I bought this because I believed the hype like everyone else. I spent a lot of days getting it down and gave it many tests via phone, which is what Phedon said in his book that he did. Many people thought of objects that were not covered by the system. I did the script as he said, and even messed around with it for a while. I even bought other ebooks that were supplimentary to the book. The hit rate increased a little with some of these subtleties but not enough to get it anywhere near 100% as the ad copy and the book claims in the first few pages and 90% as Phedon claims in other places.

When it did hit successfully, it felt more like fishing or 20 questions to get to where I was going. It did not feel like real mind reading. Furthemore Phedon himself has a nasty habit of putting the inadequancies of his book on the buyer, including saying that people who don't like it are not real mentalists and are not as advanced as him (yet he claims in the book to be a coin magician).

I find it incredibly tacky for a creator to insult the purchasers of his product. He could simply say that he stands by it and that he thinks that it is good, perhaps apologize that it is not for them and move on. Instead he feels the need to be rude to people.

This is a disappointing release but it is worse when the creator is not a stand up guy.

Don't be fooled by the hype. This isn't what it's cracked up to be. From the ad blurb and the list of testimonials, you would think this was the greatest thing in mentalism to be introduced in the last century. It isn't.

You cannot ask spectators to think of ANY drawing and expect this to work -- even if you ask them to keep the drawing simple. There's a limitation I can't discuss because it would reveal the method. I've tried this on several occasions and each time it failed, as I knew it would, but I wanted to prove it to myself.

I see from other reviews that some performers are very happy with this. More power to them. But for my money, Mr. Bilek should have stayed with coin magic.

I couldn't wait for my pre order of this trick to arrive and was unbeleiavably excited when it did. The method sounded alright and the memory work was described well and throughly therefore making it easier. In fact the writing in this book is very very easy to understand and very well put together. That being said out of the thirty some times I've tried this effect I've only hit four times. I've followed the scripting exactly and read through the entire book three times. Imho no matter how you word this, it feels way too similar to 20 questions rather than a mind reading effect.

Here some things I forgot to mention, maybe the penguin team can merge this review or just publish both.

I wanted to clarify that this method is psychologically by nature and only as good as the performer is. Meaning Derren Brown would probably be at 100%. Most others with experience should be at around 90% to 95%.

If you have no experience you will be significantly lower and become frustrated.

Just wanted to make this 100% clear!
Stefan

Hello, after getting this book and performing it I wanted to share my experience.

If I read the other reviews I thinks there are some points you have to know before you buy this, otherwise it is too much money.

First of the book is well written and easy to read and understand. I liked the writing style but that could be a personal preference.

The main effect is mind peek. It is a tool and in my experience the best method for people's mindreading. I have had success with many other methods in the past but this is in my oppinion the best I have tried so far. Actually I really enjoy performing this because if it hits it is so strong and feels like real magic.

But it is not real magic. I am sorry to say the only real magic is what our spectators experience if we perform well. That sense of wonder that will never leave them. To get there it is not enough to buy this book. Any book or trick or method will not be enough to achieve that. So if you are a beginner or someone that one has a passing interest in mentalism and is looking for a trick to impress his friends. Move on. This is not for you. I do not mean this insulting in any way but just as a honest warning.

If you however want to really leave a lasting memory this is method that can achieve the sense of wonder I was talking about earlier. But you need prior knowledge, in spectator management, controlling the conversation and just basic skills in mentalism. You also need to have confidence. Most who successfully perform mentalist will know that the performers confidence carrier over, especially in psychological methods. So if I read in a review, it failed as I knew it would fail, then we are talking about a selffullfilling prophecy. This holds true for many mentalism methods.

If you have experience an but in the work this mothod is due you will have fun and success. For me it is just a tool and it opens up a world of possibilities if youncombine it with other mentalism principles. This is just the beginning. You can Finessen it to you crowd of spectators and create wonders. Because that's what it is all about. To take people out of their daily lives on a journey of wonders they will cherish forma long time.

So lastly this book shows the whole uncut performance in the video trailer. If you have no clue how it might work, not even a part of it, I would not recommend to buy it unless you are serious about entering the field of mentalism.

If you do decide to enter this is the key to a new world and you will have fun.

Now Imwrote much more than I wanted to and I hope you will excuse that but I wanted to make my points clear beyond any doubt.

Enjoy
Stefan

I have been doing mentalism for 10 years now.

Had much success with things like Isabella's Star, Train Tracking by Atlas Brookings, a tonne of Mnemonic works and some of Peter Turner's other releases.

I managed to land a success 3 times using this method. Which is great! Great, considering I failed about 40 times around those 3 hits.

I have workshopped this to the bone with other mentalists in my city as well, fearing that it was me that was the problem. The %'s just haven't increased no matter what we do.

It just doesn't hit. I often get oddball answers like spider, television, chicken or butterfly... to name a few. This leaves me falling back on other methods like the previously mentioned train tracking or my handy Informant wallet.

Gave 2 points out of 5 because the idea is not entirely terrible. Learning this method might unlock some other ideas for you.

I really do not want to rate any item low...
However, the method has flaws and does not result in accurate results, at least for me. I can give examples of words that do not apply that I believe should and it is with frustration that I write this as I feel my money was wasted.
I would rather have spent my money on a Luke Jermay or other similar videos or books.

The first simple word-picture I thought of was guitar.. Then bumblebee... and then a simple baseball mitt... It didn't get any of them! Being limited to just those few items claimed in the book is ridiculous.. . and those questions you have to ask to try to squeeze some helpful info out of your spectator is very unseemly. This was a big disappointment...

I understand the process completely and yet this has not once worked. I have no doubt that it does but certainly not reliably and yet he has the gall to say 100% success rate. I don't believe for a second that he could do this successfully 3 times in a row. What a complete waste of money. I was worried that I would be disappointed buying this and I am. Well Phedon, never again....ever

I got the book the other day, took the time to remember the script and performed it several times without any problems at all. It worked so well, I was shocked. Not once did it fail to amaze. The beginning script is important to define the direction of your participants thought process and you may need to reword it to suit your style. I personally love prop-less mentalism and to me this book may be the best mentalism book of the year. It is a clever amalgam of a couple of traditional methods which anyone involved in mentalism should already be aware of or using already. Will it always be 100%, probably not, but it will come pretty close.