Soul of the Fire by Terry Goodkind

"Soul of the Fire," by Terry Goodkind, is book five in his series "The Sword of Truth." I started reading this series about a year ago, and instantly fell in love with the complex plots, detail, and the sheer magnitude of the story line. The first four books are, "Wizards First Rule," "Stone of Tears," "Blood of the Fold," and "Temple of the Winds."

This series follows the adventures of Richard, Kahlan, Zed, and many others as they seek to combat evil. This saga covers a lot of ground, so it's hard for me to figure out where to begin in discussing the series! So I'll simply leave you by saying that there is romance, magic, death, darkness, light, and truth woven into this story. You'll be swept up when you read these books!

I do want to add a little disclaimer. Goodkind is not the kind to spare details, so when he gets dark, he gets dark, be prepared to handle that if you read this series.

"Temple of the Winds" ends with Kahlan and Richard finally getting to have their wedding. So, appropriately, "Soul of the Fire" picks up the next day! Now anyone with a feeling heart would wish this nice couple at least a few days to enjoy their wedded bliss right? Well, that was not to be, their married life starts off just as tumultuous as their pre-married life. It seems that Kahlan unwittingly set the "chimes" lose on the world when she saved Richard's life in the last book, and as a result all magic was being drained from the world. Some, those who fear magic anyway, would think this a good thing. However, that's a narrow view with a world that's very balance depends on magic. As Zedd explains to them quite vividely.

Trying to stop the chimes is a major theme in this book. However, it also continues the story of Jagangs attempt to take over, and so our hereos are torn between working to stop him, and stop the chimes. They have a lot on their plate! If you've read the earlier books in the series you'll know that's not uncommon though.