Brandon Mull ups the stakes in this third installment of the Fablehaven series. Things are looking bad for Fablehaven. The artifact protected there is gone and all over the world secret refuges for magical creatures are collapsing in disarray.

Grip of the Shadow Plague picks up right where Rise of the Evening Star, book two, left off. After defeating one enemy and unveiling a traitor, Kendra and Seth plunge into the international world of magic. As Kendra travels to another refuge to locate an artifact of incredible strength, Seth faces another attack at Fablehaven. The creatures there are turning, not falling into evil like the fairies previously but actually turning into shadow - evolving into powerful and more threatening forms never seen before. Even those creatures known to be resistant to falling are changing and infecting those around them.

This is by no means a capstone to Mull’s series, but a continuation of the adventures of Seth and Kendra that lives up to the high standards he set with his first two books. Brandon Mull takes it up another notch with this one. Seth and Kendra face decisions that have no clear cut answer, carrying more weight and responsibility than before. There is a sense of growth and maturity in both characters, of the two of them coming into their own in regards to their talents and abilities. This is one aspect I truly enjoy about these stories. Seth and Kendra are not static characters, but are growing and developing as people.

Mull’s gifts as an author are obvious as he develops this story, carrying the tale forwards as he both widens the scope of the magical world and fills in back story that satisfies our curiosity and piques our interest. Once again Mull highlights doing the right thing, but for both Kendra and Seth the right thing isn’t so obvious anymore. Much like real life, issues are no longer clearly marked black and white and the repercussions for making a wrong move are devastating.

This is a book for young readers, but it will do more for them than just entertain. They will be encouraged to think and examine the situations, challenge them to agree or disagree with what the characters choose. Well-crafted, there are no weak points or shaky aspects to this book. From cover to cover, readers will fall into the world of Fablehaven and never want to leave.

There were high hopes, hell people were looking to take a ride back to their childhood (tweenhood?) where we could see one of our favorite fantasy books come to life on the screen. My first thought was, this would have been real cool as a live action movie, but I sure do love cartoons as well, so no hopes were dashed…yet.

The Good, the Bad, and the ugly CGI.

There really was a lot of good in this movie. I have heard of lot of comments based on the trailers and how people did not like the animation, but I thought the animation was real good. Yes it has a nostalgia feel to it (ala the Hobbit), but isn’t that the audience it is intended for? Regardless of the intended audience, the animated versions of some of my favorite characters are all well done and I enjoyed watching them.

The voice acting was also top notch with Michael Rosenbaum as Tanis, Kiefer Sutherland as Raistlin, Lucy Lawless as Goldmoon, and star filled for the rest of the cast as well. The only iffy one was Jason Marsden as Tasslehoff, not that Jason was a bad voice actor, its just his voice just did not work for me as Tasslehoff.

Another positive was the fact that the script kept true to the storyline. For the die hard fans this is very important and I feel that in many movies things that a fan would find integral to the story are often left out or glossed over. Now, they can not put everything from a few hundred page book into less then two hours, but they did a damn good job.

Then...

There was a decision to make the dragons and draconians CGI (Computer Generated), and this is where the problems begin. To sum it up, they just do not fit in with the animated work. It is like you are watching two different movies that fell on the cutting floor one on top of the other. The other issue is during the battle scenes the CGI and animated characters interaction is “off”. Animation gets lost behind CGI, swords plunge through CGI characters from further away then they should. A scene that describes it all is when we see what are supposed to be monks on the road by Solace, well the monk robes are CGI, so guess what is under them? A spoiled moment for the audience. Reading some interviews, it seemed that Weis and Hickman thought the 3D would make it more exciting...no...it did not.

Another overall issue I had with the transition from the word to the animated were the little enjoyable nuances of the characters that gave them personality in the book. They are overdone in the movie, ruining that aspect of the characters. A few particulars that I will point out are Raistlin’s coughing from his time at the tower, the way Caramon reacts to Tika when they come back to Solace, and Flint being afraid of the water during the escape. These are all very subtle in the book and in the movie are taken to the extreme and therefore look rather silly. I also thought the violence was a tad bit overdone (people hanging from trees during Solace attack), but maybe I am just nit picking now.

Overall, cut out the CGI, tone down the quirks and we have a great animated movie. Problem is I do not see this happening for the next part of this classic saga turned animated movie. It is like the pearl still stuck in the oyster, pretty surrounded by ugly. Fans of the series would be better served by the Graphic Novels that Devil's Due put out, and people unfamiliar should read the books, they are classics.

From the back cover of the paperback book (blurb) -

Now the people know that the dragon minions of Takhisis, Queen of Darkness, have returned. But the races have long been divided by hatred and prejudice. It seems the battle has been lost before it begins.

The companions are separated, torn apart by war. A full season will pass before they meet again—if they meet again.

It is always a pleasant surprise to find out that book that you loved, got turned into a graphic novel. That said though, visiting a world that you know and love in graphic form, it has to live up to some healthy expectations for the reader. Devils Due and their team brought it to life, and everyone should be very pleased by their work. Dragons of Winter Night, has the dark feel one would think it should and it comes across in the artwork and layout.

I thought the artwork was beautiful, and where it really seemed to shine was in the outdoor scenes and the artwork of the dragons. The characters were also depicted well for my personal tastes, whether or not they live up to what you envisioned them to be is something you have to look at for yourself. My favorite representation though was Kitiara, you can feel the evil bubbling below the surface, in her facial expressions. I always thought she was a great anti-hero to the group, and I can feel that in the artwork. I also enjoyed the depiction of Fizban as well; the humor of the character still shines through in the drawings. Overall the artwork had pretty big shoes to fill, if you go by the covers of the books done by Larry Elmore, and I think for the medium (a graphic novel can not be of the level of a single piece of canvas) the team of Kurth, Ruffino, Narvasa, Bradley, Rauch and Crowley, did an excellent job. They put together the perfect graphical companion to Weis and Hickman’s novel.

The adaptation by Andrew Dabb stayed pretty faithful and the overall feel and storyline stayed where they needed to be due to the restraints of the graphic novel medium. I personally find the graphic novel to be a nice companion to the book, but it still needs to stand on its own if one has not read the book. It worked for me on both of these levels as I had read this sometime in the 1980’s I believe. It does not hold the same weight as the book, but I do not believe it is supposed to. There is no way they can include everything and I found it to be a fun visualization after reading the books. Even if you are not familiar with the books though it is still very enjoyable just not of the same level I believe as someone that has read the books.

