On a Pale Horse (Incarnations of Immortality #1)

A Book To Make You Think

This book is compeling and will grip you right from the first page...and won't let go till the very last. It makes you stop and think about the concept of Death and just who has the right to die. Plus, who can resist a mix of magic and technology with Satan there to gum up the works! I loved this book from begenning to end and just couldn't put it down. I recommend it to anyone with an interest in fantasy and, above all, the ideas behind death.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

better than i thought

I actually bought this book cause work was pretty slow at the time and I needed something to do, and I liked it so much I ended up reading the entire series. So, I strongly recommend this book and the rest of the series.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

So unbelievably good!!

A friend recommended his books to me. This was the first of his that I read but it definitely won't be the last.
I have read a few others and each is refreshingly unpredictable.

2 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

Sucks you in

Though it can be a little strange at times, and almost to the point of cheesiness, I found myself coming back for more. What you would call a "page turner". Character development is good and it's a very easy read, without being easy to the point of simplicity. If you can get past the cheesiness (magic stones and flying carpets) it's a very good book. I went on the buy the next 3 in the series, which have all been just as interesting.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

An amazing look on every natural controversy in human nature

Piers Anthony¿s On a Pale Horse, put bluntly, is one of the greatest books I¿ve read in a long, long time. It was above and beyond any expectations I¿d had for it originally. The very setting and implied back story engulfed me, before any conflict was presented. I¿ve always loved alternate Earths, with mythical creatures and magic, but this author takes it to a whole new level, even making the very structure of society change to accommodate magic throughout world history. Just this could have made me read the book twice, but with the added actual story, it became absolutely amazing. An amazing fantasy work looking at death, religion, morality, romance, and some ¿mature¿ topics, On a Pale Horse pulls on the every interest and natural controversy in the human mind.
I enjoyed the book enough to even ignore some obligations to read more. It pulled me in, and wouldn¿t let me go. The characters, just about all of them, were amazingly well developed and easily real. None of them sat ¿Larger than Life¿ except those who realistically should, and every one had a deep history and personality. The main character was a simple brooding, unfortunate type, but as Anthony added the sad history and dilemmas he had to face, the true nature slowly revealed itself to be very original and very much another hook to continue reading the novel. I¿ve prided myself on an ability to find flaws in a book as I read, and even my absolute favorites have faced my criticism, but I couldn¿t find anything remotely bad with this. I am definitely reading through this series, and even other books by Piers Anthony.

1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

Recommended for those looking for a new way to think about Death.

If you enjoy any of Piers Anthony, this book will not disappoint. On A Pale Horse offers a different view of an abstract idea. It argues the point that death is something to be valued, and a fundamental gift to those of the living. I couldn't put the book down once I started reading it, and have since nearly finished the second book in the series with the same interest. I recommend it if you like easy reads with both a superficial message and deeper contexts to make the reader think!

Breathtaking book

A friend gave me this book many years ago way before I became a advete reader,but I picked it up one day and it changed my reading habits indefinitely. This book will capture you form the very first page and keep till the very end.I really love how Pier's blends fantasy with a spiritual quality. I highly recommend this book and the series of "THE INCARNATION OF IMMORTALITY"

ethics and ethos...

On a Pale Horse is like no other book I've read. It is mostly open dialogue. Most books have have a balance of sorts between open dialogue, internal dialogue like thoughts and feelings, and descriptives of people and places. On a Pale Horse is mostly the former. It gets where it wants to go through conversations and discussions.

This novel is all about death and what it means to die. After Zane kills the Grim Reaper, he must replace him as the incarnation of Death. Now Zane's job is to go around the world on his pale horse Mortis, taking the souls of dying people who are balanced between good and evil. He then has to read the soul to figure out if it's good enough for Heaven or if it is too corrupt and must suffer eternity in Hell. If you are an atheist and don't believe in an afterlife (like the author Piers Anthony) then upon death you just cease to exist. Along the way, Zane meets with all kinds of dying people in all kinds of circumstances. Through discussions between Zane and his "clients", some pretty profound subject matter is considered. Take for instance Zane's discussion with the atheist. Zane asked the atheist if he is afraid of dying knowing that he will cease to exist. Here is the atheist's response: "I have no terror of the nonexistence before I was conceived; why should I fear the nonexistence after I die?" Other issues Zane has to weigh are incest, human euthanasia, suicide and more. Zane learns that to die is not something to be feared. It can be a beautiful end of pain and suffering. Throughout the novel, Death meets the other Incarnations: Time, Fate, War and Nature. He also meets Satan and takes an interesting tour of Hell. On a Pale Horse is not always deep conversation, it has it's funny moments too. The (sometimes) beautiful Luna brings romance to the story as well.

