Rating: 
Summary: A beautiful gem!
Review: Every so often a book comes along to which one hopes the end will never come. The Ghost of Hannah Mendes was such a book. An intricately wove tale bridging the past and the present, combines history, genealogy and romance to create a must read! Being an amateur genealogist myself, I found the genealogy aspect fascinating! I cannot wait to read Ms. Ragen's other novels!
Rating:
Summary: Great Book!
Review: Excellent, excellent book!Must read!
Rating:
Summary: A captivating story of history, love, intrigue and family
Review: Few authors can capture history, human emotion and romance as well as international bestselling author Naomi Ragen. In "The Ghost of Hannah Mendes: A Novel", she expertly interweaves the tragic chronicle of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews with the spellbinding tale of Hannah Mendes, a true historical figure of unconquerable spirit and will, and the moving story of a modem American family in danger of losing its cherished heritage. As the story opens, Catherine da Costa, a wealthy Manhattan widow from a distinguished Jewish family, seems to have everything a woman could want including a beautiful home overflowing with expensive treasures, fond memories of a passionate marriage, two beautiful granddaughters, and a life filled with art, music, and culture. As Catherine learns that she has only a few months to live she receives an unusual, mystical visit from the family matriarch, a spirited Renaissance businesswoman named Hannah Mendes who makes Catherine realize that she has failed to pass on her family's rich heritage to her granddaughters Suzanne and Francesca, the last two leaves on the da Costa family tree. Caught up in their careers and social lives, the two young women have little interest in their grandmother, and even less in their family's history. Guided by Hannah's spirit, Catherine convinces her granddaughters to seek their heritage. The girls embark on a magical quest that will take them across Europe and into their own past, a journey that changes their lives forever. Ragen's talent is endless as she moves between the present-day story of Catherine da Costa and her granddaughters, and the life of Hannah Mendes, which is told through the remnants of an ancient manuscript that has been scattered throughout Europe. Using bribery, guilt, and the threat of disinheritance, Catherine da Costa succeeds in convincing her granddaughters to leave their busy lives in New York to go to Europe in search of the lost pages of Hannah's memoirs. But Suzanne and Francesca soon become caught up in the exciting hunt for the manuscript and fascinated by the story of Hannah and her family. Of course, the story would not be complete without the handsome young men entering the scene in an astounding and unforeseen way to sweep both girls off their feet. The manuscript of Hannah Mendes is the most enchanting and illuminating part of the book. Hannah's story begins with her parents' expulsion from Spain during the Inquisition, and the family's perilous passage into Portugal where thousands of Jews hoped to escape religious persecution. Forced to publicly abandon their beliefs and made to convert to Christianity, Hannah and her family risk their lives to practice Judaism in secret. When her cherished husband Francisco dies at a young age, Hannah learns to run her family's thriving business. But their growing wealth and power cannot protect them from the brutality of the king, or the disturbing betrayal by a member of their own family. Hannah and her family are forced to escape to Antwerp, to Venice, and ultimately to Constantinople. Suzanne and Francesca discover Hannah's secrets as pieces of her journal appear in old bookshops across Europe. As they delve deeper and deeper into their search, and into Hannah's spellbinding story, eerie and baffling things begin to occur until in a final, perplexing encounter, past and present seem to blend into one. Ragen expertly blends a deplorable part of history into today's popular movement toward genealogy and tracing one's family heritage. Naomi Ragen is one of the best novelists of her time. Read just one of her books and you will anxiously await her next. "The Ghost of Hanna Mendes" is sure to top the charts.
Rating:
Summary: A captivating story of history, love, intrigue and family
Review: Few authors can capture history, human emotion and romance as well as international bestselling author Naomi Ragen. In "The Ghost of Hannah Mendes: A Novel", she expertly interweaves the tragic chronicle of the Spanish and Portuguese Jews with the spellbinding tale of Hannah Mendes, a true historical figure of unconquerable spirit and will, and the moving story of a modem American family in danger of losing its cherished heritage. As the story opens, Catherine da Costa, a wealthy Manhattan widow from a distinguished Jewish family, seems to have everything a woman could want including a beautiful home overflowing with expensive treasures, fond memories of a passionate marriage, two beautiful granddaughters, and a life filled with art, music, and culture. As Catherine learns that she has only a few months to live she receives an unusual, mystical visit from the family matriarch, a spirited Renaissance businesswoman named Hannah Mendes who makes Catherine realize that she has failed to pass on her family's rich heritage to her granddaughters Suzanne and Francesca, the last two leaves on the da Costa family tree. Caught up in their careers and social lives, the two young women have little interest in their grandmother, and even less in their family's history. Guided by Hannah's spirit, Catherine convinces her granddaughters to seek their heritage. The girls embark on a magical quest that will take them across Europe and into their own past, a journey that changes their lives forever. Ragen's talent is endless as she moves between the present-day story of Catherine da Costa and her granddaughters, and the life of Hannah Mendes, which is told through the remnants of an ancient manuscript that has been scattered throughout Europe. Using bribery, guilt, and the threat of disinheritance, Catherine da Costa succeeds in convincing her granddaughters to leave their busy lives in New York to go to Europe in search of the lost pages of Hannah's memoirs. But Suzanne and Francesca soon become caught up in the exciting hunt for the manuscript and fascinated by the story of Hannah and her family. Of course, the story would not be complete without the handsome young men entering the scene in an astounding and unforeseen way to sweep both girls off their feet. The manuscript of Hannah Mendes is the most enchanting and illuminating part of the book. Hannah's story begins with her parents' expulsion from Spain during the Inquisition, and the family's perilous passage into Portugal where thousands of Jews hoped to escape religious persecution. Forced to publicly abandon their beliefs and made to convert to Christianity, Hannah and her family risk their lives to practice Judaism in secret. When her cherished husband Francisco dies at a young age, Hannah learns to run her family's thriving business. But their growing wealth and power cannot protect them from the brutality of the king, or the disturbing betrayal by a member of their own family. Hannah and her family are forced to escape to Antwerp, to Venice, and ultimately to Constantinople. Suzanne and Francesca discover Hannah's secrets as pieces of her journal appear in old bookshops across Europe. As they delve deeper and deeper into their search, and into Hannah's spellbinding story, eerie and baffling things begin to occur until in a final, perplexing encounter, past and present seem to blend into one. Ragen expertly blends a deplorable part of history into today's popular movement toward genealogy and tracing one's family heritage. Naomi Ragen is one of the best novelists of her time. Read just one of her books and you will anxiously await her next. "The Ghost of Hanna Mendes" is sure to top the charts.
