Prequel - The First King of Shannara - The Shannara Series

This book brings The Seeker and Mother Confessor back together after the prophecies kept them moving in different directions. There is lots of action and fast paced storytelling going on here. I highly recommend this book.

If you enjoyed The Sword of Shannara trilogy you will enjoy this prequel that fills in historical details for those of us who have become immersed in this world. I will most likely return to read more of Shannara, but not right away as the theme of epic battle strategy between the living races and the next to invincible evil mostly dead creatures of darkness has become temporarily tedious to me. I enjoy this author's work and will be back.

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I'm on book 7 of the series. Goodkind takes you on a roller coaster ride with characters you care about, and some that you really dispise. I'm going to be sad when I get to the end! The Blood Of the Fold was filled with deliciously sinister characters that kept me up late at night, holding my breath and not able to put the book down.

I enjoy Terry Brooks. There is adventure, magic and well developed characters in this book. I am able to feel that I am in the story and that is important to me. If you like fantasy, the 'Shannara' series is great.

Generally I am not one to stop and write a review of a book, but I felt the need to warn others who have limited time to invest in sci-fi series novels. I have read the first two installments of this series "Wizards First Rule, and Stone of Tears," both excellent novels. I went ahead and bought "Blood of the Fold:" which was a great disappointment. Mr. Goodkind degenerates into endless feminist tirades that take away from the plot and spoil the book. I had been looking forward to the next two books. I would suggest readers stop after the first two. I stopped reading half way through this one.

I like a really good fantasy read and thought that this one was decent enough.

As I do not give spoilers, I will say that this is the story of the end of one way of life, the attempt to destroy evil and the rise of a new King of the Elves.

The story shows us that there are always consequences to our actions, even if said consequences do not present themselves in our lifetime.

I did find some of the story repetitive, too descriptive and a bit slow in places. However, I do look forward to reading the remainder of the trilogy.

The book is an excellent continuation of the series. However, I got 2 disk 12 and no disk 13 in the package. I went to the bookstore and read what disk 13 should have had and I didn't miss much. It was just irritating and not worth arguing about refunds over..

I finally know Jerle Shannara. I know the construction of the Sword. This sets up one of the best books of all time, The Sword of Shannara. I look forward to rereading the Sword of Shannara after many years with understanding of the history of the Sword. Thank you Terry.

This trilogy helps fill in the history that the original Story calls for. Terry Brooks does a masterful job of tying together the sprawling narrative he is weaving. It seems capable of going on and on. . . and perhaps it will.

Really Awesome book. Terry Goodkind has a power to create the greatest adventures and it only get's better as the series continues, worth reading the whole series. Not for young reads, to complex, for the teenager to the older adult. pretty awesome.

This is my third time reading First King of Shannara, and I still love it. Terry Brooks has an awesome way of writing, where the book seems to come to life, and carry you along on an awesome ride, into an epic adventure. He lifts you up, and carries you away, and you are a part of the group, as they complete their quests. Fantastic.

Terry goodkind is a great author, He grabed me in his first book and then held on for one or two of the following but he seemed to refuse to end his series when he should have and all of these just drag on with no real purpose.

This is the turning point for the series. The first two books are fantastic, this one is decent, and then it all goes downhill from here. I've read it twice, fairs the same on multiple reads.

I'd recommend the book, but not the best.

I'm never disappointed when I read the works of Brooks. The way he paints the tales with words, the emotions that evoked....it all leaves me hungry for more. More magic, more imagination, more excitement, and now on to the next one!!

I've enjoyed reading the books in Terry Goodkind's Sword of Truth series many times over the years and will read them many more in the years to come. The characters are well drawn and the main characters are people you come to care about. His settings are well described. Every reading I discover something I missed before. I don't often find the fiction I read so thought provoking.

I do not normally write reviews of books and I am not much of a reviewer. I have been a follower of the Shannara series since the first book. That being said, this latest installation did not seem to have the same feel as others. The character development and plot felt stunted. The end of the book was basically just bad for a fantasy novel. It felt like Terry was trying to put some sort of relationship advice or relationship wisdom into the plot at the end. I was just left feeling unsatisfied at the end. Still I am such a huge fan of this series and Terry Brooks that I could not give a lower score than a 3.

If you have not began reading this series you are missing a classic. Gripping suspense, lots of action, drama unfolds, romance blossoms, and so much more. There is a bit of something for everyone in this series.

I really enjoy the moral lessons Terry Goodkind provides in his novels. This novel dealt a lot with the matter of trust and loyalty when those things are put to the test. However, the kindle version includes nearly a typo per page.

You have to like his writing style since he is very verbose at time but I am one of those who like detailed descriptions. He also gets to be long winded when on his moral pedestal but again it is okay since I grew up on Twilight Zone episodes.

This was a good book, like the others so far in this series. However, there are spelling errors on most pages. That becomes very distracting. I paid for the book, I would like it to be edited prior to my reading.

I wasn't disappointed with Blood of the Fold. I read it in three days. it has everything: prophecy, magic, schemes, romance, good and evil, and light hearted bantering. You cheer for the heros and rant at the villains.

Great read!

I enjoyed reading this book. I found it difficult to put it down. The story is described perfectly .it leads off right where stone of tears leaves off and your left wanting more. My favorite character is gratch.

Why do people like these ridiculously high fantasy books that just meander on and on and just drag on forever? I truly don’t get it. I can do beautiful writing. That’s never a problem. But something being overwritten is not the same as being beautifully written. One uses the right words in a melodic way, the other just uses too many words. Not the same.

So my interest in the Shannara trilogy came from the TV show. The TV show is a raging pile of trash that I love quite a bit. Since season two is coming next year I figured I’d try out the book. I’d already had THE ELFSTONES OF SHANNARA that I picked up at Phoenix Comic Con a couple years ago, but why not start at the beginning? FIRST KING is actually a prequel, not the first book in the trilogy. Not sure if that makes a difference to the trilogy readers, but I highly doubt that the style of writing in the prequel is going to vary much from the actual trilogy. Which is why I won’t be reading it.

It took FOREVER to read as the story outlined every moments in these characters lives in excruciating detail and I just wanted it to end. With a title of FIRST KING OF SHANNARA, the guy didn’t actually make an appearance until halfway through the story. My eyes were already crossed at that point.

I felt completely disconnected from everything going on. The battles were written at arm’s length, the characters were developed at the same distance and they all sounded the same.

I just don’t get it. Is this series popular because it’s what high fantasy is “supposed” to be? The thing is I actually liked the story and I would read on if I didn’t have to slog through such heavy-handed writing. I just can’t do it. It’s not even fun to read; it’s a chore.

Plus, and no surprise, it looks like MTV took quite a bit of liberties with the timeline and some of the characters. And I picked up the book because I wanted to find out what actually happened to the world to make our current society disappear and these elven people crop up. I got nothing. For a prequel it was surprisingly scant on pertinent world information. I got a lot of funky named things and places that are uber-fantasy names and all. But the characters only alluded to the fall of man and that particular world. No one went into detail. Considering all the “as you know, Bob” moments, you’d thinking SOMEONE would mention it. Nope.

Despite my better judgment I’m still intrigued as to how drastically the show differs from the book. It’s not much of a stretch to insinuate that it’s pretty big. MTV obviously wrote the show for a certain demographic, while the book was written for quite a different set of people. I’m okay with it. I can get sucked into the show far easier than I can this book. I’ll stick with that.

2

First King helped to answer a lot of the questions I had about the Sword of Shannara trilogy, such as the history of the creation of the actual sword and how Jerle failed at defeating the dark forces. It also brought into play the black elfstone, giving us a little more information about this mysterious stone.

The book was relatively short for Brooks, considering it was a one book stand alone novel, but this might not be a bad attribute for someone new to fantasy.

If you are new to fantasy and Terry Brooks, this would be a great place to start. But I'd suggest that you also get the Sword of Shannara so that you can go immediately from First King to Sword so that bits and pieces of the history from First King are still fresh in your mind. This will help to makes sense of things in Sword, allowing you to relate to the past.

I love all of Brooks books, and although I loved First King, it was probably my least favorit in the Shannara series, but probably because I still want more history on the origin of the first Druid council, the actual first falling of the dark lord and some other tidbits I've pondered on along the way. All in all it was a fun read and answered half of my questions, so Terry if you are reading, we still need a prequel to First King and after Gypsy Morph...Maybe First Druid Council of Shannara? :)

Last weekend, I blazed through The Wizard's First Rule and loved it. Decided to watch it after being so disappointed that Legend of the Seeker was cancelled. I have not read novels in years, before becoming a MA and PhD student... I just read the last book from the Harry Potter's series and that wet my appetite for similar books.
So, I enjoyed the first book via Kindle (though would have enjoyed being able to listen to it via Kindle). I was disappointed when I could not get Book #2, Stone of Tears, on Kindle. So, I went on to Book #3... what on earth has happened to Richard???? First of all, he uses language that is not in keeping with his character of a woodman's guide. How has he become this crazy ruler? Did I miss that much in Stone of Tears? I don't recognize him and his character leaves me cold. I miss the relationships with Zedd and Kahlan. He has no true peers and he has no one to be his checks and balances.
My plan was to read the series to get me away from my school studies once in awhile but if the the characters and story goes the way of Book 3, I will have to find some other distraction.

This was my first read in Terry Brook's popular Shannara series. When I was younger I attempted to read the Sword of Shannara but I didn't have the attention span for the author's drawn out descriptions. I was able to appreciate his writing more this time around. I decided to read this book more for leisure than anything else. It's a fun read as long as you don't expect anything too epic.

The First King of Shannara follows the story of the Druid Bremen and his companions as they try to prepare the Four Lands for the coming armies of the Warlock Lord. Some respond to the warnings while others don't, but regardless of their actions the coming evil does arrive. The story focuses on several different races and people and how they are affected by the events that shape their lives. There are several different quests and battles that take place but the main event of the book is the forging of the Sword of Shannara, the one weapon that can take down the Warlock Lord.

While the book doesn't introduce anything new to the fantasy genre, I couldn't help but enjoy myself. It's a fun read, no doubt about it. I must say it doesn't rival the works of Tolkien, Jordan, Rowling, or even the fast-paced R.A. Salvador. However Brooks does stand head and shoulders above the majority of the trashy fantasy that litters today's market. The writing was above average and most importantly, fun. He provides just enough twists and turns to keep you interested.

One thing I really like about Brooks is the amount of characters he's willing to kill. Not to sound morbid, but it really helps the story feel more real. I mean there really isn't too many authors who are willing to kill off characters they've invested a lot of time in. The battle scenes become that much more intense when you know the author isn't afraid of killing your favorite character.

One mark I have to strike against this book is that there is no map. With all the references the author makes to locations and such, this proved to be a great annoyance. Enough that I reached the point were I was compelled to print a map of the Four Lands off the Internet. I'm also not a fan of the new jacket art as much as the original, however that's a minor complaint.

I've re-read this book to review it again, and still find it an entertaining and often gripping tale of magic and strange creatures good and bad; of good wizards who don't know how to use their power and bad ones who do but use it for evil; of 7 foot tall flying monsters and once evil women who tortured and killed just for fun but now stand as brave and noble defenders of truth and justice, transformed by the only kindness and respect they have ever known; a tale of battles, intrique and treachery intersperced with often surprising humor. It is a long book, 647 pages in my edition, but I don't find it drags, the story moving along quite well, with any 'padding' not really spoiling it or being truly unrelated to the storyline. The characters are well drawn and I think hold ones interest, and often I find myself really drawn into their lives, actually caring about what happens to them. The death of Hally for example I found very moving, almost having me in tears, when she thanked Richard for her freedom as she died in his arms, and he cried over her as he told the other Mord-Sith he wanted them to die old and toothless in bed, not give their lives for him. Goodkind is adept at that sort of scene, frequently bringing me close to tears at some sad turn of events. I really like the friendly Gar, and the Mord-Sith are superb characters. I really enjoy their often unintentional humor, like Cara telling Richard if he gets himself killed she will break every bone in his body. They are so likeable, once evil, though not by choice, but now the bravest and most trusted bodyguards to a new master who has been kind to them, even becoming his friends. I also liked the Lesbian Mord-Sith storyline, a nice touch, showing that even after the dreadful life of torture and pain they had led these women could still find love, their emotions buried by their training but not destroyed by it. (And yes, there were Lesbians back then, for those who say that storyline is out of place in a story set in the Dark Ages) Richard's attitude to the Mord-Sith makes him very likeable as a character, not only coming to love and respect one who tortured him so badly in Wizard's First Rule because he discovered Denna's own past and continuing suffering, but going on to accept the other Mord-Sith as more than just reformed servants, seeing that their evil had been forced on them, forgiving them and even considering them his friends. Brogan is an interesting character, reminding me of the 'reds under the bed' McCarthy era in America, as he sees evil everywhere without the slightest reason, completly blinded to reality by his own narrow viewpoint, and convinced that everything he does, no matter how vile, is good and noble because he does it. Now there is violence, often against women, and very graphic, but that is the way it was in real life back in the Dark Ages, the Crusades for example being filled with pillage and rape on a vast and horrific scale. Goodkind tells it like it was, and still is in many countries today. Men treat women badly in war, all wars in all ages. Not just in wars either, as recent well reported events in India have shown. Not that Goodkind's men do that well either, being killed off in various nasty ways, sometimes by women. Weather you like this detailed gore, or feel it should be understated, is I suppose up to the reader, but it isn't overstated as related to actual fact. I like his strong female characters, and also the fact that even the best people have flaws, sometimes quite serious flaws. Nobodys perfect in Goodkindland. As to political preaching that some complain of, I don't really see it as a problem. Yes, the Imperial Order could be viewed as representing a communist state, but so could the Galactic Empire in Star Wars. Many writers put their political or social views into their stories, Charles Dickins was full of it for example, but I don't think it spoils the SOT series. The characters are goodies or baddies, simple as that, whatever symbolism you may see in them. Overall I'd recommend this book as an entertaining read with interesting characters. Some say Goodkind's characters are unrealistic. Is a teenage kid with a funny scar on his forehead, still just a student at a magic school, but yet able to out-magic the greatest wizard who ever lived 'realistic'? Or a railway platform accesed by walking through a wall? Hardly. But it's FANTASY. Anything is possible, no matter how impossible it may be. Bags, that's the toasted toads truth!

