Friday 11 November 2011

Review: Inheritance - Christopher Paolini

Wow. So, it's the end. I started Eragon when I was about 8 - well before even Eldest came out. And now, after waiting and waiting, the end has come. You can imagine the paradox I was trapped in; on one hand, I wanted to know what happened ASAP, on the other, I didn't want it to be over. As you can probably tell, my self control failed, and so, I'm done. It's done.
There isn't much I can tell you without revealing spoilers, but I'll do my best. For those of you who aren't familiar with the series (shame on you) it is an epic in the style of the Lord of the Rings. It is set in a mythical land, where dragons once roamed free. After much war between the race of Dragons and of Elves, a pact was made that bound them together, which men joined after. If a dragon egg hatched for a person, they became bonded in the most powerful of ways, connecting them mentally, and a Dragon Rider was created. For ages the Riders and their Dragons kept rule, until one among them rose against them, and slaughtered both the Riders, and the free dragons. This Rider claimed the throne, and has ruled since, as the lives of Riders can stretch on for centuries. He kept three eggs for himself though, and when one is stolen, and eventually ends up in the hands of a young farm boy by the name of Eragon, everything changes.
That is the pretense on which the first book starts, and I wont tell you anymore. I hope it has ignited something in you that yearns to read them, if not, do it anyway.
This last book, well I cant really think of how to describe it. Including the pronunciation guide and acknowledgments, it is 860 pages long. An unbelievable amount of events occur, and each one is satisfying. The battles, though numerous, each retain their individuality and are heart pounding. The emotional moments are just that - emotional. If I had been in a private place I would have been crying my eyes out.  Pretty much all the loose ends are tied up, even those from earlier books. It was a very satisfying read.
I have but a few faults with it. One, is the Paolini often reuses phrases in the series. I understand that it may be a character trait that must be described like that, or something similar, but it does get a bit annoying at times. Most notably, he uses the phase '...., even as..' often. Ok, thats not a phrase, but it's a word order. An example would be something like 'Eragon watched him, even as he had watched Arya." (That is made up, and has no real relevance to the story, I was just illustrating a point.)
The other fault was that the ending I had worked on trying to figure out was one entirely different to the actual one. (Yeah, I know I didn't write the series.... but still.. *disappointment*) I cannot say much, as even disproving my theory would tell you what would not happen, and that is almost, but not quite as bad as telling you what does happen. I had come up with an intricate theory, having deduced many things, and kept arriving at the same conclusion. I was so sure that one thing could not happen, but it did. My reason was that it would be too perfect. But, it seems to have righted itself, leaving a bittersweet ending, which I do enjoy. (I'm a horrible person yes, but who really wants a true 'happily ever after?)
Well, thats about all I can say, and so, it's over.

No comments:

Post a Comment