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The Sword of Shannara (Shannara Trilogy)
 
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The Sword of Shannara (Shannara Trilogy) (Hardcover)

by Terry Brooks (Author)
3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
Price: £9.99 & this item Delivered FREE in the UK with Super Saver Delivery. See details and conditions
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Frequently Bought Together

The Sword of Shannara (Shannara Trilogy) + The Elfstones of Shannara (Shannara Trilogy 2) + The Wishsong of Shannara (Shannara Trilogy)
Price For All Three: £23.97

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 672 pages
  • Publisher: ATOM; New edition edition (5 Oct 2006)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 190423397X
  • ISBN-13: 978-1904233978
  • Product Dimensions: 19.8 x 13.4 x 5.8 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (52 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 156,472 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #54 in  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > B > Brooks, Terry

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Product Description

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

Product Description
Long ago, the world of the Four Lands was torn apart by the wars of ancient Evil. But in the Vale, the half-human, half- elfin Shea Ohmsford now lives in peace - until the mysterious, forbidding figure of the druid Allanon appears, to reveal that the supposedly long dead Warlock Lord lives again. Shea must embark upon the elemental quest to find the only weapon powerful enough to keep the creatures of darkness at bay: the fabled Sword of Shannara. THE SWORD OF SHANNARA is a classic tale of magic, danger and high fantasy, a masterful story from a master storyteller.

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Customer Reviews

52 Reviews
5 star:
 (21)
4 star:
 (11)
3 star:
 (7)
2 star:
 (7)
1 star:
 (6)
 
 
 
 
 
Average Customer Review
3.7 out of 5 stars (52 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
8 of 11 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars Can anyone recommend a good book?, 25 Sep 2006
By Mrs. J. Ramsdale "Adviser Jenny" (Lincolnshire, England) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
This review is from: The Sword of Shannara (The Shannara series) (Paperback)
I am about half way through this book and decided to see what others think of it. I can only agree with the common theme that it is a blatant copy of LOFTR. I have found myself more intrigued by the copying that I have been about the story itself, with the Frodo, Sam, (+1 person equals Marry and Pippin), Aragorn, Boromir, Legolas and Gimli characters as in the "Fellowship of the Ring" being copied almost exactly. Ok they are fighting gnomes instead of goblins and the Gandalf and Aragorn characters seem to have been melded into one. But we still have the ancient artifact that holds all the power, the only one person that can weild it, the mines of moria, and EVEN, the fall into the pit whilst fighting a BIG THING.

THIS BOOK IS IRRITATING TO SAY THE LEAST! Unfortunately, I bought another of Terry Brooks at the same time (wont make that mistake again).

I have read all of David Eddings and Stephen Donaldson, most of Robin Hobb and all of Raymond E Feist (probably the best after Tolkien), I was looking forward to a rattling good read from Terry Brooks, what a damp squid that turned out to be!
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10 of 15 people found the following review helpful:
2.0 out of 5 stars How did this become a Bestseller?, 7 Nov 2003
This review is from: The Sword of Shannara (The Shannara series) (Paperback)
The answer lies in the popularity of Lord of the Rings. Brooks simply rewrote Tolkein's story, changing names and certain details but only when completely neccessary. This leads to a production line novel that became popular due to people clamouring to read anything with Elves or Dwarves in it. Well done to Terry Brooks for making a lot of money without doing any work.

Too dig a little deeper there is a half-elf named Shea (Frodo) who is the last of a bloodline and is essential to survival of humanity. Lets hope it never happens because he is as wet as a puddle. Flick (Samwise) tags along and after a run in with a black wraith and a many tentacled being that attacks them from the water, they reach a safe haven (Rivendell). They meet a gruff but honourable Dwarf (Gimli), a ranger type called Balinor (Aragorn) and a all-knowing druid named Allanon (Gandalf). Allanon does all the thinking, planning and scheming while the rest do little. They go forth into treacherous lands to stand against the black lord etc..... And on it goes along familiar lines.

