brisingr

2 | P a g e Brisingr – Christopher Paolini

3 | P a g e Brisingr – Christopher Paolini
SYNOPSIS OF ERAGON AND ELDEST
Eragon—a fifteen-year-old farm boy—is shocked when
a polished blue stone appears before him in the range
of mountains known as the Spine. Eragon takes the
stone to the farm where he lives with his uncle,
Garrow, and his cousin, Roran, outside the small
village of Carvahall. Garrow and his late wife, Marian,
have raised Eragon. Nothing is known of Eragon’s
father; his mother, Selena, was Garrow’s sister and
has not been seen since Eragon’s birth.
Later, the stone cracks open and a baby dragon
emerges. When Eragon touches her, a silvery mark
appears on his palm, and an irrevocable bond is
forged between their minds, making Eragon one of the
legendary Dragon Riders. He names the dragon
Saphira, after a dragon mentioned by the village
storyteller, Brom.
The Dragon Riders were created thousands of years earlier in the aftermath of the devastating war
between the elves and the dragons, in order to
prevent their two races from ever again fighting each
other. The Riders became peacekeepers, educators,
healers, natural philosophers, and the greatest of all
magicians—since being joined with a dragon makes
one a spellcaster. Under their guidance and
protection, the land enjoyed a golden age.
When humans arrived in Alagaësia, they too were
added to this elite order. After many years of peace,
the warlike Urgals killed the dragon of a young
human Rider named Galbatorix. The loss drove him
mad, and when his elders refused to provide him with
another dragon, Galbatorix set out to topple the
Riders.

4 | P a g e Brisingr – Christopher Paolini
He stole another dragon—whom he named Shruikan
and forced to serve him through certain black spells—
and gathered around himself a group of thirteen
traitors: the Forsworn. With the help of those cruel
disciples, Galbatorix threw down the Riders; killed
their leader, Vrael; and declared himself king over
Alagaësia. His actions forced the elves to retreat deep
within their pinewood forest and the dwarves to hide
in their tunnels and caves, and neither race now
ventures forth from its secret places. The stalemate
between Galbatorix and the other races has endured
for over a hundred years, during which all of the
Forsworn have died from various causes. It is into
this tense political situation that Eragon finds himself
thrust.
Several months after Saphira hatches, two menacing,
beetle-like strangers called the Ra’zac arrive in
Carvahall, searching for the stone that was Saphira’s
egg. Eragon and Saphira manage to evade them, but
they destroy Eragon’s home and murder Garrow.
Eragon vows to track down and kill the Ra’zac. As he
leaves Carvahall, the storyteller Brom, who knows of
Saphira’s existence, accosts Eragon and asks to
accompany him. Brom gives Eragon a red Dragon
Rider’s sword, Zar’roc, though he refuses to say how
he acquired it.
Eragon learns much from Brom during their travels,
including how to fight with swords and use magic.
When they lose the Ra’zac’s trail, they go to the port
town of Teirm and visit Brom’s old friend Jeod, who
Brom thinks may be able to help them locate the
Ra’zac’s lair. In Teirm, they learn that the Ra’zac live
somewhere close to the city of Dras-Leona. Eragon
also has his fortune told by the herbalist Angela and
receives two strange pieces of advice from her
companion, the werecat Solembum. On the way to
Dras-Leona, Brom reveals that he is an agent of the

5 | P a g e Brisingr – Christopher Paolini
Varden—a rebel group dedicated to overthrowing
Galbatorix—and that he had been hiding in
Carvahall, waiting for a new Dragon Rider to appear.
Twenty years ago, Brom was involved in stealing Saphira’s egg from Galbatorix and, in the process,
killed Morzan, first and last of the Forsworn. Only two
other dragon eggs still exist, both of which remain in
Galbatorix’s possession.
In and near Dras-Leona, they encounter the Ra’zac,
who mortally wound Brom while he is protecting Eragon. A mysterious young man named Murtagh
drives the Ra’zac away. With his dying breath, Brom
confesses that he too was once a Rider and that his
slain dragon was also named Saphira.
Eragon and Saphira then decide to join the Varden,
but Eragon is captured at the city