Customer Reviews

Angel Fire East (Trolltown)

5 star:		(30)
4 star:		(31)
3 star:		(11)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

The incomparable Terry Brooks is in top form with "Angel Fire East," the third installment of the "Running With The Demon" series. In this one, Knight of the Word John Ross, compelled by his relentless dreams, is on a quest to locate a creature, born of magic, he knows only as a "Gypsy Morph." Once he finds it, he knows he will have but a short time to unravel its secret if it is to become the powerful ally he needs in the ongoing struggle against the Void. Then something happens that takes him back to the town of Hopewell, Illinois, and his old friend, Nest Freemark, who he has not seen in ten years. There's a connection, it seems, between Nest and the Morph; but it's as much a mystery to Nest as it is to Ross. Now it's up to Nest, as well as Ross, to figure it out before it's too late, all the while fending off the demon who would have the morph for his own sinister purposes. Brooks weaves his own magic here with a narrative alive with tension and suspense. There is a sense of urgency to the story, over which the menace of the darkest demon Brooks has yet created, one Findo Gask, hangs like a pall. Along the way we meet Pick, the little Sylvan caretaker of Sinnissippi Park; the Indian O'olish Amaneh, also know as "Two Bears"; Nest's friend, Bennett Scott; all of whom are more than just characters in a book; these are people you get to know, care about, and want to spend some time with. And then there's the malevolent trio of demons under Gask's command: Penny Dreadful (whose name says it all), the hulking Twitch, and a creature of shadow, known as the Ur'droch. Long after you've finished the last chapter, you're going to remember all of them. It's all a part of the spell Brooks casts, and I promise you, it will leave you wanting more of the same.

Excellent book in my opinion. While others say that it was a bit long winded in spots and is boring to read through all of his descriptions, I look forward to the great detail. He builds the characters from the ground up and makes you feel everything they are feeling... if you take the time to read all of the detail that is. The only thing I didn't like was the ending. He wound the book up in 4-5 pages and it just didn't sit well with me. 50 pages of wonderful fight scenes as only Brooks can do was completely ruined by a quickie ending. Wish he's spent 10-15 more pages explaining what happened to the characters afterwards.

Having worshipped the other two books in this series, I bought AFE the first day it came out and had it finished two days after that. Being slighty upset with it, I waited a few months and read it again, figuring that I'd give it time to digest. Unfortunately, my opinions stayed the same. Nest is a cool character in the books, don't get me wrong, but Ross is, to me, the reason I read the series. He's a cool version of a Paladin, and I can't wait for him to fight the next demon. However, he's severly underused in this book, and his ultimate resolution is terrible...almost as if Brooks was rushing to finish the book. As for the rest of it, Brooks has an annoying tendency of cheating his way through mysteries--you wonder what's going on, what something could mean, and then once its explained you realize its just that you didn't know something about the magic. An explanation that has to be applicable simply because it can't be tested suddenly pops up, i.e. Wraith in basically every sense. The bad guys in this one aren't very good either, and though it reads quickly, I think that can be attributed more to me wanting more of Ross than liking the story...it was fairly slow throughout. All in all though, this series is definitely worth reading, especially the first two. It looses steam at the end, but Brooks still manages to haven enough cool stuff to keep his readers interested.

In the third installment of The Demon Series, Brooks does a wonderful job of again captivating the reader and bringing them along for the ride. One never feels like a simple spectator. In this brave fantasy series set in our world and our time Brooks uses ideas and prblems we all face to create a fantasy yarn that doesn't seem that hard to believe. This is a riveting book, and I was truly surprised at the ending of this one (I had guessed pretty much the end of Kight of the Word). I hope that this is not the last installment in this series as there are so many avenues still to explore. I wasn't disappointed!

Sorry to say, Brooks has been somewhat of a whipping-boy for the last twenty-odd years for most fantasy and SF readers and writers to use as an example of how not to write, and that reputation almost kept me from reading this series. The plot was interesting enough to get me into it, and I must say that this, as well as the first two books, are great examples of urban fantasy. I was so impressed that I plan to go back and read some of his other works to see if I've been missing anything. For anyone with a love of character-driven fiction and fantasy themes interwoven into the mundane, these are the books for you. They probably aren't for the more pedestrian consumer tastes who need big battles, dragons, quick-paced pulp action and all the other predictable genre devices that makes much fantasy literature these days virtually unreadable to anyone who appreciates a well written story. It's not suprising that it's not as popular amongst the Eddings/Jordan crowd. This is more like Koontz or King at the top of their form. In other words, good literature. I really hope Brooks conintues in this vein - he's proven he has greatness within.

