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Polgara-D.Eddings-Worth a try?

Discussion in 'Booktalk' started by Eze, Jan 29, 2003.

  1. Eze Gems: 24/31
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    Well, I found the aforementioned book somewhere in the boxes and asked to borrow it.(Actually belongs to the female parental unit) She let me. But I need YOU people to tell me, is it worth to read or not.
     
    Eze, Jan 29, 2003
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  2. Pyro Gems: 5/31
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    I dont know, I think your supposed to have read the belgariad before those two books, so I recomend reading them first.
     
    Pyro, Jan 29, 2003
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  3. Chandos the Red

    Chandos the Red This Wheel's on Fire

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    Yes, Eddings is certainly worth the effort, especially if it is the Elenium trilogy. The first book is The Diamond Throne: the other two are The Ruby Knight and The Sapphire Rose. All three are good. I would not recommend the Belgaraid however -- it's just too long.
     
    Chandos the Red, Jan 29, 2003
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  4. joacqin

    joacqin Confused Jerk Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!)

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    Dont ever read the Elenium trilogy, it is utter and complete crap. If you want to read Eddings I would advice that you start with the Belgariad and then the Malloreon which I found immensly entertaining when I was in my teens. I adored those books. I have read Belgarath and Polgara as well but as they are mostly a retelling of the same story as in the Belgariad and Malloreon but from different perspective I would advice you to start with those and then if you like them you can go on and read Polgara and Belgarath. Do not ever read the Elenium, it is like a worse version of Eddings early work. More or less the same story but everything is alot worse. I cannot stress it enough to never read the Elenium.
     
    joacqin, Jan 29, 2003
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  5. Jack Funk Gems: 24/31
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    Wow, so joacqin, how do you really feel about the Elenium trilogy? :p
    I third the motion that you read the Belgariad. 5 books, all fast reads. The Mallorean is up to you. I started it, found that the characters had become really stale and abandoned it. I never even attempted the Elenium.
    IMO, Eddings fell into the same trap that many fantasy writers (Feist, Brooks, McCaffrey) fall into, he stayed in the first world that he had success with. He is a decent story teller, but his world (and characters) got stale fast.
     
    Jack Funk, Jan 29, 2003
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  6. Frostmage Gems: 11/31
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    Actually, I think the Elenium trilogy (and the Tamuli trilogy, the next three books) to be much better than the Belgariad and malloreon. The characters are not as stereotypic as in the Belgariad (but still quite stereotypic), and especially the endings in the books are incredible!
     
    Frostmage, Jan 29, 2003
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  7. Blackthorne TA

    Blackthorne TA Master in his Own Mind Staff Member ★ SPS Account Holder Adored Veteran Pillars of Eternity SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!) New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!) Torment: Tides of Numenera SP Immortalizer (for helping immortalize Sorcerer's Place in the game!)

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    I have read most if not all of Eddings work, and Polgara the Sorceress was rather weak, boring, and too much of the same crappy banter.

    Now, whether this signifies a change in my tastes rather than a change in his/her writing is up for debate since there was a large gap in when I read his other books vs. Polgara...
     
    Blackthorne TA, Jan 29, 2003
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  8. Rathanel Gems: 1/31
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    While Eddings is certainly not among the best authors out there, his works do merit at least one read through. The Elenium and the Belgariad (and their sequels) are paralell in a lot of ways, so it does get a bit stale, but I thought both Belgarath and Polgara (the books) were excellent wrap-ups for the Belgariad world. They expand on a lot of information you've gotten in bits and pieces throughout the series, so don't expect anything radically new.
    General Rating: Three and a half stars out of Five [for those concerned with such things]

    However, if you really get into the Eddings style, and don't mind another story with a similar plot, characterizations, and writing style (the main character could replace a character in both of his other series with only superficial changes) The Redemption of Althalus is one of his best works.

    [ January 29, 2003, 19:32: Message edited by: Rathanel ]
     
    Rathanel, Jan 29, 2003
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  9. dmc

    dmc Speak softly and carry a big briefcase Staff Member Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder Resourceful Adored Veteran New Server Contributor [2012] (for helping Sorcerer's Place lease a new, more powerful server!)

