Customer Reviews

The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara: Ilse Witch

5 star:		(85)
4 star:		(54)
3 star:		(25)
2 star:		(14)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

After a long while of nothing in the way of Shannara, Terry Brooks has revived the dearly loved series. His new series begins 130 years after "The Talismans of Shannara" left off with Coll and Par Ohmsford. Now a castaway from a previous voyage to discover lost magic has arrived in the mainland 30 years after his departure. With the castaway is a map chronicolling his journey. The druid, Walker Boh, now known just as Walker, undertakes the perilous journey with an elite few aboard the sleek airship named the "Jerle Shannara."

This book is an excellent revival of the old series and I couldn't put it down for 2 days until finished. One problem is the author failes to make some of the main characters appealing but this is forgiven because of the outstanding storyline and mood throughout the book. You will be doing yourself a favor getting this, but make sure you have plenty of free time because you will call off previous engagements in favor of this book.

The one true problem is that the book leaves the reader so badly hanging that he is afraid he will fall.

In this first of the series, author Terry Brooks brings us back to his world of the Shannara series. When a blinded and muted elf washes up on the coast, carrying a mysterious map, the Druid Walker is summoned. Walker organizes a mission, peopled by an unusual collection of elves, humans, a dwarf, and a mysterious man of unknowable powers. But, an evil witch, the Ilse Witch, with powers to rival Walker shadows the party and dread prophecies bode ill for the mission. Undaunted, the party sets off in a new airship, into the unknown depths of the Blue Divide.

Being the first book in a series, this book contains a good deal of character introduction and development. Through it all though, Terry Brooks keeps the story moving, with the pace of the story accelerating as the chapters roll along. His introduction of the magical/technological airships is a fascinating development. Overall, this is a great book, and well worth you time and money.

My first Shannara book was read in the late 70s when I should have been studing for college finals. Now I'm 40 something with work, home, kids and somehow Brooks reels me into his world again. Like life there's not an ending to this book, but there are lots of questions. How much can you trust others? What do you hide from those you love? How can you reconcile the good and evil that exists in all of us? If someone you loved saved your life, but destroyed others' lives how would you feel about them? I like fantasy but I usually feel like I don't have time for those epic fantasy novels in my life right now. 10 min to read before bed is pretty good for me. But Brooks books are quick reads even though they are hefty in size. I especially like that the names are not unmanagable. Sometimes I might not get to read for fun all week, with those polysyllable names found in some fantasy books I forget who's who. Bek, Quentin, Hunter Predd, Isle Witch - a foreign flavor but names that stick. I'll be reading the next in this series and the next and the next....

Brooks' Shannara stories fall into two distinct categories:

1) Characters must face and defeat "elemental evil" ("Sword", "Wishsong", "Talismans", "First King")

2) Characters must quest for some hidden, magical thing ("Elfstones", "Druid", "Elf Queen")

"Ilse Witch" falls squarely into the second category -- ancient and powerful magic must be retrieved from a part of the Shannara world that hasn't appeared on previous book jacket maps.

The story reads like a murder mystery. Brooks creates 15 new characters with interesting and unique "powers," puts them all on a flying boat heading to a dangerous place, and lets the reader watch the characters interact and develop. Some live, some die, some are betrayed, some are redeemed, all have secrets that are eventually revealed, etc. etc. You get the idea. It makes for fun characterization, if unsurprising plotting.

I found two aspects of Ilse Witch particularly rewarding. First, Brooks begins to fill in a bit of the historical back story of the Shannara universe. Ilse Witch introduces "science fiction-like" technology, and makes interesting references to the mystical/magical framework of his "Running with the Demon," books. Second, Brooks shares Walker's feelings, opinions, and "special druidic knowledge" with the reader. This means that the reader actually knows just as much about what is going on "behind the scenes" as Walker does, which was a refreshing change from the way Brooks used Allanon to hide information.

As other reviewers have noted, Ilse Witch "sets up" the series. With the characters introduced, I expect the next books to finally get to the dramatics Brooks does so well.

The first fantasy book I ever read was the Sword of Shannara. I owe Terry Brooks a great debt for contributing to the growth of an only childs imagination.

This book is a return to the world of Shannara after Brooks spend many years writing the fantastic (7 stars) Word and the Void series. This book is the start of a trilogy (I'm guessing) and introduces a number of compelling characters. Expect a healthy dose of Highlanders, Elves, Dwarves, magic, and a new part of the Shannara world.

