I have mixed feelings about this product. On the one hand, it is profesionally put together, it has relatively few typos and grammatical errors, it explains plot, setting and systems in a coherent and reasonable way, all of which are big positives for me. The story is fairly straightforward and though the mechanics talk about all of the bad things that will happen to PCs who throw magic around willy-nilly and accrue paradox, it actually seems like the only reason mages are needed is to be able to resist the Quiet and know what they're up against, and that's fine and allows the story to be used with a mixed group for those who engage in Troupe Play.

The downsides, though, are that there are a few awkward layout spots, a couple of grammatical errors, and one piece of advice that I can't endorse: ignoring player actions. I'm strongly against this, and if you want to have the PCs integrated into a Quiet without realizing it, the best way to do so is to let them do as they want, but describe a world that is different from what's actually there and happening. Letting players say "I do X" and then just ignoring them is a risky thing, and could work with some groups, but certainly not with all of them.

The Hallean Effect introduces character tio the fringes of Hollow Earth. The Adventure revolves around a Hermetic mage who in the pursuit of finding Hollow Earth activated the Hollow Earths defense barrier which threatens to destroy a near by town.

The Tabletop Gaming Club enjoyed the setting and concepts presented in this book. The concept of Hollow Earth promises many sessions of enjoyable gaming. We recommend this adventure to all Mage storyteller's looking for a campaign to run.

As a follow-up to the author's question, we did find it suspenseful and many of the players had to scramble to find the solution to various plot elements.