Review "Eldest" by Christopher Paolini

"Eldest" is the sequel to "Eragon" by Chrisopher Paolini. (which I reviewed below.)

"Eldest" continues the story of Eragon and his dragon as they attempt to save the world from the evil King Gallbatorix. In this book Eragon and Saphira travel to the elven lands to continue their training. This book also introduces a new major character in Eragaon's half brother, Roran, who must lead their village to safety after the kind begins searching for anyone who knows of Eragon.

The target audience for this book is probably middle school students who enjoy basic fantasy. Mr. Paolini wrote this book as a teenager and he was heavily influenced by the Lord of the Rings series, Star Wars, George R.R. Martin's "Song of Fire and Ice" series and Anne McCaffrey's books. Very few (if any) plot elements are surprising or new to someone familiar with these works. Also, the way Mr. Paolini describes the magic in his world doesn't seem very well done to me - again as compared to other books. (See Terry Goodkind's "Sword of Truth" series.)

Overall, it was not a bad book. My ten year old daughter enjoyed it immensely - but of course she has not read the Hobbit yet either....