Faith of the Fallen

by Terry Goodkind

Reviewed by Coral

While waiting for Kahlan to recover from the brutal beating she suffered at the hands of an Anderith mob, Richard comes to a shocking realization: they can't defeat the Imperial Order. Refusing to lead the Empire he's forged, he instead orders them not to attack at the Order's heart and nothing that Kahlan or his soldiers say will convince him otherwise.

Unfortunately for him, one of his former teachers, Nicci a Sister of the Dark in Jagang's army, is coming to her own realization. There is something about Richard that keeps Jagang from her mind, something inside of him that can answer a question she can't put into words. She might not know what she wants, but she knows how to go about getting it. Threatening Kahlan's life, Nicci takes Richard into the heart of the Old World: Altur'Rang, Jagang's home. What no one - not even her fellow Sisters of the Dark - knows about Nicci is that she is a devout follower of the Order's beliefs, indoctrinated in them by her mother before she was brought to the Palace of the Prophets. Now, by bringing Richard to Altur'Rang, forcing him to come face to face with her beliefs, Nicci hopes that she can gain the answers that she's so desperately seeking. Either way, she doesn't plan on Richard leaving Altur'Rang alive.

Hurting from the loss of Richard, Kahlan throws herself into the role of Mother Confessor and Queen of the D'Haran Empire, determined to kill every last man, woman and child of the Imperial Order until she gets her husband back. But is Richard really right? Will attacking the Order really doom them to defeat, or are those just the fears of a man disheartened after the loss in Anderith?

This is my absolute favorite book in this series. I didn't even find the repetitive thing as annoying as I normally do.

Though, really, when Richard is realizing the damage caused by the Chimes, how creatures of magic - like dragons - were probably killed rather quickly, why wasn't there a mention of him mourning Scarlet? Or him worrying about Gratch? Are gars even creatures of magic?

I have only one small complaint about how Kahlan's character is written. Some times she's an awesome character, like when she commanded the army of new recruits against the Imperial army that had slaughtered Ebinissia and when she takes command of the D'Haran army in this book. I like this Kahlan, she's strong and dedicated, showing the enemy no mercy. But then, some times, she's a whole different character. When she's consumed by worry for Richard, she becomes so much smaller and weaker. I wish she was written in a way so that she doesn't have to lose her strength when she's with Richard.

Still, this was, in my opinion, definitely the best book of the series. Loved it.

Grade: A