The Crystal Shard / Streams Of Silver / The Halfling's Gem

Bottom Line: Loaner
This is the first of Salvatore's books I've read, and it is apparently his first book, which might explain a lot. It's hard to say sometimes from the first book, whether the author's storytelling will get better (or you might be more interested in it) the more books they write. Some do, some don't, and some are hits and misses the whole way through.
I was moving along, okay, not riveted to the book, but moving along with it. And then I came to the part with Kessell and the crystal shard, and that just put me at a dead stop, do not pass go point. It was very weak, and the magic (part of the foundation of the story) seemed hokey. It was not believable at all, and if the reader doesn't believe in the story, or world building, or characters, there's a problem.
I tried to pick the book up again, and maybe skip past that part, but I just couldn't.
I'd recommend for fantasy, Lorna Freeman, Robert Jordan, LOTR of course, Holly Lisle, The Briar King, Cast in Shadow, even Melanie Rawn's Dragon Prince.

This book is basically a role playing quest placed on paper. Go here, attack this, go here, attack this, hit, miss, hit miss.
First off, the characters are beyond cheesy. Everything they say, do and think I find myself thinking, "Ugh," and then sighing heavily.
Second, the fights are downright boring, not to mention all based on luck. Ok, I'll buy that one dragon gets killed, but two? Come on now. Not to mention, anytime the main characters seem to get pinned down they get miraculously saved (which I can't stand). Somehow some magic weapon or item that they just picked up yesterday saves their life every time. Seriously? I'll let that slide once in a book, but not as many times as this guy throws in there.
I always thought magic was based on D&D stuff, so I may be off here, but where I come from telekinesis is a 5th level spell, something one of the more powerful mages couldn't cast. Then there was a whole village of wizards that had created this amazing magical mansion but they can't just teleport the main characters where they need to go?
There were many places where the main characters should have been dead or at least missing limbs, yet they are the exception to everything, again, just like a role playing quest where the DM always saves a character that should have been killed.
I will say that the prologues were good. I'll give it that, but otherwise this was one of the most hoakiest books I've ever read.

An annoying trend that developed in fantasy writing is the practice of over-complicating the plot with intrigue, betrayal, schemes, politics, and jumping around between the POV's of many side characters. That style was even adopted by RA Salvatore himself in some of his later works. While this style can be entertaining for sure, it doesn't belong in a fantasy novel.

True fantasy is about pure, unrefined adventure. It is about a deep immersion in magic and lore, heroes and villains. Fantasy is supposed to inspire imagination. It is an escape from real life and a glimpse into a more interesting world.

Slow and boring stories with intricate nuances, subtle plots, and painfully slow build ups do not belong in the world of fantasy. All of that stuff is better suited for a history textbook or even real life. If fantasy was about real life, well it wouldn't be called fantasy now would it? And if it was like real life, why would people wish to escape into it? It would be completely counter-productive.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy does none of these things. It has the essence of what fantasy is supposed to be. It was written in the old-school style, as if in homage to Howard's Conan the Barbarian or Moorecock's Eternal Champion cycle. The comparison is easily seen in the way that Icewind Dale features a unique, vibrant, and skilled protagonist. Also, it will immerse you in lore, magics, epic battles, and bizarre locales. There will be absolutely nothing that is bland, plain, or otherwise boring. The action is intense and epic. The characters are compelling and real. As for plot, well let me just say that you can't know for sure what is lying in wait for the heroes around the next corner...

5/5. This is the template for what Fantasy novels should be like.

I read R.A. Salvatore's Icewind Dale Trilogy over 20 years ago when it first came out and quickly became a Salvatore fan. I've purchased every single one of his Forgotten Realms novels since then and have rarely been disappointed. This is the series that introduced the famous dark-elf rebel, Drizzt Do-Urden, along with the Companions of the Hall, Bruenor Battlehammer, Wulfgar, Cattie-Brie, and Regis the halfling. Also introduced in this series for the first time was Drizzt's Archnemesis, the assassin Artemis Entreri. Salvatore went on to write the Dark Elf Trilogy, which is a prequel to the Icewind Dale Trilogy which presents Drizzt's origins story. "The Legend of Drizzt" series of books, which contain all of Salvatore's books with the eponymous Drow renegade, goes chronologically starting with the Dark Elf trilogy, but I highly recommend reading the books as they were originally published. The first two books in the series, 'The Crystal Shard' and 'Streams of Silver', draw heavy influences from 'The Hobbit' and JRR Tolkien, with the gruff, deposed dwarf Bruenor Battlehammer setting off with the companions to reclaim their ancient dwarven homeland ransacked by an evil dragon. Aside from the familiar sounding plot, the books do a great job of developing the characters and providing a more expansive story than The Hobbit, while introducing and developing strong, female characters such as Cattie-Brie and Alustriel Silverhand. The third book departs from this main adventure to focus on a rescue mission for one of the companions and sets up the arch-rivarly between Drizzt and Artemis. If you're a Lord of the Rings fan, you should not miss this book. If you are not a Lord of the Rings fan, you will find this series more accessible than the Lord of the Rings. I've kept my original copies of this series for over 20 years, and it only gets better with time. Highly recommended.

