Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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46 of 52 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
Terry Brooks = Tolkien + Star Wars - a sense of humor, November 5, 1999
After reading one of the later Shannara books several years ago, and after recently reading Brooks's stale rendering of the new Star Wars movie, I was not expecting to warm up to his first novel. Boy, was I surprised. I couldn't put it down, for all 726 pages. The book is just one adventure after another, all involving the search for a special sword needed to defeat the evil Warlock Lord who seeks to rule the world. The only man capable of using the sword must embark on a quest to find it, with only a few magic stones as protection against the dreaded Skull Bearers who are after him. If you think this doesn't very original, you're right. But there's one interesting twist: this story takes place in the future.At least that's what I understood. My friend, who read the book years ago, disagrees. Sure, it appears to be the standard quasi-medieval setting with its kings, its dungeons, and its primitive technology. But one character describes a time in the distant past when humans mastered "a science of machines and power" but ended up unleashing technology in a series of wars that altered the planet and destroyed most of the life on it. Doesn't this sound an awful lot like nuclear holocaust? Society was in ruins, but humans eventually reeemerged along with other "races" they dubbed as gnomes, trolls, dwarves, elves, and the like, all adapted to different lifestyles. They also discovered magic by harnessing the power of the dead. Other than this curious rationale for a world populated by mythical kinds of creatures, the book rarely strays from the conventions of the genre. Usually when I'm reading fantasy, I expect a story either to have some connection with history, like the King Arthur tales, or to invent something entirely new, like Tolkien's hobbits. Brooks does neither, but I did enjoy the vividness of the world he created. When we first encounter a troll, the creature is described as having bark-like skin like that of a tree. It's that keen attention to detail that brings this world to life. Even though it's not original in a broad sense, Brooks is a resourceful storyteller. About midway through the book, I found one plot twist so surprising, I laughed out loud. What this novel lacks, besides the slightest trace of humor, is strong characterization. The book has a lot of characters, and I would have liked to see their personalities distinguished more. My favorite characters are a pair of thieves who reminded me a bit of Han Solo and Chewbacca. But Brooks has an unfortunate habit of stating things instead of showing them, which makes it far less interesting. For example, he describes the character of Menion as having strong morality, but I didn't find this trait as noticeable through his actions. There don't seem to be any women in the story until about two-thirds into it, when one of the characters stumbles upon what else? A beautiful princess. And that's all we ever learn about her. Brooks's portrayal of women is one of the things which made me dislike some of his other books. By now, I'm starting to forgive him for these flaws. What's more, I'm slowly becoming a convert to his verbose, cliché-ridden, dead-serious, and highly enjoyable fantasy epics.
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52 of 60 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars
Ugh is a word, right?, June 10, 2004
I finally forced myself to finish this book. I purchased the trilogy and, despite grimacing at nearly every turn of the page, here I am.I like Terry Brooks in the present. Terry Brooks in the 70's, when he wrote this, was frightening. I've said it before and I'll say it again, this is rehashed Tolkien by a less skilled hand. In fact, the last time I wrote on this book, I hadn't even finished it yet. The similarities became even more blatant and, yes, pathetic, as I read on. The reason for it being pathetic, of course, is that Brooks tries to cram into 400 pages what Tolkien did in over 1000. Witness Shea, our token Frodo with his Sam, now known as Flick, loyal to a fault. Shea/Frodo is no hero, but he's got strength of character and will see this thing through to the end. Withness Allanon/Gandalf, the wise and ominous figure who knows so much and is a friend to all throughout the lands for he is so wise and blah blah. Witness Aragorn/Balinor, the heroic man of royalty who..suddenly because Faramir/Boromir near the end of the book when we see that his brother, under the influence of the villanois Stenmin/Grima has ventured to take the throne from the king who is slowly being poisoned to death by Stenmin/Grima. Gasp. Never forget Gimli/Hendle and then poor Legolas who gets turned into two generic elves who are utterly and totally pointless to the story in its entirety and serve only to remind you that yes, Elves exist here. And then Menion Leah, who really has no parallel in Tolkien. That must mean he's original, right? Marvel as they journey through the creepy mountain that is not Moria. Witness Allanon fight a Skull Bearer that is not a Balrog, only to smite the beast but have it grab him at the last second and pull him to a fiery doom. Except that he miraculously survives. And is not Gandalf. Behold the Gnomes who are certainly not Orcs as they lay siege to the imepenetrable human stronghold that is set into a mountain and is not the same one from Lord of the Rings. Wonder why the Sword of Shanarra, that is not the Ring of Power, winds up in the hands of a Gnome who is not Gollum, who goes crazy and fights to keep his precious sword, who is forced by madness to grasp it even though it is killing him, and he dies for it. Finally, cringe when you notice that in every chapter in the last third of the book, the characters reflect on their journey thus far. Every chapter and every character, reflecting on events that you read only 100 pages ago and therefore don't care to relive because you only read it 100 pages ago. That this book was published amazes me. The writing is poor, the characters are all underdeveloped and the blatant influence of Tolkien is unforgiveable.
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11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars
First half steals, second half shines, June 18, 2002
By A Customer
I barely got through the first half of this book because of its lack of originality. Almost every element of the plot was borrowed, probably unintentionally, from Tolkein. Shea and Flick (Frodo and Sam) leave their protected Shady Vale (the Shire), being hunted by wraithlike minions of the Dark Lord. The elfstones, like the Ring, reveal the bearer's position to the Dark Lord. A company made of men, dwarves, and elves joins together to travel with Shea (the Ringbearer) to find the Sword. Shea is poisoned and must be rushed to a the Anar (Rivendell)where are healed. Allanon (Gandalf) leads his company into the Hall of Kings, a cross between the Mines of Moria and the Paths of the Dead, where he fights a powerful monster that was aroused from the depths by their passing. Later Allanon fights with another creature, both fall into the abyss, and later Allanon reappears alive. Huge armies of Gnomes and Trolls are assembled by the Dark Lord just as Orcs are gathered in LOTR. On the plus side, the second half of the book brings up a lot more original ideas. The subplot with Panamon Creel and Keltset was absolutely delightful, and gave me the only true emotional feeling of the whole book. Terry Brooks writes well, but much of it has been written before and, sorry to say this, better.
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