The Tangle Box (Magic Kingdom of Landover, Book 4) [Mass Market Paperback]

Terry Brooks (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: March 1, 1995

OH, WHAT A TANGLED WEB...
Everything should have been quiet and pleasant for Ben Holiday, the former Chicago lawyer who became sovereign of the Magic Kingdom of Landover. But it wasn't.
Horris Kew, conjurer, confidence-man, and trickster, had returned to Landover from Ben's own world. Alas, Horris had not returned of his own volition--he had been sent by the Gorse, a sorcerer of great evil, whom Horris had unwittingly freed from the magic Tangle Box, where it had long ago been imprisoned by the fairy folk. Now it had returned to enslave those who had once dared condemn it. But first, it would rid Landover of all who could stand in its way...
Soon Ben found himself imprisoned within the gloom of the Tangle Box, lost in its mists and its labyrinthine ways. The only one who could free Ben from the Tangle Box was the lady Willow. But she had disappeared, was gone from Landover on a mysterious mission of her own....

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Brooks continues the magical adventures of Ben Holiday, ex-trial lawyer and now the reigning ruler in the Magic Kingdom of Landover. This latest installment in the series is slower and less charming than its predecessors ( Magic Kingdom for Sale--Sold! ; Wizard at Large) , but it is still likely to please readers already hooked. Horris Kew and his talking avian sidekick are brought back from Earth to Landover, where Horris is tricked into letting the Gorse, an evil spirit, out of the Tangle Box, where it has spent a very long time dwelling on its entrapment by the fairies. Now the Gorse wants to overrun Landover and manages to imprison Ben Holiday, the witch Nightshade and the dragon Strabo inside the Tangle Box. Holiday's wife, the non-human Queen Willow, is pregnant and must perform her own difficult quest to ensure a healthy birthing for the child. Meanwhile, with Holiday out of the way, the sinister Gorse coerces Horris into creating serious mischief in the Kingdom. This rather haphazard tale liberally inserts many of the characters made popular in previous books, which may be an asset for hardcore readers who like their fantasy lite. Author tour.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

From Library Journal

Ex-lawyer Ben Holiday's peaceful reign as king of the magic realm of Landover takes a decided turn for the worse with the arrival of con man and conjurer Horris Kew, an unwitting agent for an evil power that seeks to control the good folk of the kingdom. Where Brooks's popular Shannara novels (The Talismans of Shannara, LJ 2/ 15/93) pay tribute to traditional epic fantasy, his Landover series-of which this is the latest-displays the author's genuine flair for humorous fantasy. A good selection for most fantasy collections, and one that will probably be in demand.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to the Hardcover edition.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 368 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey (March 1, 1995)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345387007
• ISBN-13: 978-0345387004
• Product Dimensions: 4.2 x 1 x 6.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #49,106 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars If you liked the Landover Series you will enjoy this one, September 23, 1997

By 

Kristina L. Darby - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Tangle Box (Magic Kingdom of Landover, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

If you read the fist three Landover books and like them, you will like this one. Simalar theme as the last three with Terry Brooks' excellent descriptions of details. The base story line is: A magic creature captures Holiday (King), Nightshade (Witch), and Sabro (Dragon) in the "Tangle box". Their memories are stolen from them and they wander around the Mysts not knowing who or what they are. Through a line of strange events they are freed by Holidays faithful servents. More details would ruin the book. Read it if you are a Terry Brooks Landover fan.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great Job Terry, Another Piece of Excellent Work!!, August 6, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Tangle Box (Magic Kingdom of Landover, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

I loved this book. Next to THE WITCHES' BREW, this was the best landover novel, Terry really did out do himself this time. I enjoyed this book the whole way through, I never wanted to put it down, and when I did, I picked it up again almost immediatly. I loved all the hardships and obsticles the characters had to face, endure, and over come throughout the course of the book. GREAT JOB!!!!!! This is a must read for anybody and everybody who has ever had a love for the spellbinding magic of a great fantasy novel.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Second Best of the Series, July 2, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: The Tangle Box: A Magic Kingdom of Landover Novel (The Magic Kingdom of Landover) (Hardcover)

This story is the most interseting book of the series.It brings in a new character that Holiday and his friends must deal with. However, Holiday is traped in a magic box with his two enemies.What happens inside the box between The Knight (Holiday), the Lady (Nightshade),and the Gargoyle(Dragon) is very interseting.It is a must read for anyone whocv has enjoyed Brook's other Landover novels.