The cover of In Sylvan Shadows. A black-clad elf on a white horse is accosted by a muscular young woman and a robed young man with a feathered hat. He doesn't look happy to see them. Behind them all, some sort of ogre or goblin or something is rising up with a sword to attack.

In Sylvan Shadows

“Goblins, orcs, ogres, orogs, ogrillons, giants — say what you like about the forces of evil, but at least they’ve put a lot of effort into creating a diverse workplace.”

The cover of Canticle. In the background, a robed young man with a walking stick is strolling down a path with a mountain in the background, reading a book. In the foreground, an evil-looking red-robed figure is holding a glowing vial and staring off to the side.

Canticle

“With five books all focusing on one overarching story, the temptation to indulge in sloppy characterization and meandering plots requires immense discipline to avoid. “Disciplined” isn’t really an adjective that springs to mind when I think about Salvatore’s writings thus far.”

The cover of Sojourn. Drizzt, a white-haired dark elf, stands at the mouth of a cave. Outside is the open sky and the surface world. His left hand rests on the back of Guenhwyvar, his giant panther companion who's posing next to him.

Sojourn

“Montolio feels like a much more sinister character to me now as an adult than he did when I was a teenager — the personification of the ugly questions about racism that the Drizzt books keep raising but then never addressing.”

The cover of Exile. In the background is the giant floating head of Guenhwyvar, a giant panther, with an expression that could be either menacing or laughing while stoned. In the foreground is Drizzt, a white-haired dark elf, looking dramatic while fire flares around him and a couple of goblins look on, terrified.

Exile

“There’s still some dialogue that feels stilted, some descriptions which seem affected, but the writing here isn’t nearly as painful as his previous work. (Either that or I’m just developing scar tissue from all the terrible books I’ve read, which is a very real possibility.)”

The cover of Homeland. Drizzt, a dark elf with long white hair, climbs over a tall black gate with a scimitar in one hand. Behind him is an ornate building with many phallic-looking towers.

Homeland

“I’ve thrown a fair amount of shade at Salvatore in my previous reviews — the Mary Sue characters, the stilted dialogue, the incredibly florid, dramatic prose style — and all of those flaws are still present here. But despite all that, I have to admit that this is a surprisingly good book.”

The cover of The Halfling's Gem. A train of camels races across a desert towards the viewer. The lead camel carries Drizzt, who's disguised as a blond-haired elf and naked to the waist, wielding a scimitar in one hand. The next camel carries Wulfgar, a muscular barbarian, and Catti-Brie, an improbably scantily dressed young woman. Far in the distance, Bruenor, an old dwarf, is on the camel in the rear.

The Halfling’s Gem

The Halfling’s Gem, unfortunately, is a textbook example of Orientalist literature: the noble northern (Western) characters visit exotic Calimshan (the Middle East), are disgusted by what they find, demonstrate their moral and physical superiority by kicking seven kinds of hell out of the depraved Calishites, then return to their home.”

The cover of Streams of Silver. Many skulls are suspended by ropes from the branches of a tree. At the base of the tree is Bruenor, an angry dwarf wearing a horned helmet with one horn broken off. He's carrying a shield with an arrow stuck through it and wielding an axe. On the snowy landscape behind him stand Drizzt, a cloaked dark elf wielding two scimitars; Regis, a plump halfling wielding a dagger, and Wulfgar, a muscular barbarian holding a hammer.

Streams of Silver

“This book follows Bruenor Battlehammer as he drags his friends around the northern Realms on a search for his clan’s ancestral home. It’s like The Hobbit, if there was only one dwarf and he had no idea where his home was.”

The cover of The Crystal Shard. Three figures pose dramatically on the tundra. One is a young barbarian man wearing furs and wielding a hammer. Another is a dark elf, crouching to inspect a line of blood in the snow. The third is a long-bearded, armoured dwarf with an axe. All of them are looking off into the distance at something behind the viewer.

The Crystal Shard

“Drizzt became an archetype that’s been parodied, deconstructed, and reconstructed so many times that now it’s like an overchewed piece of bubble gum, flavourless and tacky.”