DDP always brings us something new for the fantasy crowd looking to dip their toes in the graphic novel and comic market. I think once you feel the temperature you will want to dive right in. Dragons of Winter Night, the graphic novel, is a great piece to own; visually telling what I consider a classic story in the fantasy book market

As many fanboi will complain, Salvatore’s last few Drizzt books lost a step here or there. The story needed to move on though and sometimes that takes a few books. Here we have the culmination of those efforts in “The Orc King” with a new and exciting chapter in the life of our favorite dark elf, Drizzt.

Salvatore gives a glance at the future in the prologue and epilogue of the books. On one hand, maybe these peeks into the future give us too much information by allowing us to see who lives and who may die. On the other hand, I have been told that allowing us to see the ending allows us to focus on the story more. I personally disagree with the second statement and would have liked to see both the prologue and epilogue removed from the book to allow me more of an element of surprise. Regardless of this, Drizzt and his friends/enemies are back and the story they have to show us is magnificent and action packed. Salvatore is doing what he does best: action, sword fighting, and battle description. He brings you so close you can smell the blood and sweat and taste the dust. Salvatore can plop you in the middle of a raging battle you are brought in with a magnifying glass without ever losing the whole picture.

The setting this time focuses on the Spine of the World (Forgotten Realms). Bruenor is looking to hold on to his kingdom while King Obould Many-Arrows is trying to build a kingdom where the orc tribes can unite. Along the way, Bruenor is searching for Gauntlgrym, which is pretty much the dwarven version of Atlantis. The Forgotten Realms is as richly detailed in Salvatore’s hand as we have come to know; with the world changing events that take place and look to be coming, it is a great read.

The characters in the Orc King are some that we have loved for over 20 years, and Drizzt, Bruenor, Cattie-brie, Wulfgar, Regis and the rest of the gang show up in this corner of The Forgotten Realms for a wonderful romp in the Realm. Salvatore brings us a bunch of new secondary characters to flesh out the cast and move the story forward. For me there were two characters though that were not on the top of my list, one which will sure bring boos from a few of you. Minor Spoiler if you have not read previous books- Wulfgar should have stayed dead. He is on my list of I do not really like his current story, hopefully it goes somewhere when he finds his destination. Also, there is a lich wizard named Jack who is pulling the strings of a secret rogue clan of orcs, like the Wizard of Oz. He seems like an afterthought to push the story, nothing more at this point. I was a huge fan of the Orc/Ogre clan as they worked into the story well, giving our anti hero (or hero?) Obould some needed conflict outside of Mithral Hall.

Salvatore’s writing style stays true to previous books, with his weaving of battle scenes and fast paced action, like Elminster casting a spell. This is not a complex book, but it does not need to be as it is very action driven with a group of characters we are all very familiar with. Drizzt’s inner musings are always well written and give us even more depth to one of the most well known characters in the Wizards of the Coast franchise.

The Spellplague pokes its head up in the prologue and epilogue which are set 100 years in the future. This is a world changing event and we are given an appetizer, but we are all waiting for the full meal where we get this whole story, either in the form of a book or when the 4th Edition Rules come out. It is nice when an author gets to introduce some world changing events like the Orc Kingdom and then the Spellplague. We also get to see the beginning of the way that Salvatore addresses Cattie-brie’s injury and her new role in the group (which seems like it will only grow, and may solve an early death problem we are all worried about) and I loved it! The intriguing find in Gauntlgrym will lead to another twist in the story in the future I am sure. Salvatore steps up his game and his fans will be happy for it.

In the far future on Earth, now known as the "Damned World", humanity is all but extinct and twelve races contend with one another for survival amongst the remnants of human habitation: creatures resembling cyclopes, vampires, trolls, orcs, satyrs and others out of myth and legend.

Driven by various causes, members of the different races seek to destroy their ancient enemies, bring peace to the world at last or simply cement their own positions of power. Meanwhile, the mysterious Overseer and his Travelers remain in the background, looming invisibly over the struggles taking place on the Damned World.

Having just finished Darkness of the Light, I'm of mixed opinions on it. David certainly has a good eye for description and dialogue in particular as well as the occasional bit of humor (a scene near the end had me laugh out loud, for example).

However, the various races that play prominent roles in the book including the Trulls, Sirenes, Firedraques and Ocular feel rather anthropomorphized in David's depiction of them. While he does take some pains to differentiate the races from one another (e.g. the Ocular are Cyclopean creatures with one eye), they never really seem "non-human" in the way they speak or act.

In addition, attempting to depict so many diverse character's storylines ends up with at least one of them feeling rather pointless in the end (Merrih, the niece of the Ocular king). I never really felt like I got into any of the characters, since we're given so little time with most of them before the chapter ends and we move on to another storyline. The relationship between Jepp and Karsen feels a bit forced because of this, in particular.

In the end: Darkness of the Light has some good ideas, but uneven execution.

The Forgotten Realms is the most well known shared world in Fantasy and we get to talk about one of the most secretive areas of the Realms by venturing into Thay for this story. I am really happy to be able to step back in to somewhere I find familiar and intriguing at the same time, as the Forgotten Realms has been a reading home of mine for some time now. The Realms have an abundance of history, and while Thay is referenced time and time again, it is nice to fully visit this area and take a look at the inner working of betrayal and politics that are so common place. Why do they all wear red robes again though, can someone answer this question for me?

