All about: Sword of Truth series

The Sword of Truth series is a set of eleven fantasy novels written by Terry Goodkind, an author who has previously worked as a painter and woodworker and whose work explicitly references the objectivist philosophy of Ayn Rand.

History and concept

Origins The Sword of Truth books' life in the public sphere began in 1994, with the first novel 'Wizard's first Rule'. Ten more subsequent would follow, with the last of those being 'Confessor', published in 2007. There has also been a novella with the title 'Debt of Bones'.
Chronology and division of the world Although each novel stands alone as a work of entertainment, they follow a common chronology and the last three are intended to be a trilogy. The fictional world of the series is divided into major regions. These are the New World and the Old World. The New World is made up of three distinct lands. Westland is in the west, the Midlands in the central regions and D'hara in the east. The Old World is introduced in the second novel of the series, but is described in much less specific geographical detail than the New World.

Characters

Main characters and their roles The main protagonists of the novels are Richard Cypher, Kahlan Amnell and Zeddicus Zu'l Zorander. These three look to defeat forces who wish to oppress the world, as well as those who wish to unleash horrendous evil on the world.
Richard Richard is a Westlands woods guide who becomes Seeker of Truth, altering the course of his life forever. The Truth Seeker's role is to act as a force for justice in the world, helping to protect it from the forces of evil. Kahlan Kahlan Amnell is a beautiful woman who is also Mother Confessor (a significant mystical position) as well as being the last living confessor after the evil Darken Rahl had the others hunted down.
Zeddicus
Zeddicus 'Zedd' Zu'l Zorander is a powerful wizard of the First Order, and Richard Rahl's grandfather. He also adopts a protective grand paternal attitude towards Kahlan Amnell.

TV spin-off

Television series In 2008, a television spin-off series of Goodkind's novels was produced by ABC Studios. Entitled 'Legend of the Seeker', it was a series which ran for two seasons and was syndicated worldwide. Forty-four 'Legend of the Seeker' full episodes were made, each approximately 42 minutes long.
Season 1 and season 2 Legend of the Seeker season 1 is loosely based on 'Wizard's First Rule, with some additional events and situations created for the series. Legend of the Seeker season 2 is based upon a quest by Richard to find the Stone of Tears and defeat the Keeper.