First King of Shannara

Found mysef getting frustrated with the pace and content of the story, but then again I watched the tv show first and the way the relationships are working out with the main characters is really getting to me. Hoping to finish, but I've already started 3 books since beginning this one and not looking forward to picking it back up.

Having killed his father, Oedipus, er Richard finds that another villian is threatening his future. This time, it is the 'blood of the fold' that wants to hamper any future happiness Richard may have. These vicious killers want to destroy anyone having anything to do with magic. Richard and Kahlan stand in their way. Reminded me a little of the inquisition.

This third book in the series continues to frustrate the most seasoned of readers with its unwavering suspense throughout. I was pleased that at least some of the loose ends were finally resolved in this book. I am thoroughly intrigued and cannot wait to see what the next book has in store.

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!

This book kept me so intrigued. You start learning about the old world and about the old war. I learn something new with every read. Love the mord-siths. Can't wait to buy the next book and start reading!

I highly recommend to read the sword of shannara and the heritage of shannara series first, for two reasons first you will understand this book a lot better, and second because is really amazing to read the history of the world and of the characters that you knew in the first seven books and understand what is happening not by what they told you on the first books but by actually reading every part of it.

now, if you already have done that, this is an excelent book, an amzing book and it relates the story of Breman, Allanon`s father, and of the war that caused everything that will happen in the forst seven books and in the later six.

Read it, you will enjoy it.

This book answers many questions about the Sword of Shannara and why all but one Druid was left at the start of the Sword of Shannara book.

Bremen's quest to create the sword links many characters together for letter stories in the Shannara story line.

Exquisitely written.

This is one of the best epic fantasy series I have ever read. From the first book to the last Terry Goodkind had me wishing I could read faster to find out what happens next. I highly recommend the Sword of Truth Series to anyone.

EXCELLENT as are ALL of Terry Brooks' books. I highly recommend Terry's entire Shannara series if you have not read them and it never hurts to read them again as I'm planning on doing once I get done with all of them.

As with the rest of this series, Terry Goodkind continues the saga of Richard and Kahlan. Character development is great. There are parts of the story that can make you anxious and even a bit frustrated. But that is always the nature of drama where everything is on the line with good over evil.

The number of typos in this series is irritating; along with the same themes in every book. I will continue to read them in hopes of improvement. I enjoy Richard's character and want to see his evolution.

I have loved Terry Brooks fantasies from the start. Decades after I first read them, I have finally read the book that started it all. This book keeps you reading, not wanting to put it down. Now I must reread the first trilogy!

I'm reporting these errors in hope that the ebook can be corrected for past and future readers. Here are the errors that I found:

Location: 8591 "It's in High D'Haran," he said is he held it up next to the glowing sphere. ("said is he" to "said as he")
Location: 8938 Kahlan hurt everywhere. He jaw throbbed where [...] ("He jaw" to "Her jaw")
Location: 9349 What if she were caught? I could ruin everything. ("I could" to "It could")
Location: 12119 Chapter 53 starts half way down a page instead of on a new page. The paper version I have also starts mid page to save paper. In ebook format, this is an odd inconsistency.

After watching two spell binding seasons of 'The Legend of The Seeker' based on the first two books I felt an emptiness. So I did the logical thing and bought this book. What a let down! Goodkind writes like an amateur and his protagonist, Richard fares worse. Richard behaves like a lab rat jumping impulsively at every provocation but somehow miraculously surviving every unimaginatively plotted challenge.

The plot runs like a video game, one long series of inane obstacles fostered by cartoon characters and then brought to an abrupt end without a conclusion.

Goodbye Mr. Goodkind. I am on to a more satisfying read by George R Martin.I probably won't force myself to go through any other subsequent books in this series.

I thoroughly enjoyed the book mostly till the last chapter. The ending took way to long to happen and I found myself rushing to get there.
I will definitely read more of Terry Brooks books. The trilogy is next and hopefully it will be quicker read.

A millennia has passed since the great war that brought an end to civilization as we know it. In the meantime, the survivors – from mankind and those races that resulted from various mutations – have learned to cope with the shifting tides of significance.

Old knowledge resurfaces in a different world, but the future’s descendants haven’t learned the lessons of the past and discover too late that the abuse of magic also bears a consequence...and no one more so than the former Druid, Brona.

After the fateful misuse of magic during the First War of the Races, the Druids of Paranor – protectors of history and ancient knowledge – combine their wisdom and resources in a concerted effort to protect those who are left.

But evil has a way of fomenting in secret, and if the Four Lands are ever to escape the ravages of the past then they need to unite behind a talisman powerful enough to answer the challenge

The First King of Shanarra is an action-packed, epic tale of adventure from one of the best fantasy writers of our times. It is also an excellent precursor to the story that started it all nearly forty years ago.

Don’t miss out.

So many of the reviews are for Terry Goodkind novels, not Terry Brooks....... Absolutely confounding and frustrating. The incorrect reviews along with the numerous typos that lead to the obvious conclusion that they were simply scanned from the original text with absolutely no oversight leads one to question the wisdom of the store's editors or to wonder simply if they are lazy or even just asleep at the wheel. When you are the middlemen who are the stewards responsible for taking intellectual properties from artists who pour so much of their lifeblood into their work for fans of fantasy who are in and of themselves a fiercely dedicated and passionate group who can be loyal to their favorite authors to a fault and blunder the job it begs the question, why? But when you are the store you know that we, as any readers, will take these inconsistencies and obvious inconsiderate stumbling blocks in our paths in stride, as we are frugal and we will come crawling back time and again to worship at the dark and evil monolith of your kindle edition sacrificing our integrity and hard earned money as offerings to your evil as we are afraid of the lights, crowded spaces, and larger evils still of shopping malls and other brick and mortar stores to keep ourselves locked away with our kindle, our precious.

