Rating: 
Summary: An Entertaining read
Review: I found the book to be a very entertaing read. True I'm no book critic who automatically looks at all the flaws in books because they aren't bright enough to write their own, but I enjoyed the book. It did seem to draw heavily on other books, but with all the fantastic fantasy books out there if you've read any of them its hard not to at least include elements from them. The story flowed relatively smoothly and kept me wanting to know what happened next. So if you are looking for a book full of magic, dragons, hardships and long journeys that will keep you turning pages then this book is for you. If you are looking for deep intellectualy stimulating book this isn't for you.
Rating: 
Summary: Wonderful new writer!
Review: Finally getting some vacation time, I caught up on my reading. Eragon by Christopher Paolini is a great read. It is amazing to realize that this story was written by a teenager. Paolini pays homage to some of the great fantasy writers, and it is fun to catch the subtle (or not so subtle) tributes that he pays to the great ones. The mark on the palm, for example, brings to mind Garion of the Belgariad, by David Eddings. Tolkien, McCaffrey - you will find a bit of them in Eragon as well. While others may criticize this - I found the story compelling and extremely well-written. The tributes were a bonus. I look forward to more from Paolini, and hey - maybe I will finish my book someday too!
Rating:
Summary: A good book to read and re read despite what others may say
Review: Yes, you may hear others say that the book was not so good, and the story line has already been done by other authors such as JRR Tolkien. But after the great trilogy of the Lord of the Rings, I think it's hard for authors to write fantasies that are going to be better and different. After all we can't keep reading the same good fantasy books over and over again, we need something new. And that new book is Eragon. I think that Paolini did a good job. Eragon is a very interesting and good book to read. I would recommend it to any fantasy lovers out there. And I can't wait to read the next book of the inheritance trilogy.
Also I don't think that Tolkien would be rolling over in his grave. I think he would be proud that he has made a path for young author to follow. Tolkien didn't care about his fame, he cared about the literature.
I doubt that the author was trying to beat Tolkien's ghost at his own game. I bet JRR Tolkien would have read the book and enjoyed it. Plus it's only the first book in the trilogy. There is still more of the story to go.
I recommend that you give Eragon a try and pay no attention to those who gave the book 1 or 2 stars
Rating: 
Summary: embarrassing indeed
Review: Though I suppose that Mr Paolini is quite well off for the moment, somebody should get him down to earth and get him to know that things like that are no feat and that his readers (unless they do earnestly think that this bunk is "innovative") are bored to the bones.
Rating: 
Summary: Must we?
Review: Another in the long series of writers who would do single combat with Tolkien's ghost in a vain effort to beat him at his own game... A readable yarn, although it reads very much like a first novel written by a teenager with considerable parental editing assistance, which, as it happens, is exactly what it is. Sort of a swords-and-sorcery Mad Lib - the author selects McCaffrey's rideable dragons, Tolkien's elves, dwarves, and orcs (the latter under an assumed name, but they're still orcs, no mistaking that), magical powers, an evil king, a damsel in distress, swords (of course!), and then adds a hero coincidentally of about the same age and gender as the author himself, mixes them all together using a really motley assortment of standard fantasy place- and people-names, and there we have it, yet another offering in a genre which deserves better than this. Nonetheless, Mr. Paolini has done well for a teenager, and I would hope that the second and third books show improvement - the author may well cringe in later years when this work is mentioned.
Rating:
Summary: Addictive and enthralling
Review: This is the best book i've read since the lord of the rings. this amazing story has one of the best plots of any book i've every read. I highly recommend with the warning that it leaves you needing more.
Rating: 
Summary: Nice ideas but rough edges
Review: The main ideas were new and interesting. The idea of finding an egg, the dragon choosing its partner were inspired. Some of the characters had some interesting features. Brom's knowledge of magic but not being a "master" magician was a good change, more real than the more common Tolkien or Brooks approach. On the other hand, the plot was entirely linear. The kid plods from one episode to another. There is nothing going on in parallel. Nothing unexpected or hidden secrets encountered. The book gets a bit slow. The final duel with the sorcerer was anticlimatic. I liked the link to the elfin magic user while the kid was in his delerium, so am going to give the second book a shot.