R. A. Salvatore can be credited with single handedly bringing The Forgotten Realms and Drizzt Do'Urden into the minds and hearts of fantasy lovers everywhere. Being one of his first serious works, The Icewind Dale trilogy is a fun and action packed story with it's strongest trait being the extraordinarily detailed characters that inhabit it's pages.

The first book tells the tale of a community located in the ice filled north. These harsh conditions set the tone for a book filled with magical beings, dragons, and fantasy races of all kinds (namely dwarves, humans, elves, and dark elves). While the central conflict remains the defense of Ten Towns against a maddened wizard, what the story really focuses on is the central characters: Wulfgar the Barbarian, Drizzt the dark elf ranger, Bruenor the dwar, Catti-Brie the mage, and Regis the halfling.

The second book whisks the main characters off to the warmer and more dangerous southern coasts along the Sea of Swords. Salvatore increases his boundaries and really fleshes out the world he is slowly creating. It is really in this book that the story begins to really focus on Drizzt Do'Urden: his past, his present, and his future. Some critics have stated that Salvatore focuses almost too much on this much-loved dark elf. I would tend to agree, but that does not mean that this wonderful character and his night-filled past isn't worth exploring.

The concluding book in the trilogy remains (in my opinion) the least powerful of the three books, while introducing one of the more enjoyable villains who goes on to become a regular feature of future Salvatore books: Artemis Entreri. As with the other two books, you find yourself less and less caring about the overall story and just waiting for the time to come around when Drizzt and Artemis are going to square off.

The work itself exemplifies what R.A. Salvatore is very good at: creating characters that are filled with emotions, experiences, and character that are put in situations where you learn more and more about them. What you find is that you could care less about the overall story and look forward to the interactions between these very diverse people as they interact (or sometimes are forced to interact) with each other.

Overall, I recommend this book as a fun-filled summer read which is relatively light, but full of adventure. As the characters, especially Drizzt, hack and slash their way through hordes of undead, goblins, dragons and demons they endear themselves to you in a way where you want to pick up the next trilogy just to see where they will go next. In a way, these characters are the equivalent of fantasy superheroes and the story is almost a drawn out comic book in that the characters may find themselves tore apart, but they always manage to come back and save the day.

The one discredit I will give this book is that it, along with The Dragonlance Chronicles, began the era of cookie-cutter fantasy books which now fill the shelves of numerous bookstores around the country. Dragonlance is particularly prone to this problem. That being the case you have to be very selective in your choosing a book set in either of these two realms as you never know the quality of the story you are about to read. With that in mind though, a rich world full of delightful characters await the reader who turns their mind onto The Icewind Dale Trilogy.

Wilven's Book Review on "The Crystal Shard", September 23, 2001
"The Crystal Shard" The first book of The Icewind Dale Trilogy, by R.A. Salvatore.
"The Crystal Shard" is the first book in The Icewind Dale Trilogy, written by R.A. Salvatore. It is a fantasy that takes place in the forgotten realm Toril, on a stretch of forbidding tundra called Icewind Dale. Icewind Dale is home to nine fishing towns and a town on a hill that together are commonly known as Ten-Towns. In the Crystal Shard, R.A. Salvatore spawns a host of intriguing characters and a captivating plot, creating a book you can't put down.
This book introduces many characters. The four main characters are Drizzt Do'Urden, Bruenor Battlehammer, Wulfgar, and the crystal shard, Crenshinibon.
Drizzt Do'Urden is a Drow warrior and a friend of Bruenor. Unlike the other ruthless Drow, Drizzt has a moral conscious and values life. His friend Bruenor Battlehammer is a dwarven fighter and the leader of his clan, clan Battlehammer. Another character in this captivating book is Wulfar. He is a strong barbarian warrior and wields Aegis-fang, a magical battlehammer made by Bruenor. Crenshinibon though only a crystal shard, is an evil, conscious, and magical artifact that is determined to take hold of as much power as possible. The crystal shard is almost invincible and feeds off the power of the sun. Being a conscious artifact, it can choose its user and communicate with him and at its will, bestow tremendous power on those who possess it.
Icewind Dale is a stretch of forbidding tundra north of the Spine of the World to the west of the Reghed Glacier, south and east of the Sea of Moving Ice. Akar Kessell, a weak-willed wizard's apprentice, found Crenshinibon in the Spine of the World when the shard was thrown to the Prime Material plane to stop Errtu, a major demon, from obtaining the shard. The story hits a climax when Kessell's fanatical army attacks Ten-town. How will the towns defeat Kessell's seemingly invincible, vile army?
The Crystal Shard is a well-written captivating book that is best read with the rest of the trilogy. It has an interesting story line, amusing jokes and good characters. All in all I think it's a very good book. If you add the rest of the trilogy, it's even better!

