Have You Ever Regretted Reading a Book? Christopher, Why?! 😂📚🐲

Have you ever regretted reading a book — which one and why?

By Jared Harding Wilson

Oh, I have an answer for this one.

And before I say anything else, let me make something very clear:

I LOVED these books.

I loved Eragon.
I loved Eldest.
I loved Brisingr.
I loved the world Christopher Paolini created.
I loved the dragons. 🐉
I loved the magic.
I loved the adventures.
I loved the characters.

And then I read Inheritance.

And I was mad. 😂

Not “this book is bad” mad.

Not “I wish I hadn’t read this series” mad.

I was “Christopher Paolini, WHY WOULD YOU DO THIS TO ME?!” mad.

And yes…

Spoilers ahead for the entire Inheritance Cycle.

You’ve been warned. 📚⚠️

First, Can We Talk About Christopher Paolini?

One of the coolest things about the Inheritance Cycle is the story of the guy who actually wrote it.

Christopher Paolini was only 15 years old when he started writing Eragon.

Think about that for a second.

Fifteen.

At an age when most of us were worried about school, friends, sports, video games, or whatever teenagers were doing at the time, Christopher Paolini was sitting down in Montana and deciding:

I’m going to write an epic fantasy novel about dragons.

He had been homeschooled and was an avid reader. After graduating from high school at 15, he decided to write a book simply as a personal challenge—something he himself would want to read. (Paolini)

And he didn’t just sit down and start typing.

He spent time researching.

He read mythology and folklore. He studied medieval weapons, clothing, food and customs. He even did things that helped him understand the world he was writing about—things like making bows, forging weapons, camping, hiking, tracking and building survival shelters.

He basically decided:

“If I’m going to write a fantasy world, I’m going to go live parts of it first.”

That’s pretty awesome.

He wrote the first draft of Eragon at 15, spent another year revising it, and then his family decided to self-publish it. They spent another year preparing the book—including proofreading, typesetting, marketing materials, the map and even the dragon-eye artwork associated with the book. (Paolini)

Then came the really fun part.

His family became his publishing and marketing team.

They took the book to libraries, bookstores and schools. Christopher did presentations and promoted the book himself. His family spent a year traveling around and trying to get people interested in this huge fantasy book written by a teenager.

And people started buying it.

Eventually, author Carl Hiaasen’s stepson discovered a copy while vacationing in Montana. Hiaasen read it, passed it along to his publisher, and suddenly this homemade family publishing project was on the radar of Random House’s Knopf imprint. (PublishersWeekly.com)

Knopf published Eragon in 2003.

And the rest is history.

The teenager who started writing a dragon story became the youngest author recognized by Guinness World Records for a bestselling book series. (Paolini)

So before I complain about the ending, I should probably acknowledge something:

Christopher Paolini created something pretty incredible.

And He Made Dragons COOL

That’s one of the things I loved most about these books.

Dragons weren’t just big flying animals.

They had personalities.

They had intelligence.

They had relationships with their Riders.

And Saphira wasn’t just Eragon’s transportation.

She was his friend, companion, protector, conscience and sometimes probably the person who should have been smacking him upside the head.

The whole idea of Dragon Riders was fascinating.

The magic system was fascinating.

The elves were fascinating.

The dwarves were fascinating.

The history of the Riders, Galbatorix, the dragons, the Eldunarí, the ancient language…

There was SO MUCH going on.

And Paolini built it all up over four enormous books.

Which brings me to the problem.

Arya.

ERAGON AND ARYA!

Christopher.

Buddy.

We need to talk.

Because you spent four books building this relationship.

Four.

BOOKS.

Eragon meets Arya.

He admires her.

He loves her.

He spends huge portions of the story trying to become worthy of her.

There are conversations.

There are battles.

There are rescues.

There are moments of connection.

There is tension.

There is longing.

There is this constant sense that these two people have some kind of incredibly important connection.

And I kept thinking:

They’re going to end up together.

Surely.

Eventually.

After everything they’ve been through.

They’re meant for each other.

Right?

RIGHT?!

And then we get to the end of Inheritance.

And…

No.

😂

Wait. WHAT?!

Instead of riding off into the sunset together, Eragon eventually realizes he needs to leave.

He needs to establish a new home for the Dragon Riders.

Arya becomes queen of the elves.

She also becomes a Dragon Rider.

And Eragon leaves.

WITHOUT ARYA.

I remember getting to the end and basically thinking:

“You have got to be kidding me.”

I was so invested in these characters.

I had spent hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of pages watching Eragon grow.

Watching Arya grow.

Watching their relationship develop.

Watching all of these trials and adventures.

And then…

NOPE.

They don’t get together.

I was devastated.

And honestly?

I think I may have actually thrown the book across the room.

