Goodkind, Terry Books

The Sword of Truth, Boxed Set I, Books 1-3: Wizard's First Rule, Blood of the Fold ,Stone of Tears

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 50 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

The Sword of Truth, Boxed Set I, Books 1-3
Wizard's First Rule, Stone of Tears, and Blood of the Fold

Book 1: Wizards First Rule
The masterpiece that started The New York Times bestselling epic Sword of Truth

In the aftermath of the brutal murder of his father, a mysterious woman, Kahlan Amnell, appears in Richard Cypher's forest sanctuary seeking help . . . and more. His world, his very beliefs, are shattered when ancient debts come due with thundering violence.

In a dark age it takes courage to live, and more than mere courage to challenge those who hold dominion, Richard and Kahlan must take up that challenge or become the next victims. Beyond awaits a bewitching land where even the best of their hearts could betray them. Yet, Richard fears nothing so much as what secrets his sword might reveal about his own soul. Falling in love would destroy them--for reasons Richard can't imagine and Kahlan dare not say.
In their darkest hour, hunted relentlessly, tormented by treachery and loss, Kahlan calls upon Richard to reach beyond his sword--to invoke within himself something more noble. Neither knows that the rules of battle have just changed . . . or that their time has run out.
This is the beginning. One book. One Rule. Witness the birth of a legend.

Book 2: Stone of Tears
An Epic of Awesome Power

Kahlan has at last gained the one goal she had always thought was beyond her grasp ... love. Against all odds, the ancient bonds of secret oaths, and the dark talents of men long dead, Richard has won her heart.

Amid sudden and disastrous events, Richard's life is called due to satisfy those treacherous oaths. To save his life, Kahlan must forsake Richard's love and cast him into the chains of slavery, knowing there could be no sin worse than such a betrayal.

Richard is determined to unlock the secrets bound in the magic of ancient oaths and to again be free. Kahlan, alone with the terrible truth of what she has done, must set about altering the course of a world thrown into war. But even that may be easier than ever winning back the heart of the only man she will ever love.

Book 3: Blood of the Fold
An Epic of Two Worlds

In a world as rich and real as our own, Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell stand against the ancient forces which besiege the New World-- forces so terrible that when last they threatened, they could only be withstood by sealing off the Old World from whence they came. Now the barrier has been breached, and the New World is again beset by their evil power.

War and treachery plague the world, and only Richard and Kahlan can save it from an armageddon of unimaginable savagery and destruction.

Terry Goodkind, author of the brilliant bestsellers Wizard's First Rule and Stone of Tears, has created his most masterful epic yet, a sumptuous feast of magic and excitement replete with the wonders of his unique fantasy vision.

Confessor (Sword of Truth)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 251 Average rating: 3.0 of 5

Confessor ( The Sword of Truth) 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 4 people found this review helpful.

My nephew read this book as soon as he got it and he enjoyed reading the book.

Preaching, smugness, and panic abound 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

You probably already know that Goodkind is preachy. I knew it going in and I can deal with that, even though it kills the feeling of the book. It does bother me that an author will go to great lengths to try and tell a story and wrap the reader into a different world, and then just totally bash the reader in the skull with childish monologues that go for pages where I guess we are supposed to believe that all other characters just patiently wait for the speaker to finish and reach their point. It doesn't matter how many people are present for these tirades, or what the circumstances are (like maybe a tense moment with tempers flaring). We are just supposed to stay wrapped up in this story as if it's plausible. Sorry Mr Goodkind but it isn't. You might as well have said Richard pulls out a gun and starts firing at people because THAT is how plausible your character tirades are. How can you create this rich world and not get something basic like how people interact?

So anyway, I can skip those and keep going. I don't mind that much as long as I can keep the story going. And it worked for much of this book like his other recent books. But what really killed it for me was the ending. It has to be the dumbest ending ever. I can only think that panic sent in with a due date looming so Goodkind just whipped up something to get it done. In a manner of two or three pages Goodkind explains the entire secret to all the magic being used as "one thing was wrong because it was after a key date" but "the correct thing was correct even though it was after the key date".