R.A. Salvatore is not a writer of great literature. He's a competent writer, but neither terribly original or talented.
But when an author writes a book that's this much fun, what does it matter?
The Icewind Dale trilogy is the literary equivalent of a summer blockbuster movie- it won't provoke your mind, but it will put you on the edge of your seat. Salvatore spins a tale of heroic fantasy, bloody, frequent, and very detailed combat, cackling wizards, thuggish thieves, bumbling hobbi-err-halflings, mighty barbarians, dwarven halls fallen to shadow, and every other Tolkienesque fantasy cliche to ever hit paper. But for whatever Salvatore may lack in creativity, he makes up for with pacing and a passion for storytelling that any reader looking for an enjoyable fantasy trip will fall in love with.
However, Salvatore does bring an interesting addition to the pot- he introduces the character of the "dark elf" Drizz't Do'Urden. Whereas Tolkien's elves were light given form, the Drow of the Forgotten Realms are darkness personified- a race that knows not of love, friendship, passion, or creation- only of hatred, betrayal, lust, and destruction. Drizz't, an outcast from his race, is the tormented, heroic soul at the center of the book- a man torn between a society that he rejected and a society that rejects him. Whereas some critics have tried to draw (superficial) comparisons between Drizzt and Moorcock's Elric of Melnibone, there are few similarities- Moorcock's Elric is a decadent in a decadent society, whereas Drizzt rejects his decadent society for a life of rugged individualism.
The bottom line: Salvatore concocts a blend of action-movie heroics and fantasy cliches with a unique (and now beloved) hero. While the story is neither challenging nor suprising (at least to veteran fans of the fantasy genre), it has the enjoyable flare of a good "popcorn" movie. Salvatore truly delivers the goods, even if you've already seen them before.

I just finished reading the book so it's still somewhat fresh in my mind.

First, let me say that as these are the older books from Salvatore and that his writing isn't as polished I guess. I don't like Salvatore's style of writing, I'll say that outright, but there is a lot of fun in these stories. There are just enough detail for the reader to fill in the rest. Rarely does more than a paragraph or two detail the backdrop, but like I said it was enough for me and I have no fantasy reading background.

I advise against purchasing this particular Collectors Edition. This was riddled with typos and odd characters. Towards the end I was spotting random characters thrown in about once every 50 pages or so and it was annoying. For example, "r" and "n" were used together, rn, to look like "m", and some odd capitalization of words like thIs as well as "]" just thrown in as a period. I don't understand how or why but if that bothers you try the individual books in the Icewind Dale Trilogy; their artwork is better too.

