Inheritance by Christopher Paolini

Inheritance Cycle Bk 4. Random House, 2011. ISBN 9780385616508.
(Age: 13+) Highly recommended. For all of those people who fell in love with Eragon all those years ago (around 2003), this is what you all have been waiting for. Inheritance is the long-awaited final book in the worldwide best-selling series.
As Eragon prepares for battle with the evil and incredibly powerful Galbatorix, he is not the only one getting ready for war. With the help of the elves and the dwarves, the Varden begin infiltrating cities and recruiting soldiers to aid them in the impending war. But time is swiftly running out, and Eragon still has a lot to learn. If he is not even able to defeat his evil half-brother Murtagh, and his dragon Thorn, then how can he hope to overcome Galbatorix and save his home Alagaesia?
For many years, the Inheritance Cycle - Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance - has been the topic of fierce debate between book nerds, with each side having valid points. Some claim that these books are great works of fiction, and admire Paolini for creating such a rich and fascinating world. Others claim that his plots are little more than poorly written re-hashes of Star Wars crossed with Lord Of The Rings; both sides are correct to some extent.
This book is definitely the best of the series. It contains a great deal more originality than the others, and it is also slightly better written. The quality of the writing is certainly not brilliant, as it rises to its best during exciting, action parts, and dwindles down to a crawl during the slow parts, such as the rather lengthy and boring chapters involved with Roran's (Eragon's brother) storming of the castle at Aroughs. At its best the writing is thrilling and some scenes are simply breath taking in their perfection and excitement, such as a particularly thrilling fight scene between Eragon's dragon Saphira, and Murtagh's dragon Thorn. But looking back at the series, one cannot help but notice the similarities between these books and Lord Of The Rings, and a great deal of the series seems like Star Wars set in Middle-Earth, with magic instead of the Force, and swords instead of light-sabres.
People will either love or hate this book, depending on their opinion of the rest of the series. Although at times it dwindles to a crawl and dwells on the unnecessary, it is still a fantastic end to a great fantasy saga, and will certainly satisfy all fans.
I highly recommend this book.
Rebecca Adams (Student)