Why you ask? Well the first thing was wrong because it was illogical because how could it be part of the solution if the timeline was wrong. So how could the second thing be correct if the timeline was also wrong? Ahhh dear reader the answer is .... it was a trick. Yes folks, logic prevails until the author gets tired head and decides that logic won't work so we fall back on "it's a trick".

You know, that might work if there were some space between these revelations, like maybe a book or two or even a few 100 pages. But no, it all comes in a one or two page span.

Let that sink in a bit. It's the last 5 pages of the book dear readers. XZY was false because of a date, simple logic. But ABC is true even though it falls under the same date, because it's a trick.

A trick. Really Terry? Really?

So yes, I enjoyed the book even with the smug speeches and preaching. But I feel so ripped off because of the ending. I'm ashamed I read the book and gave Terry money.

Editorial Review:

Descending into darkness, about to be overwhelmed by evil, those people still free are powerless to stop the coming dawn of a savage new world, while Richard faces the guilt of knowing that he must let it happen. Alone, he must bear the weight of a sin he dare not confess to the one person he loves…and has lost.

Join Richard and Kahlan in the concluding novel of one of the most remarkable and memorable journeys ever written. It started with one rule, and will end with the rule of all rules, the rule unwritten, the rule unspoken since the dawn of history.

When next the sun rises, the world will be forever changed.

The Sword of Truth Box Set, Books 4-6: Temple of the Winds; Soul of the Fire; Faith of the Fallen

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 18 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

This Mass Market Boxed Set, is the Second Boxed Set of The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind:

The Box Set includes:
Temple of the Winds, 0-812-55148-6
Soul of the Fire, 0-812-55149-4
Faith of the Fallen, 0-812-57639-X

Book 4: Temple of the Winds
On the red moon will come the firestorm...

Wielding the Sword of Truth, Richard Rahl has battled death itself and come to the defense of the D'Haran people. But now the power-mad Emperor Jagang confronts Richard with a swift and inexorable foe: a mystical plague cutting a deadly swath across the land and slaying thousands of innocent victims.

To quench the inferno, he must seek remedy in the wind...

To fight it Richard and his beloved Kahlan Amnell will risk everything to uncover the source of the terrible plague-the magic sealed away for three millennia in the Temple of the Winds.

Lightning will find him on that path...

But when prophecy throws the shadow of betrayal across their mission and threatens to destroy them, Richard must accept the Truth and find a way to pay the price the winds demand...or he and his world will perish.


Book 5: Soul of the Fire
Sequel to the New York Times bestselling Temple of the Winds

Richard Rahl has traveled far from his roots as a simple woods guide. Emperor of the D'Haran Empire, war wizard, the Seeker of Truth--none of these roles mean as much to him as his newest: husband to his beloved Kahlan Amnell, Mother Confessor of the Midlands.

But their wedding day is the key that unlocks a spell sealed away long ago in a faraway country. Now a deadly power pours forth that threatens to turn the world into a lifeless waste.


dSeparated from the Sword of Truth and stripped of their magic, Richard and Kahlan must journey across the Midlands to discover a dark secret from the past and a trap that could tear them apart forever. For their fate has become inextricably entwined with that of the Midlands--and there's no place so dangerous as a world without magic...

Book 6: Faith of the Fallen
Sequel to the New York Times bestselling Soul of the Fire

Terry Goodkind author of the enormously popular Sword of Truth novels, has forged perhaps his best novel yet, pitting Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell against threats to the freedom of the world that will take them to opposite ends of the world to defeat the forces of chaos and anarchy.

Emperor Jagang is rising once again in the Old World and Richard must face him, on his own turf. Richard heads into the Old World with Cara, the Mord-Sith, while his beloved Kahlan remains behind. Unwilling to heed an ancient prophecy, Kahlan raises an army and goes into battle against forces threatening armed insurrection in the Midlands.

