Book Review: “Eragon”
I finally managed to finish “Eragon”. While my initial impression of the book didn’t change much, I’d admit it did get better towards the end. I still think the publishers were a little hasty putting this out. The writing style was juvenile and the plot “homages” were altogether too obvious. (I started humming the James Bond theme as soon as they got to the giant hollowed-out volcano.) I also got annoyed when the “revenge quest” plot that occupied most of the book was suddenly dropped (quite unresolved) in favor of “rescue the princess”. Characters would fail to anticipate plot twists that I could see coming miles away. (For instance, I’ll bet you dollars to doughnuts that we find out in the next book that the “twins” are double-agents and set up Eragon to get killed by the Shade.) And how many times in one book can you end a chapter with the main character getting knocked out? Eragon winds up unconscious more often than Giles.
So overall, I wouldn’t recommend this one for the adult fantasy fan. It’s just too boring, too derivative, and too predictable.