Also, elves begin to emerge after having been in seclusion and hiding for centuries.Ī thousand years before The Sword of Shannara, an Elf named Galaphile gathers all of the people who still had some knowledge of the old world to Paranor to try to bring peace and order to all of the races. During this time, Mankind mutated into several distinct races: humans, dwarves, gnomes and trolls, all named after creatures from 'age-old' myths.

Only traces of technological artifacts have been found most advanced technology has been lost, but magic has been rediscovered. These wars rearranged the planet's geography and wiped out most human life on Earth. The Sword of Shannara 's events take place 2000 years after the 'Great Wars': a nuclear holocaust that has wiped out most of the planet. Some accused Brooks of lifting the entire plot and many of his characters directly from Tolkien's work others praised its execution despite the lack of originality. Critics derided the novel for being derivative of J.

The Sword of Shannara 's success significantly boosted the commercial prospects of the fantasy literary genre. Ballantine Books published the novel and used it to launch the company's new subsidiary Del Rey Books. The novel contains themes of mundane heroism and nuclear holocaust throughout.īrooks wrote The Sword of Shannara over seven years, during which time he also attended law school. The other plot shadows Prince Balinor Buckhannah's attempt to oust his insane brother Palance from the throne of Callahorn while the country and its capital (Tyrsis) come under attack from overwhelming armies of the Warlock Lord. One follows the protagonist Shea Ohmsford on his quest to gain the Sword of Shannara and use it to confront the Warlock Lord (the antagonist). The novel interweaves two major plots into a fictional world called The Four Lands.

It is the first book in a titular trilogy. The Sword of Shannara is a 1977 epic fantasy novel by American writer Terry Brooks.

Download sword of shannara books