The Sword of Shannara

The Shannara Series, Book 1

By: Terry Brooks

Narrated by: Charles Keating

The Sword of Shannara is the first volume of the classic series that has become one of the most popular fantasy tales of all time.

Long ago, the wars of the ancient Evil ruined the world. In peaceful Shady Vale, half-elfin Shea Ohmsford knows little of such troubles. But the supposedly dead Warlock Lord is plotting to destroy everything in his wake.

The sole weapon against this Power of Darkness is the Sword of Shannara, which can be used only by a true heir of Shannara. On Shea, last of the bloodline, rests the hope of all the races.

Thus begins the enthralling Shannara epic, a spellbinding tale of adventure, magic, and myth....

©1977 Terry Brooks (P)2003 Random House, Inc. Random House Audio, a division of Random House, Inc.

Good...but not as good as The First King

I thought the previous book was better. I also like the narrating better. I thought both stories were good though some details and sequencing weren't in place as well as I would have liked. But still recommended to anyone with science fiction interests

prefered the longer version.

This abbreviated audio book was ok . I understand I got the shortened version of the book but it seemed to cut out some of the things I personally would have kept in. But if you are wanting the main story it gets to the point without all the detail I prefer. The narrator was alright but not my favorite but he spoke in a clear voice and was easy to understand.

Amazing Narration!

I read this book many years ago and it was long. So listening to the abridged version was a nice way to become re-acquainted with the story and characters. I forgot how much I loved Balinor, Hendel, Keltset and Menion Leah; and how much I loated Stenmin, the awful mystic who caused so much trouble. The best part of this audiobook is that Charles K. is the narrator. His voice is like smooth, swiss chocolate for your auditory pleasure. I will be listening to the next two of the original trilogy with his reading of it. I cannot imagine listening to anyone else tell the story abridged or not. Overall, great listen!

Where's the dialogue?

This barely rates a 3 for me. There's almost no dialogue among the characters. It's almost like listening to a fable or myth, except this is much too long to take the form of a fable. The characters are nearly dimensionless. There's a great deal of description of the story going on, but you feel very disconnected from it. The narrator also doesn't help by giving almost all the characters the same Irish accent. If you are into action and not into character development, then you may enjoy it. There's plenty of Jason and the Argonauts type stuff going on. However, if you want a more interactive world, then hunt elsewhere.

wonderful!

I loved this book! Charles Keating has such an amazing reading voice! The story was relatively simple but a great tale to start the series.

Good Book, Bad Abridgement

This book is very good, I have read it. This abridgement is bad, it elimates most of the character development. The result is that you have a great story that is filled with strangers you hardly know. It makes the abridgment hard to connect with. Brooks is a talented author and very good at developing his characters so you know and love them. This abridgment is a huge disservice to his talents.

Unabridged?

I have never read anything from this author before and was pretty excited but I felt like there was almost no dialogue and the book jumped around. I purposely chose this version of the book because the picture said it was unabridged, but after reading the reviews (which I don’t usually do cause I like to make up my own mind) I found out this was the abridged version. They should make that clear on the details or something because not once does it say that and the cover says the exact opposite of that. Audible I feel like you let me down. :(

Sword of Shannara

I've always liked Terry Brooks novels and Charles Keating fits the mood of these stories very well

Poorly Abridged

I must preface by stating that I hate abridgements. This story just solidified my stand. The story was dull with most of it taking place in passive voice. Character development was not really there (not sure if this was the author's fault or the abridgers).

Don't bother...

As one reviewer already said, The Sword of Shannara is a retelling of The Lord of the Rings. Despite that, I liked the book. But, as has also already been said, this adaptation took out pretty much all of the character development and even some of the best action sequences. If you liked the book, don't bother with this abridged adaptation. If you've never read the book and don't care if you know next to nothing about the character's involved then you might like it, but there are better ways to use your book credits.