Author: R.A. Salvatore
Cover Artist: Todd Lockwood
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Binding: Hardcover
Publication Date: 2004
The conclusion of The Hunter’s Blade Trilogy picks up where The Lone Drow (the second installment) left off: the dwarves are attempting to thwart an orc advance and Drizzt is out in the wilderness causing havoc amongst the enemy’s ranks.
The Battlehammer dwarves have been “closed in” to their home – Mithril Hall. Fortunately for them though, they have underground tunnels leading to neighboring lands that the orcs have yet to locate. Clan Battlehamer was able to send scouts to Citadel Felbarr, and after informing them of the situation, the Felbarran dwarves agreed to send their army to Mithril Hall’s aid. However, there were two entities that would make this joining difficult: a river and orcs.
Drizzt – behind enemy lines – continues his assault on the orcs of the region while attempting to rescue Sunset – a Pegasus friend. He came close to rescuing her, but Obould, king of the orc army, foiled his plans with a trap. That turned out to be their first showdown, but by far not the last.
Becoming more trouble than she was worth, King Obould gave the frost giant leader, Gerti, the Pegasus. Consequently, Drizzt’s path lead away from the battle against Mithril Hall and turned towards the frost giants’ home that lay deep in the Spine of the World. Oddly enough, that journey led to an “understanding” between Gerti and Drizzt that would lead to the freeing of Sunset and another skirmish with Obould.
While out on a scouting session, Drizzt comes across the Bouldershoulder brothers, Ivan and Pikel, who notify Drizzt that his friends are still alive. Rather than practicing haste by going to his friends, Drizzt decides that he cannot pass up an opportunity to end this threat by defeating Obould. He carefully places himself in the proper position for the encounter, but unlike previous instances, this is on his terms.
Personal Thoughts:
Well, I sit here contemplating what to write in regards to the supposed conclusion of a series that I had been eagerly awaiting to complete for nearly three years. The anticipation while foraging through Drizzt’s previous tales continued to grow as I got closer and closer. I still remember walking past B. Daltons at Arrowhead Mall in Glendale, Arizona and catching a glimpse of a new release, The Thousand Orcs. I was so excited to get home and start reading it. Though, fifty pages in, I discovered that there were many books prior to this. So, like I have recommended to others already, I decided to start from the beginning and purchased Homeland.
That is where my journey began. Unfortunately, looking back on it all, I do not feel a sense of completion but rather an aching feeling of loss. I truly felt that the first piece of the Hunter’s Blade Trilogy was going to revive the series back to a state of fascination that it revealed with The Dark Elf Trilogy. But as I completed The Lone Drow, I was not so sure and my mind started contemplating how the The Two Swords could conclude the story that had taken the twists that it had. Since finishing it, I see that the tale did not end at all.
There were several scenes that readers had to be expecting. The biggest of which was Drizzt finding out that his friends had not fallen at Shallows. This was a concept that had been played continuously throughout this book, and I had goosebumps anticipating that meeting. Another was the inevitable battle between Obould and Drizzt. I felt that this book and its predecessor were primarily geared towards these two events, but when they happened, they were of no great consequence. That sense of jubilation I was expecting when Drizzt found out that his best friends were alive and awaiting his return, died. The expectation of a momentous battle between Gruumsh enhanced King Obould Many-Arrows and Drizzt Do’Urden was lost in a skirmish that lasted but a few moments. I expected at least one of these moments to bring fulfillment, but I ended up sulking to the anticlimactic tune.
When I see “trilogy” attached to a series, I feel that it is a safe bet to expect three books to complete a particular storyline. A perfect example is The Lord of the Rings. The evil was revealed to us, they determined how to vanquish the evil, and then they took care of business. Well, Mr. Salvatore decided to recreate that mold and finish this trilogy right in the middle. It irked me a little at first, but now that I have had time to reflect, I am glad that he did not finish it. I would have been more perturbed if he just threw in an ending to finish it; there is a lot left to be completed to bring finality to this tale.
Disregarding the aforementioned letdowns, I did still enjoy reading the book. I have really come to admire the morality of the dwarfs. Plus, I do enjoy reading about the other main characters – Bruener, Cattie-Brie, Regis, and Wulfgar. In the mean time, I will be awaiting the next book in hope that it will aspire to be like Sprite and quench my thirst.
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