The Inheritance Cycle

Inheritance Cycle

File:Eragon.jpg File:Eldest-usa.jpg File:BRISINGR.jpg Cover art of the first three books, Eragon, Eldest and Brisingr
Author	Christopher Paolini
Language	English
Genre	Young Adult literature, High Fantasy
Publisher	Alfred A. Knopf
Publication date	August 26, 2003
Publication place	United States

The Inheritance Cycle, formerly the Inheritance Trilogy, is a series of novels written by author Christopher Paolini that has sold more than 8 million copies worldwide. As of 2007, two of these four books have been published: Eragon (2003) and Eldest (2005). The 3rd Book, Brisingr is still being written and is slated to be published on September 20, 2008. Publication plans for the fourth and final book have not been set. Both Eragon and Eldest were New York Times bestsellers. Eragon was adapted into a motion picture of the same name in 2006.

Set in the fictional world of Alagaësia, the novels focus on a teenaged boy named Eragon and his dragon Saphira as he learns he is a Dragon Rider, (which he becomes after he befriends a hatchling dragon) a legendary group who governed the land in times past. King Galbatorix, who destroyed the previous order (the Dragon Riders) and claimed the crown, sends his assassins to capture the boy and his dragon, thus initiating their journey into the secrets and lores of the lands that holds the most bewildering creatures, Alagaësia.

Writing and publication history

Christopher Paolini, the author of the Inheritance Cycle, was home schooled by his parents. He graduated from high school at the age of fifteen. Feeling that he was not mature enough for college at the time, he wrote the book, Eragon in his spare time. After spending the first year writing what would be the first draft of Eragon, he spent a second year rewriting it and fleshing out the story and characters. After this second year, he presented the book to his parents, who had it self-published by the family publishing company, Paolini International, LLC. Paolini traveled around to various schools advertising his novel. By chance, the book was discovered by Alfred A. Knopf and was republished under Knopf in 2002. With Knopf as the publisher, Eragon became a success and a New York Times Bestseller.

Eldest was released as a hardcover edition in August 2005. A limited edition, featuring extras such as a brief history of Alagaësia, a double-sided poster featuring Brom's ring & Glaedr, and a sneak peek of Brisingr was released in September 2006. A paperback edition was released in March of 2007. The deluxe edition of Eldest had an excerpt from the third chapter of the third book.

Brisingr - a word meaning 'fire' in the ancient language - will be published on September 20 2008, as announced on October 30th, 2007 on Christopher Paolini's website, www.alagaesia.com. Also included in the announcement, both by Random House and in an internet video by Paolini himself, was the revelation that the Inheritance Trilogy would now contain four books instead of three, thus resulting in the renaming of the series to the Inheritance Cycle. Paolini also announced that he would end the third book with the death of a major character.

Synopsis

In the fictional land of Alagaësia, there was once an organization of people who governed the country and brought peace to the world. This group was known as the Dragon Riders– in the Ancient Language, Shur'tugal– for they rode Dragons, with which they had long since made a great bond. One Dragon Rider named Galbatorix had his dragon slain by the troll-like Urgals. Denied another Dragon by the council, Galbatorix was driven into madness and sought to destroy the Dragon Riders. He stole a black dragon, whom he named Shruikan. He forced Shruikan to do his bidding, and, finally, with his dragon and the Thirteen Forsworn, Riders-turned-traitors, he destroyed the Riders and their dragons. Since then, he has ruled Alagaësia as king.

Eragon

Main article: Eragon

Eragon, a 15-year-old boy and the main character of the cycle, finds a polished blue stone which he takes back to his uncle's farm. Very little is known of his parentage, save that his mother was named Selena, and has not been seen since shortly after Eragon's birth. Eragon keeps the stone, hoping that it will perhaps sell for enough money to feed his family for the winter. He is stunned when the stone turns out to be an egg, hatching to reveal a baby dragon, Saphira, who quickly grows in size and mental ability.

Eragon's home is attacked by creatures called Ra'zac. His uncle, Garrow, dies as a result of wounds while Eragon and a mysterious old storyteller named Brom escape with Saphira to find the Ra'zac and avenge Garrow's death. Eragon and Brom are ambushed by the Ra'zac. A young man named Murtagh, later revealed to be the son of Morzan, rescues them, becoming Eragon's ally. Brom is fatally wounded in the attack by the Ra'zac; in his final words, he reveals that he was a Dragon Rider before the Fall and that he is an agent for the Varden. Eragon is captured and taken to prison. Murtagh comes to his rescue, and, whilst pulling off an escape from Gil'ead, the duo also manage to rescue a female elf named Arya, who Eragon has been having disturbing nightmares about.

