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firefoxoxo's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
scarletcoog's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
any_direction's review
4.0
This is my third time through this book. There was a time when Eragon was everything, and it was among my favorite books. Then, the rest of the books just didn’t deliver, and when I got to the end of the final installment, I went from a passionate fangirl to kind of bummed about the whole thing. So it’s been over a decade since I ventured into this world.
The memories came spiraling back as I reread this. It’s a genuinely fun book to read. There’s a dragon, of course. The action is exciting. The writing is well-done but not so dense that you’re constantly having to flip back or reference the appendix. I appreciate that Panolini understands how grueling trekking through the wilderness actually is. I think Eragon’s character development and his relationship with Saphira is phenomenally written. I love hearing them parse back and forth over philosophy and life. It is this relationship that I think makes the books so compelling for so many people. (Though I suppose that I personally am also here for Murtagh. I don’t think I’m alone, but I feel my shameless love for tragic men says more about me than the book.) This is a book with action, adventure, and friendship. Is it about anything else though?
The thing that struck me the most on this read through is that, this was book written by someone young. It’s competently written, the world-building is fabulous, the languages are far beyond anything that I can dream of being able to do, and the characters are decently drawn. I’ve read so many worse things written by much older people, so Panolini is to be commended. But there’s just some things that a more experienced writer might have done alternatively.
Starting with the plotting: the only reason anything in this book happens is to further the plot and occasionally to teach Eragon a lesson. There’re massive amounts of dead bodies. They’re upsetting when they’re on the page, they never really come up again. Slavery is mentioned so fleetingly and is so obviously added just to prove that the empire is evil and to paint a bizarre contrast between Murtagh and Eragon’s life philosophies. The capture at Gilead which I remembered being a fantastic scene felt like a clear ploy to push our cast to the Varden. Also, Eragon’s battle dialogue is so dramatic and cliche, I had to pause to laugh. I’m not sure that the meaninglessness of the action is necessarily a bad thing. I still loved reading it, and it was kind of nice to read something where it genuinely felt like there was no agenda. It’s just feels like this could’ve gone better in a more experienced writer’s hands.
I also remember all the characters in this book feeling very wise, particularly Saphira and Brom, and now it just feels like this is what a nineteen year old thinks is wise. Brom withholds so much information from Eragon, and makes fun of his perpetual question asking. I get that Brom’s been through so much, but Brom never says that he’s hiding things because he doesn’t want to relive trauma. It’s instead presented as him being cagey and secretive and Eragon suffers because of it. Heads up Saphira, first rule of being wise is never tell anyone that you’re wise.
It is not profound to point out that Panolini is borrowing very obviously from Tolkien. I don’t think that by itself is a problem. All authors are stealing from each other all the time. However, when stealing from Tolkien, you inherit the problems of Tolkien. Whenever you have multiple human-like beings, you are treading into dangerous waters. 1) Whether or not you intend it to be allegorical, people will see it as allegory because so many have done that in the past. (Panolini maybe tries to get away from this, but Arya is described as having black hair and slanted eyes. That’s Asian coding, and it’s not great.) 2) Even if it’s not allegory it starts to feel really gross when you say this group are capable of x, and this group is not. Panolini does this all the time. I will likely continue my reread of this series and will have much more to say in Eldest. Know my take on the problems of having races/classes of people being problematic aren’t my own. There are scholars who cover this topic more extensively from a more personal place, so go find them on the internet. The podcast Material Girls recently had an episode on D and D, which was a decent intro to the subject.
Despite, the lack of wisdom and my own progression as a reader, this book was still a great time. Panolini is a skilled writer. I like his characters, his world is vast, and I will forever poke holes in the things I love most.
The memories came spiraling back as I reread this. It’s a genuinely fun book to read. There’s a dragon, of course. The action is exciting. The writing is well-done but not so dense that you’re constantly having to flip back or reference the appendix. I appreciate that Panolini understands how grueling trekking through the wilderness actually is. I think Eragon’s character development and his relationship with Saphira is phenomenally written. I love hearing them parse back and forth over philosophy and life. It is this relationship that I think makes the books so compelling for so many people. (Though I suppose that I personally am also here for Murtagh. I don’t think I’m alone, but I feel my shameless love for tragic men says more about me than the book.) This is a book with action, adventure, and friendship. Is it about anything else though?
