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    The Skin Map
    The Skin Map
    The Skin Map
    Ebook371 pages10 hours

    The Skin Map

    By Stephen Lawhead

    4/5

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    It is the ultimate quest for the ultimate treasure. Chasing a map tattooed on human skin. Across an omniverse of intersecting realities. To unravel the future of the future.

    Kit Livingstone’s great-grandfather appears to him in a deserted alley during a tumultuous storm. He reveals an unbelievable story: that the ley lines throughout Britain are not merely the stuff of legend or the weekend hobby of deluded cranks, but pathways to other worlds. To those who know how to use them, they grant the ability to travel the multi-layered universe of which we ordinarily inhabit only a tiny part.

    One explorer knew more than most. Braving every danger, he toured both time and space on voyages of heroic discovery. Ever on his guard and fearful of becoming lost in the cosmos, he developed an intricate code—a roadmap of symbols—that he tattooed onto his own body. This Skin Map has since been lost in time. Now the race is on to recover all the pieces and discover its secrets.

    But the Skin Map itself is not the ultimate goal. It is merely the beginning of a vast and marvelous quest for a prize beyond imagining.

    The Bright Empires series—from acclaimed author Stephen R. Lawhead—is a unique blend of epic treasure hunt, ancient history, alternate realities, cutting-edge physics, philosophy, and mystery. The result is a page-turning, adventure like no other.

    “Anything but ordinary . . . Dynamic settings are mixed with unpredictable adventures [and] parallel worlds.” —BookPage 

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherThomas Nelson
    Release dateMay 30, 2011
    ISBN9781595549792
    Author

    Stephen Lawhead

    Stephen R. Lawhead is an internationally acclaimed author of mythic history and imaginative fiction. His works include Byzantium and the series The Pendragon Cycle, The Celtic Crusades, and The Song of Albion. Lawhead makes his home in Austria with his wife.

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    Reviews for The Skin Map