Byers gives us a few storylines at the beginning of the book, but the overall theme we have is Szass Tam and his overall plans to take over Thay and then all of the Forgotten Realms. By the end of the book, we see some of the story lines intersect and we know that all of the players introduced are part of a larger game. Bareris the bard, and his love interest, Tammith, give us our required save the damsel part of the story with a nice, interesting twist. Tammith's story is far from over, and even though her part played in book one was small, I believe she is part of the greater story. We have Aoth, who is a battle mage griffon rider. That seems a little out of place in the backstabbing politics being played, but she does give the reader an insight into the army fighting the undead from the Thay standpoint. We then have all the Zulkirs and Burning Braziers - with Milsantos and Nymia (Tharchions) commanding the army - trying to fight the undead menace. There is some nice interaction from some of the background characters, including Samas Kul; who is Master of the Guild of Foreign Trade, Iphegor Nath; High Flamelord of the Church of Kossuth; and others. Back to Szass Tam, this lich is a force to be reckoned with as master of magic. Though, we hear from others who are too awestruck to even make moves against the Zulkir of Necromancy. "I'm a Red Wizard of Illusion, and I have no idea how one would go about managing that." Okay, so if people who have a lifetime of study in an area of magic are in awe of the power of Szass Tam when performing magic that isn’t in his sphere of magic, we have a villain that is no push over. Don't worry about all these characters, at the end of the story there is a list of people under the title Personages of Thay. This really helps you keep track of everyone and the part they play in Thay, and I am very glad it was included.

Ah…one of the greatest things about a shared world, cross referencing - also one of the worst. The dilemma is that you have tons of back history and other plots and going ons in the world at large. This makes you feel you are in a breathing world that you know a lot about and isn’t just about one set of people pigeon holed in a world building exercise where you meet less then .01 percent of the population. The bad part as an author must be to integrate this in a way that if the user didn’t read one of those previous series you know what is going on. Byers does this in his referring the Rage of Dragons, "The Great Rage of Dragons two years ago was but one manifestation of a sort of universal ferment likely to continue for a while." I have read the Rage of Dragons and the reference is known to me, but even if not you still get the general meaning. It is also cross promotional as maybe you will now want to read more about what is going on in the world. A fine balance is necessary and Byers does that well.

Another strong point in the beginning to this series is the betrayal and political machinations that are going on as everyone tries to scramble for more power, as well as trying to stay alive. Thay always seemed to be teetering on some sort of political see saw where it could all implode upon itself or take over the rest of the realm at the same time, and this story line is no different. I like Thay as there is such an uneasy balance of power, not unlike the Drow, except that because of the human lifespan things seem to happen more often in Thay.

I am a huge fan of stories where magic is abundant, magic weapons, the supernatural around every corner, and large scale battles where wizards, priest, and warriors all play a big part of the strategy of the battle. From battle mages flying griffons to demons a lich commanding an undead army, you have it all: necromancers, gnolls, orcs and bards also included in the package. The Forgotten Realms is a true Monty Haul campaign and I enjoy every minute of it.

The Forgotten Realms have seemed to grow up recently by introducing more and more mature stories for the seasoned speculative fiction reader. This publisher does not only cater to the YA crowd or novice fantasy reader anymore. Byers writing is well formed and I enjoyed the flow of the story with only a few lines that seemed forced from the characters. A very strong start to "The Haunted Lands" and I am very eager to read more and how this touches the world at large. Richard Lee Byers should be well known to anyone who frequents "The Realms" and his writing is placing him in the top echelon of writers that Wizards of the Coast enjoys. You can feel safe in placing him in the same category as Salvatore and Kemp when we talk about fast paced, magic infused, sword and sorcery fantasy.

This was one of those reviews where I had a hard time keeping the spoilers out of the review and I think that is a good thing.

Brief Telling of the Tale:

The conclusion of The Hunter's Blade Trilogy picks up where The Lone Drow (the second installment) left off: the dwarves are attempting to thwart an orc advance and Drizzt is out in the wilderness causing havoc amongst the enemy's ranks.

The Battlehammer dwarves have been “closed in” to their home – Mithril Hall. Fortunately for them though, they have underground tunnels leading to neighboring lands that the orcs have yet to locate. Clan Battlehamer was able to send scouts to Citadel Felbarr, and after informing them of the situation, the Felbarran dwarves agreed to send their army to Mithril Hall's aid. However, there were two entities that would make this joining difficult: a river and orcs.

Drizzt – behind enemy lines – continues his assault on the orcs of the region while attempting to rescue Sunset – a Pegasus friend. He came close to rescuing her, but Obould, king of the orc army, foiled his plans with a trap. That turned out to be their first showdown, but by far not the last.

Becoming more trouble than she was worth, King Obould gave the frost giant leader, Gerti, the Pegasus. Consequently, Drizzt's path lead away from the battle against Mithril Hall and turned towards the frost giants' home that lay deep in the Spine of the World. Oddly enough, that journey led to an “understanding” between Gerti and Drizzt that would lead to the freeing of Sunset and another skirmish with Obould.

While out on a scouting session, Drizzt comes across the Bouldershoulder brothers, Ivan and Pikel, who notify Drizzt that his friends are still alive. Rather than practicing haste by going to his friends, Drizzt decides that he cannot pass up an opportunity to end this threat by defeating Obould. He carefully places himself in the proper position for the encounter, but unlike previous instances, this is on his terms.

Personal Thoughts:

Well, I sit here contemplating what to write in regards to the supposed conclusion of a series that I had been eagerly awaiting to complete for nearly three years. The anticipation while foraging through Drizzt's previous tales continued to grow as I got closer and closer. I still remember walking past B. Daltons at Arrowhead Mall in Glendale, Arizona and catching a glimpse of a new release, The Thousand Orcs. I was so excited to get home and start reading it. Though, fifty pages in, I discovered that there were many books prior to this. So, like I have recommended to others already, I decided to start from the beginning and purchased Homeland.

That is where my journey began. Unfortunately, looking back on it all, I do not feel a sense of completion but rather an aching feeling of loss. I truly felt that the first piece of the Hunter's Blade Trilogy was going to revive the series back to a state of fascination that it revealed with The Dark Elf Trilogy. But as I completed The Lone Drow, I was not so sure and my mind started contemplating how the The Two Swords could conclude the story that had taken the twists that it had. Since finishing it, I see that the tale did not end at all.

There were several scenes that readers had to be expecting. The biggest of which was Drizzt finding out that his friends had not fallen at Shallows. This was a concept that had been played continuously throughout this book, and I had goosebumps anticipating that meeting. Another was the inevitable battle between Obould and Drizzt. I felt that this book and its predecessor were primarily geared towards these two events, but when they happened, they were of no great consequence. That sense of jubilation I was expecting when Drizzt found out that his best friends were alive and awaiting his return, died. The expectation of a momentous battle between Gruumsh enhanced King Obould Many-Arrows and Drizzt Do'Urden was lost in a skirmish that lasted but a few moments. I expected at least one of these moments to bring fulfillment, but I ended up sulking to the anticlimactic tune.

