Rip IX

Holy cow!  Nine years?!!!!..   Goodness gracious… Carl is at it  again!

 

This year I am choosing……

 

Read two books of any length that you believe fit within the R.I.P. categories.

Let me quote our Imperial Leader about the categories…

September 1st is right around the corner. It is time to begin.

Mystery.
Suspense.
Thriller.
Dark Fantasy.
Gothic.
Horror.
Supernatural.

Or anything sufficiently moody that shares a kinship with the above.

That is what embodies the stories, written and visual, that we celebrate with the R.eaders I.mbibing P.eril event.

As time has wound on I’ve honed this event down to two simple rules:

1. Have fun reading (and watching).
2. Share that fun with others.

Here are a few books I will choose from..

Or……. I may choose something else!

No matter what, the RIP challenge is always fun!  So come join us!  The link to join us is at the top, just click on “Carl” and the magic will begin!

Witch Wraith

Witch Wraith by Terry Brooks.

Series: The Dark Legacy of Shannara
Mass Market Paperback: 512 pages
Publisher: Del Rey (December 31, 2013)
ISBN-10: 0345523547

For centuries the Four Lands enjoyed freedom from its demon-haunted past, protected by magic-enhanced borders from the dark dimension known as the Forbidding and the profound evil imprisoned there. But now the unthinkable is happening: The ancient wards securing the barrier between order and mayhem have begun to erode—and generations of bloodthirsty, monstrous creatures, fueled by a rage thousands of years in the making, are poised to spill forth, seeking revenge for what was done to them.
Young Elf Arling Elessedil possesses the enchanted means to close the breach and once more seal the denizens of the Forbidding in their prison. But when she falls into the hands of the powerful Federation’s diabolical Prime Minister, her efforts may be doomed. Only her determined sister, Aphen, who bears the Elfstones and commands their magic, has any hope of saving Arling from the hideous fate her captor has in store.
Meanwhile, Railing Ohmsford—desperate to save his imprisoned brother—seeks to discover if his famed but ill-fated ancestor Grianne is still alive and willing to help him save the world . . . no matter the odds or the consequences.

As always Terry Brooks ramps up his last book of the trilogy so that you tend to read it faster then the first two books! 

Of the 3 books I enjoyed this one the best.  Usually it is the first book because it grabs you and makes you start reading it… but he did a lot in this last book to give you things you didn’t expect.  Or if you did expect it.. it didn’t happen the way you thought it would.  So.. three cheers for yet another trilogy concerning the original Shannara books..   oh.. and I see a new book has just come out!  Obviously this man will write until his hand is a “stub” like his pencils!… oh wait, writers use computers.. until his fingers are “nubs” from typing!

Thank you Mr. Brooks.. I do like returning to Shannara with new reads now and then.

Bloodfire Quest

Bloodfire Quest by Terry Brooks.

Series: The Dark Legacy of Shannara
Hardcover: 368 pages
Publisher: Del Rey(March 12, 2013)
ISBN-10: 9780345523501

The adventure that started in Wards of Faerie takes a thrilling new turn, in the second novel of Terry Brooks’s brand-new trilogy—The Dark Legacy of Shannara!
The quest for the long-lost Elfstones has drawn the leader of the Druid order and her followers into the hellish dimension known as the Forbidding, where the most dangerous creatures banished from the Four Lands are imprisoned. Now the hunt for the powerful talismans that can save their world has become a series of great challenges: a desperate search for kidnapped comrades, a relentless battle against unspeakable predators, and a grim race to escape the Forbidding alive. But though freedom is closer than they know, it may come at a terrifying price.
Back in the village of Arborlon, the mystical, sentient tree that maintains the barrier between the Four Lands and the Forbidding is dying. And with each passing day, as the breach between the two worlds grows larger, the threat of the evil eager to spill forth and wreak havoc grows more dire. The only hope lies with a young Druid, faced with a staggering choice: cling to the life she cherishes or combat an army of darkness by making the ultimate sacrifice.

And so I finish book two of the trilogy! 

Terry Brooks has been one of those constant writers that seem to pop into my life every now and then, and even if you think, “hmmm I've read something like this before” he continually puts in these little gems that you are sure you never heard of before in any other book.  Bits that tell you Terry Brooks is not done creating! 

You know I don’t do good “reviews” which is why I always use the one from Amazon.  But I do like to say if I am enjoying the books or not (seldom “not” because if I am not I don’t finish the book!).   I sometimes fine it hard to read long series of books because the “main characters” in the first books are gone and replaced with new characters.  So then the new ones better be well defined and a good story for them to keep my interest. 

That being said… it’s time to move on to book 3!

Wards of Faerie

Wards of Faerie by Terry Brooks.

Series: The Dark Legacy of Shannara
Mass Market Paperback: 464 pages
Publisher: Del Rey;(February 26, 2013)
ISBN-10: 0345523482

Seven years after the conclusion of the High Druid of Shannara trilogy, New York Times bestselling author Terry Brooks at last revisits one of the most popular eras in the legendary epic fantasy series that has spellbound readers for more than three decades.
Tumultuous times are upon the world now known as the Four Lands. Users of magic are in conflict with proponents of science. The dwindling Druid order is threatened with extinction. A sinister politician has used treachery and murder to rise as prime minister of the mighty Federation. Meanwhile, poring through a long-forgotten diary, the young Druid Aphenglow Elessedil has stumbled upon the secret account of an Elven girl’s heartbreak and the shocking truth about the vanished Elfstones, which once warded the lands and kept evil at bay. But never has a little knowledge been so very dangerous—as Aphenglow quickly learns when she’s set upon by assassins. Yet there can be no turning back from the road to which fate has steered her. Whoever captures the Elfstones and their untold powers will surely hold the advantage in the devastating clash to come.

I have followed the Shannara series from the beginning, and like many long running series I still feel the first trilogy was the best.  That might well be because of how character driven I am and I really liked the characters in those books.  Now many new characters appear but live in the “same land” and have many adventures surrounding familiar things:  re: the Elfstones.  Having familiarity helps you want to stay with the series and his adventure writing and land building is of high quality.

It’s hard to recommend this trilogy (beginning book 2 right now) only because so much has come before, and it’s hard for many people to come into a series knowing that it’s almost “never ending” lol.  So my strong recommendation is, if you think this is a series you might like… begin at the beginning with: The Sword of Shannara, The Wishsong of Shannara, and the Elfstones of Shannara.

I intend to finish this trilogy and …not surprisingly.. Terry Brooks just had a new Shannara book released last month called: The High Druid's Blade: The Defenders of Shannara .

This whole series carries a likeness to the Lord of the Rings.. that sort of adventure along with some very nasty looking vile villains…  nuff said.     Ok, that’s it for now… off to begin book 2!!