Rating:
Summary: Nice try, but why did this book get published?
Review: On the one hand, it's kind of neat seeing a teenager writing a book and getting it published. On the other hand, it's not "neat" if it's a BAD book originally published by the kid's PARENTS, for god's sake! I agree with most of the 1-star and 2-star reviewers here, and will not repeat their points about how derivative, formulaic, uncreative, and frankly, embarrassing this book is. I would just add that Eragon is an incredibly obvious -- and cynical -- attempt by Knopf to cash in on the Lord of the Rings phenomenon. Let's see, "Eragon"/"Aragorn", "The Spire"/"The Shire", a stone that can't be damaged when struck by a sword/a ring that can't be damaged when thrown in the fire or struck by a sword, elves/elves, dragons/dragons, etc. etc. Yawn. Unfortunately, Christopher Paolini is no JRR Tolkien, by any stretch of the imagination. In fact, Tokien is probably rolling over in his grave right about now. Still, I will be curious to see what, if anything Paolini comes up with in the future. Right now, I've got to say I am NOT optimistic.
Rating:
Summary: Not Original Recipe. But Still Good.
Review: Much of the hype surrounding this book has been more about the author than the actual story itself. For those who don't know the back story, Christopher Paolini was fifteen years old when he wrote the book. His mother edited it, and his family self published the novel before an editor at Knopf read it and bought it. Now nineteen and at work on the second of what he says will be three stories total, the book is about a young boy named Eragon whose life becomes linked to a dragon, and his destiny promises greatness.
As I was reading the book I kept thinking, "Wow! A fifteen year old penned this, that's pretty terrific." However I guess that's more a statement of the story teller than the story itself. Paolini is a gifted writer. Clearly there's a wonderful imagination at work and I'm sure he'll have a long career ahead of him. Admittedly he says he grew up reading lots of fantasy books, and they all seem to be here in some form. For a younger reader who is looking for something beyond Hogwarts this will be great. He creates a detailed and textured world that you can lose yourself in including a pronounciation guide and a language dictionary of words used in the book. For readers very familiar with the fantasy terrain this will all seem like rehashed-well Tolkien to begin with. As well as Robert Jordan and Anne McCaffrey. Yet even with the obvious comparisons, I found the book entertaining and well written. I actually thought he managed to move through the story with much less excess than any of Robert Jordans recent books. So if you're not concerned with something not being 100 percent original, you might enjoy this book. I did.
Rating:
Summary: A Fantastic Read for All Ages
Review: Just finished this book by 15-year-old (at the time) Christophoer Paolini, and it's fantastic. It's a sort of Harry Potter meets J.R.R. Tolkien, an epic tale of a young boy who discovers a dragon egg. The story is told in the epic style of Tolkien, and is full of tragedy, mystery, and political struggles. On a grander scale, the book is about the battles raging between the oppressive King Galbatorix, and the rebelling Varden, a war which hinges on control of the Riders, of which Eragon is one of only two alive - and the other is King Galbatorix himself.
Along the way, Eragon travels with Brom the Storyteller, a secretive but wise old man, and encounters all sorts of vile things, from orc-like Urgals to the evil Ra'zac to the cold-hearted Shade. All the while, his powers grow, as does his dragon, and, as he quickly realizes his effect on the world, he grapples with being forced to take sides in a vast power struggle at the young age of 16.
While this is definitely a first-book-in-the-series kind of book, clearly setting up a larger, longer plot, it's a fantastic and quick read, and it will leave you wanting more. If nothing else, it's a perfect book to fill the void while you wait for the next Harry Potter to come out ;) The next book in the Inheritance series should be coming out soon, and I can't wait - if this is how he writes at 15, I can't wait to see his writing matures!
(And while yes, this book is targeted at high school-age teens, it's perfectly enjoyable for adults - of course, I think the Harry Potter books are enjoyable for adults as well, so think of that what you will.)
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