A&A The Official Terry Brooks Discussion Thread

I got High Druid of Shannara: Jharka Ruus late but I read it in less than 3 days! Okay super spoilers below


















Grianne gets sent into the Forbodding(sp?)
Ahren dies
They go deep into the northlands again!

 

The Ahren thing confuses me, as you might have been able to glean from my questions above...

 

Thanks for spoiling the book for me. I love to read Terry Brooks's work. They are among my favourtie books ever, but why did you have to tell me waht happens? I hav'nt read his new book yet.

 

Well, they did put a spoiler warning there...


Anyway, Im a fairly new fan to Terry Brooks' Shannara series. I thought that First King was really good, and I liked The Sword of Shannara but wasnt all that crazy about it. Things vastly improved with The Elfstones of Shannara but to me, The Wishsong of Shannara is his best work so far. I thought that this was easily the best book of the series, a much more dark adventure than the previous ones and a great way to end the first series.

Im really looking forward to reading the Heritage books next. Can anyone give me a brief synopsis without revealing major spoilers ?

 

I'm JUST rereading Heritage for the first time since 1994.

Heritage takes place 400 years after Wishsong (the best of the original trilogy I think) The Federation, mentioned briefly in WS, has taken control over most of the 4 lands. Magic is outlawed. Of course, the major families of the saga (Ohmsford & Leah) are called upon to defy this. I recommend the new 4-in-1 hardcover - I got mine from Walmart.com for a mere $20.00 - $15 off the cover price!

I remembered Heritage as being very "90's" for those of you who remember back that far! Shannara with a bad case of the drabs. But I'm really surpirsed @ how action packed, colorful & fun 'Scions' is! Wow. What a difference a decade makes.

I haven't read "Jerle Shannara" yet - I have the paperback box set waiting for me as soon as I finish Heritage.

Of the original Trilogy I enjoyed WS most, as mentioned above. Elfstones has not improved with age. I found it more tedious than ever. It is chock full of pointless back tracking, endless exposition, dull settings etc... it does have a few terrific characters (Eretria, Stee Jans, the twin witches) but WS is really where Terry began writing solid novels. I rate it with "The Wizard of Oz" and "The Black Cauldron" as a juvinile adventure story.

Sword is the only one of the books that I have read every year since first finding it, waaaay back in 1981. It is extremely amatuerish but it has a certain 'something' - I rate it with "Treasure Island" but maybe that's just because it was such a big part of my childhood, especially those Hildebrandt illustrations. I always love to read it right around Christmas and to finish up the last five chapters or so on Xmas morning...will I ever grow up?! Probably not!

 

Jerle Shannara is pretty crappy, IMO.

I do, however, love the new series (Jarka Ruus, et al)...

 

I just bought the hardcover of Ilse Witch @ Barnes & Noble for $4.99

I have always maintained that it is one of the ugliest books I have ever seen. And the paper...how cheap can you get?! Yet...it looks so nice from across the room nestled with the original Heritage hardbacks & 1st King. I pine for my lost hardcovers of SS, ES & WS *sigh*

Well I hope IW -doesn't- suck. I'll be starting it in December if I keep my present pace up.

BTW: I like the PM novel. Yeah it's not a great work of lit. but it captures the feel of the film and easily outshines most other novelizations.

 

Thanks for the summation of the Heritage series, guys. I picked up the first two books the other day and should be getting to them in a few weeks.

 

After reading the Sword of Shannara trilogy and its prequel, I must say that I am impressed with terry's work. Each book had an excellent strength. SoS had a really good quest and enjoyable characters. EoS had originality and very enjoyable characters (Wil and Ander). WoS combined the strengths of its predecessors. First King showed us how everything began (at least those of us who wisely read the prequel before the original trilogy). Given the disappointment many readers have expressed, I decided to skip Voyage of the Jerle Shannara and move on to Jarka Ruus. Must say that I loved the principal "good guys": Grianne, Ahren Elessidil (i was very saddened by his death), his niece Khyber, and Pen Ohmsford (loved the fact that he has a deep rapport with animals, not unlike another character that I like). Interesting how the main villain is a muscle-bound woman. Loved the connections to Elfstones of Shannara. Looking forward to Tanequil.

