Dennis Hermanzo is back! A State of Mind is in the same style as what he has become known for with his other books…making memorable mentalism by using classical principles with audience-tested routines from his own repertoire! In other words, stuff that works in the “real world!”

This book will teach you 19 powerful, direct, hard-hitting and high-impact mentalism routines using classic props and everyday items. These routines are meant for the working performing mentalist who needs to project powerful impact on his audience!

It also contains four longer essays in which Dennis go deeper into his views on how to become a better performer, how to overcome stage fright and much more.
If you are a fan of Dennis’s previous work we are sure of that you will love this book!

The book is full of creative and diabolical material done with a minimum of props or sleights. All in classical mentalism style with the adaptations of simple classic proven methods, that are designed to ”kill” lay people on stage and close up.

Hardbound featuring 296 pages chock full of illustrations, images, photos and content.  Edited by: Bill Trotter.

Here are some of the contents:

-Foreword by Steve Drury
-Head, Heart, and Imagination (Essay)
-A Few Special Ones (A great opening piece involving everybody with a fun demonstration of psychology and ends with a killer prediction)
-The Lying Truth (A lie detector routine that you can do anytime and anywhere.)
-The Psychic Wife (Mind reading from afar!)
-The Mind of a Rose (Three women, Four roses and one finale with an emotional connection!)
-No Hands, Just the Mind (A sweet demonstration of mind reading & then mind control using a blindfold and two bottle of sodas.)
-A Question, an Answer… Let’s Post-it(A Q&A/message reading act for just a few spectators)
-Piece of Mind (Essay)
-Til Death Do Us Part (A shocking” one out of two” effect.)
-The Chairman of Power (A chair routine with only one chair that is actually fun to watch for the spectators!)
-Intuition vs Poker Face (A demonstration of how a woman’s intuition always wins over a man’s poker face. This is one of Dennis’s favorite pieces he has ever performed!)
-Easy Card Calling (An easy card calling effect using an ungimmicked deck of cards.)
-Full of Emptiness (What type of person is she? The mentalist always know!)
-The Right State of Mind (Essay)
-Crush the Spider (A “danger effect” without any gimmicks whatsoever.)
-The Number of the Beast (Numerology linked to a borrowed bill.)
-The Psychic Hotline (A book test over the phone for stage performers.)
-Siblings (A simple routine with three playing cards, but with a strong impact!)
-Passion or Fear (A killer prediction effect.)
-Cheers/Mark II (A diabolical script so well thought out, no matter what the spectator chooses, the mentalist do and say exactly the same and it will have the same outcome!)
Homage to Bob Cassidy:
-The Art of Russian Roulette (Dennis’s alternative version of Bob Cassidy’s masterpiece with a completely different climax using spray cans.)
-The Artful Diary (Bob Cassidy’s Diary Book Test the Hermanzo way.)
-???? (Essay)
-The End

About the Author:
Dennis Hermanzo is a pseudonym of a Danish mentalist and musician in his mid-forties who has been a mind reader for more than twenty years. He is not interested in having lay people who have seen him perform, Google him afterward and find books he has written about our secrets!

Dennis likes to go under the radar and made the decision early to not venture into the magic fraternity. That is why, to date, he is not a member of any free online magic forums. Nor is he a member of magic clubs because he doesn’t perform for magicians - only for “real” people.

Dennis, under another stage name, has performed on a regular basis in Denmark for many years and for real audiences.

In 2016, Dennis enjoyed the successful release of his first book, Mentalism from Copenhagen, which acheived world-wide distribution. It was received with great enthusiasm from amateurs, as well as professional mentalists!  Mentalized, also published in 2017, was his second book in the art of mystery. It was met with even greater response from the community. A State of Mind is his third book about the art form called mentalism.

“A State of Mind is essential reading for anyone interested in the art of mentalism. It’s full of charming, mystifying and original routines, as well as four valuable essays on how to become a better mentalist. Dennis loves the art and – fortunately for us – is happy to share his many years of performing experience with his readers. As well as providing everything necessary to perform each effect, Dennis also includes detailed notes, credits and inspirations. I enjoyed these just as much as the effects. I predict that A State of Mind will become the top-rated mentalism book of the year.” - Richard Webster.