Rating:
Summary: Ragen's best book to date!
Review: Finally, Naomi Ragen has written another book. Many of us have been waiting for any word of hers, and this book does not disappoint. I smile, I weep, I sigh, I remember; I am IN these pages. There is love and despair, hope and hopelessness, connection and rebellion -all woven together in a fascinating family story, set over hundreds of years from the Inquisition/Expulsion to the present. My only complaint is that Ms. Ragen doesn't write often enough!
Rating: 
Summary: Not great, but some rewards
Review: First off, "The Ghost of Hannah Mendes" will never be a literary classic, but it does have its merits. It's a historical romance with a message. A dying woman, a member of the Sephardic aristocracy is visited by the ghost of her ancestress, Hannah Mendes, and told to send her granddaughters to Europe in search of a missing manuscript. This manuscript is the ghost's autobiography and describes her life during the expulsion of the Jews from Spain and the trials of the Inquisition. With great reluctance, the granddaughters undertake the task, finding pieces of the manuscript in different places and the loves of their lives in the process. As the manuscript is pieced together, the narrative shifts from present to past and Mendes' story unfolds.
From the standpoint of technique. the book is clunky and more than a little cliched. The characters, especially those of the two granddaughters, are fairly shallow stereotypes. The ghost of Mendes seems to appear as a dea-ex-machina everytime the plot needs a little jolt.
And yet there is a certain beauty in the book that elevates it above most others of its genre. Ragen has an obvious love of Jewish culture and her descriptions positively glow. The historical material is fascinating and gives the book more depth than the usual romance. The supernatural element adds charm, especially for those of us who like a little paranormal in the mix. Ragen's images of the individuals of each generation as branches of a tree and the sadness of a branch with no leaves are quite beautiful. Her point is that we are not just ourselves, but have a duty to both honor the past and maintain our traditions for the future. Ragen may be writing specifically about Jewish families and Jewish culture, but it's equally true of others.
Rating: 
Summary: Some good, some bad...
Review: From an historical point of view, this books is not good - it's great! Learning about the Sepharadic Jews' lives, and the choices they had to make (and how different people made those decisions) were fascinating, and I think that the fact the story is told first hand only makes it more alive. If the book had only consisted of this part, I would have wanted to give it at least 6 - 7 stars!On the other hand, there's the cover story of the grandmother sending her two granddaughters on a quest. The characters seemed shallow and all their actions were expectable - the heroic grandmother finally realizing what to do when facing death, the two grand daughters falling head over heals over the first two men they meet. The couples get together, then fight over a major point, then the girls go back to their old lives, realized what they were missing, and made their compromise, which of course meant going back to their lovers and changing in the exact way their grandmother had expected. Throughout this part of the book I felt that "I've been there and done that". I don't think I would have given this part of the novel even one star...
Rating:
Summary: Highly Recommended
Review: Having read Naomi Regan's previous titles I waited a long time for this book to appear in New Zealand and I was not disappointed. The book is a brilliant modern story delving into the past with finesse. Naomi has changed her style with this book (for the better). Very readable. I would recommend it to all.
Rating: 
Summary: I Vote with the Maryland and California readers...
Review: I agree w/ Maryland and California that the contemporary part of the book was a little too pat to be believed. However, the historical parts of the book were fascinating -- so much so that I'm giving this book 4 stars. I'll suspend my disbelief in the contemporary (and instant!) romance.
(After all so many novels out there are too unrealistic to be believed -- I'm thinking of Judith Krantz's stuff, Danielle Steele, Eileen Goudge, etc. etc.) A little escapism is okay, but I'd wait for the paperback if you want to buy it.
Rating:
Summary: thank you, reader from California
Review: I am relieved to see that another reader had some problems with this book. I agree with the comments by the reader from California. Loved the history, very much disliked the convenient romances. I also disliked the fact that both granddaughters weren't portrayed as grownups until they'd gotten pregnant. With a world population of approximately six billion, is it really smart to recommend procreation as a mandatory vehicle to maturity for everyone??? the choice to be a parent is the most fulfilling option in life for most people - but not everyone, and it is unfair to portray women as selfish if they haven't given birth.
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