Separated and fighting for their lives, Richard and Kahlan will be tested to the utmost.

Sword of Truth, Boxed Set III, Books 7-9: The Pillars of Creation, Naked Empire, Chainfire (Sword Of Truth)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 19 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

This Mass Market Boxed Set, is the Third Boxed Set of The Sword of Truth series by Terry Goodkind:

The Box Set includes:
Pillars of Creation, 0-765-34074-7
Naked Empire, 0-765-34430-7
Chainfire, 0-765-34431-9

Book 7: Pillars of Creation

Sequel to the New York Times bestselling Faith of the Fallen

New York Times bestselling author Terry Goodkind has created his most lavish adventure yet. Tormented her entire life by inhuman voices, a young woman named Lauren seeks to end her intolerable agony. She at last discovers a way to silence the voices. For everyone else, the torment is about to begin.

With winter descending and the paralyzing dread of an army of annihilation occupying their homeland, Richard Rahl and his wife Kahlan must venture deep into a strange and desolate land. Their quest turns to terror when they find themselves the helpless prey of a tireless hunter.

Meanwhile, Lauren finds herself drawn into the center of a struggle for conquest and revenge. Worse yet, she finds her will seized by forces more abhorrent than anything she ever envisioned. Only then does she come to realize that the voices were real.

Staggered by loss and increasingly isolated, Richard and Kahlan must stop the relentless, unearthly threat which has come out of the darkest night of the human soul. To do so, Richard will be called upon to face the demons stalking among the Pillars of Creation.

Discover breathtaking adventure and true nobility of spirit. Find out why millions of readers the world over have elevated Terry Goodkind to the ranks of legend.


Book 8: Naked Empire
Beginning with Wizard's First Rule and continuing with six subsequent fantasy masterpieces, Terry Goodkind has thrilled and awed millions of readers worldwide. Now Goodkind returns with a broad-canvas adventure of epic intrigue, violent conflict, and terrifying peril for the beautiful Kahlan Amnell and her husband, the heroic Richard Rahl, the Sword of Truth.

Richard Rahl has been poisoned. Saving an empire from annihilation is the price of the antidote. With the shadow of death looming near, the empire crumbling before the invading hordes, and time running out, Richard is offered not only his own life but the salvation of a people, in exchange for delivering his wife, Kahlan, into bondage to the enemy.

Book 9: Chainfire
With Wizard's First Rule and seven subsequent masterpieces, Terry Goodkind has thrilled readers worldwide with the unique sweep of his storytelling. Now Goodkind returns with a new novel of Richard and Kahlan, the beginning of a sequence of three novels that will bring their epic story to its culmination.

After being gravely injured in battle, Richard awakes to discover Kahlan missing. To his disbelief, no one remembers the woman he is frantically trying to find. Worse, no one believes that she really exists, or that he was ever married. Alone as never before, he must find the woman he loves more than life itself....if she is even still alive. If she was ever even real.

Debt of Bones (Sword of Truth Prequel Novel)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 72 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Very disappointed 1 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

I really love Terry Goodkind's work, but this was totally unnecessary in that it didn't add any real value to the "Sword of Truth" series. It's advertised to explain how the boundaries were created, but the books in the series gives you enough information that it really doesn't matter. The plot was boring and it feels like he rushed to just pump it out to the market. Zedd's personality was totally different than in the books of the series, further adding to the pointlessness of the book. I don't recommend this book.

Editorial Review:

A milestone of storytelling set in the world of The Sword of Truth, Debt of Bones is the story of young Abby's struggle to win the aid of the wizard Zedd Zorander, the most important man alive.Abby is trapped, not only between both sides of the war, but in a mortal conflict between two powerful men. For Zedd, who commands power most men can only imagine, granting Abby's request would mean forsaking his sacred duty. With the storm of the final battle about to break, both Abby and Zedd are caught in a desperate fight to save the life of a child...but neither can escape the shadow of an ancient betrayal.With time running out, their only choice may be a debt of bones. The world-for Zedd, for Abby, for everyone-will never again be the same.Discover why millions of readers the world over have elevated Terry Goodkind to the ranks of legend.

