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3.57 AVERAGE
3.57 AVERAGE
I felt like this book in the series was more of a filler in the middle of a story arc. I found it interesting that the author pretty much touched on that high society is ruled by a bunch of selfish savages cloaked in sheep's skin.....and that the real sheep are a bunch of idiots who don't want to face the truth because they are afraid of change. Hmmmm....real life lesson maybe? I'm not too interested in a political background in a story, but I suppose a lot of stories are like that. I guess I'm just asking for a thicker veil. I'm hoping that the next one is better. More Zedd please. He's got all the humor.
This was the first of Goodkind's books that I didn't just rip through. It just wasn't as exciting as the first four to me.
adventurous
challenging
dark
tense
slow-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:
Complicated
Reread of 2022/23: I am still loving this reread, although this one did take me a bit longer due to other life reasons. I loved seeing more of this world and I loved getting a pov from someone else of this world.
I feel like this book really added a layer of complexity to everything/everyone.
This book. The wedding with the Mud people was beautiful.When Kahlan gets beaten and loses the baby it makes the person reading heartbroken. And you understand why Richard feels the need to go off in the forest and leave everyone to their own devices.
I feel like this book really added a layer of complexity to everything/everyone.
This book. The wedding with the Mud people was beautiful.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Miscarriage, Violence, Murder, Pregnancy
Moderate: Rape
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
adventurous
dark
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Richard and Kahlan have survived many challenges that have come their way. They defeated a dark wizard twice, taken on the Sisters of the Dark, and even saved the world from a plague. But their new adventure in Soul of the Fire forces them to fight their next battle without magic altogether.
This was a re-read I was looking forward to because I wanted to compare my experience to so many others. For various reasons, many readers found this novel to be the one they enjoyed the least, but I remember enjoying it more than the previous two installments. Why was that?
My favorite thing about the story was Fitch’s experience. I enjoy stories of disillusionment; I think this one was well-crafted. We see the character slowly come to realize that his world is not at all what he thinks it is, and that new truth is tragic. I also love Ann’s story in this one. While the redemption story she’s involved with isn’t her own, this is again another story type I love and always enjoy. I also enjoy stories with a fair amount of political maneuvering. There was a lot of that here.
But we have to talk about the chicken in the room, starting with the literal chicken. Well, actually it’s not a chicken.
The “chicken monster” is one of the most mocked ideas in the Sword of Truth series. And I get it. It’s a little absurd, and it’s one of those ideas that might be better in a film than in a book. I don’t find it as silly as many people do, but I get it.
Aside from the normal issues that bother me about these books in the first quarter (the crazy amount of repetition to fill in readers just in case they skipped the previous books for some odd reason), the story had a couple of other issues that bothered me in a way it hadn’t before.
I felt as though the antagonists were comically evil at certain points. Their desire for power and certain positions were never explained, so I had a hard time relating to them. I feel as though it was a missed opportunity to make them feel more frightening than they were.
I have no idea how Richard solved the chimes. I don’t understand the magic system of the series enough for that to feel like an accomplishment. Richard just knows things sometimes, and it didn’t feel like he earned this victory. I don’t need to understand a magic system for a story to be enjoyable, but that also means solving magical problems in the way done here doesn’t make for a great climax.
But as the story came to a close, something struck me: this novel isn’t complete.
With the hindsight of having read the series before, I realized that Soul of the Fire is the first half of a longer story that includes the following volume: Faith of the Fallen. On its own, the story makes little sense. The actual story is about Richard’s journey to change the world around him. The chimes were simply a side-quest that was framed as something bigger than it actually was. This whole novel was a very long setup for the following one.
Read together, Soul of the Fire and Faith of the Fallen make more sense, and perhaps it should have been written as one volume. If you were to trim the fat of the repeated backstory and narrative padding and make the chimes take up less space as a side-quest should, this story could have been fit into one installment. Because of this, it has reaffirmed my belief that if you’ve read past the first two books, keep reading through the first six books if you want to feel you’ve got a complete story.
Did I figure out why I enjoyed the story during my original read while others didn’t? I’m not sure, but I have an idea. I think it is easy to ignore what you don’t like if you like something else enough. There are elements about this story that I like, and I ignored everything else because my mind will wave it off. If you’re good at that like I am, this book won’t bother you as much as it bothers other people.
This was a re-read I was looking forward to because I wanted to compare my experience to so many others. For various reasons, many readers found this novel to be the one they enjoyed the least, but I remember enjoying it more than the previous two installments. Why was that?
My favorite thing about the story was Fitch’s experience. I enjoy stories of disillusionment; I think this one was well-crafted. We see the character slowly come to realize that his world is not at all what he thinks it is, and that new truth is tragic. I also love Ann’s story in this one. While the redemption story she’s involved with isn’t her own, this is again another story type I love and always enjoy. I also enjoy stories with a fair amount of political maneuvering. There was a lot of that here.
But we have to talk about the chicken in the room, starting with the literal chicken. Well, actually it’s not a chicken.
The “chicken monster” is one of the most mocked ideas in the Sword of Truth series. And I get it. It’s a little absurd, and it’s one of those ideas that might be better in a film than in a book. I don’t find it as silly as many people do, but I get it.
Aside from the normal issues that bother me about these books in the first quarter (the crazy amount of repetition to fill in readers just in case they skipped the previous books for some odd reason), the story had a couple of other issues that bothered me in a way it hadn’t before.
I felt as though the antagonists were comically evil at certain points. Their desire for power and certain positions were never explained, so I had a hard time relating to them. I feel as though it was a missed opportunity to make them feel more frightening than they were.
