reviewed by Marc Rehula (confirmed purchase)
Rating: 
[3 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Thursday 14 December, 2017)
I have mixed feelings about this. My experience with this has been less than 'miraculous'. On the plus side, it can be a great opener to get a conversation going with a borrowed, shuffled deck that you never touch. But it does not work with any consistency, so I've had to do some convincing of the 'miracles'. I do recommend this, though, since the thinking behind this is excellent. It has indeed inspired me to work on personalizing the effects to lead to other things.
reviewed by Michael Lyth (confirmed purchase)
Rating: 
[5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Wednesday 13 December, 2017)
A great piece of magic history which can be adapted if felt necessary? and used to a large stage audience.Read for the History Part and even better practice to suit own style and perform a classic.Not to be over looked because of its age!!
reviewed by Christian Fisanick (confirmed purchase)
Rating: 
[4 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Sunday 10 December, 2017)
Three masters of mentalism each give you a routine using a classic mentalism technique. For me J. Prager's routine of divining the first number of a spectator's credit card and the first number of its PIN is the best, most useful one in the book. I was familiar with the thinking behind this (It's in one of Thompson's Naked Mentalism books), but had never thought to routine it this way. Once you read how it's down, you'll be able to do it immediately with two pieces of paper, a pen, and a spectator with a credit card. It's excellent.
Peter Turner uses the same technique in a prediction effect, where you give someone an envelope a week ahead of time and tell them to bring it along with them later for the demonstration. This one shows Turner's clever thinking, but even he admits, it's really for promotional value or auditioning for a job since it is a one-on-one routine.
Lastly, Luke Jermay gives you his oldest close-up routine, again using the same ancient technique. Little wonder, he's been using it so long: It's just a variation on Cassidy's Name and Place routine, spiffed up a bit. You might find Jermay's subtleties to your liking--or you may not. In any event, there's nothing new here.
In summary, this will probably be worth your while if you use Prager's routine and at least one other. I'm going to add Prager's routine immediately to my wallet repertoire. I already do Name and Place and would like to do Turner's prediction routine if I ever find a situation for it. So for me, it was a good, but not earthshaking, purchase.
reviewed by Ferry Gerats (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Monday 04 December, 2017)
With Scripted #15: cut and restored ribbon Larry Brodahl describes meticulously all the evolving steps he took to ensure a flawless and entertaining performance of the trick.
Within this process it becomes abundantly clear how competent scripting of the handling and presentation of the trick turns steps, which stem from a technical need and which could be perceived as illogical and therefore suspect to an audience into logical steps that do not arouse suspicion as they have been given a plausible reason.
So for anyone, who wants to acquire the skill of scripting there is a valuable lesson to be learned here, as with all other Larry’s publications.
reviewed by Christian Fisanick (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Tuesday 28 November, 2017)
This is a nice version of Bob Cassidy's classic Chronologue routine. I'll admit that I'm a sucker for diary effects and have a few of them. Pablo's version is easy to perform because it only uses one "diary," actually a small notebook, and the set-up basically does the job for you. If you are familiar with diary effects, the method will come as no surprise. (You'll need a little bit of audience management.) If you buy this ebook, it won't take you long to prepare the notebook and the card reveal. (You don't even need a deck of cards.) But you will need one more thing for the reveal. Now Pablo sells a pre-made version of this routine on his website which gives you everything that you need including that "one more thing," but you don't need it. Go to the dollar store, and get a cheap little notebook and a Gel pen that doesn't bleed through the page. You'll figure out what works best for you for the reveal.
Overall, this is nicely simplified version of one of mentalism's greatest routines. And I think that by using a regular notebook, it avoids the obsolescence issue that I have with diary effects: Nobody carries a paper diary anymore. I like this a lot and think that I am going to use it a lot. Recommended.
reviewed by Rick Carruth
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Monday 27 November, 2017)
'Magic of Michael Skinner' MAY be my favorite of all the many ebooks by Paul Lelekis. I'm not ready to make the final call.. yet... but I'm certainly leaning that way. Why? Because I have a profound respect for the magic of Michael Skinner, and an equally profound respect for the writing of Paul Lelekis.
