The Talismans of Shannara by Terry Brooks

This is the seventh book in this high fantasy series that is centered around several objects of power that are needed to fight evil. If that sounds a bit like The Lord of the Rings, then you're on the right track--the two are very similar, although the Shannara series definitely has a more modern feel. This particular book brings all of the previous stories together, and the characters realize their quests, learn much about themselves and strengths they didn't know they had, and accept the burdens that their special gifts place upon them. I love the stories despite the fact that Brooks can be a bit wordy, and spend paragraphs on the same inner struggles repeatedly, but that's something I didn't really notice until the last couple of books. In the Harry Potter series, I got a little tired of reading about when someones face was green, red or white, and someday I'm going to count how many times Harry vomits--it's got to be like twenty or something. But I still LOVE Harry Potter, and I love the Shanarra series to0--it's a world you can escape to when this one gets overwhelming!