Debt of Bones (Sword of Truth Series) [Audiobook, CD, Unabridged] Publisher: Brilliance Audio on CD Unabridged; Unabridged edition

Sword of Truth #0.5

by Terry Goodkind

A milestone of storytelling set in the world of The Sword of Truth, Debt of Bones is the story of young Abby's struggle to win the aid of the wizard Zedd Zorander, the most important man alive.

Abby is trapped, not only between both sides of the war, but in a mortal conflict between two powerful men. For Zedd, who commands power most men can only imagine, granting Abby's request would mean forsaking his sacred duty. With the storm of the final battle about to break, both Abby and Zedd are caught in a desperate fight to save the life of a child...but neither can escape the shadow of an ancient betrayal.

With time running out, their only choice may be a debt of bones. The world-for Zedd, for Abby, for everyone-will never again be the same.

Discover why millions of readers the world over have elevated Terry Goodkind to the ranks of legend.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Epic Fantasy, Magic, High Fantasy, Adventure, Science Fiction Fantasy

Audio CD

First published August 25, 1998

About the author

Terry Lee Goodkind was an American writer. He was known for the epic fantasy series The Sword of Truth as well as the contemporary suspense novel The Law of Nines (2009), which has ties to his fantasy series. The Sword of Truth series sold 25 million copies worldwide and was translated into more than 20 languages. Additionally, it was adapted into a television series called Legend of the Seeker, which premiered on November 1, 2008, and ran for two seasons, ending in May 2010.
Goodkind was a proponent of Ayn Rand's philosophical approach of Objectivism, and made references to Rand's ideas and novels in his works.

Reviews

[Choko · Rating 3 out of 5]

*** 3.35 ***

"...“Enemies,' the wizard said, 'are the price of honor.”...

This is my first time reading any of the Sword of Truth series and I am intrigued. I already liked the First Wizard Zedd Zorander, while I am a bit annoyed by Abby. However, the Mother Confessor is fascinating, so is the world of magic and war between good and evil that is raging between the D'Harans lead by Lord Rahl and the rest of the world. It also gives us some idea about the origins and way of operation of the Mord-Sith, who have a fetish for kinky red leather outfits, long braids and some pain inflicting:) A good look at the young Zedd and why he was the most powerful wizard in the world and yet, his closest people called him The Trickster...

"...“«"The trickster", the Mother Confessor said. "I told you that was our name for him"»”...

I can't wait to delve into the series for real and discover everything it holds...

[Paul Weiss · Rating 4 out of 5]

An exciting prequel and a pleasant one hour diversion!

A most pleasant one hour diversion! In DEBT OF BONES, Goodkind has not only provided us with an excellent tale in its own right but has filled in some of the background to the war with the D'Harans, the Rahl dynasty, and the inside story on the history of the land outside the Midlands where no magic is allowed. It is quite astounding that Debt of Bones has all the requisites of a full length fantasy novel - good, evil, war, magic, epic battles, love, loyalty, treason, deceit and treachery - but he has managed to squeeze it into the size of a novella barely over 100 pages.

Goodkind, no doubt, achieved this brevity by omitting detailed explanations of some of the things that his fans would already understand - the devastating results of the touch of the Mother Confessor and the sadistic behaviour of the Mord Sith, for example. If you're a first-time Goodkind reader, my prediction is that you'll feel quite bewildered at times. Don't start here! Set this aside and go read the first three or four novels in The Sword of Truth series.

Then come back and pick this up again for a thoroughly enjoyable quickie!


Paul Weiss

[J.L. Sutton · Rating 3 out of 5]

“If you went through life expecting gratitude for the help you provided, you might end up leading a miserable life.”

Terry Goodkind's Debt of Bones is a prequel to the Sword of Truth series that explains how the boundaries that separate The Midlands from D'Hara came to exist. I probably should have jumped straight into the series because, while Debt of Bones may be compelling to someone who has already read the series and is looking for additional insights, this novella didn't really get excited about the world. That said, this was entertaining. However, I had been looking for an entree into the world and didn't feel like this was it.

[Jessica · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was never into fantasy novels. But this whole entire series captured me. I think it's mainly because of the awesome love story. My ex introduced me to Terry Goodkind and he never mentioned the love story! I thought it was like another Harry Potter series so I wasn't interested at first. But I started reading the first book and I just couldn't put it down! Richard and Kahlan have an amazing love. And I wish I had something similar to what they have. I definitely lost myself in these books. I left reality and didn't want to come back. That's how much of an impact Terry Goodkind's books had on me. I recommend these to ANYBODY!

