I’ve been listening to Terry Brooks lately. I bought Angelfire East (unabridged), the third book in a series. It came in a lot of a dozen other books. I listened to it, even though it was out of order. I then bought A Knight of the Word (unabridged), in another lot and I listened to that. It was the second book. I have listened to the last two books in a three part series without ever listening to the first book.

Both books followed the same pattern. The first two-thirds is rehash of back story and a lot of filler where pretty much nothing happens. Then there is a flurry of action and the story ends after some satisfying demon stomping. If I had not been listening to these books while commuting back and forth to work, I would never have been able to finish them. The first parts of both books are too slow. If I had been reading them, I would have put the books down. This is partly because I was reading them in reverse order and I was not involved in Brook’s created universe, and partly because Brooks did not really have enough material to fill up 100,000 words and padded quite a bit. He rehashes things and repeats things.

I find Brooks has a good narrative voice that is very relaxed, almost passive. He does not often keep you on the edge of your seat, but instead lets you lean back and soak up his smooth flow. I imagine that this is his claim to fame. He does not write thrillers and the little bit of action at the end of each book is not what his fans are really after. I think of Brooks as a comfortable read.

I eBayed Angelfire East for more than I paid for it and A Knight of the Word is getting listed this weekend on eBay.

I just received The Sword of Shannara (unabridged). I started listening to it yesterday and I have made it through the first few chapters. So far the book has been mostly info-dump, passive tense, and slow moving. When Sword came out, it was obvious that it was published to capture some of the LOTR readership. It was a large fantasy novel with elves and dwarves and magical talismans and an epic journey. It is extremely derivative of Tolkien. In listening to the book, I realize that it is more of an homage to LOTR than a pastiche. It is like reading fan fiction. I am annoyed by the slow pacing and vague viewpoint. I prefer a more immediate reference point with more action and less discussion in the passive tense. Now that much of the back story is finished, the pace is picking up and the characters have started to gel. I can get through this.

I can’t resell The Sword Shannara becuse the first tape is damage. I may be able to repair it, but I would have to list it with the disclosure that I repaired the tape. Ward (my books-on-tape listening brother) will get a shot at this when I am done. It is 22 tapes long and is ex-libris, so there may be more damage in the other tapes. The retail price is $140, but I got a good deal on eBay.