Inheritance book review

It has been nine years since Christopher Paolini first introduced us to the world of Eragon, and three years since Brisingr was published, so I and many others were justifiably excited for the publication of Inheritance, the last book in the Inheritance Cycle, on November 8. Due to a ridiculous amount of work, I just finished the book about a week ago, and I thought I'd post my thoughts on it. I think that while those who have been devoted to the series won’t be disappointed by Inheritance, I wouldn’t call it a masterpiece either. Paolini manages to conclude the series fittingly, but the book is plagued with many problems.

For those of you who don't know the basic storyline, the Inheritance Cycle is about a farm boy named Eragon. While hunting at the beginning of the first book, Eragon discovers a dragon egg. The egg hatches and Eragon forms a special bond with the dragon within, who he calls Saphira. Eragon talks to one of his fellow villagers by the name of Brom and discovers that he is part of an ancient order of Dragon Riders who can do magic. The Dragon Riders used to watch over the land of Alagaesia and protect it from strife, but around 100 years ago, an evil rider named Galbatorix overthrew the Riders and killed every last one and their dragons, letting only three dragon eggs survive. After Galbatorix's servants, the Raz'ac, burn down his house and kill his uncle in search of him, Eragon sets off with Brom to hunt for the Raz'ac. He eventually meets up with the resistance movement the Varden and decides to help them in their quest to overthrow Galbatorix. Eragon journeys to the land of the elves and finds a teacher to help him with his magic and swordfighting. He then joins the Varden as they start their campaign to take back Alagaesia. Inheritance opens in the midst of the Varden's campaign.

Those expecting a great work of literature should look elsewhere- Inheritance still has plenty of the clumsy writing that has plagued the series, and Paolini retains his obsession with modifying words. Here is just one example of what I'm talking about: "The herbalist was more than a foot shorter than some of the men, but she showed no sign of fear as she bounded among them. To the contrary, she was the picture of ferocity, with her wild hair and her shouting and her dark-eyed expression." That’s not to say that the book is poorly written; Paolini has flashes of brilliance and plenty of well-written prose exists in the book. For example: "Shields cracked, chunks of torn sod flew over the ground, and sword rang agains sword as they flowed from on stance to another, their bodies twisting through the air like twin columns of smoke."

Most people, though, will be reading Inheritance for the plot. In this regard the book is also a mixed bag. Paolini has a talent for creating particularly exciting battle sequences- I found the siege of Aroughs to be particularly ingenious- and he does a really good job of ratcheting up the tension in the later part of the story. But Paolini’s propensity to waste pages on pages on information that just is not very important to the plot is evident in this book. It really bogs the reader down and hurts the flow of the story. There are several chapters in the later part of the novel, for example, involving Nasuada which I believe could have been shortened greatly or eliminated without any problem.

            The most important question on everyone’s mind is how Paolini concludes the novel, and I don’t think the climactic battle scene will disappoint readers. Eragon’s fight with Galbatorix is well written and the conclusion of this battle is immensely satisfying and fitting. The sequence that leads up to the battle, however, unfortunately seems a bit rushed, and this does cheapen the result a little bit. What is definitely not rushed is the denouement after the climactic battle. Paolini spends about 100 pages after the climax wrapping up loose ends, and it seems very clumsy and unnecessary. All in all, in Inheritance Paolini once again does a great job of sucking the reader into the world of Alageasia, but overly cluttered writing and an obsession with details hold Inheritance back from being the epic novel it could be.