Faith of the Fallen: Sword of Truth, Book 6

If your a fan of the SoT series or at least read the last couple books, this one picks up right where the last one left off. It has a slow pace in the beginning, what with Kahlan recovering from a very brutal attack and Richard feeling defeated by the very people he wanted to protect.Of course, this doesn't last long as we are re-introduced to Sister Nicci, one of Richards former teachers in the Palace of the Prophet and also a Sister of the Dark. Things get interesting when Sister Nicci puts a spell on Kahlan which forces her and Richard to separate.... again.We get a good in depth back story on Nicci and find out why and how she became so twisted and ended up not only a Sister of the Dark but also Jagang's personal love interest. Motives and intentions start to get blurred as Nicci drags Richard into the root of the Imperial Order's home in the old world, not to kill him or turn him over to Jagang, but to try to teach him about the just values of the Order.This really was an intense story. It started off annoying with the inability of Richard and Kahlan staying together for a long period of time, but this eased up as the focus was shifted slightly away from the main characters, to the people of the world they were trying to save: both Old and New. What's great is you learn in part how the order's beliefs fail because the system is suppose to keep everyone equal which in theory works but in practice just perpetuates feelings of despair and misery among its people. In other words, it makes citizens of the Order easy to control and manipulate. Things get a little out of control when Richard exposes this for all to see.Kahlan and Zedd have their own hands full as they, along with the D'haran forces have to stop a huge chunk of the Order's forces from marching on the new world. Events unfold that get the blood pumping when there is drama within the group along with a nearly unstoppable killing machine that is the Imperial Order comes reigning down on their home and it turns to a do or die situation.John Kenneth is a great narrator and definitely knows how to reflect the raise and fall of energy and tone of the book. Worth every penny

"Where other authors appear to be building towers, Goodkind looks to be building a pyramid." - Piers Anthony. No one else could have put better to words what Goodkind is doing with the most recent book in the unprecedented Sword of Truth series. I read this book in awe of the mastery goodkind has over creating characters and settings 5 books ago, and yet each time a new book comes out the scenery is as refreshing as when I first took the series up. The characters grow in each book, and through their growth lessons are learned by the characters and by the readers.What most impressed me about this book was the rhetoric and soul searching that the character Richard did to finally find his place in life, and finally find his meaning of existence. With such passages as:"Reason is a choice. Wishes and whims are not facts, nor are they a means to discovering them. Reason is our only way to grasping reality--Its our basic tool of survival. We are free to evade the effort of thinking, to reject reason, but we are nto free to avoid the penalty of the abyss we refuse to see."This passage foretells the lesson learned in this book, many times I was thinking to myself the similarities between this book and 1984 by Orwell. Goodking does not just tell an incredible fantasy story, he teaches the reader something in the bargain.This book was phenominal, and the best in the series. Whichever depth you choose to read this book to you will enjoy it. I hope that literary scholars note this book, and see it for more than just a simple fantasy yarn; this book should be awarded the highest accolades the literary world could offer.

In some ways it's maybe unavoidable since the core of the story is about a character's religious and political indoctrination from a young age, but the political views the author is pushing aren't explored with any subtlety or artfulness. Instead we are presented with a caricature that elicits eye rolls even from one who roughly shares the author's world view. Goodkind should leave that to Ayn Rand.This is disappointing because the struggle the character is facing, the puzzle she seeks to solve is well crafted and compelling. The antagonist isn't compelled by sadism, lust for power or vengence, but is instead trying to uncover a question and it's answer. The pain this causes the protagonists is incidental, yet meaningful. This presentation of the conflict is unexpected for the reader and the protagonists. It's a good hook that draws the reader in.Unfortunately all the artfulness was expended creating a problem and threat with a unique flavor leaving no room for an artful resolution to that threat. The path the antagonist takes to enlightenment and the challenges the hero faces as a result are so artificial they detract from the story. The antagonist struggles with the questions while all the minor characters and the society in which the struggle takes place are largely cookie cutter depictions either with the right view or the wrong one, but lacking the many realistic variations sharing varying degrees of fidelity to the competing world views.While an author's world view can be expected show up in his writings, care and subtly should be applied when doing so especially when it doesn't fit the genre. This series is first and foremost a fantasy story not a dystopian political story, and its disappointing that the author seems to forget that.As for the story itself, both this book's story and the story of the series, the progress is satisfying. The threat to the world continues to seem inexorable, though there is some reason for hope presented in the end. The main characters are threatened with endless heartache rather than immediate death, and succumbing to despair is perhaps the greatest danger they face, and showing the reader the wrestle with that challenge is where the story succeeds and makes this book a worthwhile read despite its shortcomings.