[Gohnar23 · Rating 4 out of 5]

#️⃣2️⃣1️⃣4️⃣ Read & Reviewed in 2025 🐠 🍭
Date 🌬️: Wednesday, May 7, 2025 ☄️
Word Count📃: 27k Words, short

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૮꒰ ˶• ༝ •˶꒱ა ♡ My 22th read in summertime read-a-thon "since idk wtf to do with my life for one thousand — two hundred — twenty four hours straight" (⁠^⁠-⁠^⁠ ⁠)

4️⃣🌟, i took the fantasy genre one more time, and i'm thankful that i didn't choose booktok to be the ones to get recommendations
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So this is a prequel to a like Well established fantasy series but I don't think I will ever how the courage to read the entire series, maybe in the future idk. But this one actually is not that confusing to me especially all the names because the way that this book writes all the characters are easy for beginners to fantasy to understand and Heyyyyyyyyyyyyy,. finally there aren't 20 unknown terminologies shoved into your face in the first chapter, love that 🥰🥰🥰🥰🥰. We just follow the very short story of abby as she tries to uncover a amulet that is considered a 'debt' or something that is owed to her ancestors and also Zedd, a wizard who wants to defeat the evil Panis Rahl, we go through many adventures of just fighting people, saving people, they are also that one betreyal kinda and a plot twist that is veryyyy shocking because i didn't know that the two of these characters can be any more related to each other but somehow they actually did ✨✨. But like.... That's kinda it, there's not much to it other than that and i can't find anything better to say here.

[Gavin · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was an interesting but not overly essential novella in the SoT series. It took us back to the time of the founding of the boundaries and gave us a glimpse into the battle between the Midlands and D'Hara that made that a necessity.

The story was OK. We followed the tale of Abby as she sought an audience with the wizards in the Wizard's Keep in Aydindril. Her daughter and husband had been abducted by the D'Harans. They were part of a whole border town the D'Harans were holding as hostage to get the young first wizard Zeddicus Zu'l Zorander to trade his life for their own. It was a desperate ploy as the D'Harans were in retreat but far from defeated. Abby had come to plead with Zedd to take the deal and save her family. Zedd had plans of his own!

We got the whole story from Abby's POV. It was interesting as her plight was a desperate one as she sought help to save her family from an awful fate at the hands of the D'Harans. She was an easy enough character to root for as it was easy to understand her motivations and desperation. We got a tiny bit of a glimpse into how the Midlands worked in the era before all the wizards and confessors were wiped out by Darken Rahl. We also got to glimpse the Mother Confessor of the time and we got to meet a young Zedd. It was interesting to see him from Abby's POV as we witnessed him having to weigh the individual plea of hers, and those of others, against the fate of the many he was responsible for in the Midlands. The end of the tale had a few fun twists.

All in all in was a fun glimpse into the past and a very quick read compared to the typical SoT tale.

Rating: 3.5 stars. This was not long enough to earn a high rating so I'm going to round downward.

Audio Note: This was narrated by Sam Tsoutsouvas. I have to admit I was really disappointed by his awful performance of the audio. I've been listening to the old N.L.B versions of the SoT series which are narrated by the fantastic Nick Sullivan and compared to that this was utter trash. Sam Tsoutsouvas bounced between reading this in a complete monotone and reading this like he was a 90 year old overacting a bedtime story to toddlers. It was a dreadful performance which is extra disappointing as if I press on with SoT after the main story arc I'll be stuck with him doing The Omen Machine, The Third Kingdom, Severed Souls, and Warheart. He really sucked the life out of this novella and likely cost it a star in the ratings. The guy even mispronounced D'Hara. It took me ages to figure out Darren's Empire was actually D'Hara ffs! Why are the commercial versions of the SoT audios so shit?

[Stephen · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 stars. Decent story set in the "Sword of Truth" universe and focusing on Wizard Zedd and the creation of the boundaries. Interesting background for fans of the series but I would not start here if you have not read the first couple books of the series.

[Mark · Rating 2 out of 5]

Publisher's weekly wrote
"Teeming with violence, treachery and intrigue."