As per usual, Goodkind continues to Rape > Pillage > Re-Assemble the works of Robert Jordan, Terry Brooks, and David & Leigh Eddings shamelessly but does so in interesting original ways and is willing to go further with Sadism and Sexuality than most Sci-Fi and Fantasy Authors. Still, his original re-use of others ideas is problematic. Temple of Prophets & Tanimura = The White Tower & Tar Valon, The Sisters of Light & Darkness = The Aes Sedai & The Black Ajah, The Rada'Han = The A'dam, The Branching Prophecies (Unspecified) = The Branching Prophecies of The Dragon and/or The Rivan & The M'Rinn Codex, The Final Battle = The Last Battle, and The Sword of Truth = The Sword of Shannara. Furthermore, The Rahl Bloodline and The Theocratic D'Haran Bond is too similar to that of The Rivan Line and Belgarion and/or The Aiel and Rand Al'Thor.

I truly loved this book. For some it might be slow reading, but it is to be expected and respected for this kind of read. It reads the strength of man and his weakness as an individual and as a unit. It relates Love, Strength, Sorrow, and long journeys of travel to reach destinations of need, not just a natural travel as in this day but also journey's within. I could say so much more.... If you don't mind getting into a book like this, then give it a real chance, because it is worth the time. So without giving anything real away, read this book, with patience and persistence, just as so many of the characters in this book. I cried, esp. at the end. but not a bad way.

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After reading the previous Sword of Truth book, I had to start the next one right away. Blood of the Fold is not a bad book, but its not the best either. It is a filler with its own plot, climax, and resolution, and sets the stage for the following books. It is definitely part of a series and is not meant to be read alone or before the others.

It seems like people either like it or hate it. For me, I enjoyed this book as much as the others.

The story begins right after Stone of Tears ended. It is a little slow at first, but eventually picks up pace and flows quite well. There were some parts that were not too interesting and other parts that were exciting and kept me interested in the story. There are multiple plots throughout the book, which helps to keep you engaged. Some are solved within this book, but others set the stage for future novels.

A good portion of the book is politically driven (still interesting if you don’t like politics) since Richard is asking other parts of the world to either stand with D’Hara or become their enemy.

As with the previous books in the series, this one is just as violent. If the other books bothered you with the violence (raping, gore, language, etc) then this series may not be for you.

The ending is also rushed, which bothered me. After reading so many pages I thought there would be more of an ending.

Again, all the main characters are separated in the story (though Richard and Kahlan were never actually brought back together in the previous book). I particularly do not like this, as do some other people, but others don’t mind. The only problem I have with it is that their reunion is always a bit rushed and not as exciting or dramatic as I thought it should be. Tends to be wrapped up in a couple of pages.

The main focus of all of these books has been someone trying to take over the world or rid it of magic and Richard comes to save the day. It happens again in this book with the Blood of the Fold, as it did in the previous books with Darken Rahl and the Keeper. A repetition in plot does not make the story boring. I thought Goodkind did a marvelous job making it interesting.

The new characters in this novel are intriguing. The Blood of the Fold wants to rid the world of magic and one of them in particular, Tobias, is a pretty nasty character. There is also a brief mention of Jagang, who is a “dream walker”, but his story picks up more in the following books. You also learn more about Gars and are introduced to Mrishwith. The Mord Sith are also very interesting characters and play a huge role in the series as Richard’s body guards.

Goodkind’s writing is getting a bit better, but is still repetitive. This is probably explained by the publication date of the books. If you read them as they came out then it was a good thing for him to remind you of past events, but it just gets tiresome when reading them back to back.

Overall, I really enjoyed the book and went right on to read the next one!

Hm, I'm not really sure what I think about this book. In some ways it's better than the first two books and in some ways it's worse. First of all, the thing I liked about this book was that there wasn't a lot of the nonsense that I usually hate about Goodkinds writing. I didn't feel like I was getting preached at more than once or twice in this book so that's a huge plus compared to the other ones. It was still there but it was more understated than in the other books rather than 'here's what I'm trying to tell you is right, believe it'. Also, there wan't much 'unbelievable' things happening like a horse running through tent poles without injury. As those are two major turnoffs for Goodkind, this book is better in that sense.

Unfortunately, I felt like the story wasn't done well in this book. At times, it seemed random rather than a well thought out. For instance, there is a mriswith queen that really doesn't have all that much to do with anything in the story. It feels like it's thrown in there just for a bit of extra action rather than advancing or even relating to the plot. A lot of the story feels this way rather than something that was really worked with. I never want to read an author and think that getting another book out to get money for it was more important than creating a quality story. I obviously don't know if that's the case here but that's how it reads to me.

I still wish we had half stars on here because this one would have only been two and a half for me. There's nothing horrible or wonderful about this book; it's just average.

Pretty much keep saying the same, I love this series and have since I read the first book. Many in my family have read the series and we have shared them among ourselves. I liked them so much that I bought the whole series to keep. I know there are at least 2 sets being passed around my family every so often. I think I have read the series in full about 5 times... Well not the latest three but the rest have been around long enough for me to go back to. Try it... You will like it.

