Terry Brooks R A Salvatore Anne McCaffrey Star Wars novels
David Eddings, with the help of his wife Leigh, has written 19 fantasy novels in all, based around
two separate worlds. His style is somewhat different from most, in that there is a large proportion
of dry comedy in his novels. The action is smattered at a decent rate, and you often feel drawn in to the questing party.
Powerful villains, which more often than not are Gods, and good crops of heroes mae for compelling reading.
There are a fair number of unexpected plot twists, and the pre-requisite magic is in abundance. We like magic.
The first of Eddings' worlds is the one on which the Belgariad and Malloreon take place. These are two 5-book cycles which recount the tale of Garion, a farmer boy, and his quest with others to destroy the Child of Dark. The world is excellently thought out, with definite national characteristics and racial trends. The story can get a bit complex, especially towards the end of the Malloreon cycle, but that's the kind of thing we love, right?
The Belgariad recounts the tale of Garion's realisation of his role in destiny; of his unusual family, his unusual abilities, and the way he has to deal with all the normal trials and tribulations of growing up. We are introduced to some excellent characters, not least of which is my personal favourite, Silk. The books jump from country to country and show a great deal of the Eddings' superb world-building skills.
Below are the covers of each part. Clicking on the cover or the title will take you to Amazon.com where you can order the book.
Part 1 - Pawn of Prophecy
In Part 1, Pawn of Prophecy, Garion is plucked from his farmstead home by the mysterious storyteller Mister Wolf, along with his Aunt Pol and Durnik the blacksmith, to run from some unknown danger.
The book gives Garion's perspective on the events, as well as his fears. From the farm, Garion meets up with two people who would become central to the rest of his life...
Part 2 - Queen of Sorcery
Part 2 of 5 gives us more insight into the characters of Belgarath and Polgara, as well as introducing the fact that Garion is a latent sorceror. He meets more of his party, and journeys through most of the Western
Kingdoms of the world in the quest to track down the thief of the Orb of Aldur, the central part of the quest. And the running joke of the enitre 10-book series is introduced here, when Garion first asks "Why me?"
Part 3 - Magician's Gambit
Widely acclaimed as the best book in the cycle, for several reasons, not least of which is the apocalyptic battle between two of the world's strongest sorcerors, Belgarath and Ctuchik. Ce'Nedra, Princess of Imperial
Tolnedra, has joined the party, although her religion prevents her from believing virtually everything she sees. She is to become a major character in the later parts of the cycle.
Part 4 - Castle of Wizadry
The Orb has been recovered, and now the flight is on. The aftermath of Belgarath vs Ctuchik is a nasty one, and our heroes must escape the enemy territory in one piece and return with the Orb by Erastide. But the Quest
would not end there, even if they made it. Fate has more of its hand to play yet...
Part 5 - Enchanter's End Game
My favourite of the series, mainly for the climactic battle between the Child of Light and the Child of Dark, and the huge twists during that battle and just before it. Garion is terrified throughout, as he has no idea
what is going to happen. Meanwhile, Ce'Nedra has raised a huge army to divert the forces of evil away from the goings-on of Garion...