When I see “trilogy” attached to a series, I feel that it is a safe bet to expect three books to complete a particular storyline. A perfect example is The Lord of the Rings. The evil was revealed to us, they determined how to vanquish the evil, and then they took care of business. Well, Mr. Salvatore decided to recreate that mold and finish this trilogy right in the middle. It irked me a little at first, but now that I have had time to reflect, I am glad that he did not finish it. I would have been more perturbed if he just threw in an ending to finish it; there is a lot left to be completed to bring finality to this tale.

Disregarding the aforementioned letdowns, I did still enjoy reading the book. I have really come to admire the morality of the dwarfs. Plus, I do enjoy reading about the other main characters – Bruener, Cattie-Brie, Regis, and Wulfgar. In the mean time, I will be awaiting the next book in hope that it will aspire to be like Sprite and quench my thirst.

-Patrick Bergeron II

Brief Telling of the Tale:

The story starts off by accompanying a small group of dwarves, led by Tred McKnuckles, who are attempting to beat another group of dwarves to a city where they are planning on selling their wares. Unfortunately for them, though, a band of orcs and frost giants have other ideas. The band ends up ambushing the dwarves and kill all but two, Tred and Nikwilling, who escape. They would learn later how great their folly was in letting them flee.

King Obould Many-Arrows, an orc, and Gerti Orelsdottr, a frost giant, are introduced to readers as villains who are rulers over their respective races. These two form an alliance to bring their forces together to not only wreak havoc, but in an attempt to control the north lands. While these two races have never gotten along, King Obould and Gerti are smart enough to see that an alliance would be beneficial to both, but the original thought was neither their own.

Drizzt and the gang – Bruener, Cattie-Brie, Regis, and Wulfgar – are hit with the news that Bruener's relative King Gandalug – who was saved from the clutches of evil Matron Baenre by Drizzt and friends in an earlier book – has passed away. Now that Bruener is once again the king of Mithril Hall, it is time for him to leave Ten-Towns so he can lead his people. On the way to Mithril Hall, Bruener decides to stop by Mirabar – a dwarf and human city that competes with Mithril Hall through items made of ore – and pay a visit to the dwarves there. His visit becomes a catalyst for the darkest days in Mirabar's history.

Tred and Nikwillig stumble across Bruener on his way to Mithril Hall and tell him how their wagon was ambushed. They could not sit idly bye knowing that retchid creatures were roaming the mountainside in pursuit of victims. Bruener sends most of his party that accompanied him from Ten-Towns continuing on to Mithrill Hall and took some of his best warriors which, of course, included his four closest friends to go in search of the ravenous beasts.

They were able to find and dispose of some in good time, but they found many more small bands as they made there way from town to town to give warning of the possible threats lurking at their doorsteps. They come upon Shallows – one of the larger settlements south of Mithril Hall – and decide to stay with them for a few days. What they did not know was that orc scouts had been monitoring their movements.

With the knowledge that King Bruener, a despised figure to the odious races of the region, had trapped himself within the walls of Shallows, King Obould and Gerti launched an assault on the town. King Obould's orc army amounted to over a thousand, and despite being greatly outnumbered, the Town of Shallows, aided by its recent visitors, was able to stymie the offensive for a few days. Most of the fighting to that point had been protecting the walls and entrances, a style of fighting that is not suited for a dark elf. Drizzt had therefore gone over the walls in an attempt to cause damage behind enemy lines.

In Drizzt's attempt to thwart the frost giants persistent barrage of boulders on Shallows, he ends up being chased into a cavern too small for the giants to follow. Not liking that, they blocked the entrance with large rocks. It takes Drizzt nearly two days to find his way out of the cave and back in sight of the town. The first image he sees is that of a man wearing a one horned helm fall to his certain death out of the tower that distinguishes Shallows.

When it appeared that the orc force was about to overwhelm the remaining defenders of Shallows, a wooden replica of Gruumsh – the god of the orcs – came waltzing into the battlefield. It appeared to be on the side of the attackers, but deception always plays a vital role in the art of war.

Personal Thoughts:

In a shade under two decades, Drizzt Do'Urden has become one of the most popular fantasy characters of all time. Be that through heavy promotion or the public's lack of knowledge of what truly is out there, it is hard to say. Either way, Salvatore persists on feeding the cult following that has embedded itself into Drizzt's piwafwi, and I for one am glad that he continues to do so.

For starters, The Thousand Orcs is a book best read after one has conquered the previous fourteen installments. There is a lot that is based on prior events and relationships that is necessary to know when delving into this book. While I would not consider it to be impossible to pick up this book and follow along, I do not think that the reader would enjoy the story as much or appreciate where the characters are in their lives.

As anyone who has read Salvatore would expect, there were a lot of fighting scenes. In past instances I felt that he just threw in fights from time-to-time because he had not had one in a while. However, I did not feel that any of the fights were misplaced or unwarranted. Well, there was one fight that did not completely flow with the story line, but it was vital in demonstrating to the reader what certain characters (Pikel Bouldershoulder, for example) could do if called on at a later time, and I therefore did not mind it.

Each book prior to this was definitively connected to the previous titles, but every book had a sense of closure on a particular enemy. This book was different.

Unless my memory is playing a joke (It has been a while since I started the first story with Drizzt), The Thousand Orcs is the only book that actually ends in the middle of a battle. Well, it was a battle, but I got the sense that it was the calm before the storm, the anticipation before the big game, the nervousness that plagues the stomach before...you get the picture. There were subtle hints and nicely placed thoughts of characters that can lead the reader to what they believe is going to happen, events that only seem logical. One of the things that I subconsciously tend to do is guess what is going to happen before it happens rather than let the author take me along his/her story, so with this book ending like it did, the brain juices are flowing quite ferociously.

I gave this book an eight for multiple reasons. Firstly, I know that people swear by Homeland and the other Dark Elf Trilogy books (Exile and Sojourn), but they simply do not match up to The Thousand Orcs. And please, do not take my observation to indicate that I did not like learning of Drizzt's first centuries in Menzoberranzen, I enjoyed those books! I just think that the initial story of how Drizzt became Drizzt is weighing too heavily in the minds of fans.

