Rating: 
Summary: Here We Go Again
Review: Terry Brooks once again takes us down the path that started in the first Shannara books, with no druid council worth talking about, except that this one has more back stabbers than usual. He once again puts someone in trouble (Grianne) and has two youngsters out to rescue her.
I am not sure I will pursue the following books of this trilogy since it follows the same formulas of the others. I was hoping that this time there would be a full and functional Druid Council ready to help the four lands and bring the wars to an end. Alas, I am again dissappointed. If you like Brooks, this will set well with you, but expect nothing new except previously unknown areas of the four lands.
Rating: 
Summary: A welcome return to the Four Lands
Review: Jarka Ruus, Book One of the High Druid of Shannara Trilogy, is our latest invitation from Terry Brooks to return to the Four Lands.
This time round, we find ourselves rooting for Penderrin Ohmsford who is charged with the mission of finding the missing High Druid, Grianne, the Ilse Witch from the previous trilogy who also happens to be his aunt. Aiding him are the Elven prince Ahren Ellessedil and his niece Khyber and a cantankerous dwarf named Tagwen.
We have the usual group of villains who would stop at nothing to prevent Pen and his friends from accomplishing their goal. But be warned, the lead villain is not who you think it is as Pen discovers that something more sinister than traitorous and power-hungry druids are behind his aunt's disappearance.
Pen does not inherit any of the "usual" magical powers bestowed on the Shannara descendents in the previous books. He does not wield the Sword, have use of the Elfstones, or call on the magic of the Wishsong. Instead, he has the power to communicate with plants and animals, an ability he is quick to dismiss but one which will prove very handy before the book ends.
The uniqueness of Pen's power is the only trait that separates him from the previous Shannara heroes. In all other aspects, he is a carbon copy of Shea (Sword of Shannara), Par (Heritage of Shannara), or Bek (Voyage of the Jerle Shannara). Like his predecessors, Pen is plucked from his quiet life by fate to go on a perilous quest to save the world. He is reluctant, lacks confidence and feels sure that others are more suited to such an important job.
After more than 10 books set in the same fantasy world, be prepared for a sense of déjà vu in several places. However, the familiar characters in familiar situations do not prevent Jarka Ruus from being an enjoyable book as Brooks still manages to astound with fresh wonders, developments, and intrigues. I'll be queuing for the next books in the series.
Rating:
Summary: could have been better
Review: I expected more after hearing how this was basically a continued story of the Voyage trilogy. I know Terry Brooks likes to bring new heroes into the fold and not bring back any of the old characters except the Druids. This time it is Pen, the offspring of Bek from the Voyage series. This is a part I had a problem with. I grew with Bek and was looking forward to seeing him as a grown man 20 years later. I was even expecting it with the slight build up at the beginning of the book when they were talking about Grianne brother and to "watch out" for him if they are going to mess with her. Yet Bek doesn't even stop by for a quick hello. Instead we are stuck with Pen who is basically Bek in the Voyage trilogy growth wise so I feel like I am going through the same story again as far as the main character is concerned. I am disappointed with that but at least Terry tells a good story so I was mostly entertained. The air ship chase, again, reminded me of the Voyage series but there was enough mystery and random events going on that keeps the story interesting. The true gem of this book is the Forbidding, I don't want to spoil it but I will only say I am looking forward to reading more about this place in the 2nd book. All in all, if you like Terry Brooks I would recommend this novel. If you are starting out with his stories I would recommend The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara first. This could be an unfair opinion based on who I was expecting (and hoping) the characters would be in this story.
Rating:
Summary: He Keeps Writin' them and I Keep Readin' them.
Review: Terry Brooks's Shannara Series was my first journey into Fantasy writing, and I've been a huge fan ever since. In this 4th Shannara series, he picks up 20 years after the events of Voyage of the Jearle Shannara. Admittedly, the story is very similar to the rest of the Shannara books, and you get the idea that only the character names have been changed to protect the bored. Once again, Brooks uses his standard "unlikely hero" formula, but once again it works just fine in this first installment.
In this tale, we are introduced to Penderrin Ohmsford, son of Bek Ohmsford, hero of the Jearle Shannara series. While Pen does not carry his father's gift of the Wishsong, he has the unique ability to communicate with animals and plants around him. It is because of this trait that he is chosen by the King of the Silver River to go on a quest to save his aunt, Grianne, whom readers may remember as the Ilse Witch. Since the last series, Grianne has become Ard Rhys (High Druid) of the Third Druid Council of Paranor. However, a series of failed endeavors and her inescapable history as the evil Ilse Witch have haunted her followers to the point of mutiny. Now she's been exiled, and only young Pen can find her.
Jarka Ruus tells the story of the first leg of Pen's journey. Brooks introduces a number of new characters, good and evil and of course a fair amount of folks who ride the line between the two. By the end of this first volume, each still has a lot of room for further development. Brooks tells you just enough about each new character to keep you focused on the main story, but remain aware that each has an important back-story undoubtedly leading to plot twists somewhere down the line.
I also noticed that this book reads much quicker than all of its predecessors. Although I've only finished book one, I get the feeling that this trilogy could easily be written as one book - perhaps an epic much like the original Sword of Shannara. Instead, I get the idea that he's writing this one like a serial, with installments much shorter and simpler than his earlier works. Perhaps this is a hint that Brooks may need to retire this highly respected series before it gets too tired.
