King Galbatorix had been one of the Dragon Riders, a group of elves and humans with magical powers who kept the peace in the land of Alagaësia. When his dragon was killed, he went mad, and the Riders would not provide him with a new one because of his madness. Galbatorix then stole a dragon and began to slowly destroy the Riders and their dragons. He recruited 13 followers, called the Forsworn, who assisted him. He then took over Alagaësia and began his immortal reign, and since had been gathering his power to unimaginable heights. By the time of Eragon, all of the Forsworn had died, either through their own carelessness or through the attacks of the Varden, the main body in opposition to Galbatorix.
Eragon was a poor farm boy who lived with his uncle, Garrow, and his cousin, Roran. Eragon had no idea who his father was and all he knew about his mother was that she had only been in the nearby town of Carvahall a few weeks, to give birth to him and place him under the care of Garrow. One day while he was hunting in the neighboring mountains, a large, smooth stone suddenly appeared in front of him, obviously by magic. He took it and brought it back to Carvahall, hoping to find someone to sell it to. But nobody did, and after a few days the stone broke open, and a baby dragon came out. Eragon then had to raise the dragon in secret. Eragon later found out that two strangers from the Empire had appeared in Carvahall, inquiring about the stone. As the approach the house, his dragon panics and carries him far away. When he finally gets it to return, he finds the farm burnt down and Garrow mortally injured within. When Eragon is at Carvahall, he asks the town storyteller, Brom, about the dragon. Brom surprisingly has much more knowledge on the subject than Eragon had thought. Eragon and Brom then take the dragon, whom Eragon has named Saphira, and venture out of Carvahall seeking to avenge Garrow's death. Much of the story consists of this revenge. There are many later huge twists, such as Eragon's joining the Varden, communing with dwarves, and going to the elves to be trained as a Rider.
The Inheritance Cycle is, without a doubt, one of my favorite series of books. It consists of a complex mythical world of magic, elves, dwarves, dragons, and many more creatures. I highly recommend it for any lover of fantasy, in particular of magic, dragons, and the such. These are reasons that I think any teacher who agrees should have this series. The story, although it might be considered long and kind of complex, is actually a not very difficult read. The pacing and action is definitely continuous and flowing. There are multiple smaller stories that intertwine to add to the greatness of the plot. The writing style really reflects how the characters feel. When the books sometimes follow the actions of other characters (in particular Roran, and sometimes Nasuada or Saphira) every few chapters or so, the writing style is slightly different, which helps the reader to be able to understand the character individually much better. The books, in order, are Eragon, Eldest, Brisingr, and Inheritance.
I rate the Inheritance Cycle 9.75/10.
