This is basically a pre-quel to the Sword of Shannara, though set far in the past. As such, it parallels that novel in many ways. In this time, Brona has risen for the second time, which feels like the third time if you've read Sword often enough, and must be defeated by the usual alliance of Elves and Dwarves. This time, the Sword of Shannara has been created to help them, if they can use it.
As a foreshadowing of many of the events in Sword of Shannara, this book does its job, though it really feels like a repeat of that book, not a prequel. ( )

The Shannara series is a truly outstanding work of fantasy. I was a little disappointed with the Sword of Shannara because it is so similar in plot to the Lord of the Rings, but Brooks really pushes outside of the proverbial box in all of his other works. The Heritage of Shannara set is by far the most superior. The books after that may be turned out too quickly to really live up to the older ones, but they are still a great read. ( )

I remember reading The Sword of Shannara ages ago and being enthralled with it. I think my tastes have matured, or changed at least. I picked this up off my husband’s nightstand because I was out of new stuff to read. My husband put down The Sword of Shannara because he’s said there’s too much traveling and not so much story. This book doesn’t enthrall me and I’m not sure why. There’s good conflict. There’s action. There’s not too much traveling. Maybe it’s too broad for the size of the book. Maybe not enough depth. Maybe I’m in a funk and not responding to the story the way I normally would. And the title bothers me because Shannara is a person but the title indicates a country. That’s a nitpick but it stays on my mind. ( )

As a fan of Brooks original Shannara series, I can say that this book was rather underwhelming. I had to force myself to trample through the pages, trying to connect to the characters. It was a decent read, but not a re-read. ( )

I love Terry Brooks's work. This book had fantastic descriptions and a very good plot. ( )