The Ghost King Fiction Review
Posted on October 9, 2009 by teampreston
Available at Amazon.com
Also available at DriveThruFantasy.com
The Ghost King: Transitions Book III, By R.A. Salvatore
(Advance Reader Copy)
Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (October 6, 2009)
When the Spellplague ravages Faerûn, Drizzt and his companions are caught in the chaos. Seeking out the help of the priest Cadderly–the hero of the recently reissued series The Cleric Quintet–Drizzt finds himself facing his most powerful and elusive foe, the twisted Crenshinibon, the demonic crystal shard he believed had been destroyed years ago.
I think one of the coolest parts of writing reviews is not only getting to read a lot of material, but to really get in to the nuts and bolts of how that material is “assembled”. In this case I have been fortunate to read a LOT of Forgotten Realms novel by R.A. Salvatore as well as others such as Paul Kemp. Having read all the “Drizzt Novels” to date, I can say with certainty that the author has improved his craft greatly over the years.
R.A. Salvatore, like any writer clearly has a deep relationship with many of his characters. While some writers are able to outline and crank out material in a mechanical fashion more often then not they go through a sort of adventure of their own; discovering the world and characters as they write. It’s like a journey for the characters as well as the writer. In doing so the author learns to love and hate characters and tries to share it with us…the readers.
I think it is a measure of success when the author is able to manipulate the heart-strings of the reader, and R.A. Salvatore has done a masterful job at this over the years. Some times more than others, I admit it. I don’t expect a baseball player to hit a home run every time at the plate. I don’t expect a writer to write “the perfect novel” every time either. Stephen King is a good example of this.
R.A. Salvatore has been building up steam throughout this whole series. Transitions. In the Transitions series we are seeing the tale of how Faerun is going through some massive changes. Much of the face of The Forgotten Realms will be different afterward. At the heart of this are changes in direction and flavor of D&D 4th Edition and the 4e Forgotten Realms setting.
Like it or not, love it or hate it, Wizards of the Coast owns D&D and the setting that these novels reside in, and they have mandated change.
Our intrepid author is responsible for writing novels explaining how we get from the Forgotten Realms we have all known for the past 25 years…to this new setting.
What does that mean for the author? It means that in the jump in time that occurs the vast majority of humans and short-lived races will have died and left some sort of legacy (or not). Many of the characters which have been so lovingly crafted will die. That means core protagonists (and antagonists) will be no more.
R.A. Salvatore in this series has been building this up, and I have to say, he has most certainly delivered.
Without spoiling the story for you, I’ll say that all the protagonists and antagonists have a rough ride through the story. The Spellplague is up-close and personal in this novel. Actually, previous to this novel I thought the Spellplague to be a little trite. A game designer’s tool to wipe the slate clean and start fresh. Salvatore put a “human” face on it, made it personal. Now I get it. Now I understand it and accept it and in the process understand how we can leave the previous edition’s Faerun for the new future.
I can’t help to feel sorry for the author in this. You can certainly feel the pain. You know something is coming. It’s like watching a train wreck…you just can’t look away. This is a book of heroism in the face of impossible odds. Acceptance of fate as well as stoic denial of it. It’s about loss…and hope.
There is only so much I can say about it. Usually I can drone on and on about this or that in a novel. Not this time. You have to read it for yourself. It’s good. Seriously. Probably R.A. Salvatore’s best work. I cried like a baby. It took several tries to get through the last dozen pages.
Review by Jeff Preston
Related posts:
- The Pirate King Fiction Review
- Shadowrealm Fiction Review
- Promise of the Witch King Review
- Orc King by R.A. Salvatore Review
- Worlds of Their Own Fiction Review
Tags | forgotten-realms, ra salavatore, wotc
Wait a second… OMG is this the last book he’s writing?!? WHY!?!
Reply
no he is writing a new series of drizzt novels
Reply
Michael Reply:
July 27th, 2010 at 1:00 pm
I totally disagree with the review. I thought it was one of his worst novels to date. Someone falls down a thousand foot drop off the side of a mountain and survives by pushing off the rocks to slow their decent? A log swings into a huge monster followed by another log acting as a shotgun shell, filled with impact oil, moments later and luckily the first log is in the exact right place while hanging from the side of a huge monster to be connected perfectly by the log filled with impact oil. The entire novel seemed like a slap in the face to a reader who started reading his novels when they first went on the shelf right as I was graduating from school.
It wasn’t all bad there were several parts I liked but it seemed very rushed, like he just wanted to get it over with. To tell the truth….. so did I.
Reply
Mboo Reply:
August 16th, 2010 at 7:32 pm
Michael, I personally think you need to re-read the scenes in the novels, and familiarize yourself with the world of Faerun and Dungeons and Dragons a bit more.
First of all, since second edition (AD&D), Monks have been able to climb and slow their descent from great heights. High level monks, like Danica, have been known to fall off the backs of flying dragons and survive–its part of being a Monk. Having a wall there to slow her descent is actually not even required in 4th edition as it was required in earlier editions. In 4th, monks can actually fly for short periods of time using their psionic powers (See Monk Utility, level 22, Wind Walker).
As for the scene with the “huge monster” with the “shotgun” like effect, if you read closely, you will see that the first log pinned him into place (as was the plan) and the second forces the log through him further. It’s still in the same location because the beast has a tree sticking him into the wall.
