Where to Start with Terry Brooks
- Best entry point → Armageddon's Children
- Best standalone → Street Freaks
- Start The Original Shannara Trilogy series → First King of Shannara
- What fans keep coming back to → The Sword of Shannara
- Best narrator for Terry Brooks → The Elfstones of Shannara
- Highest rated by listeners → The Wishsong of Shannara (The Original Shannara Trilogy #3)
-
The Elfstones of Shannara
The Original Shannara Trilogy • Book 2
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick
★ 4.29 ABR Score (75.6K ratings)★ 3.99 Goodreads (74.2K) ★ 4.77 Audible (1.4K)23h 8m listening time • Released 2015Scott Brick's gravelly intensity transforms this epic quest into something genuinely haunting—he makes every demon encounter feel like a creeping dread rather than just another fantasy battle.
-
The Wishsong of Shannara
The Original Shannara Trilogy • Book 3
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick
★ 4.17 ABR Score (59.6K ratings)★ 3.99 Goodreads (55.7K) ★ 4.56 Audible (3.9K)20h 38m listening time • Released 2004Scott Brick's performance elevates this epic fantasy conclusion with his gift for shifting between intimate character moments and sweeping, ominous set pieces. Twenty-plus hours of immersive worldbuilding that justifies the runtime.
-
Armageddon's Children
Genesis of Shannara • Book 1
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Dick Hill
★ 4.16 ABR Score (17.8K ratings)★ 4.12 Goodreads (17.6K) ★ 4.74 Audible (218)13h 33m listening time • Released 2022Dick Hill's gravelly delivery transforms this post-apocalyptic struggle into something visceral and immediate—Brooks builds dread masterfully, and the narration makes you feel every character's desperation.
-
First King of Shannara
The Original Shannara Trilogy
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick
★ 4.13 ABR Score (34.2K ratings)★ 3.98 Goodreads (31.6K) ★ 4.56 Audible (2.7K)19h 15m listening time • Released 2004Scott Brick transforms this origin story into something grander than the rest of the trilogy—his voice carries the weight of an aging wizard trying to forge hope from desperation, making every alliance feel like it matters.
-
Jarka Ruus
High Druid of Shannara • Book 1
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick
★ 4.05 ABR Score (16.0K ratings)★ 3.98 Goodreads (14.9K) ★ 4.51 Audible (1.1K)12h 18m listening time • Released 2003Scott Brick's measured, commanding voice anchors Brooks' sprawling fantasy epic, making a 12-hour journey through political intrigue and magical conspiracies feel inevitable rather than indulgent.
-
Small Magic: Short Fiction, 1977-2020
list
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick, Mark Deakins, John Lee, Kristen Sieh
★ 3.99 ABR Score (880 ratings)★ 4.22 Goodreads (681) ★ 4.59 Audible (199)15h 57m listening time • Released 2021Multiple narrators keep these 40+ years of Brooks' shorter tales feeling fresh, each voice perfectly matching the story's tone and world. If you've loved his Shannara or Magic Kingdom series, these character deep-dives and forgotten corners of his universes will hit different.
-
The Sword of Shannara
The Original Shannara Trilogy • Book 1
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Scott Brick
★ 3.92 ABR Score (102.4K ratings)★ 3.77 Goodreads (102.0K) ★ 4.42 Audible (407)27h 30m listening time • Released 2012Scott Brick's steady, commanding narration transforms Brooks' foundational fantasy epic into something genuinely immersive—perfect if you want to understand where modern heroic fantasy actually began.
