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vinayvasan 's review for:
The Pariah
by Anthony Ryan
Anthony Ryan is one of those author who could possibly write down a shopping list and you might end up reading it. His previous 2 series' established that. He can create wonderful characters, make them very compelling, phrase lovely passages and make you enjoy the reading experience. What that does make up for in some cases has been a smidgeon of inconsistency with plot progression - one that is usually masked by this aforementioned skills and action - involving swordplay or dragons as it was in the previous series
In Pariah, Anthony Ryan removes the action accoutrements and produces a wonderfully slow burn plot - a plot that bring in the deceitful combo of politics and religion. Alwyn Scribe is our main character, our eyes into this world. Alwyn belongs to a Robin Hood-esque band of outlaws who are driven by a leader who is more than what he seems. Quick of mind and hand, Alwyn has a special role within the band, favored by the leader of the band. However, betrayal within the ranks forces a change of circumstance for Alwyn as he now finds himself accepted into a religious band under a messianic leader. Alwyn's life changes and so does the book.
This is a different book from Anthony Ryan. For one, the lead isnt an action hero types - Alwyn isnt averse to violence but its usually the sneaky kind as befits an outlaw. The other element of the character is he is more passive than most lead characters - as in, things happen to him and he reacts to it. People seem to know more about Alwyn than Alwyn himself and that makes for a nice change as we as readers also discover facets and secrets at the same time as Alwyn.
The book almost classically follows the 3 act structure and each act has a strong character for Alwyn to be guided by and each impart their own lessons as the book grows. The book starts off being political with smattering of religion before bringing in religious machinations and finally, the 3rd act intertwines them effectively. The importance of religion and the way to communicate it is one of the best elements in the book and not something that I have seen being employed so well and seamlessly in other books. Magic as an element while used sparingly becomes increasingly important as the book proceeds as well
Friendship, kinship and companionship are central themes that play out over Alwyn through the book. For an outlaw, Alwyn forms a lot of bonds and those are etched well. Some of those transcend into duty and obligations as well. This results in fantastic character growth and is rather wonderfully done through the book.
This isnt a book for everyone. The pace is deliberate and the action is quite minimal, only increasing towards the end. Also, the way the book ends, its difficult to predict where its likely to go - its not like the kind of book that makes you want the sequel immediately.
Another fine work from Anthony Ryan - he does write so wonderfully well. This is an interesting addition to the genre and is worth the read
In Pariah, Anthony Ryan removes the action accoutrements and produces a wonderfully slow burn plot - a plot that bring in the deceitful combo of politics and religion. Alwyn Scribe is our main character, our eyes into this world. Alwyn belongs to a Robin Hood-esque band of outlaws who are driven by a leader who is more than what he seems. Quick of mind and hand, Alwyn has a special role within the band, favored by the leader of the band. However, betrayal within the ranks forces a change of circumstance for Alwyn as he now finds himself accepted into a religious band under a messianic leader. Alwyn's life changes and so does the book.
This is a different book from Anthony Ryan. For one, the lead isnt an action hero types - Alwyn isnt averse to violence but its usually the sneaky kind as befits an outlaw. The other element of the character is he is more passive than most lead characters - as in, things happen to him and he reacts to it. People seem to know more about Alwyn than Alwyn himself and that makes for a nice change as we as readers also discover facets and secrets at the same time as Alwyn.
The book almost classically follows the 3 act structure and each act has a strong character for Alwyn to be guided by and each impart their own lessons as the book grows. The book starts off being political with smattering of religion before bringing in religious machinations and finally, the 3rd act intertwines them effectively. The importance of religion and the way to communicate it is one of the best elements in the book and not something that I have seen being employed so well and seamlessly in other books. Magic as an element while used sparingly becomes increasingly important as the book proceeds as well
Friendship, kinship and companionship are central themes that play out over Alwyn through the book. For an outlaw, Alwyn forms a lot of bonds and those are etched well. Some of those transcend into duty and obligations as well. This results in fantastic character growth and is rather wonderfully done through the book.
This isnt a book for everyone. The pace is deliberate and the action is quite minimal, only increasing towards the end. Also, the way the book ends, its difficult to predict where its likely to go - its not like the kind of book that makes you want the sequel immediately.
Another fine work from Anthony Ryan - he does write so wonderfully well. This is an interesting addition to the genre and is worth the read