I'll began by stating that the SOT series is a vey spellbinding fantasy adventure that combines magic, action, and complex characterization into a page-turning read. Blood of the Fold picks up the action right where Stone of Tears left off.

However, some of the medieval elements that I enjoyed from the first two books have been diluted with the slippery inclusion of modern themes as lesbianism and BDSM into the storyline. Also, the plodding storyline of the manipulative Sisters of Light (their sinister counterparts, Sisters of the Dark, do very little to enhance the overall plot.

I bought the Sword of Truth series to read about Richard, Kahlan, Zedd, and intriguing supporting characters like Chase, Rachel, Gratch, Scarlet, Nathan Rahl, Chandalen, and the Mud People. None of the new characters introduced in Blood of the Fold make any type of lasting impression; even the villains, other than being reprehensible and vile, are uninteresting. The Gars were far more likeable and appealing than some of the human characters. Of course, there are the requisite gore and rapes, which seems to be standard stock of this series. I missed the interaction between the three lead characters inasmuch as, once again, they are separated throughout most of this book only to be rushed together at the end of the book.

Blood of the fold is not a great book but it's not bad either. Similar to the first two books, this one is very readable and filled with nonstop action. I found the pace of the book to be sufficiently entertaining and interesting. I'm cautiously going onto the Temple of the Winds because the series started out as an engaging epic and I've invested a lot of reading hours into the first two books and I hoping to eventually see the original trio united and standing as a unit.

Third in the Sword of Truth fantasy series revolving around Richard Rahl, the new Master Rahl, and Kahlan, once and future Mother Confessor and Queen of Galea.

My Take
He writes a marvelous story, I just wish that he gave me a bit more credit for being intelligent. If we could just cross this with Dorothy Dunnett, bringing her extremely intellectual story down a bit to merely very intelligent...I would enjoy it so much more!
Is there any way Brandon Sanderson could rewrite this? Okay, okay, I'm being rude. But so is Goodkind with his jerky sentences. He'll have a stretch of lovely sentences and then short, juvenile statements crop up. I don't know if he thinks I'm stupid and won't notice or if he's tired of writing. I wish Goodkind had been a bit more forthcoming about the yabree--its effects and purpose--and the effect of the cape. I'll hope he plans to be more informative in Temple of the Winds (Sword of Truth, #4).

I loved the scene where Richard dissolved the Midlands and gave `em all what for! Just imagining the fear, anger, and frustration on all those countries who did not step up for Kahlan is...such a joy. Oh, too funny...I love Kahlan's response to Berdine's comments at the end about Raina's hands! Hoist with her own petard!

We finally learn just how the book of magic got into George Cypher's hands and why Richard was left in Westland. There's an interesting interpretation of the Third Rule, passion rules reason. A twist upon the twist.

Brogan's collapse and descent were too easy. Goodkind was doing such a great job having him start to question the "Creator" who appeared in his dreams, and then all of a sudden he goes nuts??

It's wheels within wheels within yet more wheels and betrayals abound. It's a bit like the sisters from the Wheel of Time, don't trust a Sister of the Light to keep a promise. I certainly can't wait to see what Nathan plans for Annalina now that he's free. And with that little display Zedd makes...hmmm...seems Zedd has his own wheels turning.

The Story
Six Dark Sisters have fled the Palace of the Prophets and the Sisters of the Light must cremate the old prelate before they elect a new one, Kahlan has secretly escaped execution, and Richard has found his way back to Aydindril only to find it occupied by
D'Haran troops working for the Imperial Order and mriswith invading the city in small bands.

Luckily, the Mord-Sith find Richard before he gets into too much trouble. -Never thought I'd say Mord-Sith and luck in the same breath! So, now all Richard has to do is conquer all of the Midlands and put down the Imperial Order. It seems that he'll have a variety of magical help from a bond devised by a Rahl ancestor to a clever bit of economic sleight of hand to the secret of the mriswith. All delivered with a very firm hand.

The Characters
Richard formerly-Cypher, now-Rahl, Master Rahl, has left his newly-loyal troops behind in D'Hara. He has a duty as the Seeker, wearing the Sword of Truth to protect the innocent. Cara, Hally, Berdine, and Raina are Mord-Sith who have come with Egan and Ulic (D'Haran soldiers and personal bodyguards to Rahl) to find and protect Richard. Gratch is the short-tailed gar Richard rescued and raised.

Even though she is under a death spell, Kahlan Amnell is now Queen of Galea. At least until her sister Cyrilla can recover from the torture and rape she endured. Seems she will garner yet more crowns, too. Accompanying her back to Ebinissia are Orsk, Jebra, Ahern, Prince Harold, and Captain Ryan. They intend to reclaim Ebinissia and restore it as the capital of Galea.

Zedd Zorander is Richard's grandfather and the First Wizard. Adie is with Zedd and Kahlan heading for Ebinissia until Gratch arrives with Richard's letter.

Mistress Sanderholt is the head cook at the Confessors' Palace. General Reibisch is in command of the D'Haran troops for the emperor in Aydindril.

Cathryn, Duchess of Lumholtz is next in line for the throne of Kelton but Brogan gets to her first. Valdora and her granddaughter Holly sell honeycakes in Aydindril, but it seems there is quite a bit more to Valdora than expected. General
Baldwin leads the Keltan army; I can't figure out if he was subtle in his leading Richard or was simply that blunt.