This is probably my favourite book in this series. The writing is wonderfully evocative, particularly during the climactic scenes at the end of the plot. In many ways, it feels like it should be the end of Richard and Kahlan's story. The next couple of books do indeed feel like Goodkind had overstepped himself and wasn't sure how to find his way back into the story he wanted to tell. It's really very powerful imagery, that sucked me right into the heart of Altur' Rang and the battle for the Midlands.But.Goodkind isn't just trying to tell a gripping story, he is also trying to convince you of his Ayn Rand like leaning. He is less successful at this than he is at writing an entertaining book. The condemnation of communism is so stark that it feels like a desperate caricature. The praising of libertarianism is so idealistic that his heroes can do no wrong. At times characters give speeches that feel like the author expects you to be a child taking notes as the glorious teacher speaks. There is no room for nuance and this makes the political message much weaker than Goodkind seems to think. I wouldn't want to meet anyone actually convinced by the political themes in this series. There is a lack of introspection and a level of arrogance that feels... well, it feels like libertarianism.I forgive it though. I may not agree with Terry Goodkind's worldview, but I love his world-building.

Goodkind manage again to set the stage with a conundrum in the early pages, a fiendish plot that you know ow will not be solved until the very last pages of the book.. however, the journey between page 1 and page 787 never lose momentum or lack storyline.. breathles reading as always!

Après un passage à vide sur le précédent tome, que j'ai arrêté puis repris, puis arrêté, puis repris (bref, vous aurez compris...), j'ai fortement hésité à continuer de lire les histoires de Kahlan et Richard. Grand bien m'en a pris de suivre leur exemple et de ne jamais renoncer.Ce 6ème livre a été passionnant du début à la fin! C'est pour l'instant mon tome préféré.L'histoire ici reprend vie grâce à cette plongée dans l'ancien Monde. L'envie de savoir comment Richard va se sortir de son nouveau défi nous empêche de fermer ce livre, tout comme le désir de connaître la façon dont le Nouveau monde va réussir à faire face à l'impressionante armée de Jagang.La morale de l'histoire, certes assez empreinte d'individualisme, me semble toutefois vraiment d'actualité en ces périodes de crise et Richard nous montre une fois de plus le chemin à suivre...Bref, je n'ai pas pu décrocher de ma lecture (tellement que mes heures de sommeil en furent grandement réduites).Un conseil: si comme moi vous hésitez à acheter ce livre, suite à l'essoufflement de la série dans les tomes précédents, n'hésitez plus, foncez!

前作、Soul of the Fireが正直なところつまらなかったので、本作も前作の延長線上にあったらどうしようか、と思いましたが、結論的に言えば、最後まであっという間に読んでしまいました。　いや、もちろん、前作に引き続き政治的な話が続くところがありますが（Old Worldにおけるリチャードにかかわるところ）、より大きな物語の中に、そしてキャラクターの動きと考えの中に政治的な話が組み入れられているせいか、そこそこ抵抗なく読み進めることができました。　本作品においてリチャード並みにフィーチャーされるNicci。本作以降、引き続き重要なポジションを占めます。作者はNicciがお気に入りなのでしょうか。それにしても、Death Mistressからの180度的転回（転向？）が、やや「本当か？」と思わせられてしまいますが。

