Pilgrim

A Medieval Horror

By: Mitchell Lüthi

Narrated by: Alan Turton

Set in 12th-century Jerusalem, Pilgrim follows the treacherous journey of a German knight and his companions as they return home after seven arduous years battling for God in the Holy Land. Within this sprawling tale lies a tapestry of medieval horror, intertwining history and folklore, encompassing both a metaphysical and literal odyssey.

Inspired by a rich blend of Arabic, Christian, and pre-Islamic traditions, Pilgrim delivers a pulse-pounding story of action, adventure, and bone-chilling horror.

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A unique horror based on Islamic myth and folktales

Pilgrim revolves around a German crusader who is returning home after 7 years fighting in the Holy Land. Before he returns, he is tasked with returning a relic, supposedly the severed hand of saint. What unfolds next is a horror through Islamic myths and folktales.

Usually, western horror is told from the perspective of European or American myths, werewolves, vampires, ghosts and the like but having a horror steeped in the myths of Islam and the Middle-East is refreshing and unique. You have encounters with djinn, ifrit, and other manner of middle eastern horrors. It also has a Lovecraftian and cosmic horror feel to it.

I also loved the historical aspect and setting of taking place during the crusades.

The writing is fantastic, some criticize it for being wordy but i enjoyed it. Its technically masterful, the characters feel alive and are interesting, whether that's the tormented and grieving protagonist, Dietmar or the crass and often funny mercenary Geoff.

The descriptions of the settings are also imaginative and well done, along with the various monsters and horrors that are encountered.

My one critique is if you aren't familiar with some of the history or islamic folklore you might have a bit if a hard time understanding everything. That being said, even though I knew much of it I had fun going down rabbit holes reading about monsters I had never heard of like the Ifrit.

if you like horror, Lovecraft but want something a little more original this is a great choice. It's a bit long but it flew by for me and was an easy listen.

Great feel

This was a great ride. Steady tempo leading you deeper and deeper into madness and then out again

An instant medieval horror classic

The narration is well above average, and does a lot to help give the listener a better understanding of the characters.

The story is amazing to the lovers of the medieval horror genre and is now tied with Between Two Fires for my personal favorite book. Most of the characters are well developed, in truth I would give the story a 4.5 stars instead of 5 if I was able to because, there are characters who are mostly ineffectual to the story and some are kinda 1 dimensional and it seems that when the author doesn’t really know what to do with the weaker written characters he just makes them go away. If you are not that into real history, especially the crusades, then the first 3ish hours of the book will be a drag as the author takes his time setting up the plot by using and explaining actual crusader politics. If you like history and middle eastern religious lore, then you’ll love the book all the way through.

My favorite thing about the book is how much knowledge and work the author put in to making real life legends fit into each encounter and the overall plot. I found myself looking up and researching every unfamiliar name and location I heard in the story and I learned far more about the location and religious stories these things are based on.

Incredible read!

A Medieval Horror Masterpiece

Lüthi's debut novel is a vast and impressive entry into the emerging 'medieval horror' genre: richly detailed, eerie, cerebral, and unexpectedly heart-wrenching at times. Alan Turton truly shines here: his warm, expressive baritone and versatility is a perfect match for this modern epic.

Excellent narration, engrossing story, highly recommend

I have a special place in my heart for historical horror and this book check all the boxes. I would absolutely recommend.

Good story

I like the period. The story is good and the pacing is quick. I wanted more. The climax was ok. The performance was very good.

Meh

This book made me realize I’m a very character driven reader. This title had one uninteresting character with no real depth, and a couple others who were just thin cannon fodder. Couple that with a narrator who was just reading instead of preforming the story, it was really hard for me to stay engaged. A cool idea for a story, completely fell flat for me.

An Odessey

What a long strange trip! Crusaders sent on a quest to deliver a holy relic fall into what could only be described as a hell. This journey is long and twisted with danger and pitfalls and both inner and outer struggles. It reminded my of The Odessey but possibly even more harrowing and strange. I learned a lot about religion along the way. If you like epic adventure with some horror thrown in, this book is for you.

…dang…

Amazing read. It took me awhile to recover from the cosmic despair. As soon as I recovered I want through it a second time. Just as good the second read if not better.

Great, weird, disturbing story

I haven't read any books quite like this and was new to the author. I love the theme (medieval horror) and it was well-written, frightening, with great characters and world-building.