Fantasy Books Reviews

The Belgariad is easily David Eddings' best work and the reason is the series' simplicity. It does not make any excuses for what it is: a straightforward coming-of-age story. There are no smokescreens that trick the reader into thinking The Belgariad is any more than that. The plot of the series revolves around a boy Garion, who is the long lost heir to the Rivan Throne, his quest for the Orb of Aldur, and his subsequent conflict with the evil god Torak. That is about the extent of the plot and you can see the end result from the beginning of The Pawn of Prophecy . This could have been a problem with many other books but why is it not a problem with The Belgariad? The answer is the execution. The world David Eddings creates in his books is rich with detail and filled with several races including gods, dragons, and even thinking rocks. The characters, even though they are very one-dimensional, are strong with each representing a different aspect of humanity (Algars – rac...

Ever heard of the Malazan Book of the Fallen or Gardens of the Moon ?  If you live in the United States, you probably have no clue what I am talking about.  There is a very good reason for your lack of knowledge: Steven Erikson’s wildly successful Malazan series just never caught on in America but it is one of the most popular fantasy series outside of the United States.  Click here to read the rest of this review.

Brisingr marks the third installment in Christopher Paolini's Inheritance Cycle (initially Inheritance Trilogy).  Paolini's fame began with his first book, Eragon , and continued with his second, Eldest .  Critics praised Paolini's writing potential and claimed he would one day rise to the upper echelons of fantasy writing.  Two books later and what do I see?  Click here to read the rest of this review.