Brisingr

The Inheritance Cycle by Christopher Paolini -- of which Brisingr is the latest -- shows every sign of becoming one of the most exuberant and entertaining fiction sequences in modern writing, with a scope and ambition that genuinely takes the breath away. This is a fantasy world which is cleverly designed to appeal to the widest possible range of readership; the inevitable echoes of JRR Tolkien are transformed into something rich and strange here, and the events of the earlier books are being drawn together in the later developments with masterly assurance.

After the massive, punishing battle against the Warriors of the Empire, Eragon and Saphira are licking their wounds, having barely survived. The Rider and his dragon have an oath to fulfil; they must aid Katrina in escaping the most terrible danger. What follows is an epic journey, quite as action-packed and vividly described as anything in fantasy fiction. As in all the best such literature, the odds are overwhelming, nothing can be taken at face value, and the evil forces ranged against the protagonists are as vile as one could wish.

Christopher Paolini clearly now feels that he has readers securely in his pocket, and is prepared to take his time to achieve some of his best effects -- a tactic that pays dividends. So often with fantasy fiction, outlandish situations are relied upon to carry the action, and there is no shortage of them here. But Paolini is canny enough to realise that the characterisation of an endangered protagonist is crucial to maintain our involvement, and (as in previous books), he always takes care of business in this regard. Don't be put off by the daunting length of this book -- Paolini justifies every word in Brisingr. You'll find yourself reading it as quickly as many a shorter book. --Barry Forshaw

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snore... - Rated
I got this book for christmas sadly, and right now i seariously hope my mother doesn't read this... i don't have the heart to tell here the book sucks.

I'm sorry to any fans of the series, but this is one of the most poorly written works i've ever read, and i've read books by three year olds. Not only does he go into excessive detail on the tiniest most irrelavent rubbish, but not even very well.

Trying to read this book gave me a literal headache, it really did upset me. not because it sucks, but because it was a christmas gift and i'm terrible at hiding the fact of when i dislike something.

I want a dragon too! - Rated
I have read all of the Eragon books so far. Christopher Paoline is definitely maturing in his writing style and it was real fun to read his book! Brisingr is my favourite so far and I can't wait for the 4th and sadly last book. Brisingr is well worth the read, but I don't really want to go into details as I would passionately give away too many details of the book and that would spoil it for you. But I can say I was surprised several times and the story wasn't predictable sometimes, which I really appreciated.

This book was sold in the Kids corner of my local bookstore. After reading through the detailled description of some of the battles I have to say that only late Teens should really get to read this book. Christopher Paolini described battle scenes even moire graphic as in book number two. But other then that I have nothing to complain about.

I wish there were more books with intelligent and communicative dragons around. I'll really miss Saphira once book number 4 is finished.

Fairly enjoyable yet slacking - Rated
I got Brisigr as a birhtday present, having read the first two.
In my opinion Brisingr was a bit lengthy and unnecessary so. Like Eldest the story travels from Eragon to Rohan most of the way through and I feel as throught Eragon has not progessed as much as I would like him to. His cousin seems to have achieved and developed more and he is just a mere human.Hopefully the last book will redeemed for some of the poor character development of the main protagonist

Irritating - Rated
I have just finished Brisingr and irritated really is the best way to describe how I felt most of the time reading this book. I could pick bits of the story that don't make sense, some that are in direct conflict with previously expressed sentiments or look at how some very important facts get added and explained out of the blue instead of having developed from within the story. Or the continued use of every fantasy stereotype you have ever met, but that wasn't it.

IT was Eragon! Half the time he talks and acts like a spoiled brat (not the only one in the book either) and I found it very difficult to look at his character with respect. The interaction between him and various other characters never seems to find a solid footing either in that regard. There is no sense of mutual respect reflected in their conversations. Yet he is supposed to be someone people regard with respect. His actions/conversations and his image just don't match.

There are Eragon's attempts at being nice... asking enemy soldiers to surrender instead of fighting a losing battle felt like no more than going through the motions. I could almost hear him saying 'thank you' when the soldiers declined, leaving Eragon to get on with slaughter.

I wouldn't have a problem if this was the story about a normal teenager trying to get to grips with live. But then the reactions of the people around him would be different. The author seems to want Eragon to be two opposing things at the same time... a teenager full of himself, with rebel attitude to authority and often total lack of respect where it should be given and two minutes later the same guy is given the gravitas and respect of an elder statesman and more wisdom than Salomon.

Or, dare I say it, is this a reflection of the author himself? He was home schooled and his father's company published his first book for him. Not exactly the upbringing of your average kid in the street. Exactly the sort of situation where a teenager might get treated with respect because of who they are more than because of what they do. I can't help but wonder...

But, three stars despite all of this...

The reason is, Saphira. Despite being the ultimate fantasy creature, there aren't that many Dragons about and having a fantasy series that has an intelligent Dragon that can communicate with people (and thus the reader) at its heart, is the only reason I am still reading the series and will be getting the next book.

Paolini had a great story idea and invented characters with a lot of potential but there is massive room for improvement where his writing is concerned. As several people have said previously, some serious editing is needed.

My star ratings are the result of the following breakdown:
How difficult was it to put the book down: difficult, but I did just skim over some of the more tedious parts = four stars
Would I buy the hardcover of this one: I did, but with hindsight I probably would not have done so = three stars
Am I likely to read it again: probably not = two stars

PS: Eragon's cousin killing nearly two hundred men in one short battle... nothing compared to the fact that another guy had nothing better to do than standing there counting.

The first book i've stopped reading in over 10 years - Rated
Now, I did enjoy Eragon and Eldest. They certainly weren't the best written or orignal novels going, but with interesting plots, mystery and different characters they were a good read. And Eldest did end with me really wanting to know more.

Brisngr does contain these things, but in too small doses and not often enough. Very little happens, there are pages and pages of descriptions and conversations that do little, if anything, to move the plot along. There are some good segments, the knife trial springs to mind, but these are few and far between.

I was dubious with the news that the author had so much material he'd split the third volume into two books. He really needed an editor to say 'Don't be silly' and to write one solid novel. Of course, a publisher who's offered 2 bestsellers, rather than 1 is never going to take that option!

After reading nearly 500 pages it's time to stop. I have tried, really I have, but there's far too many books i've never read to continue with this. Tellingly, i'm not at all interested in the outcome of the story, which is sad.