Reviews with content warning for Gore - Murtagh

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Murtagh by Christopher Paolini

31 reviews

redhairedashreads's review

3.0

3 stars - I liked it

It’s been over a year since Galbatorix was defeated and Murtagh and Thorn finally achieved their freedom. They have been roaming Alagaësia avoiding everyone but when Murtagh discovers a darkness that might be a threat to this new peace he and Thorn decide to investigate.

After reading Eragon’s story I always wanted to know more about Murtagh and what happened to him afterwards, and now we finally get that. Murtagh and Thorn are not like Eragon and Saphira. They didn’t have a rider teacher or a healthy bonding while Thorn was newly hatched. They both struggle a lot with magic and the traumas of their past, and we see it cause problems multiple times in this book. It was heartbreaking learning about what they went through under Galbatorix and what again happens to them when they are captured by the witch Bachel in this.

Murtagh and Thorn investigate a new evil in Alagaësia that leads them to a witch called Bachel who is trying to bring about the destruction of the world and riders. The things revealed by her change the history of Galbatorix and the Fallen that has previously been presented. Bechel was an evil woman who has learned how to control anyone, including a dragon and a rider, with magic and vapors. It was heartbreaking seeing her control Murtagh and Thorn, especially since it was after days of being tortured. Bechel was a very interesting villain and I really enjoyed her downfall but what she started isn’t over, so I assume more books will be forthcoming.

This is a very heavy book, much like Inheritance was with all the death and battles, because we are constantly dealing with Murtagh and Thorn’s past and current trauma. I was not expecting him and Thorn to be tortured again and it really broke my heart that he can’t seem to catch a break. Murtagh and Thorn are so strong, especially compared to Eragon, and they still have a hard path ahead of them but hopefully their future will be a little easier since they decide to stay with Nasuada. I was very happy that the book ended on a happy note and we finally saw Nasuada and Murtagh reunited because he let himself have some happiness in life.

Overall, this was a good addition to this series and I am glad we finally got Murtagh and Thorn’s POV. I do hope we get more books with these two because they were great characters and I want to see what will happen next with this new evil.

TW: PTSD; Thorn is claustrophobic and Murtagh has arachnophobia; torture, imprisonment and being controlled by magic; graphic animal deaths; death of children; cult and human sacrifice;

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jackiepreston's review against another edition

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adventurous challenging emotional slow-paced

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

4.0

Content Warnings

sting4780's review

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adventurous dark emotional hopeful inspiring tense medium-paced

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

5.0

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missmali's review against another edition

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adventurous dark mysterious tense medium-paced

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

4.0

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aseel_reads's review against another edition

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adventurous dark 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

4.5

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

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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

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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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comraderowan94's review

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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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