fantasy book reviews science fiction book reviewsfantasy and science fiction book reviews The Pillars of the World by Anne Bishop

I loved Anne Bishop’s Black Jewels Trilogy so much. But it took me a long time to pick up The Pillars of the World, because it just didn’t sound terribly appealing.

And it wasn’t appealing in the least. The one character I did like was portrayed as a cold, possessive jerk by the end of the book. The mysterious Lucien is shunted aside for the “sweet” Neall who has about as much depth as a puddle. And Ari, as a heroine, is a joke. There was nothing to like about her at all.

The Fae storyline was tragically typical. They’re arrogant and uncaring, so now their world is disappearing. Can’t we have some Fae that aren’t high and mighty? The only thing truly interesting about them was their positions which coincided with gods of ancient Greek and Roman myth, and their ability to turn into an animal representative of that.

Anne Bishop is a great writer, but you couldn’t tell by reading The Pillars of the World. It had none of the dark, edgy feeling of her Black Jewels novels and feels like a cop out, as well as a whack over the head with strong feminist beliefs and the Wiccan religion.

 

Tir Alainn — (2001—2003) Publisher: The youngest in a long line of witches, Ari senses that things are changing — changing for the worse. For generations, her kin have tended the Old Places, keeping the land safe and fertile. But with the Summer Moon, the mood of her neighbors has soured. And Ari is no longer safe. The Fae have long ignored what occurs in the mortal world, passing through on their shadowy roads only long enough to amuse themselves. But the roads are slowly disappearing, leaving the Fae Clans isolated and alone. Where harmony between the spiritual and the natural has always reigned, a dissonant chord now rings in the ears of both Fae and mortal. And when murmurs of a witch-hunt hum through the town, some begin to wonder if the different omens are notes in the same tune. And all they have to guide them is a passing reference to something called the Pillars of the World…

Anne Bishop, Tir Alainn, The Pillars of the World, Shadows and Light, The House of GaianAnne Bishop, Tir Alainn, The Pillars of the World, Shadows and Light, The House of GaianAnne Bishop, Tir Alainn, The Pillars of the World, Shadows and Light, The House of Gaian

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  • Beth Johnson Sonderby (guest)

    BETH JOHNSON, one of our guest reviewers, discovered fantasy books at age nine, when a love of horses spurred her to pick up Bruce Coville’s Into the Land of the Unicorns. Beth lives in Sweden with her husband. She writes short stories and has been working on a novel.

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