Eldest (The Inheritance Cycle) by Christopher Paolini
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Book Reviews of Eldest (The Inheritance Cycle)
Book Review: Fantasy Series Worth Reading
Summary: 4 Stars
Modern day version of Lord of The Rings. Descriptive (but imaginative!) prose with dynamic characters and intriguing fantasy references. Brilliant, as well as impressive, epic written by somebody who's only in his early 20s! The movie does this book no justice! Can't wait for the 3rd and final installment.
Book Review: GREAT
Summary: 4 Stars
I THOUGHT IT WAS IN GREAT CONDITION, I WILL ALWAYS COME BACK TO AMAZON TO LOOK FOR BOOKS WHETHER USED OR NEW AND KNOW THAT THEY WILL BE WHAT I'M LOOKING FOR AND BE SATISFIEDBook Review: Good Buy
Summary: 4 Stars
Pretty good buy,in condition as described,3 days after first day of estimated arrival date is when it arrivedBook Review: eldest
Summary: 4 Stars
i bought this for my son he loves it reads it over and over again.Book Review: Much Better Then the First Though Still has Flaws
Summary: 3 Stars
I enjoyed reading Eldest more than its predecessor. Most of the aspects of the first book that I did not enjoy was rectified in the second one. The characters in Eragon were similar to puddles of mud. However, in Eldest, I was pleased to see that most of the characters (with the exception of Arya) had reasonable and engaging personalities .
Saphira evolved from being a boring and bland character into a creature with great passions . I felt that I was experiencing the true majesty of a dragon. She actually faces her own inner demons and problems like other characters and grows from them. So very unlike the first one where she didn't seem like much of a character at all.
Eragon has also went through the same change. In the first book ,he was very unrealistic. In this book, he questions his own beliefs and his humanity. This causes him to evolve into a strong character. He suffers from a great disability in which the scar that the shade inflicted upon him causes him much pain. He must learn to overcome his own human weakness. He also learns that, in his ignorance, he made brutal and inadvertent mistakes that harmed the people around him.
The book's plot had me reading non-stop. The training that Eragon and Saphira go through is enjoyable to read. There are many semblances to their training in which Eragon must test not only his strength but his wisdom and intellect. Saphira had to learn how to be a true dragon and qualm her feral desires.
The Elvish land of Du Weldenvarden was described so well that I felt like I was in that forest civilization. I enjoyed seeing the elves' culture. Paolini skims through the dwarven culture but he gives great detail on the Elvish one. It was very refreshing to see the elves portrayed almost like faeries of Celtic lore. I was very afraid that the elves were going to be Vulcan like and emotionless like Arya. However, they turned out to be such a likable race. I look forward to visiting Du Weldenvarden in future books.
I enjoyed how the book focused on Roran and Eragon. Every few chapters would switch between the two. I always wondered what became or would become of the villagers in Carvahall and it was amazing to see it through Roran's eyes. Though the switching would throw the book off every once in a while but it wasn't common.
Nasuada also had chapters focusing on herself in the book. It was not as much as Roran and Eragon but it did give some insight on what the Varden were planning to stop Galbatorix. It also showed what became of the child that was blessed by Eragon.
Though I liked the book a lot I did have some gripes with it. It has its own flaws that does not agree with me. For instance, I did not enjoy Eragon becoming extremely powerful in a short amount of time. Those that read the book would understand what I am talking about. It kind of made the whole training (though enjoyable) entirely pointless. It also cheats Eragon of overcoming his disability as well.
I also did not like the character, Arya, she seems very flat. I understand that Paolini is trying to make her into a strong, silent female character. However, having her hide her emotions and act like an automaton does not sit well with me as the reader. It makes her very unrealistic, unlikable, and I found myself hoping she would get a sword cleaved through her just to spare me her blandness. She acts like she knows everything and acts like an uptight and arrogant person.
Paolini pulls off having strong alien characters through the Elven queen and through most of the elves in Du Weldenvarden. I saw the queen as a very likable character though we do not see her as much as Arya. The queen is also a strong female character along with Nasuada. Arya fails at that and I find her to be a very unneeded character. The romance between Eragon and Arya are awkward and staged at best. I feel no connection between the two characters.
A small gripe that I had with the book was that you did not see much of Saphira's training. I really wanted to see that but you only get quick glimpses of it through Eragon's connection with her. There are also two new characters that I kind of liked but didn't like at the same time. Their personalities are also non-existent. Eragon and Saphira's trainers though very mysterious suffer from the same blandness that Arya has. I was willing to forgive that because they actually have a semblance of intrigue.
This book is a great read. There are twists and turns some of them are predictable others are not. I must say, I read this book in a few days because I could not put it down. I cannot say the same for the first one. I enjoyed visiting the Elven forests and seeing the adventures of Roran. I really enjoyed seeing Eragon's training and the culture of the elves that Paolini paints so well.