As a big fan of Terry Brooks' effortless way of keeping you in suspense awaiting the next installment, I throughly enjoyed this book. It tied up many loose ends and left the reader wondering what would continue in the footprints left by the story's conclusion. For those who have read and followed the Magic Kingdom and Shannara series, both of which left me wanting more(a new series, character, or idea), this series continues the tradition. I feel it is worth reading more than once, as I certainly will.

Angel Fire East is a wonderful conclusion to the Word vs. Void series. The description in this book and its previous two are richly developed and decidedly romantically nostalgic. The reader is completely and thoroughly enveloped by the scenery and feelings of which Brooks obviously has felt and still feels, even to this day. I've heard Brooks say that these books are loosely based on his childhood and the town in which he grew up. He really knows how to put onto paper his inner most feelings. Our friend Nest Freemark has grown into full adulthood and now resides in her hometown. She is still trying to come to terms with her magic and at a time when she is most vulnerable, a demon comes looking for her. John Ross has discovered a gypsy morph of which will change the power struggle in favor of the Word. The only way for the gypsy morph to evolve into a helpful state is to encounter powerful magic much like it contains in itself. Nest has that power and John has decided to bring it to her in hopes of some much needed assistance. Of course the demon, Findo Gask has designs for getting the powerful gypsy morph through Nest. This book was really wonderful and gave me much enjoyment. I especially liked the descriptions of Christmas and all its warmth, proverbial and otherwise. If your looking to read something that is just simply good all around, this is the book for you. I recommend it highly.

In the third installment of The Demon Series, Brooks does a wonderful job of again captivating the reader and bringing them along for the ride. One never feels like a simple spectator. In this brave fantasy series set in our world and our time Brooks uses ideas and prblems we all face to create a fantasy yarn that doesn't seem that hard to believe. This is a riveting book, and I was truly surprised at the ending of this one (I had guessed pretty much the end of Kight of the Word). I hope that this is not the last installment in this series as there are so many avenues still to explore. I wasn't disappointed!

It took me quite a long time to even get the courage to purchase Running With The Demon. I believe it had been out in paperback at least a year before I got around to it. I was a fan of Shannara--and that was ALL. I had already ignored his Landover series from day one (and still haven't read them--although one day I will) but this one seemed different. The idea of a contemporary fantasy story set in the REAL world was fascinating and the loosely based similarities to the Harry Potter series is about as far off the mark as comparing the Lord of the Rings to Star Wars.

I am quite impressed overall with the entire series, and with Angel Fire East in particular. The character of Findo Gask is at once one of Brooks' more demonic creations, but in a totally different manner than anthing set before. Sure he has given us some truly horrible creatures over the years, but Findo is much more evolved than the others...and consequently is much more intelligent and cunning, and therefore almost real in how he can make your skin crawl. I loved the pacing of the story and how it all unfolded so meticulously. It almost seems as though each and every person introduced is treated as though they were the main focus of the story, and that secondary characters simply did not exist.

I have also noticed that no matter how much I enjoyed or hated a novel, there are ALWAYS those who feel as opposite from the way I do as is possible, and therefore discount my opinion of the book I reviewed. I never feel the need to preach about how if I liked any particular book that the world HAS to like it as well...and so I won't here as well. What I WOULD like to say is this: chances are if you liked Running With The Demon and A Knight Of The Word, you will more than enjoy Angel Fire East. Personally I felt it was one of the more satisfying stories Terry Brooks has ever written. He is right now in the middle of bridging the storylines of the Word and Void to Shannara with Armageddon's Children and the upcoming Elves of Cintra. Once again, I cannot WAIT to buy and read them as well...and who knows, while waiting for the last book, I may finally pick up that first Landover book that came out so long ago and give it a go...

I own all three books in this series, but Angel Fire East is the only one I own in hardcover. This book is wonderfully written, and has some very interesting plot twists in it. As this review is titled: "Best book of the series".