Because Arya has been poisoned, they search for the antidote. They travel across the vast Hadarac Desert constantly pursued by slavers and an army of Urgals. They discover the lair of the Varden inside the hollow mountain known as Farthen Dûr, where Eragon is tested - Arya informs Eragon that he has passed. The forces of Galbatorix attack and during the battle that follows, Eragon kills a Shade named Durza, suffering a terrible wound. Whilst he is immersed in a healing sleep, he converses with a being who advises him to complete his training in the elven capital.

Eldest

Main article: Eldest

Following the battle of Farthen Dûr, Ajihad, leader of the Varden, is killed in a sudden surprise attack by Urgals. Murtagh and the Twins disappear during the attack, and are presumed dead. After swearing fealty to Nasuada, Ajihad's daughter and new leader of the Varden, Eragon then sets out on his journey to Ellesméra, the elven capital, accompanied by Orik. Much of the book is devoted to Eragon's training with the ancient Dragon Rider Oromis, known as the Mourning Sage, and his unsuccessful attempts at wooing Arya, who is dedicated to her mission and considers his feelings misplaced. Eragon finds out that Arya is the daughter of Queen Islanzadí, which makes her a princess. He also discovers that when he blessed the baby in Farthen Dûr, he really cursed her. Instead of shielding her from misfortune, a simple mistake in grammar caused her to become a shield to others' misfortunes. She has unnatural powers, and is compelled to put herself in the place of others who are about to be hurt.

The spirits of the dragons heal Eragon's scar in a ceremony called the Agaetí Blödhren. Eragon wakes up the next day with elven qualities that make him much stronger and more agile. The scar on his back given to him by the Shade Durza when they battled in Farthen Dûr is also gone, as well as every single other scar he has accumulated throughout his life. While this is going on, Roran returns to Carvahall after learning of his father's death, and discovers that he is wanted by Galbatorix. Consequently, his presence is endangering the entire town, which has come under attack by the Ra'zac. He convinces most of the villagers to follow him in an attempt to reach sanctuary in Surda. Before they can make good their escape, however, Roran's fiancée Katrina and her father Sloan are captured by the Ra'zac. Forced to leave without her, Roran and company cross the treacherous Spine and join up with Jeod at Teirm. They set sail in pirated ships for the southern coast.

Eragon returns to the Varden to help them in the approaching battle against Galbatorix's army, which he learned about by scrying. Before he leaves, Oromis gives him a bottle of enchanted faelnirv, a magical potion to give strength, a handwritten copy of the poem Eragon wrote for the Agaetí Blödhren, and the belt of Beloth the Wise, a thick belt covered with diamonds in which Eragon can store magical energy for battle. The queen of the elves, Islanzadí, gives him a new elven bow and a quiver of swan fletched arrows, as his original bow broke while he was in Ellesméra. Thanks to the timely arrival of Roran, Jeod, and the villagers, the battle is a victory for the Varden.

During the battle a rider appears, kills Hrothgar, and challenges Eragon.The rider then appears to be Murtagh, whom Eragon thought was dead. He was riding the second dragon hatched from the two remaining dragon eggs, Thorn. He reveals that he is now Morzan's successor as Galbatorix's second-in-command. Murtagh and Eragon begin to fight, and Eragon is defeated, but he manages to convince Murtagh to let him go. Eragon offers to kill Murtagh and his dragon for the sake of helping the people under the rule of their king, Galbatorix, but Murtagh refuses it because he has been forced, by Galbatorix, to remain loyal to him (Galbatorix)in the Ancient Language, a Language that binds all and that cannot be reversed. Eragon loses the battle because he has lost too much energy in the battle before and was not expecting another Dragon Rider to come this late in the battle, also Murtagh seems much stronger and claims Galbatorix has taught him things to make him stronger than Eragon. Murtagh then reveals that they are, in fact, brothers, Selena being the mother of both, and Morzan being their father. He relieves Eragon of the sword Zar'roc, claiming it as his inheritance. The book ends with Eragon promising to accompany Roran and free Katrina.

Geography

Main article: Alagaësia

• Alagaësia - Fictional continent where the story takes place
• Du Weldenvarden - A vast forest in Northern Alagaesia. Home to the elves, it literally means "The Guarding Forest" in the Ancient Language
• The Empire - The country ruled by the evil King Galbatorix
• Surda - The land of the resistance to The Empire, it lies far to the south.

