I Am Pilgrim by Terry Hayes - A thought-out rant

SYNOPSIS:

“A breakneck race against time...and an implacable enemy.

An anonymous young woman murdered in a run-down hotel, all identifying characteristics dissolved by acid.

A father publicly beheaded in the blistering heat of a Saudi Arabian public square.

A notorious Syrian biotech expert found eyeless in a Damascus junkyard.

Smoldering human remains on a remote mountainside in Afghanistan.

A flawless plot to commit an appalling crime against humanity. One path links them all, and only one man can make the journey. Pilgrim.”

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I have never read a book like this, ever. And at first, I was confused and lost, but caught on to the ten stories being told all at the same time. It was the best thing ever to understand a book like this. The plot alone was nothing short of a masterpiece. The writing and the characters were simply intriguingly complex. From the protagonist to the antagonist, you are given a chance to understand both and presented with their actions to resent, despise, fear and be horrified by.

Pilgrim is one of the most unique characters I have ever come across. He is not ambitious or has a big dream to be rich or take over the world. He just wants to rest, to be left alone. I don’t know why he thought joining a government secret service agency would be a good start for isolation, but whatever works at the time works, right?

I sometimes feel like I attach myself too much to books and their characters, but I am glad for the ability to do so. Especially when it came to reading I Am Pilgrim, but now I think it might have been because I was fifteen when I read this and understanding it felt like the best thing ever, especially for an validation seeking academic. Regardless of that, I truly enjoyed this book and I don’t ever want to forget the feeling I had when I read this book. I was taken once I started to understand the which the story was going. I couldn’t put it down, and if I did, I would be shaking with anticipation, writhing with suspense until I held it in my hand and I was reading it again. And to make matters worse, I read it while writing my finals, I remember choosing between this book and my school books and then deciding to just finish it, just to get it over with so I could study.

That being said, there are very consistent themes in this book that I found myself disagreeing with. As much as this is an excellent thriller/mystery executed in a very unique and domino-esque fashion, I would not in good faith recommend this book without pointing those out.

It contains some very heavy and graphic themes regarding terrorism, murder, fraud, war and war crimes, mentions of the Holocaust and very specific details about the horrors that occurred during that time period, body mutilation and Islamophobic comments and ideologies expressed by the main character and it is very obvious the author does not hold Muslims in the highest regard either. The author’s bias is evident at every mention of Islam. Sometimes it was not quite clear whether the character was doing something bad because he's a bad person who happens to be Muslim or he's a bad person because he is Muslim. 

It is not an easy read because of the way it was written, but once you understand what’s going on, it’s a ride from there on.

I will try to read this book again in a year or two to just realign my thoughts of what I think with the perspective of an older mind. And to make sure it still lives up to being one of the most interesting books I have ever read.

If you have read this book, I would love to know your thoughts.

Until the next book,

Paida