Antrax by Terry Brooks. The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara series

So this book is the second in “The Voyage of the Jerle Shannara” series. The first novel is called Ilse Witch (I for Indigo, L for Lemur by the way), the third is called Morgawr. All three titles refer to titular characters in each respective novel.

When I read these I was a bit bored after reading the first one. I left it a good few weeks and then upon travelling 300ish miles by bus to visit my boyfriend I realised I need a bit of a meaty book to keep me going and so decided to take my omnibus edition (bought because Ilse Witch is apparently out of print in the UK and my library could therefore not obtain a copy) on the bus with me. During the 8 hours I was travelling I enjoyed the journey of Bek Rowe, Walker Boh, Quentin Leah, Grianne Ohmsford and various other companions including some elves (Ahren Ellesedil an Elven Prince, a tracker and members of the Home Guard), a dwarf, rovers, and two wing rider elves and their Rocs. The adventure that ensued carried me across the country I literally felt I was travelling with them which was quite cool.

Walker Boh has created a diverse team to go in search of magical books, previously thought to be lost forever, and the blue elfstones lost in a far off land some 30 years ago. They have traversed 3 previous islands to collect keys that are needed to access something unknown at the final destination. They have lost some members of the team along the way and shortly after they arrive their airship the Jerle Shannara is overrun by Ilse Witch and her minions the Mwellrets. The rovers manning the ship are captured and those on the island are marooned as the ship is flown away.

A small group go onto the island and seek out the ruins of the castle. The castle is a remnant of the old world before the Wars of the Races, back when science was prevalent. There are laser beams and the complex is controlled by computer systems and robot technology.

As with all Shannara novels this is a gripping tale of danger and intrigue. You become ridiculously attached to characters like Truls Rohk because of the way he is and how he acts as well as his interactions with Bek and the friendship they develop over the story.

Soon there will be a link to the Author page for Terry Brooks, as yet this has not been published.