Alagaësia

• Beor Mountains - The mountains, underneath which the dwarven cities and tunnels lie.
• Carvahall - The small village where Eragon was raised by his Uncle Garrow.
• Dras-Leona - A large city on the eastern shore of Leona Lake, located near Helgrind
• Farthen Dûr - A huge, hollow, almost impregnable mountain where the dwarf city Tronjheim is located, and where the Varden are hiding from the Empire.
• Gil'ead - The barracks for Galbatorix's troops. Also where Arya was sent when the shade Durza captured her.
• Hadarac Desert - The vast desert in the center of Alagaësia, that Eragon and Murtagh crossed to reach the Beor Mountains.
• Helgrind - A strange formation next to the city of Dras-Leona that is home to the Ra'zac.
• Palancar Valley - Location of Carvahall and Therinsford. Located in northwestern Alagaësia, is surrounded by the Spine to the west, and the Anora River to the east.
• The Spine - A mountain range that runs most of the vertical span of The Empire, along the western coast. It is a mysterious place that many people are very afraid of. It was also the hiding place Eragon chooses for Saphira in the first book.
• Urû'baen - The capital city of the Empire.
• Teirm - A seaside city in which Eragon and Brom meet Jeod, a member of the Varden.

Du Weldenvarden

• Ceris - An elven outpost on the Edda River
• Ellesméra - The hidden capital city of the elves.
• Gaena River - The river that flows from Du Weldenvarden
• Sílthrim - A city within Du Weldenvarden, also the first place where Eragon first hears the Dagshelgr Invocation.

Surda

• Aberon - The capital city of Surda
• Dauth - The port city which Roran and his crew stayed after escaping the Empire.

Races

• Dragon Riders- One-time keepers of the peace in Alagaësia. They are called Shur'tugal in the Ancient Language. (Brom, Eragon, Morzan, Vrael, Galbatorix, Murtagh, and Oromis are all known Riders at this time.)
• Kull - Elite Urgals, who possess even more strength than the regular urgals. They are about 8 ft tall.
• Lethrblaka- An adult Ra'zac. They are first believed to be mounts but are later realized to be the Ra'zac's parents. They are much more powerful than the Ra'zac and have wings and scaly, rubbery skin.
• Ra'zac - Creatures who prey on humans; they are the servants of King Galbatorix who help the King find Riders and dragon eggs. They have huge pupiless eyes and a large beak for a nose. They are but children though, the parents of these Ra'zac are called the Lethrblaka.
• Urgals - A tribal race of creatures with orc-like qualities; fought against the other races for many years, later to be betrayed and enslaved by Galbatorix and Durza. Then released, when Eragon killed Durza. At the battle on the Burning Plains in 'Eldest', they allied with the Varden.
• Varden - A group of rebels against the Empire of King Galbatorix who fight for freedom from the empire.