The Sisters of the Light are all sorceresses dedicated to the Creator; the Sisters of the Dark give their souls over to the Keeper. Nathan Rahl is an ancestor of Richard's and about 1,000-years-old. His magical Gift is Prophecy, which has caused him to be held prisoner by the Sisters of the Light. Sister Verna Sauventreen is the one who collared Richard and took him back to the Palace of the Prophets for training. Warren is one of the wizards collared by the Sisters; turns out he has an unexpected Gift. Sisters Leoma Marsick, Philippa, Dulcinia, Maren, Phoebe, Christabel, Amelia, Janet, Becky, and the tormented Simona--some are of the Dark, and Annalina is expecting Verna to figure out which. Kevin is one of the Imperial Guards at the Palace who was befriended by Richard. Millie is the maid who cleans for the prelate.

The Dark Sisters who fled include Ulicia, Tovia, Cecilia, Armina, Nicci, and Merissa. They use and abuse Captain Blake and sailors of the Lady Sefa upon which they've fled only to find themselves used and abused in turn. Not that it seems to engender any compassion in them. Emperor Jagang is a dream walker. A being not seen in this world in over 3,000 years. It's taken him 20 years to conquer the Old World. He doesn't intend to for his Imperial Order to take that long with the New.

Lord General Tobias Brogan leads the Blood of the Fold who are from Nicobarese. He believes all magic is evil, a tool of the Keeper, and casually accuses anyone he dislikes of being a baneling. His sister Lunetta has Han and he abuses her even as he uses her. He believes that love means being willing to slit her throat himself. Funnily enough, Brogan may want to eliminate all magic, but he certainly uses it for his own purposes happily enough.

The Keeper is who we might see as Satan while the Creator is God. The Palace of the Prophets is where the Sisters of the Light live and work in the Old World. The Wizard's Keep and the Confessors' Palace are located in Aydindril in the Midlands, the former seat of power. Han is the force of magic with Additive and Subtractive Magic. Mriswith are monsters who become invisible. The Mord-Sith are usually women unbearably tortured for years into becoming torturers themselves. They generally dress in red leather--doesn't show the blood. The Sliph is another of those beings created during that long-ago war. "Kolo" is a long-dead wizard with a message.

The Title
The title is the most immediate threat to the peace of the Midlands for the Blood of the Fold is more interested in an Imperial alliance.

If you are a fan of Goodkind you have already realized a pattern about his work, he is a story teller who likes to spin and weave. His strong points are not spectacular endings. In fact, he can wrap things up in no time at all. That does not mean it is not enjoyable, I point this out as part of his writing style to those who complain "he takes to long to set up the story".

I read the 900+ page stone of tears in a week, couldn't put it down. The story was wonderful, and dynamic. The ending was great, and to the point. This is another of his same layout, and if you got through the first two books wanting more, then you will not be disappointed.

Goodkind continues to build upon his characters, and ties the books into a seamless story (which is great for those who buy this in a set). He really comes into his own in the second book, and continues on par here, in the third. I never liked how he brutally victimized some characters (in any of his works), but if you look back to Viking raids, etc in our history he's probably not too far off from reality. It also makes you hate the antagonists that much more, so vengeance is that much sweeter.
When you least suspect it, you get really satisfying results, and then a new challenge is present that you wouldn't suspect. He keeps you interested and does not write in your typical hurdles. Of course he is using the underdog story, but not exploiting this like Brooks (who I have to say is an awful writer). Goodkind does not embellish on details to much, and paints a great scene.
A good book leaves you satisfied at the end, but looking forward for more, cheers Mr. Goodkind.

Blood of the Fold is not a bad book. The third in the Sword of Truth series, it has many of the same virtues (memorable characters that draw the reader in) and vices (misspellings; clunky narration) as the first two books. Oddly enough, despite the shorter page count, Blood of the Fold is more scattered than the sprawling Stone of Tears or the particularly well-structured Wizard's First Rule.

The novel kicks off right where the last one left off, and concludes by clearly setting up the action for the next novel. Though this book has a story that builds to its own climax, it is evident that it is a part in a continuing series rather than a standalone work. There's nothing wrong with that, but nor does it stand out in this series. The story is also hurt a bit by the extreme separation of the main characters. Kahlan is mostly ignored for a significant portion of the novel, and Zedd is given little to do. Verna proves a strong lead character, but a lot of the Sisters of the Light/Dark sections spread the story rather thin, especially as there are numerous villains who have to share the spotlight.

I can accept a lot of logical leaps in Fantasy novels, so even if Richard's main plotline feels a bit forced, it still makes for some interesting conflicts. What Goodkind does well here, though, is that characters that the reader roots for, who have good intentions, often end up in conflict with each other. Conflict drives stories, so having protagonists butting heads helps keeps things moving.

In the end, Blood of the Fold is part 3 in a long series. I think most people who have made through these books will continue to part 4.

I was brought into the world of Terry Brooks and Epic Fantasy with his post apocalyptic series starting with the book "The Children of Armageddon" and I've since read about 17 of his books. I recently read "The Sword of Shannara" which was his first published book. Having read "The Sword of Shannara" first, I already knew the ending of 'The First King of Shannara' in a general way and that might have influenced my opinion of the book. Even though I knew in a general way, how the book would end I still thought I would enjoy it. Indeed Brooks' wonderful settings and descriptions of earthly beauty is heavy in this book, but the plot is all over the place and the characters aren't very well developed, even the main ones. There seems to be a lot of filler material in this book and at times it feels like you're being dragged through the pages and even feels forced. If you are a diehard fan of Brooks and the Shannara series, it might be worth picking up, otherwise I wouldn't recommend it.