Blood of the Fold picks up the story where the last volume, Stone of Tears, left off. Richard Rahl has just reunited with his future wife, Kahlan Amnell, the Mother Confessor, in a place between worlds. When he gets back, he finds there's only one way to halt the continuous advance of the Imperial Order throughout the Midlands - seize power. Richard ends the alliance upon which the Midlands was based and the rule of the Confessors. Thus, Richard Rahl, the new Master of D'Hara, takes control over Aydindril and the New World.

Meanwhile, in the Old World, trouble courses through the Palace of the Prophets. Sister Verna, the newly named Prelate, finds out after some time that the former Prelate, Annalina, isn't really dead, but had fled with Nathan Rahl, the prophet. The two of them reveal that they are on a quest to fulfill the Prophecies and save the New World from the dominion of Jagang, the Dream Walker, Emperor of the Old World.

My main problem with this book is that it is only 60 percent as long as Wizards First Rule and Stone of Tears, which were true doorstoppers... This is clearly a transition book pressured to be released by the publishers. It also marks a marginal decline in the series that the Sword of Truth never fully recovered from, despite Faith of the Fallen being excellent.

Its a good read, but some of the magic is gone.

Relic113

Brooks does less with more in this book. There are all the classic pieces in the story; renagade wizard, a lost people, a destroyed way of life, deep love among the elves, a rising elven king deeply conflicted about his role, epic battles, fiesty dwarves, a hidden artifiact, deep personal tragedies, visions from a 'mentor long gone', and a very costly and hollow success. I was moved especially by the tragedy of how the elfstone was obtained. So much loss and devastation, Brooks really thought about this. I really enjoyed the Bremen/Galaphile interactions, especially the first one that set the whole tone of the book in a deeply tragic way. I was moved often and how poignant these characters felt and how loss tore at their souls, particularly Bremen who lost the most and felt his task largly incomplete but it would have to do. In all this is a thoughtful and moving, compelling storytelling that I would recomened for anyone, even non-fantasy fans.

I'll go into more detail, but first, in summation, I would say it is not the strongest in the series, but it's not the worst either. The writing quality is better than the two previous books, but not as good as some of the later volumes. I'm not sure if I'm so crazy about the introduction of Jagang, in that he seems to just come out of nowhere. There's no real build up, no introduction, he's just kind of...there. I know this is a complaint that many people have had, but things seem to be pretty black and white in Goodkind's world. The villains are clearly evil, and the good guys are clearly good. There are of course, some exceptions, such as the baddies who end up being "converted" to the good side, or good guys who are, in truth, evil...But I'm getting ahead of myself here.

I get that Jagang doesn't see himself as evil, but I'm pretty sure most despots don't look at their own actions as such. But Jagang is just ruthlessly, blatantly evil. He rapes, he tortures, he enslaves, he murders...There is nothing redeeming about him. I prefer my villains to have a little more depth. I like it when you aren't entirely convinced of the villain's wickedness, and you can perhaps find some kind of justification for their actions. Of course, not all villains have to follow this format, and I'm not saying that a book can't be good without such an antagonist, but the book and the series as a whole suffers because of it. And it's not just the recurring villain Jagang who is like this. Tobias Brogan is a fanatic, a zealot, and he mutilates people on behalf of his god, he abuses his sister, and does...other things to her, as is insinuated. He may hide that face for the most part, but there's nothing good about the man. Same with the Sisters of the Dark. They are all pretty much thoroughly terrible people. I've said this about the previous books, and I feel the same about the series in general: it's an entertaining read, and I would recommend it, but unless you're a younger reader I wouldn't expect you to feel like these books somehow changed your life or altered the way you look at fantasy.

As far as Goodkind's seeming "fascination" with rape...I don't feel like just because an author writes about something that they personally endorse it. I would think that would be obvious. However, pretty much any female character that is subjugated at one point or another is raped, or faces the threat of being raped. I get that rape is a tool that was (and is, sadly) utilized as a form of control, and to humiliate and punish people, especially in times of war. But after a while, it loses its effectiveness. Rape as a plot device is, uh...not cool, I guess, for a multitude of reasons.

Again, I feel like I'm really bashing these books when I don't mean to. I'm just pointing out the issues that I have with this series. It is entertaining, and well written, and I would recommend it to anyone that enjoys the fantasy genre. I say that along with the caution that if you are put off by gore and sexual violence, I would forego this series. Oh, one last thought, I guess. I thought the sliph was a very cool and inventive idea...Please don't tell me Goodkind "borrowed" it from someone else.

Terry Goodkind, Blood of the Fold (Tor, 1996)

Back when I was a kid, I was crazy about the various exploits of Donald Sobol's pint-sized sleuth Encyclopedia Brown. There was rarely a week where I didn't have at least one Encyclopedia Brown book out of at least one library somewhere near wherever I was living at the time. A fine set of books, those. Each was a collection of various mini-mysteries solved by Brown (and, later, his gorgeous sidekick Sally Kimball; after all, every sleuth needs a gorgeous sidekick, right?) in the space of a few pages. Sobol's books had only one problem. Since the stories were collected from other sources, the first few pages of each were like a broken record, giving all the same details about how the "office" in EB's garage was set up, reintroducing the characters, etc.

For some reason, Terry Goodkind saw fit to pull a Donald Sobel in Blood of the Fold, book three in the Sword of Truth series. The first two books, each verging on the thousand-page mark, blaze the way for a fantasy series that, if there is any justice in the world, is destined to become a classic. Blood of the Fold, however, is barely two-thirds of the length of those first two, and Goodkind spends a good chunk of the first hundred fifty pages in reacquaintance. It would make more sense had there been some of it in the second book in the series, or if this book had an extra hundred fifty pages over and above what the first two have to compensate. But given the brevity, one gets the distinct feeling that the book was padded at the insistence of a publisher who wanted to keep Goodkind pumping out one book per year.

Not to say that Blood of the Fold isn't still a good book. Once you've invested two thousand pages' worth of time in any fantasy series, it's doubtful that re-reading stuff about what's happened before (no matter how much of it there is) is going to deter the reader from going on and finding the four hundred-odd pages of new stuff. And with Goodkind's usual readable style and almost nonstop action, the pages fly by here just as fast as they did in Wizard's First Rule and Stone of Tears. Of course, with only two-thirds of the bulk, that means you finish the book that much faster. Make sure you've got a copy of Temple of the Winds (book four) lying around before you start this one, or
you may find yourself looking for a twenty-four hour bookstore at three in the morning. *** 1/2

I'm loving this series, I can't seem to stop. The stories just blend from one into the next. I spend a lot of time in the car for work, so it's nice to have a good story to keep me occupied. This narrartor is so much better than the one that did book two.

Terry goodkind continues to write the way we come to expect. memorable characters and despicable bad guys. However, he seemed to come up a bit short in this book.
He still retains his love for Deus ex Machina, seemingly pulling a heroic and positive ending out of nowhere and having a sudden explanation for things. What? Gars were created to battle mriswith? How convenient.
Despite that it was an entertaining read as always. Richard continues in his heavy-handed, whiny manner that we have all come to love. Kahlan doesn't show until near the end and she is as stalwart as ever.
In this book, the main plot arc is the eventual arrival of the Emporor of the Old World, Jagang. He is a Dream Walker. Dream Walkers were weapons created back during the great war, the one that caused the creation of the Towers of Perdition we saw in the last novel.
Two things really stood out in my reading though. Number one, the title of the book is of the group that hails from Adie's home country that we learned of last book. They played a decidedly small part in the book. For carrying the title of the book, they weren't even the main plot line or a major antagonist in the book. they simply supplied the glue to keep some of the plot movements together.
Secondly was the whole strange sequence of events with the Mriswith. Huh? The whole thing seemed entirely pointless. You'll see it when you read it. That whole part could have been left out of the book and it would have still made sense with some minor changes. It only seemd a device to take Richard from one place to another and back.
Other than the obvious shortcomings, is was an entertaining read and I look forward to reading the next book.

I'm just over half the way through reading this volume, having read books 1 and 2, during the past three weeks. I'm enjoying the characters and the adventures. However, I do find the level of violence, not least the sadism, practiced by too many of the characters, to be excessive. Once in a while, some scenes in these stories could do with a bit of lightening up, or introduce a few passages showing some simple pleasures.

I've just ordered a couple of books in the ordinary crime/thriller genre to give myself a break, before I embark on book 4 in the series.

The First King of Shannara is a prequel to the Shannara trilogy and it's superb reading. Terry Brooks weaves storytelling magic in this book which masterfully outlines a richly, detailed fantasy world in which the classic battle between good and evil drives the story.

At the center of the story is the outcast and last of the Druids, Bremen. He is the driving force to convincing the people inhabiting the Four Lands that their only hope to preventing subjugation lies in uniting and in using the magic.

The First King of Shannara is a fascinating tale and the novel answers many of the questions raised in previous books in great detail such as the origins of Allanon, the purpose of the Druids, the fall of Paranor, the forging of the Sword of Shannara, etc. Terry Brooks writes enjoyable and entertaining fantasy novels and that should be appreciated on its own.

I am a sci-fi fan, and I really enjoyed this book. I read the sword of Shannara first, then this book. The story ties together neatly. I am not, honestly, a detailed oriented type, so I a, only commenting on the story, not if all the fact line up. I any case, this is a great read. Shannara, Shannara....

Largely perceived as hum-drum, slightly above average piece of Fantasy, The First King of Shannara has been set aflame by several critics, and truthfully I don`t understand why. I romped through the book in bolstering speed, and bowled over to see people underrate the book. A Fantasy appetite quenched, I can infer that it is amongst the most suspenseful works of the Fantasy genre. On a side note, I hate to admit it, but yes, the beginning moves in deceleration, but I say its the sole trade as a reader to maintain patience and for that endeavor, reach the grand fruit of their labor. Along with a small detection of blurry eyesight, that's the way The First King of Shannara works. After a few passages into the fifth chapter I was finally --needless to say-- hooked, hastened my reading speed, and became briefly sullen that the book had to end.
It took a few months to read every Shannara novel (minus Anthrax, I'm waiting for the paperback edition), and The First King of Shannara easily ranks on top of my favorite Fantasy books. Toppling the rest in the series, Brooks's eighth installment overflows with exciting scenes of gripping skirmishes between the mighty Trolls and gnomes against the humans and elves. A massive amount of the battle events particularly bloom in fascinating detail. All through, the passages are vividly brilliant as Brooks composes pungent moments within the scenery and characters. Wonderful characterizations of Bremen and Jerle Shannara certainly help enhance the penchant of the strong series.
An outstanding novel, this is a great starting point for those unfamiliar with the Shannara universe. A true prequel to the Sword of Shannara, readers will become aware of the great events Brooks relentlessly speaks of in much of his books. The First King of Shannara sheds light on how Paranor and the Druid council collapsed. Much like a history tome, the book unravels central happenings such as the creation of a totally ingenious weapon. Where wizards are usually beheaded or slashed with a standard blade, the Sword of Shannara works as a weapon that unveils truth upon the bearer and its target. Dark Wizard Brona, full of vile, cannot bear the fact of his origin. No longer human, but a corrupted version of the cloak-and-dagger side of the Arcane, Brona will soon face the King of the Elves, Jerle Shannara. We do know how the book ends from reading The Sword of Shannara, yet it is worth seeing how Jerle's actions ultimately leads to the next chronological book.
A compelling read, The First King of Shannara is an obligation for Fantasy and Brooks fans alike. Personally, I enjoyed this book more than the other offerings from him. In spite of his reputation of being dreadfully long on his scenery, the book is quite a departure from extremely terse ones. Many have acclaimed The Voyage of Jerle Shannara to be his greatest work yet, however this is where all the magic began.

Okay, Okay, I don't know how to spell that monster. But, on the cover of this book there is a red creature which, I hoped, was Scarlet. Scarlet, you may recall, was the Dragon in the first book. What happened to her anyway? In fact, the way Richard Rahl befriends animals, and the fact that he was a ranger, I thought he was going to be an "animal wizard."
Nope, he is still a war wizard, and it shows in this book. There is more fighting and magic in this book then the first two. We have new creatures and some old friends including Nathan, Zedd, Gaaarcth and Ann. The writer has really reached his stride. This book is better then the first two, and they were great.
There really is everything here. Richard's romance with Kahlan continues and, perhaps, he has a new love. We are introduced to a new villian who hunts down and kills people with magic. There are some horrible, but great, battle scenes as some cites are sacked and the residents pay the price. And, at the end of the book, there are two great epic battles - with Monsters. If you don't like this book, you just don't like fantasy. I like fantasy and, as I said I loved this book, it was simply great.

I can't say which of this set I think is the best... they are all great books. This one I would like to say is the best, but then again they are all great. I have read through most of the others reviews and I am learning very quick not to believe everything I read. I have enjoyed reading the first three books in the series and fully intend on reading every single one until the end of the series. As for Terry Goodkind coping others story lines and ruining it for us well take it as you will but he has great twists and if you ask me a apple is a apple but each has a different taste, so don't judge so harshly!
Once again Richard, Kahlan, Zedd and the rest of the gang are back tring to save the world from evil. This time the threat isn't the keeper or the evil wizard Darken Rahl, but Emperor Jagang and clan of mriswith. While Kahlan is hiding with the death spell on her ( the death spell was put there by Zedd) waiting for Richard to meet up with her, Richard is once again distracted with his instinct and draws the midlands together to fight against the new evil team the "Imperial order". The blood of the fold, believing anthing with magic is evil is after the mother confessor, and abducts her and takes her to the sisters of the dark.
Once again I will say it as I have in my past reviews, if you liked the first two books you will like this one just as much if not more!

In the First King of Shannara, Brooks attempts to provide the back story to a series, and not just any series, but the series that catapulted Brooks to fame and fortune, the Shannara triology. This is indeed and ambitious project, since The Sword of Shannara, and its companion books are among the best loved of all of Brooks works, and any attempt to 'tack on' a prequil could be considered dangerous to his reputation, should it fall short of expectations. Whether or not Terry failed his fans with this book is still undecided. For some, clearly it recaptured the magic. For others, it was some brilliant writing interspersed with a few small bits of predictable drivel. I really think YOU should decide for yourself... because there is enough in this book to make it required reading for Brooks fans.

If you want to read this, and reread the Shannara trilogy to try and recapture the whole first story, you will find out one of the problems. This book does not have the feel of the original series. While the first series is filled with many personal insights into the characters thoughts and emotions at each step of the journey, this book provides somewhat less than that. Some of the character portrayals feel underdone, and somewhat less their potential would allow. This is really evident in the ending, where readers are hammered by how an unfortunate death keeps ruining the confidence of the leader. We are constantly nagged by the leaders self doubt, and how it is always related to the unfortunate death. Since self doubt usually brings up all our painful failings, why doesn't it in this character? In the end the character borders on self-loathing and his whole emotional state becomes more of an annoyance than any semblence of real depth.

