Etidorhpa, the End of the Earth, is in all respects the worthiest presentation of occult teachings under the attractive guise of fiction that has yet been written. Its author, Mr. John Uri Lloyd, of Cincinnati, as a scientist and writer on pharmaceutical topics, has already a more than national reputation, but only his most intimate friends have been aware that he was an advanced student of occultism. His book is charmingly written, some of its passages being really eloquent; as, for instance, the apostrophe to Aphrodite—whose name is reversed to make the title of the story. It has as thrilling situations and startling phenomena as imagination has ever conceived.... There is no confusion between experiences and illusions, such as are common in the works of less instructed and conscientious writers treating of such matters. He knows where to draw the line and how to impress perception of it, as in the four awful nightmare chapters illustrating the curse of drink. Etidorhpa will be best appreciated by those who have "traveled East in search of light and knowledge."...
John Clark Ridpath, LL.D.
We are disposed to think "Etidorhpa" the most unique, original, and suggestive new book that we have seen in this the last decade of a not unfruitful century.
Times-Star, Cincinnati.
It is as fascinating as the richest romance by Dumas, and mysterious and awe-inspiring as the wild flights of Verne. Hugo wrote nothing more impassioned than those terrible chapters where "The-Man-Who-Did-It" drinks liquor from the mushroom cup. There never was a book like it. It falls partly in many classes, yet lies outside of all. It will interest all sorts and conditions of men and it has that in it which may make it popular as the most sensational novel of the day. Intricate plotting, marvelous mysteries, clear-cut science without empiricism, speculative reasoning, sermonizing, historical facts, and bold theorizing make up the tissue of the story, while the spirit of Etidorhpa, the spirit of love, pervades it all.... Happy is the scientist who can present science in a form so inviting as to charm not only the scholars of his own profession, but the laymen besides, This, Professor John Uri Lloyd has done in his Etidorhpa.
The Inter-Ocean, Chicago.
For eighteen years the writer has been seated at his desk, and all kinds of books have been passed in review, but has never before met with such a stumper as Etidorhpa. Its name is a stunner, and its title-page, head-lines, and [weird,] artistic pictures send you such a ghastly welcome as to make goblins on the walls, and fill the close room with spooks and mystery. The writer has only known of Professor Lloyd as a scientist and an expert in the most occult art of the pharmacist, and can scarcely conceive him in the role of the mystic and romancer in the region heretofore sacred to the tread of the supernatural.... The book is the literary novelty of the year, but those interested in such lines of thought will forget its novelties in a profound interest in the themes discussed.
The Chicago Medical Times.
The work stands so entirely alone in literature, and possesses such a marvelous versatility of thought and idea, that, in describing it, we are at a loss for comparison. In its scope it comprises alchemy, chemistry, science in general, philosophy, metaphysics, morals, biology, sociology, theosophy, materialism, and theism—the natural and supernatural.... It is almost impossible to describe the character of the work. It is realistic in expression, and weird beyond Hawthorne's utmost flights. It excels Bulwer-Lytton's Coming Race and Jules Verne's most extreme fancy. It equals Dante in vividness and eccentricity of plot.... The entire tone of the work is elevating. It encourages thought of all that is ennobling and pure. It teaches a belief and a faith in God and holy things, and shows God's supervision over all his works. It is an allegory of the life of one who desires to separate himself from the debasing influences of earth, and aspires to a pure and noble existence, as beautiful and as true to the existing conditions of human life as Bunyan's Pilgrim's Progress. The sorrow; the struggle with self; the physical burdens; the indescribable temptations with the presence and assistance of those who would assist in overcoming them; the dark hours, Vanity Fair, and the Beulahland, are all there.
Indianapolis Journal.