Das 5. Buch (Sould of Fire) fand ich ein wenig enttäuschend, da das Ende in meinen Augen nur so verläuft, damit Buch 6 exisitieren darf. Wie oft in Buch- (oder Film-)Serien wird das Ende verbogen, um den Weg für den nachfolgenen Band frei zu machen. Hier ist Goodkinds 5. Buch keine Ausnahme.Um so mehr überrascht war ich, als ich das 6. Buch anfing, zu lesen.Faith of the Fallen bietet etwas neues, ohne auf den Kern der Serie zu verzichten.Goodkind fügt hier psychoanalytische, religiöse, künstlerische und politische Betrachtungen hinzu.Psychoanalytische Betrachtungen, in dem er zeigt, wie sich die Erziehung von Nicci auf Ihre Weltanschauung auswirkte und wie sie von die elterliche Figuren verfolgt wirkt.Religiöse Betrachtungen, in dem er die Lehre vom Katholismus ablehnt und die vom Protestantismus lobt.Künstlerische Betrachtungen, in dem er die Kraft von Kunst als politisches Instrument schildert. Er zeit uns, dass die Schönheit eines Werkes erst im relevanten sozialen und politischen Kontext mit vollstem Klang strahlen kann. Er schildert Kunst als eine einzigartige Art, Ideen zu vermitteln und sich gegen alle Verdüsterungen der Wahrheit zu wehren. In der Kunst liegt Hoffnung, Kunst ist das Streben nach einem Ideal, und die gleichzetige Verteidigung dieses Ideals. Kunst ist der Schrei zur Annerkennung des eigenen Leidens.Und Politische Betrachtungen, in dem er die Lehre des totalitären Kommunismums methodisch krisitisert und eine Apologetik der Selbstbestimmung des Individuums liefert.Manche haben in dem Buch eine Rechtfertigung der Bush-Politik gelesen, doch steht in der von der Hauptfigur Richard Cipher vertretenen Ideologie vieles, was gegen die Politik von Busch spricht, wie zum Beispiel die prädigte Wahrheit, dass Menschen selber für Ihr Freiheit kämpfen müssen, damit Sie sich gegen einen Freiheitsenzug wehren können. Insofern könnte das Buch eher als eine Kritik des amerikanischen Eingreifen in die irakische Politik gelesen werden (mal abgesehen davon, wurde das Buch in 2000 geschrieben). Bereits im vorherien Buch war es Richard nicht gelungen gegen die Lügen des in Anderith herschenden inegalitären Kasten-System zu kämpfen. In diesem Buch wird ein direktes Angreifen in die totaliäre kommunistische "Alte Welt" als nutzlos erklärt. Die Menschen müssen für sich entscheiden und den Wert der Freiheit durch den Freiheitsentzug selbst erkennen. Der Protest soll von den Menschen kommen, nicht von einem extern prädigenden Anführer.Obwohl ich die Verkomplizierung des Buches als eine wertvoll ergänzung der Serie empfunden habe, leidet das Buch an einigen Stellen unter dessen ideologischen Zwecks. Um seinen Punkt zu machen verzichtet der Author teilweise an die glaubwürdig der Handlung.Mich hat dies nicht unbedingt gestört, da der Kern des Fantasy-Genres genau das ist, nähmlich das Zerschmettern dessen, was möglich ist. Es macht durchaus Spass zu lesen, wie Richard Cipher/Rahl erneut den Vertrettern des Bösen einen rechtsschaffenen Schlag austeilt, und zu schauen, wie selbstgerechte Übeltäter trotz Ihrer souveränen Arroganz wieder zertrampelt, aufgebracht und zum Narr gemacht werden. Es macht auch spass zu lesen, wie er (wenn auch in dem Buch vereinfacht beschrieben) die psychoanalyse von Nicci voranttreibt.Für alle die auf triumphierende, vergeltende Weltverbesserer stehen, wird das Buch höchst befriedigend. Die anderen werden möglicherweise das Buch in Hinsicht auf die verringerte Logik als mangelnd empfinden.Ich für meinen teil bleibe bei meinen 5 Sternen.