No it wasn't. Mammoth numbers of people died but in that weird way in which magic serves to anaesthetize readers against the brutality of mass murder by 'doing it with big lights and otherworldy flashings'. Treachery, well i would hardly say the story teemed with it. The heroine showed herself to be a bit of a trait'rous bitch and led the Head Wizard into a trap but then thought better of it and helped him but then ballsed up her little job of keeping someone safe who was then killed but no wait, as if by magic the dead one wasn't really cos it was all a trick by the hero so he could slaughter oodles of people with his big lights and rushing waves of death. Everyone who was good was saved, not a single one of the good characters was killed and, to be honest, it read rather like a story written by a child, one who had a good skill for descriptive passages certainly but not overly gifted in the plot writing gene.

I felt Goodkind was trying too hard to create the idea of levels of magic and sorcery and I was unconvinced. The First Wizard was shown to be amazingly clever and wise by the fact that he could carry out lots of conversations at the same time.....this is not clever, its rude. Being able to multi-task is one thing, encouraging people to talk across each other, butt in to others' conversations and flit from one chat to another is quite another. It is the actions of a social butterfly and I do not care how much magic you have at your fingertips or how many books you, in your capacity as the chief magic-bloke, have the right to read which nobody else can, it is still rude and arrogant so stop doing it.

No, not for me. A bit of something and nothing.....to a large extent. nothing.

The illustrations were simple and mistlike by a man called Keith Parkinson which I liked but the story was a big disappointment.

[Bethany (Beautifully Bookish Bethany) · Rating 3 out of 5]

An all right prequel novella, though the narrative structure is a bit strange. You see a yonger Zed, although he's in a pretty terrible situation with a dead wife and daughter who has been kidnapped by Panis Rahl. There's also a disturbing scene of violence toward a child. Not a terrible novella but very meh.

[Jersy · Rating 3 out of 5]

I was a bit dissappointed that this wasn't as focused in Zedd as I thought it would be, but Abby worked really well as an interesting and strong POV character. Her story is very powerful, but the much too happy ending almost ruined it for me.
This isn't a must-read for the series, it doesn't really expand on Zedd or the world, but it stands well on its own.

[Steven · Rating 2 out of 5]

Meh. It was a reread but I had forgotten most. It was kinda blah. I liked that book one leaves the boundaries a quasi-mystery. Didn't need an explanation!
But not terrible because who doesn't love Zedd?

[Mike · Rating 2 out of 5]

Decent little story at the very beginning of the series...but you can't start with this one. It won't make much sense until you read a couple of the first books.

[Tara · Rating 1 out of 5]

The entire first half of this book - until page 72, to be exact - focused on how helpless and desperate Abby is. Ok, we get it. Her town is in trouble, and her family will be killed if she doesn't bring Zedd to personally rescue her town. Woe is me, I have a special bone that will make the First Wizard himself bend to your will. Really?

Then this crazy old lady is stalking her, who oddly enough, is one of the main evil characters. At page 72, they finally get to Coney Crossing. Finally, some action! Zedd gets ambushed. Abby turns out to have been used to bait Zedd to Coney Crossing. But it's ok because he knows Abby well enough to trust that her heart is true - yeah right. Abby searches through the enemy camp for her daughter in the guise of a Mord Sith, there's a (weak) battle, and Zedd throws up the boundary. PLUS, both Zedd's daughter and Abby's family are perfectly fine. Ta-da!

Zedd knew what was going to happen all along and had all the plans perfectly laid out. Golly gee, how convenient is that!

This entire story would have been better presented as a "flash back" in one of the full length books. Absent some of the more irritating parts like when the Mother Confessor spent 16 pages sitting on the stairs and comforting Abby. I mean, come on...

And to top it all off... We didn't even get to see Panis Rahl destroyed, or Darken Rahl injured. And what about the second boundary between the Midlands and Westland?

As much as I love the SoT series, this was a huge letdown, and a waste of an hour and a half.

[Amber · Rating 5 out of 5]

Terry Goodkind is a superb author, and in my opinion, his "Sword of Truth" series is the best I have ever read. So good, in fact, that I have read the entire series three times in a row, back to back, non-stop. This series is *not* for children. The series covers many aspects of the dark side of humanity, in great detail, as the heroes try to overcome the evils in the world. Goodkind is not afraid to show his readers just what evil *really* is, that is, most often, people who perform acts of evil feel justified in their minds as to why they are doing so, if for illogical reasons, and will that those that oppose them are the evil ones. Goodkind shows his readers that the only way to overcome evil in ourselves and in the world is through use of Reason. The series is *not* light reading, but if one is not afraid to confront the reality of evil (even within ourselves), and how to really defeat evil, the one will find this series extremely rewarding.

