| Title | : | The Talismans of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, #4) |
| Author | : | |
| Rating | : | |
| ISBN | : | 1857239016 |
| ISBN-10 | : | 9781857239010 |
| Language | : | English |
| Format Type | : | Paperback |
| Number of Pages | : | 440 |
| Publication | : | First published March 1, 1993 |
The Talismans of Shannara (Heritage of Shannara, #4) Reviews
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The Talismans of Shannara, by Terry Brooks, is the fourth and final book in The Heritage of Shannara quartet of novels. All of the threads of the previous three novels are now coming to fruition, as the Elves lead by Wren Ohmsford Elessedil, the Druids resurrected by Walker Boh, and the Sword of Shannara, found by Par Ohmsford, are all converging on a final battle with the Shadowen-controlled Federation.
Of course, this is not even the most critical factor in the heroes' success. That distinction probably goes to their friend and ally Morgan Leah, and his weapon, the enchanted Sword of Leah. The family heirloom, blessed by long-dead Druid Allanon to help Morgan's ancestor, Rone Leah, protect Brin Ohmsford, during the events of the novel The Wishsong of Shannara, is a powerful artifact. It can cleave through nearly any magic.
On top of his sword's abilities, it seems Morgan has a natural penchant for conceiving of, and executing, plans on short notice. Even the more ridiculous ideas can somehow be made to work once the young highlander gets started with them.
Rounding out the group of heroes are Padishar Creel, leader of the Freeborn movement, his daughter, Dhamson Rhee, a young resistance leader named Matty Roh, and Coll Ohmsford, Par's brother. Coll is an interesting case, as he is arguably just as much the hero as Par is, because Par can not do anything without Coll first doing his part.
This story was really enjoyable. Some of the more annoying philosophizing and soap-boxing of the previous Heritage volumes was toned down, and when it was there, it was only what was necessary to advance the plot. Had the first three books been this discreet with the wordy navel-gazing from the characters, the books would have been about 50 pages shorter each one.
Another improvement over the first trilogy was in the area of romances. Mostly Par and Dhamson, but also Morgan and Matty, had far more believable romances, for instance, than that of Morgan's ancestor Menion Leah and his eventual wife, Shirl, from the book The Sword of Shannara. What's more, instead of just being told they love each other, Brooks actually showed us that these couples love each other, and why.
I did have some problems, of course, with how dark the story was. Yes, the good guys won, but my goodness gracious were they ever put through the ringer first. They suffer again, and again, and again. That said, there was a real satisfaction when you see the characters triumphant, except for poor Wren, who I wished had more happy moments, given how much more she suffered than the others.
In general, this was an excellent conclusion to the series. I just would have preferred a more unambiguously happy ending. Though I will give Brooks kudos for giving us more of a conclusion. Instead of the five page ending at the most of the first three books, he gave us a proper ending with “what happened to them afterward” accounts of the characters. That was one major complaint of mine that I am pleased to say that Brooks improved on eventually.
Despite the wordiness, annoying soap-boxing, and sometimes overly dark atmosphere, this was a really great epic fantasy of good triumphing over evil. Read this book and the first three as well. You won't regret picking up this story. The Heritage of Shannara was top-notch storytelling.
Highly Recommended. -
I read this series when it first came out 30 years ago (or so) but never continued on in the Shannara series. Don't know why. Just didn't.
Fast forward to now and I figured that I'd re-read the first seven Shannara books and then finish the rest of the series.
Just finished this book, the last of the Heritage of Shannara and I can say quite loudly that I will not be continuing with the series.
Had to force myself to finish this book and this series.
The writing was average, the plot was silly, contrived and all too convenient at times and worst of all were the characters. I've tried to articulate this in other reviews and have never been too successful but a good writer makes you truly care about the characters and in the entire series the only characters I truly cared about was Faun (and how well did that end?).
So I'm sure this series was fine for my teenage self but I can't make myself continue - I've just read way too many great books by great authors to spend time on the average ones, there just isn't time. -
At this point, I think I might be done with the Shannara books. Not the MTV series, not by a long shot - and certainly not after that cliffhanger! But as for the books, I think I either need to give up now or just take a long break, because they're burning me out at this point. I feel like they're just too more-of-the-same, and they're really not bringing anything new to the table, not like the ways the show gets a little more inventive and incorporates the post-apocalyptic setting much more strongly.
