Brisingr RELEASED!

Amid a crowd of hundreds of fans, Christopher Paolini unveiled and read from his new novel Brisingr at just past midnight on Saturday. To say the air was electric would be putting it lightly. And naturally Suvudu was there, because, c’mon, Dragonriders, epic battles, and magic? You’re talking about a native Suvuduian’s natural habitat.
Opening up the ceremony was a reading from the previous book Eldest by Gerard Doyle, the voice behind the Inheritance Cycle’s audiobooks. Mr. Doyle began his reading with a caveat that live readings were tricky, especially when reading more complex material like the Christopher Paolini’s novels as there aren’t studio engineers present to clean up his mistakes. Naturally, he proceeded to read his chosen chapter flawlessly.
If you’re into audiobooks then you know that a good reader makes all the difference. They can make or break a story with their decisions on how to present the material. I have not yet listened to the Inheritance Cycle audiobooks, but Gerard’s live performance not only silenced the room, but you could feel the ebb and flow of the book pour forth from his lips as he read. It was amazing and the perfect warm up for the main event.
More after the jump…

With Gerard having read, it was time to bring out the man of the hour. Christopher Paolini displayed all the excitement that his crowd was feeling as he ran down the side aisle of the Barnes & Noble to take the stage. He spoke briefly about this book, pumping the crowd up as he went, equal parts emcee and bestselling author.
Christopher revealed that he picked the name of his book deliberately. Brisingr, an old Norse word that means “fire,” is the first word of magic that Eragon speaks in the series, and, as Paolini pointed out, it will play an important part in this book. That was as much of a hint and spoiler as the author would provide however – not that anyone was looking for more. The audience gave the distinct impression that they’d be reading this book, in full, as soon as they were home. Though he did provide one more detail: there are a few chapters written from the dragon Saphira’s point of view.
Too cool.
With only two minutes left until midnight, Christopher fielded a couple questions from the audience. Among those that were asked were:

1. What did he think of the movie version?
2. Are Saphira’s legs attached to her wings?
3. Did Homeschooling have any effect on writing the books?

In case you’re wondering, he felt that the movies are another interpretation of his work that is separate from his own, Saphira’s wings are not attached to her legs, and homeschooling did indeed allow him more opportunity to devote himself to writing as he was able to complete his schooling quickly. That last is an abbreviated answer and even Christopher mentioned that the question was a big one that he just didn’t have time to cover completely.

And then it was midnight. As Paolini sliced through that first box, revealing the fresh copy upon fresh copy of Brisingr the crowd released every bit of pent up excitement that they had. And, with the book held over his head, Christopher Paolini unleashed his newest novel. And then he read a few paragraphs from one of the Saphira chapters.
I have to give a lot of credit to Christopher Paolini. The energy he displayed never felt like he was playing to the crowd (and, in fact, I’m sure he wasn’t), it just seemed like his natural enthusiasm for the book and his fans enjoyment thereof. It was really a sight to behold and one fun way to spend the wee hours of a Saturday.
That, and I have a signed edition of Brisingr in my hands now. But wait, don’t you want a signed edition of your own? If so, you don’t have to fly to New York to get one as nice as mine. You could order one from Random House starting RIGHT NOW! I’m for-serious (and there aren’t that many, so don’t sit on this)!
And to see more photos from the event? Suvudu has a Flickr account, check out some of the pics we snapped over on Suvudu Flickr.
Check back with us soon; a couple cool videos from the event are forthcoming…

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