    4/5

    22 ratings23 reviews

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    • 3/5
      So this book was interesting but also really really really slow. I listened to the audio book and I put it on 1.25 speed just so it would go faster.
      I kinda liked the characters but I also didn’t. They were pretty much meh. The book jumped back and forth around about from different stories and didn’t end anything.
      I’m unsure if I will continue to read the series
    • 4/5
      Ley lines are straight lines "located" around the world that allegedly connect various geographical sites deemed to be significant historically or metaphysically. These alleged lines have been explained using various hypotheses - some scientific and some pseudo-scientific. Some believe them to have mystical or magical powers. Stephen R Lawhead has made these ley lines the basis of the first book of his The Bright Empire series, The Skin Map. It's a very enjoyable fantasy/adventure/sci-fi yarn.Kit Livingstone is thrust into a remarkable adventure when his great-grandfather appears to him and takes him on a journey to another time and place to introduce Kit to the power of ley lines - portals around the globe that have the power to transport one into parallel worlds in the multiverse. The problem is that, without a map showing the locations of the ley lines, it's impossible to predict where and when you may end up. However, there is a map. And it's tattooed on the skin of an intrepid explorer who risked life and limb to chart this new and secret territory - believing that the map would be lost or stolen if he didn't literally keep it with him! But the skin map is not really valuable for itself. It's what it can lead to that makes it valuable and not everyone desperately wanting to find it has high ethical purposes in mind. Kit and his dull girlfriend are caught up in these events that require the courageous risking of everything they hold dear.Stephen Lawhead is a prolific writer of mostly fantasy but, of his books I have read, I enjoy his science fiction the most. In The Skin Map, there are hints of philosophical paradoxes (always inherent in time travel fiction) and ethical issues. But more than anything, The Skin Map is thoroughly entertaining. It's rich with characters, historical information, and moves along at a good pace. It's a real page turner and the ending of the first book leaves the reader hanging on the edge for the next book of the series. Highly recommended,You'll probably like this book of you enjoyed Ted Dekker's Circle Trilogy, Stephen Lawhead's Byzantium, Stephen Lawhead's Dream Thief.Book information: Stephen R Lawhead, The Skin Map, Thomas Nelson, 2010.---------------Disclosure of Material Connection: I received this book free from the publisher through the ... book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.” 
    • 4/5
      Really neat story across multiple genres; pretty simple characters and not too complicated of a plot line but the actual concept of ley lines was very intriguing.
    • 4/5
      Engaging. I've enjoyed Lawhead's works ever since reading his book on St. Patrick. This first installment of a trilogy seemed like a comparable plot to Robert Liparulo's series "The Dreamhouse Kings," but this is more deeply told. Looking forward to reading more.
    • 5/5
      This book is the beginning of a great adventure and was very hard to put down.I am looking forward to the second book of the series.
    • 4/5
       What a mind blowing adventure this one was! Our main character, Kit, is minding his own business when he is suddenly transported out of his humdrum life in London to another time and place--a place where his great, great grandfather Cosimo is still alive. It turns out Cosimo wants to enlist his help in a quest that involves travel along "ley lines"--which take the traveler through time and space to one of the alternate realities of history. Cosimo and his companions are after the "Skin Map", a map that shows how to navigate the ley lines. Kit is reluctant to join the quest at first, but before the reader knows it not only has he started leaping through time & space but has also gotten his girlfriend Mina involved. The book alternates between his story, Mina's story, and the story of the creator of the Skin Map. I especially liked Mina's journey, but all the stories together intertwine into a great tale of survival--there are bad guys who want to get the map too, of course--and good triumphing over evil.P.S. I listened to the audio version which was very well done, just the right tone and pace.Fans of fantasy should give this a read or listen, Stephen Lawhead is surely a master of his craft.
    • 4/5
      Mystery, intrigue, traveling through time and space! Bad guys who always seem to be a step ahead of the good guys - how do they do that? In this story, Kit's great grandfather appears and tells Kit that he can travel through time and space. After a brief journey, which makes him late to his girlfriend's house, Kit brings Mina, his girlfriend, to the ley line to prove to her that he had been telling the truth and had traveled through time. Mina, however wound up in a different time and place than Kit did and we follow the two of them in their different adventures as Kit tries to help his uncle look for the mysterious skin map and Mina finds that her skills are quite useful in the past. I enjoyed this book very much and am going to read the next book now to find out more about their travels through the Omniverse.
    • 5/5