Like I said, though, maybe I'll come back to this someday. -
I should have added a reminder to all of the other Shannara reviews I've written the fact that these books are written for young people. When I originally read these books, they were astounding. But now they seem a bit hollow. Upon rereading the Talismans of Shannara, I've discovered that the depth is not nearly what I remember.
Nonetheless, a lesson is awaiting those who are willing to read it. And the characters come to the natural conclusion of the quadrilogy, although not necessarily the one you are expecting. Even with the sure knowledge that I have read this book before, I still was surprised by the way things end -- but, as before, pleasantly so. -
The characters and quests of the first three books come back together in an attempt to get shot of the Shadowen. On the bright side, because so much of this is plot and there's so much that needs to be covered, there's just not room for Brooks to waste on the miserable never-ending navel gazing that characters such as Par and Walker are all too prone to indulging in. (Hooray!) There is still far more than is warranted, however, and the rot spreads to Wren as well. My favourite of the three main characters, she's barely served in here, getting a much shorter role than the men, and not much of what she has is complimentary. She's fooled by the most obvious trap in the history of traps, and spends far too much time hand-wringing about how it sickens her to kill. (It probably sickens the men in your Elven army too, madam, but carry on letting them sicken themselves to death so that you don't have to compromise yourself, by all means.)
I did like the pace and breadth of this, and I always enjoy a moor cat. Walker was much improved from The Druid of Shannara, I liked him. The ending was a little rushed, however, and I just cannot take the romance between Plum and Golf Boy seriously. -
#17/29 in my Epic Shannara Quest.
A slam-bang conclusion to an epic series. Exciting action, expertly paced with a finale in the bowels of the obsidian tower Southwatch that exceeded all of my expectations. The final reveal Brooks saved for this final volume of The Heritage of Shannara was not a surprise (if you drop enough clues, the reader will figure it out; and that's what happens here) but it didn't matter. A definite pick-me-up after the lackluster Elf Queen of Shannara. -
A fantastic ending to a truly epic series. I could not put this down. I became so attached to the main characters through this series, and I really loved the character development in this final book and how characters came to each other’s aid, sometimes unexpectedly. It was satisfying to see the separate storylines finally come together and I liked how the conclusion explained everything and then told of future plans. 5 stars for sure!!
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This is such an amazing series. The four Heritage of Shannara books follow the adventures of Wren, Par and Walker Boh. They are on a quest sent by the spirit of Allanon to save the Four Lands once more. On the way they learn how to come to grips with their magic and their destiny. They are helped by family and friends who are vital for the saving of their world.
I really enjoyed this series. They are action packed, and well written. Terry Brooks has a wonderful way of describing the Four Lands and I found myself often rereading passages because they're just so nice. The characters go through a lot of trouble, sometimes I felt like they could never get a break!
My favourite parts of these books are the fantasy animals. Stresa, the Splinterscat (a mix between a cat and a porcupine), Faun (some weird fluffy furby kind of thing? is how I always imagine her) and the Creepers (a weird mix between scrap metal, insects but then very big and some Crustacean-like body parts) are all great creative creatures that I love reading about.
I also felt like these characters were more real compared to the earlier Shannara books. They struggled more, they had more real thoughts. The relationships were more believable too.
If I had to nitpick a little, it's that even though there are many creative and unique aspects to the story, it's still a typical Terry Brooks story, the storyline proceeds like many of the other books. So some things are a bit predictable. I don't really mind, I love predictability lol. But I can imagine if you're into fantasy you might find these books standard and not bringing anything new to the genre.
This final installment wraps up the story well, the ending is great and what I hoped for. -
The Talismans of Shannara is the 18th story chronologically in the Shannara series. 4 stars.
This book pulled me in and I didn’t want to put it down. It wraps up the Heritage of Shannara tetralogy, and it’s an epic story.
Characterizations were strong in this book and the characters’ maturation and coming into their own was very moving and powerful. I noticed during this re-read how much work
Terry Brooks put into characterizing Morgan Leah. That character goes through the biggest change throughout the 4-book series and goes through so much. He was kind of the glue that tied the parts of the story together. If I had the chance, I’d ask the author why so much time spent on Morgan? It’s not a bad thing, just interesting.