I have no idea how Richard solved the chimes. I don’t understand the magic system of the series enough for that to feel like an accomplishment. Richard just knows things sometimes, and it didn’t feel like he earned this victory. I don’t need to understand a magic system for a story to be enjoyable, but that also means solving magical problems in the way done here doesn’t make for a great climax.
But as the story came to a close, something struck me: this novel isn’t complete.
With the hindsight of having read the series before, I realized that Soul of the Fire is the first half of a longer story that includes the following volume: Faith of the Fallen. On its own, the story makes little sense. The actual story is about Richard’s journey to change the world around him. The chimes were simply a side-quest that was framed as something bigger than it actually was. This whole novel was a very long setup for the following one.
Read together, Soul of the Fire and Faith of the Fallen make more sense, and perhaps it should have been written as one volume. If you were to trim the fat of the repeated backstory and narrative padding and make the chimes take up less space as a side-quest should, this story could have been fit into one installment. Because of this, it has reaffirmed my belief that if you’ve read past the first two books, keep reading through the first six books if you want to feel you’ve got a complete story.
Did I figure out why I enjoyed the story during my original read while others didn’t? I’m not sure, but I have an idea. I think it is easy to ignore what you don’t like if you like something else enough. There are elements about this story that I like, and I ignored everything else because my mind will wave it off. If you’re good at that like I am, this book won’t bother you as much as it bothers other people.
The next book in Terry Goodkind’s Sword of Truth series reveals the next stage of Richard and Kahlan’s adventure to free the Midlands from the newest threat and plague.
With the ever growing threat from the dream-walker, Emperor Jangang, the two lovers finally manage to escape their duties for a short time in order to have the wedding they have been preparing for over a considerable length of time. But their new found happiness and ability to finally be with one another is threatened when it is revealed that the Chimes – a magical curse designed to rid the world of all magic – has been set free when Kahlan uttered the words in the book before in order to save Richard’s life. They now have a race against time before the elements of air, fire and water lure people to their deaths.
Their race across the Midlands is hindered by Jangang’s approach and the threat he poses to all free people. Richard must face the harsh truth that lies can sometimes sway people more than the heartfelt words he is offering them and come to terms with stopping the chimes being his priority rather than winning them over in the upcoming war.
But as events are forced and Richard has no choice in how to act, his story is not the only one being told. Throughout the last few novels Goodkind has branched off into following other people’s adventures. Yet the people are all those who are close to Richard and have a key role in shaping who he has become and the events that have been unfolding. In this book, however, Goodkind follows some seemingly insignificant characters. Events take place that do have a part to play in the journey that Richard is undertaking, but not so much of an impact. While the characters are not necessarily unlikeable, it does mean that the majority of the book is focusing on other people.
This is by no means a bad thing, especially when the characters are loveable and have a key influence on the story being told. Not to mention the reader genuinely cares for what is happening to them. It shows how much bigger the plot has become now that it is unfolding as the books have progressed from basically just following Richard to branching out all over the place. It has worked in previous books, but this one had the feeling that it was slightly too stretched. Some of the characters you want to hear more about aren’t mentioned, and others you share no back story with are shown in detail – right at the crucial moments when you want to hear what the others are doing.
It shows that Goodkind is a master story-teller, however, for it means that you are left eagerly turning the next page in order to find out whose story is going to be told next. As Richard is exploring the lands and his powers, the reader too is learning more about the world it is set in.
Another brilliant read.
With the ever growing threat from the dream-walker, Emperor Jangang, the two lovers finally manage to escape their duties for a short time in order to have the wedding they have been preparing for over a considerable length of time. But their new found happiness and ability to finally be with one another is threatened when it is revealed that the Chimes – a magical curse designed to rid the world of all magic – has been set free when Kahlan uttered the words in the book before in order to save Richard’s life. They now have a race against time before the elements of air, fire and water lure people to their deaths.
Their race across the Midlands is hindered by Jangang’s approach and the threat he poses to all free people. Richard must face the harsh truth that lies can sometimes sway people more than the heartfelt words he is offering them and come to terms with stopping the chimes being his priority rather than winning them over in the upcoming war.
But as events are forced and Richard has no choice in how to act, his story is not the only one being told. Throughout the last few novels Goodkind has branched off into following other people’s adventures. Yet the people are all those who are close to Richard and have a key role in shaping who he has become and the events that have been unfolding. In this book, however, Goodkind follows some seemingly insignificant characters. Events take place that do have a part to play in the journey that Richard is undertaking, but not so much of an impact. While the characters are not necessarily unlikeable, it does mean that the majority of the book is focusing on other people.
This is by no means a bad thing, especially when the characters are loveable and have a key influence on the story being told. Not to mention the reader genuinely cares for what is happening to them. It shows how much bigger the plot has become now that it is unfolding as the books have progressed from basically just following Richard to branching out all over the place. It has worked in previous books, but this one had the feeling that it was slightly too stretched. Some of the characters you want to hear more about aren’t mentioned, and others you share no back story with are shown in detail – right at the crucial moments when you want to hear what the others are doing.
It shows that Goodkind is a master story-teller, however, for it means that you are left eagerly turning the next page in order to find out whose story is going to be told next. As Richard is exploring the lands and his powers, the reader too is learning more about the world it is set in.
Another brilliant read.
adventurous
dark
sad
tense
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Complicated
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
Content Warnings
Graphic: Sexual assault, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Violence
Moderate: Death, Misogyny, Rape, Murder
Slightly embarrassed to admit I kept reading this series for a while, before waking up and realizing that the themes and the titillating weirdness were not the kind of thing I wanted to read. Not recommended.