. She finds herself a job and takes in a couple of boarders to help meet her mortgage payments. (One of them, a depressed student named Lavender Blue, informs her that "life was nothing but one major disappointment after the other"--the sort of homily that Sam is understandably reluctant to hear these days.) She also starts dating, with disastrous results. Yet this comically kvetching heroine does manage to find love in the ruins, and by the time Open House winds down, it's hard not to believe that she's much better off. Throughout, Berg alternates her snappy and sappy registers like a real pro. And the conclusion, which most readers will be able to spot a mile off, seems just right--the light at the end of the post-matrimonial tunnel. --Anita Urquhart
Book Description
In this superb novel by the beloved author of Talk Before Sleep, The Pull of the Moon, and Until the Real Thing Comes Along, a woman re-creates her life after divorce by opening up her house and her heart.
Samantha's husband has left her, and after a spree of overcharging at Tiffany's, she settles down to reconstruct a life for herself and her eleven-year-old son. Her eccentric mother tries to help by fixing her up with dates, but a more pressing problem is money. To meet her mortgage payments, Sam decides to take in boarders. The first is an older woman who offers sage advice and sorely needed comfort; the second, a maladjusted student, is not quite so helpful. A new friend, King, an untraditional man, suggests that Samantha get out, get going, get work. But her real work is this: In order to emerge from grief and the past, she has to learn how to make her own happiness. In order to really see people, she has to look within her heart. And in order to know who she is, she has to remember--and reclaim--the person she used to be, long before she became someone else in an effort to save her marriage. Open House is a love story about what can blossom between a man and a woman, and within a woman herself.
From the Hardcover edition.
Download Description
Samantha's husband has left her, and after a spree of overcharging at Tiffany's she settles down to reconstruct a life for herself and her eleven-year-old son. Her eccentric mother tries to help by fixing her up with dates, but a more pressing problem is money. To meet her mortgage payments, Sam decides to take in borders.
The first is an older woman who offers sage advice and sorely needed comfort; the second, a maladjusted student, is not quite so helpful. A new friend, King, an untraditional man, suggests that Samantha get out, get going, get work. But her real work is this: In order to emerge from grief and the past, she has to learn how to make her own happiness. In order to really see people, she has to look within her heart. And in order to know who she is, she has to remember -- and reclaim -- the person she used to be, long before she became someone else in an effort to save her marriage.
Open House is a love story about what can blossom between a man and a woman -- and within a woman herself.
Customer Reviews:
A quietly moving story about the shattering of an ordinary life.......2007-06-12
Sam's world is turned upside down when her husband abruptly announces that he wants to leave. Since *she* was perfectly happy, being a stay-at-home wife and mother, Sam never imagined that David could possibly feel differently.
Once he's gone, Sam begins to experience a series of tiny internal breakdowns. As she's wondering what on earth to do next, one thing is for sure -- she's going to be the best mom she possibly can be to her 11-year-old son Travis.
But what happens when Travis says he'd prefer living with his father? And if his dad makes excuses not to have him?
Above all, how will Sam make it financially, living alone in a huge old house? She'll take roommates, that's how...and thus a series of unique characters sweep into the Morrows' lives.
Even if you haven't experienced divorce personally, chances are you'll relate to Sam anyways...because who hasn't experienced some sort of loss that devastates to the core? Through it all, Sam's voice remains consistent; even when horribly defeated and depressed, readers can't help feeling that Sam's life will turn out fine.
Good Book.......2007-05-12
This was a pretty good book,you really connect with the main character. It's sometimes funny, sometimes sad, and sometimes leaves you saying " you go girl!"
Open House.......2007-04-12
This book was good nothing to special about it. Very easy reading. Overall I did enjoy reading it but it wasn't like I couldn't put it down. Its a cute story of how a woman gets through and overcomes a divorce. It describes how she handles this situation with her 11 yr old son while inviting "strangers" to stay in her house and pay rent. I loved the ending, it was realisitc. I don't want to give it away though. :-) I recommend it to a women who is going through a rough realtionship.
Amazing contemporary characters .......2007-03-20
Elizabeth Berg crafts a beautiful novel with amazing characters. The audio version of this book adds a flair to the characters. I am pleased to report that I am looking foward to the rest of her work in the near future. Ms. Berg takes you through the pains and pangs of a sudden divorce, and the joy of finding true unconditional love. If you cant recognize any of these human qualities in this novel, clearly how are you going to recognize them in real life?.