I felt that the whole "forging of the Sword of Shannara" bit was a little predictable, since Brooks chose the straight path of accomplishing his desired end. Basically, if you read the "Sword of Shannara" you have the short version. This is the long version, with absolutely no unexpected twists. You have a sword made of steel (from a recipe nearly lost to time) in the iron age forged with druid fire, a talented sword maker and a whole lot of special effects. You go to the Hadeshorn to get the dead druids to put their magic in it. The long version adds nothing to the old short version. I felt really stupid reading a whole lot of pages to find out what exactly I already knew or expected would happen, plus a few exaggerated rumors.

Other than this unnecessary bit of anticlimax, the book has a solid feel about it, with a grand style of storytelling. The stories, and the characters are really special, and even if you knew the what the final result would be, the journey from point A to point B was really where the meaning could be found. Despite its faults, the story and the style shines like a beacon in his collective work as one of the truly great books he has written. In fact, with a little bit more aggressive editing, this might be his very best book. Unfortunately, as is, this book has a great beginning, a faultering middle, and an uneven ending.

The books strikes a chord with 'nostalgia' when were learn the origins of a few characters from later books, and a little bit more about old legends. Yet, no amount of nostalgia allows for a free ride I feel, and any book should stand on its own merits, and not on the shoulders of past glory. This book counts on that a little too much in the middle, and faulters on what should have been a stronger ending. Still, a great book, and writen in a wonderful style. The beginning is without a doubt the best he has written. This book just didn't follow through with that till the end.

Following the conclusion of the acclaimed The Heritage of Shannara sequence of books in 1994, Terry Brooks turned to address some of the questions that had cropped up over the events of his seven Shannara books. Most of these dealt with things that occurred prior to the time in which the first novel of the Shannara universe, The Sword of Shannara was set in. Brooks did address many of these questions as well as revealing how the Druids acquired the Black Elfstone.

First King is a set alone novel that serves as a prequel to the Shannara series. The writing is some of Brooks’ best. The plot is well conceived and the characters are rounded out quite good. The mystical druid Allanon is introduced to us as an orphan boy while the Elf who founded the Shannara line is brought to life. One of the major shortcomings of the book has to be with the Druid Council though. Brooks is rather notorious for late night murders which eliminate people whom he wishes to keep from interfering with the story. One would think having the Druids more involved in the story would be interesting, but he pretty much eliminates them quickly enough.

Other than that issue, Brooks has an excellent work here that fits in well with the Shannara series. It is before the beginning of his trilogy fetish which I think kind of hurts the series in the long run. Each of his stand alone books were well constructed and featured a compact story with the need to turn the pages deeply felt by the reader. Those trilogies never quite reached that point. First King is the last stand alone book written by Brooks and it does not disappoint the reader.

I enjoyed this book the first time I read it and each time thereafter. Granted, the plot is the same. Outnumbered forces on a quest for something that will help them stop the unbeatable tide of evil that threatens the lands. Unsure people thrust into the fore with the fate of the world on their shoulders. Brave men and women rising to the occasion when danger threatens their world. As always, the use of magic is anything but predictable and the heroes are flawed, and often lack the power to use the magic until they undergo an ordeal that gives them the confidence to do so. While this plot device is well worn and a fantasy staple from The Hobbit to Harry Potter, the audience craves it. The secret lies in making that plot fresh each time. Brooks has done that time and again masterfully.

The one real question is whether or not readers should begin the Shannara series by reading First King of Shannara before any of the other books. I personally do not think it matters that much. Maybe that is because I read this book in the order they were written and already knew what would take place after it. In any event, this book can be read at any point in the series making it a great filler volume when you are waiting on a book to arrive in the mail or at the library. It is a worthy addition to the Shannara line and one of the best volumes.

I was (as usual) pleasantly surprised to see Terry Brooks attempt to give us a prequel to his enormously successful and fantastic debut, 'Sword of Shannara'. As I started to read 'First King' I began to think that a few facts brought into evidence seemed out of whack with what had been written before in the original first book ('Sword'). After I finished the book, I went and re-read 'Sword of Shannara' and sure enough, there are just a few places where the facts originally set forth by Allanon were re-written a bit different in 'First King'. Now this is just a small annoyance, but for some reason it really got to me. Other than this, I had to say that it was an exceptional fantasy novel. I also have to say that even though the events pre-date the 'Sword of Shannara' you don't have to read it before beginning the series (although if you haven't read any of them, I would recommend going in order if you can). What Brooks does best is develop characters you can identify with, ones with flaws and problems, sometimes impossibly difficult problems...but that is why we root for them and feel like we can understand with them, they are like US. The bad guys are really bad (in this case, I don't think ANY evil creature in ALL the Shannara books is as bad as the Warlock Lord) and the good guys are good, and there are a few who are questionable...he gets you to wondering whether or not they will step up to the plate when necessary or will they fold and cause a tragedy...well without ruining the story (which should be familiar if you have read 'Sword') some do and some do not (I'll let you find out who they are on your own--it's much more fun that way). Let me just say this: IF you are a Terry Brooks fan, you will probably LOVE this book. If you are NOT a fan of Brooks, you should STILL LOVE this book. I just can't see anyone who is a fan of fantasy not enjoying EVERYTHING written by Brooks...I just can't fathom it. Anyway, 'First King' IS a great addition to the series, and after reading it for the 2nd time, I STILL enjoyed it, but those little details that were altered still managed to get under my skin. If you don't catch them, then don't worry, just sit back and enjoy a great read.

By the time I got around to reading this series, the first two books were already in paperback, but I made sure to grab a copy of 'Blood of the Fold' in hardback because I quite frankly just couldn't wait. Is it as good as 'Wizard's First Rule' & 'Stone Of Tears'? Not quite. In fact, upon finishing it the first time I felt terribly let down. In fact I was downright disappointed. I went on to become incredibly energized with how much I enjoyed 'Temple of the Winds' but still I felt as though Terry had failed me with book 3.
While waiting for 'Soul of the Fire' (my least favorite SoT book) I went back and re-read 'Blood of the Fold' and realized something amazing: I had underrated this book by a MILE. I was expecting more of the exact same from the first two books, and when Goodkind went in off in a different direction (than I had anticipated) I was upset, but as I went over this book the 2nd time, I found it to be much more entertaining than my initial first reading. In fact I enjoyed it quite a bit. One of my personal Pet Peeves are readers who feel that because a book doesn't go the way THEY want, the author has wasted their time and the readers money. I admit, I have fallen into this trap myself on occasion, but I have changed my ways (for the most part). I am now a firm believer that each author has the right to take THEIR story in any direction they choose, as Terry Goodkind has been known to do (see 'Soul of the Fire' & 'The Pillars of Creation') but I submit that 'Blood of the Fold' stays true to the events which began in book 1 and continued in book 2. I enjoyed in particular the introduction of the Sliph and Gratch. I think that Goodkind has a good grasp of how to move a story along, even while giving you a re-cap of events that have gone on before without making you feel as though he is treating you like your memory is broken. If you notice in most novels with sequels you are expected (by the publisher) to give some kind of catch-up of what has gone before in hopes that if someone mistakenly picks up this book without having read the first two, they won't feel hopelessly lost.
Goodkind is simply put a gifted storyteller who has created a world rich in detail, history and incredible violence. Richard is one of my favorite protagonists in all of modern fiction not because he is perfect, but because more than anything, he just plain wants to do what is right, and not necessarily what is expected of him (which he does in pretty much each book). I DO however believe that this series is beset with the formula fantasy which has ruined many other series out there...Goodkind has set up the stage with the usual: SOMETHING directly threatens Richard & Kahlan's attempt to either be together and/or the world's security as we know it, and somehow they become separated, and in their efforts to get back together they save the day (or the world). Sure, this has become predictable, but I am enjoying it anyway mostly due to Goodkind's sheer storytelling ability. He moves the plot around enough that even though I have a good idea of what may happen next, I am not entirely certain that it will. Along the way he has also given me some genuine surprises along the way (just note the BIG surprise with Richard's Prophetic friend in 'Faith of the Fallen'). All things considered, after my 2nd go-round with 'Blood of the Fold' I have decided that this really IS a great addition to the SoT series and a stand-alone novel worthy of all the praise it has received.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS:

This book should only be read if you were very interested in the first two novels and wondered what happened next. The book could be titled: What Happened to Gar and Other Important Matters. It's likable enough as the sort of pulp fantasy fiction that many readers enjoy on a plane or at the beach or perhaps visiting the in-laws and looking for an escape. In short, to qualify as a buyer, you should:

1) Have read Wizard's First Rule (and liked it)

2) Have Read Stone of Tears (and liked it too)

3) Want to read something but not in the mood to look for something new.

WHY YOU SHOULD PASS:

I'm afraid we don't have any earth shattering insight to offer here about a rather pedestrian book. Nothing but fun-no highbrow literature here. If you're looking for something important, seek elsewhere. But you knew that from the first two books. The sex stuff has escalated to levels that parents should prohibit the book from children below a certain maturity level. Imagine a pretty intense R-rated slasher flick in text and you'll have a pretty good idea.

READ THE ENTIRE REVIEW AT INCHOATUS.COM

Having read the other 10 Shannara books first I put off reading this prequel to the original SWORD OF SHANNARA. While I like Brooks writing it seems that the 7 Shannara books that followed the original triology are less and less original in plot and weak on character development. However I felt that I had to read this book if for no other reason so that I can claim to have read all 11 Shannara books.
I was surprised at how much I enjoyed this book. I thought the background history on Breman and the castle at Paranor was insightful and actually fills in the gaps for things mentioned in other Shannara books. I also enjoyed reading about the other druids and the different walks of life they came from and returned to. There is various background information on various places and people that will have direct or indirect roles in other books. Finally fans of Shannara are treated to the origin of Allanon.
The only complaint I have is the ending of the book. The final hundred pages of the book devotes to much time to detailing battle scenes and not enough to the confrontation of the Warlock Lord and King Jerele. Anyway, this book is a good read. It would be a good stand alone read but for those who have read other Shannara books they will find it very interesting. Out of the 11 Shannara books I would place this fourth in my line of favorites. Right after the first triolgy; THE SWORD, ELFSTONES and WHISHSHONG OF SHANNARA.

Blood of the Fold picks up right where Stone of Tears left off. It opens with Richard taking control in Aydindril after having executed the Council. However, one of the lands in the Midland alliance, Nicobarese, is resistant to the new order Richard proposes, being controlled by the Blood of the Fold. Meanwhile, the scattered remnants of the Sisters of the Dark in the Old World are plotting Richard's demise.

Heavier on political intrigue than the first two installments, Blood of the Fold is about Richard's first steps into becoming Lord Rahl, ruler of D'Hara, and how he handles being a leader, and not just a simple woods guide or even the Seeker of Truth.

Favorite characters like Gratch and Nathan Rahl play fun parts here, and some new characters like Lunetta, Tobias Brogan, and Emporer Jagang (who will become the arch-villain of the series) are all fascinating.

The biggest problem is that after what we learned about the Blood of the Fold in the previous book, the drama one might expect from a book specifically about them falls short of expectations. But those expectations were awfully high, and it would almost be unfair to Mr. Goodkind to demand that every book in his series top its predecessors, when he started out so spectacularly.

The audio book version is well-narrated (probably my favorite naration in the series, as some of the others are a bit dry). The reader's deep, resonating voice suits the story very well.

First off, Goodkind is a great writer and the Sword of Turth series stand very high on its own two feet. However when compared to the Wheel of Time series by Robert Jordan, Goodkind's works fall short.

I'm my own opinion; Wheel of Time and Sword of Truth are too similar to be a coincedence. Seeing as Wheel of Time has an earlier publication date, there's no wonder as to where Goodkind must have looked to find material for his books.

The Sword of Truth series is an amazing collection of books from Goodkind, but if you are new to fantasy or are just looking for another lengthy series, I would recommend Wheel of Time. It is much more rewarding and better written then the Sword of Truth series.

Pay no attention to C. Young below, anyone with half the patience of a mature adult will find the books far easily to get sucked into and you'll find 900 pages suddenly isn't that much, it's not enough.

Although after or in between Wheel of Time. Find time to read the Sword of Truth series, it is amazing, even as a knock off.

Albeit not the greatest book I have read in the series, Blood of the Fold is still quite a good one. The only tiring thing I find about it is the fact that yet again Kahlan and Richard are split up to complete their own separete tasks. I only hope that this will not be the case in the fourth book.
The characters are once again fleshed out nicel and everyone is covered. From the insane leader of the Blood of the Fold, his bewitched sister, Gratch and many many others, the story unfolds with suspense that leaves you on the edge of your seat.
I also found that Goodkind delved shallowly into the issue of homosexuality, with two lesbians. Although I found the cover good, I also found that I was laughing near the end over the joke between Kahlan and Berdine. The fact that he covered this issue made me feel good. As many books look at it in a negative way. I am glad that this one was different.
If you enjoyed the two previous books then I recommend this one also, as it too is full of murder, mystery and many suprises which will keep you readin well into the night.

After reading and not really enjoying 'Stone of Tears', I had large doubts about Mr Goodkinds ability to write quality fiction. 'Blood of the Fold' however made me reconsider my harsh verdict on him as an author, with the book turning out to quite an improvement on the 1st and especially the 2nd novels he has written.
'Blood of the Fold' is barely half the length of 'Stone of Tears' yet advances and explains the story of Richard and Kahlan much clearer and better, with the storyline building on those of the two previous books to begin to create an epic fantasy scenario in the traditions of Robert Jordan and David Eddings. The story is pretty much a direct continuation of the last book with most of the characters and plotlines introduced in 'Stone of Tears' continued and developed. In particular 'Blood of the Fold' sees the characteristics and nature of the Imperial order, The Blood of the Fold and the Mrswith explained and developed a lot more, with Mr Goodkind taking the time to give us a bit more of an description of where these enemies come from and their place in the grand scheme of his world (something he neglected and was very fuzzy about in his previous books).
Indeed in general 'Blood of the Fold' is a much better book than the previous two with a better quality of writing and narrative, a faster pace and more meaningful action, better development of the background of his world and a more comphrehensible plot. In particular 'Blood of the Fold' has less of the meaningless fat and waffle that was in 'Stone of Tears', with Goodkind (or his editors) showing much better planning in the writing of this book, with the consequence that the pace and purpose of this book is a lot quicker and more meaningful.
This all serves to make 'Blood of the Fold' a much better book than the previous ones and shows that Mr Goodkind is improving significantly as an author as he gains more experience, thus I would recomend it too anyone who is not really sure whether to keep reading his books after the 1st two novels. However I still feel that Mr Goodkind still puts in too much explicity sadistic violence (though significantly less than S of T), and too lttle work into developing the texture and background of his fantasy world. This combined with the relative unoriginality of some of his ideas and story elements makes me feel that his books do not really compare favorably to those of other big series fantasy authors such as Robert Jordan, George R.R Martin, David Eddings or even Raymond E. Feist. Still a good book and a series worth reading.

