The Elf Queen of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, Book 3) [Mass Market Paperback]

Terry Brooks (Author)

Book Description

Series: Heritage of Shannara | Publication Date: January 23, 1993

"Find the Elves and return them to the world of Men!" the shade of the Druid Allanon had ordered Wren.
It was clearly an impossible task. The Elves had been gone from the Westland for more than a hundred years. There was not even a trace of their former city of Arborlon left to mark their passing. No one in the Esterland knew of them -- except, finally, the Addershag.
The blind old woman had given instructions to find a place on the coast of the Blue Divide, build a fire, and keep it burning for three days. "One will come for you."
Tiger Ty, the Wing Rider, had come on his giant Roc to carry Wren and her friend Garth to the only clear landing site on the island of Morrowindl, where, he said, the Elves might still exist, somewhere in the demon-haunted jungle.
Now she stood within that jungle, remembering the warning of the Addershag: "Beward, Elf-girl. I see danger ahead for you . . . and evil beyond imagining." It had proved all too true.
Wren stood with her single weapon of magic, listening as demons evil beyond all imagining gathered for attack. How long could she resist?
And if, by some miracle, she reached the Elves and could convince them to return, how could they possibly retrace her perilous path to reach the one safe place on the coast?

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Finely tuned and occasionally elegiac, this third volume of Brooks's projected Heritage of Shannara tetralogy follows Wren Ohmsford in her search for the last of the Elves, part of the quest set for her by the shade of the Druid Allanon as her role in saving the world from destruction by the mysterious Shadowen. Wren and her nonspeaking, telepathic Rover mentor Garth find the Elves in their city of Arborlon threatened by monsters they created themselves in an attempt to revive their ancient magic. After Wren's true lineage is revealed--she is a granddaughter of the queen of the Elves--the girl agrees to lead a small band of companions in a desperate gamble to save her people and fulfill her mission. Wren must overcome her fear of the famous Shannara Elfstones and then learn to manipulate their powers if she is to succeed. Meanwhile, her cousin Walker Boh succumbs to his destiny in the ancient Druid city of Paranor, while Par Ohmsford, with Walker and Wren the third of the "children of Shannara," is further endangered by the sinister Rimmer Dall. Brooks's prose becomes more fluid and his world becomes more complex, ambiguous and credible with each volume.
Copyright 1991 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Kirkus Reviews

The latest addition to The Heritage of Shannara tetralogy, the separate quests of Wren, Coll, and Par Ohmsford, and their uncle Walker Boh, proceeding as ordained by the dead Druid, Allanon. Wren, with her faithful giant deaf-mute sidekick, Garth, has been charged with restoring the vanished Elves; the latter, she discovers, are beset by evil beasties and hiding behind magical barriers in their city Arborlon on the island Morrowindl, which is destroying itself in a volcanic eruption. In Arborlon, Wren learns that she's actually an Elf, the granddaughter of Queen Ellenroh, and it is her task to bring Arborlon back to the mainland concealed inside a magic jewel, the Loden. Coll, meanwhile, escapes--or so he thinks--from the clutches of the evil Shadowen leader, Rimmer Dall, only to lead the latter straight to Coll's brother Par; and Walker Boh rediscovers Paranor, the lost city of the Druids, by becoming a Druid himself, albeit against his will. Fancy and mostly agreeable stage-setting for the showdown to come in book four. -- Copyright ©1992, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (January 23, 1993)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345375580
• ISBN-13: 978-0345375582
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 0.9 x 6.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #197,592 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #18 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > ( B ) > Brooks, Terry > General

More About the Author

Terry Brooks is the New York Times bestselling author of more than twenty-five books, including the Genesis of Shannara novels Armageddon's Children and The Elves of Cintra; The Sword of Shannara; the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara trilogy: Ilse Witch, Antrax, and Morgawr; the High Druid of Shannara trilogy: Jarka Ruus, Tanequil, and Straken; the nonfiction book Sometimes the Magic Works: Lessons from a Writing Life; and the novel based upon the screenplay and story by George Lucas, Star Wars(R): Episode I The Phantom Menace.(tm) His novels Running with the Demon and A Knight of the Word were selected by the Rocky Mountain News as two of the best science fiction/fantasy novels of the twentieth century. The author was a practicing attorney for many years but now writes full-time. He lives with his wife, Judine, in the Pacific Northwest.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The Best of All, May 13, 2000

By 

mtg (Lytle Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Elf Queen of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

I first read this book about three years ago only because I had to read a book for my class or get a failing grade. I hated to read, mainly because I never really had. When I was in the school library I wasn't even sure how the place worked. I just walked in and picked a wall of books not knowing it was the fiction part of the place. I can still see it sitting there, it was a hardcover copy and the only reason I got it was because I loved the picture on the cover. It was amazing...it was like being transported into a whole new world. I laughed, and cried throughout the whole thing. When a character died, I felt like a part of myself died as well. After reading it I begged my mother to buy me all of the Shannara books and I read them all in a few weeks. Terry Brooks is the reason I now love to read and I will never forget the first book I ever read...The Elf Queen of Shannara.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars My Second Favorite Shannara, May 7, 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: The Elf Queen of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is one of my favorite Shannara novels. Anyone who complains about LOTR-esque fantasy not giving women major roles and/or good characterizations should read this. The major character is Wren Ohmsford (although that is not her real name) and it is her charge to bring the Elves back to the Four Lands. Terry spends a great deal of time developing her and her past. We are also introduced to Stresa, the splinterscat (a cross between a cat and a porcupine), one of the most creative creatures to appear in Shannara. Although his hisses and growls are vaguely Gollum-like, he proves to be a reliable guide for Wren as she seeks the other elves and as she leads them back to the shoreline. Another interesting note concerns Garth, Wren's friend/teacher/bodyguard. He is both deaf and mute, a first for LOTR-style fantasy, and shows little if any arrogance that one might expect from one of his strength and stature.
All in all, an excellent masterpiece by Terry Brooks.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars please make it stop, July 1, 2008

By 

Travis J. Miller (Tikrit, Iraq) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: The Elf Queen of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, Book 3) (Mass Market Paperback)

Well, I read the Magic Kingdom series years back, and that was fun and lively story. I haven't read the original Shannara series. This is my first. Book 1 of the series was good with some action. Brooks did an average plus job of introducing the story line; enough to keep me wanting to read. Book 2 continued on with the average plus. Good story line and engaging characters. You can almost feel Walker Boh's plight. However, Book 3, the story of Wren, is nearly horrid in reading. This book made me want to quit reading the series. Poor Wren has to use some magic pebbles(the Elfstones) to get her out of trouble. And she must cry about it every time. The storyline would be pretty good, if Brooks would not stop every other page to show us Wrens crybaby attitude. OK already, we know her history, quit reminding us after every other scene. Brooks skips over much of the action, and fight scenes are usually done in a sentence or two, while Wren's continuous fretting over growing up and having to use magic goes on page after page. If you take out Wren's constant crying and descriptions of acacia trees, you might have 150 pages of story. Uggh!!! Boring!!! I'm just starting Book 4 and already we are back to almost good plot and action. I hope Wren dies in this book. Will be the last time I read Brooks. Anybody want these books???