The prose is far from exceptional, 'the keep was castle-like'(?), and there is a lot of blackness and foul feeling but I never once felt as if I was there. It all sounds like the writer is describing the world because he has to and not because he wants to.

If you want to read about Dwarves, Elves and Dark Lords read LOTR. If you have read LOTR then read it again because this has verry little to offer. Or try some of the other fantasy writers who try create original worlds (Robin Hobb, George R.R. Martin, Raymond Feist etc...)

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8 of 12 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars Painfully Terrible, 17 May 2002
This review is from: The Sword of Shannara (The Shannara series) (Paperback)
Easily the worst book I have ever had the misfortune to even set eyes upon, and please listen carefully to my reasons for saying so. I have read quite a few fantasy novels ( Robert Jordan's Wheel of time - 9 books, George R R Martin's A Song of Ice and Fire- 4 books, and Gene Wolfe's Book of the New Sun - 4 books : all of which I strongly advise you to read ) so I know what I'm talking about.

This is a children's book. Plain and simple. Only read if you are under 13, have never read a book before and want to start very simple, or have a very low reading age. Here's why:

Brooks has no originality - even on the blurb on the back it claims to be "in the style of the lord of the rings". Every character, slight plot "twist", event, place, and the whole story in general is taken from LOTR.

There is no character development, we never learn their innner feelings, their motivation etc- simply that they are scared when in a fight... ie obvious things. There is no interplay between the characters, no developing of relationships, no banter, rivalry, envy etc.

His descriptive style is basic and unengaging, eg when they are in a forest he basically says "the trees cast dark shadows where evil monsters could lurk. They were scared." I'm no writer but could easily match Brooks for style and surpass him in the plot department.

Overall don't be fooled by the pretty frontcover, possibly buy it for your children but not for yourself.

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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Sooo disapointed...
I have been reading fantasy for around 15 years now but had never got around to the Shannara books. I was really looking forward to getting stuck into these highly rated (if you... Read more
Published 29 days ago by J. Cavanagh

4.0 out of 5 stars Exellent as usual
This is a hard copy to replace the previous one that I loaned out and didn't get back. Reading it for the third time(I have all Terry Brooks books), it still enthralls me... Read more
Published 2 months ago by B. Manktelow

5.0 out of 5 stars Don't limit yourself to this book
This was one of the first books I ever read and I couldn't put it down. I can happily read a Brooks book whithin days of starting it. Read more
Published 5 months ago by R. Lucie

1.0 out of 5 stars A terrible copy of LOTR
How is it possible for this guy to be a bestselling author. It is a blatant copy of the Lord of the Rings. Read more
Published 5 months ago by B. Bishop

4.0 out of 5 stars A good start to an epic fantasy series!
I'd originally bought the trilogy of books in the Sword of Shannara series many years ago, and they've been gathering dust on my bookshelf ever since. Read more
Published 8 months ago by Dondero

4.0 out of 5 stars A very easy fantasy read
I have to confess I read this book when I was twelve and up to that point it was the best book I'd ever read. Read more
Published 9 months ago by Neil Butler

2.0 out of 5 stars Very formulaic, very predictable
Considering how highly rated this book seems to be I was hugely disappointed with it. It seems some authors think all they need to do is write a story about a village boy who is... Read more
Published 15 months ago by N. Burgess

3.0 out of 5 stars Warning, this is really only 1/3 of a book
The Sword of Shannara trilogy is three books:

1. The Sword of Shannara
2. The Elfstones of Shannara
3. Read more
Published 15 months ago by D. Bromley

3.0 out of 5 stars enjoyable...but very derivative
This book is essentially a re-hash of Lord of the Rings, with all the key characters and many of the main plotlines (including the over-arching plot), essenatially mirroring... Read more
Published 22 months ago by dli

5.0 out of 5 stars A CLASSIC FANTASY
I have been a long time fantasy/Sci-Fi reader and like to think that I have read my fair share of the different styles offered by the genre: Historical Classics such as "Dune" and... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Mr. D. R. J. Paterson

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