I've previously read the three books in the original Shannara series and the four books in the Heritage of Shannara series. I enjoyed them all very much, although I though some were better than others. THE FIRST KING OF SHANNARA is a prequel to the others, with the action taking place several hundred years before the events taken up in THE SWORD OF SHANNARA. The drawback here, for me, was that it's been many years since I read those books, particularly the first series. Hence, this latest tale gives background to things in the later series that I hardly remember.
That issue aside, I've always had a couple of other small problems with Brooks' writing. It's always seemed to me that either the world of The Four Lands is lilliputian, or the characters in these books walk at extraordinary speed. Brooks frequently has characters traverse passes through mountains in a day. Early in this book, Bremen and his companions go from Paranor south through mountains to the Mermidon in a day, then go from there (the western end of the Dragon's Teeth) to near the Valley of Shale (at the eastern end of the Dragon's Teeth), a distance that would have to be 100 miles or more based on maps from the books, the following day. Admittedly, these are imaginary places, but, as someone who has done a little backpacking, the sheer unreasonableness of traveling such distances on foot in the timeframe given in the stories always bothers me. Try walking through a range of mountains in a day or two. Further, these characters seem inexhaustable. They get tired and haggard, but they hike for days at a time, often continuing far into the night, with little food and little sleep. Superman couldn't do it.
These are, however, small problems. The fact is, the Shannara books are quite good and, in my opinion, THE FIRST KING OF SHANNARA is one of the better ones. The characters, as usual, have depth, and Brooks provides beautiful descriptive passages, setting his scenes in great detail without being ponderous. In addition, though, this is one of his more engrossing plots. The story moves at a strong, steady pace and there is plenty of action. This book is great fun. Not Tolkien, in my mind, but excellent just the same. Brooks fans will love it. For others, this book can stand on its own, but I recommend reading the original Shannara series first. If you like fantasy fiction, this is a must.

I like the world Goodkind has created. It is rich with characters and an intriguing mythology. I liked the first book, but I like the second book better--maybe because I am familiar with the world, so I can get deeper into the story itself. The story focuses on several interesting themes: self-acceptance and self-awareness, responsibility and consequences for choices, and value-hierarchy. The development of the characters and the way their choices drive the plot keeps me thoroughly engaged in the world. Lastly, I love Gratch.

I really don't like rating a Terry Brooks book this low. He's by far my favorite fantasy author, and seeing him produce a work which is not only below his standards, but in fact far below them, is quite a tragedy. Alas, even the best of authors can produce sub-par works, and this was most certainly such a work.

First King of Shannara's biggest failing is that it is telling a story which was already told: that of the Druid Bremen's quest to vanquish the Warlock Lord. A good tenth of The Sword of Shannara was dedicated to explaining the backstory of Bremen and his efforts, touching on every single major event that transpired. There was no need whatsoever to expand even further upon the study, as what we had was sufficient.

The other big problem is that the book feels like it's doing nothing but nodding and winking at long-time series fans with each and every chapter. It reeks of the sort of amatuerish writing generally found in Hollywood, where a prequel's author just short of yells "DID YOU SEE WHAT I DID THERE!?" every time a reference is made to events from stories that take place later in the timeline. There is not a hint of subtlety, nor any respect for the intelligence of those readers who have read his previous novels.

I suspect that this novel was meant to be a new jumping-on point for the Shannara series for new readers. But even there it falls short due to the last big problem with this novel: it relies on the reader already being familiar with a great deal of the series mythos. First King often fails to show the reader what happens instead of just telling them and trusting that they'll already know enough to piece together the missing details.

While I can't call this the worst novel I've read by Terry Brooks (Witches' Brew still holds that distinction for me), it is the most disappointing. Given that there are only 3 of his novels I've ever felt particularly disappointed in, that's definitely saying something.

Goodkind open our eyes to the true nature of evil!

I've read many a book, but none reach me like this series has. The entire Sword of Truth series, sets a pretty high standard for epic fantasy, let along a good book series. Early books had some places that were a bit clunky, (it was the authors first books if I'm not mistaken), but don't we ALL start out something a bit green, and then hone our skills?

The more books by Goodkind you read, you clearly see the excellent progress he's made in his craft. Goodkind does what so few fantasy authors do, that being have true heroes, heroes who use reason, heroes who do not become the enemy or become cowards and most important, heroes that stand up for what is honorable and true. And heroes that do not sacrifice their values to accomplish their goals.

You will not see nasty words, vulgarity, incest (unlike some series), porno, or any kind of depravity in the name of literature. This series touches on some violence and deals with real world issues like war and the true horrors of war. It exposes evil for what it is and it shows that mankind can rise up and be truly noble!

While I see there are a few people who want to vote poorly and post negative comments, it is your right. But when you post such acerbic comments, it is easy to see that you simply think it funny. Like anyone would take your petty comments as anything but jealousy and immaturity.

While this series has its merits, it has its problems as well. No book will have everything to speak to every person.

This series starts in easy, and right away you grasp the wonderful story telling ability of Goodkind, and as you go on, it delves deeper into the nature of man. This series explores deep human themes and exposes the fallacy of collectivism.

This book has a striking romantic aspect as well as plenty of heart wrenching twists. While I personally love the philosophy, I can see why some may not. That (IOHP), is why we have arena such as this, so that we can offer up likes and dislikes. Most who do that have offered up an HONEST review. The rest simply are offering up vitriol, because they fear this series for the good that it does and they fear it because they feel it a threat to their favorite author.

BE HONEST, give the book its due.

Support your book stores! Support the Publishing world, and for goodness sake buy a book so we can drive these whacked out "save the rain forest" freaks crazy by cutting down a few more trees!

I have been fighting the critics that say Goodkind's work is simply a plagurisim of Jordan's WOT, but he came very close to losing my supprot in this text. I'm not going to go making the connections here, but there is definitely a close comparison.
He also has begun to show some of Tolkien in his work, especially at the end of the book when the Gars attack the Mriswith and save the day (sound familiar). I like his description of why the Gars came about and why they have the green eyes, but the connection to Tolkien and Jordan leaves me feeling a bit flat.
I am also becoming a bit tired of the relationship between Richard and Kahlan being so prominent throughout the text. It seems as though he is trying to convince us of their love be being repetitive and it doesn't need to be done in my opinion.
Things about this book that I enjoy are the mriswith as I think they are a very unique character. His character development has always been very good and he has been good at creating scenes and excitemnet in his previous two books but he falls a bit short in this book. I think the strength of this book and the previous has been the Mord-Sith; I think the characters are wonderful but the name and the concept seem to be a repetition of other authors.
I have laready started Temple of the Winds because I am dedicated to finishing the series. I would recommend this book if you are in my shoes and in hopes that it pick up in Temple of the Winds.
IMPRESSION: GOOD - RECOMMENDED

First King of Shannara is a prequel to the Sword of Shannara. Even though Terry said many times he wouldn't go backwards he did with this book (and will again in 2006). It answers questions people had about the Sword and the destruction of Paranor. The main character is Bremen, an outcast Druid that knows that the Brona, a druid thought dead and gone from the Four Lands, is now returned as the Warlock Lord. Is because of these views that he is an outcast. This book unlike other Shannara books is split into sections. "The Fall of Paranor" tells of Bremen trying to warn the Druids that the Warlock Lord is going to lay seige to the keep. But it is to late and the keep is destroyed and all the Druids are killed save Bremen. The second part "The Search for the Black Elfstone" continues the story with Jerle Shannara searching for the Black Elfstone so that the Warlock Lord can not use it himself. "The Forging of the Sword" tells of Bremen asking the dead Druids for a way to destroy Brona. He then forges the Sword, which he gives Jerle Shannara, who doesn't want the burden. The last part "The Battle for the Rhenn" concludes the story and tells of the final fight against the Warlock Lord and his minions and the ultimate failure of Jerle Shannara. We also meet Allanon when he is just a boy. Bremen trains him.

All those events you hear Allanon talking about - well here's the first hand look into the life of Bremen, the fall of the Druids and the first battle with Brona. Seeing the events unfold all together as a single story was a lot of fun. You pick up on the various parts of the legends and the histories that you hear in bits and pieces throughout the series. As such, it can easily be read as a stand alone and you will still get a lot of enjoyment out of it.

In fact, you may get more enjoyment out of it. I found I had learned a little too much about the events and characters, and when they didn't live up to my expectations, especially Jerle Shannara, who I found to be very un-heroic and a little whiny at times.

The druid Bremen, on the other hand, was great. I loved his tenacity and his sorrow that he wasn't able to make people (like the Druids) change their mind about how they would react to events. Overall the adventure was a little predictable (but I already knew what was going to happen), and the hero was a little too underwhelming, but it was still fun.

If you liked the first two books in this series than you will enjoy this one also. It is still based around the main characters Richard, Kahlan and a host of others. I have very much enjoyed the first three books in the series, and would recommend them to fantasy lovers. The Characters are very likeable, and the story lines are good and fairly complex. The endings do seem a bit rushed in the last two, including this one, but the journey is the best part of the book anyways. I am almost through the Temple of the Winds (book 4) and it is also suprisingly good.The reminiscing of events already taken place in the previous books that people complain about with Goodkinds writing is rather annoying, but you can skip those paragraphs if you've read the first two books.The books seem to be getting a little more gritty as they go on also, not as dark as Greorge r.r. Martin or anything, but not cookie cutter clean like Jordan either. All in all, if you like fantasy you should like this series.

This is the first Shannara novel I have read in about 14 years. In that time I was surprised to see how graphic and violent the novel was. Most fantasy books I have read simply gloss over the fact that people die. Brooks makes sure you know that there was a loss and you feel it more. Another refreshing change was one of the main characters dies. I did not want to see the character pass, but it was nice to see that sometimes heroes fail. After being halfway through this book, I started looking at the Shannara series to see which "Trilogy" I should read next and I found out that this book contains a spoiler in reference to the Heritage of Shannnara series. Oops. I guess I will have to just act surprised. All in all I would recommend this book to any fan of fantasy, It was truly enjoyable.

Terry Goodkind's first book, Wizard's First Rule, was entertaining many years ago when I was a relatively new fantasy reader. Except for the actual First Rule ("People are Stupid"), which was... stupid. The story had some fascinating characters (mostly the secondary ones -- I could never muster up much care for Kahlan) and Richard started out as a pretty good hero. The next couple of books of The Sword of Truth were also fun for a fantasy newbie.

Then, Terry Goodkind just TOTALLY lost it. His writing style became incredibly annoying and Richard was getting WAY too preachy (constant Ayn Rand-ish humanistic ranting). But, I kept going because I was invested by this time. And each time I bought one of his $25 hardback books, I found myself rolling my eyes at every passive sentence and starting to fall asleep during the sermons (when did Richard hire a speech writer??).

And the plot really got ssslllllloooow[...] Just look at the book covers for Chainfire, Phantom, and Confessor -- you can tell we're not going anywhere. (I hope they got a 3-for-1 deal on that cover art.) But the weirdest thing is that I kept buying these 1 star books! I can't explain my behavior, except to say that I kept thinking that things would get better, but they did not. How did he pull off that first booK?? I've learned from this experience that I can put down a book if it's not good. There's too much good literature to read.

According to Mr Goodkind, those of us who have bailed out are ignorant and uneducated. Wow. That is something I have never been called before. I should have realized right from the start ("Wizard's First Rule: People are stupid") what kind of fellow Terry Goodkind is. Here is a quote from a chat session conducted with Mr Goodkind (this used to be on his website, but has now been removed. It is well-documented on the internet, however.):

"Why would they continue to read books they claim are bad? Because they hate that my novels exists. Values arouse hatred in these people. Their goal is not to enjoy life, but to destroy that which is good -- much like a school child who does not wish to study for a test and instead beats up a classmate who does well. These people hate what is good because it is good. Their lives are limited to loathing and indifference. It isn't that they want to read a good book, what they want is to make sure that you do not. Ignore them." ~Terry Goodkind

I say Terry Goodkind is the one acting like a school child having a tantrum. I regret that he got so much of my money. I hope you won't give him any of yours. If you really want to try a Goodkind book, I would recommend that you go to the library and check out the first few, and then trust me that you don't need to read any further. I will not read the last book. I'm not even tempted.

I first read Terry Brooks when I was in high school and I have loved the world of Shannara ever since. For me, the impact of his collective works rivals that of JRR Tolkien. I have read the previous seven Shannara books and this is once again another fantastic epic story of good vs evil.

This book clears up a lot of things that have been alluded to in "The Sword of Shannara" Trilogy and "The Heritage of Shannara" four-book series. Brooks has an easy to read writing style and a talent for developing characters and storyline that makes you feel like you are a part of the journey. His books can stand alone as well as be read as series.

I would however recommend reading this book after the first three books, only because it seems to fit better in this way. It is called a prequel for a reason, and when examining the continuum of the story in this order, the themes and narrative that Brooks is trying to present will become more profound and enduring.

In particular, I found the story of Tay Trefenwyd to be particularly moving. It also brings to light the concept of absolute power, and the ability to sacrifice oneself in order to not destroy that which one holds most dear, right intention, thought, and action.

Another great book from one of my favorite authors. Highly recommended.