      A very interesting concept. Lawhead uses ley lines (and he has a short summary at the end of what we do not about ley lines and how they got that name) to travel between multiverses. . He thus uses them to time travel without time traveling - changes in dimension also involve changes in time ( which eliminates the problems with time travel as each universe has its own unique timeline - similar but different). The multiverse concept ha, of course, s been used numerous times in science fiction and fantasy, but this is a well done concept. It would seem logical that some time lines would be radically different, but perhaps we will encounter those in the remaining books. The plot, as befits the concept, jumps between characters and times and universes. These were generally fairly clear (I missed one being in our own universe). The basic plot line is a search for a map to the ley lines between forces of good and evil - simple, but it moves along nicely, and the jumps keep you on your toes. What they ultimately lead to is hinted at but not fully explained. The religious themes are subtle.Overall, a very good read. Looking forward to reading the next in the trilogy.
    • 4/5
      Call this 3-1/2 stars: Lawhead doesn't disappoint as he explores an old theory about telluric energy and ley lines from a book by Alfred Watkins, "The Old Straight Track". Lawhead incorporates Lawson and his book into this fictional account of a young man whose life is humdrum and ordinary but is suddenly thrust into a cross-dimensional adventure following the ley lines and seeking the key to their mystery, the skin map. Lawhead's character development is perhaps a bit soft, especially with Kit - the main character, but the plot development is interesting. The pace is also a bit slow in places but overall the story flows well and compels the reader on, seeking answers and finding only more questions. Lawhead uses rotating vignettes to share the story, pulling them together at the end, though not resolving the conflict. And this is the perhaps the only problem with Lawhead's books. I am a fan and have read several of his series of books, but one must know going in that it will be a series and this one is (it will be 5 I believe), so I am looking forward to book two to see what Kit and Mina will discover and where the quest for the skin map will lead them.
    • 3/5
      I borrowed this book thinking it was something else. But, after a few chapters I realized that it wasn't the book I intended, but it fit my interests. It started out well, kept my attention, but then it became the first book in a series, with a plot that is all set up and no resoluttion. The writing is competent, the story interesting. I especially liked the character of Wilhelmina and her coffee shop. The story is a bit derivative, there are a number of books with a similar plot.
    • 3/5
      This time-traveling fantasy adventure from Stephen R. Lawhead is an average addition to this literary genre. The idea of a map of overlapping worlds being tattooed upon a man's skin is an uncomfortable central plot point and it is hard to overcome the slow plot and rather two-dimensional characters. Lawhead's writings over the past few years have not shown the brilliance of his Song of Albion Trilogy and the Pendragon Cycle.
    • 4/5
      Ok, first let me say that I received this book from booksneeze.com ( thank you booksneeze) :It took me a while to really get into this book. But, once I did it was a really good story. It flowed really well. If you are looking for adventure than this would be the book for you. : ) This is The first book in a series and the second one ( The bone House ) comes out in september. So, Ill be keeping my eyes open for that : ) so, Overall I give this book 4/5. The story was good, the characters are likable, really gets you engrossed. Give it a read.
    • 3/5
      Stephen Lawhead is an author whose name I was familiar with, but hadn't yet sampled. When I received an offer to listen to his book The Skin Map (A Bright Empires novel) it was the tag line that convinced me to say yes."It is the ultimate quest for the ultimate treasure. Chasing a map tattooed on human skin. Across an omniverse of intersecting realities. To unravel the future of the future."Kit Livingstone is on his way to visit his girlfriend Wilhemina. Somewhere along the way, he takes a shortcut through an unfamiliar alley in London, England and ends up.... Well, he's not quite sure where he ends up. But the man who greets him by name says he is his great grandfather Cosimo and he's been hoping Kit would show up. Cosimo spins a fantastic tale of ley lines, time travel and alternate worlds. Kit listens, but decides to head back to his own time. He finally gets to Wilhemina's apartment. She's quite angry at Kit for turning up almost 8 hours late and doesn't believe his reason, so Kit decides to show her instead. He find the alley again and makes the leap into the other world. But....Wilhemina loses her grip on Kit and doesn't make the jump. She is lost...somewhere. Kit rejoins Cosimo and his peers. They are seeking to keep The Skin Map - a tattooed version of the ley lines and their entry points safe. Kit just wants to find Mina.I thought this was a great premise. Although I don't read a lot of sci-fi, the concept of ley lines is indeed fact based and the cause of much speculation in history. The reader, Simon Bubb, was fantastic. He conveyed many different characters, conjuring up separate personalities with his voice. His reading style is even and measured. Bubb is British, but I had no problem understanding his accent. A five for the reader.Although Kit is the main character, I found myself more drawn to Mina. She lands in 17th century Prague. She seems to assimilate much easier than Kit and embraces her new life. I found myself really looking forward to 'her' chapters.Kit seems more unsure of himself and content to follow.I found the book very slow in the beginning. While I appreciated the historic detail Lawhead has infused his story with, it dragged for me after awhile. While I didn't fast forward, I would have been flipping forward if I had a book in hand. Again, the concept is great and I was looking forward to what would be found in these alternate universes. I kept waiting for things to happen - some action. I did get my wish close to the end of the book, but it wasn't a satisfying finish for me. I had the feeling that this first book was simply setting things up for future books in this planned five book series. So, for me a solid listen. I'm curious as to what Lawhead has planned - the second book, The Bone House was released in September 2011, but it's not at the top of my must have list.
