A good read. I liked the first and third better but this was still really good. I know a lot of people were not liking them as much as they progressed but I think they are still excellent reads. ( )

I finished Eldest, the second book in the Inheritance Cycle. I highly recommend this book! It's GREAT! I actually cried at one part... I loved Eragon, and I'm glad Eldest didn't let me down. I wish they'd continue producing the movies. The Eragon movie is what got me to read the books in the first place.

This book starts off with Eragon going to Ellesmera, the forest city of the elves. There, he is trained in fighting and magic to become a better dragon rider. Eragon must improve his skills, as well as overcome a crippling injury caused by Durza during the battle in the previous book. At the same time, Eragon's cousin Roran is helping Carvahall, which has again been attacked by Ra'zac. King Galbatorix has discovered the home of Eragon, and sends Ra'zac and troops to attack the town. The people of Carvahall retreat into the mountains. Both stories slowly build towards the epic battle we all know is coming. You also learn details about Eragon's family that he never knew.

Chris Paolini is an incredible writer. I still can't believe these monstrous books, with their incredible characters, languages, lands, and creatures was created by a guy younger than me! I don't usually read these sorts of books, but I'm glad I did. It's been a nice change of pace in terms of reading material, and it's been an awesome adventure. ( )

Another good one can't wait for the last ( )

Aug09:

GAH! The first book wasn't too terribly bad. Full of cliche and clean cut good vs bag. This one was all over the damn place. Paolini still invents a very fun world, but so much of it is filled with crap.

Pros:
The world they live in. The races are fleshed out, even if the elves and dwarves are boring Tolkein derivatives. At least they have beliefs.
The action scenes are entertaining to read.

Cons:
The magic system is completely hosed. "It costs you energy" Okay, we've got logic. "You can't fight another magician because you'll both die". Whatever. Did you see this happen EVER in the series?
The romance just isn't. I suppose it's as good as a teenager can write.
"Luke I am Your Father" isn't an agreeable plot device these days.

Characters: Mostly crap. I did like the leader of the Varden. That's pretty much it. Roran was waaaay too predictable. Oh wait, Bridgit was cool if they'd given her more space. Hell, why didn't he develop a sad love triangle between Roran and Bridgit while they were looking for the other chick I'll never know. That would have been thought provoking at least.

Plot: Yea, he phoned this one in for the most part. It's all just as you'd expect it to be.

Style: He's losing me here some too. It's still "high fantasy", but I'm starting to feel some disconnect with the characters. They're just too flat. ( )

This is the second book of the series and overall I liked it. In particular I liked Eragon’s brother’s story that played out the most. Eragon’s was a bit slow and detailed. Not that its not important just that I really liked the brother’s journey a ton better. ( )