There are nine effects.. and each is very different in method and culmination.
Business Card Prediction, Thought Projection Pack, and James's Miracle are all distinctly mental magic with cards.
Altman's '7' Location, Mona Lisa Card Trick, and Invasion of The Body Snatchers are all Skinner's handling of card effects that are both original and clever.. in a Michael Skinner way. And if you aren't familiar with Michael's magic, Paul has lead this ebook with a very interesting tretise on the life and magic of Mr. Skinner. In addition, Torn & Restored Paper, Giant Coin, and Fechter's Hanky Force are all very interesting effects and a force in and of themselves. Nothing is simple.. aside from the force, and nothing is overly complicated. Just wonderful magic theater from someone considered highly unique and gifted.
reviewed by Christopher Weber
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Sunday 26 November, 2017)The Magic of Michael Skinner by Paul Lelekis is a wealth of great advice and techniques from a true Master of our Times. This is Pauls' finest eBook of the year for sure! Handlings that are straight forward and convincing along with some exceptional presentational tips throughout. The foreword by John Carney and Introduction by Paul are easily worth the price of the book. Here you'll be presented with Michael Skinners philosophy on practice, discipline, creativity, ingenuity and naturalness of performance. This is a fantastic way for you to get acquainted with the presentational style and wonderful magic of Michael Skinner.
The nine effects are all time tested routines that you will enjoy learning and performing. There’s a little something for everyone here. They are all geared to emphasize entertainment, presentation and the art of engaging your audience. Straight forward clean, non-complicated and direct routines. I particularly liked the opening effect "Invasion of the Body Snatchers" (one of my all-time favorite movies), the best patter/presentation, and interpretation for this classic effect I've ever seen. A solid winner for sure!
The "Mona Lisa Card Trick" another favorite of mine is a perfect example of a short routine that has a great kick to it and you'll be having some fun with it in no time. Besides the card effects you’ll get a cool Giant Coin routine and a beautiful, clean, smooth handling of a Torn & Restored Paper routine that goes a step or two further than similar effects. All this plus an ingenious prediction Bonus effect from Stewart James makes Pauls' "The Magic of Michael Skinner" destined to be a top seller.
reviewed by Enrico Varella
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Sunday 26 November, 2017)Michael Skinner is a legendary name among close-up magicians. John Carney in his Foreword to this book respectfully delves into the psyche of this extraordinary professional performer. Skinner exemplified naturalness, deliberateness, neatness and exactness in his routining and moves. Throughout this book, the astute student of magic will be able to appreciate abject lessons in Pauses – that which precedes each revelation or transformation – and shifts the moment of each effect to a heightened level of dramatic and psychological impact.
Paul Lelekis – certainly a fan of Michael Skinner – has written an exclusively, befitting, tribute to one of his major influences. Lelekis’s extensive breadth of performance experience and encyclopaedia of effects, successfully captures the Skinner Spirit – discovering perfection through disciplined practice, dedicated analyses, and a determined appreciation of the audience.
He has compiled nine of Skinner’s effects that include a Wild Card routine, torn & restored paper, demonstration of ESP, busines card prediction, coin transformations, and preferred card force. Every nuance and subtlety is described through Lelekis’s thorough descriptions and video explanations of sleights.
The legend lives on through the pages of this important book. May you carry on the legendary work in the Skinner tradition.
reviewed by Roy Eidem
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Sunday 26 November, 2017)Paul’s knowledge of magic is encyclopedic. Such a treat to see this tribute to arguably one of the best close-up magicians of all time. The introduction with stories about Michael are worth the price of this book to magic lovers. In addition, one receives pro-working, Skinner magical miracles. Paul’s writing style is clear & easy to follow plus one receives with the purchase some tutorial videos.
reviewed by Enrico Varella
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Sunday 05 November, 2017)
A full close-up show in one book! You cannot get better a deal than this.
