Rating: 
Summary: Beautifully written, magnificent characters
Review: This was by far one of the most enjoyble, well written books I have ever read. It is the story of Richard Cypher a woods guide who soon learns his destiny is far more important and frightening than he ever imagined. With the help of the mother confessor Kahlan and his good friend Zed, a Wizard of the First Order, Richard must travel to the other side of the boundry, a deadly wall between the worlds, to defeat Darken Rahl. This plot is filled with twists, tragedy, love, friendship, sadness, loss, joy, defeat, and every other emotion known to man. The characters are extremely detailed and uniquely developed, definitely ones you will never forget. Don't miss out on this story, and don't let the length scare you away. You will not be able to put this book down.
Rating:
Summary: Adventure and Excitement
Review: If there have ever been a book as good as Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings" Goodkind's Sword of Truth is the one. You can find everything You need in this book; Love, adventure, tragedy, magic, fight of good and evil, hope, firendship etc. This is one of the best series ever written in history of Fantasy Literature. If You have a little bit of time buy this book and all the other parts and read it. Have a wonderful time, because I'm sure You will have it with this book.
Rating: 
Summary: A Worthy Read
Review: Shades of "The One Tree"! (pun intended)
Longtime readers of fantasy will recogize similarities to Stephen R. Donaldson's "The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant the Unbeliever" series. We have Richard Cypher, a reluctant hero, assisted by Zeddicus Zu'l Zorander, a reluctant wizard and Kahlan Amnel, a reluctant Mother Confessor (the title bears some explaination) on a quest to save the world from evil incarnarte, Darken Rahl. This evil one is, it seems, the only one who is not reluctant. Our hero suffers enough to make even the most dedicated toss in the old Sword of Truth and give up. But Terry Goodkind shows such a true reflection of human nature that we are drawn into the struggle and we continue to read. The sections where Richard is tortured by the Mord-Sith were so mind-bendingly graphic that they made me physically dizzy. Most of us don't have that close-up a view of the bad side of our natures. Most of us would like to forget that this side exists. If the reader can slog on through this section it is brought around to bear on the whole of the story.
Younger readers will also recognize many similarities to the Star Wars saga. We have the sweeping epic tale of a young man with the impossible task of saving all of creation. Then again, I suppose much fantasy has that as it's backdrop.
All in all I enjoyed the way Goodkind got me involved with the evolution of his characters and with their backstories (also ala Star Wars) and I would recommend this series to others who like this sort of thing.
Rating: 
Summary: Torture In Book Form
Review: I should've known this book was going to be bad, when the most original fantasy name the author can think of for his main character is "Richard." (Groan). Here's the deal: I purchased the unabridged audio book, and after listening to one tape, found myself gritting my teeth at the thought that I still had 11 more tapes to go. This novel reads like someone's pen and paper D&D game gone bad. Let's see: we've got the innocent farmboy, the evil conniving rich older brother (and we all know in fantasy novels, rich = BAD BAD, BAD), the wise old sage, and the poorly-written fantasy babe. Yawn. Been there, done that. Dialog was really poor. Main characters seemed to run around in the woods, with no sense of purpose. Characters act stupid to further plot goals, for instance: why did Richard conveniently forget his knife when he was attacked by the thorn bush? And I'm sorry, if I had a LIVING thorn wiggling its way in the flesh of my hand and up into my palm, I would try to get it out! And yet Richard or the author seems to forget about this little plot point for most of tape 1. I just couldn't get into this audiobook, which didn't live up to my expectations. If you feel you simply MUST read it, pick up the paperback - at least then you can skip the dull parts.
Rating:
Summary: Really Worth Reading To The End
Review: There were places in the story, relating to torture, I had to fast forward because I really didn't want the details. Afterwards, even though I still don't believe the detail was necessary, I recognized and appreciated the reason the author included it. Therefore, don't give up on the book if you come to a part you don't like. I don't think I lost anything by skipping large sections and thoroughly enjoyed the overall story. And Dick Hill was fantastic as usual.