Characters

Main article: Characters in the Inheritance cycle

• Ajihad - Leader of the Varden until his death in Eldest.
• Angela - Witch/herbalist who helps Eragon. Solembum (see below) is a constant companion of Angela.
• Arya - The Elven princess rescued by Eragon, with whom he falls in love. (Arya however, refuses Eragon's love because she is older than him and of a different race). Until she was ambushed and captured by Durza, she acted as a courier for Saphira's egg, carrying it between the elves and the Varden.
• Blagden - A raven that once saved Arya's father's (King Evandar) life. Now blessed with long life and knowledge, the bird turned white and gained the limited ability to see into the future. He speaks in cryptic riddles.
• Brom - Former Dragon Rider and Eragon's mentor. Thinks the King has much to answer for. Has defeated 3 of the Forsworn personally including Morzan and was responsible for the death of 5 others. He was Oromis's pupil as a Dragon Rider and later pronounced Elf Friend. He was killed by the Ra'zac.
• Durza - A "Shade" -- Durza(known as Carsaib before he was controlled by the spirit) was a normal person until he was introduced to sorcery and summoned a spirit too powerful for him to control- the spirit took him over. The only way to kill him (or other shades) is to stab him in the heart. Eragon does so at the end of the first book in the cycle.
• Elva - A little girl that Eragon accidentally curses. Her forehead is marked by Saphira. She is able to "shield" others from danger by foreseeing and taking it herself. She becomes Nasuada's protector.
• Eragon - The protagonist. His quest begins when he finds a dragon egg during a hunting trip. He gradually learns how to fight, use magic and read. Also the name of the very first (Dragon Rider).
• Evandar - Islanzadí's deceased husband and the father of Arya. Was King until his death at the Battle of Ilirea. He was succeeded by Islanzadí.
• Garrow - uncle of Eragon and father of Roran, brother of Selena. Killed in first part by Ra'zac
• Glaedr - Oromis's golden dragon. One of the last dragons of the old Dragon Riders. Has lost one of his forelegs.
• Helen - Jeod's wife, who accompanies him to Surda, she is pregnant.
• Hrothgar - Dwarf king who is one of the wisest in the books. He is killed by Murtagh on the Burning Plains.
• Islanzadí - Queen of the elves and Du Weldenvarden, she is also Arya's mother.
• Jeod - Brom's old friend in Teirm who helped Brom steal Saphira's egg. He helps Roran flee to Surda with the others from Carvahall.
• Jörmunder - Second in command to Ajihad during his rule and to Nasuada in her rule. Also a member of the Council of Elders.
• Katrina - Roran's fiancée, who gets kidnapped by the Ra'zac.
• Maud - A white werecat who lives amongst the elves. Also known as The Watcher, Quickpaw, and The Dream Dancer.
• Morzan - One of the Dragon Riders who betrayed the order and helped Galbatorix make himself king (becoming one of the Forsworn). Father of Murtagh and Eragon. Former owner of Zar'roc, which was stolen by Brom, who also killed Morzan. Brom later gives Zar'roc to Eragon, who eventually loses it to Murtagh.
• Murtagh - The son of Morzan, and Eragon's older brother. Rescues Eragon and goes with him to Farthen Dûr. Later becomes a Rider who is forced to pledge allegiance to Galbatorix, in the ancient language. Has a dragon named Thorn.
• Nasuada - Daughter of Ajihad and leader of the Varden after Ajihad dies.
• Orik - Nephew of Hrothgar and Eragon's companion/personal guide in Farthen Dûr.
• Oromis - The last of the Dragon Riders of old. He is an elf, hiding in Du Weldenvarden, and is Eragon's second teacher. He has a deep wound inside of him which is a disability to him, and is very sick so he cannot fight.
• Orrin - The king of Surda, aides the Varden.
• Roran - Eragon's cousin, and (now) revolutionary leader of Carvahall. Meets Eragon again in Surda at the end of Eldest. Also known as Roran Stronghammer.
• Saphira - Eragon's blue dragon, also the name of Brom's old dragon who died.
• Selena - Mother of Murtagh and Eragon, sister of Garrow.
• Shruikan - Galbatorix's black dragon. Shruikan was originally the dragon of another Rider, but was made to serve Galbatorix by use of black magic.
• Sloan - Carvahall's butcher, and father of Katrina. Betrayed Carvahall and Roran by assisting the Ra'zac. This later results in the kidnapping of Katrina.
• Solembum - The werecat that chooses to travel with the herbalist, Angela.
• Thorn - Murtagh's red dragon.
• Trianna - Leader of Du Vrangr Gata.
• The Twins - Once Leader of the Du Vrangr Gata. Traitors that were found out to work for Galbatorix. Their names are never mentioned and they are not referenced separately.
• Vrael - Leader of the Riders before the Fall.

Critical response

Numerous critics have criticized the books for their derivative nature. The two most commonly discussed sources are Star Wars (due to numerous similarities in the plots) and The Lord of the Rings (due to the setting, elven and dwarven races, the language and character and place names). Even many positive reviews note that the work pulls strongly from the conventions of fantasy, in character, dialogue and concepts.

The reviews of Eldest were similar. Paolini was cited as having developed as a writer from Eragon, but also noted were strong use of The Empire Strikes Back as source material, as well as The Two Towers and Dune. USAToday also cited strong echoes of Star Wars in Eragon's plot, while Entertainment Weekly writes that the plot closely resembles that of the The Lord of the Rings..

Film adaptations

On December 15, 2006, a film adaptation of Eragon was released. The movie, starring Ed Speleers, Jeremy Irons, and John Malkovich, was produced by 20th Century Fox. Stefen Fangmeier, a first time director, made his directing debut by directing Eragon. The screenplay was written by Peter Buchman. Principal photography for the film took place in Hungary and Slovakia. A DVD of the movie was released March 20, 2007. The film performed poorly at the US Box Office, so it is unknown at this time whether books 2-4 will be released in a film adaptation.

Reviews

• Video clip from Amazon.com
• Recorded audio of interview with Christopher Paolini, from "Bill Thompson's Eye On Books"
• Recorded audio of interview with Christopher Paolini, from Homeschool.com
• "Philip Pullman, Tamora Pierce, and Christopher Paolini Talk Fantasy Fiction", from Powell's books

External links

Inheritance Cycle, an external wiki

• Official Inheritance Cycle website
• Eragon page, from Random House
• Unofficial Fan Site
• Unofficial Fan Outlet