Open house.......2007-02-25
This is another of those books for me that was very "middle of the road". It was not terrible and it was not great. It was a bit slow for my tastes and the characters were very ordinary.
Book Description
Rachael Ray's new Open House Cookbook provides a fabulous collection of tempting, easy recipes to entertain a crowd.
Customer Reviews:
A good party book.......2007-03-16
This is a good book for casual get togethers, especially pizza parties. I cannot say I have made anything from this book yet, but I do plan on using the pizza dough recipe in the near future. Rachael Ray has wonderful recipes in all of her books. I am looking forward to using some of the recipes out of this book in the near future, maybe for the up coming holiday.
Early Rachael Ray: 1999 Original Is Reprinted in 2005.......2007-02-24
I'm on a tasty journey licking my finger on hundreds of Rachael Ray's recipes in her many cookbooks. In the course of reading, using, and reviewing these cookbooks, I've been struck that the early Rachael Ray is different from the more recent work. Both have a lot to be said for them. The newest works are more sophisticated, appeal to a wider palate, use more ingredients, and are often daring in the way they simplify what most of us think of as very time-consuming dishes. Early Rachael Ray by comparison is full of family stories, traditional Italian cooking, and happy memories of days gone by when great meals united families and friends.
Rachael Ray's Open House Cookbook is as desirable an example of early Rachael Ray as you can hope for. Anyone who has ever had the pleasure of being invited for an Italian feast will recognize these dishes and the generations of love that create them for each new generation. Thanks to Rachael Ray's work in this book, you can now expect that these wonderful dishes will survive for yet another generation as she brilliantly takes the pain and agony out of such extensive preparations.
The book's first cooking section is called "Company's Company: Parties You Can Prepare and Attend." Around our house, having a party means my wife and I are either always in the kitchen or are carting things back and forth from the kitchen . . . unless we hire someone to help with the party . . . which gives the party a whole different feel that isn't necessarily a better one. The recipes are set to feed 20 or more, and to spread out the preparation and serving work so that it's not so overwhelming. Here's an example: An antipasto party begins two days before when you do the shopping; a day before, you do the heavy lifting of cubing, slicing, and chopping of ingredients . . . and getting the glasses and disposables ready to go; the day of the party, you make a topping and do a little work on two of the appetizers; two hours before the party, you make things that need to be fresh and platter your meats and cheeses; one hour before the guests arrive, you make one more dish and arrange platters and countertops. At the last minute, you make one other dish and cook your bacon-wrapped stuffed dates. Obviously, if you drop a dish or two, you can make the last minute even easier. Nice! Your party dish choices also include: pizza; tapas; and mix and match varieties of dips, spreads, pick-ups and entrees you can serve at room temperature (like beef tenderloin and two sauces). Invite me anytime you want to serve from this great cookbook!
At Home Sundays is the next action and looks at all three meals for Sunday. The breakfast choices are mostly what you would expect except for some tasty alternatives to French toast. Lunches are a zestier version of what you probably usually have. Suppers are where this section shines with recipes for dishes like I-Waited-All-Week Spaghetti Dinner, cioppino, and paella.
Home for the Holidays features comfort foods. These are basically the classics (stuffed artichokes, onion risotto, stuffed mushrooms, onion soup, figs and prosciutto, roast turkey with apple and onion stuffing, baked ham, prime rib, popovers, roast pork loin, brisket, leg of lamb, mashed potatoes (with flavorings), stuffed tomatoes, baked beans, standard vegetables with an extra zesty taste.
Dinner at Eight repeats some of the most popular 30-minute meals from The 30-Minute Meal with an emphasis on classic dishes.
Cooking Rookies is 21 pages of recipes for those who are over 12 with an adult helper. Recipes include pizza dough; four pizzas; egg sandwiches; baked chicken drumsticks; two kinds of tacos; simple take-out food and snacks; three dips; three desserts (including peanut butter kiss cookies); and some mocktails.
Just Desserts to me is the most charming section. Ms. Ray admits that baking isn't her thing; it's too much science and not enough art. So she always sticks to desserts that don't need baking. With that modest preamble, she shares 12 simple dishes that won't blow anyone away . . . but will satisfy those who want to indulge their sweet tooth at the end of a lovely meal.