The thing that struck me the most on this read through is that, this was book written by someone young. It’s competently written, the world-building is fabulous, the languages are far beyond anything that I can dream of being able to do, and the characters are decently drawn. I’ve read so many worse things written by much older people, so Panolini is to be commended. But there’s just some things that a more experienced writer might have done alternatively.
Starting with the plotting: the only reason anything in this book happens is to further the plot and occasionally to teach Eragon a lesson. There’re massive amounts of dead bodies. They’re upsetting when they’re on the page, they never really come up again. Slavery is mentioned so fleetingly and is so obviously added just to prove that the empire is evil and to paint a bizarre contrast between Murtagh and Eragon’s life philosophies. The capture at Gilead which I remembered being a fantastic scene felt like a clear ploy to push our cast to the Varden. Also, Eragon’s battle dialogue is so dramatic and cliche, I had to pause to laugh. I’m not sure that the meaninglessness of the action is necessarily a bad thing. I still loved reading it, and it was kind of nice to read something where it genuinely felt like there was no agenda. It’s just feels like this could’ve gone better in a more experienced writer’s hands.
I also remember all the characters in this book feeling very wise, particularly Saphira and Brom, and now it just feels like this is what a nineteen year old thinks is wise. Brom withholds so much information from Eragon, and makes fun of his perpetual question asking. I get that Brom’s been through so much, but Brom never says that he’s hiding things because he doesn’t want to relive trauma. It’s instead presented as him being cagey and secretive and Eragon suffers because of it. Heads up Saphira, first rule of being wise is never tell anyone that you’re wise.
It is not profound to point out that Panolini is borrowing very obviously from Tolkien. I don’t think that by itself is a problem. All authors are stealing from each other all the time. However, when stealing from Tolkien, you inherit the problems of Tolkien. Whenever you have multiple human-like beings, you are treading into dangerous waters. 1) Whether or not you intend it to be allegorical, people will see it as allegory because so many have done that in the past. (Panolini maybe tries to get away from this, but Arya is described as having black hair and slanted eyes. That’s Asian coding, and it’s not great.) 2) Even if it’s not allegory it starts to feel really gross when you say this group are capable of x, and this group is not. Panolini does this all the time. I will likely continue my reread of this series and will have much more to say in Eldest. Know my take on the problems of having races/classes of people being problematic aren’t my own. There are scholars who cover this topic more extensively from a more personal place, so go find them on the internet. The podcast Material Girls recently had an episode on D and D, which was a decent intro to the subject.
Despite, the lack of wisdom and my own progression as a reader, this book was still a great time. Panolini is a skilled writer. I like his characters, his world is vast, and I will forever poke holes in the things I love most.
ewreath's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
llandprosper's review against another edition
adventurous
inspiring
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
4.25
kbc1239's review against another edition
3.0
Good story with lots to the world and dragons. The plot was interesting and filled with many exciting characters and places. I thought at times the dialogue was a little bland and basic but overall enjoyed the book.
danilindgren4720's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
funny
hopeful
inspiring
lighthearted
mysterious
sad
tense
fast-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
I read this when I was younger but never completed the series so I have been excited to do so now!
Eragon us magical story about a young rider and his dragon who unlocks a world of danger, magic and destiny. Evil is all around, and Eragon must learn who to trust and which side to take as he's thrown into a battle that has been raging long before he arrived. This book is action packed, with never a dull moment and with each turn of the page I was constantly ready for the next twist and turn. I absolutely adore the relationship between Eragon and Saphira and cannot wait to see how their tale unfolds.
Eragon us magical story about a young rider and his dragon who unlocks a world of danger, magic and destiny. Evil is all around, and Eragon must learn who to trust and which side to take as he's thrown into a battle that has been raging long before he arrived. This book is action packed, with never a dull moment and with each turn of the page I was constantly ready for the next twist and turn. I absolutely adore the relationship between Eragon and Saphira and cannot wait to see how their tale unfolds.
shermanberry's review against another edition
3.0
So clearly not the best fantasy book I've ever read but definitely good enough to make me want to continue with the other books in the series. I don't really buy the LOTR rip off crowd's argument. Yes it has elves and dwarves but so do plenty of other books in this genre. I thought the use of magic was handled well and the relationship between rider and dragon was developed in a believable way.
davidjackson822's review
adventurous
inspiring
slow-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
Content Warnings
Minor: Torture