I stayed up till three in the morning, just so I could finish this book. Not because it was a bad book, but because it was too good to put down.

Terry Goodkind has done it again with his best selling series, The Sword of Truth. The Blood of the Fold is the perfect third book. A compelling army, The Imperial Order, threatening to take over the Old World, which was introduced, aka, the Palace of the Prophets, in the second book, The Stone of Tears, where Richard was made to wear a color to control his Han.

Now, Richard must save his bride to me Kalan, The Mother Confessor, from the clutches of the Blood of The Blood of the Fold, which has sides with the Imperial Order.

A dream walker causes nightmares that are not really nightmares with people who have the gift.

Can Richard save his bride to be from The Blood of the Fold, before it is too late? Where did this dream walker come from?

Find out in the compelling fantasy/adventure The Blood of the Fold.

Great prequel to the sword of shannara. All Brooks needs to do now is write about the origins of Brona, Galiphile and the first war. Bridge Hawks people and the bearers of the black staffs to the Druids.

I do not know how to explain the reason I love this book but I can say it has heart, action, funny moments and it keep me riveted to each page, I have read this series before and now re-reading it again from the first book to the latest.

Love these books! Terry Goodkind certainly weaves a captivating story. Love the plot twists and character development. It's hard to find books that have all the essentials: love, magic, adventure, mystery and war all rolled into one. Enjoy!

Adie was blind and couldn't use her eyes, she acquired her vision using her gift. Rada'Han was supposed to cut her from using her gift and she must have been truly blind. Yet, after she was captured and got a Rada'Han around her neck, it didn't impede her vision in a bit.

Like the first two offerings of the series, the action is non-stop, and the character/plot expansion very satisfying. I feel that the storyline is directed more towards the young adult crowd, but so far an interesting storyline.

I found this book to be fun and well written. I was especially impressed by the use of different points of view in the narration of the druid friends in their own sections. The use of these different view points allowed for each to make claims that they viewed as true even though the others would have disagreed. This "different perspectives" approach that I first discovered here in "First King of Shannara" is one that I truly enjoyed utilizing in my own writing as I wrote My Name is Gary. This was not just the first book I read in this series, it was also my favorite.

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.

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 find myself frustrated a bit with the third book. It seems that the bulk of the story is nothing but pain, frustration, and strife. It's one of those two steps forward, one step back kind of plays. Get on with it save the day already!

I don't understand people negative reviews on this book especially those who have read most of Brook's material?? This book has three druids with great stories to each of them. They seperate early in the book and each story with them is fast pace and thrilling! I believe the fall of Paranor was well done, even the teh secondary characters in this book were well thought out. If you don't like this book then your just not a die hard fan of the Shannara series. If anything could of been different a trilogy would of been nice each book go further into each druid, lets face it we don't get much druid time throughout the other series so it is nice to have three to work with!

The further I get into the Sword of Truth series the faster I find myself devouring the books. Experiences may vary but I feel this best summarizes how I feel about the books (to this point, I have just gotten to book four). Enjoy yourselves.

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)

Even though Goodkind's less than subtle allegorical creation figures heavily in this book, it is still highly readable and worth it! It focuses more on Kahlan, and that is good, because she has become one of the strongest female protagonists in all fantasy since Mercedes Lackey's Paksennarion. The adventure and action is all very fast paced and colorfully done. One wishes that Goodkind would do more allusion than detail when it comes to some graphic items, but you can bypass the particularly extra scenes, as it were. Definately worth the money and time. Read it.

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!!

Mr.Brooks didn't want to go back after taking the Shannara series as far as he had, but someone somewhere loved us fans and he decided to write this book. The First king is a breathtaking story about the origin's of the four lands most dominant legends..... Druids, The creation of the Sword of Shannara, the Ohmsfords, and Allanon. We see the ever nasty Warlock lord trashing the lands and we meet some great characters. As only Terry Brooks can bring, we get battles of epic preportions. Making The Braveheart battles scenes seem small and trivial.
It is a wonderful way to start the journey.
Buy it and give someone who hasn't read the series this book. They'll be hooked. I should know, I am.
Happy reading!

I've heard brooks compared to tolkein. Well better or worse? Personally Brooks does less w more. This story has all the classic elements and uses them well. From a renagade wizard, a destroyed way of life, 'last of his kind' outside the box guy, mysterious pasts, feisty dwarves, deeply emotional elves, hidden treasures, deadly traps lost peoples cryptic words and deep personal loss and succes but not victory and w/ a crushing w/ a rising elf king. I really liked Galaphile and the scenes w/ him, especialy the first one. Bremen was well portrayed as deeply hurting, confused and desperate in dealing w/ his challenges and Galaphile's visions we an unusal focal point. I was moved at the tragedy of how the elfstone was obtained. I don't think I've seen such a story where sucess was so costly and heartbreaking w/ so much undone as this. I really enjoyed this story. Very personable, real upclose storytelling is in this book. Even if you are not a fantasy fan, this book is worth consideration.

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.

