From Publishers Weekly
At the start of bestseller Salvatore's second book in his Tolkienesque fantasy trilogy (after 2002's The Thousand Orcs), hordes of orcs, led by cruel King Obould Many-Arrows, sweep down mechanically and unexcitingly on beleaguered dwarves. When he isn't slaying orcs, the story's hero, the dark elf drow loner Drizzt Do'Urden, suffers guilt for allowing a friendly elf to die in his stead and is attracted to Catti-brie, a beautiful human woman who is the ward of the dying dwarf king, Bruenor Battlehammer. The usual fantasy suspects-gnomes, trolls, elves, flying horses, unicorns, giants-crowd the pages, but the author does at times rise above cliche, and a few characters do achieve some complexity. Obould actually speaks of economics, while an elf, Innovindel, having lost her mate in battle, talks pensively of the centuries of her life, in contrast to the paltry few years of human life. This difference is significant to Drizzt, because Catti-brie is only human. Fans will eagerly await further developments in volume three.
Book Description
The second title in the New York Times best-selling trilogy by R.A. Salvatore. This title is the second hardcover release in the latest trilogy from R.A. Salvatore, which once again features his popular dark elf signature character. The hardcover release of the first title in this trilogy, The Thousand Orcs, had the highest debut ever for a Salvatore title on the New York Times best-seller list, and it remained on the list for an unprecedented 10 weeks. The Thousand Orcs hardcover was also the fastest-selling novel in the history of Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
About the author
R.A. Salvatore was born in Massachusetts and still makes his home there. He has published numerous Forgotten Realms novels with Wizards of the Coast, Inc., most of which have been New York Times best-sellers. He is also known as the best-selling author of the Star Wars: Episode II Attack of the Clones novelization from Del Rey.