    • 4/5
      I don’t know what it is with all these books that deal with ley lines and time travel and alternate realities, but I’m totally digging it. Stephen Lawhead splashes into this time-travel alternate reality thing with a bang, giving us a group of characters that are likeable and not so likeable and providing us with trips to Egypt, England and other fantastic places and times – no limits here!There is a lot of set-up in The Skin Map, a lot of scientific explaining and figuring out how things work and, I won’t lie.. a lot of the Cosimo/Kit storyline had me bored to tears in places – but as I’ve learned in the times I’ve read Lawhead, it’s worth the payoff.I think my favorite storyline deals with Wilhemina – it was just so perfect and had me giddy with happiness – but I won’t spoil it more for you.. just check the series out because it is worth it!If you are a science fiction fan, or even wanting to be a sci-fi fan but are too afraid of the genre to dip your toes into it, then this is the perfect blending of history and sci-fi. It moves slowly enough that it’s easy to grasp and has just the right amount of action in it to make it worth while.
    • 5/5
      Kit Livingstone finds himself involved in a search in which he and his friends and enemies will travel through time and space and parallel worlds to discover their own immortality and the worth of their own soul. I would recommend this series to anyone that loves to imagine and contemplate their worth and their place in the world.
    • 4/5
      Time travel and high adventure abound in this brand new title from veteran author Stephen R. Lawhead. Lawhead published his first novel in 1981 and has written over 20 novels.The main character Kit Livingstone's great-grandfather appears to him out of the blue with a story of passage to other worlds all held together by an important map. There are other people after the map and the tension mounts in a race for power and control over the map. *Minor spoiler ahead* Kit's girlfriend plays a significant part in the story as she spends a good amount of time starting a new life in a different world and a different time.The Skin Map is a well-paced novel with excellent dialogue, amazing scenery, and an ending that I didn't see coming. I would recommend this title to any fans of historical adventure.There are more books to come in this series and I enjoyed it enough that I will pick up the next novel as soon as it is released (The Bone House - September 2011).4/5 Stars*I received this book as a review copy from Thomas Nelson*
    • 4/5
      Stephen Lawhead’s new book Skin Map, the first in an upcoming series called Bright Empires, is a bit of a deviation from his usual style of fiction. I think it’s important to up front, not compare it to his other works and normal literary style, in order to not get disappointed. This is a light, fun, sci-fi adventure story, not a lot of deep substance or description. Once in that frame of mind, readers will enjoy the concept of what Lawhead is trying to create. The book is also definitely an intro book, a sort of outline of the lead characters and their background history. You will learn who they are, what their part in the scheme will be, and where they are located in time and place along the ley line journeys. Do not expect a wrapped up story, this first installment really does leave you hanging, and literally is just the tip of the iceberg with the basic players and a core plot set-up that will evolve with more significance in the coming installments.At first I was disappointed in the simple writing and at times unsophisticated dialog, and because some characters appeared to be locked into one place not moving. But as I got further into the book I realized what the author was attempting, and with that knew I had to be patient for him to invent a starting point that would obviously be followed up with more in-depth scenarios later in the future books. The plot of the Skin Map revolves around Kit Livingstone who is one day out racing to the London train station to meet his girlfriend Mina. Along the way he is stopped by an old man who calls Kit by his real name, Cosimo. Stunned and stopping to a halt, he finds a ragged old man who claims to be his great grandfather, and is fed a ridiculous story of how a person can travel through time and space and into otherworld dimensions. Kit refuses to believe this nonsense as the old man tugs him along a dark alley, when a sudden and violent wind storm surrounds them. Within seconds, Kit finds himself thrown to the ground, in 16th century England. His great grandfather, also named Cosimo, then introduces the world of ley line travel to Kit, leaving Kit rather in denial, yet fascinated. Still unwilling to participate in this hoax, he returns to modern day London, arrives at Mina’s apartment 8 hours later, and decides to prove to her what just happened to him in order for her to not be angry he was late for their date. As he pulls her down that same mysterious dark alley, the storm comes once again, and although they were holding