Rating: 
Summary: Ultimately disappointing
Review: I picked up this book looking for a good fantasy story, and I was hoping, because it's a series, that it would hold me for a while. Unfortunately, I found the first book ultimately unengaging. The whole thing seemed *extremely* reminiscent of Star Wars--youth character discovers he has magical powers, goes on a quest with a white-clad, spunky female sidekick who supposedly has powers of her own except not, of course, as powerful as those of our hero and who seems to have no other function in the book than to fall in love with the hero and be constantly endangered so that he might save her. There is a wise old wizard (Ben Kenobi), and some marshes reminiscent of Dagobah. I think that there was a Han Solo-esque character in there too somewhere and I have vague recollections that either the main bad guy was somehow related to the hero, or else there was something about the boy's father being evil. I found the book's attitude toward sex and sexuality somewhat disturbing as well; Kahlan is constantly being placed in gratuitous sexual and sexualized jeopardy (the scene where she was naked and covered in snakes being one example), and I know other reviewers have mentioned the S&M-like sequence culminating with the hero killing the woman in a scene that has overt sexual overtones as troublesome. I will state though that I found the eventual defeat of the villain to be somewhat clever. It is saved from a one-star rating by the ending and the fact that Goodkind is able to maintain a consistent level of mediocrity in his prose style, as opposed to outright awfulness.
Rating:
Summary: A Great Read! Don't Pass Up This Adventure!
Review: I read this book on the recommendation of a friend, and after finishing it, I went ahead and ordered the next five books of the series. This book puts the rest of the fantasy genre to shame, and I have been an avid reader of such books for several years. The world described by Goodkind is similar to that of ours (about a few hundred years ago) in many ways, and I believe that this enhances the novel greatly. However, one way that this book is similar to our own world is in the real-life violence that was and is still prominent in human life. I would not recommend this book to anyone who has a problem reading about such things. Since I'm writing this review after having just finished the fifth book in the series, I would have to advise prospective readers to be sure to read these books in order. I'm sure the series is much more enjoyable that way rather than reading them at random. I'd also recommend that if you are considering reading Goodkind's book, "Debt of Bones," you should read it after you have read "Wizard's First Rule." Otherwise, the story might not be so easy to follow.
Rating:
Summary: A great book..
Review: This is an once-you-begin-you-cant-stop book..
And moreover,at last,an ADULT fantasy book..I have no problem with violence in fiction,but it always seemed to me that most of the fantasy series I was reading were "masking" violence under almost victorian narrations.Well this book doesnt.Goodkind doesnt hesitate to rub in your face the remnants of ones hacked body ..And I like it.
And moreover,it was one of the few books ever that gave me one night full of nightmares,after reading the chapters with the Mord Sith .
The characters are very well developed,and the reader can truly feel they are real.Not caricatures.Though sometimes it gets a bit soapopera-ish (all that stuff about teaching Kahlan about true friendship,companionship etc..)
An excellent sample of how first-rate fantasy should be written.
Rating:
Summary: Wizard's First Rule: People are Stupid; This book isn't!
Review: I purchased Wizard's First Rule on a whim I had, as I do with so many other fantasy books. This one, however did not disappoint. Goodkind has the formula for a great fantasy novel down pact. The only thing I would caution, is that this book is not for the young or those with a gentle constitution... Many of the situations in this book are quite intense (sexually and otherwise). If however, you are one to look at such things from the perspective that such is life, then this book will live up to the expectations of any reader. The characters are deeply constructed and are easy to fall in love with right off the bat. The "adventures" are full of detail and are wonderful to read. Do not be discouraged by the shear number of pages... Each is wonderful. As far as the fantasy genre goes, I have read nearly countless volumes, this is one that remains on the top of my charts. Any questions, e-mail me... Enjoy!
Rating:
Summary: The Best Way to spend a week (or less)
Review: I am an avid reader, fascinated by everything from Euripedes and Shakespeare to Melville and Kesey. However, I never expected a fantasy novel to become my favorite book of all time. The first time I read WFR, I was 12. Within 10 pages, I could not put it down. I literally did not sleep until I had finished the book in its entirety (it only took me about 10 hours to read--I read relatively quickly). Now, at nearly 19, I have read WFR at least 40 some-odd times, and every other book in the series (despite a few less awe-inspiring tales of Richard and Kahlan's journey) at least twice, and most more than 10 times. The stories are so universal, so incredible, yet so believable. Novels of this caliber are few and far between, and I highly recommend this text to anyone who has any desire to read an engaging, fascination, terrifying, uplifting, suspenseful, and all-in-all brilliant work of literature.
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