A quick book review

I have been informed that I am not writing nearly enough. There is a reason for this, but there is no good excuse for neglecting my blogging duties, and so I thought that I would kick off what will hopefully be a writing streak this week with a book review.

That's right, those of you who have been urging me to read the book that has been sitting on my bookshelf for eons and on my sister's for even longer. I have finally read and finished The Wizard's First Rule.

I had eyed the book for ages on Cherie's shelf, but it had always seemed daunting, being long and frustrating and not something that I had actually heard of. That was until the Legend of the Seeker series came out and I found out that it was based on the book. Not wanting to watch the series and ruin the book for myself, I decided that it was about time that I got around to reading it.

I have said it before, but over the last couple of months I have been struggling to get through books. It's not that I don't enjoy them, it's not that I don't get into the storyline, it's just that I struggle to read for long periods of time without my brain shutting down and not wanting me to go any further. This was still the case with the Wizard's First Rule, but less so than with other books that I have been reading recently. I was, in fact, quite surprised at the speed with which I made my way through the novel, finishing it in under a month when even a 200 pager has been taking me 2 weeks recently.

So what is this wondrous book about? It revolves around Richard, a recently orphaned woods guide who finds himself in the midst of an epic battle of good and evil revolving around magic. And by midst, I really do mean that he is in the middle of it, the only one who can save humanity from death or a fate worse than it. There is adventure, there is romance, there is magic and there is betrayal. It is one of those epic fantasy novels that cannot be put down once it has been opened, and cannot be forgotten.

There are a couple of moments in the novel where I was reminded of other epic fantasy novels. Some people would say that the book has too many of these to be original in its own right, but I would have to disagree with those people. Even though there were moments when I was reminded of Lord of the Rings, something would come along to differentiate it completely. Though the writing is not the best and not the most original, it is the kind that keeps me reading and doesn't put me to sleep. It is the kind that pulls me into the novel and keeps me there rather than pushing me away.

Basically, if you are looking for a good fantasy novel, nothing award winning, but certainly something entertaining and engaging, I would highly recommend the Wizard's First Rule. I know that I am going to be reading the next book in the series very very soon!