Eragon review

As promised, here is my synopsis of the novels "Eragon" and its sequel, "Eldest". There are spoilers here. You have been warned.


The first scene opens with a young woman on a secret mission to deliver an object of utmost importance to the resistance movement. This item has the potential, if used properly, to bring down the evil empire. Unfortunately, she is captured by agents of the empire, but not before she desperately casts off the object into the great beyond. While she didn't send it where she wanted it to go, at least it is temporarily safe.

Cut to a farm on the outskirts of civilization. A farmboy stumbles across this vital object accidentally. Near the boy's village, yet secluded from it, lives an old hermit who is more than he seems. Later in the story, it turns out he was assigned to stay there to keep an eye on the boy.

Danger comes to the village, so the boy and the hermit set off. On the way, the old man teaches the boy some of the old magical arts, but not nearly as much as the boy will learn later on. The man also gives the boy a special weapon with a sordid past.

The old man dies on the journey, before he can teach the boy everything he needs to know. However, later on the boy takes up with a member of another, older race. This person, despite being crippled, knows even more than the old man and teaches the boy much. The boy leaves his teacher before his lessons are over, however, with a promise to return to complete them. The boy learns how to use the old arts to perform incredible feats such as levitation, communicating telepathically with those close to him, and affecting the minds of others.

The boy eventually meets up with the young woman from the beginning, by rescuing her from the jail, right out from under the eye of the evil empire. He develops a bit of a crush on her, which is unrequited. Later, he finds out she is a princess associated with the resistance movement.

In the second portion of the story, the resistance movement is forced to relocate, since their home base has been discovered.

At some point, the boy receives a crippling blow, which is later repaired.

It turns out that the boy's weapon, given to him by his first teacher, used to belong to the second-in-command of the evil empire. It is later startingly revealed that this man is the boy's father.

During a major battle, just as it appears the resistance is doomed, help suddenly appears in the form of the boy's cousin, who comes unexpectedly from nowhere and distracts the opposing army long enough for the resistance to land a severely disabling blow. There is an evil counterpoint to the boy, someone who can also use the dark arts, on the battlefield, but he escapes in the confusion.


Now, some of you may be wondering whether I just described "Eragon", or whether this is a review of the classic "Star Wars" movies. If you are wondering this.....well, so am I.