The story takes us on the adventure of young farm boy Eragon who finds a dragon egg from which hatches Saphira, a female dragon who chooses him as her rider. However, merciless king Galbatorix who is after the eggs is able to pinpoint its general location and sends the Ra’zac, his henchmen, after it. So, Saphira and Eragon escape, and the adventure, which spans over 4 books, begins.

While many people point out that there are many similarities between the Inheritance Cycle and Star Wars, Earthsea, and other stories, it is worth noting that Paolini was only fifteen years of age when he started working on Eragon. Moreover, despite the similarities, Eragon and the rest of the books in the cycle still contain excellent creativity, a thrilling storyline and very well developed characters.

In general, readers who enjoy stories blending different magical creatures and various storylines will definitely enjoy Eragon and the Inheritance Cycle. Again, while the movie was okay, though not excellent, it did the story more harm than good.

Originally posted on October 19, 2020 @ 11:39 am

In this series, we meet Richard, a very righteous and humble woodsman who discovers that he’s the Seeker. A person of legend who is the only one able to truly wield the sword of truth and set things right in the world. The other two notable characters are Kahlan, the mother confessor whose touch, if she releases her power, can render any person completely in love with her so as to become her slave, and Zed, the first wizard who is a quirky and lovable old man with great power and wisdom.

Disregarding the characters and the plot, the greatest thing about the Sword of Truth series are the insights which are called Wizard Rules. Each book revolves around one of these rules as Richard learns it and applies it in solving the next big problem. However, the Wizard Rules are not just fiction; on the contrary, they are ideas that we can apply in our daily lives.

While reading Sword of Truth, something starts to happen to you as you measure your daily actions against those of Richard. For those of you who enjoy series which last a very long time and actually teach you something, Sword of Truth is an absolute must read! In addition to that, you can also check out the Legend of the Seeker TV series which is loosely based on the novels.

Originally posted on October 4, 2020 @ 11:12 am

It is the story of Belgarath the sorcerer, a very smart young boy who makes the acquaintance of a god and becomes his disciple, thereby acquiring great power and immortality. The story is set in a world shaped by seven gods, one of which is Belgarath’s master Aldur who creates an orb that acquires life and power of its own. However, this orb was seized by Torak, another god who wanted its power. However, when he attempts to use it, the orb destroys part of Torak’s face. Later, the orb is retrieved by Belgarath and a group of his friends, one of whom is discovered to be able to wield the stone unharmed and becomes it protector.

The story develops on from there with a huge variety of story lines and includes a great collection of more and more interesting characters including Polgara, Belgarath’s daughter and many other ch aracters. One of the most beautiful things about the Belgariad and the Malloreon is how Eddings is able to connect events thousands of years and miles apart in addition to excellently developed characters and superbly described events.

In conclusion, the Belgariad and the Malloreon are more than just an epic fantasy series, they are more like a trip through time, space and a whole different universe in the shoes of a variety of people. It is full of interesting surprises and beautiful descriptions of people and places.

Originally posted on October 3, 2020 @ 9:10 am

Note: This book review covers The Celestine Prophecy and other related books including The Celestine Vision.

To some it may sound like blasphemy, but The Celestine Prophecy has been a bible for me for the past seven or eight years. This book is magic in itself because it starts working and reshaping your life as soon as you start reading it.

It is a spiritual novel by James Redfield written from the first person’s perspective, and it takes us on a physical and spiritual journey in Peru mainly. Although reviews abound about the poor writing style, the true value of this book is it the translation of spiritual insights into real life experiences. Therefore, one can argue that the writing style is only used thus to simplify matters and make it more accessible to a wider number of readers.

The spiritual message behind The Celestine Prophecy is divided into nine insights which are unlocked and experienced in sequence as the author moves forward in his adventure. In my opinion, the most important of these insights is the first one which is synchronicity, for it governs all the others. In addition to that, as soon as you understand the meaning of synchronicity, you automatically start experiencing it more and more in your own life. Subsequent insights deal more with how to find and deal with more and more synchronicities in order to find your true destiny in life.

The best book to complement and make fuller sense of The Celestine Prophecy is The Celestine Vision. It’s a more in-depth guide of all the insights. It explains each insight in full detail and helps readers see and deal with them in their personal lives.

Disregarding the genius behind The Celestine Prophecy, the most magical thing about it is that it’s a book that doesn’t end on its last page… and I’m not talking about the fact that it has sequels. What I’m talking about is that this book keeps going and going, only you become the main character now as it starts reshaping your life as a fuller and much more meaningful adventure.

In addition to that, we also need to mention that a movie has been made about The Celestine Prophecy. It is a nice effort, but of course not as great as the book. However, for those who find it easier to imagine more after watching a movie, this may help.

For all spiritual seekers out there, The Celestine Prophecy is a book that screams “START HERE”. In its light, things will make a lot more sense and life becomes deeper. Also, if you want to read something similar to The Celestine Prophecy, you can check out my The Destined Journey!

Originally posted on September 27, 2020 @ 10:02 am