Terry Goodkind?

[althea]

I have noticed that Terry Goodkind is not in the list of authors.
I wonder if anybody has read his Sword of Truth series?
I found it difficult going at times.Mostly due to the range of violence
in every book.However,I did persevere to the end,while my sister stopped midway during the last book.

Spoiler

She just couldn't go on after Anne was killed unexpectedly.

I had to speedread over the violence and ignore most of it unless it was integral to the plot.
Some of the ideas were amazing and the twists were never expected by me(they were by my friend.)
I did like the sweeping scale of the story and the huge diversity of characters who appeared along the way.

 

[Brian G Turner]

The author subforums are created when there are at least a dozen discussions about a specific author - it's just a filing system, really, so that author-specific discussions can be more easily found - and joined in with.

There are a few Goodkind/Sword of Truth discussion threads, but tends to be just a couple of busy ones, rather than lots of different ones, hence why I've not created a board for Goodkind - as yet.

I did mostly enjoy Wizards First Rule, though wasn't keen on the S&M.

 

[althea]

Thanks for explaining how that works,Brian.It will take me a while to learn all the ways of this forum.
I don't know how you guys can run a site of this size.It is mind blowing to me.As I say,I belong to other forums,but they are tiny compared to this one.
Kudos to all the admin.
Like you I enjoyed Wizards First Rule. I used to skip over the gory stuff.The whole series took some getting through but my sister,friend and I bought the whole series between us and read them together.It helped to be able to discuss our views.
Unfortunately,after five books,I recognised the pattern,or formula,of the stories.Once I have done that with an author,it lessens my enjoyment.

 

[Chris Guillory]

Wizard's First Rule is one of my all time favorites. The next two are great, but the ones after that, not so much. However, the final trilogy is a must read if you are a fan. This new series that takes place shortly after takes a direction I don't much agree with (I have not yet read the latest one).

Also, you may be interested in the two prequels! One is a short of Zed as a young wizard, and the other goes all the way back to Merrit and Magda Searus.

 

[Chris Guillory]

Also Desilu, you bring up a recurring theme I've seen a few times here at SFF regarding violence. I didn't know that many are put off by it. This is great feedback for writers to consider if they think they may be taking violence a little too far (me in particular).

 

[BAYLOR]

Read Wizard's First Rule and like it. Haven't had the desire to read anything else by him.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

It was like eating a lovely apple with rot and maggots in it. Some of the depravity was far worse than GRR Martin.
I'm not reading any more.

 

[Chris Guillory]

It was like eating a lovely apple with rot and maggots in it. Some of the depravity was far worse than GRR Martin.
I'm not reading any more.

Ray, was the the over the top violence specifically that prevented you from continuing?

 

[Ray McCarthy]

Unless I'm confusing with a different book, it was the depravity / torture. Too gross and too explicit. Real life is bad enough.

 

[Ice fyre]

I got to book 3 or 4 I think, I'm not sure exactly why I stopped reading the series. I didnt like the writing style much, got fed up with the explicit violence and the phliosphy behind it. Made me very uncomfortable. Martins writing is indeed dark but its moral, its made clear that the people doing the bad things are bad. This series wasnt so clear cut to me, I felt as he got further in the series he was trying to slip more uncomfortable things into the mix. Not a set of books I will be revisiting.

 

[Chris Guillory]

Unless I'm confusing with a different book, it was the depravity / torture. Too gross and too explicit. Real life is bad enough.

No I'm sure you're right. I was originally thinking about the Mord-Sith stuff, while bad, I also just remembered what Darken Rahl did (and several flashbacks with him). And yes, that got pretty nasty.

 

[chongjasmine]

I used to read it and like it.
But on re-reading it, I find it kind of boring.

 

[Michael Colton]

As with many people, I started it but eventually stopped due to his obsession with particular forms of violence.

 

[Vince W]

I struggled with Wizard's First Rule. Trite and boring. Never bothered with any of his others.

 

[BAYLOR]

It didn't make it as a tv series.

 

[Kerrybuchanan]

I've read the lot and, like a couple of you, I tend to skim over the excessive SM. I've re-read a few of them but now don't enjoy them as much as I used to. Much prefer Jordan's WOT.

 

[scientia]

I read the first eleven of Goodkind's books in the Sword of Truth series. So, I can say with complete confidence that Goodkind is one of the worst authors I have ever read. His world building is like a squatters town on the outskirts of a city where a new shack goes up as needed with no regard to the whole. You won't find a single straight road passing through any Goodkind world. His plots lack imagination and common sense. He tries to make up for this with heavy doses of cynicism, violence, and sex. He is distant from his characters and his stories lack humanity on even the most basic level, but he tries to get around this by having small oases of human-like interaction. His philosophy colors everything he writes. I'm reminded of the scene in "To Kill A Mockingbird".

Walter poured syrup on his vegetables and meat with a generous hand. He would probably have poured it into his milk glass had I not asked what the sam hill he was doing. The silver saucer clattered when he replaced the pitcher, and he quickly put his hands in his lap. Then he ducked his head. Atticus shook his head at me again. “But he’s gone and drowned his dinner in syrup,” I protested. “He’s poured it all over-”

Likewise, Goodkind drowned all of his stories with objectivism and to a similar effect. Even this wouldn't have been so bad if he had a genuine argument for Rand's philosophy. However, not even Goodkind can explain why any of it makes sense so he spends much of his time begging the plot. Most authors beg the plot by just stating something and hope you will accept it. Goodkind is on a whole other level. Sometimes when men get caught cheating on their wives, they'll get angry and go on the attack. That's Goodkind. It's like he already knows that he has been caught in the lie of objectivism so he goes on the attack. Every speech is angry and aggressive because apparently he has nothing else to back it up. I feel as though every word Goodkind writes is a little window into his personal neurosis.

 

[Ray McCarthy]

I read the first eleven of Goodkind's books in the Sword of Truth series. So, I can say with complete confidence that Goodkind is one of the worst authors I have ever read.

Why read eleven? I gave up half way through second. But it wasn't the world-building. It was the sadist violence (and that IMO is a kind description for it).

 

[PizzaCaviar]

I have to agree with most of you on this one. The violence is taken so far it gets uncomfortable. What bothered me the most is the way the author seems to enjoy seeing his characters suffer.

Spoiler

I have never seen characters suffer that much for such ludicrous reasons: the mord-sith, the constant raping, the murdering... How many times did Richard almost see Kalhan get raped and beheaded in front of his very eyes.

It's not the fact that it's gruesome but more the fact that it never stops. It seems that Goodkind builds up each one of his characters only to ravel into meticulously shattering them.

Spoiler

Plus, the fact that Richard becomes a vegetarian to find "balance" for slaughtering people and kicking young girls in the mouth... come on.

 

[picklematrix]

Wizards first rule was a decent as the first novel he ever wrote, if a little clunky. I didnt feel the urge to read further, despite the promise of evil chickens.