Wizard's First Rule

From the back cover:

A legend begins.

In the aftermath of the brutal murder of his father, Richard Cypher encounters a mysterious woman, Kahlan Amnell, in his forest sanctuary. She seeks his help…and more. His world, his very beliefs, are shattered when ancient debts come due with thundering violence.

In their darkest hour, Kahlan calls upon Richard to reach beyond his sword–to invoke within himself something more noble. Neither knows that the rules of battle have just changed…or that their time has run out.

This is the beginning. One book. One rule. Witness the birth of a legend.

–

When I started reading Wizard’s First Rule I wasn’t completely new to the characters/concepts. One day in November I randomly started watching the first season of Legend of the Seeker because I was bored and it was available for streaming on Netflix. The show has received many terrible reviews from fans of the books, but I stuck with it and I found that I really liked it. In any case, liking the show made me want to read the books, so even if fans of the books think it’s terrible, it worked to get me interested in a series I would not have known about otherwise so something good came out of it.

I once had someone advise me to take my time telling the story while I wrote my novel. The first thing that struck me about Wizard’s First Rule is that Terry Goodkind certainly took his time. The book is more than 800 pages long! This made me think of two things: first, that fantasy books are always long as hell, and second, that maybe I shouldn’t read 800 page books all the time if I want to reach my 100 book goal!

While I was reading, at first it was frustrating that things took so long to happen/progress. Eventually I realized that this was just a facet of the genre and came to accept it, even like it. I won’t deny that it was a little bit of a problem that I read 500 pages and felt like not much had happened. For some people, this will be something that will make them not want to read the book, for others it’s just a sign of a good storyteller. Terry Goodkind is, without a doubt, a master world builder. You can tell that he has thought about his trees, his animals, his landscapes and peoples. It was a learning experience for me because, looking to write a novel myself, I needed a lesson in world building and I really appreciated how well he knew and described his world. I want to say that things could have been sped up a bit (which they could’ve been) but at the same time, by the time I finished the book I wasn’t bother by how long it took for things to happen.

There were no moments when I was confused, or asked myself how the book went from point A to point B. Goodkind’s attention to detail really helped to make the story seemless, which is another reason I can’t complain about the length. Nothing seemed farfetched or unbelievable, either. As I was reading and some “surprise” happened I would think, “Yes! That makes complete sense!”

One of the things I especially liked was that there were so many animals involved in the story. I didn’t get that from the tv show at all, and I was happy to see it in the books. That’s a personal preference, I love animals, so it seemed like a good pro to me.

The most important thing that makes this book great is that even though it’s set in a fantasy world, it deals with a lot of regular human themes, like people’s eagerness to believe something horrible just because they are afraid it might be true. Manipulation and vulnerability. It is easier to believe a lie than it is to see the truth. A lot of the hardship that people endure is caused by their inability to question. The Seeker questions, and as a reader, you will really enjoy joining him on his journey towards the answers. Even if you’re not into fantasy, I would still recommend this book.

I give it 5 out of 5 stars (because the length, at the end, wasn’t a con to me)

Have you read Wizard’s First Rule? Tell me what you think. If you haven’t read it, does my review influence your desire to read it in any way? What would you have liked me to include? Let me know!

Have you watched Legend of the Seeker and read the books? How do you feel about it in comparison to the books? Feel free to comment.

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