In the past year, I've read a lot of fantasy, trying to find a few decent authors in the genre. Tolkien, of course, scores high marks, whereas Terry Brooks, George Martin and Robert Jordan have all left a little to be desired, imho. Enter Terry Goodkind, whose first volume in the Sword of Truth series is worthy of more than just a passing nod.
Wizard's First Rule introduces Richard Cypher, who, like all great fantasy characters, is a humble peasant destined for greatness. His companion is Kahlan Amnell, a strange and beautiful woman from across the Boundary. And of course, there's the evil villain Darken Rahl, who is about as bad as they come. Despite the obvious subscription to some of the genre's worst stereotypes, I found WFR to be highly entertaining- there's plenty of adrenaline-pumping action, and the characterization is deeper than one might expect. There's also plenty of moral ambiguity- it's not always clear who are the good guys and who are the bad, which makes for a story that's high in suspense.
One the whole, I have to say that I find Goodkind's writing to be superior to most in the pulp fantasy genre. That being said, I'm not sure how anxious I am to go back for more from the Sword of Truth series- while WFR leaves more than a few ends untied, there is the danger for the series to go the way of Robert Jordan's never-ending soap opera. All that being said, Goodkind is a fantastic writer with a great imagination.