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Submitted by Mark 
(May 11, 2005)

The series started in a nice way, new world with a past to discover, intriguing magic and people, but then at book nine (? I tend to lose count here), let's
check for the ingredients:
- Kahlan is lost: Check
- Richard start's gritting his teeth: Check
- Richard is misunderstood: Check
- Richard starts explaining a lot about his morality
issues (that nobody really gets it and that he has
to keep explaining, I understand): Check
- The bad guy does another really bad thing: Check
- Another can of Dark sisters is opened (un-
exhaustable supply of those): Check
- The bad-thing is another "on the spot" invention
that bears no relation with the previous: Check
- Long and winding and, well, long development: Check
- Kahlan is found and there is some Barbie & Ken
relationship affair (no sex, but yes they do
understand each other allright): Che....

Hey wait this time story didn't even end this time,
and frankly I have a hard time to recall if something actually happened.

Compared to the previous two novels in this series, I suppose this was a pretty decent book. Sadly, on its own merits it definitely isn't. All the hooks in the previous book -- new magic, new intrigues, new characters -- are nearly completely ignored in favor of a twisting plot that leaves you wanting more... not because of great writing but because it is incomplete. Character development (with the exception of Nicci) is almost nil, as is the ongoing conflict between the D'Haran forces and that of the Order.

This feels like half a book, the other half being the part that finishes it, and I find myself resentful that I must wait longer for the story I should have finished now. People flame software companies when they rush unfinished and buggy products to market, and Goodkind should be given the same treatment. I suspect that Goodkind has fallen into the same trap that Jordan did... he's written for so long that he lost his way and cannot finish the job. I hope he proves me wrong.

My anticipation and desire to see whats next is back with a passion. While it was a little slow in the middle (as has been stated already) I found the pace of Chainfire fast enough to keep me interested. Furthermore the last third of the book is nothing short of pure gold and a reminder as to why the sword of truth series is what it is. The two biggest highlights of this novel are 1) The way which Goodkind is able to communicate what it is like for Richard as he tries to convince the people around him that the love of his life truly exists. and 2) The development of Nicci as a central character is beautifully done in both the personal accounts of her life and in her interactions with Richard. As for the philosophy, many rant and rail against it, as for me I really couldn't care less, its there and I don't see that it takes away from or hampers the story at all so I don't see why its a problem. Anyway, Chainfire is an entertaining and worthwhile read for sure and brings back some of the fire and passion that perhaps had been missing from the last two installments. ****1/2 out of *****

Chainfire is a book of frustration. The plotline was pretty interesting, but it seemed like Goodkind was trying to make an "old dog do a new trick". Richard has to rescue Kahlan, yet again! How many times is that going to be whole plot? What's even more frustrating is how the book ended right when I finally got interested in the story. The book feels incomplete. Sure, people love a cliffhanger, but this book ends right after it begins. I'm a devoted fan of the Sword of Truth series, but I was disappointed this time.

I was really upset that I wasted a single fraction of a cent on this 'book'. I didnt need 665 pages of 'review of the old/intro to the next' with no ground of its own to stand on and no real sensible next step for the main character and his abilities. Rand, oops, I mean Richard, comes off as snivelling and lame. I was enjoying this series as a foil to endless iron/steel/hard/grand ultimate stares/glares of all the spoiled brat women of Robert Jordan but now I'm not going to bother with either one ever again. I read 'Chainfire' and the last of Jordan's books pretty much because I'd read all the work before them and want to know where the story is going and now, indeed, I know. They are going NOWHERE, along with the last of my pennies which are going nowhere near either of the pockets of these by the word hacks.