I finally finished book 2 in Terry Goodkind’s The Sword Of Truth series, The Stone of Tears and was pleasantly surprised to find it to be just as good, if not better, than the first book. Recently, I was chatting with some friends about reading and one of my friends commented on how they don’t generally like fantasy books because they aren’t fast paced enough and typically contain too much detail. I could see where he was coming from. Some fantasy books will spend several pages describing a hillside which can put readers to sleep. Anyway, the conversation got me reflecting on The Stone Of Tears and why I like it so much. Even though this is a fantasy book, it’s heavy on action, and doesn’t overdo the details.

Another thing I liked about The Stone Of Tears is that it will jump from one plot line to the next to keep things moving. New characters are weaved in, similar to the first book, but it’s done in a well thought out way. By this I mean that you’ll get invested in the new characters. A few of my favorites from this book are Warren (a wizard in training), Sister Verna (a sorceress), and Gratch (a short tailed Gar). Also, I loved how the book developed our main characters, Richard, Kahlan, and Zed. In The Stone Of Tears, they set off in 3 different directions and each end up getting stymied in some terrible situations. To see how each character reacted to different obstacles without having the others there to rely on gave some new perspective and depth to them. For example, Zed had to fight off some fierce creatures of the underworld, Kahlan led a war, and Richard gets stuck in time. If that doesn’t make for some good reading I’m not really sure what does. My only gripe about this book is that Chase and Rachel aren’t in it too much. I’m hoping they will get more pages in the next book, The Blood Of The Fold.

Buy Stone of Tears by Terry Goodkind on Amazon.

I decided to check out the famous “The Sword of Truth” series by Terry Goodkind since it’s been made into a TV show (Check out The Legend Of The Seeker at Daemon’s TV). Most true fantasy fans have read, or are at least familiar with this series and Terry Goodkind’s writing. That’s why I can’t really call myself a fantasy fan, but rather someone that enjoys a good fantasy book. There are still loads of series and authors that I need to learn about. I see this as sort of a good thing because I’m constantly being introduced to some truly amazing books. This one being one of them.

The Wizard’s First Rule begins when a young man named Richard goes exploring in the woods one day, on a search to solve a clue left by his dead father. While he’s out there, he helps a woman, Kahlan, in trouble which propels him into a great adventure. Kahlan tells him that a boundary is breaking which keeps Richard’s land separate from The Midlands (a place of wizards, magic, and an evil plot to take over the world). Richard soon learns that he’s the one hope the world has to stop the evil Darken Rahl from destroying his lands. With the help of Kahlan and his friend and mentor, Zed, he sets off to go beyond the boundary to stop Rahl. Along the way he learns that everyone, including himself, are much more than what they seem.

Some aspects of Wizard’s First Rule are typical of fantasy reads. There is the obligatory map at the beginning (which I always love), the adventure to go fight an evil that threatens the world, and then of course the guide. The guide is an important piece to every fantasy book. The Gandalf to one’s Frodo if you will. In this book, the guide is Zed, who does the job nicely. Richard also reminds me of a hobbit in the way that he view’s himself as nothing more than a woodsman. He hates magic and wants nothing more than to go home.

*Small Spoiler* One of the things that I loved about this 900 page book is that just when you think you’ve gotten it figured out, something happens to completely take you off guard. For those of you that have read the book, two words: Mord Sith. Holly crap, I did NOT see that coming! That was a completely gut-wrenching section to read.

I recommend this book to anyone that enjoys fantasy. It’s wonderfully written, has beautiful characters, will make you laugh, and in some sections, bring you pretty close to tears. I’ve already started the second book, so if you haven’t read this series yet, start reading Wizard’s First Rule and catch up!

One last thing I want to comment on is the TV show, Legend Of The Seeker. I checked it out on Hulu.com last week and have to say I was very disappointed. It’s barely recognizable from the book. There is a secret that isn’t revealed to the main character until the end of the book, and yet the TV show puts it in the first episode as almost an afterthought. Also, in the book Richard and Zed are lifetime friends, and Zed is one of the only people Richard trusts. In the TV show they meet for the first time and Richard is very skeptical of him. I understand sometimes they have to change things for TV and movies but to change big things like that to me seemed very unnecessary. It’s a shame too because the TV show has the potential to be great. It’s shot in New Zealand and has good acting – I just wish they would have kept it true to the book.

Buy Wizard’s First Rule by Terry Goodkind on Amazon by clicking here.