THE VOYAGE OF THE JERLE SHANNARA

Conclusion of the Voyage of the Jerle Shannara trilogy, and 12th in the entire Shannara series, with a new Shannara trilogy promised. Morgawr also marks the quarter-century anniversary of the bestselling Shannara epic. In Ilse Witch (2000), Walker Boh, the Last Druid, sets forth in the Jerle Shannara airship on a quest for the legendary lost magic that’s stronger than any known in the Four Lands. First, though, he must find the keys that will unlock the magic when be finds it. (He is pursued by the beautiful Ilse Witch and her crew of Mwellrets in their own airship.) Antrax (2001) turns out to be surprisingly science-fiction-y, with Antrax an evil artificial intelligence and a discomforting addition to Brooks’s fantasyland. However, Antrax has enslaved many old friends of Walker and his crew, turning them into robotic cyborgs. Antrax ended on a cliffhanger, with many of Walker’s crew killed and Walker himself disappearing into the ruined city of Castledown. Throughout this series, iconic items from the earlier six-volume series, such as the Sword of Shannara and the magic of the wishsong, add to the stewy richness. The monstrous, half-human Morgawr, evil mentor of Ilse, makes Sen Dunsidan Prime Minister of the Coalition Council, gets two dozen airships from him and sets out after Ilse, who has betrayed him. What he plans is to get the lost magic himself, but he discovers that he’s not meant to discover the magic of the Old World and, dying, instructs Bek Ohmsford to return Ilse to the Four Lands, for the Sword of Shannara has awakened Ilse, his sister, now bearing her childhood name Grianne, from the power of Morgawr. Even so, Grianne must eventually face down the Morgawr to complete her journey homeward. Will the Druid Council then be reformed in the Four Lands?

Kid stuff—but magic sells.