SF author (and Christian) John C. Wright has written a series of insightful posts discussing the writings of Philip Pullman. I think Mr. Wright says it well, so I’ll let him speak:
My big problem with Pullman is the two relating writing errors of (1) plot points introduced only when convenient and not before (2) no follow-through; plot points set up but then simply forgotten.
I am claiming the PLOT SUCKS.
Lest I use a technical terminology you non-writers cannot follow, allow me to explain.
And his explanation is at his livejournal.
(Be sure to read some of his other entries.)
I agree strongly with Mr. Wright: the problem with Pullman is not his fake ‘God’ (or Authority, as he likes to call it) but that he holds all the cards and gets to call the shots and so what we end up with is like Dawkins’ travesty of a book. But with Pullman, since it’s a novel, he needs to explain the gun on the mantle in act one, which he never does. He pulls the strings even more than Dawkins ever does. And that’s saying a lot.