The bottom line is that I still enjoyed this first book. I still plan on reading the next two, and I still care enough about the characters to wonder what happens next (something I can no longer say about Robert Jordan's "Wheel of Time" series, but that's a different review altogether...). Sure, it's admittedly formulaic, but it's a formula that works for Brooks. He doesn't try to make this series anything it's not. He doesn't stray from the story, or get overly wrapped up in unimportant details. This book is nothing new and spectacular, but it's still a very good continuation of Brooks's Shannara universe. If you enjoyed the other Shannara's, then pick this one up too.
Rating: 
Summary: Another Awsome Shannara Fantasy
Review: After I read the Voyage of Jerly Shannara Trilogy, I just couldn't wait for the new series to come out. High Druid of Shannara is one of the best Shannara books out there. This book is so attention getter. I started the first page and couldn't put it down. I loved it.
Terry Brooks has brought us a perfect 3rd Druid Council book. With Ilse Witch being the leader, its perfect. After half way through the book, I already knew that this whole trilogy was going to be awsome. When Ilse Witch got put into the Forbidden, at last everyone can finally see the forbidden from the inside. Elfstones of Shannara just brushed up against the coming of the forbidden and the demons inside. Now, Grianna Ohmsford(Ilse Witch) has to finally do what most druids would never would have done, take a trip inside the forbidden and survive, if she does.
This book, i would recomment anyone to read. Even if your a Shannara lover like me or not a lover, then this book is pretty much the best book of 2000 to 2004 so far. Read it, you won't regret it by far
Rating:
Summary: finally a worthwhile effort
Review: Brooks has been stumbling around with his past few series, producing masterpieces such as Antrax, counterbalanced by duds like Druid of Shannara. At last he seems to have read and appreciated all the criticism levelled at him and made an honest effort to change his style. The result; a dark, compelling and exciting story.
Plot has never been brooks' strong point and it remains the weakest link in jarka ruus. The storyline is straightforward and similar to the rest of the series, but this is the only kink in the book. Brooks has finally gone out and got himself some actual characters. Grianne Ohmsford is by far the most fascinating, an engaging study of a tortured personality lost as much spiritually as physically. And Tagwen the dwarf is a character mould that I have not seen Brooks use before. He serves as both the Sam to Pen's Frodo and Gimli to Khyber's Legolas. Those two (Pen and Khyber) seem like copies of Bek/Wil/Jair/Par and Wren, but brooks has done a lot more with his leads than he usually does. Instead of long tracts of third-person inquisition-style detailed descriptions of each emotion, brooks actually tries to develop them through dialogue. I kid you not! And thankfully, there is no (not yet, at least) romance forced between them.
The real romance story is actually quite tastefully done. brooks usually tends to take love and hit his characters over the head with it. You can see it coming a mile away, and its not exactly endearing. This time, he actually develops the romance from affection to infatuation to love. A pleasant change.
Though this book is plagued with brooks' old problem of not knowing what more to do with the fantastic but limited world of the Four Lands, the characters all develop backbones, most remarkably the Druidic characters, namely Grianne, Ahren and Shadea. That all makes for an interesting read that leaves me waiting eagerly for Tanequil, the next installation.
Rating:
Summary: High Druid - Book 1
Review: This book was a much more darker one than some that Brooks has written, which was quite nice. Chapter two was a great introduction to the dark nature of this series.
Twenty years after the voyage across the Blue Divide to the continent of Parkasia, this is the on-going story of Grianne Ohmsford (formally the villianess The Isle Witch). The story of how a group of power-hungry Druids in her order decide that they should run the Druid Council, considering Grianne's background.
After a mysterious magic is used to sweep away Grianne to another land, the journey to help bring her back begins, involving her nephew Penderrin Ohmsford, a Dwarf named Tagwen, and two Elves: Ahren (who was in the last series of books) and his niece Khyber.
Some things that I liked in this book were some ties to older Shannara books, including Grianne's destination and a certain weapon that was used in one of the books - I don't want to give too much away.
Like many said, including myself, the last series was kind of dry - but this one is much better. Book two came out the beginning of this month - September. Book three won't be out until September 2005.
Rating:
Summary: Back to Basics
Review: Being a long time reader of the Shannara books I would like to say that this volume was a breath of fresh air. Finally Brooks is getting back to the more fantastic and magical aspects of his work that made him so successful. For while the Jerle Shannara series was entertaining it had too much to do with computers and technology. This book returns to myth and entertaining magic. My only beef with this is the lack of real story advancement and the exclusion of one of the Eah characters. i hate that the Sword of Leah can't help with its own magic. All in all though this is a good read.
Rating:
Summary: Exciting and well constructed
Review: I enjoyed this book. I thought it was well thought out and easy to read. Sometimes Terry Brooks has a tendency to over-do (good) description which leads to bogging down his stories. I did not think this was the case here. The plot moved along very well and kept me page-turning throughout.
While characters were well-developed and we get a sense of who they are and want to learn more about them later, I thought that the number of characters and parallel perspectives made it more difficult for Brooks to allow us into the heads of these characters as well as he usually does.
Overall, I loved the story and characters and I am looking forward to the next volume in this series.
Rating:
Summary: Good and Bad...
Review: I own and have read everything by Terry Brooks... He is the only fantasy Author i read.... but i have to admit that this latest book... just released on soft cover... is a little dissapointing.
Grianne is AMAZING... the book starts off with her and you are taken in by her situation... and cant help but read on to find out what happens.
But the problems start when Pen Ohmsford is introduced... i feel like everything is a little too rushed... a little too perfect and a little too convenient... i cant really put my finger on it... but something about it i dont like.
I hope this improves with the next book.... but this one is deff worth the read for all Terry fans... for the Grianne bits at least!
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