| Product: |
Stone of Tears - Terry Goodkind |
| Date: |
25/07/06 (137 review reads) |
| Rating: |
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Advantages: Loveable, Memorable.
Disadvantages: None.
Terry Goodkind is my favourite author of fantasy novels and every single book I have read of his has been absolutely brilliant so I am reading them all over again. This review is about the second in the sword of truth series which is called Stone of Tears. Previously I thought this was one of the weaker novels but after reading it again I have just enjoyed it so much that I have to share with you exactly why this book is so great.
Before I start my review though I do want to warn you that for these books even a simple review like this may give away what happened in the first novel of the series so although I will try my best not to show so much I just want you to be warned.
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What is the book about?
This book takes off from where the last book left off. Richard and Kahlan are on their way to the mud people’s village where they are returning one of the children back to its home (you will only understand this bit if you have read the first novel). Richard is suffering from headaches that at times literally knock him off of his feet and despite his words that he is fine, Kahlan thinks otherwise. Richard slowly gets turned off of certain types of food as he becomes more ill.
The village suddenly gets a visit from the Sisters of the Light who request to speak with Richard. They claim that Richard is experiencing these headaches because he has the gift of magic and that they will need to be controlled or they will continue to get worse and he will die. To control the gift Richard must be forced to wear a collar which can be controlled by the sisters and he must be separated from Kahlan.
As Richard refuses, Kahlan comes to realise she must send Richard into slavery to save him. Richard leaves thinking Kahlan has betrayed him and continues on his quest to understand his magic gift. Kahlan on the other hand is thrown straight into a war between lands in which she must fight believing that Richard has been taken away from her forever.
Verdict on the story:
The only thing I can say about this story is how amazing it is. I have never read a story which makes you believe in the characters so much and these are the only books that I actually care about what happens so much I cannot stop reading it. The story is strong throughout the book and there is no dwindling chapters which make you want to put the book down but instead it keeps your interest and attention and makes you read on.
After finishing the book you can really appreciate what a great story it is and also how detailed it is. I think that it has exactly the correct elements of fantasy, horror, drama and romance and that it is not missing anything at all. The one thing about this story is that it will make you want to rush out and buy the third book to continue the adventure but then again if you have got to this one then you are already at that point.
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Characters:
Richard – The main character and in this novel he must face being separated from Kahlan and also learn to control the gift, the one thing he doesn’t particularly want but the one thing that may kill him. He is an extremely strong character and is as scary as he is sweet. Richard is one of those people you would want on your side of a war as he believes in freedom and getting what is right for everybody.
Kahlan – The next main character and the love of Richards life. Within this novel she faces a war she does not want to be involved in and also has to face being parted from Richard. Kahlan is an extremely strong character, maybe even more so than Richard as she believes in the good but she also wants to punish the bad in such a way that nobody will question her methods. She is sneaky and extremely intelligent in the ways of war.
Zedd – The first wizard who supports his Grandson Richard and also Kahlan. He is a central character who is trusted by everybody and due to his experience is valuable when it comes to information and suggestions.
Shota – The witch woman. Although she would never admit is she does care about what happens to the world and is willing to give Richard information that will help him but only in riddles which just confuses everybody.
The Sisters – Tovi, Ulicia and Nicci. These sisters of the light hold many secrets that they will not divulge even though they are supposed to be helping Richard to understand his gift. They are very manipulative but also make for fun characters as you never exactly know if what they are doing is the correct thing to do.
Sister Verna – A true sister of the light and is committed to helping Richard in any way she can. She realises the impending war and her role in making sure it does not go certain ways and that people do not do certain things to make the situation spiral out of control.
Verdict on the Characters:
I have to say that this book along with the rest of the series has the type of characters that you wish every single book had. I do not mean they have to be the same people but the way they are written and the amount of information you are given about each of them is absolutely spot on and cannot be faulted.
Never before in a book have I felt so much for the characters and cared about them so much that I did not want them to do some things and at one point in this book the first time I read it I actually did cry at one point because I felt what they were going through. These characters are all loveable and memorable and you really do get to feel like you know them.
In terms of what the actual characters are like I think all of them are enjoyable to read and I find myself liking the bad characters as much as the good which shows how successful Goodkind is at writing characters that can be identified with.
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Things to Know:
Number of Pages – 1056
Author – Terry Goodkind
Price – £6.39 on Amazon
Publisher – Gollancz
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Verdict:
Well I love this book as I think it just shows how good fantasy writing should be. Stone of Tears is loveable, memorable and one of those books that I couldn’t put down which is down to Goodkind’s fantastic writing style which does go into detail but not so much detail that it makes you want to skip huge parts of the book.
My favourite thing about this book is that the characters are so memorable and I have never read a series of books that make you want to continue the series quite so much as these do. Stone of Tears is a worthy sequel and I think although it does not have the shock and awe of the first I think it is just as strong storywise. The first book is all about introductions and then the second steps you right into the action.
I think it is worth noting down that although it is a fantasy book and yes it is romantic at times, this book still has some very disturbing and nasty scenes in. I do not want anybody reading it and then complaining about the violence as it is about a war for lands so expect writing as such at times.
In conclusion I am going to give this book a big five stars as I cannot fault it. In fact the only thing I can fault it for is for being so addictive as when I started to read it I could not stop and now I have read it a total of three times and I could still pick it up tomorrow and read it again. If you want a good fantasy series to read then try this and if you have read the first one and loved it then rest easy that the second just draws you into this magical world even more.
Thanks for reading.
xxx
P.s. Just as a last note I want everyone to realise that this book is part of a fantasy series so there is really no point in going out to buy it or even bothering to read it unless you have read the first one.
Summary: 2nd is Still Great.
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