I remember reading The Sword of Shannara as a teenager when it first came out and really being entranced by the story. Well, time has significantly altered my opinion. I read The Sword of Shannara before reading the LOTR trilogy, so it was not apparent then as it is now how much Terry Brooks lifted from LOTR. I guess, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery - and Brooks proves it throughout his story! While Shannara is more compact and faster paced then LOTR, it definitely lacks the depth and sweeping story that Tolkien gave us. Much is lacking due to flat characterizations and the cursory manner of moving the characters through what should be a more richly developed alternative world. Thus my two star rating.

Always a favorite. It was the first book of any length I read as a boy in 4th grade. A book responsible for allowing my brain to wander and far.

I tried reading this book as a kid and could never get into it. Then re-reading it as an adult. Dang ! What a great book. Great world, great characters, great story.

I read this as a child and just reread it. I was stunned to discover it was the closest remake of LOTR I’ve yet read. But, it was still something to read.

I have never been a big sci-fi person but this book was a great read. Brooks does an awesome job developing the characters and keep the story interesting despite some 700+ pages. Many say it's a LoR rip off but at most I would say LoR was an inspiration. Middle earth and hobbits are boring. This series has much more interesting characters: Druids, Eventine, and the border legion.

This book is full adventure around every corner and written so well that you truly believe that you are right in the middle of it all. Not a single page of this book leaves you bored but finds you longing to turn the page to find out what happens next. A must read.

After watching The Shannara Chronicles I just had to read this book!!! I'm not much of a reader so I mean it when I say this book was amazing. I couldn't put it down!!! I read the whole book in less than two weeks!!! Now I am truly looking forward to the rest of the Shannara book!! P.s. Watching the show first made it really awesome to picture the characters and the land and EVERYTHING!!

Great book, wanted to re read it, but it doesn't seem to come with the proper cover, just plain green with white print. Can this be fixed?

You know how you can sit and read most books and remember every last detail? 12 years ago I read this book, and even now I'd have to say its one of my favorites! The journey that Shea Ohmsford takes is described so intricately that I would often get lost in the text through my imagination and have to go back and reread it... This is definitely worth your time. Enjoy!

To a wonderful world of fantasy, magic and sword! I loved the entire series. If you have read through the Brooks collection give R.A Salvatore a try as well.