Eldest


I had a great time reading the fantasy, Eldest, by Christopher Paolini. This book has 668 pages and was published by the Alfred A. Knopf Company in 2005. Eldest is the second book in the Inheritance Cycle following the first book, Eragon. This book is a well written book filled with action and excitement that any fantasy lover should read.

Eldest begins from where we last left Eragon, our main character. He has just defeated the shade, Durza, and the minions of the horrific ruler. He must now travel the long and hazardous journey crossing deserts and mountain ranges to the land where the elves dwell to further his training. Eragon and his dragon Saphira must endure their harsh training and master the arts of swordsmanship, and spell-casting in only a matter of months. When he returns from his training, he will have been transformed from a mere boy into a powerful dragon rider. He can now achieve things that were once impossible for him before. He is able to jump over 20 foot walls, attack with swords masterfully and kill by uttering only a few words. He will have to use these skills in order to protect the ones he loves and cherishes during “The Burning Plains Battle.” He must not only ward off the uninvited guest that has suddenly come forth to destroy all of humanity but also survive to get stronger and gain more valuable experience.

I thought Eldest was filled with action, excitement and suspense. There was plenty of action in this fun-filled book. There were numerous fights such as “The Burning Plains Battle.” There were blades swinging frantically, arrows plummeting down and bodies dropping dead. This book also contained many exciting parts that made it all the more better. For example, when Eragon was still in training, he would always have some sort of impossible task ahead of him, yet he always managed to pull through and overcome it. It was also exciting to read about how much they had gone through and all the trouble they ran into while on their journey to and from the land of the elves. They had to survive by relying on their instincts and their strong will to live. This book was a suspenseful in the sense that things were very unpredictable. You never knew what was going to happen or when it was going to happen. “The Burning Plains Battle” was like this. The Varden, or the good side, was outnumbered three to one, yet they still managed to pull off a victory and restore order to their community. Another example was when Eragon was fighting the mysterious guest. You never knew if Eragon was going to die or pull through and emerge victorious.

Christopher Paolini did a great job in writing this fantasy novel. He had action, excitement and suspense all included in this amazing book. I would recommend this book to any fantasy lover who has the patience to finish it and understands more complicated plot lines.

To conclude, Eldest is a book that I am sure many will enjoy reading. There is also a third and soon-to-come fourth book to this exciting story.