Stone of Tears (Sword of Truth, Book 2)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 340 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Steller sequal! Goodkind has his pace! 5 out of 5 stars.
2 of 3 people found this review helpful.

I've read many a book, but none reach me like this series has. The entire Sword of Truth series, sets a pretty high standard for epic fantasy, let along a good book series. Early books had some places that were a bit clunky, (it was the authors first books if I'm not mistaken), but don't we ALL start out something a bit green, and then hone our skills?

The more books by Goodkind you read, you clearly see the excellent progress he's made in his craft. Goodkind does what so few fantasy authors do, that being have true heroes, heroes who use reason, heroes who do not become the enemy or become cowards and most important, heroes that stand up for what is honorable and true. And heroes that do not sacrifice their values to accomplish their goals.


You will not see nasty words, vulgarity, incest (unlike some series), porno, or any kind of depravity in the name of literature. This series touches on some violence and deals with real world issues like war and the true horrors of war. It exposes evil for what it is and it shows that mankind can rise up and be truly noble!

While I see there are a few people who want to vote poorly and post negative comments, it is your right. But when you post such acerbic comments, it is easy to see that you simply think it funny. Like anyone would take your petty comments as anything but jealousy and immaturity.

While this series has its merits, it has its problems as well. No book will have everything to speak to every person.

This series starts in easy, and right away you grasp the wonderful story telling ability of Goodkind, and as you go on, it delves deeper into the nature of man. This series explores deep human themes and exposes the fallacy of collectivism.

This book has a striking romantic aspect as well as plenty of heart wrenching twists. While I personally love the philosophy, I can see why some may not. That (IOHP), is why we have arena such as this, so that we can offer up likes and dislikes. Most who do that have offered up an HONEST review. The rest simply are offering up vitriol, because they fear this series for the good that it does and they fear it because they feel it a threat to their favorite author.

BE HONEST, give the book its due.

Support your book stores! Support the Publishing world, and for goodness sake buy a book so we can drive these whacked out "save the rain forest" freaks crazy by cutting down a few more trees!

Editorial Review:

An Epic of Awesome Power

Kahlan has at last gained the one goal she had always thought was beyond her grasp ... love. Against all odds, the ancient bonds of secret oaths, and the dark talents of men long dead, Richard has won her heart.

Amid sudden and disastrous events, Richard's life is called due to satisfy those treacherous oaths. To save his life, Kahlan must forsake Richard's love and cast him into the chains of slavery, knowing there could be no sin worse than such a betrayal.

Richard is determined to unlock the secrets bound in the magic of ancient oaths and to again be free. Kahlan, alone with the terrible truth of what she has done, must set about altering the course of a world thrown into war. But even that may be easier than ever winning back the heart of the only man she will ever love.

Blood of the Fold (Sword of Truth, Book 3)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 268 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

2 stars for some intense moments... 2 out of 5 stars.
1 of 3 people found this review helpful.

...but already the Kahlan/Richard storyline is growing really, really, tired. Richard overreacts...Richard apologizes...Kahlan cries and swears she will never betray Richard...Richard and Kahlan talk about getting married and sharing Kahlan's big, big bed...Richard somehow thwarts the advances of every hot woman known to mankind but listens to Kahlan prattle on and on about some nonsense...other characters become angry then apologize...someone else cries...someone else apologizes for crying...someone else apologizes for yelling...Richard theorizes about this, that and the other thing....Richard talks about how he lacks control over the magic...We get the 15,000th recapitulation of the history of the Confessors, the Wizards, the Palace of Prophets, the Keeper, Darken Rahl... we read the 1,000,000th inartfully drafted prophecy which mysteriously works itself out by way of some tortured plot twist...Richard befriends more enemies and inexplicably converts them into longtime friends...the Mord Sith prance around in red leather grabbing their Agiel and make cute comments but do little else...Richard grinds his teeth for the umpteenth time and grabs the Sword of Truth and lets the rage flow through him...just send me to the Keeper already!

