Terry Goodkind is Frighteningly Insane

[mateobard]

After many books, I don't know that I can tolerate yet another "Richard Rahl simultaneously channels both Ayn Rand and Dick Cheney" novel about how eeeeeeeevil anything that isn't neo-conservative mostly libertarian happens to be

Comments

[lumpyhead]

I slogged through all his books up to "Chainfire" which I purchased when it first came out. By the time I got there I was reading more out of a determination to finish the damn series. I got about 4 chapters in and put it down. I simply couldn't bear to read any more bs. Alas, I cannot tell you if the last two are worth it or not.

[littlepasht]

Chainfire is about where we are stuck atm, too.

[lumpyhead]

Now that the end is in sight, aka he's finally finished the stupid series, I'm tempted to try and read through the last two and a half books just to say I did it.

We'll see how that goes. Right now I'm entertaining myself by re-reading the Belgariad and Mallorean series by David Eddings. At least his stuff I actually enjoy reading.

[dread_ex]

*sigh* I feel your pain.

[anonymous]

Well this entry just saved me a ton of reading. Not that I had any immediate plans to read his stuff, but it had been in the back of my head as something I should try someday.

[lumpyhead]

Don't get me wrong, his first few books I actually enjoyed. Then he got on his soap box, stopped telling a story and began lecturing the reader. Just my opinion.

[mateobard]

Exactly. The first few books were wonderful reads - deep characters you generally cared for, well written and believable world, tension, drama, romance - they had everything really good fantasy needs. And then it got weird. It's as if you went to a concert, and all the sudden, you slowly realize that the lovely music is actually just a lead in for some kind of fundamentalist conversion rally.

[kumakun]

Somewhere around Pillars of Creation (which I admittedly had a little trouble getting through), he had some serious kind of heart surgery. I assume that had something to do with the sudden shift in focus. At some point, though, I focused my attention on the death of magic in that world, it's effects, and how he was going to ultimately FIX that particular train wreck. If you try to make it more about the fiction and less about "the message" it helps.