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tshrum's reviews
23 reviews
The Scions of Shannara by Terry Brooks
4.0
The first entry in “The Heritage of Shannara Series”, the four book entry in Terry Brook’s Shannara series. I had previously read Elfstones and Wishsong, the final two books in Brook’s first Shannara trilogy, so I was really excited to get back to the world and continue the journey.
The story takes place 300 years after the original trilogy ends. Despite that, the protagonistical family of the Ohmsford’s are still going strong, though with a bit less of the magic that they possessed in the last two entries. I really liked this time jump, it gave a chance to start anew while keeping locations and other familiar aspects.
What I enjoyed about this book was that it wasn’t as much of a fetch quest based story as the others. While the overarching story is indeed Par, Walker, and Wren being sent on their own respective tasks by the now shade version of Allanon, it doesn’t quite feel like the more linear stories told in previous Shannara books. I also liked the feeling that this book was setting something up, as opposed to a singular journey being told in the same number of pages. It allowed for the characters to have a bit more development, and let the focus fall on some secondary characters a bit more.
Overall, a solid entry into the world of Shannara! I’ve seen some people say this is a good entry point into the world, and I wouldn’t agree with that. As a reader who already had the knowledge of the OG trilogy, I was okay, but I feel like there are enough references to previous events/characters that it would help to read the others!
4/5 for me, looking forward to the next one!
The story takes place 300 years after the original trilogy ends. Despite that, the protagonistical family of the Ohmsford’s are still going strong, though with a bit less of the magic that they possessed in the last two entries. I really liked this time jump, it gave a chance to start anew while keeping locations and other familiar aspects.
What I enjoyed about this book was that it wasn’t as much of a fetch quest based story as the others. While the overarching story is indeed Par, Walker, and Wren being sent on their own respective tasks by the now shade version of Allanon, it doesn’t quite feel like the more linear stories told in previous Shannara books. I also liked the feeling that this book was setting something up, as opposed to a singular journey being told in the same number of pages. It allowed for the characters to have a bit more development, and let the focus fall on some secondary characters a bit more.
Overall, a solid entry into the world of Shannara! I’ve seen some people say this is a good entry point into the world, and I wouldn’t agree with that. As a reader who already had the knowledge of the OG trilogy, I was okay, but I feel like there are enough references to previous events/characters that it would help to read the others!
4/5 for me, looking forward to the next one!
The Elfstones of Shannara by Terry Brooks
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Picked this book up on a whim at my local used book store. I’m not sure what attracted me to it, I think it was the cover being done in such a classic fantasy fashion. Hadn’t read Terry Brook’s works before, but I thought why not? Started it that night, and two weeks later, I can safely say I enjoyed every second of it and can’t wait to dive into the other Shannara books.
The first three books in Brook’s epic saga are stand alone novels, they have some carryover but they serve mostly as world builders. I almost skipped the three, as I read that they weren’t very good (specifically the first one) but I’m glad I didn’t! Brooks did such a great job here of not just telling a really good story, but also giving the reader lots of background into the history and lore of Shannara.
I believe this book deserves five stars. Is it as deep as say, a Brandon Sanderson novel from Stormlight? No, definitely not. But it’s a story that, in just 654 pages, pulls you in, makes you cheer for the protagonists, fear the antagonists, and really makes you want to return to the world and learn more. I found myself legitimately worried for the characters in the book at times. Brooks wasn’t shy in this when it came to killing off characters, so I found it gave you a bit of worry during some of the book’s more intense scenes. The characters themselves were fairly well crafted for a story that wasn’t even 700 pages long. You could feel the growth of characters, namely Wil, Amberle and Ander.
In closing, this was a simple, straightforward fantasy novel, written in a time when fantasy was just that. To me, it was a perfect first entry (for me, as I stated above I didn’t read the Sword of Shannara, not yet) into a series spanning 30+ novels. If you’re a fantasy fan, read this. If only for the fact that you’re reading some of the earliest books that showed publishers that fantasy was in fact a genre, wanted by the masses, and not just a one hit Tolkien wonder.
