Product Description

From the dreaming spires of Oxford, Lewis Gillies drives north to seek a mythical creature in a misty glen in Scotland. Expecting little more than a weekend diversion, Lewis finds himself in a mystical place where two worlds meet, in the time-between-times--and in the heart of a battle between good and evil.

The ancient Celts admitted no separation between this world and the Otherworld: the two were delicately interwoven, each dependent on the other. The Paradise War crosses the thin places between this world and that, as Lewis Gillies comes face-to-face with an ancient mystery--and a cosmic catastrophe in the making.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #428939 in Books
• Published on: 2006-09-05
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 400 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9781595542199
• Condition: NEW
• Notes: Brand New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
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From Publishers Weekly
Lewis Gillies is pursuing graduate work in Celtic studies at Oxford when his rich roommate, Simon Rawnson, slips through a hole in a cairn to the land of the Tuatha de Danann. With the help of an eccentric professor, Lewis pursues Simon and finds himself playing a major role in some important Celtic myths. In retelling these myths, Lawhead ( Arthur ) allows his characters to become unspecific archetypes who therefore fail to hold the reader's interest. As he is herded from event to event, Lewis, supposedly a Celtic scholar, fails to recognize the import of these occurences. Throughout, Lawhead tells his readers what to feel rather than letting his story move them.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal
Two Oxford graduate students stumble upon a stone cairn in Scotland and enter a magical "Otherworld" at once removed from and intimately connected to their own reality, becoming embroiled in an ancient battle against an evil that threatens both worlds. Lawhead, whose Pendragon Cycle ( Taliesin , LJ 8/87; Merlin , Crossway Bks., 1988; Arthur , Crossway Bks., 1989) established him as a frontrunner among contemporary Christian fantastists, demonstrates a genuine love for and understanding of Anglo-Celtic mythology in this first volume of a projected series. A worthwhile purchase for most fantasy collections.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Kirkus Reviews
Celtic fantasy and first of a series from the author of the recent Pendragon Cycle Trilogy, In the Hall of the Dragon King, etc. The aristocratic Simon Rawnson and his American friend, narrator Lewis Gillies, are postgraduate students at Oxford, free to go chasing impetuously off to the far north of Scotland in pursuit of an extinct beast supposedly sighted by a farmer. Simon clambers inside a cairn and vanishes. Helped by a Celtic expert, the mad professor Nettles, Lewis follows--and finds himself in Albion, a Celtic paradise (our world and Albion are apparently coming unravelled, however). In Albion, the two friends both become warriors, only to take opposing sides in a power struggle, with Lewis as warrior Llew siding with the good Phantarch, while Simon joins evil Nudd, King of the Underworld. Only by bringing Simon back to our world, Lewis reasons, can the evil be abated. Lawhead treats his Celtic lore with respect; the upshot is well handled and pleasingly restrained, a solid and readable opener for the series. -- Copyright ©1991, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.

Customer Reviews

Worthy fantasy adventure novel based on Celtic mythology
Lately I've noticed that in the last one hundred years or so, English fiction has certain repeating themes. The Paradise War by Stephen Lawhead begins a series built around one of these "British-isms": ordinary, humble folk from our dreary mundane world stumbling into a magical parallel world quite by accident. Unlike the obvious Chronicles of Narnia-type examples however, this series was written purely for grownup audiences.

Lewis is a graduate student at Oxford; one of those bookish, plain sorts who would never get any female attention if it weren't for his handsome, impulsive roommate Simon. One day they decide to take a road trip north to investigate some paranormal happenings reported in a tabloid. Simon ends up crossing over into the parallel world unwittingly, and a few months later a frantic and confused Lewis follows to "rescue" him. Instead, Lewis finds that Simon has passed four years as a warrior in the fantastic and barbaric Otherworld of Albion and has settled in happily. In order to survive in this savage and beautiful land, Lewis must also undergo an extreme transformation. Meanwhile, the barrier between the worlds is wearing thin and leaking through to England. Disaster for both worlds is inevitable unless Lewis can convince his friend to return with him and find a solution.

Lawhead depicts this alternate realm of Albion as a legendary paradise that is based on a lot of research into Celtic folklore and traditions. I can really respect the labor of love that this kind of world-building represents. The author is also careful to remain true to the harsher realities of survival in a primitive culture; there are battles and grim bloodshed depicted (fans will get their share of this Lawhead staple), almost a surreal counterpoint to the lovely land and peoples he describes. There are also spiritual themes weaving through the plot: the evils of pride and folly, and how these things have far-reaching consequences throughout time and space; providence; and inner transformation being more important than anything physical. Lawhead delivers these messages masterfully and without preaching.

The Song of Albion promises to be a rich, absorbing read if this first book is any example. My reaction to TPW was enthusiastic, even though I do not normally seek out fantasy that involves so much war strategy and action thrills. Despite a few choppy transition passages, the storytelling is solid. I anticipate picking up book two immediately to continue the adventure.
-Andrea, aka Merribelle

A Pleasant Surprise!
As an avid fantasy reader, I was reluctant to try this trilogy because Lawhead is not one of the best known fantasy writers. My husband bought me the book because Lawhead is a Christian and he thought I should try it.

I was very pleasantly surprised! The writing is excellent. The story is interesting, meaningful, and epic in scope while still progressing rapidly enough to finish in three books.

It contains all of the elements I look for in a fantasy: vivid description, many interesting and well-developed characters, problems to solve, quests, romance, war, tension, intrigue, and a happy ending.

I couldn't be happier.

Completely engrossing and completely sensory story!
Although I am a voracious reader, I rarely read fantasy...I suppose because I am tired of being dragged into "created worlds" that rarely seem to be believeable or worthy of the time involved in figuring them out. This series of books (and I will tell you right now, like previous reviewers, GET THEM ALL, you will want to start Book II the MINUTE you finish the first!) is completely engrossing. I knew nothing of Celtic history or legends, but this author wove the threads of "real" legends and lore into his "otherworld" so completely and so perfectly you never question the reality of it all!! And to be perfectly honest, right up to the LAST sentence of the LAST book, he had me hooked. I am ashamed to say I put off more than one chore/responsiblity to get in ONE MORE CHAPTER before falling asleep at night!! (haha) It is rare that literature of this caliber comes along anymore and I for one cannot wait to read everything else Stephen Lawhead has written or will write in the future!! He has a true gift! Do yourself a favor and curl up with a set of books and a story that is completely sensory and real!!! ENJOY!!!!