20 jaar nadat Grianne Ohmsford afstand deed van haar leven als de gevreesde Ilse Heks, ze bevrijd werd door de magie van het Zwaard van Shannara en de vernietiging van haar mentor, de Morgawr. verdwijnt ze plotseling en, wordt haar dienaar Tagwen gedwongen de handschoen op te nemen en haar uit de handen van haar vijanden te redden, samen met Griannes jonge neef Pen Ohmsford en de machtige elf Ahren Elessedil. ( )

Yet another Shannara book. Enemies seem to be hard to find, and so he reaches into the Forbidden and finds some evil mastermind to cause everyone problems. Not nearly as good as the Jerle Shannara trilogy. I didn’t care about the characters. ( )

Gostei muito. Após terminar a trilogia The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara, ficamos a saber que o personagem Ilse Witch ou Grianne Ohmsford fica encarregue de reatar o Concílio de Druídas. No início desta nova trilogia acompanhamos as guerras de poder de todos aqueles que foram escolhidos para irem para Paranor e construir a nova Ordem de Druidas. A ambição pelo poder é tão grande que um dos personagens arranja forma de fazer desaparecer Grianne Ohmsford para um lugar obscuro e terrível e tenta começar a eliminar todos da sua família quantos a pretenderem tentar salvar. É mais um livro Shannara que se lê com muito gosto. ( )

Decent. Didn't feel like a stand-alone book but more like a book written for a trilogy. I know this is part of a trilogy, but most books in a multi-part series feel like a stand-alone book that has a somewhat conclusive ending. This did not. ( )

I’ve been wanting to get back to the Shannara world after completing The Voyage of Jerle Shannara series a few years ago, but to be honest, I was disappointed in that trilogy and always found an excuse not to start Jarka Ruus. Which, as it turns out, was a huge mistake.

Brooks hasn’t given his Druids a large voice before – preferring to keep their thoughts and motives a secret. In previous books saw more of Walker than Alannon, who Brooks kept aloof from the reader. We peeked into Walker’s life – how he worked, his responsibilities as a Druid, and how his magic worked – but never enough, because the stories have always been about the Ohmsfords and Elessdils, with some guidance from the Druids. In Jarka Ruus we finally see the Four Kingdoms from a Druid’s perspective, and we get a glimpse into the ancient and mysterious order. We see the politics that rule them, the pressure that Grianne, as their leader, endures, and emerge better equipped to understand her predecessors. The difference in Grianne is marked – no longer the dreaded Ilse Witch, she has become more thoughtful, pragmatic, and selfless.

Another refreshing change is that while Pen Ohmsford conforms to the role of reluctant hero, he isn’t like his father Bek, or even Shea, the original Ohmsford hero. Pen never loses sight of his goal to rescue his aunt. He isn’t as incredulous or unbelieving as his ancestors were. I found his daring admirable and his romantic exploits cute. Another awesome addition to the cast is Arhen Elessdil, who was one of my favourite characters in The Voyage of Jerle Shannara series. His niece Khyber is also great – a brave, headstrong girl who quickly learns that there are many types of courage and actions mean much more than words. On the other hand, the fourth member of the team – Tagwen – is like none of the Dawrvish characters before him: although he is trustworthy and kindly, he lacks courage and foresight and his constant second-guessing set my teeth on edge.

All the familiar aspects of Terry Brook’s writing make an appearance – amazing world building, the presence of the Elf-stones, a chase half way across the world with shadowy figures at the party’s heels, and a force of darkness manipulating events to suit itself. It’s easy to see why Brook’s is considered a master of Fantasy writing, and I was glad to have enjoyed Jarka Ruus so much after being disappointed in the preceding trilogy.

Fans of the Shannara series shouldn’t miss this book, which kicks off an amazing new series by taking the story into uncharted territory. As Brooks pushes the magical, geographical and historical boundaries of the world he created so long ago, he displays a maturing of writing style and character arc development which is wonderful to see. I look forward to reading the rest of the trilogy soon!

You can read more of my reviews at Speculating on SpecFic. ( )