Your audience will come a little closer to you, enjoy interacting with you, and respect your space at the same time.
In his inimitable and generous style, Paul does not hold anything back with his teaching. As a active performer and Teacher-At-Heart, he delivers a 3-piece act complete with a strong Beginning, Middle and End. I learnt 'stronger magic' with his one-coin, Triple Threat Coin routine (this went straight to my impromptu routine), integrated with strong misdirection. I loved 'Cheek To Cheek' which gives a variation (albeit stronger) to Triumph. I found his Bonus sleight to be practical, and boldly effective. The three routines flow, seamlessly, with meaningful misdirection built into each routine. Above all, Paul attributes and pays tribute to the originators of these effects that have inspired him.
Get a little closer, and enjoy a strong close-up show!
reviewed by Jozsef Kovacs
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Tuesday 31 October, 2017)
Two great tricks using Howard Adam's clever principle. You can perform the tricks one after another.
reviewed by Roy Eidem
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Tuesday 31 October, 2017)Paul is an in the trenches worker. You can make a living with just these beautiful magical routines. Every nuance is field tested & smoothly designed. The price is a gift to lovers of real world magic.
reviewed by Christopher Weber
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Monday 30 October, 2017)This new EBook,” A Close Up Show!” from Paul Lelekis is a really cool idea! Three wonderful routines that flow together perfectly or they could be easily performed independently. What a great idea!
The opening routine “Pastboard Prison” is a killer! Here you’ll learn a fantastic control of three selections that you’ll use in many other routines, plus Pauls’ rendition of this classic effect is by far the smoothest and most direct handling you’ll find. As usual, Paul streamlines the moves so your concentration can and should be on presentation!
“Triple Threat Coin” is a fun and interactive routine that features a marvelous vanish/transposition that is well supported by some great audience control, fun patter and timely misdirection. Again, this is a fun and entertaining routine to perform and you’ll find many uses for the coin steal slight presented here.
The Closer of the three routines offered here is “Cheek to Cheek”. Another classic that Paul has taken to a whole new level by adding a signed card to the effect! Not to mention a deck switch that really works itself and some very practical refinements that make the effect more engaging for your spectators.
I love the Bonus! “Selection Produced from a Fan of Cards” is one of those great little moves that you’ll do over and over again in front of a mirror and you’ll laugh every time because it looks so cool! I love to fool myself! Thanks Paul, you did it again!
reviewed by Christian Fisanick (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [3 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Saturday 28 October, 2017)
I'm not as effusive as the preceding reviewer. While this is an interesting enough listen--and you get a couple of great ideas for headline predictions and Q&A--the problem I have is that Mann is pretty insufferable. I lost count how many times he mentioned that he had written 93 things on mentalism. I'm not alone in my opinion. Richard Osterlind, who always comes across as a real gentleman, mentioned on one of his DVD or books, I forget, that he got the idea that Mann didn't like him and also that if you showed Mann something, he thought that it was now his to call his own. So there you have it--good for one listen and a couple of ideas. A marginal recommendation.
reviewed by Christian Fisanick (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Saturday 28 October, 2017)
There are many business card peek wallets and cases on the market. The are generally nice and cost money. There are also a number of gimmicked business card stacks like Paul Carnazzo's PacStac, Looch's Hollow, and Luca Vulpe's Emotional Drawing. They are great, cost next to nothing, but take time to make. And then there's J. Prager's Evil Twin, a stack that costs pennies and will take you five minutes to construct. Like one other reviewer said, I laughed out loud when I saw where the construction was going. The method is genius, pure and simple. And better yet, unlike the other DIY stacks, if Evil Twin wears out and gets raggedy, get some new business cards, glue stick, and tape, and you'll have another one in under five minutes. Watch the video once, and you'll never have to watch it again. It's that easy.
