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Fantasy. Fiction. Science Fiction. Thriller. HTML:NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The adventure that started in Wards of Faerie takes a thrilling new turn, in the second novel of Terry Brooks�??s brand-new trilogy�??The Dark Legacy of Shannara! The quest for the long-lost Elfstones has drawn the leader of the Druid order and her followers into the hellish dimension known as the Forbidding, where the most dangerous creatures banished from the Four Lands are imprisoned. Now the hunt for the powerful talismans that can save their world has become a series of great challenges: a desperate search for kidnapped comrades, a relentless battle against unspeakable predators, and a grim race to escape the Forbidding alive. But though freedom is closer than they know, it may come at a terrifying price. Back in the village of Arborlon, the mystical, sentient tree that maintains the barrier between the Four Lands and the Forbidding is dying. And with each passing day, as the breach between the two worlds grows larger, the threat of the evil eager to spill forth and wreak havoc grows more dire. The only hope lies with a young Druid, faced with a staggering choice: cling to the life she cherishes or combat an army of darkness by making the ultimate sacrifice. Includes a preview of the next book in the Dark Legacy of Shannara series, Witch Wraith Praise for Bloodfire Quest �??Explodes from the first page . . . and the action doesn�??t stop until the novel�??s cliffhanger ending. . . . Intense and exhilarating . . . The author balances character development with intense action, and he has a gift for creating characters the reader cares about. Brooks is one of the best fantasy writers in the business, and Bloodfire Quest is better than its predecessor.�?��??Associated Press �??Shannara fans will delight in Brooks�??s sorcerous action, skilled characterizations, and rapid-fire storytelling twists.�?��??Publishers Weekly �??Brooks mixes things up here with several sharp battle scenes, for which he brings his distinct talent, giving a true grandeur to clashes involving terrifying creatures and powerful magic. . . . A fine middle chapter to Brooks�?? latest Shannara adventure.�?��??Kirkus Reviews �??From the first pages to the harrowing ending, Bloodfire Quest . . . is a thrill ride that will leave readers wanting more. . . . This volume, paired with the first, might be just the right place to introduce new readers to this fine writer.�?��??Booklist (starred review) Praise for Terry Brooks �??I can�??t even begin to count how many of Terry Brooks�??s books I�??ve read (and reread) over the years. From Shannara to Landover, his work was a huge part of my childhood.�?��??Patrick Rothfuss, New York Times bestselling author of The Name of the Wind �??Terry Brooks has been my constant companion over a lifetime of exploring my beloved fantasy genre. I say with all honesty I would not be writing epic fantasy today if not for Shannara. If Tolkien is the grandfather of modern fantasy, Terry Brooks is its favorite uncle.�?��??Peter V. Brett, New York Times bestselling author of The Desert Spear �??Terry Brooks is a master of the craft and a trailblazer who established fantasy as a viable genre. Not only do I owe him for many hours of reading pleasure,… (more)
User reviews
This definitely wants to make you read the final book.
At the start of the book, Arlingfant Elessedil was back in Arborlon after the siege of Paranor, only to find herself being chosen by the Ellcrys to be her successor. Ellcrys are actually a magical being formerly a female elf who became a sacred talisman to maintain the Forbidding. Arling was initially scared and denial about her fate to become the Ellcrys and seek the help of her sister, Aphenglow who was starting her own quest to seek the missing Ard Rhys and her group. Meanwhile in Forbidding, the Ard Rhys knew that they're in mortal danger as more and more of their numbers were killed and taken away. Its up to her and the young Redden Ohmsford to find the way out before it was too late for them.
As much as my grievance with the first book of the series, the second book provide an even form of character developments and conflicts that was intertwined and developed well through the book. However, Aphenglow's characterization was reduced to allow the other characters to flourish. This allow an even more depth to the storylines and even out the inconsistencies in the first book. This time the narrations focus more on Arling, Khyber, Redden, Railing and the primary antagonist. However, I couldn't quite buy into the antagonist's storyline and his vendetta against Aphenglow but I was more interested with the story of Grianne Ohmsford which was a recurrent character across the Shannara chronologies and this time her past catch up with the present.
I enjoyed the airship battles and the fight scenes. As the story goes on from the predictable beginning, the death toll starting to rise and I began to enjoy it when the characters became desperate, suicidal, scared etc among the natural human range of responses. I have a pathological need to see fictional characters showing some humanity and this book is full of them.
However, the series does remain predictable for those who are familiar with the original series but the book's story around the Ellcrys is quite minimal than "The Elfstones of Shannara". Most of the events in this book was an intermediary to the third book of this series. So in a sense, it does revolve around the Shannara universe but only to a point and not Shannara history repeating itself. It is but not exactly alike. The Dark Legacy series is actually literally the dark legacy of Shannara's history. All of the things revolved in this book seem to came from the unsolved past which the present have to pay its price. None of them happen exactly "happily ever after".
"It all came down to Aleia Omarosian—the first of the Chosen, the original Ellcrys, but also the one responsible for the theft of the missing Elfstones."
I'm with Arlingfant Elessedil. When Ellcrys really chooses you run from the scene screaming. After all we know
Who wants to turn into a rooted tree even if it does live for age upon age?
Arlingfant and her sister Aphenglow Elessedil are of the Chosen who live at Arborlon and tend to the tree Ellcrys. The tree that maintains the barrier between the Four Lands and the Forbidding. But Ellcrys is dying and needs a successor.
Ellcrys has chosen Arlingfant.
"You will carry my seed to the Bloodfire and immerse it and then return to me, and through you I will be renewed and the Forbidding will hold".
Arlingfant knows what this will mean for her!
Aphenglow knows about the elf stones and knows that these might be all that stand between her sister and her frightening future. The search is on. Aphen also knows that she and her sister are linked by heredity back to Aleia Omarosian and that this is not coincidence.
Once again Brooks had me wading through a sea of unbelievable action, a quest for the magical Elfstone, the terrifying Forbidding and the race to save the Four Lands. The choices to save the four lands and block the creatures from the Forbidding is growing slimmer. A maelstrom of relentless action from the opening pages.
A NetGalley ARC