r/shannara • u/raysweater • 18d ago

Does "First King of Shannara" spoil anything in the "Heritage of Shannara" series?

I was hoping to read it after the original trilogy

6 Upvotes

81% Upvoted

13 comments sorted by

4

u/ShawnSpeakman 18d ago

Yes, it absolutely spoils a major part of The Heritage of Shannara series.

3

u/ImLagging 18d ago

Everyone’s like, nope, nope, nope. Even I was going to say no. Then Shawn comes in and is like, yes, yes, very yes. If he’s saying yes, what am I forgetting? I was originally thinking his post was being sarcastic, then I noticed it was Shawn.

3

u/ShawnSpeakman 18d ago

First King outright shares exactly what the Black Elfstone does. In Heritage, it is a mystery until it is actually used -- and then really a mystery until it is used its final time. If a person reads First King first, it ruins that surprise in Heritage.

First King also spoils the power of the Sword. But since the OP has already read that, that part is okay. First King essentially spoils two different stories in one book. Better to read the two stories first and have First King be semi-spoiled.

2

u/ImLagging 18d ago

Ahh, I forgot that the black Elfstone was in First King. Thanks.

1

u/raysweater 17d ago

I was planning on reading it after the original trilogy

2

u/ShawnSpeakman 17d ago

Read The Scions of Shannara after The Wishsong of Shannara. Save First King of Shannara for after you finish The Talismans of Shannara. Those 8 books are all wonderful.

2

u/NanoDomini 17d ago

Somewhat. Publication order is the best.

1

u/raysweater 17d ago

I'm just so non-committal right now. I'm not sure if I'm going to dive too deep after the original trilogy. I guess I'll wait and decide after I finish Wishsong.

3

u/Gregalor 15d ago

Heritage is the best Shannara series. What Terry did with the setting after the original trilogy is faaaaar more interesting than First King IMO.

1

u/mydb100 18d ago

It kinda does, nothing big though

2

u/Octavien 18d ago

I think it makes plain some of the mysteries in the original trilogy and onward. Some characters may seem less enigmatic because of it and places less new and strange.

1

u/Redox_Raccoon 18d ago

No.

First King takes place before the first trilogy, heritage takes place after the trilogy

0

u/Elegant-Ad3300 18d ago

Spoil? No. Provide some background? Yes.