A new adventure hatches in the first book of the Inheritance Cycle, perfect for fans of Lord of the Rings This New York Times bestselling series has sold over 35 million copies and is an international fantasy sensation. 

 When fifteen-year-old Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. 

 Overnight his simple life is shattered, and, gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. Now his choices could save–or destroy–the Empire. 

I purchased a copy of this book for my own reading.

Eragon represents another book series that I’ve been aware of for many years, but never got around to reading. I am fairly sure I’ve even seen the film, albeit a long time ago now. So it worked out very nicely when I needed a book to fill in for the letter E in my alphabet reading challenge.

In the early parts of the book, I wasn’t entirely convinced that I would enjoy it. The premise was great, if a touch predictable – an orphaned boy taken in by his family finds a mysterious item that turns out to hide a magical secret, which in this case, was a dragon egg. Nothing wrong there. The bit that was a problem for me was the boy, Eragon. I found him a touch entitled and whiny, expecting to be told everything immediately.

Thankfully, this ended up being a part of the story I really enjoyed. As Eragon grew and matured alongside his dragon Saphira, so too did his personality. I enjoyed the journey the characters embarked upon, and although the prophesied destiny of Eragon only occurred right at the very end, this only set up the series in a very positive way.

My rating: