"Homeland" is by a good margin the stronger novel of these three in my opinion, biased as I am towards intrigue and moral greys, but the other two are also quite good reads, albeit moving ever closer to what one might expect from a Dungeons & Dragons tie-in novel (never quite gets to the trope-feeling area, though, so that's very good). Salvatore is a very good storyteller, and the more awkward game-like feeling aspects of the universe (for instance the inborn spells of the drow species, or odd divisions like if something is an animal or a monster, or inherently a good species of inherently an evil one) are generally handled deftly enough not to take me too much out of the otherwise impressive sense of realism he brings to the world. Despite there being an ungodly number of them, I'll admit to being tempted to reading more Drizzt Do'Urden novels now. This certainly did whet the appetite for following him and his life further. ( )

These stories probably deserve a higher rating as I found they drew me in even though I have no background in the Drizzt series. However, coming to them as I did, I found each story started with me floundering to figure out what was going on.

This audiobook is not actually a "full cast performance" -- each story had a sole narrator but a different one each time. I liked this approach to audio short stories, which I haven't encountered before. ( )

This trilogy is the first three books in the story of Drizzt, and as such they can be read as standalone books. In this review I will be writing about the first in this trilogy ‘Homeland’, as to review all three books in one place would lead to an almost novel length piece of writing in itself.

The male protagonist is a study of contradictions and unanswered questions; why do certain things happen to him that he either does not react to or goes completely over the top? Despite the huge holes in his back-story I actually quite liked Drizzt and his intent, be it on purpose or just by accident, of not wanting to conform to what was expected of him. This side of his personality gave him depth and an almost lifelike quality. However, as I said earlier there are, in my opinion, so many question about this character that remain unanswered I did feel at times as if I were walking in fog, constantly losing my direction. The way in which this Author portrays the female characters in this book was interesting to me, as he endows them which what could be seen as being primarily male traits. They are cruel to the point of making the reader wince, ambitious and powerful; they are the main force behind any battles that takes place and are not at all reticent at showing their disdain for the males in their charge. I found this to be a refreshing take on the female role in a fantasy novel, and it added considerably to the book.

The book moves along at a steady pace, and the Author has taken some time with his world building, and the description of the lead characters home provides the reader with a sweeping vista in which to place him. Again though, as in the character development, I felt as if there were something missing here, almost as if pages were missing from my copy of the book.

Despite feeling confused at times whilst reading this, I will be reading more by this Author in the hopes that some of my many questions will be answered as the series progresses. I would recommend this book to any lover of the fantasy genre.


Originally reviewed on: http://catesbooknuthut.com/2015/04/03/review-the-legend-of-drizzt-collectors-edi...





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This may be Salvatore's best work! While these 3 novels were published after the Icewind Dale Trilogy, I think these are slightly better. His drow society and the Underdark is creative and imaginative. Like all of his books, this is character driven, but the plot and setting are equally interesting. A unique character and unique setting, with his usual fast and well written action. ( )

When I think of this book (or set of books) objectively it's pretty good, almost great. When I think of this book as a fun swashbuckling fantasy adventure with light character study of an evil race? It's pretty awesome. I enjoyed almost every part of this book. In the last novel (Sojourn) I was annoyed that Drizzt's brother had yet to make an appearance. At the end of Exile Drinin is brought into the service of a mercenary squad for the soul purpose of hunting down Drizzt. Yet that loose thread is left hanging. Since this series has another 17 books in it I am sure it will be tied up later. This is a great intro to simple fun fantasy. R.A. Salvatore had fun with his characters and the action sequences are thrilling as any recent movie I have seen. Five stars I will recommend this series to anyone looking for a fun fantasy diversion. ( )