hands, she ends up in 17th century Prague, and Kit ends up back in old London, frantic that he has apparently lost his girl! Lawhead slowly introduces various characters, letting us know who the good guys and the bad guys are. He begins to weave stories within stories in each place in time that will all come together in future volumes. When you are reading the book you soon realize that all is not going to connect in this first book, and one must be patient. I totally enjoyed the ley line theory, and after getting half way through, started to chose characters I liked and the mini stories within that they got involved in. Visiting 17th Century Prague (Austria then), 16th century London, and both ancient and Victorian Egypt was fun to armchair travel to! At times I did feel this was printed television, and that it did read like a screenplay for a new sci-fi channel T.V. series because of the Quantum Leap/Stargate feel to it. But I found by the end of the book, that it was O.K., and I liked what Lawhead did. I have to say I did enjoy it and am eagerly awaiting book two to see what creative innovation the author will use to entertain me and execute this cool concept of time travel using ley lines, all to find a map made of skin! This was interesting, fun, and different for a Lawhead novel, but it shows promise!
    • 5/5
      Good characters, mystery, takes place in different timelines, plot came together nicely at end of book. Looking forward to next in series.
    • 1/5
      I keep waiting for Lawhead's books to be as good as the friend that recommended them to me. Unfortunately, Skin Map has a great premise (time travel, ley lines, history, adventure, parallel universes) that ultimately don't pan out. It is filled with slow pacing, slow descriptions, and slow buildup with thin characters that finally get fleshed out near the end but by that time the book is over; not to mention constant witching times and places making it convoluted and a confusing mess. On the positive side, if you enjoy a slow paced book with a few peaks, several valleys, and no gratuitous sex and violence then this might be the book for you.
    • 3/5
      The story opens on Kit, a 27 year-old professional headed to his girlfriend's place on a pleasant Sunday outing. (Now, I didn't think anything could dampen my enthusiasm for visiting London one day, but Kit's misadventure through England's most notoriously convoluted transit system came uncomfortably close.) Happily, though, the Tube is soon exchanged for ley travel--much bigger and more adventurous, certainly more dangerous, and arguably easier to navigate! Throw in a hot commodity, a nefarious creep with his mob of iniquitous brutes, a handful of innocent mistakes, and the reader is swept into a lighthearted odyssey in pursuit of the skin map before it falls into the grasp of said creep.This novel is a pleasure to read, partly due to Lawhead's imaginative storytelling, and partly to his choice of interesting cultural settings. Here in Canada, our entertainment is usually presented through an American lens; so reading The Skin Map from the lead characters' British perspective was a refreshing change. Discovering colourful British slang was also part of the fun. In chapter one, for example, I spiced up my vocabulary with "skint" (having no money), "up sticks" (to relocate), "sprogs" (children) and "old-timey" (old-fashioned).The characters are entertaining, quirky and enjoyable to watch along their journey. If I have one complaint, it would be minimal character development. The leads, namely our amateur ley travelers, don't exhibit any compelling inward struggle given the mind-bending nature of the experience--especially without a map to point the way home. Kit only begins to rise from the page in three dimensions near the story's end. The villain, meanwhile, is also not a dynamic force, as he doesn't appear to have a motive besides pure, self-serving evil.I rate the book as 3 out of 5 stars for two reasons: 1) minimal character development, and 2) the story doesn't give me the feeling of an epic, when compared to some of Stephen Lawhead's other books. Still, I recommend "The Skin Map" to Lawhead fans and anyone else who'd enjoy an easy-to-read adventure through space and time. I look forward to the next Bright Empires novel.A complimentary copy of "The Skin Map" was provided to me by Booksneeze as part of the blogger review program.
    • 3/5
      I just didn't love this story. I don't know if it was that I didn't like the protagonist in any real way, or what. I just know it was work to finish the story, and that's not what reading should be for me.

      I love the concept and the plot. I didn't like the characters. I've read other stuff by this author and will read more from them, just not this series.
    • 4/5
      A historical fiction / science fiction novel about travel along ley lines to other times. Was caught up in most of the story lines - especially the one about Wilhemenia opening the coffee house in 18th (?) century Prague. Agree with other reviews that given the lack of a deep relationship between Kit and Mina that it makes no sense for him to try to locate her traveling various ley lines, nor her 'rescue' of him at the end of the novel.
    • 3/5
      I just didn't love this story. I don't know if it was that I didn't like the protagonist in any real way, or what. I just know it was work to finish the story, and that's not what reading should be for me.

      I love the concept and the plot. I didn't like the characters. I've read other stuff by this author and will read more from them, just not this series.

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    The Skin Map - Stephen Lawhead

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