Tuesday 31 March 2009

A New Bestseller By Andrew Hicks


A Fulani axe, the murder weapon.


BOOK REVIEW

“THE KANDINSKY LODE” by Andrew Hicks

Review by Dustin Caldwell embargoed for publication, 1st April 2009.

Andrew Hicks’ new book, “THE KANDINSKY LODE” is notable for reaching far beyond the literary range of “Thai Girl”, his first bestselling novel and “My Thai Girl and I”, a romantic confection of life in rural Thailand.

In a virtuoso exhibition of versatility, “The Kandinsky Lode” weaves a compelling narrative at many multi-textured levels which both entertains and informs. Themes of early Christianity are explored throughout, including the key proposition that myth and religion are inseparable as a conservative continuum and that Emperor Constantine’s ‘acquisition’ of Christianity led to the dominance of a highly assertive religio-political hierarchy.

In Hicks’ story, Desmond Jones, an accountant, lives with his wife Molly in their suburban house in Surbiton in the south of England. One day Des is disturbed to find their lodger, Augustus Dernit, dead in his room, empaled on his computer table by an antique Fulani axe. Nothing has been stolen except an ordinary Toshiba laptop.

The discovery leads Des into a terrifying quest for the hidden secrets of the ancient church during which he comes to fear for his sanity and for his very life. Gussie, as Dernit was known, had managed in his dying breath to leave some vital clues. Des pursues these with an accountant’s zeal, following many blind trails, but revealing truths that no ordinary accountant could ever imagine.

He learns that Gussie had been receiving a series of pop-ups on his computer screen, apparently from an extra-terrestial source. One that popped up just before his murder which he wrote in blood across his desk reads, ‘Iti sapis potanda bigo ne!’

After much research among Gnostic archives, Des discovers this loosely to mean, ‘That’s my story and I’m sticking to it!’ Could these words, he speculates, be attributed to the Virgin Mary herself?

Pursuing his search for the ‘Divine Toshiba’, the key to the mystery, Des is intrigued by repeated numerical references in Christian writings… the Ten Commandments, the Seven Deadly Sins and the Thirty Nine Articles to name but a few. Could God himself be an accountant who has made Desmond in his own image with a special role to play on earth?

And how, he asks, could Saint Peter on Judgment Day have sufficient data processing capacity to call up spread sheets of sins and good works without causing unacceptable queues at the Pearly Gates?

Then Des himself starts getting celestial emails from above. Extraordinarily, he seems to have replaced Gussie as God’s chosen intermediary on earth. These divine messages tell him that Jesus had a twin brother, named Judas Thomas, who was brought to France by Joseph of Arithmetea (sic) accompanied by Maximinus, one of the seventy two disciples who later became the first bishop of Aix. Des again is fascinated by the numerical references… even the name Aix contains the Roman numeral nine.

The emails continue, leading him to an obscure symbologist, Joseph Kandinski who is obsessed with finding the modern equivalent of the lode stone and the art of alchemy. Could the answer be the silicon chip, the modern source of fabulous wealth? Then the messages start referring obliquely to the Second Coming of Christ, to the multiple filial phantasm and the sacred messianic emanation.

From their joint researches they soon discover that the second coming is not in the person of Christ himself but of his resurrected twin, Judas Thomas who remarkably is already present upon earth. He has come, it seems, not as an evangelistic Christ-man figure but in the guise of a wealthy computer entrepreneur and philanthropist. His role is to give to mankind the benefit of God’s enhanced IT expertise, thus throwing new light on the expression, ‘Jesus Saves’.

Des learns that God runs MSDOS (Messianic Saviour Divine Operating System) for decision-making on Judgment Day, uses the Pearly Gates database and for word processing, God’s Word and Good Works. Could these divine software prototypes have new applications for mankind, thus indicating the worldly identity of the second son of God, already here on earth.

“The Kandinsky Lode” is thus an assured piece of fiction which seamlessly knits together the past and present and is as much an ingenious and blazingly good yarn as it is an exceptional piece of scholarship. Profoundly erudite, it is an intricate and intensely pleasurable read in which the writer has far excelled his novel, “Thai Girl”, his strangely successful first offering.

Not yet available at Asia Books, Bookazine and other good bookshops.

12 comments:

Darrell said...

What a great concept . . . now I think I understand where the Gates surname comes from!!!

