Rating: 
Summary: Terry Brooks, master of storytelling, weaves his greatest.
Review: Once again, Terry Brooks masterfully weaves his storytelling magic in The First King of Shannara, the eighth installment in the popular Shannara series. A prequel to the series, this book embodies the classic fantasy world in which the battle between good and evil predominates in the story. Brooks, master of his art, allows these "Tolkein-esque" elements to form only the backdrop of a solidly forged epic, powerful and moving, allowing readers to embrace characters as only Brooks can create and develop them.
In great detail, The First King of Shannara answers many of the questions raised in previous books: the fall of Paranor and the Druids, the forging of the Sword of Shannara
, the discovery of the Black Elfstone, the origin of Allanon
, and more. Hundreds of years after the First War of the Races, the outcast Bremen, the last of the Druids, is the only force that convince the people of the Four Lands that their only hope to prevent subjugation lies in uniting -- and in using the magic they fear above all else.
Whether dedicated fan or first time reader, this novel will enthrall you, capturing your full attention and binding
you to the web woven by Terry Brooks. This book in the least deserves the highest recommendation, and connot be done justice by any summary, however massive. Only by personally experiencing the latest work of Brooks can one understand the wonder and proportion of it.
Rating:
Summary: A Classic Fantasy Series Revisted
Review: Fans of the Shannara series will recall vividly the first work of Terry Brooks, almost 20 years previous, as if they read it yesterday. That is the power of Brook's work. He employs a powerful technique of character and plot development that can be best described as "Tolkein-esque." He now employs his technique once again to draw on his own classic series of novels to approach the questions that could only be answered by a prequel. However, series readers will be once again be able to embrace a richly detailed fantasy world where the battle between good and evil form only the backdrop of a tightly woven web of classic fantasy writing. New readers will be drawn into this web and will find themselves unable to put this bookdown. Terry Brooks had managed the literary art of the "cliffhanger" and knows how to keep his readers engrossed. Fans of his writing should not hestitate to add this work to their collections
Rating:
Summary: one of the best!
Review: Although I am still in the procees of reading this book,
I have to say, it is one of Terry Brooks best! I have been
yearning to learn of how it all began, and finally, it has
been revealed! If you haven't read any Terry Brooks books
before, now is the time to start! You will become a fan if
you aren't already! As always, Mr. Brooks holds me in
spellbinding captivity with his absolutly wonderful work!
nortina bell
Rating:
Summary: Could not put down
Review: As the latest of the Shannara books Terry Brooks does a wonderful job of answering many of those questions that have dogged us since we were first introduced to Shea and Flick. For the first time experience to this world or as the latest book in the ongoing saga of the Shannara line you will enjoy this book. Many of our questions are answered and many more are posed as we experience the very beginning of the saga of the battles against the warlock lord and the ongoing strugle of good against evil. One of the all time best series
Rating:
Summary: A TRULY SPLENDID BOOK. HOURS OF ENJOYMENT.
Review:
The First King of Shannara is the eighth installment in
Mr. Brooks' magnificent Shannara series, yet it is actually
a prequel to the series. In this book, many of the things
alluded to in the in the preceding books are revealed in
detail: the fall of Paranor and the Druids, the forging of
the Sword of Shannara, the discovery of the Black Elfstone,
the origin of Allanon, and more. Whether or not you have
read the other Shannara books, this book is still extremely
thrilling. I cannot recommend this book enough.
Rating:
Summary: The ultimate battle between good and evil.
Review: The one time druid, Bremen, goes on a quest to prove the Warlock Lord is alive. Too bad nobody believes him. With a band of characters how will Bremen save the day. Especially when all but a few of the druids at Paranor, the druids keep, have been wiped out. Hope and time are running out for the races with the coming of the Warlock's coming darkness
Rating:
Summary: Terry Brooks, master of storytelling, weaves his greatest.
Review: Once again, Terry Brooks masterfully weaves his storytelling magic in The First King of Shannara, the eighth installment in the popular Shannara series. A prequel to the series, this book embodies the classic fantasy world in which the battle between good and evil predominates in the story. Brooks, master of his art, allows these "Tolkein-esque" elements to form only the backdrop of a solidly forged epic, powerful and moving, allowing readers to embrace characters as only Brooks can create and develop them. In great detail, The First King of Shannara answers many of the questions raised in previous books: the fall of Paranor and the Druids, the forging of the Sword of Shannara , the discovery of the Black Elfstone, the origin of Allanon , and more. Hundreds of years after the First War of the Races, the outcast Bremen, the last of the Druids, is the only force that convince the people of the Four Lands that their only hope to prevent subjugation lies in uniting -- and in using the magic they fear above all else. Whether dedicated fan or first time reader, this novel will enthrall you, capturing your full attention and binding you to the web woven by Terry Brooks. This book in the least deserves the highest recommendation, and connot be done justice by any summary, however massive. Only by personally experiencing the latest work of Brooks can one understand the wonder and proportion of it.
Rating:
Summary: My First Shannara
Review: This was the first Shannara book I ever read, and it remains one of my favorite books. This novel introduces some really cool characters, like Tay and Risca, as well as one of the best non-valemen/Leah human characters: Kinson Ravenlock. Meeting Jerle Shannara, ancestor of the Ohmsfords and namesake of the series, was also quite amazing. I hope Terry writes another novel set in the early history of the Four Lands to show other members of the Shannara clan and other prominent families.
Rating:
Summary: Brooks has still got it.
Review: After the HERITAGE OF SHANNARA series, I was afraid that Brooks had lost his touch with that world. This book proves otherwise. It tells a story of the past and does it well. Like the first "trilogy", this book gets the reader involved emotionally. You care about the characters...deeply, or at least I did. It tugged on my heartstrings and made my spine tingle throughout.The pacing is also very good. The book starts out quickly and continues at a breakneck pace. Not that there isn't time for introspection...there's a lot of that, but not an overabundance. It's definitely a page turner. I think I would have appreciated it more if it hadn't been so many years since I'd read the other books. There's such a sense of history here and Brooks works in a lot of foreshadowing of the other books. Unfortunately, I didn't remember details enough to fully appreciate all of it. The one thing that bothered me about this book was the lack of a map. I got confused sometimes as to where certain characters were in relation to others. Aside from that, this was a very satisfying read.
Rating: 
Summary: A big disappointment
Review: I must say that I found this book a real disappointment, given the standard of the rest of the series.
The plotting is thin, the action weak and the characters predictable. It reads like it was written using a fantasy-by-numbers manual and the cliché meter turned to the `on' position. Chunks of it are dull and full of padding.
It is only worth reading for completeness and, to be frank, even then it doesn't add anything really significant to the canon.
If it was a book other than in the Shannara series then I would only have given it one star.
steve
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