In this epic fantasy, woodsman Richard Cypher is still grieving over his father's recent murder when he comes across a beautiful woman being pursued by four dangerous men in the woods. He comes to the woman's aid, and she reveals that her name is Kahlan, and she has crossed the magical barrier which separates his land from hers in order to find a mysterious wizard, the key to stopping the tyrannical and evil Darken Rahl from opening the boxes of Orden and possibly destroying the world. The magical barriers separating the worlds are coming down, the power of the underworld is entering the world, and it is up to Richard to find the strength and power within himself to destroy Darken Rahl and save the people of Westland, the Midlands, and D'Hara from the evil Rahl would unleash upon them.