Ps, Allanon is so damn cool. Just read the book, you’ll know what I mean.
The first three books in Brook’s epic saga are stand alone novels, they have some carryover but they serve mostly as world builders. I almost skipped the three, as I read that they weren’t very good (specifically the first one) but I’m glad I didn’t! Brooks did such a great job here of not just telling a really good story, but also giving the reader lots of background into the history and lore of Shannara.
I believe this book deserves five stars. Is it as deep as say, a Brandon Sanderson novel from Stormlight? No, definitely not. But it’s a story that, in just 654 pages, pulls you in, makes you cheer for the protagonists, fear the antagonists, and really makes you want to return to the world and learn more. I found myself legitimately worried for the characters in the book at times. Brooks wasn’t shy in this when it came to killing off characters, so I found it gave you a bit of worry during some of the book’s more intense scenes. The characters themselves were fairly well crafted for a story that wasn’t even 700 pages long. You could feel the growth of characters, namely Wil, Amberle and Ander.
In closing, this was a simple, straightforward fantasy novel, written in a time when fantasy was just that. To me, it was a perfect first entry (for me, as I stated above I didn’t read the Sword of Shannara, not yet) into a series spanning 30+ novels. If you’re a fantasy fan, read this. If only for the fact that you’re reading some of the earliest books that showed publishers that fantasy was in fact a genre, wanted by the masses, and not just a one hit Tolkien wonder.
Ps, Allanon is so damn cool. Just read the book, you’ll know what I mean.
Storm Front by Jim Butcher
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
Easter has been cancelled! They found the body!! And I found a really fun new series to read. My first foray into the world of Harry Blackstone Copperfield Dresden, and I must say, I was pleasantly surprised. A relatively “short” book (352 pages), the pacing of this story was really good. Right from the get go, I felt like the story was moving along quickly, and really pulled me in. Read this in two days, so that should tell you how hooked I got on it once I picked it up. The character of Dresden is a lot of fun, wise cracking wizard who can kick some serious ass when he needs to. I found some of the other characters maybe not as compelling, but it didn’t really bother me too much. Dresden is the focus here and he’s really well done.
This wasn’t top tier, A1 writing but it was a fun, exciting read that was a really good first entry into a world that I’m excited to dive into a bit more. I hear the books get better as Butcher gets in his groove, so I’m excited to check them out.
FEUGO!!!
This wasn’t top tier, A1 writing but it was a fun, exciting read that was a really good first entry into a world that I’m excited to dive into a bit more. I hear the books get better as Butcher gets in his groove, so I’m excited to check them out.
FEUGO!!!
Words of Radiance by Brandon Sanderson
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Bravo, Mr. Sanderson! After TWOK, I didn’t think another book could suck me in as it did. WOR was able to do that and then some! The second book in The Stormlight Archive picks up where the first left off, and boy did it deliver. I admittedly struggled to get into TWOK, finding the slower world building to just not be as gripping as maybe I should have. It took me three tries to eventually finish. WOR gripped me from the start, using the characters that were established in the first entry to continue to tell this epic tale. I was really impressed with the character growth in this one, with all of the main characters seeing some major change and facing it head on. There was so much development, and it was all done at a pace that just kept me coming back for more. I spent more than a few nights perusing the pages of this epic by the light of my phone, just to get in a few extra chapters. The way the story was pushed along in this was fantastic, the classic Sanderson style of dripping bits of info to you, just enough to make you say “ahh!” And want to continue on to hopefully just get one more morsel of what’s to come. Seeing as this is the highest rated book in the series, I’m not sure if the next two will deliver as it did, but I can hardly fault them if they don’t.