Although the format isn't exactly in 30-minute style, everything here can be done pretty quickly. If you want a cookbook to make you look like a great party-giver without spending a lot of time, this is a great choice.
Enjoy her wonderful family stories as you savor the food!
Question.......2007-01-16
I've only given one star because of the following: I have a 2000 edition of a book with the same title and wonder if the 2006 edition is any different? When I try to "look inside," I'm taken to the 2000 issue...any help appreciated.
Rachael Ray's open house.......2007-01-10
I love all of her books. And if you need to tweak a recipe that is already so simple hers are easy to do it to. She speaks in plain english and measurments are easy.
Rachael Rays open house cookbook.......2007-01-10
This is a delightful book. I was able to use it over the holidays for many tempting treats for my guests and I look forward to using it over and over.
Customer Reviews:
Worth the money.......2006-07-03
I cannot say enough about this trompe l'oeil artist. I am a complete fan and have learned a ton from both this book and his book on trompe l'oeil panels.
Very pleased with my purchase........2005-08-27
If you like to learn new painting technics, and be inspired by others, this is a fantastic book.
Pretty, good book.......2000-11-19
This book is great for rendering faux marbles and some woods, but as a professional decorative painter, I was very disapointed with the level of artistry when it came to fieldstone, tortoise shell, and some others. It looked totally amaturish. Also, if you use watered down paint, as is recommended, you will have problems clearcoating without streaking your work. I have always found the use of glazing compounds a much better solution.
Excellent source for faux and mural reference material.......2000-05-06
This book is a wealth of information and ideas for my mural and faux business. The richness and unique faux wood and marble and not only beautiful to look at but the color samples and instructions are very good. The book demonstrates a very high quality of work and creativeness. It is a great book for ideas and resource material for the artist who does faux and mural work. It is a must for your reference library.
Excellent for experienced decorative painters.......1997-12-15
Originally published in French as a series of six books, `The Handbook of Painted Decoration' by Yannick Guegan and Roger Le Puil is an excellent reference book for experienced decorative painters. Yannick Guegan who authors the chapters on marble, wood, friezes and ornament has been in the business for thirty five years, has won numerous awards and is an excellent artist and teacher. Roger Le Puil, author of the chapters on basic patinas, finishes and forgotten techniques, is also an award winner, has painted extensively and has been involved with the French Association for Painting Training and the Paris Institute of Decorative Painting. The book consists of four hundred and fifty full colour pages of information, step by step demonstrations, and inspiring examples. This is a dense book; a lazy Sunday morning browse will only get you half way through it. Traditional European themes and techniques are emphasised with updated techniques for modern water based mediums. The finishes demonstrated are too numerous to be easily reviewed but I will say that the marbles are unique and dramatic, and the wood graining is fabulous. The Trompe L'oeil techniques demonstrated are basically architectural with a large section on fabric and drapery. I am prejudice but this book is beautiful enough to make a coffee table book for architects, designers, and artists of all kinds. It was a blind buy for me and I am not disappointed in the least by the book or by my first buying experience with Amazon. The book is well worth the price if you can learn from books and have enough experience to follow the examples.
Customer Reviews:
Nantucket cookbook.......2007-05-16
I bought it in 1984, then misplaced it, I liked the recipes, and with Summer coming, decided to by it again
Fantastic, Fresh & Fun Recipes!!.......2006-08-14
Ms. Chase has a fresh, innovative style in her writing and recipes. I enjoyed reading this book as well as trying out some of the yummy, creative dishes. As I was researching Ina Garten's website, I discovered that Ina herself finds this cookbook to be indispensible in her own food preparation and also in sparking her culinary creativity. If Ina says it's good, it's gotta be good!!!
Great Cook Book.......2006-08-05
What a great cook book full of good ideas for entertaining. The recipes are unique and easy to follow. This is a go-to book for potlucks and parties.
Happy again.......2006-07-12
I lost almost all of my cook book collection to hurricane Katrina. This is the book that I replaced first! I was so happy to find it here at Amazon since I have been looking for it for awhile. The recipes are those that I use over and over and they never fail to please.....Ms. Chase has a wonderful way with food that is both comforting and elegant. You will enjoy this book!