Wizard's Fourth Rule: Read George RR Martin

Editorial Review:

An Epic of Two Worlds

In a world as rich and real as our own, Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell stand against the ancient forces which besiege the New World-- forces so terrible that when last they threatened, they could only be withstood by sealing off the Old World from whence they came. Now the barrier has been breached, and the New World is again beset by their evil power.

War and treachery plague the world, and only Richard and Kahlan can save it from an armageddon of unimaginable savagery and destruction.

Terry Goodkind, author of the brilliant bestsellers Wizard's First Rule and Stone of Tears, has created his most masterful epic yet, a sumptuous feast of magic and excitement replete with the wonders of his unique fantasy vision.

Phantom: Chainfire Trilogy, Part 2 (Sword of Truth, Book 10)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 241 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Sword of Truth 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 1 people found this review helpful.

This couple can never get a break or all they get are breaks. Another great book in a wonderful series.

Aaarrrgh!! 1 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

I am tearing my hair out. Reading another chapter in this book is about as much fun as taking chemotherapy.
I recently read a discussion on fantasy literature where Terry Goodkind was touted as one of the masters of the genre, and by more than one reviewer. Being one of my favoured genres, I had to find out for myself. Unfortunately, I choose Phantom for my introduction. I couldn't get through it. The first chapter was OK, but as I progressed through chapters II, III, and IV, waves of nausea began to overpower me. I finally had to abandon the project.
What made it so loathsome?
Let me see! The cartoon characters, for a start. Perfectly two-dimensional: no doubts, no flaws, no hidden humanity. The good were saintly, the bad were satanic, and everybody else just seemed stupid, which apparently is the gimmick TG uses to repeat his explanations of all the fantastic hoopla that is going on ad nauseum. Alas!
I love a bit of magic. But why try and explain it all with science that is gibberish? Is this a medieval world, or the Jetsons revisited? TG's scientific knowledge must be somewhat stunted, he uses the same 15 or 20 words to explain all the eerie and paranormal phenomena until your mind feels as though it were being dragged through a sewing machine. Talk about Post Traumatic Stress disorder!
Then there's the dialogue. All of the characters talk as if they've yet to reach puberty. Is this truly adult literature?
I think TG missed his calling. He should have gone to art school to learn how to sketch. Put in a few sounds effects for color. BOOOOM!! SCREEECH! An explosion on every page. This should have been a comic book.
In the end I couldn't identify with anyone in the story. I couldn't find anything likable in any of the characters. I just had to walk away.

Editorial Review:

Exclusive Video
Watch author Terry Goodkind discuss how his own morality and sense of good and evil shape the chararacters and action in his epic ten volume Sword of Truth series.

Watch a video clip featuring author Terry Goodkind

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Chainfire: Chainfire Trilogy, Part 1 (Sword of Truth, Book 9)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 390 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

The nature of the monster with no nature ... fantastic! 4 out of 5 stars.
2 of 2 people found this review helpful.

Lord Richard Rahl is the sole survivor of a battle in which a troop of soldiers is brutally massacred by an unknown and, indeed, unseen enemy capable of enormous ferocity. When Richard recovers from his near fatal wounds with the help of sorceress Nicci's use of the all but forbidden subtractive magic, he discovers that he is the only living soul who remembers his beloved wife Kahlan, the Mother Confessor. All of Richard's friends and compatriots - Cara, his Mord-Sith bodyguard, Nicci the sorceress and former Mistress of Death, Verna and Ann, joint prelates of the Sisters of the Light, Nathan the prophet, the witch woman Shiota, even wizard Zedd, Richard's beloved grandfather - are convinced that Richard has lost his reason.

