First King of Shannara: Amazon.co.uk: Terry Brooks: Books

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Review
Brooks wasn't the first writer, and won't be the last, to make a career out of a single idea that captured the fantasy audiences's attention (his Magic Kingdom yarns notwithstanding). So, for those who simply can't get enough of Shannara books, here's a very large prequel, chronologically set 500 years before the original The Sword of Shannara (1977), in which readers may discover how the last Druid, Bremen - last until young Allanon, hero of the later installments, shows up - battles the evil Warlock Lord and his Skull Bearers, and how his ally, King of the Elves, Jerle Shannara, wields the Sword of Shannara against the bad guys. And so forth. For those who care. (Kirkus Reviews)

Product Description
Set 500 years before "The Sword of Shannara", this is the story of the fall of the Druids and their city, Paranor. Using the special skills he acquired through his study of magic, Bremen, the last and mightiest of the Druids, plans a magical weapon to destroy the forces of evil.

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The old man just appeared, seemingly out of nowhere. Read the first page

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Customer Reviews

17 Reviews

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

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4.4 out of 5 stars (17 customer reviews)

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book has a diamond edge, 15 Jan 2000

By	Marco Busani "Proven Intellect" (Edgware, London) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)

This review is from: The First King of Shannara (Prequel to the Shannara series) (Paperback)

This novel is a Brooks masterpiece and I would strongly disagree with the guy that gave this book a flawed rating of one.This book opens powerfully;the fall of the Druid's keep with the loss of good characters Caerid Lock and Kahle Rese is particularly engaging.The 5 survivors from the slaughter at the keep embark on an epic quest to help save the Four Lands.Risca rouses the Dwarf nation,Tay unlocks the power of the Black Elfstone, whilst the remaining trio forge the Sword of Shannara.This book has a strong storyline,involving characters and excellent swords and sorcery action.Brooks has a habit of endearing the reader to his characters and then killing many of them off, as the vast majority of the cast for good in this novel perish.It is also good to be introduced to Allanon in this story as he is the central protagonist of the Sword/Elfstones and Wishsong Trilogy.Add this book to your fantasy collection.

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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Fantasy Masterpiece, 17 Jan 2006

By	N. Marshall (Yorkshire, UK) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: The First King of Shannara (Prequel to the Shannara series) (Paperback)

This is the first Terry Brooks novel that I read, and it blew me away. For a relatively short novel (copared to the Sword of Shannara Trilogy, and the later Heritage of Shannara and Voyage of the Jerle Shanarra) the storyline is surprisingly deep.

Although initially I was put off this book by thinking it was going to be Brooks attempt at being Tolkien, there is sufficient difference for any reader to be able to enjoy this book. I found it to be very well written, with characters that you can really believe in and come to love.

If you haven't read any of Terry Brooks then the Sannara series is a must, and will surely rank very highly in your fantasy collection. I highly recommend this book, and other Shanarra books. Now that Terry Brooks has finished writing the Shanarra series I feel pretty lost. I enjoyed these books immensely.

One thing I can guarantee is that once you pick this book up, you will not put it down until you are done. A brilliant series.

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4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Surprising, 23 Jan 2001

By A Customer

This review is from: The First King of Shannara (Prequel to the Shannara series) (Paperback)

I have never classed Terry Brooks as a *great* author, but he is a good one. I notice he is always compared to Tolkien, and one author or the other tends to suffer for it. Well, I am afraid I have never found Tolkien to be an intelligent read. Good for children though. Few fantasy novels have an intellectual depth to them, even if they are a lot of fun to read, and people forget that Tolkien did not invent the story, he copied it himself. However, as far as fun goes, this book, like the others, is definitely that.

It has been a long time since I have read the book but the reason I give the stars as high as I do, is for one peculiar fact about this book that I have only ever seen one other author pull off (CS Lewis): First King is a prelude book that was written after the main story, just as the first Narnia book (The Magicians Nephew) was written a long time after the more famous "The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe". However, both books have the virtue of being able to be read before any other books, or after reading them, or without going ahead and reading any of the other books ever. For example, the revelation of Allanon about the truth of himself and Bremen to Shea at the end of the "Sword of Shannara" struck me as particularly weird, and not one I considered likely. I, of course, cannot say what was in the author's head at the time he wrote The Sword, or if he had the story of the first battle against Brona all worked out in head back then, but his handling of the entire Bremen-Allanon affair (and a few other things that are mentioned or hinted at in later books) is better done in this novel, than these books would imply. On the other hand, these inconsitancies between books are small and carry the flavour of "historical inaccuracy" as opposed to the blatent ignoring of his own previous works that authors such as David Eddings have managed.

If you like the Shannara books, add this one to your collection. It does not invalidate the other books, and has the virtue of being a true starter book, even though written with hindsight, and that is where it gets the extra star from me.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars A deeply emotional read
I've read all of Terry Brook's works, starting with The Sword Of Shannara, but I only recently managed to obtain The First King Of Shannara. Read more

Published on 14 Aug 2005 by Ms. Nadia Bashoo

5.0 out of 5 stars A prequel better than the original.
THE STORY:
The complacency of the Druid Council has allowed the rogue Druid Brona to become the Warlock Lord. Read more

Published on 30 Jan 2005 by Ian Tapley

5.0 out of 5 stars first class
one of the best, after reading the elfstones of shannara, i thought that it could'nt get better, i was wrong! this is a must read.

Published on 30 Mar 2004

2.0 out of 5 stars The book that should not have been written
Prequels are almost always a bad idea. This one is no exception.
I found that the characters and action did not seem to fit well into the established "feel" of the Four Lands... Read more

Published on 22 Oct 2003 by kaladon

5.0 out of 5 stars First king of Shannara, rival to Lord of the Rings?
A superb book, should be made into a film. I can just see the battles & magic coming to life on screen, & the ending! Read more

Published on 17 April 2003 by C. J. Atchley

5.0 out of 5 stars A Masterpiece
Terry Brooks has drawn together the stories presented as history in the first Shannara books and skilfully made them into the most exciting and best book he has written. Read more

Published on 4 Mar 2003 by Susan Dalton

5.0 out of 5 stars Definatly up to Terry Brook's standard, another classic...
The first trilogy relates a great deal back to the storyline of First King, leaving the reader with unanswered questions and a pestering ignorance of what the first war of the... Read more

Published on 7 Oct 2002 by Tom Wright

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic but a hiccup almost ruined it
Having read the series first and then discovered this book I was initially cross, feeling I would have liked to have read this first, but afterwards felt that as much as it is a... Read more

Published on 30 Oct 2001

4.0 out of 5 stars Pretty good...
Well. It wasn't what I expected. And I can find about a million parallels between Nest Freemark from 'Running with the Demon' and Mareth. Read more

Published on 5 Nov 2000

5.0 out of 5 stars A very enjoyable and interesting book!
Iam a great fan of the Shannara series and this book just adds more depth and interest to the whole series. Read more

Published on 7 Oct 2000

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The Druid of Shannara

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	77% buy the item featured on this page: First King of Shannara 4.4 out of 5 stars (17)
	8% buy The Elves of Cintra (Genesis of Shannara) 4.3 out of 5 stars (13) �5.49
	5% buy Armageddon's Children (Genesis of Shannara) 3.8 out of 5 stars (26) �5.49
	5% buy The Sword of Shannara Trilogy 3.7 out of 5 stars (18) �11.89


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