Congratulations on what looks to be an even greater contribution in your ever expanding repertoire of written ingenuity.

Take a bow . . but don't stand up too quick :)

This new novel should make you feel on the up and up . . . and I look forward to experiencing its magic when it is available.

I look forward to celebrating indeed, a new BEST SELLER, with you.

Cheers.

Bill G. (III) said...

Sounds like a bravely convincing story . . . . Darrell let me know about it today, and after two years of anxiety, I (and Melinda) hope to finally review the work ourselves . . which I will be taking great interest in gaining some further tips for some of my challenges ahead . .

Cheers,

Bill

Dan said...

Hey . . . haven't I read a similar review on my own work somewhere??? Sounds wonderful. Where can I buy it . . . Dazza (or Bill), won't tell me, but he says he is going to market it worldwide!!

Dan Brown

The Vatican said...

. . . Well I'll be buttered on both sides . . . where do I get my autographed copy????

We have been approached today, by some marketing guru, to do a marketing thing on it, through each of our franchise outlets around the world!!! Sorry we don't have many in Thailand :-)

And I am a believer . . . in any strategic alliance. (I like to hedge my bets.)

God bless you Andrew.

Benny

Mr Hanks said...

Mr Hicks,

Just got an email from your marketing team . . sounds like it could be a great movie to me . . . keep me in mind for the lead eh Andrew!! I already have some relevant experience . . and I aint talking about Apollo 11. Hey now there's a thought . . .

Tom

The Palace said...

Oh Andrew . . . reeeeeeeeeaaaally . . .I've just had enough controversy in recent years thank you very much!!!

And you wonder why getting that visa is so challenging for you . . .

Betty R.

A True Friend to China said...

I'm really thrilled to have so many intruiging responses from so many prominent people.

I'm still awaiting the Divine pop-ups on my laptop though.

Incidentally, can anyone come up with anther interpretation of, "Iti sapis potanda bigo ne"?

Andrew

Anonymous said...

Yes I believe that I can help with that:

"Iti sapis potanda bigo ne" has often been misinterpreted by those trying to find a true meaning in latin phoenetics . . particularly those happening in relation to fraud or misrepresentation.

In itself it does have no direct relation to the musings of the virgin Mary. This is particularly in the light of the fact that I believe that probably a clearer writing, or a reviewed inspection, may have found that what was written may have in fact been "Iam apiss potanda bigo ne".

The double 's' (ss) is often misinterpreted as a single 's' in these latin writings often a reflection of the condition of the writer being lazy or some other physiological condition.

Now in this instance the meaning would be more acurately described as being interpreted as "In vignerons we trust" . . . a motto later adopted by the early settlers of the United States, and, after intense debate and review, by the forefathers. It ended up as the basis for the wording that they were looking for on the one dollar bill, (so as to balance the artwork)where it remains today.

Of course other great great scholars have interpreted this phrase with obviously very similar results, such as that of The great Professor Digitalis (Extractus to his close associates), in the early 15th century as "When I examine myself and my methods of thought, I come to the conclusion that the gift of fantasy has meant more to me than any talent for abstract, positive thinking."

Others have simplified it as "The truth is in your mind, not in your eyes".

I would love to expand further, but I am due at the pub shortly!!

Anyway, I hope this helps clarify the interpretation somewhat.

Alain said...

"Really"...Fiction and reality!!!
Seen www.share international.org?..
Really,these English writers!
Thank you to share,Andrew.Perhaps it's not on a laptop it needs to wait these Divine pop-ups?
Simple people,neither prominent nor "bigot"!
Alain

Malcolm and Ciejay Burgess said...

Andrew , I am lost for words, I have read all the enlightening, incouragement. and informative, comments by the experts and it leaves me with nothing more to say Except "congratulations. Malcolm"

B.O. said...

Forget about your laptop . . I'm hoping for some divine pop-ups on my teleprompter!!

Do you think the book could give me any new angles?? I'm looking for anything right now.

I gotta talk to a group of guys tomorrow about what I am doing . . and I'm not even sure myself!

I'll even give you a great book review, or even a financial stimulus if ya want!! Or how about a great deal on a new chevrolet . . I can organise any deal there.

Let me know.

God bless America . . . and oh yes, Thailand too,

Barack

Anonymous said...

Humm

It is great to be back and reading the blog again.

Is it coincidence that the book review is dated 1st April?

A & W