The Magic Kingdom of Landover, Volume 2

Magic Kingdom of Landover #4-5

by Terry Brooks

Now in one thrilling volume–experience the magic, the intrigue, and the exciting escapades of the final two novels in Terry Brooks’s spellbinding Magic Kingdom of Landover series All appears well with Ben Holiday. He’s finally secured for himself the throne of Landover, and he and his wife, the exquisite sylph Willow, are expecting their first child. But their peaceful days are numbered. The conjurer Horris Kews returns to Landover and inadvertently releases an evil sorcerer from the Tangle Box, a magic chest used by the fairy folk to imprison wayward spirits. Now free, the sorcerer traps Ben inside the box’s labyrinthine passages and plots to wreak havoc in Landover using Horris as his pawn. But Ben’s greatest challenge comes when Rydall, a foreign king, issues Ben an defeat seven deadly champions, or Rydall’s armies invade Landover. Complicating matters is the devastating fact that Ben and Willow’ s young daughter has been kidnapped–and her fate lies in Rydall’s dangerous hands. Relying on his loyal friends, his steadfast wife, and no small amount of endurance and enchantment, Ben risks his life to save everything he loves. But this time, black magic may prove too powerful for even the most devoted heart.From the Trade Paperback edition.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Young Adult

464 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2009

About the author

Terry Brooks was born in Illinois in 1944, where he spent a great deal of his childhood and early adulthood dreaming up stories in and around Sinnissippi Park, the very same park that would eventually become the setting for his bestselling Word & Void trilogy. He went to college and received his undergraduate degree from Hamilton College, where he majored in English Literature, and he received his graduate degree from the School of Law at Washington & Lee University.
A writer since high school, he wrote many stories within the genres of science fiction, western, fiction, and non-fiction, until one semester early in his college years he was given The Lord of the Rings to read. That moment changed Terry's life forever, because in Tolkien's great work he found all the elements needed to fully explore his writing combined in one genre.
He then wrote The Sword of Shannara, the seven year grand result retaining sanity while studying at Washington & Lee University and practicing law. It became the first work of fiction ever to appear on the New York Times trade paperback bestseller list, where it remained for over five months.

Reviews

[Shae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ive been working on these two novels for a bit. Though this series has been a fun romp, I was ultimately underwhelmed by the ending. A 4 star series the way through with the humor and the loveable characters.

[Ana · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Tangle Box
I finished this book on 8/24/18. The plot was ok on this one, kind of vaguely annoying. People have no clue what they are doing. Strabo is still the best.

Witches’ Brew
I started this in the omnibus and then continued this in the paperback.

[Richard Domey · Rating 2 out of 5]

Much ado about nothing.

Very,very
Wordy . The book is best read by reading the middle paragraphs first three words on each page and then skipping to the next page.. that will give the reader the entire story without wading through the lengthy verbiage the author insists is necessary to get the most pages filled.

[Brandi Coffey · Rating 3 out of 5]

I loved the beginning of this series; however, I felt as if there were really only a last installment of follow up worth of material. I live Terry Brooks writing style, but this was very disappointing end to what could have been a cute young adult series.

[Margaret W. Jones · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Good Read

Terry Brooks imagination is exquisite. The Kingdom of Landover is one mans answer to his life. His adventures are exciting and interesting. Both good and evil are explored leaving the reader wanting more.

[Franz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Great fun
I have now read all six books in this series, and hope that the seventh book which is announced will be written andpublished

[Brittnay Lokken · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely loved this series!

[Michele · Rating 4 out of 5]

This series is so much fun, and I love it!!

[Kris Tyler · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️

[Luci · Rating 1 out of 5]

As some other reviewers state, this is bubblegum fantasy. This is the type of book you give younger students and introduce them to fantasy. This is a very by the numbers book and it is pretty vanilla when it comes to the range of emotions. It's not necessarily bad writing but just a rehashing of plot points over and over. The supporting characters are pretty stock and the situations get resolved essentially the same way. I will finish the series because book 6 actually sounds pretty entertaining but this series has really lost its spark for me.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

I first read this series when I was in junior high or high school, and re-read it a couple decades later. I'm pleased I came back to it! I've read and enjoyed a number of Brooks's Shanarra series, but they always strike me as ponderous and slow. I don't really approve of what I see as the commercialization of the series - the constant revisiting of the world seems to me like simply a way to sell more books, capitalizing on a single idea without bringing new concepts to the series.
The Magic Kingdom series is lighter, less serious, and more fun. It follows the trope of a secret world, Landover, connected to ours through misty, magical, natural places, but to travel between you risk becoming lost in the capricious mists of the fairies. Landover is supposedly the border of all worlds, but we only ever see it, and our own world. Landover is small, and its characters and conflicts are more constant than I remembered. The subsequent books in the series introduce only a handful of new characters, but re-hash conflicts that were introduced in the first book. But in a way, this helps the world feel familiar and developed.
Landover is a fun, quick and lighthearted series, akin to Narnia or Lev Grossman's Magicians, but without the heavy morals of the former or the brooding grimness of the latter.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

Terry Brooks had a great idea: that someone could actually BUY a magic kingdom. I bought into this magic kingdom of Landover along with its new owner/king in volume 1, and enjoyed discovering the land and meeting its inhabitants. But by volume 2, Brooks' underestimation of his readers becomes seriously annoying. His prose becomes so repetitive one begins to feel like a dementia patient, constantly being reminded of who everyone and everything is. Dear author, we are only here reading BECAUSE we know the rest of the story, and we want to see what will happen next to these characters you have endeared to us. Please make the journey a little more interesting.

[Lonnie Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good series. Occasionally, the conflicts seemed too easily/quickly resolved, which sort of bothered me, but I enjoyed Terry Brook's way of melding a modern mind with the world of Fantasy. Worth a read.

[Sacha · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the story itself was really good. However, I felt as though he never really got more than surface deep. The story was simply told. I found it hard to really connect with the characters because of that.

[gary cullum · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am a major Terry Brooks fan. Everything he writes entertains me!

Continuing the story of Ben holiday is a winner! After reading the first book, you long to know how his life is going in handover! This book continues the wonderful story!

[Jen · Rating 3 out of 5]

Entertaining, but nothing too original here. I find the plots of each of the books in this series are pretty repetitive, although I do enjoy them.

[Anh · Rating 4 out of 5]

I definitely liked this book. It's much more better than the previous.

[Cynthia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cool series

[Daniel Zeak · Rating 4 out of 5]

I enjoyed both volumes......i have to poop

[Laurie]

It was a great book. I love how it continues on from volume 1 seamlessly.