The Gypsy Morph: Pre-Shannara: Genesis of Shannara, Book 3

What is the price of duty? How many sacrifices does it take? Those who inherit a new future will never know the price of it.

In looking over most of the reviews I find most people do not seem able to discriminate between a review and a precis and, unfortunately, they seem to prefer the precis. (Should be a slant over the e.) In a review , the reviewer presents his/her opinion of the book, good,. bad, or indifferent and tries to tell why he/she feels this way about the book. It is all a question of taste. If the reviewer is any good, he/she gives good reasons for reading, or skipping, the book. The only time the plot is discussed is to take examples of what the reviewer is talking about. Hence do not expect this review to tell you the plot, or even the theme, a broader picture.I started reading Terry Brooks I guess thirty years ago and thoughtShannara followed "Lord of the Rings" too closely to be classed original, although well written, all eight volumes, becoming more original with each successive volume. Then I quit reading. Years passed, I was told about Landover and started reading Brooks again. After the Princess, I quit again. A few weeks ago I stumbled into "Armageddon's Children." To be truthful I had trouble realizing I was reading Terry Brooks. I gobbled him up hastily and finally reached "The Gypsy Morph". I barely set down "The Elves of Cintra" when I had this book in my hands and was off to a fairyland again. one in which magic was a low ranking event but with a few exceptions. The Knights had barely enough magic to tackle their assignments; the books attractions lay in how their meager powers were used to attain their ends. Brooks has found himself in these problems, most other fantasies give their heroes lots of power but limit their source or create other difficulties such as learning new spells with time or experience. But Brooks still creates too many heroes, in "The Gypsy Morph" they coalesce from the preceding volumes and need to be reduced. This leads to tragedy, several of the heroes we may have become attached to are forced to vanish (Panther and Cat) or are put into remission and removed (Hawk, the Gypsy Morph) himself.Then one of the Knights falls in love, this love leads him to a renunciation of fellow humans to remain with his non-human lover, Logan Tom and Simralin. Then what happens to Angel Perez? And finally, Timrisin, is he homosexual or hetero? Will we find out? Where and when? The final book was still a good read.

I purchased this wonderful book from amazon,com for my kindle. I love my kindle and I love amazon.com. I have read this great book several times and enjoyed more the second time...I recommend you read this trilogy in sequence: Armaggedon's Children (genesis of Shanara Trilogy), The Elves of Cintra (Pre Shannara) and The Gypsy Morph (Pre Shannara).The Gypsy Morph pulls you into this drama from the very first page. It is a tapestry of carefully woven intrigue, high adventure, pure evil and pure love. It contains a sweet romance and one romance that is sweet, pure and tragic.There are several contingents working seperately to bring about one huge effort. One is guided by Angel Perez a Ward Of The Word and possessor of the Black Staff. She wields great magic and power with this staff and therefore is leader of one of the groups. Helen Rice is of great support to Angel. Logan Tom is another Ward Of The Word and is helping guide another group. Then you have Hawk who has been there from the beginning and while he is the "Father" of a group of children but is not much older that his Wards. He learns on this strange odyssey who he is and where he came from.Then you have at the beginning of this third part Will who is the last survivor in an underground millitary installation that houses missiles with warheads enough to destroy not only foriegn sites but parts of the United States. He tells his story that is heart breaking and final decision and how it effects this great movement of people and brings this story to a rather unexpected end.all the while these children and adults and other beings that morphed into creatures and half humans that never before existed. All these changes in atmosphere and the poisoning of the earth have come together for the complere obliteration of what we know as Earth. The mission of these leaders is to lead all these people and others to a safe haven where they will be protected until the Earth regenerates itself. This is a very good read and will keep you entertained for ma y an hour.i highly recommend this trilogy. Terrt Brooks never disappoints. He is one of the great authors.BookwormstcDorothy Dempsey

In “The Gypsy Morph” we continue the story of Logan Tom and Angel Perez, two knights of the word whose individual missions now overlap as they are tasked to protect the boy, Hawk – the Gypsy Morph – as he endeavors to guide the surviving members of the human, mutant and elven races to the promised sanctuary of his dreams, a place that will protect them through the ending of all life on earth.But both Knights of the word are recovering from injuries sustained by facing a relentless enemy. A ruthless killer is on the hunt. The last of the human cities has fallen, and a dejected rabble of mixed survivors seems scarcely able to look after themselves, let alone face a vast army of once men and demons.Yes, how can a new world begin if there’s no one left from the old? Juxtaposition reigns in the finale to the opening trilogy of the Shannara genesis.While I enjoyed this concluding chapter in what will become the Shannara legend, some might find it a little lackluster in comparison to the Elves of Cintra. Why? The storyline concentrates more on the personal voyage and inter-relationships of the main characters than high action. Even so, the plot managed to retain a sense of anticipation as things crawled toward an eventual climax.Me? I felt a little let down regarding the final confrontations with two unstoppable foes, the Klee, and the ultimate demon, Findo Gask. You’ll see what I mean.Apart from that, however, fans of Terry Brooks will find this a welcome read.

Spoiler Alert: After a worthwhile wait, I finally purchased the electric version. This is one of the better series the author has written. It is full of magic, adventure and the description of scenery is stunning. The ending was good, but feel there was huge scope for more and for what was left unsaid.There is a hitch featuring Trim and where Logan Tom sees him in the storyline. The third demon is discovered, but I cannot understand why the Elven King after being shot, and having received reports back from his trackers about the once men (who would be armed with guns), would go up against an army of them with 1000 of his hunters just armed with swords, bows and arrows....it did not make sense on the part of Brooks story telling and was total suicide!! The story would have been more fulfilling and interesting if Brooks would have allowed a surviving Elven army and its King to meet up with Helen and her people. Kirisin keeping the seeking blue elfstones again would have made the story more interesting than passing them off to his sister. Irritating once again that so many interesting characters including Larkin were eliminated by Brooks so early on in the Book. There is also no further word from Brooks on the elven tracker Eliasson and his group.This series has huge scope for more, so I hope Brooks revisits and fills in the gaps in regards to the Elves of Arborlon finding themselves in the valley and who is in succession for the Throne...Kirisin's parents? It would also be interesting to see the initial interaction of the races in their new valley and if Angel, Helen, Tom, Kirisin, Simralin and the Ghosts reunite at some point, and Hawk's return.

If you are a fan of the Shannara series of books then this is a must. The last of the 'Genesis' trilogy concludes the story of how the old world came to pass and the world of Shannara started.If you have never read any of the Shannara books then start with this trilogy and move on to the rest. Or even start with the 'Word and the Void' series which is also excellent and takes place prior to the Genesis trilogy but is not directly linked.Brooks weaves a great story and immerses the reader in the world he has created. At the height of the action you will have to remember to breath. This is not Tolkien, but it is the next best thing.

The last book of a trio of stories, in the middle of large series telling of an age of magic and adventure second to none. This author knows how to capture an unsuspecting reader and transport him or her into a great adventure that is unrelenting in its enjoyment and suspense, leaving them begging for more.

I started reading Terry Brooks books with The Shanara Chronicles. Enjoyed them all. So decided to start from the beginning. Enjoyed The Word and The void then moved on to this Genesis of Shanara. The best so far. An excellent write an exciting read. The Gypsy Morph the best of them all. Couldn't put it down for long. Now going on to Legends of Shanara. Keep it up Terry.