Another entry in the “saved from work” pile. As much as I say that I’m a fantasy fan, I really don’t read a lot of high fantasy novels. I’ve read Tolkien, and that’s about it. I tend to go for more modern fantasy (Neil Gaiman), stuff that blends classic fantasy tropes with modern sensibilities (Neil Gaiman), or fantasy set in our world (Nei- look, do I need to say it?) So, I picked up Pawn of Prophecy on a recommend from one of my favorite podcasts, because it sounded a little more up my alley.I did enjoy reading this. There’s a certain down-to-earthness to the characters that I liked. Yes, you’ve got all of these high grand people and gods and immortals (most in disguise), but they all feel like real people. And when you have lines like, “You sound like a bad epic,” it almost seems like they’re aware they’re in a fantasy setting and know how ridiculous the traditional fantasy tone is. I like the set-up that’s presented in this, and while it does reek of traditional fantasy epic, I like that the characters do bring a new breath of life to the setting. I like that each culture and nation has their own distinct flavor without feeling too reminiscent of real world counterparts. My one issue with the book is that it just kind of ends with very little revealed in the plot. Which is really frustrating as I guessed at Garion’s parentage right away, and the book spends ninety percent of the plot dancing around that fact. Not to mention there’s really not much that happens in the plot. There’s intrigue, intrigue, and then a few developments and then “The adventure continues!” It’s something I really can’t stand in a lot of series books, and as a set-up book, there’s really not much here to grab me, aside from the characters and setting. I’m probably going to check out the next book, but I think I would have been better off reading the omnibus edition of The Belgariad rather than just the individual novels.