For a book concerning itself with the afterlife, On a Pale Horse does not concern itself with religion of any kind. It deals solely with morality and mortality. If you are interested in ethics and ethos then I highly recommend On a Pale Horse. It's the first Piers Anthony book I've read but I guarantee it won't be the last!

Out of this world

This book was actually given to me by a friend who didn¿t want to read it. I thought taking it off of his hands and reading it was a mistake but within seconds of opening the book, I was mesmerized. Vivid pictures were painted in my head as if a movie was being played. The wide range of vocabulary used throughout the book was a little bit out of my league but I managed, a terrific book if you are looking to widen your vocabulary arsenal a little bit. The characters chosen fit perfectly, I absolutely loved all of the characters encountered by Zane, the protagonist of the book. Mr. Anthony made the characters interact with each other in a way I may relate to. He moulded it so the situations presented were so realistic you might even encounter something similar sometime throughout your own life. Once you pick this book up, you won¿t want to put it down, even after you finish it. This was a magnificent book and thank you Mr. Anthony for conjuring such a wonderful creation which I will remember for many years to come.

Blew my mind

I recieved this book, Bearing an hourglass, and weilding a red sword from my uncle a little bit back. I started with this, and it BLEW MY MIND!!!! I have never read such an entertaining book! The plot was excellent, i couldnt put it down!

Awesome book, but I think the author got rushed in the middle of it!

This was a very good book especially in the begging, because the author was very good on the setting/ mood of the story. I liked all the suspense, in the begging and the end, but what was up with the middle? the book really slowed down, and got extremely monotonous...it kept going on about all the clients death had to visit, and it really bored me =( To bad I couldn't give the author advice to revise the middle making it more interesting...add some suspense some obstacles Death had to get over. Otherwise I strongly recommend this book...i enjoyed it because it got me out of work, and the author did a excellent job on the characters =)He is very creative and its enjoyable to read a great story. I love fantasy- and this combined both sci-fi and fantasy together making a remarkable book....excellent job (I'll be reading the other books in this series)

Incredible

not how i would have liked for it to have been written stylized wise, but the concepts and story line was amazing. Depth beyond measure and a story line that makes me want to read more. i will surely be getting the next segment to this series.

The greatest beginning ever

It's the greatest first book in a series i have ever read. Thanatos had compassion which is needed, I think.

Brilliant!

This was a little confusing in the begining, but once I got in... it was like finding a diamond neclace. Bloody Brilliant! A must read for everyone. I can't wait to read the others!

Slow to get into, but finished in a day.

Awesome and amazing. Fun. If you like books with long complicated plots, that make you think and require you to actively read, then really you should read this book. And I'm not saying that to sound cliche. This was a fun book, it took me about sixty pages to realize this, but after those sixty pages you won't be able to put it down. Calling all humorous fantasy lovers this way. Come enjoy a world with death, nature, father time, war and other obstacles.

ADDICTIVE

This is an AWESOME book! Piers Anthony makes it seem so real! This is probably the fastest book I've read because I couldn't put it down! It's a great book for people in middle school and older because it does have some... stuff... in it, but it's still and all around great book!

GREAT READ

Piers Anthony takes you away into a world filled with magic, science, good, evil, love and hate. This is the first book of the immortallity series. This series brings the reader into the lives of the immortals and expecially how they overcome Satan (the incarnation of Evil). What a great series!

Got me Hooked

This was the first Piers Anthony book I read, and it was great. On A Pale Horse deals with the Incarnation of Death and what he does and dealing with the devil. Piers Anthony is one of the best Fantasy writers and if you love this book you should read the rest of the series, and move on to the Xanth series.

Best Book I Have Ever Read

If you are looking for an fnatasy fiction book that will keep you interested from beginning to end, this is it. This is the first book in Piers Anthony's "Incarnations of Immortality" Series, and one of the best books i have ever read. Recommend it to everyone.

Literally could not put it down!!

On a pale horse completely intrigued me. Normally I read exclusively Dean Koontz because his books are exiting and really paint a visual picture. Piers Anthony hit one with this book I started it at 11.30pm and finished at just a little before 6.00am his characters are very unique and developed and It is a very original concept. Bravo, Piers Anthony.