Rating: 
Summary: Inre Mrs. Donihues poor review
Review: I have read every one of this series of books and always waited for the paperbacks to come out. This one I bought in hardback and am not willing to wait for the paperback. Mrs. Donihue did everything but call Mr. Goodkind a warmonger in her review yet failed to review the book itself. Her belief that it is a thinly veiled support or approval of the war in Iraq is ludicrous at best. Authors such as Mr. Goodkind do not write books overnight and the war in Iraq has been recent (Yes it was a war. Numbers on either side have nothing to do with whether it was a war or not. Left wing propaganda). A fictional book written about a fantasy place is just that. If anything, Mrs. Donihue has asserted her anti-patriotic sentiments in a thinly veiled book review. I, however, wish not to mislead you the reader. I have not even read the book yet but I do look forward to reading how the all out war of good vs. evil plays out. One thing that Mr. Goodkind has all but said outloud in all of the previous of this series is that in the war of good vs. evil for good to defeat evil good has to get a bit dirty in the process. Those that don't believe that concept have a tough row to hoe in the real world.
Rating: 
Summary: roughing the pastor [spoilers noted]
Review: This is a book better than the last yet still lacking in depth. I know society is at times represented in literature and I did notice a trend towards what people would call liberal. Aside from the strange storyline which is still interesting, I was left bare (bad pun reference naked) to my satisfaction.There are times when I feel the preaching of Richard Rahl has been copied and pasted for every character to miss the original speech. A speech to a couple people is given again when more join the party and again when more join the party. In this case, I would have preferred a generalization of, "While Richard explained how not acknowledging evil is evil to the ignorant band of travellers, Kahlan and company prepared the packs for another days travel." as opposed to having to reread the sermon. I ended up skimming the preachy sections because I find them out of character from how he was in the first couple books. He was more engaging and cunning in the early novels. Granted he reflected quite a bit but currently he seems to want to brainwash the unenlightened to his side. Yes, he is the leader and leaders speak, but not everyone will agree with a leaders political position and he will serve them all, at least the effective leaders. He wastes more time arguing than doing what he should be doing, fighting for his life. I am also disappointed in the methods Richard discovers the latest Wizards Rule. This is no great surprise or spoiler, but there is a Wizards Rule in every book. Again, Richard miraculously deduces a rule out of thin air, almost verbatim. I believe I remember Zed teaching Richard in the first book the First Rule but now Richard doesn't need a teacher because he learns them on his own, in the proper sequence, at the appropriate time. [very minor spoiler] Zed and Nathan, two of the most learned and powerful wizards around, would have no clue about some of Richards additive/subtractive problems but again Richard deduces out of thin air how he could solve them, one of which are his recurring headaches. The headache solution explanation was one of the most ludicrous things I ever read. [end very minor spoiler] What about the excerpt on the cover of the book, which is the editorial review excerpt above. It is in the first couple pages of the book. I found it to be a good example of the degenerated writing of the series and a sad start to the book. Short sentences lacking any colorful words. Richard the omnipotent, the omniscient, would be lucky to light a campfire with his magical skill. This spur of the moment, desperation magic is getting redundant. At least the relationship between Kahlan and Richard aren't tested to the degree of the previous works. Good gosh, that story has been done over 5 times. Kahlan is starting to remind me of the Aes Sedai of the Wheel of Time saga. All powerful whiner. This powerful woman forged in the fires of conflict and tempered with Richard's love is becoming a big pawn and sissy to the war. The primary nemesis of this novel is a great concept. When I watched Star Wars Episode 1: The Phantom Menace, Darth Maul (the double edged light sabre wielding enemy) was one bad dude with no character development and an anticlimactic ending. In Naked Empire, we have one bad dude with no character development who has a lot of potential lost in the mix of preaching. There are some neat things to happen, a few relatively unique events/people worth adding to raise the book rate to 2 stars. Some very obvious flaws in the storyline, which you'll see hopefully after you read them. And I disliked the annoy but cute goat from the start like a poodle. No offense to poodle lovers. :) Thank you.
Rating: 
Summary: Almost as good as the first three SoT novels
Review: I know that many of Goodkind's fans were, well, disappointed with 'Pillars Of Creation'. It was a great effort, and a unique story as told from the point of view of someone filled with fear and hate for Lord Rahl. But, it just wasn't the same as the thrilling adventures we've come to expect. However, in 'Naked Empire' Goodkind has shown that he still can write an amazing & thrilling story that will keep you guessing. If you wanted to give up on the Sword Of Truth series after the last book - DON'T! This book is filled with what has made Terry Goodkind a master storyteller famous the world over. He keeps you on the edge of your seat as the action shifts from Richard & Kahlan (with Cara & Jensen) stuck in the Old World to Zedd & Adie at the Wizard's Keep to Anne & the rogue prophet Nathan Rahl in D'hara, and to Verna & the D'Haran army keeping the Imperial Order's army at bay. Goodkind has also intoduced a new enemy: Nicholas 'The Slide' who's power rivals even Emperor Jagang. And, of course, through it all Richard must fight for the cause of freedom for all, while his own life is threatened by the very gift of magic that makes him the only person in 3,000 years capable of stopping the Imperial Order from dominating the world. In my humble opinion 'Naked Empire' is Terry Goodkind's best work since SoT book #3 "Blood of the Fold".