😂📚

I’m not proud of it.

But I’m also not taking it back.

Christopher, WHY?!

Here’s the funny thing.

I understand what Paolini was trying to do.

And I’ve since learned that he has actually explained the ending.

He has said that forcing Eragon and Arya together would have fulfilled Eragon’s wishes but would have gone against Arya’s character.

And I understand that.

I really do.

Arya isn’t supposed to simply become Eragon’s love interest because that’s what Eragon wants.

She’s her own person.

She’s a queen.

She’s powerful.

She’s independent.

And her story doesn’t revolve around finding a boyfriend.

I get it.

But here’s the problem, Christopher:

I was emotionally invested. 😂

You made me care!

You made me believe there was something there!

You spent thousands of pages giving me this slow-burning relationship, and then you basically said:

“Anyway… goodbye.”

WHAT?!

So I Made Up My Own Ending

Because apparently I wasn’t emotionally mature enough to accept Christopher Paolini’s ending.

So in my head, I wrote my own.

And here’s how I think it should have gone.

Eragon still leaves.

He still has to establish a new home for the Dragon Riders.

He still has responsibilities.

Arya still becomes queen.

She still becomes a Dragon Rider.

But eventually…

they find their way back to each other.

Maybe it isn’t immediate.

Maybe years pass.

Maybe they spend time apart growing into the people they’re supposed to become.

Maybe Eragon builds the new Rider stronghold.

Maybe Arya learns how to balance being queen with being a Dragon Rider.

Maybe they continue visiting each other.

Maybe they argue.

Maybe they grow.

Maybe they finally realize that the feelings they’ve been carrying for each other weren’t just youthful infatuation.

And eventually…

they choose each other.

There.

Fixed it.

You’re welcome, Christopher. 😂

And Then Give Me Another Series!

Actually, let’s take this one step further.

Christopher Paolini has already shown that the world of Alagaësia isn’t finished.

There is The Fork, the Witch, and the Worm, and in 2023 he returned to the world with Murtagh, which follows another major character from the original story. (Paolini)

So, Christopher…

I’m just saying…

There’s room.

Maybe someday we get another story set far enough into the future that Eragon and Arya’s descendants become part of a new adventure.

Maybe one of their children—or grandchildren—discovers something terrible happening with the dragons.

Maybe a new enemy rises.

Maybe the new generation of Riders has to deal with a problem that Eragon never could have imagined.

Maybe there’s a whole new series.

The Inheritance Cycle: The Next Generation.

I’m available for brainstorming sessions, Christopher.

😂

Would I Really Tell Someone to Burn the Books?

Whenever somebody tells me they’re reading the Inheritance Cycle, I have this terrible temptation to say:

“STOP! DON’T READ THE FOURTH BOOK!”

Or:

“Just burn it when you get to the last 50 pages!”

😂🔥📚

Okay, maybe don’t actually burn it.

Please don’t burn books.

But I completely understand the feeling.

Because the weirdest thing about my “regret” is that I don’t actually regret reading the books.

I loved them.

I loved the journey.

I loved the characters.

I loved Saphira.

I loved the world.

I loved the dragons.

I loved the battles.

I loved the friendships.

I loved watching Eragon grow from a farm boy into something so much bigger.

And maybe that’s exactly why the ending bothered me so much.

I cared.

If I didn’t care about the characters, I wouldn’t have been upset.

If I hadn’t fallen in love with the story, I wouldn’t have thrown the book.

If Paolini hadn’t spent so much time making me believe in Eragon and Arya, I wouldn’t have been sitting there thinking:

“Christopher, WHY?!”

So maybe that’s actually a compliment.

A backhanded, slightly traumatized, book-throwing compliment…

…but a compliment nonetheless.

My Answer to Today’s Question

Have I ever regretted reading a book?

Yes.

Inheritance.

But only because I loved the first three books—and most of the fourth—so much that the ending left me feeling like I’d been emotionally mugged in a dark alley.

😂

I don’t regret discovering Eragon.

I don’t regret meeting Saphira.

I don’t regret traveling through Alagaësia.

I don’t regret all the adventures.

And I certainly don’t regret reading a story written by a teenager who dreamed up a dragon, wrote a book about it, convinced his family to help him publish it, and then personally traveled around libraries and bookstores trying to get people to read it.

That’s an incredible story in itself.

But Christopher…

If you’re reading this…

I still think Eragon and Arya should have ended up together.

There.

I said it.

And I’m not taking it back.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I need to go find my copy of Inheritance and apologize to it for the things I said about it.

📚😂🐉

What about you? Have you ever loved a book or series so much that the ending made you regret reading it? I want to hear about it!

And if you’re reading the Inheritance Cycle right now…

I’m not going to spoil the ending for you.

I’m just going to say:

Good luck.

😂