Markus's Reviews > Jarka Ruus

She pulled her cloak closer about her, aware suddenly of how cold she was. It was his presence, the nearness of his evil. Even in death, it was there, in the spray off the lake, in the currents of the air, in the darkness pressing down on her. Death, come alive in the form of his shade, gave power to what he was.

The dreams of Allanon and Walker Boh have finally come true, and a new power is rising in the world of the Four Lands for the first time since before the forging of the Sword of Shannara. Grianne Ohmsford, Ard Rhys of the Third Druid Council and High Druid of Paranor, has brought back the Druid order in its entirety. Men and women of all races have come to Paranor once more in pursuit of knowledge and magic. But everything is not as glorious as it seems.

In the darkest hallways and the deepest catacombs of the ancient fortress, numerous conspiracies are brewing. Every single member of the order appears to have dark secrets and hidden ambitions, and some of the most powerful sorcerers among them are already starting to act. The only thing they all have in common is a strong hatred for Grianne. Just as Sen Dunsidan, now Prime Minister of the Federation, arrives at Paranor for diplomatic talks, the High Druid disappears completely. While the Druid order is thrown into complete disarray, its members bickering over positions and politics, it falls to Penderrin Ohmsford, youngest scion of Shannara, to find and attempt to rescue its lost leader.

While Pen goes on his quest, Grianne awakens in the world to which she has been sent by those tho wished her out of the way. When she starts exploring and encounters dragons, ogres and furies, she realises where she is. She has been sent to the world of the Jarka Ruus, the banished peoples. The world inside the Forbidding.

This book restored my belief in Terry Brooks after the previous trilogy left me a bit disappointed (a bit tired, even). The old greatness of the world of Shannara is mixed with a darker setting in which intrigue and treachery play important parts. The combination results in a brilliant and complex story.

The tale is mostly told from three perspectives. One is Pen Ohmsford. He's the generic Ohmsford hero and in most ways appears to be a reincarnation of Shea, Wil, Par and Bek. His storyline is still good, but it's the other two that made this so enjoyable: Grianne Ohmsford and her desperate journeys through the lands of the Forbidding, and the treacherous Druids who sent her there, struggling to control Paranor while they themselves also are being manipulated by forces unknown.

Jarka Ruus kicks off the High Druid of Shannara trilogy with a bang. It is basically the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara without almost all the downsides, and I would say it's the best Shannara book since the Wishsong.

Also, it includes perhaps the best scene in the entire series (which I quoted from in the top of the review), when (view spoiler)[Grianne Ohmsford walks down to the alternative Hadeshorn that lies inside the Forbidding, and tries to summon the spirits of Walker and Allanon to ask their advice, but accidentally summons the spirit of someone else instead... (hide spoiler)]