The Sword of Shannara

The Shannara Series, Book 1

By: Terry Brooks

Narrated by: Scott Brick

Length: 26 hrs and 21 mins

Publisher's summary

The Sword of Shannara is the first volume of the classic series that has become one of the most popular fantasy tales of all time.

Long ago, the wars of the ancient Evil ruined the world. In peaceful Shady Vale, half-elfin Shea Ohmsford knows little of such troubles. But the supposedly dead Warlock Lord is plotting to destroy everything in his wake.

The sole weapon against this Power of Darkness is the Sword of Shannara, which can be used only by a true heir of Shannara. On Shea, last of the bloodline, rests the hope of all the races.

Thus begins the enthralling Shannara epic, a spellbinding tale of adventure, magic, and myth....

©1977 Terry Brooks (P)2003 Books on Tape, Inc.

Great Story Teller - Dry Plot

This story teller seems to lend him self well to whatever he's reading and reads fantasy with an intensity that leaves the listener craving more. This story is a great escape, typical of the "Lord of the Rings" type genres of a quest of a young lad struggling with himself on the edge of manhood and his struggles with an item of mystical improtance. The plot line is a little dry. The reader is left wishing for more romance or humor in the novel. However, it is made up for in the quests and characters the hero winds up getting involved in.

A Great Fantasy Epic in its own right

I read this book 18 years ago as a child soon after first reading Tolkiens works, and enjoyed it more than those books (sacrilege I know, but this is a great, and very fun fantasy world). I was rather apprehensive about listening to this book again after reading some of the reviews here, fearing that I would be greatly disappointed and destroy the fond memories I had of it. The 18 years and hundreds of fantasy stories I?ve read since allowed me to experience it as new and I had a great time with it.

Of course it is true that there are similarities to LOTR, but to call this robbery or that it ruins the story would be a big stretch and only be denying yourself a enjoyable experience. Like many fantasies, this is the story of young men coming of age in a perilous world facing an impending doom and only through them overcoming their fears and facing the darkness may the world be delivered into the light once again. This is a classic theme dating back to the Greek epics and loved by fantasy addicts everywhere. For the best of the genre, try Jordan, but Brooks creates a world I enjoyed spending my time in.

Brooks is a creative and vivid writer, drawing you into a vast world filled with wondrous places, a deep shadowed history and terrible evil. Although he does not get into the minds of the characters as much as I personally like, the characters develop strong personalities as the story unfolds and I found myself laughing and fearing with them. His style of story telling works well for creating a fast paced, highly entertaining book. I believe his writing got better in future books, though stylistically it remained consistent.

The reader is good, though there are some things that I found annoying. The characters were not distinct or expressive enough, some of the accents he uses seem out of place, and suspense was not well conveyed.

Audible needs to get the rest of this series unabridged. It only gets better.

Loved it! Great Read!

A little slow for some people because of his deep descriptive writing style. but exactly what I like.

Righting style is lacking

The story was good. But the righting style lacked. Everything was "at the last minute".

a good book

i like this book it is a good book i like the elves in it thay are soooo cool i wish more books had elves in them

Discount Lord of the Rings

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Not really. Read the Lord of the Rings or wheel of time instead. The author seemed to rip off Lord of the Rings a little bit. It felt WAY too much like Fellowship of the Ring.

Would you be willing to try another book from Terry Brooks? Why or why not?

Sure. I think he has good ideas.

Do you think The Sword of Shannara needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

Not really. He covered at least half of the world in this one book. I suppose another one could come out of it.

Any additional comments?

I think that his world was interesting, but he covered too much of it in one book. It also felt like he was copying a lot of J.R.R. Tolkein. (Nazgul, small powerful object, enigmatic wizard who tries to control everything, would-be king of a nation that has a brotherly rivalry, etc.) It was not unique enough for my taste.

It's ok

The writing is simplistic, and I'm not sure the author was completely familiar with some of the words he used. Even though the characters live in a post-technological world, there were references used that they couldn't have know about, such as galaxies and robots.

The narrator also made strange choices. The real-world location of the story is North America, but the narrator made all the characters sound English except for the dwarves, which sounded Scottish

phenomenal

This story is a classic adventure fantasy with elves, dwarves, magic, villains and heros. It's not as dark a reading as a lot of the newer fantasy series lately that are heavy drama (GOT or Wheel of Time). Also, the narrarator is great! I adore LOTR but the audiobooks are old and dry. You wouldn't know from listening that the Shannara books are from the 70s. Worth the listen, and even worth the price.

Another Tolkien coppy

Any additional comments?

Many if not most can be accused of borrowing from J.R.R. Tolkien but this is by far the most shameless I have read.

As exciting as the first time read the book.

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

Yes, great story and the narrator expresses enough emotion to keep involved.

What was one of the most memorable moments of The Sword of Shannara?

There is not just one!! Have read this Shannara Series - three times - now a little older and eyesight having "issues" I can sit and listen and let my mind enjoy the story --- especially as I am sitting and quilting.

What about Scott Brick’s performance did you like?

Enunciation and Emotion.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No