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Magic Kingdom for Sale--Sold! |  | Author: Terry Brooks
Publisher: Del Rey
Category: eBooks
This item is no longer available
Rating:  154 reviews
Sales Rank: 17128
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Pages: 384
Number Of Items: 1
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.54
ASIN: B001O1O71W
Publication Date: December 18, 2008
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Product Description
After Ben Holiday purchased Landover, he discovered the magic kingdom had some problems. The Barons refused to recognize a king and the peasants were without hope. To make matters worse, Ben learned that he had to duel to the death with the Iron Mask, the terrible lord of the demons--a duel which no human could hope to win....
From the Paperback edition.
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| Customer Reviews:
Showing reviews 1-5 of 154
 Fun, lighthearted fantasy adventure July 21, 2010
Chris (Bountiful, UT United States)
Last fall, Princess of Landover was released...a new book in the Landover series after more than a decade. I had read the Landover books back in the 90s but had largely forgotten many details of the story, so I decided I may as well catch back up before reading the new book.
In Magic Kingdom For Sale -- Sold, we follow a meandering lawyer in his quest to find purpose in a life that has become dull and unfulfilling. On a whim, he responds to an advertisement selling the right to be king in a fantasy realm called Landover. He initially expects some sort of special effects or other technological wizardry but is shocked to quickly discover that this magical world is real and with it come all sorts of dangers and adventures.
Ben Holliday is officially king, but the kingdom is a mess, thanks largely to the neglect caused by the continual sale of kingship and the lack of successful kings doing the job. Although set up for failure in many ways, Ben decides to give it his all and actually try to succeed at the job that many before him had run away from.
The concept itself is intriguing and a lot of fun. It's the sort of fantasy I remember from my youth and wanted to experience...the idea that if you found the right path, took the right turn, or moved a certain rock, there would be a passageway to an amazing land where magic was real, fantastic creatures and races flourished and anything was possible. Instead of merely happening on the kingdom, the adventure is taken up a notch by making Ben king (even if his power is largely limited due to lack of political recognition in the land).
The writing is solid and I could really visualize a lot of what was going on. The characters are fun and well crafted, though sometimes not quite as three-dimensional as I would have liked. Ben himself is a good full character though I often found myself frustrated with his perceptions and doubts.
The plot is enjoyable and believable. We wander the land with Ben and his new found friends as they try to show citizens of Landover that he, Ben, is in fact king and he deserves to be recognized as such. All of the factions have natural doubts but slowly they set up specific conditions under which they'll recognize his authority. And those conditions set up a variety of fun adventures.
The fantasy action itself isn't anything terribly revolutionary or exciting in terms of the Fantasy genre. However, the intriguing characters, the well constructed plot tension, and the solid writing make this a worthwhile read.
One note that put me off a little bit because I had forgotten about it, is the fact that Ben Holliday swears. In Brooks's Shannara series, the language is very subdued. They have their own form of swearing (Shades) but generally the language is very "G" rated. Landover's language is still mild by comparison but would be "PG" rather than "G." While this did strike me as odd, it was realistic when considering that Ben is an American lawyer from the heart of Chicago in the 19080s.
I look forward to re-reading the series and getting back into the heart of Landover. Most people I talk to don't really consider the Landover series to be Brooks's best work. Many even shun then. While I agree that he has many books that are better, Magic Kingdom is well worth reading and is a lot of fun as long as you go into it not expecting some sprawling fantasy epic with deep reaching effect.
***
3 out of 5 stars
Much better than I expected! June 29, 2010
Ms Miller
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I'm not usually into Terry Brook's books. I read one of the Shannara books, and it seemed like a shortened version of "Lord of the Rings" - in order to find this magic object we have to walk through a dangerous forest, make our way under a mountain where we'll face supernatural enemies and so on. This book isn't like that at all. The main character is a quite normal person who's frustrated with his life and sees an ad for a Magic Kingdom for sale. He assumes that it's a joke, it has to be, but he still can't stop thinking about it. And, eventually, he finds himself the new King of Landover. In trying to deal with this new world of his, he has great help of a clumsy wizard and a talking dog... The book is funny and takes some unexpected turns, and I really enjoyed reading it.
 Recommended for teens in the mid to late 80's March 2, 2010
B. Edwards
I pretty much read any fantasy I could get my hands on when this book came out in the late 80's, but never picked this title up for some reason. I did read Sword of Shannara back then however. Read everything from the Conan series, to LOTR (multiple times), Piers Anthony (gah! I don't even LIKE puns!), Dragonlance, etc et al.
Just now reading this as a 30 something, and it's truly forgettable if not downright bad. Definitely fantasy pulp, which was fine when I was 13, but don't have as much patience/tolerance for poor writing these days.
The concept is pretty good, to be fair. So points for originality here, but the writing, oh god the writing. There were some instances where I was literally cringing as I read, it was so bad, unbelievable (not "dragons don't exist!" unbelievable, but "they would NEVER say/do that!" unbelievable) or just inconsistent enough to pull me out of the world.
The world was interesting enough, but with characters so tired and cliched now (maybe not as much when this was written) that the stereotypes of good and evil were just plain boring.
Muuuuch better fantasy out there than this if you are just now getting around to it.
Mediocre at best December 27, 2009
Dharma
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I had heard Terry Brooks was an excellent writer. I did not find that to be the case with this book. The story itself was somewhat interesting; the writing, however, was sorely lacking. Brooks used the same predictable vocabulary throughout. He seems to have a particular fondness for the word "trailer," which made me want to spork my eyes out.
A good target age would be 12..... November 30, 2009
Rod M. Holland (Colorado)
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
I remember reading the Shannara series when it first came out in the late 70's and early 80's (when I was still a teen and early 20's) and thought it was pretty cool. I think this is my first return to Terry Brooks since that time. I was disappointed in this series. I've been through the first two books so far and I'm not really taken with it. As a comparison, the Harry Potter series has a much larger plot arc, more sophistication and yet still manages to function at an enjoyable level for a 10-12 year old.
Pros: Clean, your 12 year old can read this. Good premise, good starting idea for a series. Short and clear cut, problem and solution-not a huge plot that goes on forever.
Cons: Short-not a great plot arc throughout the series. The characters are inconsistent. The hero is brilliant, yet inconceivably dumb when it fits the plot. The characters take improbable actions based on their previous experiences in the book. The twists in the plot are more like slight bends.
Best reason to read this book: You like fantasy and want something with a clear cut plot that doesn't swerve from expectations....just like the stories you used to read when you were 12.
Showing reviews 1-5 of 154
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