WOW This is like predicting what will happen as you read then painfully experiencing as the author sketches together the action bit by bit like brooks was trying to do his term paper in 3 hours on sunday night before class.
Skull bearers=never developed or unique or use powers that they show used from time to time for example skull bearer changing appearence.
I also kept asking myself why there were not more assassination by the bad guys since they can seemingly sneak into the good guys area anytime.
The last batlle is bullsh--
Some characters are barely used.
The magic powers are fire, illusion, enchant weapon, far sight, a talisman disintegration/absorbtion[[...] moorcock], and man I just dont get where the imagination stops, why not add some mad powers? There is also a faery guy thrown in but only briefly.
The baddies are generic and have no personality.
The main evil of big [...] trols never fight hand to hand.

This is truly one of the best books I've ever read in my life!It has much more magic detail than Tolkien,spectacularly developed characters,and an amazing plot.I ADORE IT!!!
This was reccomended to me by a friend ,and I finally read it (after the horendous book the Black Gryphon),and I finished it in a night and a day.Brooks develops the consequences of magic as well as the wonders.Truly ,this is the best Shannara book.
Bremen,the Druid ,and his friend Kinson Ravenlock,have figured that Brona,the Warlock Lord is going to attack.He warns the High Druid Athabasca,but is not believed.He goes to consult the Shade of Galaphile,who shows him two visions:the Black Elfstone,and an Elf holding a sword.He sends his Elf -friend ,Tay Trefenwyd,to find the Black Elfstone,his Dwarf-friend ,Risca ,to prepare the Dwarves,and He himself sets on making the Sword.Warning:do not read Sword of Shannara before this ,or else it will be terribly predictable.

Wizard's First Rule and Stone Of Tears. Two wonderful novels, introducing us into the life of Richard Rahl, a simple woodsguide who has his world turned upsidedown by Kahlan Amnell. Where as the first two stories of Richard and Kahlan were filled with wonderment, adventure and suspense. The third chapter of this engrossing series is somewhat of a let down. Not to say it isn't an interesting read, but it's cons outweigh the pros.
The story itself picks up right where Stone Of Tears ended, we are introduced to a few new characters. The overzealous Lord General of The Blood Of The Fold a group of 'Witch Hunters' so to speak, and his sister whom is condemmed in his eyes for being a sorceress. While these characters are interesting, they did not have any impact on me other than to anger me at their ignorance toward the real truth of the world contained within the story. After their brief introduction we are once again introduced to our wayward hero Richard Rahl.
After an explosive battle between Richard and the Mriswith the story suddenly took a nose dive. In what could have been a suspensful piece of work, became a political thriller of the Fantasy genre. We are thrusted into endless arguments and positional characters as Richard sorts out his standing as the Lord Rahl. Having said that, where is Kahlan, she is still in hiding with Adie and Zedd. This was one of the biggest problems for me. Richard and Kahlan's seperation was absolutly abominable, once they finally do meet up with each other, (Near the end of the novel) their exchanges are hasted and brief.
The action I have come to love is nearly absent in this entry, aside from the last 100 pages, which were extremely exciting; did not make up for the lack of thoughout the whole of the story. The humor of the Mord-Siths is quite entertaining. The way they try to intimidate and poke fun at Richard, did have me smiling and chuckling a few good times.
Blood Of The Fold is certainly different when you look back upon the first two novels of this series. Though it does have it's moments of sheer excitement (the last 100 pages), it came off as an overly long senate meeting to discuss lands and property.

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."

This, like all of Brook's Shannara series books, is wonderful. I am glad that Brooks took the opportunity to write this prequel. It gives the reader a look into the past and into the characters and ancestors that started the story that continues through the Shannara series. The characters are very well developed and rich, without the droning on and on with descriptions that some authors fault. You learn little bits and pieces at a time about the characters and story that continually make you go "Aha! So that's why....." Moves along at a great pace and keeps you wondering, but with enough hints that you wait for the characters to find out if what you are anticipating is right! There are also plenty of "I didn't see that coming" moments. I recommend the entire SHANNARA SERIES for anybody who is looking for a wonderful fantastical world to read about. However, read this book in the order of publication - don't read it first.

If you like Terry Brooks, and want the back story on the Shannara series, definitely read this. I read the original book back when it was first published, remember it pretty well, and enjoyed getting the origin story. It's pretty standard sword and sorcery, and there's a fair number of flaws, but it's still a good read.

If you have never read a "Shannara" book, I would not suggest starting with this one, even though the events in this book are chronologically first in the Shannara timeline.

This is better suited to readers who have already read at least the original trilogy, or better yet, the original as well as the Heritage of Shannara books, and want a more complete telling of the history of the Four Lands, and a story revolving around characters who preceded Allanon and the Ohmsfords, such as Bremen and Jerle Shannara.

Now with that out of the way...

The plot should be fairly well known to veterans of the series, as it is mentioned here and there in other books. The Warlock Lord is attempting to conquer the Four Lands, and all that stands in his way is the druid Bremen, and a handful of companions who must go on various quests, and overcome the challenges presented to them along the way, if there is to be any hope of stopping Brona and his Northland army.

This book, while maybe not the best of the bunch, has enough to offer longstanding fans that I would recommend it to any who have read and liked the series. It was interesting to read about people and events in this time, where the actions and decisions made here had a huge impact on the subsequent course of history throughout the Four Lands.

While the book did drag in some spots, the last part grabs your attention right until the very end. And while it's probably predictable for Shannara fans, it's written in such a way that you still want to find out how it happens, even if you already know the end result.

All in all, a very worthy addition to the Shannara series.