There were a couple editing inconsistencies and a part of the plot that felt forced in order to bring a couple of the characters together, but putting those things aside,
The Talismans of Shannara is probably the high arc of the entire Shannara series. -
1238 pages later and I've finished the Heritage of Shanara series. This entry was decent but all in all I wouldn't recommend investing the time into this series. The characters and plotlines are very similar to the first trilogy and I didn't get a lot from it.
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Really 4.5
Fantastic ending to the Heritage of Shannara. I would have went with a 5, had the tree squeak not been murdered. That was a ruff time to get through. -
5 stars - Dutch hardcover
think I've read most of the books in the whole Shannara series by Terry Brooks, but this series has been one of my favorites. This is book four in the Heritage of Shannara series (The Scions of Shannara, The Druid of Shannara, and The Elf Queen of Shannara are the earlier books) and it is an exciting end to our hero's adventures. I've found all of the books hard to put down for any time as I keep wondering what is going to happen next.
While The Genesis of Shannara is probably my absolute favorite series of books by this author, I would put this series down as my almost favorite.
A good read for any fan of fantasy fiction. -
This is one of the most disappointing anti-climactic ends to a series that I've ever read.
About 3/4 of the way through the book, I still had no idea why anyone was doing what they were doing. There was no purpose to any of it.
There was far too many people getting captured and released, then captured and released again throughout this series. It got old in the first book and was more irritating in this one.
And the ending... what the hell. Let's not tie anything together really, we'll just explain it all away and go on.
The only saving grace this book had was in the growth of the characters. It was fairly well done and did make me want to continue reading. (Aside from Morgan who seems to fall in love with any available woman...) -
Wow! What a great wrap up to the Heritage series!
Read by Rene Auberjonois, awesomely (of course).
All the little seeds planted along the way pay off royally in this book. The only thing that would have made it perfect would have been if Wren played a part in the final battle.
Great tension and conflict. I particularly love how talismans we are familiar with from the prior books are given new interpretations. Continued great treatment of the villain. Love that the women are battle-worn, showing superior skill to some of the men even though they don't use magic, much in the spirit of Eretria. And especially love that the women are NOT coddled by the men, but recognized for their strength and skill.
If this tetralogy were organized better, it would be five stars across the board. -
I need more 😅
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La pluma de Terry Brooks es, para mí, perfecta. Descripciones moderadas sin saturar pero que te meten de lleno en la historia, las emociones y sentimientos de los personajes bien descritas, haciendo que sientas lo que ellos padecen. Lo que he leído de historia me ha parecido coherente, muy entretenida y la resolución me ha gustado mucho, aunque creo que después de cuatro libros tal vez puede parecer algo rápido a los seguidores de la saga.
¡La reseña completa en el blog!
https://tintaliteratura.blogspot.com/... -
This Shannara book is the closest to Lord of the Rings of any of the 9 books in the series I've read mostly due to the Gollum-like subplot. This was also more mature than any of the previous six books in the series.
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Meine ausführliche Rezension folgt...
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An apt conclusion to quadrilogy. Old school fantasy that is expertly written and wonderfully read.
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juraba que en este libro, por como estaban caminando los hechos de una forma un tanto lenta, no tendría una resolución pronta o que dejaría cabos sueltos, pero no ha sido así. el final de la tetralogía es estupendo. hay muchísima acción, ahora nos enfocaremos más en quizá el favorito de muchos: par y sus amigos. Será más bien entre par, Padishar, el gran Topo (me cae bien ese personaje jeje), el propio Morgan con nueva acompañante en la aventura, y Coltar. Aunque no dejaremos tampoco de lado a Wren, que tiene su propia misión ya instaurada en la sociedad de los Elfos... todos se preparan para la batalla final contra los espectros. el momento se cierra ahora ante Par, pues ya las misiones han sido completadas, sólo se necesita que nuestro amigo haga su parte. pero ese camino estará sembrado de muchas dudas, lleno de obstáculos, de decisiones difíciles.
