Brief Synopsis
Taking place post “Inheritance”, “Murtagh” by Christopher Paolini follows the titular character – along with his dragon, Thorn, as they work to uncover a mysterious plot unfolding in the land of Alagaesia. But should Murtagh even bother trying to save a world that has all but abandoned him?
Content Warnings: Fantasy Violence (R), Torture, Child Abuse, Death (numerous)
What Do I Think?
My feelings on “Murtagh” are somewhat complicated, and part of this is due to my complicated relationship with The Inheritance Cycle.
See, “Eragon”, the first book in the series, came out when I was just entering middle school. I fit the target demographic perfectly: a fan of fantasy, looking for something with Tolkien-esque vibes (I had attempted “Lord of the Rings” but couldn’t quite get into it at that point), and a voracious reader. I was obsessed with Eragon. Was it perfect? Absolutely not. But I loved it. As the series went on, however, I found myself enjoying it less and less. I finished the ‘last’ book, Inheritance, more or less because I felt like I had to, not because I wanted to or because I actually enjoyed it.
So now, nearly 13 years after the last book had come out, I found out that there was a ‘new’ book in the Inheritance Cycle, one which would not focus on Eragon but rather his half-brother and sort-of-enemy Murtagh. Once again, I felt compelled to at least attempt it, but I went in with low expectations and fully anticipating a DNF.
Low and behold…I finished it! And for the most part, actually enjoyed it.
Overall, “Murtagh” is a show of how much Paolini’s writing has matured – comparing this book to Eragon, it is a vast improvement. This is partly helped by the protagonist. Whereas Eragon was a bit of a ‘Gary Stu’ (a fictional character for whom everything seems to come easy, and the story completely revolves around them), Murtagh is a bit more nuanced. His combat skills are excellent after years of war, fighting, and training, but his magic skills are significantly lacking. His dragon, Thorn, is intelligent, but hampered by the ghosts of his past, and not nearly as capable as Saphira. Add to that the fact that the pair are more or less fugitives, unable to maneuver openly around the world, and the story has already set forth a good number of challenges they will have to work through.
And boy howdy are there challenges. The book is structured into several larger arcs (which, frankly, could have been separate books all on their own) wherein the pair have to overcome specific challenges in different settings. In the beginning, we see Murtagh and Thorn try to take on a gigantic fish twisted by dark magics; as the story progresses, we see Murtagh act as a sort of spy, and then the pair try to uncover a grand conspiracy. All in all it makes for very interesting setpieces.
Unfortunately…this novel is just way too long. It may not seem long at 688 pages (keep in mind that Book 4, Inheritance, was 849), but it feels overlong. There are a number of sequences that, frankly, could have been removed, and the plot as a whole and even the character arcs would have been largely unaffected. I don’t know if this was because so many fantasy novels feel a need to stretch out their stories, but it didn’t do “Murtagh” any favors.
By the end of it, however, I did feel like a genuinely enjoyed this book. Do I wish there had been a bit more editing? Absolutely. But the worldbuilding and character writing was pleasantly fantastic, and I actually find myself hoping that we will get more stories with Murtagh in the future!
If you haven’t read the Inheritance Cycle yet, you’ll probably want to do so before jumping into this one. But if you’ve already read those books and look back at them at least somewhat positively, then this will be an excellent read.
Jacob Ryckman 