Secondly, this book plays for more in the aspects of war rather than small confrontations. Salvatore had been placing Drizzt and company in small skirmishes when compared to The Thousand Orcs. An enormous portion of the northern orcs have come together, couple that with frost giants joining the mix and you have a conflict on a massive scale. The only thing that I can think of that even comes close to matching is when the drow attempted to overthrow Bruener's dwarves in Mithrill Hall, but that is like comparing a Lunchable to a porterhouse steak, there is a big difference. Furthermore, Salvatore does a wonderful job of revealing the thought process and actions of both sides.

My initial reaction was to give this book a higher grade; the level of this book compared to its predecessors is substantial to me, but there are just too many books out there for this to be near the top of the pile. In closing, this is the best book I have ever read with the name Salvatore on the cover.

-Patrick Bergeron II

David Day’s “A-Z of Tolkien” is more than a simple reference companion for JRR Tolkien’s world of Middle-Earth. It is an act of devotion.

Tolkien, as the Introduction explains, created the worlds of Middle-Earth and the Undying Lands as a gift to England. Essentially, he was determined to create for Great Britain the kind of rich mythology that other countries and cultures had and then set his stories within these worlds. As Day writes, “The enormity of this undertaking is staggering. I would be as if Homer, before writing the ‘Iliad’ and ‘Odyssey,’ had first to invent the whole of Greek mythology and history.”

Day draws from all of Tolkien’s Middle-Earth works, not just “The Lord of the Rings,” but from “The Hobbit,” “The Silmarillion,” and others. From Tolkien’s work, Day compiled this encyclopedic guide of the people, places, events, creatures, and even plants. Entries range in length from a short paragraph to nearly two pages. Day’s work is not as dry as many of these kinds of guides. Each is eloquently written and many read like great works of short fiction in their own right.

The very scope of the work makes its flaws that much more surprising. For example although the Ent Treebeard’s wife has an entry (“Wandlimb”) as do what seems like the entire Dwarven royal line, there is no entry for “Smeagol,” the infamous Gollum’s given name. Several other names were not cross-referenced, although an index helps to make up for these flaws (“Smeagol Gollum” does appear in the Index, referring the reader to the entry on Gollum).

The black and white illustrations were contributed by six different artists, creating a nice diversity in styles. Covering a wide variety of subjects, the illustrations capture everything from simple mischievousness, to mystery and honor, to some of the terrifying monsters lurking in the dark places of Middle-Earth. Interestingly, the sketches are still relevant and current, even in this world of Peter Jackson’s cinematic adaptation of “The Lord of the Rings”—testament to the clarity of Tolkien’s vision and prose. I would have liked even more illustrations.

“A-Z of Tolkien” has to potential to add substantially to a reader’s appreciation of Tolkien’s works, whether using the guide as a reference while reading the Middle-Earth stories (“The Silmarillion” in particular can be a dense read) or as a “coffee-table” book to pass the time. In either case, one cannot look at Day’s guide without being, once again, astounded at Tolkien’s accomplishment of creating such a complex, rich, and real world and Day’s achievement in chronicling it. I rate “A-Z of Tolkien” a 9 out of 10.

Join Rasha and her companions as they continue their treacherous journey searching for Aleaya’s Tears. With treachery in the Guardianship and monsters at every turn, Rasha must face a perilous journey to reach a newly found Tear out of evil’s hands.

Though after Tory Carr’s first novel I was very cautious about reading Turbulent Skies I am very happy that I had the opportunity. I saw a very large increase in Tory’s writing style and her ability to create a good story between Wings of a Warrior and Turbulent Skies. The story flowed much better this time around and it didn’t feel like the reader was just following the character around on pointless tasks to fill up time. Turbulent Skies gave a very good look at the characters and showed us new sides to some of the major heroes and villains. The deception and conflict shown between the Guardianship brought a nice twist to the story, letting the reader see a very vulnerable side to the Guardians, who were shown to be almost demi-god like. Also the factions in the Dark Elf community played a much larger role in this novel, which I thought was an excellent touch as I have always enjoyed elves. Tory Carr also includes some giants in this novel. But not in the stereotypical smash and bash dumb as a rock sense. The giants whom Carr introduces us to are actually quite personable and very helpful to Rasha and her friends. It is always an interesting idea when an author takes a stereotyped creature such as a giant and gives them a positive spin.

After much thought and a couple times reading this new novel I have to say it deserves every part of a 7. With as much effort and time that Tory Carr put into Turbulent Skies and the undeniable improvement in the story quality I am actually looking forward to finishing this series out. To Ms. Carr I say excellent job, and to all you readers out there looking for a nice novel I say pick up Turbulent Skies. Though it might be a little rough getting through the first novel Turbulent Skies makes up for this without a doubt in my mind and I am very happy for the opportunity to have read and reviewed this novel.

Related FBS Reviews-

Wings of a Warrior reviewed by Tyler

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Forge of the Gods: The Last Knight by Eric B. Fogle

When Damon sent me this novel to review I really wasn’t looking forward to it. This was mostly because from what I could tell the novel had a very religious undertone to it. But that turned out to be far from bad. Though religion was a very large part of this book, if not the driving force of the whole plot, it in no way drove me away from the book. And so with that said we can now delve into my review of Eric B. Fogle’s Forge of the Gods: The Last Knight.

The prologue to this novel starts out with a brief look into Heaven and its gods, angels and all its other creations. The reader follows an angel through his stroll of the heavens as he toils over some internal struggles. Out of nowhere an anomaly occurs which befuddles even the gods.

I have to say that this was one novel that I truly enjoyed. It has been a long time since I have found an author who can really present such an excellent story which just grabs me and pulls me into their world. I got this novel and read it in about two days, and really wish it hadn’t ended. As you follow the main character Areck, a young squire who questions his worthiness in his faith, through his travels you really get to know the character in a way that is very rare in novels today. Fogle presents in depths look into not only what happens to Areck but his thoughts on the events. Another great aspect of this novel is the absolute coincidences which lead up the Areck’s life changing adventures. Many times as the reader the plot is almost predictable but Fogle keeps a very spontaneous feel to the events which occur. I think this was probably one of the most enthralling parts of the novel and really was the main reason why I have to give this novel a 9. For a new author Fogle has written a story which will grasp many readers and draw them into this world. This will definitely be one of my top ten reads of the year and I would recommend that this book makes everyone’s “To Read” list for 2006.

