*snicker* My sides hurt. Apparently Goodkind's writing skills didn't improve when he switched from fantasy to thrillers. The Sword of Truth series has major plot holes, horrible characters, poor dialogue, lots of gratuitous torture, rape and violence, lots of disorganised social and political "commentary" (most of it plagiarised from Ayn Rand), and the magic, fix-it-all "machine". Goodkind also has no bloody clue about women.
It's the bog standard "Chosen One must claim his birthright to save two worlds from Unspeakable Evil and get The Girl." I guess that still passes for a plot. It's easy to overlook it among all the scathing art criticism, though.
He's such an asshole from the very beginning that I thought for sure it was one of those "jerk learns to be less of a jerk while saving the world" subplots, but it wasn't that at all. He's the same person from start to finish, and THAT is the type of person Goodkind expects people to root for. Ick.
I agree with him about the jeans though. I have no idea why people pay a fortune for jeans that look like the dogs have ripped it off the line and played tug with it.
[TA hands over big bucket of potato chips.] Though in fact, there aren't enough chips (or poatoes) in this world to compensate for the torture inflicted by this book. Geez. 508 pages' worth of *that*, and you've read every single one of them ... AND took notes?! You're a true martyr to literature.
Also, both Bethany and Jax should have ditched him within a page of their meeting. How's that for a radical cut to the plot?
I was hoping not to martyr myself again so soon, but here we are. LOL
Bethany and Jax could have teamed up and taken out everyone and then run off together. Bethany would have had to stop being an evil queen in the other world, but her redemption arc would've been SO POIGNANT!
You had me laughing out loud at Thomas Kinkade, and I just kept on laughing. I've never read Terry Goodkind and definitely never will, not least because he sounds like a delusional, self-righteous git. I feel like he's the reason for the disparaging stereotypes concerning D&D players.
But I loved reading your notes. Thanks for sharing the scorn. :)
I knew very little about Goodkind prior to reading this, but based on this I'd have to agree with your assessment. He seems to write for the same kind of dudebro who starts petitions for Disney to redo the new Star Wars movies with less diversity.
You're very welcome for the notes! Sharing them is as cathartic as writing them. I was wondering last night if I would have hated this book as much if I hadn't just read two really good books in a row with strong, fully-realized female characters and non-asshole male characters, and the answer is yes. Yes I would. LOL
Ummm... what was the plot of the book?
Also, both Bethany and Jax should have ditched him within a page of their meeting. How's that for a radical cut to the plot?
Bethany and Jax could have teamed up and taken out everyone and then run off together. Bethany would have had to stop being an evil queen in the other world, but her redemption arc would've been SO POIGNANT!
But I loved reading your notes. Thanks for sharing the scorn. :)
You're very welcome for the notes! Sharing them is as cathartic as writing them. I was wondering last night if I would have hated this book as much if I hadn't just read two really good books in a row with strong, fully-realized female characters and non-asshole male characters, and the answer is yes. Yes I would. LOL