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Book Review #17
Jun. 4th, 2008 03:50 pmBook: Armageddon's Children by Terry Brooks
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 371 pp.
Grade: B+
Amazon Summary: Extrapolating from current world events, Brooks projects a worst-case scenario in which the steady destruction of all humankind is a reality. Plagues have killed half a billion, weapons of mass destruction have decimated entire populations, and the few survivors have retreated into a siege mentality, turning city stadiums into walled compounds and shutting out the "freaks"—those who have mutated from breathing the polluted air and drinking the badly fouled water. A variety of principals propel the transfixing yarn Brooks spins in this setting: Logan Tom and Angel Perez, both Knights of the Word committed to keeping the magic that binds all things together in balance; Hawk, a street kid who leads a group of other young people in Seattle; Kirisin, a young elf who is one of the Chosen safeguarding the Ellcrys, a magnificent tree upon whose existence the lives of the elves depend and whose safety is now threatened; and the demons and their minions, the once-men, who have been subverted by false promises and lies. Everything and everyone moves inexorably toward a deadly confrontation in the Northwest. Characterizations are dynamic and multidimensional, the descriptions of the land as well as the ruined cities and small towns are compelling, the action and battles are mesmerizing, and, as is Brooks' wont, the ending is a cliff-hanger that leaves readers salivating for the sequel.
My Thoughts: A few months back, I read the Jerle Shannara series, as well as the series after that (I can't remember the exact name at the moment), and was incredibly impressed. Terry Brooks was absolutely evil in the endings of the first two books, but they were incredibly good—it was glad that my friend had recommended them to me.
And with this book I wasn't disappointed.
As soon as I read the first page, I knew that I was going to like the book. Logan Tom's story—especially his backstory—was intriguing, and I kept wanting to understand how the world had gotten the way it had, how humankind was nearly entirely wiped out, and how everything seemed to have gone downhill. Logan Tom was one of those great male narrators; even though some of the book was written in his male perspective, I could still relate to him. He was one of those intriguing characters, one that you just want to know more and more about.
Of course, all of the characters were like that. All of the main characters—Logan, Kirisin, Angel, and Hawk—were so well-drawn that I just wanted to know more about them. Not only that, but their situations were so different, as well as the way they dealt with them. I really enjoyed hearing about each them—it was a joy to read about all of their different encounters and such with the dystopian-like world they're living in.
About the dystopian-like world, though.
For some reason, the "future" described in these books made me slightly afraid because, you know, some of it might actually happen. They might not happen in my lifetime, but some of it seems awfully likely, and that's scary, because I would never want anyone to live in a world like this series. Regardless of that, I felt that the demons and Freaks were absolutely terrifying, and the scenes in which they played a role absolutely terrible. Those action scenes with the demons and the compound (the places humans take refuge against the demons and the rest of the world) and all the other terrible things were so riveting that I didn't want to shut the book and finish it.
So, all in all, this book was quite good. I felt some parts of it were... well, not as good as it could be, and it wasn't nearly as good as the Shannara books, but it was a nice, fun read (if a bit depressing). There were a few spelling mistakes and grammar mistakes, but I doubt it would be noticeable to the average reader, so it's not much of an issue.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who like fantasy books and/or Terry Brooks—but beware of the cliff-hanger ending!
Currently Reading: If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans by Ann Coulter (have only about a hundred pages left) and Flux by Beth Goobie
Genre: Fantasy
Length: 371 pp.
Grade: B+
Amazon Summary: Extrapolating from current world events, Brooks projects a worst-case scenario in which the steady destruction of all humankind is a reality. Plagues have killed half a billion, weapons of mass destruction have decimated entire populations, and the few survivors have retreated into a siege mentality, turning city stadiums into walled compounds and shutting out the "freaks"—those who have mutated from breathing the polluted air and drinking the badly fouled water. A variety of principals propel the transfixing yarn Brooks spins in this setting: Logan Tom and Angel Perez, both Knights of the Word committed to keeping the magic that binds all things together in balance; Hawk, a street kid who leads a group of other young people in Seattle; Kirisin, a young elf who is one of the Chosen safeguarding the Ellcrys, a magnificent tree upon whose existence the lives of the elves depend and whose safety is now threatened; and the demons and their minions, the once-men, who have been subverted by false promises and lies. Everything and everyone moves inexorably toward a deadly confrontation in the Northwest. Characterizations are dynamic and multidimensional, the descriptions of the land as well as the ruined cities and small towns are compelling, the action and battles are mesmerizing, and, as is Brooks' wont, the ending is a cliff-hanger that leaves readers salivating for the sequel.
My Thoughts: A few months back, I read the Jerle Shannara series, as well as the series after that (I can't remember the exact name at the moment), and was incredibly impressed. Terry Brooks was absolutely evil in the endings of the first two books, but they were incredibly good—it was glad that my friend had recommended them to me.
And with this book I wasn't disappointed.
As soon as I read the first page, I knew that I was going to like the book. Logan Tom's story—especially his backstory—was intriguing, and I kept wanting to understand how the world had gotten the way it had, how humankind was nearly entirely wiped out, and how everything seemed to have gone downhill. Logan Tom was one of those great male narrators; even though some of the book was written in his male perspective, I could still relate to him. He was one of those intriguing characters, one that you just want to know more and more about.
Of course, all of the characters were like that. All of the main characters—Logan, Kirisin, Angel, and Hawk—were so well-drawn that I just wanted to know more about them. Not only that, but their situations were so different, as well as the way they dealt with them. I really enjoyed hearing about each them—it was a joy to read about all of their different encounters and such with the dystopian-like world they're living in.
About the dystopian-like world, though.
For some reason, the "future" described in these books made me slightly afraid because, you know, some of it might actually happen. They might not happen in my lifetime, but some of it seems awfully likely, and that's scary, because I would never want anyone to live in a world like this series. Regardless of that, I felt that the demons and Freaks were absolutely terrifying, and the scenes in which they played a role absolutely terrible. Those action scenes with the demons and the compound (the places humans take refuge against the demons and the rest of the world) and all the other terrible things were so riveting that I didn't want to shut the book and finish it.
So, all in all, this book was quite good. I felt some parts of it were... well, not as good as it could be, and it wasn't nearly as good as the Shannara books, but it was a nice, fun read (if a bit depressing). There were a few spelling mistakes and grammar mistakes, but I doubt it would be noticeable to the average reader, so it's not much of an issue.
I'd recommend this book to anyone who like fantasy books and/or Terry Brooks—but beware of the cliff-hanger ending!
Currently Reading: If Democrats Had Any Brains, They'd Be Republicans by Ann Coulter (have only about a hundred pages left) and Flux by Beth Goobie
