First King of Shannara
core novel 1996 Shannara
Record
| First published | 1996 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 3.99 (31,797 ratings, collected 2026-09-12) |
| First-edition ISBN | 0-345-39652-9 |
| First-edition date | 1996-03 |
| Internal chronology | 9 |
Synopsis
Set generations before the original trilogy, in the aftermath of the First War of the Races, this prequel finds most of the Druids at Paranor having abandoned magic in favor of science. Brona, the sorcerer who will become the Warlock Lord, has secretly survived that earlier conflict and returns with renewed strength, commanding armies of Trolls and Gnomes and unearthly spirits to wage a new war on the Races. Bremen, an outcast Druid who never gave up forbidden magic, becomes the center of the resistance, joined by the Elven king Jerle Shannara, the Druid Tay Trefenwyd, the empathic apprentice Mareth, the warrior Risca, and the companion Kinson Ravenlock.
Where it sits
- Universe: Shannara
- Series: not part of a registered series (standalone work within its universe)
- Author: Terry Brooks
Notes
- Standalone prequel to the Original Trilogy; depicts the Druid Order's origin and Allanon's ancestor Bremen.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings and are never conflated: a book's place in one says nothing about its place in the other.
- Publication order, within Shannara (standalone work): position 8 of 34: previous The Talismans of Shannara (1993) · next Running with the Demon (1997)
- Internal chronology, within Shannara: position 9 of 32: previous The Measure of the Magic (2011) · next The Sword of Shannara (1977)
Sources
- Terry Brooks official site
- https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_King_of_Shannara
- https://www.isfdb.org
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