Perfect entertaining recipes.......2006-01-23
Looking for interesting foods, lush ingredients, reliable recipes? Sara Leah Chase has it in her blood; these recipes are perfect in their uniqueness, but are so do-able. The comments prefacing each recipe are helpful, and bring back many memories of my 15 Nantucket summers. Her recipes often include traditional foods with an inventive, flavorful twist. This book is also just plain enjoyable to read. Chase's attitude is Good Food + Warm Hospitality = Memorable Times. Best recipes: hummous, scallop puffs, swordfish kebabs, duck breast w/ grilled radicchio, cranberry-kumquat relish...and every dessert.
Average customer rating:
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The National Trust Manual of Housekeeping: The Care of Collections in Historic Houses Open to the Public
National Trust
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Environmental Management: Guidelines For Museums and Galleries (The Heritage)
ASIN: 0750655291 |
Book Description
The Manual of Housekeeping is essential reading for all those involved in the care of historic houses and their collections. Building on the success of bestselling earlier editions, this greatly expanded manual covers a wider range of subjects in greater detail and includes the very latest thinking on housekeeping theory and practice.
The National Trust gives detailed practical guidance on the care and maintenance of fragile interiors and the decorative fixtures, fittings and objects that contribute so much to their interest. In particular, this book highlights the ways in which preventative conservation measures can help reduce the need for expensive repair at a later date. It also explains how to strike the balance between the care and display of historic interiors and the provision for public access.
Written by internationally renowned specialists and produced by the National Trust, this book brings together many years of practical experience in the care of hundreds of internationally renowned historic houses and their collections.
*Expanded and beautifully illustrated, covering objects not in earlier editions - carriages, mosaics and tiles, natural history collections, plastics
*Explains how to care for objects in a house rather than in a museum environment
*Produced by the National Trust, based on its experience of caring for more than 300 internationally renowned properties
Book Description
Carla Wainwright was building a house - and a future - with the man she loved. But when he walked out of her life, she held on to her dream of the house....Now, with the help of a reluctant contractor, Jack Dugan, she sees her project - and her hopes - rise to new heights. And that's only the beginning for this special place - when Carla moves on, the dream house plays a role in the lives and loves of three other women: Ellen White, afraid to surrender to God's call to missions, prefers the safety of her career in interior decorating - until Paul Stoneman helps her discover the courage to walk through God's open door. Professor Angela Cooper finds the squirrel damage in the attic isn't the only repair she needs in her life. Can Kendall Tyler's bumbling efforts fix the hole in her heart? Winnie Wainwright's heart - like her home - has been battered by storms. Will Dan Parker be the handyman to mend her house...and her soul? These four stories of hope and healing will surely find a home in your heart!
Customer Reviews:
THE BEST INSPIRATIONAL ROMANTIC TALES I HAVE EVER READ.......2003-10-24
Built around the development of this house, four novellas are arranged by four authors who interweave them expertly. Each author brings with her a style and story intimately her own. I highly recommend this collection. Although I may be new to this genre, I LOVED this book! Several of the tales won Best Novellas of the year 2003 from the American Christian Romance Writers' Association.
Book Description
american Collection: Farmhouse Find the warmth and honesty of the farmhouse style with the 165 home plans featured in this book. Prospective homeowners can tour handsome finished homes for inspiration on building their own farmhouse plan.
Customer Reviews:
American Collection Farmhouse: 165 Home Plans.......2007-08-29
I feel the plans are very similar to plans already featured in other
books by Home Planners. The floor plans and exteriors are I believe
do not have the farm/country feel I was led to feel in the brief
description of the book. Most of the homes I could not imagine in
a "country,farm-like" setting.
Book Description
Master locksmith Steven Hampton, author of the best-selling Secrets of Lock Picking, takes the art of picking locks one step further with Modern High-Security Locks. Here, he collects some of today's most popular pick-resistant locks and sets out to see which ones hold up to their claims. However complex a lock gets, it must be durable, dependable and user-friendly. It has to be tough enough to endure physical attack, but it can't be machined too tight or it will jam up with just a breath of dust. It must be simple and easy to lock and unlock with its key, or the customer will not pay the higher price for it. It is this delicate balance between security and utility that allows the locksmith to open this new generation of locks. Hampton shows locksmiths how each lock is picked and how long it will take. He details the tools of the trade and includes patterns and instructions for making your own picks and tension wrenches. He even includes ancient Tibetan Buddhist tantric visualization exercises to help locksmiths learn to "see" the inner workings of the lock within the mind's eye. Veteran locksmiths or those new to the trade will find Hampton's latest book an invaluable sourcebook. For academic study only.
