Worlds Unseen by Rachel Starr Thomson
The Seventh World Trilogy, #1
Quiet, timid, and still haunted by the murder of her childhood guardians, Maggie Sheffield wants peace and healing—not an opportunity to uncover truths so frightening that they threaten to forever unravel the world she thinks she knows. But when a dying friend gives her an ancient scroll that purports to contain just such truths, Maggie finds the lure of understanding too hard to resist:
For the power that killed Maggie’s guardians was not human—and she has reason to believe the same power is controlling the Seventh World.
Leaving her hopes for peace behind, Maggie sets out to carry the ancient scroll to the far eastern city of Pravik, seeking the only man in the world who can read it. Along the way, Maggie falls into the companionship of a charismatic young wanderer called Nicolas Fisher, who has secrets of his own that he has long been trying to keep hidden.
Together, their journey plunges them into a strange new world of colorful Gypsies and ancient legends, of death-hounds and beautiful witches, of wilderness treks, unexpected love, and political rebellion. But the price of truth may be too high: for Maggie, Nicolas, and the rebels of Pravik are tearing at the veil between the seen and the unseen, between good and evil, between forgotten past and treacherous future—and when that veil grows thin enough, it’s anyone’s guess what may come through.
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I don’t usually read high/epic fantasy, but I made an exception for Rachel Star Thomson’s Worlds Unseen, and I’m glad I did. It was a fantastic story of good vs. evil, and it had a nice, Chronicles of Narnia-reminiscent Christian theme that was just awesome. There were a couple things that bugged me. Read on. 🙂
The plot was a little rushed at times, but overall, good. Occasionally things seemed to happen waaaay too fast. And the relationship between Maggie and Jerome just didn’t make sense. He appears, and suddenly they’re in love? Wait, what happened to the “falling” part? I have no idea. Besides, Nicolas and Maggie make so much more sense together.
The characters were interesting, and I enjoyed them, even if they were a little undeveloped (and occasionally stereotypical). I think I liked Pat best … or Virginia.
The writing was very melodic, very poetic. The description, especially, was amazing. At times, I was pretty confused by it, but, then I read it quickly and when I had a cold, so that could be the problem. XD
The setting was hard to get into. I find that I don’t know much about the world this novel takes place in. I’m confused about the geography, technology, and government. Usually, when it comes to a fantasy novel, one can grasp at a certain time-period the book sort of resembles. This is not so with Worlds Unseen.
Content
Some violence. No language or sexual content at all. Very clean, though perhaps it’s not for younger teens … it’s a little depressing at times, besides being hard to understand.
Rating
Though it has many merits, Worlds Unseen is has a rushed plot. The character development – especially with Maggie and Jerome – isn’t very good, nor is the world-building. 4/5 stars.
Thanks for reading,
~Kellyn Roth
p.s. I’m still looking for reader input about the schedule for Reveries. I’d love to hear what you like to read! Comment, please, I’m begging you! 😀
About the author
Rachel is a woman of many talents and even more interests: she’s a writer, editor, indie publisher, singer, speaker, Bible study teacher, and world traveler. The author of the Seventh World Trilogy, The Oneness Cycle, and many other books, she also tours North America and other parts of the world as a speaker and spoken-word artist with 1:11 Ministries.
Adventures in the Kingdom launched in 2015 as a way to bring together Rachel’s explorations, in fiction and nonfiction, of what it means to live all of life in the kingdom of God.
Rachel lives in the beautiful Niagara Region of southern Ontario, just down the river from the Falls. She drinks far too much coffee and tea, daydreams of visiting Florida all winter, and hikes the Bruce Trail when she gets a few minutes. A homeschool graduate from a highly creative and entrepreneurial family, she believes we’d all be much better off if we pitched our television sets out the nearest window.
