Reviews with content warning for Slavery - Murtagh: The World of Eragon

I'm SO glad that the author is writing in this world again, this was my childhood and my adulthood.

I really liked getting murtagh's perspective and I love him and thorn so much, very keen to see what happens next

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jofu04's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

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betweentheshelves's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.0

So, I had read that you can pretty much read this without having read the previous Eragon books, which I think is true for the most part. Since it's been 20 years since Eragon first came out, I figured I'd be okay because I definitely don't remember any of details from the first four books. There are references to events and characters that I definitely could not remember, but I could follow what was happening with Murtagh.

This book is very much about Murtagh dealing with his past trauma, not only when he was working for the evil king, but also just his unbringing in general. There are some tough moments in this book, both for Murtagh and for Thorn.

Also, I forgot how long winded Paolini is. I don't think this book necessarily needed to be this long, but it's not surprising that it is. There's some unresolved things, so I wouldn't be surprised if Paolini also revisited this world again in the future, either with Murtagh or with Eragon. I'm sure we'll be getting more books.

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savanah's review against another edition

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adventurous dark emotional slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.25

There were multiple occasions where I told my husband that I was going to DNF the book if “this 2014 emo pick-me whiny boy” said one more of his “poems”. I really liked Murtagh in the original series because he was a little angst-y and mysterious. Hearing his internal monologue absolutely ruined it.
I did love thorn he is precious and must be protected at all cost.
I did see a change in the writing which has improved, but at almost no point did I actually get drawn in to the story, I spent more time rolling my eyes at Murtagh than literally anything else. Would not read again, or if I did I would literally just skip to the last several chapters.

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withloveandlights's review against another edition

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adventurous dark medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

Returning to Alagaësia felt like another wonderful homecoming. Picking up this continuation, without going back and rereading the original quartet, didn’t leave me feeling like I was missing previously discussed topics. The concepts that were relevant were brought up subtly where necessary. The new characters introduced didn’t take away from the previously explored friendships and added more intricacies to the world building.

While I loved returning to these characters, the overall conflicts throughout the novel felt very repetitive and the character development felt insignificant. For several instances through the discovery of the evil and planning to thwart the witch’s efforts, Murtagh made little to no change with his tactics. It was disappointing to not see him grow and develop his skills as a rider as we had seen with Eragon’s development.

This novel contains the darkest concepts and plot points within the Inheritance Cycle by far; many scenes playing out more like a horror novel than a general YA fantasy. It brings a new perspective to Alagaësia, but may not be suitable for younger or more sensitive readers looking to jump into the series.

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comraderowan94's review against another edition

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slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Plot
Strong character development? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

1.0

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cherub__'s review against another edition

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adventurous emotional mysterious fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

Re-reading the Inheritance Cycle after so many years is an interesting experience. I could feel the prose changing as the author grew up -- after all, Paolini was only a teenager when Eragon was published. The prose grows with the characters, the plot becomes more complex (if just as derivative), motivations become more fraught, etc. Murtagh continues this trend, just fast-forwarded by a decade. While not a masterpiece, it's a step forward into a new phase for this series and it sets up some interesting conflict down the road.

My main complaint is that Murtagh feels somewhat rushed, or abbreviated. I can see where the author is coming from, because this is meant to be a bridge between Inheritance proper and a future "official" "Book 5", but at the same time, there are heavy issues touched on but not given proper time to marinate.

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bibliomania_express's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging dark emotional mysterious tense medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

5.0

Wow, this book. It starts a bit slow, but the slow build is necessary to balance all the wild emotions in the second half. Murtagh and Thorn face challenges beyond anything in the Inheritance Cycle, and I was so mad at this book for putting them through it, even as I was awed by the depth of feeling and complexity in thos book.

I cried. I yelled in anger. I paced my apartment, afraid to pick it back up but unable to resist because I needed to know what happened next.

I love that we got to see more of Murtagh's past, how the court of Galbatorix functioned and shaped him. Paolini gives shape to Murtagh's bond with Tornac, and it's so fundamental and beautiful, even with its tragic end.

There's a lot of triggers for this book beyond your general death and gore. Both Murtagh and Thorn are dealing with PTSD, and Thorn suffers from intense claustrophobia. There are scenes of torture, mass death, and intense isolation and captivity.

I obviously won't spoil the end, but I will say it was so necessary after everything this book put me through. Now I have to lament the years before Paolini write the next book in this world, as there are some loose ends yet to be tied off.

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