79 of 91 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
It moved me, April 22, 2003
I read Wizards First Rule in one extended sitting during a 30 hour trip from Sydney to Frankfurt. I wanted a book that would take my mind off of being cooped up in airplanes. It worked really well for that.
I read Stone of Tears because WFR got me hooked on the characters, particularly Richard, the hero, and I wanted more. For me, Stone of Tears was an even better story. Do you know that feeling when you identify with a character so much that you start writing your own dialog for him? I hope that's not just me who does that...
I agree with a lot of reviewers who talk about wooden dialog and some unbelievable situations. Most of the men and some of the women in the story seem to have physical abilities and endurance that would sweep the olympic games if they ever tore the veil between that world and ours. But, listen: that's not important. To me, emotions are important, and intelligent characters. I don't want to be yelling at dumb characters, in my head.
I identify with Richard. He's an angry young man with a strong personal code. He's no wuss. He's smart. I once was a young man like that, too, so it felt good to slip into his skin.
Ultimately, my test for a good book is whether it changes how I experience the world. This series is doing that. I'm thinking about my own experience as a Seeker, and my own personal Sword of Truth. Sound silly? In 1999, I quit a safe job and became a consultant. I had no savings, nor equipment, nor preparation. This was a Sword of Truth moment, I now realize. It's a moment that comes rarely in life-- when you see what you must do and you do it despite the pain it will cause you. We're caught up in so many complicated threads in our modern lives, Terry Goodkind is the kind of writer who helps me reflect on how I can maintain my moral compass.
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26 of 30 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Another Brilliant effort By GoodKind, August 8, 2000
I noticed somebody giving a review on this after reading 1/3 the book. Such a review should be given only 1/3rd its weight in value in my opinion. First of, the so called "sexual situations" are directed at adults. Goodkind say's he writes these books with adults in mind. If there is so much evil in these fantasy type stories, its only common place that such gory sex acts might exist too. I don't have a problem with that. If the reviewer continued reading, he'd know the Sisters of Light are nothing like the Aes Sedai of Jordans world. In conclusion, this is a fabulous tale, and I give it 5 stars. I have read all the books in this series and their wonderful. Each book is nicely concluded and we're not kept hanging.
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15 of 16 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Solid Sequel - keeps the story and ideas moving forward, April 26, 2006
"Stone of Tears" by Terry Goodkind picks up right after the first novel, "Wizard's First Rule", and really hits the ground running. The story transitions pretty seamlessly, and the reader is again struck with Goodkind's relentlessly brutal storytelling ability. This book greatly expands the world of The Sword of Truth series beyond what had been revealed in the first novel. The readers are given several new major characters, along with a host of minor ones, and an entirely new land of people only previously mentioned in passing. At almost one thousand pages, this is probably the longest novel in the entire series, and a lot of ground is covered here. The events of Stone of Tears set up the direction the rest of the series takes, which, as of this writing, is currently at it's tenth book and set to end with two more.
There are so many different plotlines that it's difficult to summarize it all in one review, but the main plot here is that Richard is taken, mostly against his will, by a group called the Sisters of Light to their palace in the Old World. It seems the Sisters aren't fond of untrained wizards running around, as they have a tendency to cause unnecessary problems (and a wizard's gift can kill him if he doesn't know how to keep it under control). At this point there are no other wizards left to teach Richard, so they take it upon themselves to ensure he gets the proper training. Several reviewers of the books later on in the series try to point out that Richard is invincible, all powerful, never makes mistakes, etc. To them I would firmly point right here, where the far-reaching extent of Richard's mistakes begin to manifest. While it's true that Richard generally comes out on top in whatever immediate conflict he's involved in at the end of each novel, each and every one of his minor victories only creates a larger problem for the world. At the end of "Wizard's First Rule" Richard does in fact defeat the wizard Darken Rahl, but the manner in which Richard defeats him tears the veil between worlds, giving the Keeper of the Underworld the ability to reach into reality and begin the process of freeing himself from his infernal prison. Seeing as how that jeopordizes the lives of every individial in the entire world, I'd call that a mistake. Likewise, at the conclusion of Stone of Tears, Richard destroys the boundary between the New and Old Worlds so that he can try to rescue Kahlan from a dark prophecy he has learned of. While he is successful in bringing the boundary down, this act unleashes the full wrath of Emporer Jagang and his Imperial Order upon the New World - a force of destruction still being felt seven books later.
The depth of the characters really begin to show in this novel. Abstract concepts that Richard just talked about in the first book are delivered much more keenly by his actions this time around. Richard's nobility and desire to preserve life is brought sharply into focus when he and one of his captors, Sister Verna, travel through the land of the Majendi - a tribal people who are at war with their displaced neighbors, the Baka Ban Mana. It seems Verna, along with all the Sisters of Light, are well aware that the Majendi are ritualstically sacrificing members of the Baka Ban Mana, but they do nothing to stop it, as the Majendi allow the Sisters of Light safe passage through their lands. Unable to stomach such blatant disregard for life, and the fact that the Sisters of Light do nothing to right a wrong clearly present to them, Richard does everything in his power to bring this horrid tradition to and end, even though it puts his own life in mortal danger.
Although it pops up every now and again in a small way, the philosphy of Objectivism, which the whole series is based on, takes a back seat to the storytelling and action. This one is mostly plot progression, and it does a very good job of that. Besides the other world-altering examples previously mentioned, the "Sisters of the Dark" are introduced here, and are a constant menace throughout the book. They dissapear at the end of the novel, off to do dark deeds on their own, only to re-appear in the newest novel, Chainfire, and bring a plot line thought dead in this book back to the forefront. As was stated in my review of "Wizard's First Rule" every book in this series has some capacity to make the reader cry - look for it here in the form of an unlikely hero displaying emotions thought impossible for this particular individual. Goodkind's ability at writing is showcased by the fact that he can vividly and effectively describe high fantasy, horrific warfare, scenes of dialoge, and more sentimental scenes all in one novel.
If you liked Wizards First Rule, I'd highly recommend contuining the story here.
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