Pawn of Prophecy

When writing fantasy stories, everything from the set-up to magic has to work perfectly. Pawn of Prophecy is one of those books that really work. It is funny, the story keeps you wanting to read on, and magic is strictly controlled. If you plan on a holiday in the land of make-believe, this book is not a bad choice.

The beginning of the story takes the reader to a farm to meet the protagonist Garion on a farm out in the middle of nowhere. The boy is very young, which gives the authors the possibility to set up the people and the scene by explaining everything to the boy. As the book is also the first in a series of five, the set-up is perfect to keep the reader going along on a journey of discovery.

When the real journey begins, everything is set to take the reader out of this world, literally. The journey takes readers all over the sleepy kingdom of Sendaria and then into the rough kingdom of Cherek. Thanks to a pile of intrigues and withheld information, nothing is ever quite what it seems. 

There are kings, queens, sorcerers, and sorceresses, and magic to boot; keeping to strict rules in the magic used by all concerned, the authors manage to keep it to a minimum. By making it hard to use, not using magic is the more common option in the book. This prevents the story from becoming derailed by 'an easier way to do it' than what we are used to from our physical world.

The dialogues in the book are well written, funny, and the jokes work for the people and the story. While the co-authorship of David and Leigh Eddings was kept a secret at the time of the book's release, it may have played a part in the development of the characters. They are well-drawn and their sense of humor is very distinct from one another.

If you are ready to go on a long journey, Pawn of Prophecy by David and Leigh Eddings is available on Kindle. Follow Garion as he grows up from small child through boyhood to becoming a young teen. Then follow him on a mysterious journey through two kingdoms and getting involved in spy conspiracies and planned regicide. And while you do that, absorb the history of the world you have been pushed into when opening the book.

The book (and the whole series of the Belgariad) is not only recommended for fun readers; if you plan to write fantasy, it is a good example of how a story can work. The combination of a learning teenage boy with a journey and a mystery is a good recipe to start of with.

Further reading
The Thief Who Learned Magic
Witches in Retirement
The Little Prince