Customer Reviews:
Not bad, not great either.......2005-10-13
Most of the locks in the book are older and/or not very common. There is some good ideas for making tools though.
Really great, but not for the novice.......2004-11-07
A great book if you are interested in lockpicking, but is not intended for someone just starting to learn this craft. If you have already mastered the basics, this is a must follow-up. If this is your first time in picking locks, you should start with something more easy to follow (the easyer lock described in this book is the ABUS padlock, the toughest are some high security bank locks : almost unpickable, even for an expert).
excellent.......2004-09-20
a very comprehensive book that covers most of the high security locks that is out there in the market!
it is not for amateur lockpickers like myself though, it is more for the experienced lock picker who wants to move on to the next level of difficulty.
you can still learn a great deal from this book even if u know nuts about lock picking. the author explains in detail how to pick each high security lock that he has come across.
even though i cant pick them, the way that he describes it will give anyone a little bit more motivation.
good paragraphing and easy to read.
Lockpicking 201.......2004-02-12
After one has learned the basics of lockpicking... how a lock is made and what are the basic tools for lockpicking... (from Steve Hampton's _Secrets of Lock Picking) one soon finds out that not every lock pops open in 30 seconds or less. Now it is time to progress to the next level of lockpicking. In this book the rea-der will learn some new tools such as a road runner rim tension wrench and a monkey twisted-wedge diamond pick. Then it's on to tackle multiple row pin tumbler locks, key disc tumbler locks, even electronic key locks.
To master all of the locks mentioned in this book will take tons of practice but Hampton will show the way. However this book is only the sophomore level. There is more to learn.
Excelent Book.......2003-12-10
Excellent book filled with some of the highest security locks currently made - and exactly how the author picked them. Ever wanted to know how to pick a medico? This book will tell you how. The author plainly has an incredible amount of experience which he happily shares with the reader.
Book Description
When Inspector Appleby's car breaks down on a deserted road one dark night, he happens upon an imposing mansion, whose windows are all illuminated. His sense of curiosity gets the better of him when he discovers that the front door is wide open, and he gets a funny feeling of being watched as he wanders round this splendid house, looking for signs of life. When he finds an elaborate feast laid out, he wonders who is expected...
Customer Reviews:
Allusive, melodramatic English Manor mystery.......2004-04-03
"The Open House" (1972) is one of my favorite Sir John Appleby mysteries--a slightly hallucinatory murder mystery set in what at first appears to be a fully furnished, but abandoned English manor. When Sir John stumbles across the house after his car breaks down in the middle of a very dark night, its front doors are open wide, all of the lights are on, and there is a cold collation set out in the dining room, along with a bottle of champagne on ice. In the bedroom, there is even a hot water bottle tucked under the bedclothes--and it is still warm.
Sir John, retired Assistant Commissioner of New Scotland Yard, can't help feeling like Goldilocks in 'The Three Bears' when no one answers his shouted requests for assistance.
Michael Innes (J.I.M. Stewart) has been compared to James in his use of allusion and his exquisitely drawn characterizations, done mainly through dialogue. Also Jamesian is his loving, detailed description of Ledward Park. With all of the description and dialogue, you might assume there isn't much action but Appleby, in spite of his claims to be elderly involves himself in a couple of rousing chases and fights, one in an octagonal room that is completely lined with mirrors.
The plot is complicated by two sets of villains, but Sir John sorts everything out with his usual élan. South American politics, a multitude of heirs, an outrageous butler, and a false marriage, plus two accidental pummelings of a perfectly blameless rector are explained away by breakfast. In fact, Sir John toddles off with the rector, whom he had twice mistaken for a villain, and clarifies ALL in the best tradition of British Golden Age mysteries.
If you are a already a fan of Margery Allingham, Edmund Crispin, or Dorothy Sayers, you definitely need to add Michael Innes's mysteries to your reading list. "The Open House" is perfect in its class, and you will also learn quite a bit about Carolingian architecture.
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Visual Guide to Lock Picking (2nd Edition)
Opening Combination Padlocks: No Tools, No Problem
Modern High-Security Locks: How To Open Them
The Complete Book of Locks and Locksmithing (Complete Book of Locks & Locksmithing)
PXS-14 Fourteen Piece Lock Pick Set
