The Elfstones of Shannara (The Sword of Shannara) (Mass Market Paperback)

~ (Author) "The night sky brightened faintly in the east with the approach of dawn as the Chosen entered the Gardens of Life..." (more)
Key Phrases: faerie creatures, muddied earth, third ramp, Wil Ohmsford, Free Corps, Stee Jans (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

A marvellous fantasy trip' Frank Herbert 'If Harry Potter has given you a thirst for fantasy and you have not discovered the magic of Terry Brooks, you are in for a treat' ROCKY MOUNTAIN NEWS 'Confirms Terry's place at the head of the fantasy world' Philip Pullman --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Description

Ancient Evil threatens the Elves: The ancient tree created by long-lost Elven magic, is dying. When Wil Ohmsford is summoned to guard the Amberle on a perilous quest to gather a new seed for a new tree, he is faced with the Reaper, the most fearsome of all Demons. And Wil is without power to control them....

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Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Del Rey; First Printing edition (December 12, 1983)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0345285549
• ISBN-13: 978-0345285546
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.1 x 1.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (208 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #57,256 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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• This is item 2 in The Shannara Series.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

20 of 20 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars ONE OF THE THE BEST EPIC FANTASIES EVER WRITTEN., December 3, 1998

By A Customer

I was impressed with Terry Brooks' Sword of Shannara, but he was obviously just warming-up in preparation for his true masterpiece, the Elfstones of Shannara. The Ellcrys tree, created millennia ago by long-lost Elven magic, is the strength behind the Spell of Forbidding, a dimension of imprisonment for ancient evil. In quick succession, the Ellcrys begins dying, the Forbidding starts crumbling, and the demons within break free--and that's only the first dozen pages! Allanon meets his match with the sorcerous Dagda Mor, only one of thousands of unstoppable demons who fear but one thing: a rebirth of the Ellcrys. Oh, I haven't even mentioned the cunning Changeling or the fearsome Reaper--there are enough villains and heroes in these pages to fill a shelful of ordinary books. Since 1982 when I first read this novel, I've returned at least ten times. I feel I've come to know and cherish these characters, like visiting old freinds every once in a while. Of the hundreds of fictional works I've read these past three decades, only a half-dozen have been as absorbing or given me as much enjoyment as the Elfstones of Shannara.

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Simply wonderful, May 1, 1999

By A Customer

The Elfstones of Shannara is definitely the best book in the Shannara series. I love this book, and have read it over, and over, and over.... For the longest time, I wondered why I liked it so much. Then, I realized that it wasn't like any of the rest of the Shannara series (Sword of Shannara was O.K., but the later books became nothing more than agonizingly slow psychodramas with characters that were constantly struggling to deal with the use of the "magic"- bleh!). This novel, on the other hand, is perfectly balanced, with a somewhat different concept than the standard "Kill the evil wizard/dictator" plot. The Ellcrys, the tree that bars a horde of vengeful demons behind the magic walls of the Forbidding, is dying. Once she is gone, the creatures of darkness will pour in and destroy the world. The only way to stop the terrible events is to sent one of the Chosen to bathe the seed of the Ellcrys in the Bloodfire. This task falls upon Amberle Elessedil, a reluctant former Chosen. Allanon appoints Wil Ohmsford as her protector and sends them off on a mission to save the world. Meanwhile, the forbidding collapses, freeing the demons. It's up to the Elven Army to stop them, aided by the brave men of the Free Corps. Character development is excellent; none of Brooks' other works has any characters that come close to the ones in this book. Stee Jans, Ander, Amberle.... they're all very compelling and all seem very real. The plot is great, too. My personal favorite moment is the battle with the demons at Halys Cut, but the book is chock full of memorable scenes. The first encounter with Cephelo, Allanon's battle with the furies, the witch sisters, and the final agonizing decision itself... All of them will earn a special place in your memory of great fantasy. The only real downside to it all is that this book shows you how creative Brooks can really be. When you see that someone has the ability to write a masterwork like this and then go and read something like "The Wishsong of Shannara," it really disillusions you.

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good read for all, July 16, 2000

By	sphael (Grand Blanc, MI) - See all my reviews

This book was the first of the initial trilogy that I read, and I still think it's the best. It has a near-perfect blend of suspense, intrigue, hierarchal rivalry, and romance. Also, it has one of the most intriguing, exciting, and well written large-scale fantasy war scenes I've ever encountered.

This book is NOT a clone of the first book, The Sword of Shannara, as some might be led to believe. True, something goes wrong, then Allanon appears. However, he is not the main character, and with all due respect to him, one large reason he is there is to simply tie in this book with the rest of the series.

A note to all people interested in this book but turned off by all references saying it's too much like Tolkien, only worse: people don't realize that the two series are not comparable. The two authors' writing styles are different. Brooks' works tend to focus on the here-and-now, using more dialogue and action. Tolkien tends to focus on the Big Picture, using tons more detail. Neither style is bad. It's the reader's taste.

FINAL NOTE: Good literature has no specific demographic. The Elfstones of Shannara is a good read for all. It has plenty of action and intrigue, while maintaining a definite mature atmosphere.