Rating: 
Summary: not anne bishop's best work....
Review: Anne Bishop is a great writer but if this is your first experience with her writings you may be disappointed. This world wasn't as tangible as her other world of the dark jewels series. The problem I had was that I just couldn't get into the characters, their personalities and conflicts. I would recommend her Dark jewels series, also the invisible ring is a great read (presequel) of the series. The dark jewels seemed to have more past and details just an all around more complete world. At times the series is dark but all around anne bishop pulls off a great story.
Rating:
Summary: It Was OK...With Reservations
Review: At the end of this novel you will know two things for certain. One is that the author is Wiccan. The second is that she is an ardent feminist. I have no problem with either (far from it, in fact), but my big problem with this book is that the author tends to lay these themes on kind of thick. I felt like I was being hit over the head with them, as a matter of fact. After a point, it was like, "All right, already, I get it! The evil Inquisitors are hypocritical, they hate women and do terrible things to them! Yes, witches are the wisest, most wonderful, open-minded people in the world! Okay??!!"You know exactly where Ms. Bishop's sympathy lies and what she wants her reader to think, thanks to her (somewhat one-dimensional) character descriptions. Explaining that a particular character is a bad guy because he had a lousy childhood is NOT acceptable. And I prefer (and this is just me) when the author stays the heck out of the reader's interpretation of the characters. Authors like Guy Gavriel Kay make sure to give you multi-dimensional characters, and even the bad guys have their good points. It gives the reader the opportunity to make up her own mind. I also wish Ms. Bishop had created her own system of magic, rather than liberally borrowing phrases, ideas, and ceremonies from Wicca. I understand she wanted to shed light on her religion, but this is supposed to be fantasy. Had she based it on Wicca (which a lot of authors do), but created her own religion out of it, I think it would have been a richer story. And she might have had some fun. I must say, however, that I very much liked the idea of lazy Fae. I haven't really encountered this interpretation before. On the other hand, I felt like I was rereading Piers Anthony's "Incarnations of Immortality" series, as certain Fae were given titles like "The Muse" or "The Gatherer" (aka Death) and they embodied the traits of those titles. Still, Ms. Bishop's writing style and pace are good and the dialogue is believable. And I found some of the Inquisitors' "persuasion" tactics and torture devices positively chilling. With all the faults of this book, I did buy the second just to see what happens to the characters. (Not much, as it turns out, but that's another review.) So, as my review title says, "Pillars" is OK...with reservations.
Rating:
Summary: It Was OK...With Reservations
Review: At the end of this novel you will know two things for certain. One is that the author is Wiccan. The second is that she is an ardent feminist. I have no problem with either (far from it, in fact), but my big problem with this book is that the author tends to lay these themes on kind of thick. I felt like I was being hit over the head with them, as a matter of fact. After a point, it was like, "All right, already, I get it! The evil Inquisitors are hypocritical, they hate women and do terrible things to them! Yes, witches are the wisest, most wonderful, open-minded people in the world! Okay??!!" You know exactly where Ms. Bishop's sympathy lies and what she wants her reader to think, thanks to her (somewhat one-dimensional) character descriptions. Explaining that a particular character is a bad guy because he had a lousy childhood is NOT acceptable. And I prefer (and this is just me) when the author stays the heck out of the reader's interpretation of the characters. Authors like Guy Gavriel Kay make sure to give you multi-dimensional characters, and even the bad guys have their good points. It gives the reader the opportunity to make up her own mind. I also wish Ms. Bishop had created her own system of magic, rather than liberally borrowing phrases, ideas, and ceremonies from Wicca. I understand she wanted to shed light on her religion, but this is supposed to be fantasy. Had she based it on Wicca (which a lot of authors do), but created her own religion out of it, I think it would have been a richer story. And she might have had some fun. I must say, however, that I very much liked the idea of lazy Fae. I haven't really encountered this interpretation before. On the other hand, I felt like I was rereading Piers Anthony's "Incarnations of Immortality" series, as certain Fae were given titles like "The Muse" or "The Gatherer" (aka Death) and they embodied the traits of those titles. Still, Ms. Bishop's writing style and pace are good and the dialogue is believable. And I found some of the Inquisitors' "persuasion" tactics and torture devices positively chilling. With all the faults of this book, I did buy the second just to see what happens to the characters. (Not much, as it turns out, but that's another review.) So, as my review title says, "Pillars" is OK...with reservations.
Rating: 
Summary: Another Great Book
Review: Bishop did it again in a new series about the Fae. This book is just as good as her others, and takes place in a whole new world of characters and setting. I loved the Fae, and their world and learning about Dianna, Lucian, Lyrra and Aiden. I can't wait for the next book in this series and definitly reccommend this book to any existing Bishop fans or newcomers to her writing. I had a hard time putting it down, even to sleep and go to work! ^^
Rating: 
Summary: Fun, but nothing special
Review: Compared to some of the fantasy I've been reading lately, THE PILLARS OF THE WORLD, while a fun distraction from your everyday life, reads like a very green writer's first attempt. The basic plot is a redux of the burning times: witches and suspected witches quickly disappearing as power-hungry male inquisitors systematically find and destroy them for gold and revenge. Of course, it's set in a different world, and it turns out that the disappearance of the witches is connected with the disappearance of a hidden world (shades of Avalon?) inhabited by semi-divine beings called the Fae, all of whom bear striking resemblances to old Greek and Celtic dieties. This is all fine, and in fact it's all interesting, but the fact remains that it's been done before, and done better. THE PILLARS OF THE WORLD doesn't grab you and hold on tight, doesn't pack any sort of emotional punch, doesn't push you to the edge of your seat even once. Its characters are mildly interesting -- particularly Morag, who is the mistress of Death and one of the Fae -- but its story is predictable and ultimately it's not what I expected from the celebrated Anne Bishop. It's worth a read, but for a really powerful (historical) fantasy experience, I'd recommend Juliet Marillier's Sevenwaters Trilogy, and anything by Guy Gavriel Kay. Kate Forsyth's Witches of Eileanan series is also fun, not so predictable, and very well written.
