Home > Categories > Books > Fantasy > Pendulum: 1: Pilgrims review

Eric Albright is leading a normal life until a small red door appears under a train bridge near his home. Then a ghostly being wakes him in the dead of night, with a message from another world: You are Shadow.
In Levaal, the world between worlds, the dragon-gods grow restless in their sky prisons, and the Great Spirits struggle to contain them. Vous, the world's Friend and Lord, simmers in madness as he schemes to join the ranks of gods. He and the Arch Mage have almost won their final victory over the Free Cities. A dark age dawns.
But Eric and his friend Case are now Pilgrims, called to Levaal for a battle more ancient than the petty squabbles of men. And they will learn why some doors should not be opened... .
Magic to the Bone
Melting Stones
Ella and Olivia: Super Sweet Stories
Tortoise and the Hair
Pumpkin, The Dancing Puppy
Horses of the Dawn #2: Star Rise
Spirit Animals #7:The Evertree
Pup Patrol #3: Storm Rescue
Ricky Ricotta's Mighty Robot vs the Uranium Unicorns from Uranus
Tombquest #5: The Final Kingdom
Bloodtree Chronicles #3: Thatchthorpe
The Fever Code
The Modern Mediterranean DietProduct reviews...
Eric stumbles upon a door to a world of magic and, leaving only a note to his drunk homeless friend, leaps head first into a world of adventure - literally! The world he discovers is a lot darker than your average fantasy realm, as is foreshadowed by the massacre in the opening chapter. I found it more convincing for that fact, though less like the sort of world I would fall in love with and want to spend a long time inside.
My favourite character by far was Case, Eric's drunk homeless friend, who seems to approach everything with a resignation that makes him strangely adorable - especially in a world where people seem to be constantly killed off in some understated way or other. Case's death wish made me conversely confident that he, at least, would survive. The other reason I liked him was that he alone seemed to have a sense of right and wrong. While, early in the story, Eric constantly made choices to benefit himself, Case argued for the rights and well-being of others. He seems, at this point in the trilogy, far more worthy of being the hero than Eric!
All in all, it was a solid fantasy aimed fairly firmly at the male readership. If you like 'dark' and 'gritty', definitely give this one a chance.
Random listing from 'Books'...
Betrayed by their cousins, abandoned by their uncle, and with only the slimmest hint to guide them, fourteen-year old Amy Cahill and her 11 year old brother Dan, rush off to Egypt on the hunt for more of the 39 Clues that lead to a source of unimaginable power.
But when they arrive, Amy and Dan get something completely unexpected - a message from their dead grandmother, Grace. Did Grace set out to help the two orphans, or are Amy and ... more...
All trademarks, images and copyrights on this site are owned by their respective companies.
KIWIreviews is an independent entity, part of the Knock Out News Group. This is a free public forum presenting user opinions on selected products, and as such the views expressed do not necessarily reflect the opinion of kiwireviews.nz and are protected under New Zealand law by the "Honest Opinion" clause of the Defamation Act of 1992. KIWIreviews accepts no liability for statements made on this site, on the premise that they have been submitted as the true and honest opinions of the individual posters. In most cases, prices and dates stated are approximate and should be considered as only guidelines.
"Computer games don't affect kids. I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive electronic music."
Kristian Wilson, Nintendo, Inc, 1989