-
Unfettered III: New Tales
The Chathrand Voyage #Thasha's cure for cabin fever • Book 3
by Shawn Speakman, Tad Williams, Naomi Novik, Megan Lindholm, John Gwynne, David Anthony Durham, Callie Bates, Jason Denzel, Carrie Vaughn, Deborah A. Wolf, Anna Stephens, Patrick Swenson, Ramon Terrell, Peter Orullian, Terry Brooks, Lev Grossman, Seanan McGuire, Delilah S. Dawson, Mark Lawrence, Brian Herbert, Kevin J. Anderson, Brandon Sanderson, Robert Jordan, Todd Lockwood, Cat Rambo, Robert V.S. Redick, Ken Scholes, Scott Sigler, Anna Smith Spark, Marc Turner
Narrated by Khristine Hvam, Natasha Soudek, Mark Bramhall, Michael Page, Vikas Adam, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Andrew Wincott, Luke Daniels, Brian Nishii
★ 3.85 ABR Score (779 ratings)★ 3.98 Goodreads (571) ★ 4.37 Audible (208)27h 36m listening time • Released 2019 -
Unfettered II: New Tales
Gunnie Rose #0.0 - The Gunnie
by Shawn Speakman, Naomi Novik, Brandon Sanderson, Jim Butcher, Charlaine Harris, Michael J. Sullivan, Janny Wurts, Bradley P. Beaulieu, Mark Lawrence, Seanan McGuire, Peter Orullian, Aidan Moher, Erin Lindsey, John A. Pitts, Anthony Ryan, Scott Sigler, Django Wexler, Rachel Caine, Sarah Beth Durst, David Farland, Terry Brooks
Narrated by Sarah Coomes, Michael Kramer, Emily Woo Zeller, Nick Podehl, Erin Mallon, Tim Gerard Reynolds
★ 3.78 ABR Score (1.5K ratings)★ 3.92 Goodreads (1.1K) ★ 4.25 Audible (340)20h 17m listening time • Released 2017 -
Unbound
Annwn Cycle #The Dead's Revenant • Book 1
by Shawn Speakman, Terry Brooks, Seanan McGuire, Mark Lawrence, Anthony Ryan, Tim Marquitz, Brian Staveley, Michael J. Sullivan, John Marco, Peter Orullian, Kat Richardson, Sam Sykes, Kristen Britain, Mazarkis Williams, Jim Butcher, Rachel Caine, Harry Connolly, Delilah S. Dawson, David Anthony Durham, Jason M. Hough, Mary Robinette Kowal, Joe Abercrombie
Narrated by Dick Hill, Tim Gerard Reynolds, Nick Podehl, Allyson Johnson, Christian Rodska, Emily Bauer
★ 3.74 ABR Score (1.3K ratings)★ 3.96 Goodreads (1.0K) ★ 4.13 Audible (246)20h 55m listening time • Released 2016A star-studded anthology where twenty-three fantasy masters tell exactly the stories they want, each perfectly matched to a narrator who elevates the prose—Dick Hill's gravitas, Tim Gerard Reynolds' intensity—making this feel less like a collection and more like a curated experience.
-
Legends II: Volume II
Legends II • Book 2
by Diana Gabaldon, Terry Brooks
Narrated by Simon Prebble, Charles Keating
★ 3.71 ABR Score (277 ratings)★ 4.15 Audible (277)5h 15m listening time • Released 2004 -
Street Freaks
by Terry Brooks
Narrated by Simon Vance
★ 3.63 ABR Score (2.1K ratings)★ 3.59 Goodreads (1.4K) ★ 4.15 Audible (724)11h 36m listening time • Released 2018Simon Vance transforms Brooks' sci-fi debut into a propulsive thriller—his sharp voice work cuts through the neon-soaked chaos of the Red Zone and makes every revelation land harder than on the page.
Browse Related Lists
How We Rank Audiobooks
Rankings are driven by listener ratings and review counts from Audible and Goodreads. Books with high ratings across a large number of listeners rank higher — a 4.5 with 50,000 ratings says more than a 4.8 with 200.
Unlike most book lists, we weight audiobook-specific factors: narrator performance, production quality, and how well a story translates to audio. A great book with a poor narration isn't a great audiobook.
We don't accept paid placements or prioritize new releases. These rankings reflect what listeners actually enjoy, not what's being promoted.
Rankings update periodically as new ratings come in and new titles are added to the collection.