Lo reitero. todo ese equilibrio entre los personajes ha sido brillante, no fue enfocado en uno más que del otro, todos tuvieron su justa medida, su propio desarrollo, había momentos ranquilos es cierto, escenas románticas, pero no fue el eje bajo el que circuló la saga en absoluto. Hago mención en esta última idea, porque muchos autores contemporáneos suelen meter más romance y cosas que no son las importantes en el género, dando a la idea que estás leyendo algo de romance juvenil en vez de una buena literatura fantástica, y brooks no se sale de el objetivo inicial de la trama... y sobre todo, considero importante también decir que todos tenían su rol, y lo hacían bastante bien.
Todos, de alguna manera, entre personajes secundarios, algunos incidentales, llevaron a nuestros amigos a cumplir lo que debían de hacer.
La rebelación al final del libro de todo lo que fue este asunto de los espectros me satisfizo. todo tuvo un gran sentido... en conclusión, una excelente tetralogía, a pesar de que es la secuela de la trilogía inicial de Shannara, pero incluso si la leen así suelta como lo hice yo sin leerse la trilogía anterior, no se pierden en nada porque a medida que ésta avanza, te metes y vas hilando todo de una forma genial.
muy recomendada. puntuación total a la serie: 95 de 100. -
This is the conclusion of the four book series. The elves, dwarves, humans, and Druids unite in the final showdown with Dimmer Rall and his forces of evil. The talismans of Shannara are recovered and brought together. A fitting conclusion to the series.
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6/10. Sirve el comentario del primero de la saga. Básicamente Fantasía tolkeniana que se lee agradablemente. Se monta un mundo con trolls, elfos, enanos y todo eso y ¡hale!, batallitas entre todos ellos.
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Gli Elfi sono tornati alle Quattro Terre. Paranor è tornata nel mondo dei mortali. Walker Boh ha ereditato i poteri di
Allanon ed ora è l'utimo dei
Druidi . La Spada di Shannara è stata ritrovata. Ma restano gli Ombrati. Coll Ohmsford è vivo e apprende che la Spada è destinata proprio a lui, ecco perché Par non potrà mai usarla. Intanto, Rimmer Dall e i suoi ombrati stanno sfruttando il loro esercito della Federazione per spazzar via gli Elfi dopo il loro ritorno alle Quattro Terre. Ma mentre gli Elfi, guidati dalla loro regina Wren insieme ai Nati Liberi combattono la Federazione, Walker, Par, Coll, Damson Rhee, Matty Roh e Morgan Leah si dirigono verso Sentinella del Sud, il quartier generale degli Ombrati, da cui questi risucchiano il potere vitale della Terra. È qui che insieme riusciranno a sconfiggere il capo degli Ombrati e a liberare la magia incatenata distruggendo Sentinella del Sud e liberando le Quattro Terre dalla minaccia degli Ombrati. -
Il quarto e ultimo libro della seconda saga di Shannara.
Il compimento, il momento in cui tutti i tasselli si incastrano perfettamente al loro posto come un puzzle finalmente riuscito.
Mi fa sempre uno strano effetto leggere la conclusione di una saga; penso che sia principalmente perché se un lettore trova la pazienza di leggere quattro libri, vuol dire che qualcosa quella saga gli ha comunicato. E se l’ultimo libro, per un motivo o per un altro, arriva dopo anni, leggerlo è un’emozione unica: è come mettere un titolo al racconto che si è appena finito di scrivere, è come firmare un quadro che si è appena finito di dipingere, è come chiudere una scatola e metterla via.
Adesso andiamo al giudizio obiettivo del libro:
Par è sulle tracce di Coll, annientato dall’uso del mantello magico che Rimmer Dall gli ha permesso appositamente di rubare; Wren è riuscita a riportare gli elfi nelle terre dell’Ovest e sta organizzando l’esercito per contrastare le truppe che la Federazione ha immediatamente mosso contro di loro; Walker è intrappolato nella rediviva Paranor da quattro Ombrati con le sembianze dei Cavalieri dell’Apocalisse, mentre Morgan sta organizzando insieme a Damson e Matty Roh il salvataggio di Padishar Creel, caduto nelle mani della Federazione.