I am half-way through Blood of the Fold, and find myself absolutely disappointed -- not to mention bewildered & embarrassed that I've read so far into this silly series. I have to admit that I enjoyed the first two books (w/ some exceptions when they were rather over the top). Unfortunately, the Blood of the Fold is painfully slow, and so much of the story is downright absurd. As many of the other reviewers have mentioned, the book repeats the same themes from the first two books over and over again (primarily evil psychotic beings controlling sadistic "tools," or the tortured-kind-hearted woodsman with unbelievable potential who just wants to go home or see his True Love, etc.). So when I realized I was feeling rather perplexed as to how I got suckered into this series, I decided to take a look at reader reviews to figure out what went wrong. In doing so, I came across one review -- and felt my jaw drop when I read in defense of the Blood of the Fold, "You will not see nasty words, vulgarity, incest (unlike some series), porno, or any kind of depravity in the name of literature [in this book]. This series touches on some violence and deals with real world issues..." I am sorry - but those statements don't represent this book whatsoever. In fact, I am at a loss how the reviewer even read the same series I did. The amount of redundant, glorifying, silly-yet-sick violence in this book is absurd. As the story drones on and on with new obstacles & evil beings trying to kill Richard and Kahlen, gore & guts are thrown in every chapter in the absence of anything really happening. Action scenes are primarily taken up with women being raped and tortured, men and women being torn to pieces by evil beings (including humans)... the list goes on. Bottomline, the story is itself tortured - with the main character, Richard, now an unbearably silly man, and the antagonists all evil to the core, or psychotic and blood thirsty. The stereotypes are endless.... Sadly, I agree with so many of the negative comments about this book. Basically, really poor writing & character development for the most part; although I enjoyed some of the story surrounding the Sisters of the Light at the Palace this time around - at least this far into the book. Perhaps things will get better in the 2d half when Kahlen comes back, but from what the reviews have stated, it's unlikely. Of course, I guess we've got to give Goodkind some credit for keeping with the series ... on and on and on... page after page.

Jerle Shannara, the Kingship of the Elves thrust upon him after the tragic destruction of the heart of the Royal family, finds his land and people in the deadliest peril. The Wizard Bremen also stands against that peril, which threatens the lands of the Dwarves and of Men as well.

Bremen, along with a small group of comrades, must somehow find the black elfstone and hide it from the deadly enemy that threatens them all, yet at the same time they struggle to rally the people of the freelands to stand against the armies of Trolls, Gnomes, and other dire creatures, led by the Skullbearers. Their greatest hope against the leader of these deadly creatures is a mystical sword that Bremen aids in forging, combining the strength of magic and of science in its blade. Yet what is this mystical power that is held by the sword?

The First King of Shannara being the prequel to Terry Brooks' Shanarra series, has many foreshadows of the other books in the series in its pages. It is well written, if not as superb as some of the greatest, such as Tolkien, from whom Brooks seems to have found some of his greatest inspirations. An enjoyable read for any fantasy fan, and should be on the list of any fan of the Shanarra series.

RD Williams, author of 'The Lost Gate'

Well, maybe (more on this later). I really didn't like the first two books, but I have to admit, that this one was somewhat better written. The action is a little better here. but the love theme is getting a bit worn out at this point. This book moves better than the first two, but that's not saying much. I give this 2 1/2 stars, but would have given it 3 except that parts of the ending are so contrived and rushed that its as if the author had had enough of writing and just wanted to tie things up. Since all of the loose ends were neatly and quickly tied in the last couple pages, I'm taking this time to bow out of this series. I've had enough.

I'm new to the fantasy genre and just recently stumbled upon the SOT series -- and I'm hooked. I'm finding that I'm staying up all night more and more because I can't wait to find out what happens next. I'm currently on the Temple of the Winds, and Blood of the Fold seems a distant memory -- even though I only finished it last week. While Blood of the Fold has not been my favorite, it was great nonetheless.
One of the things I love about this series is that Goodkind manages to constantly introduce new characters -- I thought I only cared to read about Richard and Kaylan -- but now I'm also excited about Verna, Warren, etc. and look forward to Goodkind developing those characters. (I probably have the spelling wrong because I'm only listening to the audio tapes). I also love the humor via the Mord Siths. And I don't want to give too much away, but the way Richard takes control of things is very satisfying.
There are, unfortunately, subplots which I did not take to. I thought too much time was wasted on the blood of the fold -- it didn't really lead anywhere. The storyline about the Mriswith was also not very well developed -- it was tossed into the mix with little explanation.
Oh well, I better stop before I give too much away.

A epic fantasy with a cast of Chartres your remember long after the story has ended. It's been a few years since I read this and I still remember how epic it was. Terry Goodkind works wonders when he paints with words and sometimes he is a little to good. But he will leave you wanting more in the end.If you love fantasy then this series should be a staple in any collection.

...but already the Kahlan/Richard storyline is growing really, really, tired. Richard overreacts...Richard apologizes...Kahlan cries and swears she will never betray Richard...Richard and Kahlan talk about getting married and sharing Kahlan's big, big bed...Richard somehow thwarts the advances of every hot woman known to mankind but listens to Kahlan prattle on and on about some nonsense...other characters become angry then apologize...someone else cries...someone else apologizes for crying...someone else apologizes for yelling...Richard theorizes about this, that and the other thing....Richard talks about how he lacks control over the magic...We get the 15,000th recapitulation of the history of the Confessors, the Wizards, the Palace of Prophets, the Keeper, Darken Rahl... we read the 1,000,000th inartfully drafted prophecy which mysteriously works itself out by way of some tortured plot twist...Richard befriends more enemies and inexplicably converts them into longtime friends...the Mord Sith prance around in red leather grabbing their Agiel and make cute comments but do little else...Richard grinds his teeth for the umpteenth time and grabs the Sword of Truth and lets the rage flow through him...just send me to the Keeper already!

Wizard's Fourth Rule: Read George RR Martin

The series is worth the read, but I simply cannot rate it that high. A few reasons I have sited previously in his other books:

1) Grammer! I can't believe how many mistakes are in his books. Terrible! Almost distracting at times.
2) Nothing unique overall with the storyline. Dark one, good fights bad. Magic, dragons etc.
3) A lot of detail on scenes that more or less don't matter. Sometimes I just had to skim the pages because I lost interest.
4) In contract, in every book of his, the end always feels rushed. In a few chapters everything ends and things work out for the good guys.
5) Nobody good every dies? I'm not asking for Martin's death pen here, but maybe be a little realistic?

There are parts that I enjoy in his books, but overall it is just average.

This is a great book. Its probably second in the seris only to the last one. It tells the story before the Allanon is around. Back when Bremen is trying to save the world from the Borona. Bremeen tries is one of the last Druids who thinks that magic is still important. The other Druids ignorance will kill them. This is the book where the sword is made. I don't want to give away any of the details but the making of it is just awesome. Bremen has to go through a lot to get the sword made and delivered to where it has to go. Allanon is in the book a little at the end and it shows back when he is young and vulnerable. Bremen kinda takes him in. The other jorney in this book is made by another Druid to get the Black Elfstone and it is very imaginitive when it all ends. This was a book that i could not put down and i think that it will be the same for you.

...Sad, but true. The series seems to be spiraling in a direction I don't like. I long for the days that Kahlan and Richard hiked the woods together on their hapless way to fight evil. It hasn't happened for two books since Wizard's First Rule and I don't think it going to happen anytime soon.

This book, the third of the series, is the worst so far. Easily.

Without spoiling too much, the story has all the heroes separated, once again, for the entire book. Kahlan and Richard are apart.. again. [Sigh] Part of what made the Wizard's First Rule so good was the interactions of Kahlan, Richard and Zedd. Reading them all on their own is really lacking. It wouldn't be as bad if there was more of a grand reunion. But this book, like Stone of Tears, fails at that miserably. The main characters are, for a second time, rushed back together at the end to do a hurry wrap up and they seemingly act as if they were across the street from one another. I really think Goodkind has trouble painting a picture of the big crescendo moments. Richard, Kahlan and Zedd are fighting this whole book to get back together... When they finally do, it comes off as ho-hum. It shouldn't be like that.

Antagonist time. So it was Darken Rahl in book one, the Keeper in book two ...and now a guy name Jagang trying to take over the world in book three. This guy gets NO introduction except how he cows down the six Sisters of the Dark that fled in book two. Of course he has them naked and being raped in no time. Goodkind sure does love his gratuitous molestation and rape as this continues his overly descriptive ways from the second book. One thing I find myself thinking now in having read these books is that when strife rears up and a female character gets captured or even is in danger of getting captured, I wonder how they are going to get molested this go around. Seriously. Poor Kahlan. Everytime that girl gets in trouble, someone is trying to rape her. It's something that has become very predictable since book one. Girl + trouble = guy (or guys) try to rape them. Its moving from uncomfortable reading to a tad ridiculous and gratuitous.

So thats all you get on Jagang. He's a "Dream Walker" that is wicked powerful if he breaks into your mind. And he ain't too kind to females. Then he disappears for the rest of the book. The other two predominant baddies are heading up the Blood of the Fold. Tobias and Luneta. Incestuous brother and sister that are all sorts of crazy. Tobias is.. well, flat out insane and Luneta is addled in a sad, childlike way. The kind in which she really didn't know any better. So you get the honor of reading two perspectives of crazy people. Honestly, I didn't find them interesting at all and in the end they didn't serve much of a point. But you can't talk about Tobias and Luneta without the highlight of their existence in this book. As you likely have read in a review or two, Tobias gets control of his enemies by.. wait for it... cutting off their left nipple and carrying it around in a box with him. Yeah.. Thats really all I have to say about that.

There is the potential of a huge war in this book which doesn't really come to as grand a head as you would think. Tobias and Luneta have the Blood of the Fold army, Jagang has the Imperial Order and Richard has D'Hara. At their disposal seems to be millions of soldiers. Yet another thing I have issue with here. Goodkind loves making his armies INSANELY huge. Every time he mentions armies here or there, its always in the area of 200,000 troops. In one part of the book Richard informs one of his generals to take 100,000 troops and go look for Kahlan. WHAT!? Does Goodkind understand how many freaking people that is or what it would take to maintain a mass of soldiers that big? He treats 100,000 as if its 50 guys traipsing through the woods. The Midlands, Westland and D'Hara are, in my estimation, smaller than Middle Earth in Tolkien's novels. Seeing what it took to move armies around in that world that were a tenth the size of Goodkind's makes the army talk in this book all the more silly. It kills immersion when he throws out unrealistic numbers like he does and the words lack weight when its made to sound so trivial. "Move 100,000 men over there and take 250,000 men to my house while the remaing 75,000 will go to the store and get some milk". Ugh.

This is really turning into a rant-fest so I'll wrap up saying that this book wasn't bad. It added to the depth of the series introducing the Blood of the Fold and hearing more about the Sisters of the Light ..but it just wasn't very exciting. It took weird turns in places like, for instance, introducing Lesbianism into the medieval setting. Richard and one of his Mord Sith have a long heart-to-heart on being a lesbian. Talk about weird and out of place. Its things like that, that kept this book from being as immersive as the other two.

If you are this deep in the series you most likely will go on (like I will). But you have to be getting scared since the books really are going downhill fast. And if you're like me and have read some reviews on the last book in the series, seeing things like 'the first four books are the only ones worth reading', etc... you have to be real scared. Oh well.. onto Temple of the Winds. Can you feel my excitement? Wonder who's going to try and take over the world in that one?

This series started out so innocently with the protaganist living in a world that was nearly without magic. Goodkind kept the story building from book to book and I found that once I got started, I couldn't put it down. And the characters were so well developed that you would feel their every victory and anguish. Some might find that I'm too emotional about the characters but truly, the only other character that can get me like this reading a book is Raymond E. Feist's Jimmy the Hand. Unlike other fantasies who attempt at describing spell casting as muttering of words or waving of hands, Goodkind has created his own magical world, with the Mother Confessioner's power, the powers of the ancestors etc. Definitely worth the sleepless nights!

The first book is AWESOME. The second one is a decent read.

This one has the writing on the wall. I've tried to slog through this series a couple of times, and every time I just couldn't be bothered to go on after this book.

More than anything, it feels like Mr. Goodkind read Robert Jordan's series, and he wanted to write a series where there was tons of view points and all these plots and such. But - unfortunately - he doesn't have the talent that Jordan does (or did) at keeping all those balls in the air. I really feel where this series excelled was when it was keeping with limited viewpoint, and just followed Richard. We were drawn to care deeply for Richard. It was easy to read about him.

But now we have groups of sisters, and POV from evil people, and Kahlan's trials and tribulations, and... Who are we reading about again?

Anyway - Wizard's First Rule was an awesome book. It would've been great if someone had written more of those. Unfortunately, someone wrote a bad copy of Wheel of Time set in the Sword of Truth's world.

Terry Brooks is a master of this form. That said, there is a feeling that he has written every scene in this book so many times that the only way for him to enjoy the process is to insert terminology that is excessive, inaccurate, and distracting. Granted, the editors should have exercised more of their influence, but I suppose they too have been to this well more often than is ideal when trying to keep a familiar--and admittedly effective--formula fresh. Still,despite it's flaws, this is an enjoyable trek back to when the Sword--and the saga--was forged. (Though I personally would have enjoyed more combat than angst, I suppose that hardened fans will enjoy this visit to the era of antiquity in the realm of Brooks' Shannara.

This is the third book in the expansive series entitled "The Sword of Truth". We find Richard is coming to accept the magic that runs in his veins. He is finally more comfortable with the Sword of Truth at his side and with his instinctive magic. It's nice not hearing him complain every 100 pages about how much he doesn't like magic. In fact, he is beginning to accept it as a diversifying element across the continent. With the Imperial Order looming at large it is difficult to take this side since they are hellbent on removing all traces of magic even though they use sorceresses and the like as scent hounds to root out others with the 'gift'. With Mord-Sith at his side, assassination attempts, and high end drama we are once again wrapped up in Goodkind's world.

The Sisters of the Dark are still at large and just as deadly as ever. They embody the Seven Deadly Sins and aren't afraid to pursue them to their ends. This puts them in a peculiar spot since the Keeper's influence has been sucked back into the underworld by Richard in the previous book. Instead they are forced to follow the leader of the Imperial Order, a ruthless tyrant named Jagang. He is powerful and is capable of magic despite his desires to destroy all outside magical entities. These individuals are driven by the lust for immortality, their vanity, greed, and desires for domination. The same themes run in some of the Sisters of the Light, which makes everyone absolutely untrustworthy with the exception of Sister Verna. The Sisters of the Light are afraid to leave their immortal timelessness and are stuck in a stagnant atmosphere that is swiftly being brought to change because of Prelate Annalina and Richard's doings.