Rating: 
Summary: Save your money
Review: What a disappointment! The novel series (as every series seems to do) has been getting steadily worse. As many other reviewers have pointed out, this book is repetetive, preachy, and unimaginative. If you MUST read it, get it from a library and save some bucks.
Rating:
Summary: Barely readable at this point
Review: You know how a great movie often inspires a serialized television show? Terry Goodkind's never-ending fantasy cycle is kind of like that. The first two books were outstanding entries into the fantasy genre, but the series has grown more repetitive and episodic. Goodkind introduces the Villain of the Week and the heroes vanquish him easily by the end of the episode. Meanwhile, only five or ten percent of the story actually advances the larger narrative arc of the series. Why has the series descended to this level? Because writing a best-selling novel is incredibly difficult, and writers don't make a lot of money. If you hit the best seller list, you're going to draw out the series as much as you can in order to stay on the best-seller lists. Why take a risk on something unproven and new? The Sword of Truth novels, like Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time novels, have become a marketing brand. The final confrontation with Emperor Jagang gets put off indefinitely, and Goodkind takes ten pages to write what could easily be described in one paragraph. His characters now have the most extreme (and verbose) reactions to the smallest narrative events. To make matters worse, Goodkind is becoming more and more preachy. His libertarian philosophies--not that there's anything necessarily wrong with them--are by now delivered by his hero Richard in the form of lectures repeated ad nausem. But in this book, he goes further. This book is a thinly veiled defense of the U.S. invasion of Iraq, and the paper-tiger opponents of Richard's "evil exists and it must be destroyed at all costs" philosophy espouse views so cartoonishly caricatured that they should be downright offensive to anyone with half a grain of intelligence, even conservatives. Hey, Terry, supernatural forces of darkness don't actually exist in our real world, so your arguments start to fall apart right out of the gate. As a political statement, the book is worthless. As a fantasy novel, the book is a worthless political statement.
Rating:
Summary: One of his greatest to date.
Review: I can't imagine that the other reviewers were reading the same book. The Naked Empire was one of his greatest to date. Second onlt to Faith of the Fallen. His writing style was easy to read and gave you a desire not to put it down. I ended up reading this within 4 days. I am a mother with three small children and I didn't get any sleep in those days. I just had to read one more.
Most of us who have been along with Richard on his development as a wizard and leader of D'Hara know what his political views are and how important they are in his need to help people who are willing to help themselves. And the need for truth and punishment for those that are evil in society. These are truths that need to be expressed by someone as strong as Richard.
This is truly one of his greatest books. This is also the greatest fantasy series out there.
Rating: 
Summary: Disapointing
Review: After the disgression in the last book (Pillars of creation) I was hoping for some progress. but this is another kind of disgression. Although it does advance the story, this empire of pillars is so annoying that it reflects on the book. The naked empire, while interesting, and a good book, does not compare well next to the earlier books in the series. I personally did not like the idea of pillars. people who seems to eat away the magic of the world. So an empire of them was unwelcome. However, my main beef is with the the author persecution of the main character, who in most books is in some kind of pain, or close to death. enough already. still worth the read. only I expected more.
Rating:
Summary: Different Writing Style
Review: Terry wrote differently in this 8th book of his Sword of Truth series. In past volumes, there was much action and the book sped along, so that, at the end, you could not believe it was over so soon. This book, however, drags on with the same explanation for events being given over and over in droning monolog by the main character, Richard Rahl. He stands on his soapbox (Terry, not Richard) and spouts morality through Richard. A little of that can be forgiven, but if you removed all of the un-necessary droning and repetitious explanations, this book could have been half the length, and, unfortunately, I wish it was!
Rating:
Summary: A shell, nothing more...
Review: "A Shell" describes many things about this book, this series, and this author. To put it bluntly, this series need to be buried...with a final titanium nail being hammered into the coffin lid as a symbolic gesture to the rest of fantasy fans (and authors) that dreck like this should not be allowed to drone on, tolerated, or purchased. This is book is a book for publishing's sake...not to tell a story. This book is a shell of it's predecessors. This series is a shell of it's former self. And Terry Goodkind (the Kevin J. Anderson of fantasy...this is not a compliment!!) has become a slightly less relevant shell than the one he used to be. I am utterly sick and tired of fantasy (and sci-fi) authors churning out endless series of books so they can continue to receive royalty checks. Guess what? I'm not buying your crap anymore. I don't begrudge the fact that you need to make a living, but pull yourselves out of the intellectual gutter and write something new...quite milking the stale cash cow!! I challenge fantasy and sci-fi authors to write a standalone book that is 300 pages long. This book and this author is a symptomatic indicator of what the fantasy & sci-fi literature scene has become...and I don't like it.
Rating:
Summary: Terry Goodkind at his best!
Review: Terry Goodkind's 8th book in the Sword of Truth Series is probably one the best books I've ever read. I couldn't put it down for one minute. The Naked Empire has a little bit of everything inside, including action. The story begins with the usual characters like Richard and Kahlan, but as it progresses, new ones keep showing up to add to the plot. Even though it is kind of confusing in the beginning, it gets a whole lot better towards the middle and the ending is perfection. If you're a fantasy lover, you should really read the Naked Empire.
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