Be warned, though. There are many, MANY fans of the books who think the series is total garbage. If you realize they are different media and have stories not in the books, you'll be ok.

Terry Goodkind met with Sam Raimi and thought Sam really *got* the books, so he sold the rights. However, when ABC/Disney got their hands on the show, they made some big changes and I understand Terry is no longer in the process.