Galbatorix and the Death of Brom

Further along their journey, Eragon, Saphira, and Brom reach the town of Terim. They learn that the Ra'zac are in Helgrind, and right as they're about to continue their chase, they fall into a trap set up by the Ra'zac. Brom is killed during this chaos, and Eragon is devastated. He moves on, however, to achieve a new goal. He decides to find the Varden, the leader of the rebels in Alagaesia. During his new journey, Eragon begins to have visions in his dreams where an elf asks him for help. I can't really predict who this mysterious elf is, but I think it foreshadows an important plot development. Another main character who was introduced in these chapters was Galbatorix. His name was mentioned before in previous chapters, but he becomes the main antagonist through the stories of Brom. He's defined as a dragon rider who betrayed his friends and took power as the ruler of Alagaesia. This character seems to be the "main" enemy that Eragon must ultimately face.

Start of the Journey

As I started reading into the actual plot development of the book, the story became more and more interesting.  First of all, Eragon's uncle, Garrow, gets killed by the Ra'zacs. Eragon, seeking revenge, decides to chase after the Ra'zacs with his dragon. Here, a mysterious character named Brom makes his appearance. At first, he seems to be an ordinary old man, but it's shown that he has knowledge about dragons and dragon riders. 

Eragon, Saphira, and Brom start on their chase after the Ra'zacs, and along the way, Brom begins to teach Eragon the skills of a dragon rider. He starts teaching Eragon the magical skills that a dragon rider possesses. Also, he gives Eragon the sword Zar'roc, that was once possessed by a dragon rider. The chase continues as the plot develops with several stops along the way.

New Book: Eragon

This is the new book that I'm reading for my independent reading assignment. Eragon, written by Christopher Paolini, is a fantasy novel about a young boy who becomes a dragon rider. I saw the movie about a year ago, and I thought it would be interesting to read the actual book. 

The protagonist of the book is Eragon, a 15-year-old boy who lives on the outskirts of a city with his uncle. He has an ordinary life, preparing himself for the adulthood, and one day, he finds a peculiar stone in the forest. At first, he thinks it's just a strange piece of rock that he might be able to sell for some money. The rock turns out to be an egg, and eventually, a dragon emerges.

The Ending

I absolutely loved the ending of this book! It was action-packed, unpredictable, and just fantastic. First of all, it reveals the true side of Severus Snape, who was a controversial antagonist for the majority of the book. This was a huge irony not only because Snape cared for Harry all the time, but also because it shows that all of Snape’s acts were influenced by his love for Lily Potter. Unfortunately, Snape gets killed by Voldemort, but this leads to the climax of the book.

At the climax of the story, Harry confronts Voldemort face to face. This is the point of the story that was expected for the whole Harry Potter series. It was an inevitable battle that was bound to happen, and it marked the climax of this particular book. In the duel, Harry and Voldemort both cast the killing curse on each other, knocking them both unconscious. Harry is awoken in a new dimension where he meets Dumbledore. This new dimension is a bit confusing because it's not really specified where it is or whether Harry is actually dead or not. Either way, Harry returns to Hogwarts and successfully defeats Voldemort. I really loved this ending; while it solved every mystery that developed throughout the series, it also had its own defining moments.

Chapters 25-31

In these 7 chapters, Harry and his friends continue their quest to destroy Voldemort's horcruxes. First, Harry manages to break into the Gringotts bank to find a horcrux by working with the goblin Griphook. Although he does get his hands on the Hufflepuff cup, one of the horcruxes, Harry then faces a new dilemma: Griphook took the sword of Gryffindor. This means that Harry must now find a new way to destroy the horcruxes. Later, Harry and his friends find a trace on a new horcrux, and decide to visit Hogsmeade. They're saved from the death eaters by Aberforth Dumbledore, Albus's brother. This is a significant moment in the book because Aberforth tells Harry the truths about his brother, removing all his doubts about his mentor. Harry then goes to the Room of Requirements inside Hogwarts, where the horcrux is hidden. He tries to find the lost diadem of Ravenclaw, but he encounters one of the Death Eaters, who summons Voldemort to the spot. This foreshadows an enormous, final battle between Harry and Voldemort.