Look at the book

You pick up the book and take a closer look at it. It looks truly ancient - heavily bound in cracked dark leather and complete with a worn brass latch. You find yourself thinking of it as a "tome" rather than anything so mundane as a book. The cover is embossed with a peculiar cursive script. It doesn't look like Arabic or Urdu. As you squint at it, you realise that it isn't writing at all - it's merely a set of very stylized images, all overlapping. As you let your eyes wander, you can trace out a pair of eyes which seem to become more and more distinct the longer you look. The left eye is shut - is the book winking at you?

"What is this?" you ask the assistant as you shake yourself free of your trance.

"The Romans called it the book of Mercury," explains the girl. Glancing back at the book, you find it hard to disbelieve her as she enlarges on this statement. "It is said to contain half of every secret that ever was. It has great power, but there is a price - whenever you open the book, you must let the pages fall open as they will to reveal half the answer to your question, and you must never turn the pages. You can close the book again to ask a new question, but only **** awaits the one who seeks to read the hidden portion of their future.

"If you are strong enought to resist this temptation, this book is invaluable, for knowledge is truly power. But if you feel too tempted to see your future, perhaps this would interest you instead?" She gestures to a small mirror with an ornate frame in the form of a serpent swallowing its tail.

If the book really works, you could find out almost anything you wanted - how to seduce anyone you wanted, **** material, how to make a million! On the other hand, do you really want a book that can kill you by reading it? Perhaps you would be better buying the mirror. If it shows the future, like she's hinting, that could be almost as useful...