The future is bleak. Most of my friends are
away at their final year internships, and the precious few of us left on campus
have been having a hard time keeping from wasting away. Boredom can drive you
insane, add the pressure of the end sems to the equation and well, life is
hell. Typically, around this time of the year I contemplate suicide (alright
no, I’m a narcissist, but I sincerely hope that someone nukes the academic
block). However this time around I see hope in the wintery November.
The memory is vague, but I guess I was
introduced to the Inheritance Cycle when I was in my 9th. My dad had
just flown in from Banglore and with him came my copy of Eragon. And here I’m
now, three books and eight years later, waiting for the last book of the cycle,
Inheritance.
Well dragons, magic and elves (not the ugly
Harry Potter ones, actual elves) most sane kids would find any book with the
combo interesting. The insane ones settle for shiny vampires( hint: Twilight).
So it’s no surprise that I got hooked to the series. The concept of Dragon Riders
was in itself very attractive. Added to this were a host of intriguing
characters and a beautifully sculpted plot, naïve at times but beautiful all
the same. To top it all, Christopher Paolini was just 18 when the first book
was published. Well, I don’t know about you but I sure was impressed. My taste
of literature has changed over these years, a lot has been pruned away leaving
behind what I like to think of as a taste for fine, meaningful literature (you
could call me a arrogant bastard). In this process of refinement a lot of books
that I used to like, or maybe even cherished, in the past have been shelved
permanently. Eragon, Eldest and Brisingr,
however, still hold my interest.
In every genre of literature a particular
book functions as a yard stick against which all others works are measured. My
yard stick in fantasy-fiction is “The Lord of The Rings” and measured against
it, Paolini’s Inheritance cycle did surprising well. LOTR is a masterpiece. Tolkien
created a whole alternate universe, crafted a century’s worth of history, and
traced the path of several races through the sands of time. This was just his
creative brilliance, the only reason all this found its way onto paper was
because Tolkien was a true master of English with an extraordinary attention to
detail. No book I have read so far quiet matches the description of events,
emotions and places that I have seen in LOTR. Paolini’s work doesn’t compare to
the brilliance of LOTR, but his work is one that shows much promise. His
writing style, though still amateur in comparison, has a lot in common with Tolkien’s
own style. And though Alagaesia’s
history is rather sparse in comparison to Middle Earth’s, it’s still enough to
tingle your interest.
The Inheritance may be seen as a tale about
Eragon, his struggle to rid Alagaesia of the tyrant king and resurrect the
order of Dragon Riders but ample space has been give to other characters.
Nasuada and Roran are characters of immense strength, characters that deserve
their own space away from the overwhelming shadow of Eragon and Saphira. It’s
beautiful how Paolini has developed these characters away from the central
character, giving them the space they deserve and adding an extra dimension to
the tale. The way he keeps switches between Eragon’s and their tales may be
irritating but I believe that it makes for a better read, sans the initial
irritation.
At the end of the third book Brisingr,
Eragon is left without a guide and teacher, with both Oromis and Brom dead. There is nowhere the young man can look for
guidance. However the revelation about the Eldunari is a glimmer of hope in
these dark times. It will be interesting to see how the Eldunari and the power
of the dragons trapped with them mold the course of events in Algaesia. I also
have a gut feel that Roran will be the next rider, which should be rather
interesting, a man of Roran’s character in possession with the power of the
riders will be a force to reckon with. I
also sincerely hope to see more of Murtagh this time around, it’s a pity that a
character like him hasn’t found much place since the first book. Also I’m
extremely interested to see what fate has in-store for him, is his future as
dark as his past or is there still hope…
True the books have been predictable to a
certain extent, but you have to agree that Paolini has been able to catch us by
surprise more than once. I hope that Inheritance will turn out to be a masterpiece,
better than any of the first three, it’s the only way to say farewell to an
amazing tale.
Atra esterní ono thelduin. Mor'ranr lífa
unin hjarta onr. Un du evarínya ono varda.
Book 4, Inheritance, releases worldwide on November 5.
Book 4, Inheritance, releases worldwide on November 5.
Vakul Mohanty
A metal-head who's wants to do pursue a Ph.D Currently studying Biology & Comp Sc. at BITS,Pilani - Hyderabad Campus, his life-long ambition is to become a professor and wear shorts to work.
A metal-head who's wants to do pursue a Ph.D Currently studying Biology & Comp Sc. at BITS,Pilani - Hyderabad Campus, his life-long ambition is to become a professor and wear shorts to work.