“A book for every mentalist, and even magicians. It has many insights that are right on and is full of wonder. I hope every mentalist reads it. They really must…. I love it!” - Marc Salem

“Dennis Hermanzo is soon going to become a big name in the mentalism field. Every book he has released contains strong, direct and to the point routines. This is what makes mentalism entertaining! In this book you will find so much material that you can immediately add to your repertoire. Well done, bravo Dennis!” - Luca Volpe

“He has done it again!! Dennis continues to share more gems of quality thinking and inspirational content; again eminently. practical for any other mystery performer to adapt into their own repertoire. Another volume of his, worthy of inclusion alongside some of the better books in any performers collection” - Steve Drury (Co-Founder of PSYCRETS British Society of Mystery Entertainers.)

(Review from The Linking Ring magazine 2018) - By Rolando Santos

A State Of Mind: The Simplicity of Mentalism; the Complexity of Performing it Dennis Hermanzo. Hardcover 297 pages.
Reviewer's note: I reviewed a PDF draft of the book. The final version may be slightly different in content and formatting from what I submitted to The Linking Ring for review. I can almost guarantee you don't know who Dennis Hermanzo is because the name is a pseudonym, but you will want to consider buying the third installment in a series that has generated a lot of positive comments in international mentalism circles. Hermanzo is a well-known Danish performer who began releasing twenty years of materials in 2016 with a book called Mentalism from Copenhagen, then released Mentalized in 2017, and now A State of Mind in 2018.

Hermanzo's book are known for high impact material based on successfully reworking classic mentalism plots, methods, and concepts to make them simpler. He doesn’t add to create a variation, but instead works towards minimalist versions. While sharing his tips on how to become a better mentalist performer in essays on performing, stage fright, and being in the right state of mind, the heart of his philosophy is, “Head, heart, and imagination. That is what your performance should connect to!”

In this book, he promises in big bold letters: ”No fancy gimmicks. No difficult sleights. No new methods. NO pipedreams…” By and large, he delivers on his promise. There are no special gimmicks beyond a nail writer needed for most of the effects. However, there are three exceptions: one effect uses an impression board, another requires Gozinta Boxes, and another uses Banachek’s Psychic Pad Folio. In all, there are twenty-three routines, with extensive photos to back up each effect.

A State of Mind has a lot of good presentations and good mentalism. For example, “The Lying Truth” is an anywhere, anytime Lie Detector Test that can be done on the fly for a large or a small crowd. The method is bold but easy to do. A ten-dollar bill is put into one of three envelopes. The envelopes are sealed and mixed several times outside the performer’s view, yet he still easily identifies which envelope has the money. You wouldn’t think Hermanzo’s way of getting into the effect would be effective, but it is. He asks if anyone remembers the old nursery rhyme, “Liar, Liar, Pants on Fire.” He then explains that our body temperature and psychology change when we lie. I found the old nursery rhyme resonated with me and made an instant connection. It lends itself to lots of byplay before you get to the effect. It reinforced one of Hermanzo’s tenets of mentalism: That great mentalism is not about puzzles. It is about creating emotion.

There is also a simplified two-person code effect called “Psychic Wife,” in which emotions are written on cards. One is randomly and freely selected. The magician calls his wife one the phone, and she performs a reading over the phone before revealing the thought-of card. Hermanzo explores Sound Reading from Corinda’s 13 Steps to Mentalism with a very clever effect that allows you to show of your precognition and mind control using soft drink bottles. Hermanzo prefers to have this ready to go at his home for guests. I tried it at home; it’s effective and a lot of fun because the objects are so ordinary. However, it can also easily work on stage. An especially brilliantly redesigned version of the late Bob Cassidy’s powerful and dangerous effect called “Russian Roulette,” which used actual guns, is something you want to look at closely. Hermanzo’s version uses paint sprays cans. It takes out the actual danger element without losing the dramatic atmosphere the piece can create.

Much of the theory in this book is not new to experienced performers, but it is articulated in a direct and no-nonsense manner that makes it easy to absorb. It may cause you to rethink what you have been doing or simply confirm your own experiences, both of which is a good thing. In keeping with his promise, the methodology for most of the effects is not new, but the presentations are very good and should lead you in creating your own personalized material. The provenance of each effect is extensively detailed, making it easy to go back and look at original material and concepts.

This would be a valuable book for those getting into mentalism and those who have been performing for a while but have hit a creative wall. A State of Mind’s sweet spot is for those experienced performers looking to declutter their material and methodology. Those wanting to get rid of electronic gimmicks and gadgets and get back to a reliable form of old-school mentalism without losing entertainment value should buy this.
Recommended. Rolando Santos