transitions | The Obsessive Bookseller

Title: The Pirate King

Author: R.A. Salvatore

Series: Transitions #2

Genre: Role Playing Fantasy

Rating: 4/5 stars

The Overview: Captain Deudermont has sailed to the pirate city of Luskan on a mission—a mission to once and for all defeat the true power behind the corrupt city: a wicked lich and his cabal of evil wizards from the Host Tower of the Arcane. But the Host Tower has some tricks up its sleeve, as do the pirate captains who would like to see both sides fail.

Captain Deudermont is convinced that he can save this futuristic metropolis, but Drizzt knows better. To save the embattled city and his friend, he returns to Luskan.

The Review:

These book are fantastic! I consider them must-reads for fantasy buffs and role playing gamers alike! The author never fails to deliver fast-paced, well-rounded books. I love them because they manage to build momentum off of one-another while still maintaining a fully-developed plot within each book. A lot of fun to read, they set the stage for what has erupted into hundreds of Forgotten Realms spinoffs on the market today.

Salvatore has a great talent of taking you to different parts of his world and making each place vibrant and rich. From the frozen tundra of Icewind Dale to the seaside city of Luskan, you will never go without an excellent setting. So far, he’s written a few novels that deal with seafaring and the pirating community, and I argue with myself on whether or not I like them best. They certainly are different than other books in the saga, and I always find them a breath of fresh air (no pun intended).

While there are so many great attributes to this saga, by far my favorite elements are the characters. There are several throughout this series that I have absolutely loved – including the villains. Fair warning, you’d better be ready to read all 25+ novels because half the fun is finding out what happens next!

by Niki Hawkes

If you like this book, you might also like:

Sorcery Rising by Jude Fisher
Homeland by R.A. Salvatore (the story that started it all)
Ship of Magic by Robin Hobb
The Aware by Glenda Larke
The Thief’s Gamble by Juliet E. McKenna

Title: The Orc King

Author: R.A. Salvatore

Series: Transitions #1

Genre: Fantasy

Rating: 5/5 stars!

The Overview: An uneasy peace between the dwarves of Mithral Hall and the orcs of the newly established Kingdom of Many-Arrows can’t last long. The orc tribes united under Obould begin to fight each other, and Bruenor is determined to finish the war that nearly killed him and almost destroyed everything he’s worked to build. But it will take more than swords and axes to bring a lasting peace to the Spine of the World. Powerful individuals on both sides may have to change the way they see each other. They may have to start to talk. But it won’t be easy.

The Review:

As the first book in the Transitions trilogy, “The Orc King” is actually around book #20 for the series as a whole. Because I’ve already highlighted the overall qualities of the series in a post for book #1, “Homeland,” I wont go into too many details here.

Having so many books under his belt, it always amazes me when Salvatore continues to produce quality, page-turning novels. This was no exception, containing a great story, strong characters, and an awesome plot advance that boded for more great novels in the future. My favorite element to this book is its examination of motives within a inherently “evil” race. It highlighted that mortal enemies just might have more in common than they first thought. Salvatore did such a good job expanding on the orcs that at times they almost felt… human.

I once watched an interview with the author, in which he made the claim that everything book within a series he tries to write well enough to become a stand-alone. While he definitely succeeds as far as plot structure and overall craft, I don’t think this would be NEAR as enjoyable without the significant back-history behind it. In fact, I’m not even sure it would make sense. There were a lot of events that eluded to prior events, and the whole series summarized in a few pages sounds convoluted and confusing. If he truly wanted a stand-alone book, his books would be twice as thick filled with all the extensive back-history.

Recommendations: If this is your first introduction to Salvatore’s Drizzt books, I highly recommend you start with “The Dark Elf” trilogy.

by Niki Hawkes

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