 |
Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth) by Terry Goodkind
Book Summary InformationAuthor: Terry Goodkind Edition: Mass Market Paperback Audio: English (Unknown); English (Original Language); English (Published) Published: 2008-09-30 ISBN: 0765362643 Number of pages: 848 Publisher: Tor Fantasy Product features: - ISBN13: 9780765362643
- Condition: New
- Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!
Book Reviews of Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth)Book Review: Epic Fantasy: tinged with purple but very readable & enjoyable Summary: 5 Stars
(disclaimer: I am almost 40, far beyond the target age for epic fantasy novels. I'm also a Sam Raimi fan, and have been watching the "Legend of the Seeker," not because it's high art (it's not) but because it reminds me of Sunday afternoons with Xena and Hercules. Because I've been watching the TV series, my wife bought this book for me for Christmas. As a writer myself, I tend to be overly critical of style, although i can also appreciate things like market applicability.)
Wizard's first rule is an absolutely wonderful story, written less than wonderfully. The book could have easily been condensed into something more concise, say ... only 600 pages instead of 850. Regardless, the quality of the story overcomes this, earning a total of 5 stars despite these and a few other faults that I'll get into later.
The story begins with Richard Cypher, a woodsman who is very well represented. Terry Goodkind is either a woodsman of sorts himself, or else he did some excellent research. Although a few "woodsman gimmicks" are overused (like looking for unbroken spiderwebs to indicate an unused trail, or the use of wayward pines for shelter), there are constant references to plants and wildlife that ring true and add an element of believability to the character o Richard, and to the story as a whole. Although the detail provided could be over-powering at times, Goodkind puts it to good use by offering vivid descriptions that add a wonderful texture to the story.
Richard finds himself at the center of an epic quest to defeat the evil Darken Rahl. Richard is the Seeker: the only one with a chance at thwarting Rahl's sinister plans. It sounds so typical, but the story is different than most of the genre in a few ways. First, it is much more true than most in its violence and pain. by that I mean: what's evil is *very* evil; when someone is bitten, they bleed; when soldiers have their way, they don't delve into monologues about their sinister plans, they rape people. This dirt-under-the-fingernails approach added another layer of texture and realism to a story filled with magic and monsters. I found it refreshingly blunt when it came to the consequences of our actions.
An epic, to me, can only succeed if there's a cadence to it. It has to be comfortable to read, with the right amount of action in the right places ... the occasional white-knuckle moments of suspense need to be balanced with a chance to breath. In this regard, Goodkind hits the proverbial nail on its head. The result was a quick trip through 850 pages. I'll compare it to the first time I saw the new Lord of The Rings movie: it was long, but you don't really notice at first, because when it comes down to it, you're having too much fun to notice.
However, my Tolkein reference isn't accidental. There are two elements in particular within Wizard's First Rule that are frighteningly similar to JJR's classic trilogy. One is when we learned that the sword of truth would eventually ruin the holder, turning him into a scrawny shell of his former self with nothing but a pathetic desire to regain the sword. At that point I almost croaked "Gollum!" and put the book down. I didn't, and in just a few pages I'd gotten over it. I guess the moral of the story is, this book isn't perfect, but its failings are justified by its pure entertainment value.
Finally, for those who are wondering: go ahead and watch the TV series, it will *not* ruin the books for you. They are so loosely based on the books, they'll hardly give anything away. Some of the characters are there, but in the wrong order and often playing modified roles. Oh, and if you're unfamiliar with Raimi, be warned that they're excessively (ad delightfully) cheesy.
Characters: 5 stars
Setting / Environment: 5 stars
Writing: 4 stars
Action: 5 stars
Pacing: 5 stars
Plot: 5 stars
Overall: 5 stars
Summary of Wizard's First Rule (Sword of Truth)Basis for the television series Legend of the Seeker, launching in Fall 2008! Millions of readers the world over have been held spellbound by this valiant tale vividly told.
Now, enter Terry Goodkind's world, the world of the Sword of Truth.
In the aftermath of the brutal murder of his father, a mysterious woman, Kahlan Amnell, appears in Richard Cypher's forest sanctuary seeking help ... and more. His world, his very beliefs, are shattered when ancient debts come due with thundering violence.
In their darkest hour, hunted relentlessly, tormented by treachery and loss, Kahlan calls upon Richard to reach beyond his sword-- to invoke within himself something more noble. Neither knows that the rules of battle have just changed ... or that their time has run out.
This is the beginning. One book. One Rule. Witness the birth of a legend.
|
 |
|
|
|