The Scions of Shannara
Terry Brooks

Rating:  
Series: The Heritage of Shannara
Next Novel: The Druid of Shannara
Publisher: DEL REY Fantasy
Publish Date: 1990
Review Date: 12/20/2001

       Three hundred years after the events of the first three novels, Terry Brooks brings us back to the Four Lands for another adventure with the Ohmsford family. Part man, part elf, the three protagonists must not only fight a new horror that is sickening the land, but also must overcome feelings of self doubt and unworthiness in order to wield the magic that will save humanity. Allanon, the legendary druid, has been dead for hundreds of years, yet his shade still takes an active role in the destiny of the world. Young Par Ohmsford and his brother Coll are charged by the druid with finding the lost sword of Shannara, while Wren and Walker Boh, both Ohmsford descendents, are instructed to find the vanished elves and the home of the ancient druids respectively. What stands in their way, you may ask. The enemy this time is as tricky as it is evil, the Shadowen. Able to take over the bodies and minds of living things, this dark menace does not always attack with mindless rage, but instead lays plans to use humankind's inherent fear of the unknown against them. The banishment of magic in the Four Lands and the enslavement of the Dwarves by the Shadowen is hidden under the guise of a new intolerant government, the Federation. Fans of Terry Brooks' work in The Sword of Shannara series are sure to enjoy this new offering.

       Having read The Sword of Shannara series first, I had high expectations for this new novel by Terry Brooks. Unfortunately, the freshness and vitality that characterized the first few novels set in the Four Lands is somewhat muted in The Scions of Shannara. I was hoping that Brooks would take a totally different angle on the Shannara myth, but instead found basically the same cast of characters as the first three books. Don't get me wrong, the writing itself is tight and fast paced, but it may be a case of going back to the same well one too many times. For a talent as formidable as Brooks, setting seven novels in the same world is cramping his style. What I and every Terry Brooks fan would love to see is a brand spanking new world from the mind of this powerful writer. Three swords nonetheless for the monsters, mayhem and surprises in The Scions of Shannara.

Reviewed by Chris Hart