Servant of the Shard (Forgotten Realms: The Sellswords, Book 1)

Don't be scared away by the lack of Drizzt Do'Urden in this finely crafted novel. Although Drizzt is easily Salvatore's best know and "loved" creation, I don't think his more recent novels (mainly the Hunter's Blades Trilogy) really do the renegade drow justice. They fall off and get pretty campy. The interaction between Cattie-Bri and Drizzt, while it was interesting at first, has taken on a sort of mid-day soap opera turn and it tires quickly in my mind. Artemis Entrerei and Jarlaxle have always been my favorite characters. The depth Salvatore has put into the development of both characters is far more then any of Drizzt's compaions (most notably a certain one-dimentional barbarian...) and even more than Drizzt himself. Artemis's journey to Menzzoberanzan (both in the physical and emotional sense) was very well done I thought. This novel, however, takes place after his return and domination of Calimport with the aid of the Dark Elf band left by the most paradoxical Jarlaxle. The brilliance in this novel can be summarized by the revalation that by the end, Salvatore has you rooting and cheering on two of the most cold hearted and ruthless killers in Faerun. Their development, both as individual characters and as partners, in this book far surpasses even the silent blade, and the reader is even given a few glimpses into the underlying psyche of both characters. A very fun and refreshing read for any fan of Salvatore who has gotten a bit bored with the "drama" that had become Drizzt Do'Urden and misses the action from his adventures in the Underdark. Bottom line: Awsome fantasy novel.

This is simply the best book yet written by R. A. Salvatore. I'm eagerly awaiting Promise of the Witch King, which contiues the storyline of Jarlaxle and Entreri. Now, I love Drizzt; he is one of the greatest characters in modern fantasy. I 'discovered' Salvatore when I read Homeland and was just blown away. But Jarlaxle is my all-time favourite character. In anything. Witty retorts, tricks and manipulation are always a secret to a good villain or anti-hero, and Jarlaxle is loaded with all three and more. With Entreri developing into a nicely rounded character, the book is just solid gold. BUY THIS BOOK!!! And when Promise of the Witch King comes out, BUY THAT TOO!!!!

Salvatore has performed a hat trick (bonus points for me for a hockey reference) in what is now known as the Paths of Darkness series of novels which are The Silent Blade, The Spine of the World, Servant of the Shard, and the forthcoming Sea of Swords.Some fans grumbled about the novel Passage to Dawn, complaining that Salvatore appeared to have lost his magic and that the story itself was redundant and mediocre. Critics! Can't live with 'em, can't deport 'em!Salvatore has come back to the Forgotten Realms with a vengeance with this latest series of novels and should have put to rest any doubters out there that he has lost his style. Silent Blade and Spine of the World were fantastic and Servant of the Shard might have even surpassed those two in my opinion.People were skeptical about Spine of the World since it focused on Wulfgar, and Drizzt wasn't making an appearance, but it definately earned its place on my book shelf. I loved it. If we need a break from Drizzt every once in a while, why not take a closer look at the other characters for a change?Now Salvatore has done it again with Servant of the Shard. Now we get a wonderful adventure that explores the current exploits of Jarlaxle, the flamboyant Drow mercenary band leader, and Artemis Entreri, master assassin. With sword fights, psionics, drow, illithids, powerful sentient weapons and artifacts, conspiracy & intrigue, demons, the Bouldershoulder brothers, and more, it's a very enjoyable novel even without Drizzt.I definately recommend this volume for Drizzt and Forgotten Realms fans out there and look forward to the 4th volume next year.

I got this book weeks ago and was wondering when it would be available so I could share my enthusiasm for this work of art. Even more so than in The Silent Blade, Artemis Entreri becomes more than a simple archvillain for Drizzt Do'Urden. His character development in The Servant of the Shard continues where it left off in The Silent Blade and a true metamorphosis occurs, one in which more is revealed than changed about Entreri...he becomes more nearly himself, as it were. We see this most resourceful of humans take on nemeses that no other mortal can hope to challenge, much less persevere against. Entreri becomes much more than Drizzt's foil, a dark mirror...Entreri truly comes into his own in this novel and asserts his status not only as Drizzt's equal in battle, but also as a unique individual who has a life beyond his rivalry (now dead) with Drizzt. At the same time, we, the readers, can start to fully appreciate the circumstances which created such a cold, ruthless man who can best the long-lived, intrigue-loving drow at their own game. We also see a validation, to a certain degree, of Entreri's way of life--a justification, at the very least, of why this man walks alone. To do this, Salvatore sets Jarlaxle, the wily mercenary leader, opposite Entreri in this novel. "Who is the stronger, then, Jarlaxle the partner or Entreri the loner?" to which Entreri's response is an emphatic, "I am." Even as Salvatore shows what is wrong with Entreri's lifestyle, he also examines what brought the man, as supremely-talented, intelligent, and iron-willed a human as had ever lived, to such a state, and why the choices he made at the time seemed right. Entreri's tribulations and triumphs evidence both. Besides Entreri, other favorites are also revealed more fully, such as Jarlaxle. This, in fact, is the work that truly deals with Jarlaxle--he is on the cover, after all, and in the title...but it is through Entreri that Jarlaxle is finally explored--through Entreri's eyes. At long last, that impenetrable facade of Jarlaxle's is lifted, just for a second, to give us a glimpse of the mortality behind the calm and collected opportunist. Plot-wise, this is also one of Salvatore's best...deliberate and masterful, he wends his way through a story that, I think, he has long wanted to tell...to himself! No haphazard jabs into the dark for this work--Salvatore is the master bard, fully in control of the tale from beginning to end. To the fan, this is classic Salvatore. To the fantasy enthusiast, this is one of the few good works coming out of TSR.

I was very excited about the release of this book. It's is not very often that one gets to read a book where the villains are the main characters of the book. Salvatore worked wonders with these characters. It was exciting to watch as each character tried to out manuever the other with layers upon layers of deception. We really saw the motivations of the assassin Artemis Entreri as well as the mercenary leader, Jarlaxle. I chuckled all throughout the book, which was surprising when reading about a character such as Artemis Entreri. The ending of the book was superb and has truly has made me anxious for the next book involving these two characters. Lets hope that I won't have to wait to long.....