 

I must be one of the few than who liked "The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara" series than! I loved it!

 

Does every second fantasy book have to have dragon in its title? Or the ubiquitous elfs, dwarfs and human combo?

When I find a fantasy book that's creative without them, I'd be happy to read my first one.

 

Actually, I've just started Illse Witch. I guess it's like the FH trilogy, it depends on what your tastes are. So far, I like it.

 

What is Jarka Ruus about?
I don't even know when it's set.

First_Stage_Lensman, I read Sword of Shannara every year too.

 

Jarka Ruus is about Grianne Ohmsford as the Head of the new Druids' Council.

And related, sundry travails...

 

If you would all like to visit a new Terry Brooks/ Everything else Forum, go to www.druids.uni.cc

 

For those who are intersted, the US cover for Tanequil has been posted on terrybrooks.net. Looks pretty good. Love the presence of green (i'm a Sierra club member so I love the color, though not the party).

I finished Antrax. Much better than Illse Witch. Truls Rohk is VERY intriguing, and I love Ahren Elessidil. Loved how they combined sci-fi with fantasy. I always wondered what would happen if SW were to intersect with an LOTR-style fantasy. Started Scions and love it. I must say the Four Lands have gone down the tubes: elves have been driven away, dwarves are enslaved, magic is forbidden, a shady secret police force (Seekers) who work with evil beings. Reminds me a lot of the Empire- same policies, but under a parliamentary facade.

 

(at least those of us who wisely read the prequel before the original trilogy).

Actually not so wise as it ruined some of the story for heritage. Brooks himself said not to read that until after you have read the Heritage series.

 

I read First King before I read anything else, and Ill be getting to the first Heritage book within a few weeks or so. Good thing I barely remember First King.

 

Same thing with me, DV. i read First King in December and barely remember anything other than the characters and Jerle attacking the warlock lord.

For those who are curious about Tanequil (part II of the high druid of Shannnara trilogy), the first chapter will be posted on May 1st on the terry Brooks site.

 

As a heads-up, the first chapter of High Druid of Shannara: Tanequil has been posted on www.terrybrooks.net. Enjoy!

 

Apparently, Terry's brief stint in the SW universe has influenced yet another Shannara novel.

SPOILER ALERT:

Etan Orek, an airship engineer for the Federation, has created a laser weapon using special crystals.

END SPOILER.

Although this news is a bit shocking, I do not think Shannara will change into a sci-fi series, or at least not one totally dominated by sci-fi elements. Rather, as I understand it, he will be mixing the two to create a hybrid of sorts: a world with fantasy-style creatures with certain sci-fi elements. Good luck, Terry.

 

Either way it should be interesting...

 

No doubts there! Terry always, with a few minor exceptions, comes up with an enjoyable and fascinating story. I hope that we'll see more of the Northland, as well as the Forbidding, in Tanequil. Oh, BTW, in Tanequil, there will be a full page map of the Forbidding in addition to the map of the Four Lands.

 

Hey, guys, just checking in after finally wrapping up the Heritage series earlier tonight, and I must say that I absolutely LOVED these books. The story was great, and in the tradition of Wishsong it was a truly dark adventure with hope and promise waiting to burst out from the darkness. Each book was very good (Im not sure if I like High Druid of Shannara better than Wishsong lol) and you can almost see Brooks' writing improve with each subsequent novel. The characters were really well developed this time around, too. I especially like Walker Boh, Coll, and Morgan Leah, who was easily the best developed Leah descendant to date and was probably my favorite character in the entire series.

Anyway, I picked up the Jerle Shannara books but Im going to hold them aside for a while and save them for when I really need a Brooks fix. In the meantime Im going to pick up High Druid of Shannara in paperback tomorrow.


Oh, and lastly, about the potential of the world of Shannara becoming both a sci-fi/fantasy hybrid, well, if done correctly it could be very, very good. Matthew Stover has managed to mesh both genres pretty seamlessly with his Caine books, and I have confidence that Terry Brooks can do the same.

 

sorry, this is kind of stupid, but did he write truce at bakura, or am i thinking of somebody else?