The Way of Kings by Brandon Sanderson
emotional
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
Edgedancer by Brandon Sanderson
adventurous
funny
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Wasn’t sure what to expect going into this. Almost skipped it, if I’m being honest. Luckily, my desire to be informed on all things Stormlight Archive made me read it. I was surprisingly very taken with Lift and Wyndle’s story. BS did a good job of a telling a bit of a lighter story this time around, a change from the first two novels in this series. I wasn’t sure how he’d do without his usual 700-800 page buildup before his “Sanderlanche” of a climax, but he did a great job here. This story had humour (not that TWOK and WOR were without, but this story made a clear attempt to keep it light) and more of a lighthearted style of storytelling. That being said, it still had a fun finish that built and built until the final few chapters, where you can feel the stakes being raised. I gave this a 4/5, not because there’s something really wrong with the book, but because I gave the first two a 5/5 and I didn’t feel right giving this the same. Only because it didn’t have the same epic feeling and world tying storylines that the first two novels in the series contained. That’s no fault of this book, it’s meant to be contained to one character.
Red Rising by Pierce Brown
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
Red Rising is the first book in the “Red Rising Trilogy”. It follows Darrow, a lowly “Red” who spends his time mining on Mars for a substance known as Helium-3. The Reds are the very bottom of a colour based hierarchy, and they’re told by those at the top of the society, the Golds, that they’re mining to allow others to one day settle on Mars and that they are the pioneers who are providing for a better future for all of mankind. Darrow quickly finds out that not all is as it seems, as he comes upon the truth, the truth being that Mars has actually already been settled many years ago, and that he and his fellow Reds are being lied to.
This book quickly puts you right in the heart of the conspiracy, learning just as Darrow does, the real truth. Almost from the very beginning of the book, I felt taken on a non stop ride of events, that were paced very well, never feeling like any one thing was dragging on. The characters introduced along the way were well flushed out, and they didn’t feel as repetitive as some other books that have a large ensemble of players.
Pierce Brown does a wonderful job of creating this unique society, and paints a picture with the perfect amount of detail, not too much, and never too little. You really do feel like you’re connected to Darrow, feeling his anger, his rage, and sadness along the way. The book also contained a good number of surprises in the plot that really weren’t telegraphed as some can be, and a few actually had me saying “holy shit” out loud as I came upon them.
I’ve seen many people say this is the “worst” book in the trilogy (which now spans six books), and to that I say that I’m very excited to take on the rest, as they must be masterpieces! 5/5 from this guy, definitely one of my favourite novels I’ve had the pleasure of reading
This book quickly puts you right in the heart of the conspiracy, learning just as Darrow does, the real truth. Almost from the very beginning of the book, I felt taken on a non stop ride of events, that were paced very well, never feeling like any one thing was dragging on. The characters introduced along the way were well flushed out, and they didn’t feel as repetitive as some other books that have a large ensemble of players.
Pierce Brown does a wonderful job of creating this unique society, and paints a picture with the perfect amount of detail, not too much, and never too little. You really do feel like you’re connected to Darrow, feeling his anger, his rage, and sadness along the way. The book also contained a good number of surprises in the plot that really weren’t telegraphed as some can be, and a few actually had me saying “holy shit” out loud as I came upon them.
I’ve seen many people say this is the “worst” book in the trilogy (which now spans six books), and to that I say that I’m very excited to take on the rest, as they must be masterpieces! 5/5 from this guy, definitely one of my favourite novels I’ve had the pleasure of reading
The White Tower by Michael Wisehart
adventurous
medium-paced
3.5
Really enjoyed Michael’s first entry into the Aldoran Chronicles. Picked it up after seeing it in an ad on Amazon, and it definitely exceeded my expectations. I found it to be an easy read, never did I feel like things were really dragging out too much, or that I was being told information that wasn’t relevant. The characters were developed nicely over the course of the book, and the multiple POVs that the story was told from really helped to see the story from every angle, without feeling like I was drowning in characters. The storylines also began to tie in nicely towards the end, I enjoyed the slow burn of each POV. The last 200 pages or so, things really took off for a finish that was both engaging and felt wrapped up nicely, with a solid finish that left me feeling like I wanted more, but didn’t make me feel like the book wasn’t incomplete.
Looking forward to the next books in the series! Hoping they come out on hardcover so I can add them to my collection
Looking forward to the next books in the series! Hoping they come out on hardcover so I can add them to my collection