Review: Pilgrim by Sara Douglass

Posted by Jessi (Geo) on January 1, 2015 | 0 Comments


This book may be unsuitable for people under 17 years of age due to its use of sexual content, drug and alcohol use, and/or violence.
Review: Pilgrim by Sara DouglassPilgrim by Sara Douglass
Series: The Wayfarer Redemption #5
Published by Tor (5.2.2006)
Genres: Adult, High Fantasy
Format: Paperback, 672 pages
Source: I own it


5 Stars

The Star Gate is destroyed and the Star Dance is dead. Icarii Enchanters, gods, and humans alike are helpless as the TimeKeeper Demons lay waste to Tencendor. 

There must be hope left, but no one knows where to find it. Death lurks in every twist of the Maze, but only those who have the courage to endure death can learn the secrets of the ancient enemy.

Caelum SunSoar and his parents know that the only way is to discover the ancient secrets that lay trapped in the mountain Star Finger, and Faraday, martyred heroine, grows ever fearful -- and ever bitter. Must she lose everything to the land?

My thoughts

I had forgotten how….disturbing the TimeKeeper Demons were! Holy crap, some of the parts made me cringe so hard. View Spoiler » But there were a lot of other grotesque and disturbing things that I hadn’t remembered. There are some pretty unsavory things in this story. But that’s not really a bad thing, because if Demons were ravaging the world, isn’t that what one would expect? Douglass brought them to life in their terrifying and monstrous nature.

I found that I still remembered much of this story, but there were still some surprises. I still don’t know quite what Katie’s role is, although some of it is coming back to me.

It was also really hard to go through Faraday’s struggle again with her. At times, it was almost annoying how distrustful she was of love and how much she pushed DragonStar away, but at the same time, who can blame her? She’s used to being sacrificed for the greater good, and her entire life has been full of pain and sacrifice. She’s become such a martyr that she has trouble breaking free of that mold. I was cheering for her then, and I still am cheering for her now. She was always my favorite character! I love her resilience. She always manages to stay true to her own heart, despite everything she’s been through.

And then there’s Zenith and StarDrifter. It should be totally disgusting that they’re grandfather and granddaughter, but because it’s normal in SunSoar tradition, and they’re not human and have different cultures and beliefs, I found myself forgetting about their relation and rooting for them. I love StarDrifter, I really do, and they were perfect for each other. (But seriously, you have to set aside the fact that they’re related – if you think too much about it, it’s kind of disturbing.) By this late in the series, you kind of get used to the creepy SunSoar affection for each other.

I loved the magic of the evacuation into Sanctuary! I loved Drago’s sack full of ingredients, the Songbook, and the power of the Enemy. On the contrary, the Demon’s quest to revive Qeteb was creepy! But at the same time, it was kind of awesome. All of the life parts in the Lakes, and the way they were done – brilliant! I think those were my favorite parts – the journey to gain Breath, Warmth, Movement, and Soul. It’s so unique that it’s amazing even as it’s disturbing. I loved it!

View Spoiler »

Favorite quote

“My heart is always your Sanctuary.”

OMG *dies*

Overall Assessment

Plot: 5/5 
Premise: 5/5 
Writing style: 4.5/5 
Originality: 5/5 
Characters: 4.5/5 
World-building: 5/5 
Pace: 5/5 
Feels: 5/5 
Cover: 4/5 

Overall rating: 5/5

Previous books

wayfarer redemption enchanter starman sinner sara douglass

Jessi (Geo)

Posted in: Book Reviews | Tags: , , , , ,

Subscribe to Novel Heartbeat to get more posts like this!

Leave a Reply

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.