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City of Towers is not only the first installment in 'The Dreaming Dark' series, it is also the fist book depicting a new campaign setting from Wizards of the Coast (think Forgotten Realms) entitled Eberron, written by newcomer Keith Baker who is also the apparently the creator of the setting and was chosen by WotC from a number of submissions. Apparently, at least two more novels are planned for 'Dreaming Dark', as listed within the novel, book II 'The Shattered Land' will is scheduled to be released in December of his year, the third novel 'The Gates of Night' a year after that in December of 2006.

I picked up City of Towers when I heard it was the first book in a new line, and had thumbed through it at a store and noticed several pages toward the end of the novel were dedicated to seemingly detailed information about the world (Eberron) its royal houses, political powers, religious bodies, environment details, and semi-biographical information of some of the characters. So because of my curiosity of the beginning new line and because of my affinity for detailed information I purchased City of Towers. Baker introduces us to a time in Eberron depicting the direct aftermath of a long terrible civil war, a war that ended with the catastrophic destruction of the entire Kingdom of Cyre. Of origins unknown, a gray mist spread across the nation and everything within the borders were either destroyed or transformed. This event is universally called the Mourning and turned the once seat of power (Cyre) into a wasteland, now the dwelling place of unimaginable horrors. Those aligned with Cyre who survived the war, and the Mourning, through either chance, luck, absence, or in some cases apparently fate, are called mourners. City of Towers chronicles one group of mourners, survivors of a military regiment, who head for the city of Sharn, the City of Towers, the largest city on the continent, and considered a modern wonder of innovation, not only architecturally but also a testament of what can be accomplished with the combination of skill and magic, and is also the setting for the overwhelming majority of the novel.

The inhabitants of Sharn, are numerous and varied. Humans, Elves, Dwarfs, Gnomes, Troll, Bugabears, Gnolls, Medussa, Goblins, Changelings, Halflings, and tons more, plus combinations (like I said WotC) call one of the many districts of Sharn their home. The diversity of the city is being added to by the mourning refugees, among them are the aforementioned group who are the focus of the story, and who are no less diverse themselves, both as individuals, as are their purpose for traveling to Sharn. This group consists of Pierce a Warforged soldier, which is a artificially created humanoid construct made of steel, wood, leather and stone which are given sentience though magic. House Cannith created the Warforged to be tireless and expendable soldiers during the war. Lei ‘d Cannith a human Dragonmark who was attached to the regiment to control the Warforged and was returning to Sharn to meet her bethroed Hadran d’ Cannith a wealthy and influential Dragonmark who resided in Sharn. Jode, a halfling, also a Dragonmark, blessed with an easy nature and a gift for gab, and finally Daine, who was the captain of the regiment, and although Baker tells the story of the groups adventures it is Daine who seemingly is the main character. He is the sword bearing male/human character, such examples I like to categorize as the Cloud-syndrome of the group (Final Fantasy fans begin to understand).

I mentioned that Jode and Lei are Dragonmarks, and this ties into the magic system employed by Baker, and a very important facet of City of Towers. The term Dragonmark is used with two related meanings on Eberron. The way I used it to describe Jode and Lei, is according to Baker, a slang term for one who bears a unique tattoo-like mark (the second definition) on their body which give the bearer a unique power according to what sign they bear. There are twelve different Dragonmarks known to exist, each exclusive to a particular bloodline. These lines, makes up very powerful, influential and wealthy families, who are masters of the specific abilities their inherent mark gives them. For instance Lei is of House d’ Cannath, and members of that bloodline can bear the Mark of Making, and gives them abilities in just that, for example the creation of the Warforged. Jode is of House Jorasco, (although he claims no House) whom bears the Mark of Healing and is gifted with abilities of healing. It most be noted that not all family members of these lines will bear a Mark, and that the size of the Mark is directly correlated with the innate power of the user. There are cases of individuals who bear marks outside of the Twelve that are called Aberrant Dragonmarks that are birthed from the union of two different houses. These marks are “warped” and are considered dark powers that have side effects both in mind and spirit to the bearer.

The “plot” events in City of Towers begin when the group arrives in Sharn after an arduous journey, and find that Lei has been deemed Excoriate, which can be described as being excommunicated from the family, having your name and titles forfeited and barred from all property owned by the family, and comes with the stigma of having all members of the family strongly urged to disassociate themselves with you completely. The other members of the group having literally no where else to go, commit themselves in aiding Lei, to find out what circumstance has occurred that caused her in essence to lose her very life. This leads into a sequence of events that allows Baker to introduce the major players and denizens of the city, like Flamewind, a Sphinx with oracle like abilities, Alina Lorridan Lyrris, a beautiful gnome wizard, and apparently something of a underworld lord whose couple of segments were to me the most entertaining in the novel, and are the examples of some of the scarce instances of worthwhile dialogue within the entire novel, where we the reader was actually given some part of storytelling, instead of taking what seemed like a guided tour of a new setting. We are also introduced to Lailin Callis, an augur, and friend of Lei’s whom Baker uses to give us a glimpse of one both the opulence of the high society life and a flying ship. There are many, many more. Mr. Baker introduces a tremendous amount of characters in City of Towers, while depicting the story of Lei trying to find her answers simultaneously as they work for Alina trying to locate a employee of hers that has been missing who was carrying a valuable commodity of hers.