[Ashley · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, this was kind of clumsy, but I actually liked it? I'll be honest, I've had such poor experiences with the last couple of Sword of Truth books, I expected more of the same here, and went looking for it. But this ended up being pretty harmless, and by the end, it actually had me engaged. Well, as engaged in this series as I have ever been, which by the way, engagement peaked in book one. So: haven't enjoyed anything in this series this much since then.

This is a novella Goodkind wrote in between books four and five, and it was originally published in one of the Legends anthologies. It's a prequel, following a young woman named Abby and the time she met the First Wizard, Zeddicus Z'ul Zorander. The story takes place years--at least several decades--before the first Sword of Truth book, when Zedd was still a young(ish) man, and his daughter is very young. Abby travels to meet Zedd to seek his help, as D'Harans have invaded her village and taken her father, husband, and young daughter hostage. Abby is the POV character, but this is really the story of how the boundaries went up, and the war with Panis Rahl was ended.

Surprisingly, there is a clear focus and intent in this story. It's not just a novel-length polemic, as the main books are becoming, nor is it so chock full of platitudes and strange aphorisms that you just want to roll your eyes (like the earlier books). Maybe Goodkind is just better when he's being forced to whittle things down. (Note: His dialogue and phrasing are still overdramatic as hell, and it's way overwritten, although at least none of the characters here have been hit with his customary Stupid Stick. Also, none of the heroes are acting like dicks, which is also a thing he's taken to doing in the later books.)

This actually would make a good YA fantasy novel, even if it is a little dark. But I could have handled it for sure as a younger person. Unfortunately, Goodkind is not writing for a YA audience, so that may tell you a little bit about his writing prowess. This is also waaaaaaaay less gross and fucked up than his books usually are (bag of nipples, anyone?). It was practically normal.

I feel like I've got to note here that my positive three-star review of this may have a lot to do with the fact that I had zero expectations for it going in. It didn't have a high bar to clear. Or really any bar at all.

Anyway, to sum it all up: I surprisingly enjoyed this, but I'm sure when I pick up book six in the main series later this year, he'll back in grand form with perviness, jerkiness, and stupidity on obvious display.

[Starlight Kid · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was Ok read it on the train home and didn't really add much to the series but again the shock factor of what Goodkind will do is unique.

But overall the story is pretty basic.

[Etienne · Rating 5 out of 5]

4,5/5. Je m’attaque finalement à la série L’épée de vérité et je voulais commencer tout en douceur avec ce petit préquelle. J’adore déjà l’univers. Cela semble prometteur! J’ai également aimé les personnages, bien que je ne sois pas certain de leur présence ou de l’ampleur de celle-ci dans la série, et l’intrigue était également captivante. Petit bémol concernant la fin ou tout s’arrange un peu trop bien à mon goût, mais rien pour bouder mon plaisir. Déjà bien hâte de poursuivre ou de commencer officiellement avec le tome 1, sans doute vers la fin aout/début septembre.

[Kathrin · Rating 3 out of 5]

A short glimpse into Zedd's past - a nice add-on to the series although there isn't much new information added. However, I liked to read more about Zedd and how people view him. Being called a trickster can't be easy. There is some foreshadowing involved which makes me want to continue the series even more. 'Debt of Bones' is actually a decent story for such a short book and it fits the general tone of the series.

However, it's maybe not the ideal place to start the series although the book is labeled #0.5. I read it after finishing book 1 and 2 which was fine.

[Katerina · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm stunned! I knew it was a story about Zedd,but I never expected that Terry Goodkind would offer us such insight in the defeat of Panis Rahl! The creation of the boundary, the story of what happened to Zedd's wife and how his daughter was saved,were things I was dying to explore! And I couldn't help but notice the similarities between young Zedd and Richard! You were right Abby,that little girl you saved gave birth to a son who saved not only lives, but also souls! So I owe you my eternal gratitude,for making possible the birth of my most beloved hero!

[Kathi · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/10
The prequel novella in the Sword of Truth series introduces the reader to a younger Zedd and explains how the barriers came to be raised. Goodkind manages to avoid the preachiness that fills several of the other books in the series.

[Dollie · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a short story about Zedd as a younger man. It was a very quick, easy read.

