Wizard's First Rule - Terry Goodkind

   1994; 821 pages.  Book 1 (out of 17) in the Sword of Truth series.   New Author? : Yes.  Genre : Epic Fantasy.  Overall Rating : 4½*/10.

    Richard Cypher is happy with his life.  He’s a woods guide by trade, which means he spends most of his time traipsing around in the forests of Westland, escorting people and getting paid to do so.  His main job is to keep unwary folks from accidentally stumbling into the sealed border with Midland, the dangerous neighboring country, full of magic.  There is no magic allowed in Westland.

    But Richard is equally happy when he’s walking alone in the woods.  There are wild animals out there of course, and Richard has learned the art of moving silently and stealthily.  Meeting other people in the forest is a rare event, other than an occasional encounter with the Westland border guards, such as his friend Chase Brandstone.

    One day Richard spots a lone woman walking through the woods.   This is somewhat unusual since, unless you’re a guide or a guard, it’s just safer to have one or more companions when out there.  There's less chance of getting lost, running into the border, or meeting up with some wild animal.

    Or being an unescorted woman who is being stalked by four huge, mean-looking men, which is what Richard notices next.  He knows he needs to do something, but there’s no sense being a suicidal hero.  One civilian forest guide versus four armed thugs is not a good venture.  Discretion is the better part of valor, and all that.

    But Richard knows these woods like the back f his hand, and if he hurries through the brush, there’s a good chance he can get to her before the ruffians do.  It'll be close, but it’s worth a try.

    Of course, what he and the woman can do after that is another matter.  The stalkers are closing in on her from both sides of the pathway.  But let’s not spoil things by thinking about that right now.

What’s To Like...

    Wizard’s First Rule is the first book in Terry Goodkind’s incredibly popular and long-running epic fantasy series “The Sword of Truth”.  We join our protagonist, Richard Cypher, as he tries to come to grips with his destiny as a reluctant “chosen one”, who, with his ally, protector, friend, and possible love interest, Kahlan Amnell, are called to try and save the world.  In addition to that hopeless, unasked-for burden, Richard tries to find answers for more personal questions, namely:

    Who murdered his father?

    Why is some evil being named Darken Rahl trying to kill him, and how can he be stopped?

    Where is the missing wizard?

    Where is the last box of Orden hidden?

    How can those booby-trapped boxes be opened in the proper order?

  

    Fans of other Epic Fantasy series will note many cross-references here.  From LOTR, there’s a Gollum-wannabee (“Samuel”), a Gandalf-lookalike (after he magically grows a beard), and a forest very similar to Mirkwood, here called Agaden Reach.  The evil appellation “Sith” is borrowed from Star Wars.  And from WoT, the role of warder is taken (but here called a “mate), as well as the slave collar that Rand al’Thor was forced to wear.  You can either view these as “tips of the hat” by Terry Goodkind, or plagiarism.

    There are critters aplenty for Richard and company to deal with, most of them trying to eat or kill them.  They range from vines that bite, to flying dragons, and lots of beasties in between.  There are about 3 dozen people to keep track of, which felt “about right” for an 800+-page epic fantasy tale,

    I liked the magic system: very dualistic (here labeled “additive” and “subtractive”), and conjuring up any spell comes at some cost to its caster.  The spells themselves seemed innovative;, such as the “drawing spell” and the “keeper spell”.  For me, the most fascinating character was the Ultimate Evil himself, Darken Rahl.  Rotten to the core, yet very intelligent, conniving and powerful, yet persuasive with words.  And I always like when local cusswords are dreamed up by the author.  Here, the most commonly used expressions were “Bags!” and “True as toasted toads”.

    The book’s title is explained at 68%, and invoked several times thereafter.  I gather from the Wikipedia article that there will be a Wizard’s "second rule", third, fourth, etc. in subsequent books.  Wizard's First Rule is a standalone novel, as well as the first book in a series.

Kewlest New Word...

Baldric (n.) : a belt for a sword, worn over one shoulder and down to the opposite hip.
Others:  Boldas (n., pl., and possibly made-up).

Excerpts...

    “Rachel,” he said, squatting down close to her, “listen carefully, this is very important, this is no game.  We must get out of the castle, or we will both get our heads chopped off, just like Sara told you.  But we must be smart about it, or we will get caught.  If we run away too quickly, without doing the right things first, we will be found out.  And if we are too slow, well, we just better not be too slow.”

    She started to get tears in her eyes.  “Giller, I’m afraid to get my head chopped off, people say it hurts terrible bad.”  (loc. 7919)

    Kahlan turned to the two of them.  “Zeddicus Zorander, cloud reader, trusted advisor to the Mother Confessor.”  Zedd bowed dramatically.  “And Richard Cypher, the Seeker, protector to the Mother Confessor.”  Richard imitated Zedd’s bow.

    The Queen looked at him, lifting an eyebrow with a sour look.  “Pretty pathetic protection for a Mother Confessor.”

    Richard made no change in his expression.  Kahlan remained unruffled.  “It is the sword that cuts; the man is unimportant.  His brain may be small, but his arms are not.  He tends to use the sword too often, though.”  (loc. 10360)

Kindle Details...

    Right now, Wizard’s First Rule sells for $8.79 at Amazon.  The other books in the series range from $4.10 to $9.99.  Terry Goodkind has also penned a pair of spin-off series set in the Sword of Truth world (The Nicci Chronicles and Children of D’Hara).  Those books are in the $3.63-$9.99 price range.  Finally, the author also offers a half dozen other e-books, completely unrelated to this epic fantasy universe.

“I have seen spirits before. (…)  They do not carry swords.”  (loc. 5382)

    Sadly, I had a host of issues with Wizard’s First Rule.  As briefly as possible:

    The writing is mediocre.  The telling/showing proportion is terrible (although it gets better once our heroes met the Mud People), the descriptions (clothes, landscape, etc.) were often tediously detailed, and the story's pacing was slow.  All the characters were either black or white; I like my characters gray.  To be fair though, some black-hats were on Richard’s side, and some white-hats served Darken Rahl.

    Most of the story “twists” were telegraphed and predictable.  Think I’m kidding?  Here’s a challenge: Richard is told along the way that one of his friends is a traitor.  See if you can figure out who it is before Richard does.  I found it to be blatantly obvious.

    The storytelling itself was so-so, with some gaping plot holes.  At one point, Zedd and Chase get separated from Richard and Kahlan for an extended time and distance.  But when they’re needed again, they both just pop up out of nowhere.  At the right time, in the right place.  In enemy territory.  Without explanation.  And wonder of wonders, Chase just happens to be carrying a small child, who plays a pivotal role in the story.  OTOH there's Samuel, who serves no purpose at all except to make you think of Gollum.  I presume he'll make a dramatic reentry at some later pint in the series, just like Gollum did in LOTR.

    Lastly there’s the question of who the target audience is.  The flying dragon ride will appeal to even juvenile readers, but the prolonged “soft BDSM” torture scene seems like it should be restricted to adults.  The dearth of cusswords (at least until near the very end) targets YA readers, yet then the “erect sex”, child molestations and graphic castration would then be utterly inappropriate.

    4½ Stars.  I'm mulling over whether to continue reading this series.  One certainly hopes the writing and storytelling improve with each book.