"I am the bringer of death", in Terry Goodkind's novel, Blood of the Fold, he uses his expertise to create a world of fantasy seem more of a realistic world making his characters seem like someone who really exists.
In this novel Goodkind creates a struggle of epic proportions against the forces of the evil Jageng, a dreamwalker, a man with the power over ones dreams. The only way to find refuge against his power is to swear loyalty to Richard, a woods guide turned ruler of a nation, Jageng wants to enslave the world for his own bidding and anyone who stands in his way he plans to destroy. His fury has been unleashed from his prison behind the Towers of Peradon in Old World when Richard destroyed them. Richard now has plans on conquering the world not for power though in stead he wishes to protect the lands from Jageng.
Goodkind does a great job of describing everything vividly yet doesn't dwell on unimportant details. When he describes a setting he makes it feel like it comes out of the book and fills the room with all the sights, sounds, and smells he creates.
Goodkind also depicts his characters with as much care as he describes his setting. Describing them well in detail, both physically and mentally making each character feel like a close friend or mortal enemy.
He creates a great plot with much action and many plot twists, it also jumps around between characters, both good and bad, giving you a broad view of the story instead of just a small part of it.
Goodkind's use of language in this novel is easy to understand for the most part, there are a few spots where he uses words that make no sense, but they tell you what the words mean so there's never any confusion.
This book is greatly written pulling the reader into a land of fantasy masterfully created and gives a feeling of total release from everyday life.

The Shannara series, by Terry Brooks is one of the most exciting set of short stories I have read for a long time! The plot is vividly described, with easy to get into and visualize wording. The characters are so well defined that they come alive within a short time and then develop until you feel you know them personally. The suspense is intense and maintained throughout. The denouement is a very unexpected turn of events that is quite satisfying. Anyone who likes good fiction of fantasy worlds will likely like this book and want to go on to the next one!

When I first picked up this book at the library, I was excited. I had heard good things about the book from friends who had read the entire series. I have to say that I did not think this book of the highest tier of fantasy, a place reserved for the likes of george rr martin, jrr tolkien, robert jordan( before book 10), and terry goodkind(I havent read past book 6 yet). This is why I cannot understand how the rating for it is 4 1/2 stars. This book shows far less originality than the book Eragon, written by 17 year old paolini.

Here is the basic storyline of the book, lets see if you recognize it (A powerful man becomes corrupted by magic and starts a war. After being defeated, he uses magic to make himself seemingly immortal at the cost of his earthly form. This spectre begins to start a second war in which a small group of people must travel across the land in a quest to save the world. Meanwhile, the subjugated, barbaric race, wage war upon the other races of the world. One of the races is attacked and repels it at a great cost of life and the ruin of their homes. One member from another race must travel to this weakened race and ask for help, since the attack has been turned towards them. So an innumerable army, seemingly endless in number, attacks the strong race. Through a battle involving much luck, strategy, and magic, this race finally defeats their aggressor with the late help of the early mentioned weakened race.

Ok, your thinking i was just telling the storyline of Lord of the Rings. Well, this description can apply to either the famous trilogy or this book. Personally, I enjoyed Lord of the Rings a lot more for its great storyline, excellent character development, and originality, two of which are lacking in Brooks' book.

The thing that gets me is that people will rip on Eragon for being unoriginal, when this book is far more unoriginal. That being said, the book is written well, although still a second-rate book, and the later battle scenes are interesting, albeit repetitive. So, one star for the book itself, one star for being well written, and one star because I wrote this review just after finishing Harry Potter 6, one of the worst written books I have ever read.

I think that this is one of the best books in the series(now i've said it twice) because in this book richard fully comes into power over the D'Haran Empire. Everything comes together in this book and sets up for the war to start in the next book. If you like his first two then you'll like this one for sure. many people dislike goodkind and say that the only reason people give his books good ratings is because they read his first to and have some kind of loyalty to him. I will say that because i like certain authors i may be a little lenient with them on some of their books that i rate but i must say that this is not the case if the book leaves me feeling empty and this book did not leave me feeling empty for sure.

I've read all the reviews in here. I would like to say that Ilove The Sword Of Truth series and I hope it never ends!!! I read all3 books one after the other in a weeks time. I've also read Eddings and Jordan. I believe the reason the world was not ^M build up is because you are seeing it through Richard's eyes. What you learn about the world is from what he knows of it. In the beginning he knew very little of his world or it's history. As the story grows and he learns more about the history and the land around him, you still only know what Richard knows. Just like you only know what you know. There is really no telling how big this world really is.. It doesn't really matter if it was small. I would be more then happy to read just about Richard and Kahlan life together and their friends around them. There's alot more to this story then Good versions Evil! It's about friendship, and then love, and the hardships they have to face. I like that the book was kept simple and not overflown with descriptions and you just couldn't wait to see what was next. Let me ask you a question: when you go to pick up a new book don't you expect the hero to win? I know I do, it's all in the way he or she does it that matters. You don't expect the bad guys to win do you. That would be strange wouldn't it.
The main reason I'm writing this is for the ones that haven't read the books before, and have read the others, like Jordan and Eddings which are amoung my favorites. If you try to see things through Richard's and Kahlan's eyes you'll enjoy this series. You shouldn't compared to different arthors. There's just to many things in any story that you could say came from this or that story. It all comes down to how will you liked the characters. If you didn't like the characters you wouldn't like the book that much. You don't have to worry about that here though, But there is always someone out there that just doesn't give a book and chance and kills the story for themselves before for it every gets starts.
For all the one's that didn't get the story. I feel sorry for you, because you just missed out on one of the best stories I have read in a long time. I Thank Terry Goodkind for bring Richard and Kahlan into my life!!!
KEEP UP THE GREAT WORK TERRY!!!

