After eight years of work, Christopher Paolini’s “Inheritance” is the fourth and final book in the “Eragon” series. It revolves around Eragon, a country boy turned dragon rider, and his quest to overthrow an opposing dragon rider and dictator, Galbatorix. Like the previous 3 books in the cycle, this one has the usual ingredients that make a good fantasy story: a quest, a journey, some action, romance and a world of unknown possibility.

When comparing “Inheritance” to the first few books in the series, Paolini’s improvement is quite apparent. He moved away from making obvious references to such works as J.R.R Tolkien’s “The Lord of the Rings” and explored more original possibilities for the world he created. He includes more information about the battle between the riders, which allows the reader to better distinguish why an uprising is necessary. He also expands on Eragon’s romantic relationships and the trials that come with them.

Like its predecessors, “Inheritance” is full of action. Almost every chapter includes an epic battle of some sort. Whether it’s Eragon himself or other more minor characters, you are sure to get your fill of fighting and damsels in distress. At points, however, all of this fighting gets tedious and it seems as if there is no plot development going on at all. Paolini suddenly addresses this problem toward the middle of the book, but compensates too much. It seems as if in just a few pages he goes from being obsessed with putting in as many battles with as much detail as possible to dissecting every one of Eragon’s relationships.Despite some minor flaws, “Inheritance” was an enjoyable read. Paolini was able to end the book in a way that felt real and stayed true to his character. It justly proves that his eight years of work was well worth it.