On top of this threat is the Blood of the Fold, an elite set of soldiers who are a hop, skip, and a jump away from being a mini-Imperial Order. They hunt down 'banelings' and have done so for a long time. A 'baneling' is an agent of the Keeper and, unfortunately, the Blood of the Fold equates that with most magic users. And so we are introduced to Tobias Brogan, Lord General, and his sister Lunetta. The book was published in '96 so all you Harry Potter fans better not get your knickers in a twist because of the nickname "Loony" Lunetta and that she dresses oddly. To be sure, anything with the word Lunar associated with it normally has peculiarities in association with a long standing cultural stigma of the moon. Either way, Tobias uses his sister, who is a sorceress, to hunt down banelings, which, to him, includes the Mother Confessor (Kahlan) and the new Lord Rahl (Richard) once he gets a gander at him. So, naturally, this complicates things. To go even further are issues with the mriswith, a serpentine like creature mentioned in the previous book. For fear of giving much away I will say no more, only that they play an integral role in tightening knots. All in all these factors create an Axis and Allies kind of battleground where politics and fear reign supreme. On one side is world domination while wiping out a particular set of people while the other side fights to keep equality, diversity, and unison across the land.

In this book we get an in depth discovery of not only how Aydindril works and will work in the future, but also how the Palace of the Prophets has worked for thousands of years. We get an idea of the Prelate's responsibilities and how they are quite similar to being a Mother Confessor. It seems both the Old and the New Worlds needed something like that.

One problem I have with this book is that it doesn't leave a lot to assumption. In other words there aren't a lot of secrets or questions when we're reading this book. We get perspectives from everywhere, which gives us a 'know-it-all' perspective since other characters are in the dark about other people, places, or things. Otherwise it's a quick and easy read with a lot of action and a bit of nail-biting suspense.

I don't usually review more than one book in any series, but there were just a couple of things I wanted to say about this one. First of all, I did think it was a decent segue into the next big book. The thing that just nagged at me after I read it, however, was the title. This is just me being nitpicky, but the title is Blood of the Fold eventhough the main story doesn't really have a whole lot to do with them. Sure, they make an appearance, but they don't really accomplish a whole lot. They just sort of pop up every now and then so that we know they are still there, then they fade into the background. Well, that was just my 2 cents.

I got a kindle and was excited to down load this series. I purchased the first two books. The story is the same but the editing is atrocious. It doesn't totally kill the book, but it definitely takes away from the reading experience. I have these books in hard copy and am going to pull those out again. I am not going to pay $9 for this garbage. If there is a point in this series where it becomes readable in electronic form, please let me know and I will download the series from there. Otherwise, I am done with this series in this form.

You know so far I have read all four of Mr. Goodkind's books, and I have been riveted to all of them.
I realize that all have a right to their opinion on these books, but people do not have the right to bash the author. If you don't like his writings fine, state your opinion on the material. I don't know what kind of person Mr. Goodkind is in his private life, but I do know he can write. That is all that matters to me.
I feel people come here for honest reviews on books. Not to read someone's personal opinion on the author's private life. Or to read this book sucks!!! What I want in a review is why did you like it, or why didn't you like it.
I like Mr.Goodkind's books because they put a new twist on an old idea. He can scare the pants off you, and then make you feel sorry for the villian. There are similarities to the writings of authors before him, but tell me an author that hasn't used from another. This is true of all authors not just fantasy fiction writers.
As for the sexual violence well it adds spice to the plot, and there is a reason if you look deep enough for it. I have said this before, and will say it again. I have not seen these books advertised without a warning that the sexual, and violent content may offend some readers warning. So if you didn't see it PAY MORE ATTENTION!!!!!!! If you did see the warning and read this series anyway. You got just what you were asking for so STOP WHINING!!!!
Keep up the good work Mr. Goodkind, and don't let unintelligent reviews get you down....

This was a re-read for me, but it's probably been more than 5 years since I last read it. BotF is the third book in the 11-book Sword of Truth series. In this novel, Richard and Kahlan spend most of the book separated from one another, but both fighting against the Blood of the Fold - an army that has set out to wipe the world of magic in the belief they are serving the will of the Creator.

While Goodkind tended to get wordy and philosophical in his later offerings, BotF tends to move quickly. The development of characters - especially Verna and the three Mord-Siths - is what really made the book for me.

Of the 10 I've read so far, this probably is my #3 favorite.

Yes, it's a prequel, and if you're just starting on Brooks' series then by all means, read it first. I'm reading them all for a third time - and I don't read ANY fantasy or science fiction novels. That's how good the Shannara series is.
I really admire the way Brooks has reached back and tied the characters together once again, allowing us to see the long ago history of the characters we've followed through this series. It's quite entertaining for a fan of the series to see the familiar names cropping up, and being able to see how these families were entwined in one another's fates from generations earlier than the first installment.

First of all, let me just state that I am so incredibly sick and tired of EVERYONE comparing Tolkien to Brooks. Yes, the writings are similar. Brooks has even stated in the past that Tolkien was an inspiration. But, the two are different. There are those that like Tolkien and those that don't. I personally do not. I find his fiction to be boring, drawn out, and highly unpalatable. I'm sorry if this offends some of the Tolkien aficionados out there, but guess what, some people in this world do not share your apparent narrow minded view...HEAVEN FORBID!!!! I had to fight through Fellowship 6 times to eventually finish it.
Now, onto The First King. As a prelude, this book was not all that bad. It continued rather well in the same vein as the rest of Brooks' Shannara series. He did an excellent job with staying within the pre-determined guidelines of what he had already hinted at in his other books. Personally, I thought Bremen's end was a little anti-climactic, but that was the author's personal choice. All in all, not too bad of a novel. I the way that he continues to tell a marvelous tale of fantasy and wonder. If you are a fan of the Shannara series, you will like this book.

Richard starts out creating the bond to have the D'Haran troops join together under his command. He, Hoping to get word from Kahlan, decides the best way to stand up against the Imperial Order is to claim the Midlands are no more united as one, but should surrender to him in hopes of defending along side D'Hara against the Imperial Order. Sister Verna, now Plelate has to take charge and can only trust Warren, still fearing that there are Sisters of the Dark in the Palace. Richard, impatient from not meeting up with either Kahlan or Zedd, sends Gratch, his gar friend, to send word of what he's doing. With his 3 Mord sith and two bodyguards, Richard tries to figure out a way to help the Midlands.
Like my title sats...short, but sweet (altho it is approx. 600 pgs.). There isn't as much action than the last one, but the plot twists and such keep it at a good rate anyways. I still have trouble trying to read accounts of semi-main characters without hoping to get to the next chapter where Richard or Kahlan are the subjects, but doing so helped me like those characters more. I also enjoy reading points-of-view from the bad guys, the Lord General of the Blood of the Fold for example.
The explanations of some the creatures is brought forward like the mriswith and gar. And even the bringing in of the 3 Mord Sith adds more to the story. I really like those three, but what man wouldn't? they're three fine women...anyways, characters are good, story is good.
Very enjoyable and I'm ready for more...

Blood of the Fold is an excellent book as a stand alone or as the continuation of the Sword Of Truth series. Terry Goodkind does an excellent job of making the characters people you can enjoy and care about.

My husband and I have been listening to the series on audio book. My only complaint is that as the reader changes with each book, the pronunciation of the names of people and places changes as well. This is a very minor complaint as the story is excellent.

I highly recommend this series of books.

Confessor: Chainfire Trilogy, Part 3 (Sword Of Truth, Book 11)

I loved this book and have read this entire series! Not crazy about the gory parts, but that is just a small part of a wonderfully intoxicating story......will read the entire series again in a few years!

I like the world Goodkind has created. It is rich with characters and an intriguing mythology. I liked the first book, but I like the second book better--maybe because I am familiar with the world, so I can get deeper into the story itself. The story focuses on several interesting themes: self-acceptance and self-awareness, responsibility and consequences for choices, and value-hierarchy. The development of the characters and the way their choices drive the plot keeps me thoroughly engaged in the world. Lastly, I love Gratch.

This book was good, the plot was interesting, but I have to say that it is already old. The story is as a reviewer put it, a soap opera episode, with each book being a "new installment", never finishing. The pattern of suspense, drama, dark torture and then a rushed conclusion is seen in this as well.

PLOT:

What can I say, it was interesting and it wasn't a problem that was conjectured up out of then air. I have to say that is was fairly creative. Especially with the dwelling into the history of magic hating. However, Richard's genius, and ability to get out of any situation has gotten really annoying. If they had said he is a "rare person" one more time I would have thrown the book across the wall. The romance was nice, and it was really sweet to see them together. The continuing simplicity of the narrative is also well paced.

CONCLUSION:

It is a soap opera, and it won't end for another 10 books or so. I recommend, read the first three/four, and if the ending of the series in the next years gets any better, then you should probably continue. If not, read this book and/or the next, then write at the bottom of the last page, "Richard and Kahlan live happily ever after. The End."

As usual, the Sword of Truth books never disappoint. This one was very action packed and never slow. I was actually amazed that it could get more exciting at the end. This might be my favorite in the series. It's a great book about magic that still involves a love story but focuses on saving the world... the medieval-ish old world.

I'm only giving this one four stars because it left so much of the plot unresolved. It is a series, so it's understandable to leave some things for later, but I wish it had wrapped up a stronger so that I could take a palate cleanse break. I'm too excited though, so on to the next.

There is no question Terry Goodkind can write a spell binding fantasy adventure. Like the first two books, Goodkind combines magic, action, and good old human frailty and self doubt into a page turning story which makes the reader desperate to find out what happened to these characters after the book ends.
That said, this book was not up to the quality of the first two installments of the Sword of Truth series. First, the action sequences were too short and not well connected to the rest of the plot. But more importantly, by having his main characters spread all through his Old and New Worlds, not knowing what each of the others were doing, lead to a disconnected plot. There were simply too many unknowns, which despite the 600+ page length, were never meshed into a coherent story.
Finally, Goodkind spent far to much of the book first setting up the penultimate battle between good and evil--actually two battles--and then spent too much time setting up what were obvious tantalizers to the next installment in the series.
On the positive side, we did learn all about Gars and Mirswiths--making them seem like thinking, sentient beings rather than just creatures of magic programmed to be good or evil.
All in all, a good read--but definitely don't start the series here. Must read one and two first, or this book will be a waste.

The book The First King of Shannara, by Terry Brooks, starts with the powerful druid, Bremen, and his professional tracker friend, Kinson, deciding how to save the lands from an invasion led by Brona, a superiorly powerful, corrupt druid and his army of trolls and gnomes. After a failed attempt to receive full backing from the Druid Council, two of the druids, Tay, an elf, and Risca, a dwarf, gree to help Bremen. Tay travels to the Elven people to raise forces to help the Dwarves and Risca warns the Dwarves. Tay is stopped from mobilizing an army to help the dwarves due to the assassination of the royal family, but he is able to mount an expedition to claim the Black Elfstone, thereby preventing the magically powerful stone from making Brona nearly invincible. In the process, Tay sacrifices his life to save his companions, including Jarel Shannara. Jarel becomes the new king of the Elves, because he is the closest relative to the deceased king. By the time Jarel is able to mobilize an army, Brona's troops are advancing on the Elves. The First King of Shannara is a well-written book in which everything is described so vividly that the detailed action unfolds in the reader's mind. Suspense, adventure, excitement, battle, and believable characters make this a wonderful book for anyone wanting a real treat. I would definitely recommend this book as a great way to escape the present and travel to the realms of Elves, Dwarves, and adventure.

I was suggested to read this series by the artist, Kieth Parkinson, and to this day I am still thanking him for the suggestion. The Connection to the first book has this one keeping me just as drawn is as his first, The Wizard's First Rule, and his second, Stone of Tears. You can feel the world just opening in these pages he has written, and they give me a feeling of the people in this world, and an understanding of their world. This story has made me laugh and made me cry, from one end of the spectrum to the next. The mystery is always there also, you are never quite sure where things are going, but many answers are given, and some are still in the wings, which is great.... means there is more to come in the next book. Jagang's slow and sinister way of trying to destroy the New World from the inside, while he is gathering his forces in the Old World to conquer by the sword is classic. It takes an intelligence to understand his motives, and always keeps you guessing. Richard's continued growth into being a wizard and his understanding and education are proceeding well, but he still doesn't know how to deal with everything, His friendsand love, are there to assist with their hearts and minds. I have now read these three novels 5 times through each, and am now reading them out loud to my girlfriend who finds them just as entertaining as I do, even her 13 year old daughter is now reading, and wants to catch up so I can read to them both. Thanks Terry, for the people you have created, and for their story you have shared with us. I have read books in this genre since I was in grade school, and have never raved about any as much as these.

First of all, I do understand that there is bound to be some similarites in a field where all plots are basically the same, but Goodkind are carrying it to the extremes. It's not just the main things, like the _very_ common "simple boy turns out to be great hero with great destiny" thread, and the fact that I wouldn't even notice if, by some misstake, TG would write Aes Sedai instead of Sister of the Light/Dark. For example, did the "original" Mord-Siths ever put you in mind of some Seanchan ladies called Sul'dam (you know--holding magicians against their will, "training" them while inflicting as much pain as possible, etc.)? And while on the subject of Jordan's Sul'dam, I do believe that the Sisters of Light use a device to controll wizards that is described as a silver collar without any apparent clasp and that can be used to inflict pain. Sounds very familiar to me... For some reason I keep thinking of the silver-coloured collar known as the a'dam that is used to break and control damane, and which only Sul'dam know how to open. As to the Mord-Siths current function, Richard Rahl isn't the only one with a group of devoted, teasing, and dangerous women to guard him. The Aiel Maidens of the Spear seems to have a strong recemblance of them. And this is only the beginning of a list that becomes _very_ long after a while. Had we really lived in a fantasy world one could have blamed it on some ta'veren-like person living very close to TG, but as it is it seems very strange. Don't take me wrong, TSoT is still a good series, but these "coinsidences" are getting a bit annoying.

I have enjoyed all of Terry Brooks' Shannara books. I have found them to be very enjoyable reading and this book is no different. I am the type of person that always wants to know the whole story and this book does that. I have always wondered why Jerle Shannara wasn't able to destroy Brona since I firs read "The Sword of Shannara" back in the 70's. The "First King of Shannara" fills in a lot of the background. If you enjoy the Shannara books, you will enjoy this one also. I do recommend this book for all Shannara fans.

Blood of the Fold picks up where Stone of Tears left off. Goodkind continues his rip-roaring adventure in a break-neck pace. One thing that this author can never be accused of is being boring. The characters are as good as ever. I really enjoyed the plot as well. While, to me, this book is not as good as Stone of Tears, it is still a fantastic adventure. Goodkind has so much going on in his world, I wonder how he keeps up with it. He has yet to disappoint me! This series is worth your time for certain. Enjoy!

This was a great book. It had plenty of excitement, adventure, mystery, and laid a good foundation for the series. It could be a little frustrating at times, but all details can't be revealed in one book I suppose. However, I hope the future books shed more light on the mysteries in this one!