I mentioned above my feeling of being on a guided tour as I read City of Towers. I could not throughout my reading of the novel knock the feeling that clearly this novels priority was to act as a tool to give more life to a campaign/gaming setting and this may very well have been the intent of Mr. Baker, and as such performs brilliantly, but in terms of offering a viable novel that can be enjoyed by a fan of fantasy, not just gaming, City of Towers falls short in my opinion. The sequence of events felt contrived to maximize how many elements in terms of factions/creatures/races Baker could introduce us into the 325 pages of novel, as to solely give some light to as may characters as he could and giving displaying their interaction in novel (the last 50 pages or so are dedicated to the appendix). The group literally episodicaly fell into one altercation after another; if they weren’t fighting within the city they were being led to another one. The instances Mr. Baker does give in regards to depictions of inner thoughts of the characters are perhaps the weakest aspect of the novel. I simply didn’t care what happened to any of the protagonists in the novel. Pierce, the Warforged, created solely for war, attempting to come to grips with his place in society now that that the war is over failed to grab me. Lei’s feelings of banishment from her House is not touched on in the depth it could be, beyond crying, and one instance of striking a family member. Daine, the swordsman with a “mysterious” past, both regarding family, and having worked for Alina in the past, failed to be written with and element that would make one care for this often used archetype, or end (it was resolved at the end) in any inspiring or imaginative way. After reading City of Towers, I can assure you that even fans will be sick of one thing, and that is the mentioning of adamantium edged knives in particular how easily they cut through steel, wood, whatever... is it really necessary to tell the reader this every time the knife is used?

I also am less than enthusiastic with the actual writing of the novel from a stylistic sense. The prose is simply not captivating at any point. For instance upon approaching Sharn, described as a “wonder of the modern age”, one would think a couple of pages would be dedicated on the observations and impressions of our protagonists, some vivid descriptive writing depicting a city. One would think such a city would be like a vision of grandeur to travel weary refugees, who had witnessed firsthand the Mourning, and before that combatants in a long, bloody civil war. But no, a total of one paragraph is dedicated to this moment and is turned into a a question of scientific query by Daine on the nature of the floating towers. There are also a couple (literally) of instances that don’t follow the group (or members of the group) all only a couple of pages long (the novel is extremely linear), and they depict some actions of the antagonists of the novel, and these segments are for the most part incoherent. This s explained why later in the novel, but from a reading experience perspective it seemed at the very least mishandled.

As I mentioned before I liked the character of Alina Lorridan Lyrris who at times felt like the only character with believable motivation. I also enjoyed the character of Rhazala, a female goblin, of indiscernible age, and ability although with youthful exuberance, and offers a nice change in tone not present in sequences shes absent from. The Magic system, in particular the Dragonmarks are interesting, but so spread out in possible application it seems strictly invented to offer variety for gaming purposes, it’s a bit like (admittedly very loosely) like a concept I read about in Lawrence Watt-Evan’s Obsidian Chronicles, but altered for gaming purposes. One instance that I did enjoy, that actually gave some real depth to the city itself was when Jode ran into a world famous Circus in Sharn, and the same could be said about Baker’s inclusion of The Race of Eight Winds, a race that includes champions of different districts, heavily gambled upon, and a source of pride of the denizens of the city both of wealth and those less fortunate. I also enjoyed the fact that a main character dies, however I withhold final judgment on my thoughts related to this as I have a bad feeling the character will be used as some mystical guide from the grave to aid his friends at times with timely advice, if this is the case this will turn into vast disappointment, as to me this was the only member of the protagonists group that was even mildly interesting. His demise was disappointing but to make a mockery of it would be insufferable.

City of Towers was roughly what I expected it to be, but in saying that I want to comment on something regarding some opinions I have read concerning this novel that at the very least I feel are irresponsible. Although I admit I am not exactly casting a positive light on City of Towers I try to be fair, and my conclusions come from the reading. I have read some reviews in which some overstate the overuse of the technology present (in respects to the flying ships in particular) in Eberron. This is absolutely a ridiculous notion. The fact that I think the technology presence actually adds to the enjoyment of the novel is irrelevant, the fact is that the presence of technology is very minimal in the novel. On only two occasions are the boats brought up and added together they are talked about perhaps for one no more than two pages. Excluding the boats the only element of technology that plays any role in the novel are the use of lifts (elevators) that allow the population of Sharn to travel between the many levels of their city. The presence of such things as sky coaches (flying taxis) is mentioned, but explained in a magical sense unique to the locale of Sharn. They do not play major rolls in the novel at all, and cannot possibly be a reasons or at least a valid reason not to have enjoyed the novel. If anyone is using this as their principlw issue for not liking the novel they are either incredibly anal or most likly haven't read the novel.

When trying to draw comparisons to other WotC efforts, The last two WotC authors I read were Paul S. Kemp, whose work I think is completely on another level than this (highly recommened BTW), nor is it approaching the grand feeling of being introduced to the Underdark in the bonafide classic 'Dark Elf' trilogy by RA Salvatore. The characters simply didn’t grip me, the setting (the City) had potential but the experience wasn’t complete or satisfying. Perhaps the next installment of the series their will be time prolonged visit into Eberron instead of having to settle for the tour. My final grade for Keith Baker’s City of Towers, Book I of his 'The Dreaming Dark' series is a 3.5.

Jay
The Bodhisattva

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Anyone familiar with any example of Gene Wolfe’s body of work in literature and has been exposed to his writing style, knows he’s more then just a marvelous writer of fantasy novels. He is a fabulous writer period. Their are many examples of fantasy works and authors that could not deliver in quality when proceeded by a poem penned by Lord Dunsany, in its preface. Gene Wolfe is one of the exceptions as an author and although I don’t believe The Knight, the first installment of a planned two-book cycle entitled 'The Wizard Knight', to be an example of Wolfe’s finest work (see the absolutely exceptional The Book of the New Sun), Wolfe’s such a talent as a writer, his lesser works in comparison to his own body of work are in my opinion still examples of the best a fan of speculative fiction can read, and The Knight certainly falls in this category.

