There is one series in my library that has been the most influential in my life and is the one that got me into fantasy in the first place. The Sword of Truth by Terry Goodkind. This series is packed full of adventure, monsters and magic and will forever hold a special place on my shelves. It is a classic epic fantasy.
Terry Goodkind takes you through an incredible 21 book journey, where Richard Cypher meets an incredible and powerful Confessor and together with Richards cooky uncle, head off an an epic journey to save the world. Richard is a quiet woods guide who unbeknownst to him, will end up changing the face of the entire world just by one chance meeting. I love books like this that have a, “this could happen to me,” vibe. It makes them more engrossing and relatable, and this book definitely does it well. Goodkind has this amazing ability to draw you in and not let you go, even when things get tough for the characters. I first started this series 15 years ago and there are still moments that get to me to this day… he’s that good.
He kicks off the series with Wizards First Rule and each subsequent book he introduces a new “rule” that wizards follow during their practice of their craft. Each book in the series outlines a new challenge for Richard to face and solve and each one is different than the others. It’s not one of those books where each one feels like you are reading the same scene over and over again. Goodkind introduces new monsters to fight, new hurtles and challenges to face and new bad guys to destroy. Each book forges a new path in Richards journey and introduces him to new challenges that helps to develop him as a character and progress the story.
This series isn’t all hearts, roses and incredible story writing however, Terry Goodkind wrote one book in this series that in my personal opinion, is not up the the standards of his previous writings. The Pillar of Creation is a book that doesn’t really fit with the series and is about a member of Richards family that really does not advance the story along at all. But hey, he wrote a solid amount of good books and no one is perfect. I would encourage anyone who loves epic fantasies to pick this one up, I don’t think you’ll regret it!
Every Book and Cranny 
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