Once again, Terry Brooks masterfully weaves his
storytelling magic in The First King of Shannara, the
eighth installment in the popular Shannara series. A
prequel to the series, this book embodies the classic
fantasy world in which the battle between good and evil
predominates in the story. Brooks, master of his art,
allows these "Tolkein-esque" elements to form only the
backdrop of a solidly forged epic, powerful and moving,
allowing readers to embrace characters as only Brooks can
create and develop them.
In great detail, The First King of Shannara answers
many of the questions raised in previous books: the fall of
Paranor and the Druids, the forging of the Sword of Shannara
, the discovery of the Black Elfstone, the origin of Allanon
, and more. Hundreds of years after the First War of the
Races, the outcast Bremen, the last of the Druids, is the
only force that convince the people of the Four Lands that
their only hope to prevent subjugation lies in uniting --
and in using the magic they fear above all else.
Whether dedicated fan or first time reader, this novel
will enthrall you, capturing your full attention and binding
you to the web woven by Terry Brooks. This book in the
least deserves the highest recommendation, and connot be
done justice by any summary, however massive. Only by
personally experiencing the latest work of Brooks can one
understand the wonder and proportion of it.

Perhaps Mr. Goodkind is learning from his previous two experiences in this genre, as The Blood of the Fold would suggest. He keeps the same traits that made the first two exciting, but leaves out those that made them a bit weak. This is easily the best so far in this series. His story telling has improved dramatically over Wizard's First Rule, and he is weaving twists and bends into what would otherwise be just another fantasy story. While the entire concept of the Blood of the Fold is well and done, mimicking Robert Jordan's The Children of the Light, he does it a bit better than Jordan's, which reminded me too much of another notorious clan in white. What stands out best in the Blood of the Fold, as well as the entire Sword of Truth series, is his treatment of human relationships. Richard and Kahlan's relationship seems real, with real (as real as it gets in the fantasy world anyhow) issues and problems, and moreover, Goodkind makes Richard's relationship with the Mord-Sith entirely believeable. While this might be taken as a given, try Jordan's relationships among the Two Rivers folk; those seem entirely over-simplified and stale compared to Goodkind's.
All in all, this is truly a good good book. I had reservations about this series upon reading Wizard's First Rule, but in my opinion, this third installment pushes Goodkind beyond Jordan as the fantasy saga's premier writer.

Ok, here's the real deal. No one has stolen anyone's idea. The truth is that both Richard of "The Sword of Truth" and Rand of "The Wheel of Time" are loosely based on the legend of King Arthur. The legend of King Arthur is the original fantasy epic, and all great fantasies are derived from it. I have read every "Wheel of Time" novel, and every "Sword of Truth" novel thus written. I love them both! Though based on the same character, they each tell a different story, and are enjoyable in their own right. I would recommend both series to any reader with an open mind willing to experience a fully realized story in an immersive, in depth world. I get lost in the story every time I read these novels and hope that you will too.

Happy reading.

This is one of those ‘just cannot put down' books. So excited to learn about the Warlock Lord and expect to read more about him again in other books. Will anyone ever kill him? I recommend this book to everyone who loves fantasy. Terry Brooks is a great author.
I am still lost about the name Shannara. All this time I thought Shannara was a place, but in this book Shannara was a man who became a king

I'm new to the fantasy genre and just recently stumbled upon the SOT series -- and I'm hooked. I'm finding that I'm staying up all night more and more because I can't wait to find out what happens next. I'm currently on the Temple of the Winds, and Blood of the Fold seems a distant memory -- even though I only finished it last week. While Blood of the Fold has not been my favorite, it was great nonetheless.
One of the things I love about this series is that Goodkind manages to constantly introduce new characters -- I thought I only cared to read about Richard and Kaylan -- but now I'm also excited about Verna, Warren, etc. and look forward to Goodkind developing those characters. (I probably have the spelling wrong because I'm only listening to the audio tapes). I also love the humor via the Mord Siths. And I don't want to give too much away, but the way Richard takes control of things is very satisfying.
There are, unfortunately, subplots which I did not take to. I thought too much time was wasted on the blood of the fold -- it didn't really lead anywhere. The storyline about the Mriswith was also not very well developed -- it was tossed into the mix with little explanation.
Oh well, I better stop before I give too much away.

I have read all of Terry Brooks books twice and will be starting over again. (30 plus books) As I just finished the First King of Shannara for the second time it feels brand new. Terry writes with so much detail and emotion that I feel like I am learning from the characters how to be a better person. I know this seems odd from a fantasy book and I must say I am a little hesitant to admit it. But the characters are not perfect. They have strengths and weakness like us all. His books give me a opportunity to reflect upon myself. As a father of four children, husband and a combat vet of many years... I find his books a safe place for me to work out my own difficult past experiences.

While I will admit Mr. Goodkind is an entertaining author who does indeed have a knack for soap opera-type story telling, his grasp of human endurance is tenuous at best. How long can a person suffer emotionally and physically before the body and spirit break down.

It always strikes me that authors who have their characters endure incredible physical and emotional suffering that goes far beyond what is actually capable of a person have never experienced true physicall hardship themselves. They seem like people who spend their days behind a desk and screen and do not experience day to day life. Anyone who has ever been at the mercy of the elements or has been injured severely knows that the body can take only so much before it shuts down. Lack of food, sleep, cold weather and severe bodily trauma are more than enough put an end to anyone.

I realize it is a fantasy novel and should be taken for such, but in order to suspend the rational mind and have the reader believe in the extraordinary i.e. magic, monsters and such, there needs to be a concerted effort to ground the reader. Adhering to the laws of human physiology during a snow storm or after being hacked with a broadsword is a good place to start.

The mind can overcome many obstacles, but the physical body has limitations.

I have to say that I am a faithful reader of Goodkind. I feel that his style of writing, although
certainly not a new genre, is certainly refreshing. He gives the reader something to look
forward to throughout the plot, as well as at the end of the novel, and I certainly can't same the
same thing for many of the other books that I have read in the past.

I have read the other reviews of this book, and although I am not writing a review of the opinions
presented by other visitors to this sight, I have to say that I don't agree with the people who
have stated Terry Goodkind is a "bad" writer. He presents a story line that is enjoyable to follow,
as well as characters that are either heroic or despicable. Many books today present the reader with
too many "gray areas" into which fall their main characters. I feel that Goodkind has intentionally
avoided this, and as a result, allow the reader to cheer on the heroes and loathe the villains.

In a day and age where it seems impossible to tell right from wrong, Terry Goodkind has presented us
with a gift. This gift is a series of books that allows for an enjoyable read as well as some food for
thought. I applaud Mr. Goodkind for his work, and have only to say that I await his next novel!

---Sarah B. Cypher

When I began to read this, I was a tad concerned that we might be getting a rehash of the first two, as so many others seem to do when they run out of ideas and have a 5 book contract. Well, Mr.Goodkind has a 6 book contract, I've read, and if he keeps up the pace he's set himself, no other fantasy book will ever be as good, no series as profound or involving. Although this didn't make me go into cardiac arrest like "Stone of Tears" did, I did enjoy it immensely and think the series is far supeior to alot of the mass produced fantasy muck churned out nowadays. It takes alot for me to go into throes of ecstasy over a book, but this series has done it. It also takes alot for me to bludgeon everyone I know to read a book, but this has done it. I am terrified what he's going to do next to our beloved heroes, and I must say to those who hated it-if you didn't like the other two, why read the next one? Gluttons for punishment? Hmm...Terry Goodkind is a wonderful storyteller, with a wide scope and a knack for characterization. I must say that even though this is also quite the nastiest as well as the best series I've ever read, I love all the characters, and find it easy to empathise with them. As far as books go, this is excellent, and well worth a look by any fan of epic fantasy

I had decided that I wanted to try the "Shannara" series awhile ago after I gave up on it a few years ago. I picked up this book, the prequel to the whole "Shannara" series, "The First King of Shannara." From the first few pages of this superb epic I was drawn in to the lush characters, great world, and interesting plot. The novel has a certain tone to it, one that makes Brooks' writing seem very unique. Brooks tells the story here in an easy to read way that is simple yet seems very complex.
Evil is stirring in the world and the Warlock Lord is gathering races to try to take over other races and get the world for himself. When one Druid, Bremen, warns his peers at the castle Paranor about the stirring evil, they don't believe him. Bremen, along with Druids Risca and Tay, Borderman Kinson, and Druid apprentice Mareth, they set out to try and fight the coming evil in the world. Through many exciting battles, magical duels, and suspense you will be on one of the best fantasy rides of your life!
Terry Brooks here gives rich characters full of mysticism, wonder, adventure, and fun. All of the characters are original people of many different races. Because of the amount of main characters in the book, about four or so, the reader will be constantly entertained and boredom will never come. Furthermore, the characters in "First King of Shannara" have their weaknesses and their strengths making them believable. For example, the character of Jerle Shannara doesn't think that he is capable of carrying out and appointed task, but as he grows he can prove himself wrong. This is the same with many other characters as well.
For fantasy readers that don't like the traditional sword and sorcery fare, then this book may not be for you. This novel has many of the traditional fantasy races, such as goblins, gnomes, trolls, elves, dwarves, you get the picture. This book is also high on magic. This book also has some clichés, such as the Skull Bearers, servants of the Warlock Lord. These creatures are just like the Ringwraiths of Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings." But then again, most books have borrowed some element from another book, so this didn't bother me too much.
For somebody that is looking for an interesting and fun fantasy adventure, "The First King of Shannara" is recommended. I am now looking forward to reading more of Terry Brooks' fantasy novels in the "Shannara" series.
Happy Reading!

as always, he writes well, though uninventive. at times this was really good. but there were a lof of characters introduces that were uninteresting, or they were presented in an uninteresting way. the plot goes on to a satisfying finish, at times very interesting, yet halts at the wrong moments sometimes. the problem was perhaps the writer's mentality. he made this into an explanation of earlier events, an "interesting" prologue. this could have been made better

This is a very gripping book, You can't wait to turn the page to see what is happening next!!! This book has suspence, magic,adventure, humor,and so much more! It's just a great book! Terry Googkind is a great author.

Richard starts out creating the bond to have the D'Haran troops join together under his command. He, Hoping to get word from Kahlan, decides the best way to stand up against the Imperial Order is to claim the Midlands are no more united as one, but should surrender to him in hopes of defending along side D'Hara against the Imperial Order. Sister Verna, now Plelate has to take charge and can only trust Warren, still fearing that there are Sisters of the Dark in the Palace. Richard, impatient from not meeting up with either Kahlan or Zedd, sends Gratch, his gar friend, to send word of what he's doing. With his 3 Mord sith and two bodyguards, Richard tries to figure out a way to help the Midlands.
Like my title sats...short, but sweet (altho it is approx. 600 pgs.). There isn't as much action than the last one, but the plot twists and such keep it at a good rate anyways. I still have trouble trying to read accounts of semi-main characters without hoping to get to the next chapter where Richard or Kahlan are the subjects, but doing so helped me like those characters more. I also enjoy reading points-of-view from the bad guys, the Lord General of the Blood of the Fold for example.
The explanations of some the creatures is brought forward like the mriswith and gar. And even the bringing in of the 3 Mord Sith adds more to the story. I really like those three, but what man wouldn't? they're three fine women...anyways, characters are good, story is good.
Very enjoyable and I'm ready for more...

First of all, I'd like to say that this book is no lower than the standard quality of his previous book. Which was about average. The first book was brilliant, but i found it a little confusing when he said he would call the next book Wizard's Second Rule, and spent countless hours searching for it, only to find that he'd changed the title and had several more books.

Alot of my friends were discouraged from this series, because they found the thickness daunting. Well, alot, and i seriously mean alot of that could've been cut down. Goodkind spends a least half of this book recounting what had happened in the previous novels. I am now reading the fourth one, and reading a synopsis of three books is a) very distracting from the story and b) extremely mind numbing and boring. I have "trained" my eyes to skim over those parts, picking up anything different, but seriously it's just a waste of mine, yours and his time.

Aside from that, the book is very interesting and i think that he's done a very good job with it. Although i look forward to the next novel, i fear i'll also be reading the previous four.

I remember from earlier years of my life when Sword of Shannara, and the others of the well known series, were held in high regard and still are. However, if Terry Brooks keeps adding on to his fantasy universe with episodes like First King, the Shannara world will soon be tainted. I am almost discouraged to read the older ones again because First King of Shannara was so badly written and predictable. It ruined almost everything for me. The characters were all mirror images of eachother with different occupations. Race, in this installment at least, made no difference to personality. All Brooks's characters seem to be one size fits all. The magic was over used. If i hear the phrase "druid fire" one more time in my life i will personally burn the book. Such all powerful druids should have a much wider variety of magic then intuition and the all powerful "druid fire." Please, not all of us are fantasy freaks and will take whatever is fed too us. We need orignality, we need surprise. We need to feel like the world is really in peril. The bad guys in this novel were like a really stupid ogre who was saying "uhhhh what do i do next" the whole extent of the tale. I say, stay with the first few Brooks novels and stay away from First King. A waste of time.

First of all, let me just state that I am so incredibly sick and tired of EVERYONE comparing Tolkien to Brooks. Yes, the writings are similar. Brooks has even stated in the past that Tolkien was an inspiration. But, the two are different. There are those that like Tolkien and those that don't. I personally do not. I find his fiction to be boring, drawn out, and highly unpalatable. I'm sorry if this offends some of the Tolkien aficionados out there, but guess what, some people in this world do not share your apparent narrow minded view...HEAVEN FORBID!!!! I had to fight through Fellowship 6 times to eventually finish it.
Now, onto The First King. As a prelude, this book was not all that bad. It continued rather well in the same vein as the rest of Brooks' Shannara series. He did an excellent job with staying within the pre-determined guidelines of what he had already hinted at in his other books. Personally, I thought Bremen's end was a little anti-climactic, but that was the author's personal choice. All in all, not too bad of a novel. I the way that he continues to tell a marvelous tale of fantasy and wonder. If you are a fan of the Shannara series, you will like this book.

I'm a big fan of most of the books by Terry Brooks, however the First King was the first book of his I couldn't bring myself to finish. I read the original Shannara years ago and now going back and rereading all of them.

Overall the book was very slow and boring. Found myself skipping many pages at a time till I finally just gave up on it. Either I've mistaken with how good the original Trilogy was (since it was about 10 years ago when I read them) or this book is a far cry from the originals.

