The Crystal Shard

This was the first DND book that I read and I couldn’t wait for the next to come out. Now my children read them and one non-reader started reading because of it. The book does a great job of diving into the stories of the 4 main characters which are expanded upon in other books and managing all of their stories at once culminating in an epic battle of axes and sorcery at the end. The whole trilogy is worth reading!

I have read many, many books in my lifetime, and the Icewind Dale trilogy is some of the best I have ever read...second only to (or tied with) the Dark Elf trilogy. I personally believed it was much better then Lord of the Rings - I just enjoyed it more. R.A. Salvatore seems to let us get closer to the characters, and feel more emotion, then any of Tolkein's works. That's just my opinion, however.These books have a great storyline. It kept me turning the pages from the first to the last. You can feel the evil that is the Crystal Shard, and you quaver as the thousands upon thousands of monsters attack the people of Ten-Towns, who must ally with each other in order to defeat them. You feel poor Drizzt's agony as he strives to gain acceptance in the surface world. You laugh as proud Bruenor hands Wulfgar the mighty warhammer, then tries mightily to make it appear as if it doesn't mean much to him. You really understand the tentative bond and fierceness, and the heirarchy, that keeps apart (and ultimately brings together) the towns around the three lakes - Ten-Towns. All in all, these are three books that I am very glad to have read. However, if you don't like fantasy, I would perhaps steer away from them - first, read the Dark Elf trilogy and see if you fall in love in Drizzt, as I did. Oh, and by the way - the very last scene caught me by complete surprise, and sent me from tears to laughter like no other book did in a very, very long time.

I finshed reading the Crystal Shard for the seconed time this year and it was great, I love all the Characters in this series. My favorite is Drizzt, all of them remind me of the Characters from Dragonlance The Companions Tanis/Drizzt,Flint/Bruenor,Riverwind/Wulfgar,Tas:the kinder/Regis, and Tika/Cati-brie. the friendship between Drizzt and Brurenor is like Tanis and Flint and the same goes for Brurenor and Regis, like flint and Tas. altough like the characters from Dragonlance, the charactors from Drizzts and company each have there own identity that make them different.allin all a good story and I can't wait to read the rest of the series.

I first came upon this novel thinking very little. I expected it to be nothing more than some typical fantasy trash. I just could not stand "The Hobbit" at all, yet I wanted to venture into fantasy, so a friend (who hasn't read this) referred me to the novel itself. He had mentioned that "Homeland" by Salvatore was better than decent. But still, I was rather skeptical. All in all, this is a tremendously great read.Adventure Value: 9/10- This book contains numerous battle scenes and heroic combat momentsRomance Rating: 3/10- Wulfgar the Barbarian does do a little hitting on the female protagonist, but nothing more.Character Development: 7/10- Drizzt, Bruenor, Regis, and Wulfgar are well developed, but there is some slacking on the antagonist: Akar Kessell.Climax: 8/10- The ending of the read draws to a beautiful close.Plotline: 6/10- The plotline was thin at random points, though at times it was as thick as molasses...Creature Feature: 8/10- there are barbarians, goblins, orcs, ogres, giants, and even an ice dragon...it's well done...My overall commentation on this book is that it is very good, and I recommend anyone new to the genre read it soon!

Salvatore knows how to create truely unique and interesting characters. Drizzt Do'Urden is my favorite by far, his fight agaisnt racial walls is intriguing and its interesting how Salvatore makes Drizzt react to it. The Crystal Shard continues directly after the book Sojourn, in the tundra of Icewind Dale. Drizzt, Wulfgar, Bruenor, and countless leaders and people of Ten-Towns fight in a famous battle that made me read for hours straight, wondering waht would happen next. The pure cunning and trickery in this book is both interesting and humerous, I reccomend this book to any D & D fan, and even those just interested in Fantasy books.

"Night befell the tundra as orcs crept near. One could have smelt their foul stench as far as a poronkusema* away. The threshold of the forecoming nocturnal slaughter was broken in a sudden fiery fury, however, as a belch and a battlecry manifested the sudden arrival of the Savior of the Ten-Towns, Bruenor Battlehammer. With the skill and prowess of a veteran of a thousand battles and more, he drove is blood-stained axe into the very guts of an orcish invader after another. As the snow-dust finally settled, the Field of Honor hosted a hundred slain orcs and more, the slaughter manifesting the grim deadliness of the warrior that had brought these vile monsters to their deaths; lying as once-alive-and-breathing monuments of the cruel might of Bruenor Battlehammer." (This is no quote from this book, but rather a personal praise from me for Bruenor Battlehammer.)Bob Salvatore's first novel, taking place in the Icewind Dale, a paradise of frost hidden in the very northwest corner of the Forgotten Realms, is a captivating saga about friendship, adventure and heroism. The debute of such legendary champions as Drizzt Do'Urden, Artemis Entreri, Wolfgang and Bruenor Battlehammer, this story once reset the standards of fantasy literature for generations to come and created the concept for adventures that would reshape the Realms.All the way from the epilogue to the epic climax of incidents, the reader is kept in a firm grasp by thrilling battle scenes, touching manifestations of loyalty and true valor, and crystal-clear descriptions of the enchanting sceneries of the everwinter in the Icewind Dale. Salvatore's indisputable skill of creating dazzling battle excitement and profoundly inspiring contemplation makes this book, as well as a long line of its successors, an unforgettable experience of reading pleasure. Salvatore's ability of ingeniously finding his characters a way out of the deepest pit of trouble and through the deadliest of monsters also fascinates me over and over again.And finally, one individual indeed worth mentioning is Bruenor Battlehammer. Whenever he grasps his deadly axe and raises it to strike, whenever he proudly roams wearing his glittering mithril armor and the shield of Foaming Ale Mug symbol, whenever he opens his mouth for a brief grunt of experience and wisdom - then I know that is all I have ever wanted to be. To become him is the purpose of my life. Thus this Dwarven hero shall always dwell in my heart as the repsesentative of everything good and pure in the world.* Poronkusema (Finnish): "An ancient Lappish measure of distance, equal to the length of journey a running reindeer can make between two urination sessions."