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togglesmcbobbins's review against another edition
1.0
So disappointing. I couldn't get past chapter 6. No direction, poor descriptions and muddled narrative. I really wanted to like this one.
baby_jewels's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Will Elliott's prose is phenomenal, and he's able to craft such an intriguing world. The scen s are vivid without being overloaded with descriptions and everything piece of this world that Elliott has made has been thought out and fleshed out, leaving you full emersed in the world of Levaal. I had a hard time putting this book down.
The member's of the Mayors' Command were wonderfully fleshed out, all different yet likeable on some level. I could read book after book about these characters. The main character, Eric and Case though.. not so much. Eric falls so heavy into the 'Everyman' character trope that he has no personality. We truly no nothing about Eric beyond a few surface level details, and his character's drive for a majority of the book is lusting over the only female member of the Mayors' Command, Siel. Case on the other hand does have a well defined personality, but it's just not a good one. His character is frustrating and annoying, and judging by his dwindling inclusion as the book goes on I can only assume that Will Elliott felt the same until last minute he seemed to remember that Case is a main character too.
None of the characters grew any throughout the book, They are the same from start to finish.
But desp not being a character driven book, there are a few scenes in the book that make the travelling band of hero's seem so much more real, and the I loved.especially when they are staying at Faul's House, being warrior at rest and taking the dragon scales together . Small moments like that really help flesh out the characters. I truly hope I get to see more of that throughout the series
The member's of the Mayors' Command were wonderfully fleshed out, all different yet likeable on some level. I could read book after book about these characters. The main character, Eric and Case though.. not so much. Eric falls so heavy into the 'Everyman' character trope that he has no personality. We truly no nothing about Eric beyond a few surface level details, and his character's drive for a majority of the book is lusting over the only female member of the Mayors' Command, Siel. Case on the other hand does have a well defined personality, but it's just not a good one. His character is frustrating and annoying, and judging by his dwindling inclusion as the book goes on I can only assume that Will Elliott felt the same until last minute he seemed to remember that Case is a main character too.
None of the characters grew any throughout the book, They are the same from start to finish.
But desp not being a character driven book, there are a few scenes in the book that make the travelling band of hero's seem so much more real, and the I loved.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Violence and War
Moderate: Gore, Gun violence, Suicidal thoughts, and Alcoholism
Minor: Adult/minor relationship, Torture, and Cannibalism
thebernie's review against another edition
4.0
Alice in Wonderland meets magical high fantasy in a world that doesn't seem quiet like a real world. Gods, dragons, magic, a drunk and a lost soul in the 21st century. What could go wrong? This story leads the reader on a merry romp through this land behind the door. Like watching a chess match unfold the winner is never apparent till the very end. Definitely will be looking for the next book.
khourianya's review against another edition
4.0
This was a book that kept popping up everywhere I looked - asking me to read it. Begging me to give it a chance. I bought it right before I left on my vacation, but didn't get a chacne to read it until after we were home again. Once I opened it - it was hard for me to put it down. The story just kept hauling me in again and again.
From the dustjacket:
Eric Albright is a twenty-six-year-old journalist living in London. That is to say he would be a journalist if he got off his backside. But this luckless slacker isn’t all bad—he has a soft spot for his sometimes friend Stuart Casey, the homeless old drunk who mostly lives under the railway bridge near his flat. Eric is willing to let his life just drift by…until the day a small red door appears on the graffiti-covered wall of the bridge, and a gang of strange-looking people—Eric's pretty sure one of them is a giant—dash out of the door and rob the nearby newsagent. From that day on Eric and Case haunt the arch, waiting for the door to reappear.
When it does, both Eric and Case choose to go through…to the land of Levaal. A place where a mountain-sized dragon with the powers of a god lies sleeping beneath a great white castle. In the castle the sinister Lord Vous rules with an iron fist, and the Project, designed to effect his transformation into an immortal spirit, nears completion. But Vous's growing madness is close to consuming him, together with his fear of an imaginary being named Shadow. And soon Eric may lend substance to that fear. An impossibly vast wall divides Levall, and no one has ever seen what lies beyond. Eric and Casey are called Pilgrims, and may have powers that no one in either world yet understands, and soon the wall may be broken. What will enter from the other side?
Pilgrims is no ordinary alternate-world fantasy; with this first volume in The Pendulum Trilogy, Will Elliott's brilliantly subversive imagination twists the conventions of the alternate-world fantasy genre, providing an unforgettable visionary experience.