Wizard's First Rule was an absolutely amazing book, despite its rough spots. Stone of Tears seemed almost as good, especially since I didn't smell the foul rot lurking under the surface. I was looking forward to Blood of the Fold, but what did I get? Goodkind presents me with a painfully boring book that takes all the problems in Stone of Tears and multiplies them.

I'll start with the NO. 1 problem first: The POV of Verna. Half the book is devoted to the Sisters of the Light, mainly Verna. These chapters were so mind-numbingly boring I could barely stand to slug through them; they were a chore just to read through. The rest of the plot was okay, but started to lose the darker atmosphere that I liked so much. The least that the author could have done was treat us to less of this Sisters of the Light nonsence. I didn't buy this book to read about a bunch of fanatics and their abysmally boring politics and maneuvers. I bought the Sword of Truth series to read about Richard, Kahlan, Zedd, and the other good characters.

The characterization and character development is all downhill from here, friends. Chandalen disappears early on, leaving a cold void where his interesting personality and opinions were. Many other interesting themes and characters were downplayed, just so that Goodkind would have room to cram more Sisters of the Light chapters into a book already desperately in need of a respite from them.

What other characters populate this book? Well, Goodkind seems to be missing the good old days of describing Darken Rahl vivisecting and torturing people, so he thoughtfully introduces a new gang of perverts and sadists. At this point all the ceaseless waves of antagonists wallowing in depravity and violence is just getting numbing.

I knew the plot was degrading as soon as I looked at the description on the back: it's the same plot, yet again. A terrifying force, headed by a Dark Lord, (Emperor Jagang of the Imperial Order this time. Where do all of these guys come from?) threaten the New World and Richard must stop them, though he'll endure many trials and tortures and remain separated from Kahlan throughout it. You'd think that Goodkind would attempt to come up with something new for once.

I'm really getting tired of Richard and Kahlan being separated. One of my favorite parts of Wizard's First Rule was the character interaction between them. In this book, it seems like that's over and done with.

There is some good witty dialogue in some places, but it mostly comes from the Mord-Sith, who have gone from being a genuinely terrifying group of enemies to a bunch of lapdogs to act as the hero's bodyguards. We also get the POV of another new antagonist, the leader of the Blood of the Fold. Frankly, I'm beginning to think Goodkind likes getting inside the heads of idiots and sadists, because he does it so often.

Blood of the Fold is easily the worst book in the Sword of Truth series so far. A genuinely epic and engaging series has evaporated and left this mediocre remnant behind. I hope Terry Goodkind can somehow get his series out of the mud, because at the rate it's degrading at, he'll end up writing some of the worst and most boring books imaginable.

First, let me say that Terry Goodkind is eminently readable. Unlike the Jordans etc who try to make the plot so intricate that is makes Tolkien's series seem positively simplistic, Goodkind knows how to tell a story in a simple manner, with all manners of complexities thrown in along the way. His characters are very well drawn, and full of all the strengths and weaknesses that readers expect of fantasy works.
However, I am growing far too weary of his series' reliance on deux ex machina escapes (that's "god from the machine", ex. jumping off the cliff and landing in a four foot dingy) and a completely unbelievable scheme of magic to tell its story. I can bear the omnipresent multipage long explanations of why Zedd has to cast a spell a certain way, or Richard agonizing over Kahlan or his heritage etc. However, when Zedd casts a "Death spell" and it causes everyone in the realm to forget that Kahlan is the Mother Confessor and they believe she is dead, that was too much!!!
Now I realize that coming from an AD & D background where magic is very different, my sight may be clouded, but I don't think that this kind of power should be taken lightly. Zedd practically is unaffected by casting such a spell. Frankly, I find this kind of cheapening of magic sickening. Magic is a special skill, an art, and should not be as Goodkind portrays it as mere trickey. Anyone who whispered "Cool!" when Richard uses the Wizard's First Rule on Darken Rahl in Book 1, shame on you!!! The more I read, the more I grew dissatisfied with the way Goodkind's stories grew out of coincidence, happenstance, and just plain bad ideas about magic and how to work it into the story.
Let's hope he can finish the series soon, and perhaps try again with a different idea. Goodkind is a writer to watch, and hopefully this series will only be a footnote to an otherwise long and successful career, once he is able to solve a few of these problems.

I loved this book! As noted by the 29 yr old reviewer(I'm 36)this does seem like any other fantasy book. A handful of people surpass incredible odds to save the day,but,along the way you really do get to know the characters and care for them. I even found myself getting ticked off with the tragedies that befall some of them. Since starting the Shannara books I have not been dissapointed once. I am now 1/2 way through Wishsong and like the others I find myself drawn into their world. Fantasy books like those by Mr Brooks can involve you more than general thrillers and mysteries can. I would highly recommend this series to anyone. My advice though is to start with this book and then read Sword Of,Elfstones Of and Wishong Of. The First King Of Shannara gives lots of background on what is too follow in the series. The characters are fleshed out,the action sequences are par excellence,and the story just has such a flow to it that it really is hard to put down. Buy it and enjoy!

I read all the books of this saga, and simply I love it. Characters, story, all of it. Could say it is quite dark, all problems happening to the heroes... but just impossible to leave it once started!

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.

These books are a very entertaining series and I enjoyed the Blood of the Fold a lot; however, the kindle versions are heavier than they should be with typos and grammatical mistakes that can detract from the story.

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...