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    Having read all of the mentioned books, I think it's a matter of perspective. I read them as he published them, so I am partial to the Belgariad and the Mallorean series. There are a couple of scenes in those books that still cause me to laugh out loud. The Elenium and Tamuli books (which I read later) appeared more stale to me because I had already read the first 10 books and there were some serious duplications involved.

    The problem, as noted above in this thread, is that Eddings doesn't stray very far from his past. For example, let's say the Belgariad features characters A, B, and C. A is a noble knight, B is a wise-a** thief and C is a slightly anti-social wizard. In the Elenium, you will find characters that may be a bit of A, B and C -- i.e., a noble knight type, with a bit of wise-a** thief and some anti-social type traits. Also, the dialogue is pretty much the exact same style. Thus, the deja-vu feeling. As the story aspects of the books are not really Eddings' strengths (his characters are more where he focuses), you can easily understand some people's sentiments that the later books are garbage not worth reading.

    As for Polgara, it's pretty much a new angle on the same story we've already seen. Read it only if you love his characters or style (or there's nothing else to read).
     
    dmc, Jan 30, 2003
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  10. Arabwel

    Arabwel Screaming towards Apotheosis Veteran

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    You won't understand half of what the hell is going on without having read eleven other books first, aka the Belgariad, Malloreon and Belgarath the Sorcerer.

    I have a soft spot for Eddings... He was one of the first fantasy authors I ever read. But I do admit that he repeats himself, gets boring, and stuff, but he sure as hell can crack a joke sometimes.

    I still laugh at "infernal ministry" :p

    (In trouble, but do I care? Nooo... Ha ha!)
     
    Arabwel, Feb 1, 2003
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  11. Arahar

    Arahar Hmm, it's a dwarf. Distinguished Member ★ SPS Account Holder

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    Almost exactly what Arabwel said. I love the books mainly because they were the first fantasy books that I read. Got me addicted on fantasy. Anyway it is definately worth reading.
     
    Last edited by a moderator: Jun 15, 2012
    Arahar, Feb 5, 2003
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  12. LKD Gems: 31/31
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    [​IMG] Like some of the other posters here, I read Eddings in my teens and enjoyed it. Reading it now, I see just how fluffy some of his stuff is, but he still has the occasional good scene, even for an adult reader. Some of his ideas (the mechanics of magic, for instance) are pretty darn good, but he loses his focus with too much inane banter and uninteresting repetition.
     
    LKD, Feb 7, 2003
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  13. Elan Morin Tedronai Gems: 10/31
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    Having read all of Eddings, without "Belgarath the Sorcerer", I must say that he's one of my most favourite authors, comparing only with Robert Jordan and Raymond Feist... His overall quality of his books never stopped and I must say that his new saga "Dreamers" will surely be epic adventure... :cool:
     
    Elan Morin Tedronai, Feb 7, 2003
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  14. Rathanel Gems: 1/31
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    Elan Morin, what is the "Dreamers" series you were referring to? This is the first I've heard about it.
     
    Rathanel, Feb 21, 2003
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  15. Elan Morin Tedronai Gems: 10/31
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    His newest saga... After "tRoA" everybody thought that 70-old man can write sagas, but "oops he did it again :D ", so there is a new saga by him... He had said 4 books. The first book is called "the Elder Gods"... I am very curious if in his tradition he'll make a spin-out like "Maloreon" or "Tamuli"... But let's see...

    The Plot:
    The Dreamers are something like gods. They have the power to change the world with their dreams and they look like children. One apparition, which is called the Lord of the Wasteland, want to wake them and kill, so to rule the world and make all suffer... Those four who are awakened guards the others four who are asleeped for period of 25,000 years. When those who are awakened wake those who are asleeped to take their place this is the chance of the Lord of the Wasteland... There'll be battle for the humanity...

    Well, that's all... Sorta... I recommend you go and search for the book in Amazon.co.uk for more info...

    [ February 26, 2003, 08:08: Message edited by: Elan Morin Tedronai ]
     
    Elan Morin Tedronai, Feb 26, 2003
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