A very fine return. Keep them coming, Terry!

A half-dead elf is found floating in the sea of the Blue Divide, his tongue and eyes ripped out. He's carrying a bracelet that proves he's the elf-king's brother who's been missing for thirty years. He's also carrying a map. The map outlines a quest that was started thirty years before and from which no one ever returned...until now. But what does the map mean? Only one man can decipher it, the last Druid, Walker. So begins a new quest to find out what happened to the Elfstones, lost thirty years before and what lies on the mysterious islands shown on the map.

Terry Brooks has always been able to paint a rich world of elves, dwarfs, goblins, witches, Druids, and what have you. This new world is no exception. Like all ensemble-type novels there are a lot of characters to keep straight in your mind but they are all different enough so that isn't too much of a task. Since the book is the first in a series a great deal of time is spent leading up to the beginning of the actual quest and in my opinion it does drag a little. However, if you read this type of fiction you have to be aware of that's the way it is written. My only quibble is the cliff-hanger ending. It seems to me the book needn't have ended in such a Saturday-matinee type way. This actually surprised me because Mr. Brook's other series didn't end like this. His other books seemed to resolve a problem within each book and yet still leave room for the sequel to work out the next big thing. I personally don't like this cliff-hanger ending and I think it diminishes the book somewhat. Since we probably won't see the next installment for about a year, that's a long time to be kept hanging.

Would I recommend this book? Yes, if you already like fantasy. If this is your first foray into this genre I'd suggest you start with something else. Mr. Brook's "The Sword of Shannara" would be an excellent place to begin.

Amazing. There are few books that hold your interest throughout the entire story, but Terry has certainly accomplished that with THE ISLE WITCH. I could NOT put this book down! And when I had to put it down (one has to EAT, I suppose) I couldn't wait to get back to it. The story moves quickly and the characters are colorful and engaging, each with his own story to tell and problems to overcome. The plot is incredible ... it kept me guessing and wondering at every turn - the revelations and hidden agendas ... the mystery and the magic ... THE ISLE WITCH is a combination of murder mystery, drama, fantasy, sci-fi, and more! Mark my words, by the last page you will be desperate for more! Terry has pulled out all the stops with this new series in the Shannara universe. Until now, my favorite has always been the first book, SWORD OF SHANNARA. But THE ISLE WITCH (and the upcoming books in the VOYAGE series) will prove to be my new favorites by far.

Terry Brooks, author of the bestselling Shannara seires which began in 1977 with 'The Sword of Shannara', effects a compelling return to the Four Lands with his new novel 'The Voyage of the Jerle Shanarra'. The novel begins with the discovery of a ravaged and tortured elf, aboard a tiny raft drifting in the endless swells of the Blue Divide. Clues to the indentiy of the elf, and what may have befallen him, spawn a quest which eventually draws together a diverse cast of characters led by the enigmatic Walker Boh; last of the Druids and the keeper of Allanon's trust. Without giving anything away, I can honestly say I loved the story and it is, without a doubt, classic Terry Brooks. The Four Lands breathes again in this novel, and the mantle of the Druids which Walker must bear, is a weight which brings a gravity to the proceedings I felt was somewhat lacking in the 'Scions' series of Shannara books which preceeded this new cycle of novels. Great characters, rich story-telling, and very compelling bits and threads of a much larger story are cleverly revealed throughout the course of the novel.

I really did like this book, it was different to the other Shannara books as it had more conversing with other characters. I could picture the scenes very clearly and easily in my mind. One thing I didn't really like in this book was that some of the characters that were involved in the first half of the book, in the second half were neglected, when I really wanted to know what they were doing/thinking. But then again there is other books to come out so maybe it will have more info on them later. But all in all a very good read!

Tolkien may have created the epic fantasy genre but Brooks really popularized it. Reading a Brook's Shannara novel is akin to watching a great movie and this new one's no different. You got memorable yet mysterious characters, who's secrets are revealed at a good pace as the series moves along. The verse is not too wordy or too curt but just enough to visually establish place and move along the plot. I look forward to reading the future books in this series. Perhaps Brooks will finally verify that which many readers have suspected for so long, that Shannara is in fact a future version of Earth.