This is my new business stack peak. Highest recommendation.
reviewed by Chris Fisanick
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Wednesday 25 October, 2017)
Formulas exist to calculate what day of the week a certain date falls on. If you are good at mental math, learn one, and you're set. (There was an old judge whom I tried cases before, who believed that he had invented the formula. Anytime during a hearing when someone gave a date, he would immediately interrupt the proceedings with the day of the week--"I direct your attention to August 25, 2017." "That was a THURSDAY!" It was pretty impressive, yet annoying in context. LOL) Fortunately, if you don't want to tax your brain, this little monograph gives you a method where you don't have to do a lot of memory work. Oh, there's some--you'll have to remember a little--but you mostly rely on a crib. It's an excellent method, and you also get a simple, yet devious, way to hide your crib from the audience, as well as a little history and more complicated ways to do this stunt that don't rely on a crib.
If you like the idea of doing this as an example of your superior mental abilities, then his is probably the easiest method that I've seen. I'm fairly decent at mental math, so I had the workings of the method down in about three minutes. It's that easy. For $8, how can you go wrong?
reviewed by Georg Walter (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Tuesday 24 October, 2017)
Auch wenn der Preis auf den ersten Blick sehr hoch erscheint, kann ich diese Sammlung jedem nur empfehlen. Das sind aus allen Sparten der Zauberkunst ungezählte Routinen und Trickbeschreibungen. Auf über 3500 Seiten im Format Din A4 findet jeder mehr als 1 brauchbares Kunststück für sich. In deutscher Sprache habe ich so etwas
noch nicht gesehen. Masse ja - aber auch Klasse!!! Georg Walter
reviewed by David Burmeister (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Saturday 21 October, 2017)
This is another nice effect from THE UNKNOWN MENTALIST. First of all, the business cards are very nice quality laminated business cards. The nice thing about this effect is that you can do it in so many different ways. In my personal opinion, this is a close up version of ELEMENTAL. Having said that, I prefer having BIRTHDAY CALENDAR over ELEMENTAL as I believe that the gimmicks on the cards are better hidden and the cards are more professional looking (That is why I bought two more sets of cards). I believe to still get a better understanding of everything you need to have this, ELEMENTAL and ELEMENTAL 2. In my opinion if you have HAPPY BIRTHDAY STRANGER, BIRTHDAY CALENDAR, MIND SPARK 1, SIGNATURE and STAR SIGNATURE, you will have some very powerful star sign divinations. (Check out SUPER STAR BUNDLE ALSO!)
I recommend getting BIRTHDAY CALENDAR NOW while the cards are still available AND the effect is at this price!
Well done UNKNOWN MENTALIST!
reviewed by William Cruz (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Saturday 14 October, 2017)
Incredible machine!!! I was very cautious at first due to my previous experience with cutters and dies. But The KardKutter is extremely precise and takes away the struggle of the tradition way of making cards (box cutter, exacto knife or guillotine).
My previous methods were extremely time consuming and painful to do over the course of several hours. I took up the hobby of printing and making cards 2 years ago! The KardKutter is worth the hefty price tag and will in time pay for itself!
I'm really glad I was able to pick one up and I would highly suggest you do. There really isn't anything like this available anywhere else I been searching for a long time. Shipping is and I got the item in a reasonable timeframe, support is good when I had a question!
The machine also came with some paper and a template to use for image software just need to scan it into the computer.
Overall my experience with the KardKutter has been a positive one and can't wait to make more cards with it!
reviewed by David Burmeister (confirmed purchase)
Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!] (Date Added: Saturday 14 October, 2017)
The UNKNOWN MENTALIST has done it again. This is an EXCELLENT effect that I am doing to DEFINITELY USE! This will definitely take some practice but once it is in your head it will be very easy. If you like THE GROW DEVILS PRINCIPLE and WORLDS WITHIN WORDS you will definitely like this. What I like about this is you don't need ANY prompter sheets hidden in notepads AND the spectator is NOT calling out any letters...NO PA'S...yet the mentalist correctly divines the word out of over 200 words. This has my highest recommendation!
Well done UNKNOWN (AMAZING) MENTALIST!