I have been fighting the critics that say Goodkind's work is simply a plagurisim of Jordan's WOT, but he came very close to losing my supprot in this text. I'm not going to go making the connections here, but there is definitely a close comparison.
He also has begun to show some of Tolkien in his work, especially at the end of the book when the Gars attack the Mriswith and save the day (sound familiar). I like his description of why the Gars came about and why they have the green eyes, but the connection to Tolkien and Jordan leaves me feeling a bit flat.
I am also becoming a bit tired of the relationship between Richard and Kahlan being so prominent throughout the text. It seems as though he is trying to convince us of their love be being repetitive and it doesn't need to be done in my opinion.
Things about this book that I enjoy are the mriswith as I think they are a very unique character. His character development has always been very good and he has been good at creating scenes and excitemnet in his previous two books but he falls a bit short in this book. I think the strength of this book and the previous has been the Mord-Sith; I think the characters are wonderful but the name and the concept seem to be a repetition of other authors.
I have laready started Temple of the Winds because I am dedicated to finishing the series. I would recommend this book if you are in my shoes and in hopes that it pick up in Temple of the Winds.
IMPRESSION: GOOD - RECOMMENDED

Really Awesome book. Terry Goodkind has a power to create the greatest adventures and it only get's better as the series continues, worth reading the whole series. Not for young reads, to complex, for the teenager to the older adult. pretty awesome.

This book picked up and ran where the last one left off. My only criticism is that the author usually makes the evil side way more knowledgeable about how things are done and how to make them occur. It would be nice to see the evil side have to struggle as much as the good side. It would give the story more depth.

I love this series, and whilst I felt there were a good many gaps in it...maybe they'll be filled by the next book... I have to say that the editing is really bad. Not enough to make me stop reading, but simple grammatical and spelling errors have no place in a New York Times best Author's book! I almost felt like getting out my red pen...but then realized, *oops, reading this on an iPad!*

There is no question Terry Goodkind can write a spell binding fantasy adventure. Like the first two books, Goodkind combines magic, action, and good old human frailty and self doubt into a page turning story which makes the reader desperate to find out what happened to these characters after the book ends.
That said, this book was not up to the quality of the first two installments of the Sword of Truth series. First, the action sequences were too short and not well connected to the rest of the plot. But more importantly, by having his main characters spread all through his Old and New Worlds, not knowing what each of the others were doing, lead to a disconnected plot. There were simply too many unknowns, which despite the 600+ page length, were never meshed into a coherent story.
Finally, Goodkind spent far to much of the book first setting up the penultimate battle between good and evil--actually two battles--and then spent too much time setting up what were obvious tantalizers to the next installment in the series.
On the positive side, we did learn all about Gars and Mirswiths--making them seem like thinking, sentient beings rather than just creatures of magic programmed to be good or evil.
All in all, a good read--but definitely don't start the series here. Must read one and two first, or this book will be a waste.

If you liked the first two books in this series than you will enjoy this one also. It is still based around the main characters Richard, Kahlan and a host of others. I have very much enjoyed the first three books in the series, and would recommend them to fantasy lovers. The Characters are very likeable, and the story lines are good and fairly complex. The endings do seem a bit rushed in the last two, including this one, but the journey is the best part of the book anyways. I am almost through the Temple of the Winds (book 4) and it is also suprisingly good.The reminiscing of events already taken place in the previous books that people complain about with Goodkinds writing is rather annoying, but you can skip those paragraphs if you've read the first two books.The books seem to be getting a little more gritty as they go on also, not as dark as Greorge r.r. Martin or anything, but not cookie cutter clean like Jordan either. All in all, if you like fantasy you should like this series.

I can't say which of this set I think is the best... they are all great books. This one I would like to say is the best, but then again they are all great. I have read through most of the others reviews and I am learning very quick not to believe everything I read. I have enjoyed reading the first three books in the series and fully intend on reading every single one until the end of the series. As for Terry Goodkind coping others story lines and ruining it for us well take it as you will but he has great twists and if you ask me a apple is a apple but each has a different taste, so don't judge so harshly!
Once again Richard, Kahlan, Zedd and the rest of the gang are back tring to save the world from evil. This time the threat isn't the keeper or the evil wizard Darken Rahl, but Emperor Jagang and clan of mriswith. While Kahlan is hiding with the death spell on her ( the death spell was put there by Zedd) waiting for Richard to meet up with her, Richard is once again distracted with his instinct and draws the midlands together to fight against the new evil team the "Imperial order". The blood of the fold, believing anthing with magic is evil is after the mother confessor, and abducts her and takes her to the sisters of the dark.
Once again I will say it as I have in my past reviews, if you liked the first two books you will like this one just as much if not more!

A good read for those folllowing the Sword of Truth series.Plenty of battles,Gars,bloodshed......good stuff! Adult themes also. I like the fact that there are strong female characters in this book, and the whole series as a matter of fact.

Love the series through the 8th maybe? It's been years since I have read the series through The First Confessor after. It gets repetitive and preachy around the 4th. If you can get past all that, these books are full of strong and memorable characters you won't soon forget.

This book brought such intrigue twist and turns. I became a fan with first volume this third volume amazed me. My attention was still held what an imagination this author has. Where has he been hiding. Looking so forward to the fourth volume to enter your world again.

WHY YOU SHOULD READ THIS:

This book should only be read if you were very interested in the first two novels and wondered what happened next. The book could be titled: What Happened to Gar and Other Important Matters. It's likable enough as the sort of pulp fantasy fiction that many readers enjoy on a plane or at the beach or perhaps visiting the in-laws and looking for an escape. In short, to qualify as a buyer, you should:

1) Have read Wizard's First Rule (and liked it)

2) Have Read Stone of Tears (and liked it too)

3) Want to read something but not in the mood to look for something new.

WHY YOU SHOULD PASS:

I'm afraid we don't have any earth shattering insight to offer here about a rather pedestrian book. Nothing but fun-no highbrow literature here. If you're looking for something important, seek elsewhere. But you knew that from the first two books. The sex stuff has escalated to levels that parents should prohibit the book from children below a certain maturity level. Imagine a pretty intense R-rated slasher flick in text and you'll have a pretty good idea.

READ THE ENTIRE REVIEW AT INCHOATUS.COM

Generally I am not one to stop and write a review of a book, but I felt the need to warn others who have limited time to invest in sci-fi series novels. I have read the first two installments of this series "Wizards First Rule, and Stone of Tears," both excellent novels. I went ahead and bought "Blood of the Fold:" which was a great disappointment. Mr. Goodkind degenerates into endless feminist tirades that take away from the plot and spoil the book. I had been looking forward to the next two books. I would suggest readers stop after the first two. I stopped reading half way through this one.

Another great addition to the Shannara series. This one takes place before all the others. This is where we learn about Bremen, Jerle Shannara and how the great Sword of Shannara got forged.

The only thing that was missing from some of Brooks earlier books is his character development. That has definitely improved with his later works.

This book overall is just wonderful, you got a great plot developed perfectly with Bremen and a few of the other Druids (that escape) trying to slow down/stop/destroy the encumbasing figure of the Warlock Lord, you have a great story of love/developing love between Jerle Shannara and Piera and Kison and Mareth and great action sequences as well, no one can describe a battle scene better then he can.

It is a wonderfully written book that is very difficult to put down. I can't wait to read more of his stuff!!

It almost seems silly to write a review for any book in a series this well known. The third book is a good expansion of the story, has a fine ending and takes a darker turn. I wish it had more Zedd, but he still gets the best dialogue.

Another okay novel in the Sword of Truth series. I keep thinking that I will fall for these and eagerly anticipate the next one but I'm still only mildly attached. I have a few more in the series on my shelf already so I'll keep going with higher hopes for the next one.

The world Terry Goodkind created in his Sword of Truth series, which began with Wizard's First Rule, expands again in Blood of the Fold. Though the third novel is not as gripping as the first novel in the series, it still begins strong.

A new antagonist is introduced, and Richard's opening scene is a rousing sword fight with an unexpected enemy. Moreover, all the characters introduced in the previous novels continue to play a part in this new chapter. In particular the subplot with Prelate Annalina and Nathan Rahl is an enjoyable look into the old wizard's character. If you enjoyed the world of Richard Rahl and Kahlan Amnell I recommend you continue the journey with Blood of the Fold.

If you would like to comment on my review please vist my blog oncesoldtales.blogspot.com

You know so far I have read all four of Mr. Goodkind's books, and I have been riveted to all of them.
I realize that all have a right to their opinion on these books, but people do not have the right to bash the author. If you don't like his writings fine, state your opinion on the material. I don't know what kind of person Mr. Goodkind is in his private life, but I do know he can write. That is all that matters to me.
I feel people come here for honest reviews on books. Not to read someone's personal opinion on the author's private life. Or to read this book sucks!!! What I want in a review is why did you like it, or why didn't you like it.
I like Mr.Goodkind's books because they put a new twist on an old idea. He can scare the pants off you, and then make you feel sorry for the villian. There are similarities to the writings of authors before him, but tell me an author that hasn't used from another. This is true of all authors not just fantasy fiction writers.
As for the sexual violence well it adds spice to the plot, and there is a reason if you look deep enough for it. I have said this before, and will say it again. I have not seen these books advertised without a warning that the sexual, and violent content may offend some readers warning. So if you didn't see it PAY MORE ATTENTION!!!!!!! If you did see the warning and read this series anyway. You got just what you were asking for so STOP WHINING!!!!
Keep up the good work Mr. Goodkind, and don't let unintelligent reviews get you down....

Although as many people keep pointing out, Goodkinds later books do not seem to be as amazing as Wizard's First Rule, you have to remember that you all read Wizard's as virgins to Goodkinds world. It seems to me that he is slowly unfolding the saga of Richard Rahl over the span of his books, which in turn has left some of them the task of slightly bridging gaps in the story, allowing time for the epic to consolidate and then to take it forward again. 'Fold' does this. The set up of the oligarchic blood of the fold gives us something else to contemplate for a while. And while the ongoing thread of Richard and Kahlan's affair becomes tangible at times, it is still there to a add a degree of credibility to the continuity of the story.
I think what Goodkind is doing is slowly spinning out his story through the books and giving us a chance to fully sample the world he has created through various adventures. While I agree at times the writing isn't always outstanding and that parts of the books can become tedious, I feel that we stray away from the simple fact that this is all tumbling out of the guys head, and we, the reader are privileged to have the chance to join him in his fantasy. I personally have enjoyed all his books to date and can't wait for the next one.

I am a big fantasy fan, and although I haven't read other books by Terry Brooks, I think that this book is definitely worth reading. This book tells us what happens years before when the book, The Sword of Shannara takes place. Although you know the ending from the beginning, you still would want to read on, in my case.
Bremen, a druid who had different beliefs than the other druids, set out on a journey to save the world. He was one of the few druids who still believed in magic, while the rest believed in the sciences, technology, for the old world was once destroyed by magic. Because he was an outcast, he couldn¡¦t stay at Paranor, which forced him to travel around. He discovered that, Brona, a former druid who was supposed to be dead years ago, was sleeping, looking for a time to strike back with his evil army consisting of skull bearers and trolls.
Seeking for help, Bremen asked the dead spirits for advice. There, he saw images and knew what he needed to do. He needed to unite the four lands, together would they be of match to the massive army of the trolls. He was also to forge a sword, a powerful weapon that would destroy the evil Warlock Lord, Brona.

Albeit not the greatest book I have read in the series, Blood of the Fold is still quite a good one. The only tiring thing I find about it is the fact that yet again Kahlan and Richard are split up to complete their own separete tasks. I only hope that this will not be the case in the fourth book.
The characters are once again fleshed out nicel and everyone is covered. From the insane leader of the Blood of the Fold, his bewitched sister, Gratch and many many others, the story unfolds with suspense that leaves you on the edge of your seat.
I also found that Goodkind delved shallowly into the issue of homosexuality, with two lesbians. Although I found the cover good, I also found that I was laughing near the end over the joke between Kahlan and Berdine. The fact that he covered this issue made me feel good. As many books look at it in a negative way. I am glad that this one was different.
If you enjoyed the two previous books then I recommend this one also, as it too is full of murder, mystery and many suprises which will keep you readin well into the night.

I read one, and two voraciously. Jammed through this one just as fast. My husband bought them for me at the discount book store in town. Lots of reviews here about the content of the book so I'll just say that I enjoyed the different concepts instead of the same warlock & witches I normally see.

I have to admit that I am glad that I didn't come to the series while it was still being written - I don't enjoy waiting for sequels. This book is an important step in the ongoing story, and would be difficult to figure out if you tried to read it without having read the first two books. If Goodkind is on your list of favorite authors, though, this book won't disappoint you!

Okay, Okay, I don't know how to spell that monster. But, on the cover of this book there is a red creature which, I hoped, was Scarlet. Scarlet, you may recall, was the Dragon in the first book. What happened to her anyway? In fact, the way Richard Rahl befriends animals, and the fact that he was a ranger, I thought he was going to be an "animal wizard."
Nope, he is still a war wizard, and it shows in this book. There is more fighting and magic in this book then the first two. We have new creatures and some old friends including Nathan, Zedd, Gaaarcth and Ann. The writer has really reached his stride. This book is better then the first two, and they were great.
There really is everything here. Richard's romance with Kahlan continues and, perhaps, he has a new love. We are introduced to a new villian who hunts down and kills people with magic. There are some horrible, but great, battle scenes as some cites are sacked and the residents pay the price. And, at the end of the book, there are two great epic battles - with Monsters. If you don't like this book, you just don't like fantasy. I like fantasy and, as I said I loved this book, it was simply great.

This book which is claimed to be inspired by the JRR Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings looks more like clone of it. Though it doesn't have the strong descriptive characters of LOTR and more obviously Brooks doesn't have the creativity to write a classic such as LOTR. The story line is staggering. Doesn't give you much of a feel of reader's participation in the book.
Though he has improved the war description which was lacking in LOTR as the battle fought in this book was very intense (and more or less looks quite hopeless as the Warlock was never defeated). The storyline looks more of a movie then of an epic. Characters like Bremen, Jerle, Risca, Tay & Preia doesn't have much of a part to do in this book. It was just a disasterous way to win a hopeless battle (Where the battle continues still in his later books). At last I will refer the reader's to read this book if and only if they haven't read Tolkien's Lord Of The Rings, otherwise they will find it a waste of time to read an epic again as a distorted version.

This book is good. It reminded me a little too much of the sword of Shannara, but I totally can see why it needed to be written. It's great insight to the story as a whole. Terry Brooks is a fantastic writer.