A friend suggested I read this, so I did. He clarified that this Pendragon series was close to his heart during his early teens, but he thought I might like it now. As an adult.It was definitely a young adult novel. I can't appraise it from a young adult perspective though, so as an actual adult(?) it was a series of monumental eye rolls. Every nuance was spelled out for the reader in the same sentence in which it appeared. I assume that's a common occurrence for young adult novels, because they can't figure things out on their own(?), but for an advanced(?) reader, it was blatant and garish. The author left nothing for the reader to ponder on his own, which tells me he distrusts me personally. I can't be trusted to think for a second about why Saint Dane said "This isn't the last battle" or something before sending Bobby to his 'death?' Come on, MacHale.Every once in a while, seized by enraged curiosity, I would stop reading to look the author's name, J. D. MacHale, on the front of the book, and wonder. How could an adult(?) possibly write a book like this? I don't know if I think he's very talented or stunted as an author; he could be talented enough to know how to write in a style that is vastly different from his default, mature voice – I don't know how similar his voice is to those of other young adult authors – or, he could be stunted in that this is just the way he writes, which would make him a great author for young adult series.I hardly believe the latter, and it's an offensive thought, but I'm the one writing the review, so can it.Most character interactions were overwhelmingly trite, polarized, one-dimensional, and awkward, summing up the adolescent experience. There were too many group hugs, awkwardly described from Bobby Pendragon's perspective. You'd think his parents would think of a more impressive name than 'Bobby' to compliment Pendragon, this being a young adult novel in which everything else is harshly formulaic, by the way. There were too many uncomfortable instances of Bobby defending his right to cry and feel emotions. I suppose the most bothering aspect of that was the annoyingly didactic tone. Being a shell of a human being, I can't imagine some poor, confused kid gathering reassurance from Bobby's awkward emotive messages to his friends back on Second Earth. Since I'm mean, I'd call Bobby some politically incorrect word that would earn me stern glances from hyper-liberals or whoever still gets offended at those things. Were I still an adolescent. Which I'm totally not.Oh yeah, and the story begins with Bobby – who is a fourteen year old boy – being led off by his mysterious Uncle Press to an abandoned subway station in the bad part of town. When asked where they were going, Bobby only received cryptic replies such as, "I need your help with something." The hilariously imprudent decisions and word choice made me think I was soon going to join Bobby's parents and the local police force in an investigation for the missing boy suspected of being murder/raped, last seen riding away on the back of his uncle's motorcycle.
Bobby Pendragon is a traveler. Frankly I think if I had a name like "Pendragon" by the time I was a young teen I'd have looked it up and said...wow cool. But apparently being a typical 21st century "youth" our hero doesn't really care about much outside of school sports of course.I give this a 3 star rating as it has moments of..."humm, that was interesting". It's a pretty good idea though executed with some odd logic holes and for a very young audience.I've noted before that "YA" books can be more "Y" than "A" sort of "Ya" or it can be more "A" than "Y", "yA"...occasionally there's a balance I suppose. This book is "Ya".There's a bit of adventure a little romance set-up. The story isn't really anything new, but it's a fairly fast adventure with a few slow-downs when we drop back to "Earth 2" to read the journals.So, not too bad. A low 3 stars with some decent action and continuing plot set up with a continuing arch-villain. I think younger readers will enjoy this more than older, especially more "experienced" readers. If you've been reading a while there will be lots of "been there done that" moments where you'll pretty much see what's coming before it gets there.I don't know if I'll read any more of these, maybe if I need a break and something very light (I got this in audio and often put it on when I was just tired, LOL). So be aware that we have some death, we have some violence so I'd advise parents and guardians check it out first and then decide if their youths are ready for the book.(view spoiler)[The "love story is the traditional "wow I hate him/her" until of course the book moves toward it's end when we discover we don't really hate him/her...of course he (Pendragon) had a crush on a girl (back home) named Courtney.The continuing "magic" villain is named Saint Dane and...dun-dun-dun he'll be back. (hide spoiler)]
What do You think about The Merchant Of Death (2002)?
Before I review this book, you have to understand something: this book DEFINED my later elementary school years. Before this book, I had been mildly into reading (mostly mysteries), but this was the first book that I ever remember loving. I was obsessed with the series.I still own copies of all the books, and I re-read them from time to time. I can still appreciate them, if I don't LOVE them the way I used to. The writing is good, the characters are fleshed out pretty well, and it's well-plotted. The main criticism people have about his book is that there's nothing particularly unique about it. (To be fair, I had no way of knowing this as a kid.) I will admit that this is 100% true; now that I've read more and have more experience in the literary world, I can say that there's nothing that makes this plot stand out from others of its genre. (This changes in later books. It's mildly present starting in The Reality Bug, but shit doesn't really hit the fan until The Quillain Games.) However, I think the writing and plotting are good enough to make it worth it - while there's nothing unique about this book, it's hard to find anything wrong with it either. I could cautiously recommend this to older readers, but to younger kids... go for it. I hope you'll love it as I did.
—Mike
The book Pendragon: The Merchant of Death by D.J. MacHale is a great story and in my opinion should be rated five stars. One reason this book is so great is because it includes many important literary devices. One literary device it uses is an external conflict, which is a problem with a physical object, or challenge. An external conflict in this story is when Bobby and Uncle Press had to escape the quigs on the mountain in Denduron. Another literary device used in this story is a climax, which is the most suspenseful and interesting part of a story. The climax in this story is when Bobby had to go into the quig cage and escape in order to stop the tak bomb. Another reason I like this book is because I just absolutely love how the writer switches his point of view from Bobby's to Mark and Courtney's and makes it connect together like a puzzle. This book is part of a series and I definitely want to check out the next nine books in this series because if they are anything like this one, they must be amazing. Overall, I believe that if you love fantasy and adventure, this book is for you.
—Lauren Asuncion
The Merchant of Death is the story of Bobby Pendragon, a normal fourteen year old boy who is going to save the world... yeah, nothing out of the ordinary so far I know, your basic fantasy story... Bobby doesn't know it until his Uncle Press takes him through the gates of an alternative world called Denduron, preventing Bobby from attending a basketball game... the basketball game and a certain Courtney Chedwynde are pretty much all that are on Bobby's mind. Imagine his surprise when he learns that he is Traveller, meant to go through time and space to help prevent the end of Halla (all time, space, world that ever existed, exist and will exist)... he's not the only Traveller. His uncle is one of them too, so are Osa and Loor; a mysterious mother and daughter couple of dangerous warriors. Loor, the daughter, regards Bobby as a nuisance, half way between a coward and a fraud... which he himself pretty much recognizes that he is. The world of Denduron is ruled by an evil tyrant who enslaves part of the population... but the Milagos are tired of being slaves and so Denduron is on the verge of a bloody revolution. So yeah, like I said, your basic, typical fantasy story... but MacHale marks a few points in originality for the way in which he chose to relate his story... Bobby's tale takes the form of a journal that his bestfriend Mark and near-girlfriend Courtney read... but Mark and Courtney are also active throughout the story, trying to get things done on their side of the universe. Overall, it's a fast and entertaining read. Bobby's narration made me laugh outloud a few times and I'll admit that I was gripped enough to want to read the following books... apparently there are seven in the series already and book 8 is due in 2007. Recommended if you're looking for something light and fast and of course if you enjoy yound adult books. I think my little cousin would really appreciate this.
—Roxane
