Pariah by Timothy Goodwin Reviewed by Lillian Brummet

Pariah, written by multi-talented artist and author Timothy Goodwin, is a science fiction/fantasy novel that incorporates some very clear ideas to what is wrong with today's world.  The characters are colorfully portrayed and the battles were very well written.

Eric, the main character, is a victim of an abusive father and endures extreme poverty as a young adult.  He is eventually diagnosed with bi-polar disorder and grows into what could be called a normal life.  He meets and marries a wonderful woman and her son embraces Eric as his father.  Eric loves his life despite the difficulties in finding a good job and unfulfilled dreams to relocate his family to a place where his wife would not suffer from allergies so badly.

Eric becomes involved in a motor vehicle accident and wakes up in a wildly different place called the Itarri.  He is later told that this is a space ship and he is light years - and possibly another dimension - from the life he once knew.  Everyone on board expects Eric to become someone else when he regains his senses.  Seemingly on the brink of insanity, he experiences "fragmentation" when memories of other lives collide - but eventually works his way back to sanity only to discover that he is actually a clone.

In a desperate attempt to do whatever it takes to return to a time and a life he cherished so dearly, Eric undergoes intensive training.  The reader is taken on fantastic space travel and time travel adventures, battles with foes, scenes with gods, demi-gods, and an old flame that is incredibly vindictive are good spices for a great read.

At times I found myself confused, but I know from experience that books I have reread many times are those that challenge the mind and intrigue the reader to return.  The ending has an interesting twist, which I think readers may suspect early on, but the work is written so well that it will leave them guessing.