by David Eddings – 1982

Book 1 of 5 in The Belgariad series

One of my favorite fantasy book-reading experiences was discovering this book back in my early teens. The plot is fairly typical (we must get the magical thingie!), but the interactions of the characters really made this interesting for me.

Long ago, so the Storyteller claimed, the evil god Torak sought dominion and drove men and gods to war. But Belgrath the Sorcerer led men to reclaim the Orb that protected the West. So long as it lay at Riva, the prophecy went, men would be safe. That was only a story, and Garion did not believe in magical fates, even though the man without a shadow had haunted him for years. Brought up on a quiet farm by his Aunt Pol, how could he know that the Apostate planned to wake Torak, or that he would be led on a quest of unparalleled magic and danger by those he loved, but did not truly know.

For yet a little while, his dreams of innocence remained safe, untroubled by knowledge of his strange heritage. But only for a little while… thus begins The Belgariad, an epic fantasy of immense scope set against a history of 7,000 years. It tells of the struggles between ancient gods and mighty kings, and of men in strange lands facing fated events, all bound by a prophecy that must be fulfilled.