I LOVED THIS BOOK! From the tentative first pages grew a fairly original story. I seriously had trouble putting it down and would usually read until my eyes wouldn't stay open. I will admit that some of the scenes felt clumsy - particularly anything sexual - but the scenes never lasted long. They just felt like they were written by someone trying something new. There were a couple of times during the book where I had to ask myself where this was going, but it always got back on track fairly quickly and I would be towed through the words once more.
Character development seemed a bit oddly done...with information suddenly being filled in later in the book after I already felt like I knew the character, but this wasn't a drawback for me. I tend to prefer fantasy stories with great world development where the characters play off the world more so than where I am given so much information about them that I no longer feel a connection. This one felt like the world was developed really well and the characters merely supported the world.
If you like fantasy - particularly alternate world fantasies - with a quest thrown in - I think you should give this one a try. It is a colourful, imaginative read. Plenty of quirks and an engaging story that I am looking forward to continuing to read as the next books are released.
From the dustjacket:
Eric Albright is a twenty-six-year-old journalist living in London. That is to say he would be a journalist if he got off his backside. But this luckless slacker isn’t all bad—he has a soft spot for his sometimes friend Stuart Casey, the homeless old drunk who mostly lives under the railway bridge near his flat. Eric is willing to let his life just drift by…until the day a small red door appears on the graffiti-covered wall of the bridge, and a gang of strange-looking people—Eric's pretty sure one of them is a giant—dash out of the door and rob the nearby newsagent. From that day on Eric and Case haunt the arch, waiting for the door to reappear.
When it does, both Eric and Case choose to go through…to the land of Levaal. A place where a mountain-sized dragon with the powers of a god lies sleeping beneath a great white castle. In the castle the sinister Lord Vous rules with an iron fist, and the Project, designed to effect his transformation into an immortal spirit, nears completion. But Vous's growing madness is close to consuming him, together with his fear of an imaginary being named Shadow. And soon Eric may lend substance to that fear. An impossibly vast wall divides Levall, and no one has ever seen what lies beyond. Eric and Casey are called Pilgrims, and may have powers that no one in either world yet understands, and soon the wall may be broken. What will enter from the other side?
Pilgrims is no ordinary alternate-world fantasy; with this first volume in The Pendulum Trilogy, Will Elliott's brilliantly subversive imagination twists the conventions of the alternate-world fantasy genre, providing an unforgettable visionary experience.
I LOVED THIS BOOK! From the tentative first pages grew a fairly original story. I seriously had trouble putting it down and would usually read until my eyes wouldn't stay open. I will admit that some of the scenes felt clumsy - particularly anything sexual - but the scenes never lasted long. They just felt like they were written by someone trying something new. There were a couple of times during the book where I had to ask myself where this was going, but it always got back on track fairly quickly and I would be towed through the words once more.
Character development seemed a bit oddly done...with information suddenly being filled in later in the book after I already felt like I knew the character, but this wasn't a drawback for me. I tend to prefer fantasy stories with great world development where the characters play off the world more so than where I am given so much information about them that I no longer feel a connection. This one felt like the world was developed really well and the characters merely supported the world.
If you like fantasy - particularly alternate world fantasies - with a quest thrown in - I think you should give this one a try. It is a colourful, imaginative read. Plenty of quirks and an engaging story that I am looking forward to continuing to read as the next books are released.
jvan's review against another edition
2.0
This should have been good, but it really wasn't. I struggled to make any progress. The fantasy world fails to be compelling, the characters aren't particularly interesting, and it just trudges along doing nothing much for a long way. Both in the book, and metaphorically.
mandi_m's review against another edition
A quest fantasy in the lines of Stephen Donaldson - misfit humans from the regular world are drawn into another realm where great things come to be expected of them. Quite a good read but didn't blow me away as I had hoped.
thiefofcamorr's review against another edition
Katharine is a judge for the Sara Douglass 'Book Series' Award. This entry is the personal opinion of Katharine herself, and does not necessarily reflect the opinion of any judging panel, the judging coordinator or the Aurealis Awards management team.
I won't be recording my thoughts (if I choose to) here until after the AA are over.
I won't be recording my thoughts (if I choose to) here until after the AA are over.
jameseckman's review
2.0
Couldn't finish it, it's a bit too bizarre. I will try future books from this author.
bentgaidin's review
2.0
Kind of disappointing; I picked this up because a portal fantasy sounded like a fun thing to read, but it just didn't work for me. Standard fantasy world with an evil overlord, a grubby resistance, scattered monsters and demi-humans, casual sexism, and a 'hero' with a 'destiny.' Most damningly, there was no sense of wonder -- despite the occasional interesting idea or evocative scene, I never felt impressed or awed by the world... and what's the point of a portal fantasy that can't even do that?
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