Overall, I enjoyed the novel, but I do agree with the rushed feeling. The loss of characters we have loved for over 20 years simply didn’t have the conclusions that I would have wanted… the Companions of the Hall didn’t even all get to say their goodbyes. I look forward to what the future brings, but with trepidation. I definitely DON’T want to see another Weis and Hickman tragedy where you just throw their children in as their replacements.
Reply
ryan Reply:
October 10th, 2011 at 7:59 pm
i dont totally agree with that.i thought in”dragons of summer flame”the kids played a great roll in the book!especially palin n steel!
Mboo,
I agree completely. I read through the story from beginning to end, couldn’t put it down except to stomp and rave about the unfairness of how our characters were being treated. My wife was forced to stay awake as I regaled her with the rapid punctuation of lives.
I have a strong belief that since the characters that “died” didn’t really disappear into some unknown afterlife, then there will be a time where the Companions will be able to say goodbye, but only after they have learned some greater truth and reconciled themselves to this new world, started new lives, and Drizzt and Bruenor are just occasional companions. Remember, after all of Drizzt’s heartache over his god, and his continuing self-destructive faith, he saw Mielikki(unicorn) in Mooshie’s grove. Salvatore will have Drizzt soul-searching for a while, possibly as a hero fighting with Athrogate and Jarlaxle in some faraway land and then Jarlaxle will learn about the forest grove and then completion. End of Drizzt’s plight throught the uncertainty and then he will regain his faith in Mielikki, return to Ten Towns, and teach Wulfgar’s son how to fight. Remember, Wulfgar was supposed to be Salvatore’s main character and this way he’ll be able to actually write about all of those Barbarian sagas he’s already lived in his imagination. This, ladies and gentleman, is what I’m waiting for. I can’t wait to read what Salvatore actually wanted to write about.-Fin
Reply
ryan Reply:
October 10th, 2011 at 8:01 pm
well said!
Reply
The last sentence in the book, guests who never came? This sentence, along with the last paragraph of Cadderly, left me feeling a little empty. Does this mean that Drizzt will never be able to see his beloved in the after life? Never see Regis in the heaven mekliki gave to them? Is Drizzt’s god, and everyones god.. gone forever with the change of the weave? This seems more like a cliffhanger to me… one that wouldn’t be answered for another 20 years of Drizzt Books. Would have been an awesome conclusion to an end of that era, and R.A. Salvatore ended it with, “With guests that never came.” I either choose to ignore that, or try to predict what that actually means, either way, its awfully troubling.
Reply
Ev Reply:
October 17th, 2010 at 10:18 pm
Exactly why I have come online searching for reviews. I must say I felt hallow inside when I read that last sentence, which indicated that they would not rejoice and that Regis and Catti were not in a real heaven but still on Toril but just in a pocket-paradise plane.
Reply
I have a few questions about the ending which I’m not sure if anybody else has addressed…
1.This pocket plane of existence seems to be some kind of “personal heaven” set up by Mielikki. Regis, in this case, gets to fish and carve scrimshaw, two things he loved in life. He also gets to EAT? Why would a spirit need to eat? But the bigger question is Catti-brie’s version of heaven. She never sang or danced in real life. So why the hell would she want to spend an eternity doing those two things? That makes not one ounce of sense to me that these two disparate characters would be placed in the same “heaven” and be given conflicting versions of that “heaven”.
2.Why would Mielikki even place those two in the same setting? Apart from the points from above, there is also other considerations. If I were Regis and I was allowed to eat in that place, well then considering it was just myself and the beautiful Catti-brie there I could think of some other things to do with her than just sit around fishing. Halfling to have the need to procreate after all (even if it would just be for the fun of it in this setting). From Catti-Brie’s point of view, she would want to spend eternal bliss with Drizzt, not Regis. And the final line is “for guests that never came” which implies to me it’s supposed to be just those two forever.
I apologize to anybody who may find the second point a little “base” but if Entreri can go to Calimport to be with Dwhavel then I can’t see why those two couldn’t enter into a physical relationship since they’re “stuck” with just each other for eternity. For all of Mr. Salvatore’s incredible genius and his ability to paint wonderful stories with his words, I too feel that this ending was rushed. That’s my two cents.
Reply
With all due respect to Mr. Salvatore of whom I have been a dedicated fan for lo these many years I cannot accept the 4th edition D&D rules and 4th edition Forgotten Realms setting. I will not buy any of the books and I will not play that system ever. It has taken a system rationally and historically grounded in classical and medieval mythology and turned it into a comic book system thrown together purely out of whole cloth all for the enrichment of the corporate greed of WotC.
Whatever it’s literary merits The Ghost-King is a sellout to WotC which has bastardized and destroyed everything that was good about the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying gaming system and Mr. Salvatore should just have said no when it came to writing it. The whole concept of the “Spellplague” is ridiculous. Unless I have missed something it has yet to be explained how a deity, a divine, immortal being gets “murdered”. Maybe someone can explain this to me.
Salvatore should have just refused to promote the abomination that is the 4th ed. He has gone to the well one too many times. Perhaps too literally the tale is too “deus ex machina” and that is a departure from everything that Salvatore has written thus far in the Legend of Drizz’t. Sadly art has taken a backseat to the inevitable press of the almighty dollar. Transitions fails despite Mr. Salvatore’s talents as a writer.
Reply