Five Reviews By: Diane Donavan,  Dr. Laura Wilhelm,  Dr. Jane Peterson,  Stacey Chillemi,  Jeroslyn Johnson

Review By Diane Donovan, Editor California Bookwatch

Remembering Olympus is hard to neatly categorize: part magical adventure, part mystery, and part timeslip saga about other lives and other worlds, this straddles the line between several genres – and does so with good balance and finesse.

Aaron is a professional whose talents have become mired in management, and he’s stagnating in his job and life, until he meets heiress Miranda and, more importantly, Claire, a publisher who leads him into a mystery and memories of another life and time.

His choices in handling his life will lead to either a repetitive pattern or a changed world, and make for a fantasy that is a cut above most, and requires more thinking and examination from its readers than your usual leisure fantasy read.

Can the protagonist keep an open mind about his discoveries? Can the reader join him in the process of suspending closely-held beliefs and learning about other realities and alternate purposes in life?

A healthy dose of new age thinking and an affinity for sagas which, like the classic Cloud Atlas, invite self-examination and inspection of belief systems will lend to an appreciation of the divergent threads in Remembering Olympus. As Aaron moves from typical to atypical worlds, he comes to understand love, deception, and mirror images of himself, “…one changed by time, the other changed by deeds“, and their ultimate meaning.

Just as the first-person narrator experiences “…the strange feeling of being drawn to specific people for particular purposes.”, so readers will find this story a compelling exercise in self-realization and possibility; all dictated not by the gods, but by very human choices.

Review by Dr. Laura Wilhelm, LauraWil Intercultural

Royce Murcherson’s REMEMBERING OLYMPUS caught this reviewer’s attention since the conflicts over material and immaterial identity seemed so familiar…Like many intelligent people, Aaron Payne, the protagonist, tries to find answers in relationships and regression therapy during which his dreams hint at the immanent dimension of human existence……Aaron’s quest for meaning in life should strike a chord with most thinking readers.  The simple joys of just living and working may trump the most compelling belief systems the world has to offer for some.  The dreamers amongst us might profit quite literally from healthy doses of reality…

REMEMBERING OLYMPUS is framed as Aaron’s memoir being read by the suggestively-named Cain, a mysterious being who colludes with some of the book’s characters to influence outcomes for Aaron.  The tale is reminiscent of Madeleine L’Engle’s highly allusive novels replete with exotic locations and emotionally complex themes.

As human life expectancy increases worldwide, identity conflicts just such as these depicted in REMEMBERING OLYMPUS are likely to affect humanity more than ever as we cycle through more and more phases of development.  As Aaron Payne’s surname may be intended to suggest, pain and punishment are an inevitable part of the human growth process.

The gods of Olympus were all too human in their failings and foibles.  We would indeed do well to remember this while reading Murcherson’s conceptually challenging book and trying to absorb its lessons in the modern age.

Review by Jane Peterson, Ph.D.Professor of English and former editorial board member and reviewer for professional journals in writing and communication.

Remembering Olympus offers readers a complex collage of interspersed layers of romance, philosophy, and mystery. Starting with Cain, the “retriever of souls” who cannot resist reading Aaron Payne’s abandoned memoir, the characters entice the reader into wanting to know more…into searching for answers about what happened, into the protagonist’s struggle to remember. As Aaron tries to escape an apparently failed marriage and career, he encounters Claire and Simon, strangers who offer advice and seem to know his needs better than he does. How do they know him and what is he supposed to remember?

When Aaron’s strength and stability waiver, he turns to his friend Ben whose help leads Aaron to a past life, disturbing dreams, and more questions. Who is he? What is real? Who is in control of his life? Is his uber rich father-in-law, a Prospero figure, wielding magical powers and complicating Aaron’s world almost as much as Miranda his estranged wife?

Questions like these simultaneously anchor and propel the narrative lines of the nested stories of love, friendship, and power within Remembering Olympus. The novel uses a frame story (Cain’s hunt for Aaron) and literary allusions to Greek mythology, Shakespearean plays and sonnets, Wendell Berry poems, and evocative names like Payne, Claire, and a mythical town of Paxton. These literary devices heighten the central tensions, enriching instead of distracting from them. As Aaron is repeatedly told, “Sometimes, the necessary manages itself.”

Peppered with mythical elements, Remembering Olympus mingles past with present and through Aaron’s journey strikes a universal chord of love and fear, desire for certainty about the future and terror of it.

Review by Stacey Chillemi, The Examiner.com

“For those who love romance, philosophy, adventure, mystery and adrenaline spiked tales; this is one book you won’t be able to put down!” Filled with mysticism, mystery, adventure and romance, you might want to put Remembering Olympus on your vacation reading list.

Remembering Olympusis an intriguing mystical revelation that identifies the character’s past-life situations and how they amazingly impact his present circumstances.I found this book to be very intriguing. Packed with romance, philosophy, mystery, adventure and the element of surprise, I especially enjoyedhow “Remembering Olympus gives you the ability to enjoy several types of genres all in one book.

Royce Murcherson provides the reader with adventure, mystery, the concept of a spiritual world and how past lives remain in our soul and impacts our present lives. This alone intrigued my interest and makes the mind wonder about the concept of reincarnation and how much of past travels with us into our present life. Murcherson gives the reader a lot to take in and Royce does this with her excellent writing skills, as she gracefully entertains the reader with several genres all wrapped up in one book. You are definitely getting your money’s worth in this book.

The book charmingly begins as Aaron the main character portrays himself as a professional whose talents are centered on management. Stuck in a field he is obviously unhappy with he meets heiress Miranda, who changes his life and leads him on an adventure filled with mystery and romance. What I found most intriguing is the memories of another lifetime he encounters.

Aaron must make critical choices that will have serious impact in his life and the lives around him. Royce Murcherson captivates the reader’s attention as they become a part of Aaron’s life as each new page will bring you closer to a surprising revolution that you wouldn’t anticipate.

I found Remembering Olympus an excellent read that will capture the readers interest and make them yearn for a sequel.” I was impressed on how well-written and interesting the book was when I read it. I recommend Remembering Olympus to others.

Review by Jeroslyn Johnson, CEO, MASE.TV.com

For anyone who is bored with the ordinary occurrence of everyday life and crave information that further proves that there’s life beyond our physical existence. We strongly urge you to read Remembering Olympus by Royce Murcherson explores the belief that there is life beyond our current one while taking the reader on a journey through true eternal love, and the concept of creating your own reality through the power of the mind.

Mystery and magic are intertwined as “Remembering Olympus” highlights the creative power of love and jealousy which engulfs the reader in a mystical revelation that will challenge your perception of reality.

If you’re a reader who’s into mysteries, magical fantasy, and even spirituality, I urge you order a copy and explore the magic that has always lived inside of you.