Worse yet, because Richard feels he must devote what remains of his life and energy to finding his beloved wife and rescuing her from whatever fate has trapped her beyond the world's ken, he has also reached the decision to not lead his weakened D'Haran troops in a final battle against the almost limitless hordes of the advancing Emperor Jagang. He has also traded his Sword of Truth to the witch woman Shiota for one critical scrap of knowledge ... the word "Chainfire", which he will discover in his travels is the name of a long deeply hidden spell capable of literally unraveling existence itself. Without Richard's leadership and the Sword of Truth, prophesy dictates that the free world is doomed to fall to Jagang and the Keeper of Death.

The ninth book in the now aging "Sword of Truth" series, "Chainfire" is the first novel of a trilogy within the series based on Kahlan's disappearance from the world. First time readers of Goodkind's work should be warned that this novel would be almost indecipherable if read before a significant number of the previous eight novels.

While the plot outline is a good one, many reviewers have commented that the book is repetitive and lengthy to the point of tedium. For me, I would agree with the label "repetitive" but found the extended discussions on the philosophical notion of existence and the attempts at logical debate regarding the meaning of existence interesting and thought-provoking as opposed to tedious. The nature of the monster that Goodkind created to wipe out Richard's soldiers in the opening scene and to dog his footsteps throughout the balance of the novel was extraordinarily innovative. I don't think it would be exaggerating to suggest that such a beast is unique in the entire pantheon of beings created by authors since the very inception of fantasy as a genre.

Oh, I'll admit a little more action would have been a nice touch and a welcome change from time to time but it certainly didn't dampen my enthusiasm for the series and I'll definitely be looking for the tenth book, the second instalment in this sub-trilogy, "Phantom".

Recommended for committed Goodkind fantasy fans.

Paul Weiss

Editorial Review:

The next book in the Sword of Truth series from bestselling author Terry Goodkind. Fantasy adventure on a grand scale featuring the popular wizard-hero Richard Cypher. The Sword of Truth is Terry Goodkind's wonderfully creative, seamless, and stirring epic fantasy set in a fascinating world rich in detail, history and incredible violence. Reluctant hero turned magical warrior Richard Rahl has long since learned the wizard's first rule (People are stupid and will believe almost anything) and accepted his fate. With his beloved Kahlan Amnell, the last Mother Confessor, he has battled unearthly adversaries, military foes, the Underworld, the malign and wild magic of the Old World, even the elements themselves. Now Terry Goodkind, acclaimed and superlatively gifted storyteller, delivers another thrilling novel, with all the complexity and taut characterization we've come to expect from this master of fantasy.

Faith of the Fallen (Sword of Truth, Book 6)

Terry Goodkind

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 529 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

Editorial Review:

Fantasy series fans may argue over the relative merits of Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth, George R.R. Martin's Song of Ice and Fire, and Robert Jordan's Wheel of Time, but in a world of middle books that go nowhere and endless waits between episodes, Goodkind is certainly still serving up some of the best fantasy on today's menu.

The Seeker of Truth and his Mother Confessor sweetie are both looking a little worse for the wear after their chime-hunt in Soul of the Fire. To top that off, Lord Rahl finds himself a reluctant prophet with the vision that their cause, the fight for freedom against the Imperial Order, is essentially sunk. (Chalk that up to part of the Wizard's First Rule: people really are stupid.) The two lovers soon find themselves separated, Richard off to the Old World thanks to treacherous Sister of the Dark Nicci, and Kahlan left behind, forced to betray Richard and his prophecy by raising an army to fend off the approaching armies of Emperor Jagang.

Whether it's fair or not, Goodkind will likely get beaten up a bit for visiting the trough once too often, à la Jordan. But fear not: Faith of the Fallen does progress at a good clip, and its conclusion--while by no means a final payout--should satisfy. --Paul Hughes