[Nicholas · Rating 5 out of 5]

A nice addition to the Sword of Truth series that gives the reader a little window onto one of the more important events of the main series' back-story: the creation of the boundaries that divided Westland, D'Hara and the Midlands from each other. The story is short and sharp, especially when you compare it to Goodkind's other door-stopper novels, but despite that it offers a great deal. The level of detail added to Zedd's character is impressive, and we get to see in greater depth things that were only alluded to in the main series, such as a populated Wizard's Keep that was as much a centre of power in Aydindril as the Confessor's Palace was shown to be in the second and third installments of the main series, the respect and fear that Confessors engendered in the people of the Midlands before their near-extinction just prior to the start of the main series and a few other minor things. There are, however, a few negative aspects of the story. For one thing it is tightly focussed, so some of the characters are not as well fleshed out as Goodkind usually makes his characters. A major culprit in this regard is the lead heroine, Abby, about whose background we get precious little beyond the essentials needed to drive the plot of this story. Also major background events, like the war with D'Hara, while alluded to, are not well explored in the course of the story which does detract somewhat from the urgency of Zedd and the Mother Confessor in particular who seem to be driven primarily by their need to end the war quickly. Overall, however this book is worth picking up, especially since it is short and won't take long to read. However for newcomers to the world of the Sword of Truth, I recommend starting with the main series as you will find answers there to many of the aspects of this book that are left hanging.

[Artemas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I tend to find it diffucult to rate short stories and novellas because it's hard to write something intriguing in the limited amount of space. I usually feel like I rated a short story/novella too high or too low, but this one was a solid 4 star for me. I wouldn't recommend this for someone who has not read most (if not all) of the Sword of Truth series, but it was fairly entertaining if you all ready have a solid foundation for the setting. This book presented the reader with an interesting quick background for some important events for the series.

[Mr Pink Ink · Rating 4 out of 5]

Debt of Bones is the first prequel to The Sword Of Truth Series - which is my favourite series of all time - and tells the story of how the boundaries went up.

It is a nice short read but is packed with all the feels!

True to Goodkind's first few books in the series, this is well written and perfect; the main characters didn't need much of a backstory because it was provided in the main series, but they were still substantial.

If you're a fan of the series, then this book is a must read!

[Nathaniel]

Terry Goodkind is one of those authors that I am determined to read from. I finally got around to a sample of his work and it didn't work for me, but I am not giving up. I just didn't connect with the story at all. That said, I am intrigued by the world and I would like to see what he did with this world in his thick fantasy books. Not a good start, still hope for a good ending!

[Graham · Rating 3 out of 5]

Zonder de boekenreeks te hebben gelezen, wel de serie te hebben gezien, vond ik het een leuk boekje! Jammer dat de vertaling niet erg goed is! Dat doet veel afbreuk :(

[Maddy · Rating 1 out of 5]

Possibly the worst book I've ever read, and I've read CoHo.

[C.J. Daley · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5*

This is a prequel novella to the Sword of Truth series. I haven’t read the series before, but I saw free audible fantasy, and I said yes.

Firstly, I think this would have been more enjoyable (and made more sense) if I had read any of the series before. This is one of those novellas that came out after the series was releasing (a lot like The Wheel of Time’s ‘New Spring’), so it’s not written with too much of the lore or world building in mind. It’s really only setting out to tell a singular tale. I’m pretty curious if this is mentioned in the series itself and then the author later wrote it out as a novella?

Secondly, the thing that this one does the best is tell a single concise tale. It’s only 150 pages (or 3.5hrs audio) and that really worked for me here. I didn’t feel bogged down by series references or name drops (although I’m sure there are some) and I actually think this adds up to a good starting point for the story chronologically.

Thirdly, if you’re wondering if this is for you…it has heart, love, anger, and twists all packed into a little storyline. Family ties, kidnappings, war, and magic all wrapped up into one. The only reason I think I’ll hold off on the series is my mind, body, and soul are not ready to start another 12+ book series right now.

[Michael · Rating 3 out of 5]

Debt of Bones is a prequel book in Terry Goodkind's massive "Sword of Truth" series. I have read a great many fantasy books and series in my years but I had never read anything by Terry Goodkind before. I came across this short novella in a used bookstore and decided to read it before committing to yet another massive fantasy series. I am sorry to say that I was not impressed. I will probably still read the first book in the series at a later date in case this book is not indicative of the entire series. For now, I will be reading fantasy series by other authors. On the plus side, it was very short and took less than a day to read.

[José Baena Castel · Rating 4 out of 5]

3,5
Una precuela en la que hemos conocido el pasado de Zed, El Primer Mago, y la creación de los Límites que separan las distintas tierras.