The concept and basis of the story Wolfe employs in The Knight is certainly not new to fantasy, regardless if one is new to fantasy reading or a long time fan. The Knight centers around a orphaned boy from “the real world” (our world) who one day when hiking alone in a forest and quite innocently forms a walking stick from a branch of a tree he happens on in his path. This occurrence sends him (as of yet unnamed) to the world of Mythgarthr (Man’s realm), a decidedly medieval setting that makes up only one of seven realms of reality, Mythgarthr being the middle realm. It is upon his arrival to Mythgarthr that a name is given to the reader for the boy. The boy is named by one of his first encounters in his new surroundings, a woman he describes as, “an old lady with too many teeth”. This woman names him Able “of the High Heart”, and rather unceremoniously sends Able on his way. Able find his first companion in the character of Bold Berthold, who on seeing Able claims him as his missing brother. Able, thankful for the company begins residing with Berthold and in doing so learns more of the land he now inhabits. Months later he encounters two men, Ravd and his squire Svon who Able becomes attached to as their local guide on Mythgarthr. It is through this meeting and subsequent association that Able first begins to have aspirations of being a knight himself. Through Ravd, and Svon, Able meets the Aelfs, who inhabit the plane of Aelfrice (just below Mythgarthr), and more importantly Disiri a Aelf queen ( a Mossmaiden to be exact), who becomes Able’s object of affection and love. It is Disiri who gives Able his cause and informs him of his destiny to be the wielder of a legendary sword of Etrene, a blade haunted by the spirits of all its prior bearers, and transforms his body into one of that of man. For his love of Disiri and fulfill both his goal and self worth as a knight he embarks on his journey that will take introduce both Able and the reader to fantastic creatures and other characters, other Aelf’s, knights, Frost Giants, pirates, talking animal companions, and a dragon.

I know what is everyone is thinking. An orphaned boy, turned magically into a man desiring knighthood, on a mission of destiny and love to find a legendary sword in the grasps of a dragon? Isn’t this the type of formulaic, clichéd riddled, storyline that I frequently despise? Isn’t this Terry Brook’s Landover series? The answer to these questions in regards to The Knight are no. Wolfe’s writing ability transcends the typical themes in the book. The Knight is told in first person, with Able as the narrator. The story amounts to being letter Able is dictating to his brother from “the real world”. Wolfe masterfully portrays the narrator as what he is, a mere boy, and what we the reader witness is what he witnesses, described by the mind of a boy sent into a unfamiliar fantastic world. The supporting characters are done with great care, yet purposely may seem lacking at time, due to the fact we are witnessing them as people and their actions through the eyes of a boy. Wolfe intentionally stresses that although Able is a boy in a man's body, he is still a young boy finding his way not only through the journey and circumstance of his fantastic adventures in Mythgarthr, but his journey into manhood itself. The notion that we are not given a name to the narrator until he arrives to this fantastic realm, reveals the true nature of the brilliance of Wolfe’s writing. The reader is not only “escaping’ into this world, but simultaneously we are reading of the narrator’s own “escape’ from his own world, he has no name, as if he desires and perceives his very own existence only to be associated and birthed with his arrival to Mythgarthr as Able “of the High Heart”. Wolfe’s writing, his great depiction of the narrator both in what he does and how he perceives his surroundings, the smart dialogue, at times amusing, at other times wonderfully insightful, and his prose as always top notch are what seperates The Knight from other novels that share similar themes. Everything about this novel seems purposely misleading from the very title of the novel, to the common theme, yet one familiar with Wolfe’s prior work can only assume this is a stroke intentional genius. Gene Wolfe’s The Knight offers fantasy readers a glimpse into traditional, ‘old school” fantasy, paying homage to past masters of the genre like Tolkien, Eddison, and the aforementioned Lord Dunsany, yet not settling for the often seen rehashing of their work.

I come away from The Knight, very impressed, and eager to read the already released sequel The Wizard. As stated earlier, not Wolfe’s best work in my opinion, but still one of the most enjoyable novels I have read in some time. Seemingly implying his awareness and recognition of fantasies traditions and the legacies associated with them, yet offering a original, and delightful read. The Knight can be enjoyed by all ages in my opinion, which cannot be said of the bulk of Wolfe’s work, which I think are better left to more mature readers. The Knight offers a tale of adventure, and familiar ideals for the younger readers, yet the underlying themes and what can only be described as Wolfe’s sheer brilliance in regards to his writing prowess found both in his prose and his implementation of a seemingly basic storyline will appeal to those with more critical natures. Wolfe does nothing to hinder his staggering reputation with The Knight, my final grade is an 8.

Jay
The Bodhisattva

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I want to start out this review with a little bit of respect to the man R.A. Salvatore. The first Drizzt series (Icewind Dale Trilogy) was great, I read it with fervor. The second Drizzt trilogy, The Dark Elf Trilogy, was more of an introspective journey. As a teenager, young man, this series lets you relate to the feelings of being alone and overwhelmed in the world.

Unfortunately we then moved into the next series Legacy of the Drow, Paths of Darkness, and Hunters Blade Series which I didn't find to be as comfortable. I mean they had our favorite characters, but something just wasn’t as fresh and new about them, also some things in these series just bother me. I am not a fan of characters dying and coming back to life. I don’t know but if George RR Martin can write a great story where the main characters can be killed off, then everyone can. Salvatore not only does this once, but twice and the second time we see it is in this book. I view the newer Salvatore books like I look at an old toy from the 80s. Yeah there is a bunch of better stuff out now, but the nostalgia factor brings me back to read these, and my respect for the superb writing of the earlier trilogy. Ok now enough of this banter, on to the review.

The Lone Drow is part of a very long series as stated above, and we see Drizzt in "Hunter" mode in this book. Hunter mode is where he falls back into his animalistic nature of just killing with little regard to his own safety or bodily limits. We have a few story lines to follow in this book. The Orc King who was imbued with some magic of the Orc God and Shamans, is trying to conquer Icewind Dale and surrounding areas with the help of the Troll King and Giants. There is a bit of conflict between these groups as one would expect, but King Obould Many-Arrows is extremely smart for an orc, and we all know this conflict should lead to a one on one fight between him and Drizzt at some point in the future. The Giants are pretty mad that this orc is so strong and smart so we have jealous Giant syndrome going around.

Now what does all of this have to do with Drizzt and his band of merry adventurers. Well we have a bunch of random dark elves that have come up from the underdark to get the giants/orcs/trolls together in the first place, for amusement and profit. Now I don’t know about you, but even this seems like a stretch for the dark elves. Especially since it means this little band of dark elves has to work together for so long. Then we have Drizzt starting to realize his feelings for Cattie-brie but they don’t even know the other is alive at this point as the band has become separated. In between all of this, we have another city of blacksmiths mad at Bruenors clan and trying to sabotage their furnaces and metal.

Overall it was a decent book, I gave it a solid 6 but nothing like the earlier series. If you have read the Drizzt books, it only makes sense to read this.

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