The Elves of Cintra is the second title in Terry Brooks' Genesis of Shannara series and picks up the story left off abruptly in Armageddon's Children, following the same three story lines. First is that of Knight of the Word Logan Tom. We see more of the grim post apocalyptic world as he travels with the Ghosts. While looking for the boy he now knows is the gypsy morph he was sent to protect, they come across an group of robotic drones set to protect abandoned trucks, add a half-lizard girl and her cat to their numbers and come up against a rogue Knight of the Word.

Running parallel to this is the story of another knight, Angel Perez, as she helps Kirisin and Simralin save their elven kin still in the Cintra who do not believe the Ellcrys is in trouble and consider all three murderers. As they race to find the Loden that will save them all, Simralin comes up against the demon who had hidden among the elves. At the same time, Angel faces the single-minded demon that has stalked her since before her mission to save the elves.

The third line is Hawk, the newly reawakened gypsy morph that is meant to save them all. After he and Tessa disappeared while being thrown from the compound wall in Armageddon's Children, he wakes in aa other-worldly garden. He is greeted by the King of the Silver River who helps him remember a little of his life before the ghosts. When he and Tessa return to Earth, they are miles away and find Cheney, Hawk's dog and protector, is also with them.

While I found much to like about The Elves of Cintra, I also had some disappointment. I like the parallels that can be seen with The Word and the Void series-- That Hawk has a canine protector, just as his Nest did, as well as the literal relationship between Hawk's and Nest's names. But as with Armageddon's Children, I think the story got off track often and dragged on at spots. Most notably were the glimpses at the pre-Ghosts life of secondary characters. While interesting, I felt they added noting to the overall plot and slowed the pace.

My Recommendation
While The Elves of Cintra shared many of the same problems as Armageddon's Children, the story moved faster than it did in the previous title and introduces a new character that has the potential to be interesting. I only hope the pace picks up in the next title in the Genesis of Shannara series (The Gypsy Morph)

The Elves of Cintra by Terry Brooks
Published by Del Rey
464 pages

The Elves of Cintra by Terry Brooks is available at Amazon.com

I reviewed The Elves of Cintra from my own personal library