One day, starved of anything new to read, I visited the local library, and happened upon a book called Pawn of Prophecy by David Eddings. I started reading it, and was soon hooked; I quickly returned to the library to find others in the series and would race through them as soon as they were available. I would go on to read other Fantasy authors such as Stephen Donaldson, Raymond E. Feist, Terry Brooks, Terry Goodkind and Steven Erikson, among others, and also a lot of the D&D based Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms books, but I would frequently return to The Belgariad; especially after I had since purchased my own copies.
I then discovered that a follow-up series called The Mallorean was in the works, and ended up insatiably devouring them as well. Over the next decade or so I would return to read the books in these 2 series about once a year or so. I also read the companion pieces; Belgarath the Sorcerer and Polgara the Sorceress on more than one occasion. I also quickly devoured The Rivan Codex when it was released. I also read the books in the Elenium and Tamuli series, and The Redemption of Althalus, but wasn't as enamoured with them. I still haven't gotten around to reading The Dreamers series.
Anyway, I haven't read as many books in recent times, as in previous years, and it's been over a decade since I have read any of Edding's books. At the back end of 2021, and as part of the Goodreads 2022 Reading Challenge I decided that I should rectify that and set out to re-read them, wondering if my love of the books would still be as strong, or if my expanded experience of the genre would affect how I viewed them. I don't think I had any cause to worry; within about an hour or so of starting to read Pawn of Prophecy again, I was hooked, once again. A little under 2 months later and I have read all 5 books of The Belgariad, all 5 books of the Mallorean, Belgarath and Polgara, and am about ¼ of the way through The Rivan Codex again.
I'm not sure what I'll read next; I suppose I could give The Dreamers a try, although I have been told they're not as good as Eddings' other books. I've also got books by Conn Iggulden, Fritz Leiber, Anne Rice and Terry Goodkind in my 'To Read' list. I've also got a number of biographies / memoirs on my list, from the likes of Alan Turing, Danny Trejo, Dave Grohl, Tim Peake, Dave Musutaine, Freddie Mercury, Chuck Yeager and Bruce Springsteen. I'm not short of a book or 2 to read!
From The Eddings Codex:
The Belgariad is a five-book fantasy epic written by David Eddings.
The series tell the story of the recovery of the Orb of Aldur and coming of age of Garion, an orphaned farmboy. Garion is accompanied by his aunt Polgara and her father Belgarath as they try and fulfill an ancient prophecy that will decide the fate of the universe. Along the way, various "instruments", or helpers, of the prophecy join their quest.
The Malloreon is set in the same world as The Belgariad, but expands on several aspects of the setting, especially the eastern continent of Mallorea. One of the main themes is that the apparently monolithic Angarak race, antagonists of the first series, are a more complicated group of peoples than previously shown.
The Belgariad and The Mallorean are both available from Amazon UK.