Tutti i personaggi si muovono come pedine sulla scacchiera, ognuno nella direzione e nel modo che gli è permesso. Ma lo scacco matto sarà dato a Rimmer Dall e agli Ombrati tutti a Sentinella del Sud, grazie agli sforzi congiunti di Walker, con i suoi nuovi poteri da druido, di Par, con la canzone magica, e di Coll, il vero detentore della Spada di Shannara.
Il libro è in sé un po’ superficiale nel trattare le conclusioni delle varie vicende: si assiste a un proliferare di eventi che scorrono via così velocemente da non essere recepiti appieno. Inoltre, appare un po’ fuori luogo l’assenza di Wren dalla scena dello scontro finale. Ma non sono rimasta delusa: i brevi accenni alla vita dei protagonisti dopo gli eventi che hanno portato alla liberazione della magia sottratta alla natura (e tenuta prigioniera a Sentinella del Sud), e la conclusione con Walker che finalmente riposa in pace il suo primo Sonno del Druido, donano una felice risoluzione alla vicenda.Ho idea di non aver ancora finito, con Terry Brooks. Gli altri cicli di Shannara e Landover mi aspettano.
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Apparently, Death does not ride a pale horse. According to Mr. Brooks, he rides a giant lizard. They're much scarier, as Walker Boh discovers in The Talismans of Shannara.
I've been able to finish my re-read of the Heritage of Shannara with this last novel in the series, and I must say that I'm happy with the decision I made to take on the task.
As with the other novels, Walker's part was my favorite - Rimmer Dall's decision to send four shadowen in the guise of the Four Horsemen, ancient mythological creatures from the old world, made for an interesting development How Walker and Cogline are eventually able to outsmart, in part, and overcome them was a pleasure to read.
I think a writer must feel challenged when writing about a character discovering an enemy's weakness. The writer himself knows the solution all along and has to write from the point of view of someone who doesn't - to make the learning for that character gradual. I think that, for the most part, Mr. Brooks succeeds with this task where Walker is concerned nicely.
Wren's war with the elves against the Federation, Par's rescue of his brother, his subsequent capture, and then Coll's rescue of Par (with the help of others), the role of the Sword of Shannara and the Wishsong... ALL are excellent story lines....
You'll notice, though, that I'm not detailing the plot of the novel in this review as I did for the previous novels. That's because I truly feel that, as a standalone novel, The Talismans of Shannara would be a tough read. The other three novels in this series are excellent standalone stories that COULD all be read by themselves... and truth be told, someone could just read this novel as much of the individuals story arcs are NOT carry overs from the earlier novels... It's just that... I prefer to think of The Talismans of Shannara as the culmination of the story lines in the first three novels even. It is MEANT to be read after the others.
So while I DO recommend - highly - reading this novel, I recommend that you do so only after having read the other three novels in the series. I give both this novel and the series 4 out of 5 stars.
Thanks for the novel, and the series, Terry! -
Reading Workshop P-1 Zack Raque Weekly Reading Review #1
During the first few weeks of school, i have been reading the book called “The Talismans of Shannara”, and finished that book on 09-05-17. The Talismans is one of many sequels to the Shannara Chronicles, which is now a TV show. The show is accurate on most points, but not everything is perfect, which it can never be expected to be. The Talismans was about 4 children of Shannara Descendants who are given charges, or a duty, to recover 4 different items. Wren, the only girl descendant, was tasked with finding and bringing the elves back to the mainland, but it was thought that they were all dead. Walker Boh, the eldest of the 4, was tasked with finding and returning the druid’s keep, Paranor, which was stuck in a place between time and space. Par and Coll were tasked with recovering the Sword of Shannara, which when used by a descendant of Shannara, the truth will be revealed. The final task was given to a friend of the Shannara family, Morgan Leah, who was tasked with finding and repairing the sword of leah, which could kill the “Shadowen” or magic-twisted elves. Once these charges are completed, the earth would be safe once again. These charges were given to the children of Shannara by the Druid shade of Allanon, who is the last druid, until the timely return of Paranor to the world. Walker Boh would find Paranor, but finding to bring it back completely, he would have to defeat the 4 horsemen of the apocalypse; Death, War, Famine, and Hunger. Wren would be queen of the elves, while Par and Coll Ohmsford would find the truth about themselves.