Rating: 
Summary: Another winner from Anne Bishop!
Review: First, be warned that this story is not set in the same world as the Black Jewels trilogy. It is much less violent and dark, and the characters are slightly less engaging. It is set in a new and unique world where the fae cross back and forth from their world to the world of men much like Greek Gods. But something is causing pieces of the fae world to vanish into mist, and all the fae who dwell in those places are lost. The remaining leaders of the fae, the Lightbearer, Lucien, and Dianne, the Lady of the Moon, are searching for the reason the bridges are being closed. The Muse and the Bard keeping hearing rumors of Wiccanfae, and the failing of the Pillars of the World, but the flighty fae have long since forgotten what these are or how to fix them. Meanwhile in the human world, an evil man, called the "Witch's Hammer" has rapidly gained power by organizing witch hunts and destroying and perverting all magic in the land that he finds. The witches have power over the elements and he hates and envies them. He tortures them into making "confessions" of evil deeds and then kills them. All women walk in fear of him and his witch hunters.
But above all this is the story of the young witch, Ari, the young maiden witch, who has recently lost her mother and her grandmother, and now stuggles to carry on the rites to protect the land alone. She encounters the growing hostility of the townspeople. She must choose between her new careless fae lover, Lucien, who is just learning the meaning of love, and a young man who truly loves her selflessly, and wishes to take her to safety. Unknowingly, she also has the clues as to what exactly the pillars of the world are, but the witchhunters are coming and she may not survive to pass this crucial information on. This is a good story, with a wonderful cast of characters like those that I have become used to seeing in Ms. Bishop's stories. While not quite as good as the Black Jewels Trilogy, it is still well worth reading.
Rating:
Summary: Is this even Bishop?
Review: First, I have to say that Anne Bishop is one of my favorite authors. I fell in love with the Black Jewels Trilogy, the characters, and the world. I was excited when I read that Pillars would be set in a new relm, however. I wanted to see what else she could do, what new places she could take me. I enjoyed the read, there was a fair-is-foul element that was entertaining, and it was generally a nice book. However, it was only after I looked at the cover after finishing it that I remebered it was Anne Bishop's work. It really didn't seem like her style at all. It actually reminded me a little of Patricia Briggs. Overall, the plot was a bit weak, the villian unconvincing, and the ending very haphazard. I really don't know what to say about the book except that I wasn't impressed. But I must admit that if it had been any other author than Bishop I would have enjoyed it. However, knowing what she's capable of, I felt very let down.
Rating:
Summary: pretty good
Review: I actually really liked this book, despite or maybe because, it was such a different world than the Black Jewels' books. I generally read the most negative reviews of books I like and vice versa for books I don't like so that I can see it from a different perspective. A lot of people have commented on the fact that this book has a very common theme--witch-hunts, the fae, etc. Personally, I enjoy it. I think that the witch hunts can very easily demonstrate fanaticism as well as indifference. I also didn't catch the connection between Hitler and Adolfo, but as soon as I read the comparison, it made sense. You have the fanaticism, the cruelty and the indifference which allows the cruel to step forward and seize more power. Maybe this book is an allegory, but so are some of the "classics" (the crucible was said to be about the Red scare and McCarthyism, etc.) I can understand not liking that, but I personally enjoy it. Some themes transcend worlds, times and countries and I think persecution is one of them. I also think that Bishop has an extraordinary ability to create a whole worldly regime and social order which is incredibly unique and enjoyable. The Black Jewels trilogy was probably her best, but this one, in my opinion, was pretty good. It was, in my opinion, subtle compared to the Black Jewels, but this world was almost an alternate universe to ours. I especially liked the "fae" world. On the otherhand, I think some of hte character development was lacking. Especially Ari and Neall. They were sympathetic and likable, but not that deep. I agree with the majority who have posted that the Gatherer was one of the better characters. I disagree though with the criticisms of Diana and Lucien going from lordly to spoiled. I think that they were always spoiled, but it didn't show until things stopped going their way. I also thought it was an interesting character kind of regressive development because you could see their flaws, you could see them start to expand their horizons, but then it was like there was too much challenge to their world and my impression was that they couldn't handle it and so stopped developing and sort of became "less." I think that this is a very true to life process and happens often. I liked it. It made them more real to me. Also, I would have to respond to the criticism that Ari's charecter was boring and unworldly with the fact that in many ways, the Fae parralleled that. They were almost a mirror image. Where Ari was unworldly and unsophisticated but had to work for everything and had to focus on a very small universe in order to survive, the fae were unworldly, but more sophisticated and deliberately focused on a small universe for their "emotional" survival. Like I said, when their world became too shaken up, some couldn't handle it and some adjusted. Very real. I guess, writing this, I think that there is more depth than I originally thought. I thought it was interesting and well-written. I enjoyed it very much.
Rating:
Summary: Very good...
Review: I don't understand why others didn't like it :o( I thought it was great. No, it has none of the humour that ade me love Black Jewels, but it's still a great start to a series that I hope will end well :o)
Rating:
Summary: Awesome!
Review: I don't understand why others didn't like it :o( I thought it was great. No, it has none of the humour that ade me love Black Jewels, but it's still a great start to a series that I hope will end well :o)
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