I read R.A. Salvatore's Icewind Dale Trilogy over 20 years ago when it first came out and quickly became a Salvatore fan. I've purchased every single one of his Forgotten Realms novels since then and have rarely been disappointed. This is the series that introduced the famous dark-elf rebel, Drizzt Do-Urden, along with the Companions of the Hall, Bruenor Battlehammer, Wulfgar, Cattie-Brie, and Regis the halfling. Also introduced in this series for the first time was Drizzt's Archnemesis, the assassin Artemis Entreri. Salvatore went on to write the Dark Elf Trilogy, which is a prequel to the Icewind Dale Trilogy which presents Drizzt's origins story. "The Legend of Drizzt" series of books, which contain all of Salvatore's books with the eponymous Drow renegade, goes chronologically starting with the Dark Elf trilogy, but I highly recommend reading the books as they were originally published. The first two books in the series, 'The Crystal Shard' and 'Streams of Silver', draw heavy influences from 'The Hobbit' and JRR Tolkien, with the gruff, deposed dwarf Bruenor Battlehammer setting off with the companions to reclaim their ancient dwarven homeland ransacked by an evil dragon. Aside from the familiar sounding plot, the books do a great job of developing the characters and providing a more expansive story than The Hobbit, while introducing and developing strong, female characters such as Cattie-Brie and Alustriel Silverhand. The third book departs from this main adventure to focus on a rescue mission for one of the companions and sets up the arch-rivarly between Drizzt and Artemis. If you're a Lord of the Rings fan, you should not miss this book. If you are not a Lord of the Rings fan, you will find this series more accessible than the Lord of the Rings. I've kept my original copies of this series for over 20 years, and it only gets better with time. Highly recommended.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy garnered a considerable amount of acclaim from fantasy literature enthusiasts for good reason: the characters and the battle scenes. All of the characters are overblown fantasy archetypes (big strong barbarian, noble ranger, dwarf with a stern demeanor but a tender heart, heartless assassin), but they are presented in such a surreally likable manner that it's impossible not to become attached to them -- especially Drizzt, Salvatore's most popular hero. The story lines are standard fantasy fare, but the characters sustain the reader's interest....as do the densely packed battles. Salvatore's battle choreography and exciting writing style turn mundane encounters into exciting confrontations, and pivotal battles into thrilling, mind-blowing fights.
The Icewind Dale Trilogy is not my favorite of Salvatore's Drizzt books, but it's a good start to a legendary hero's saga. This hardcover edition is a good buy, with Drizzt's provacative essays (which start each part) having been added to this edition. Typos are prevalent. This is unprofessional and sloppy, but I think it's been overblown by the other reviews...it's really not too big a deal.

Having never read any books of RA Salvatore's, I was hoping for the best when I got this book for Christmas. I'd gotten the book largely because I had liked the computer game (Great reason, I know ;)). It was a gamble that paid off. Drizzt Do'Urden, the main character of the series, has easily replaced Jimmy the Hand (from the Raymond Feist books) as my favorite character in a novel. I liked Drizzt right off the bat, mostly because he could fight with two scimitars (Another great reason =P). However, I quickly grew to like the drow much more, largely because of to the essays written by Drizzt before every book, which pretty much bare Drizzt's heart to the reader. I'm not usually the kind to pay any attention to that whatsoever, but Drizzt is really the exception. In a way, he's the ideal hero, and I'm not just referring to his fighting prowess. He's a very likable and honorable person, even if he is a dark elf, and shunned by nearly everyone who sees him. He still upholds his own high personal code of conduct, even in the face of their insults. Rarely does Drizzt act dishonorably. Jowever, when he does, Guenhyvar is right by his side, acting as his conscience. For a large black panther, Guenhyvar is remarkably close to human, not just a pet, but an actual friend of Drizzt's. While Icewind Dale is not always the most original series in the world (Book 2 is a blatant rip-off of Tolkien's The Hobbit), the characters, Drizzt and otherwise, easily make up for whatever failings the book might have. As such, this book has earned one of my hard-to-attain 5 star ratings. It certainly does deserve it.

I know well that this review is just another in a long string. I know that it will likely not be read by anyone. However, this series though certainly not a timeless classic is a lot of fun to read. I take personal offense the the reviewers who decide to attack my maturity and intelligence level for enjoying these books. Is the writing top notch in these? No. But it is a wole heck of a lot of fun. I agree that George R.R. Martin is top tier fantasy literature at the moment. But I unlike other reviewers am able to get my mind shifted into all types of other gears. Salavatore's books are like reading the fight scene's from the LOTR movies. These books are action packed and a ton of fun. They are not trying to fool you into believeing anything else. Salavatore never attempts to come across as the next coming of Tolkein. It's worth mentioning that this is his first series if you read the entire Drizzt series through you can mark a steady increase in his ability to craft a story.

Read these books if sometimes you like your fantasy to be basic, in your face and fun escapism. Drizzt is a cool character. But apparently because I like him I'm stupid. Can he and all his friends escape situations that are overwhelming and unlikely? I don't know. I'm sorry I have no frame of reference for how well a Dark Elf, Mountain Dwarf, Halfling, Barbarian and Human archer wielding a magic bow would fare against a horde of Trolls and Goblins. I'm not so riduculous and egotistic as to think that I can apply real world standards to totaly imaginary situations.

In short your brain is a big place. It has numerous facets and and levels. Give it a try. Not every book has to impact you deep in your soul. Basically Drizzt and the gang are like a non-stop summertime blockbuster movie.

First... everyone thinks they are a critic, few get paid to do so. There are rave reviews and critical critiques of any work. The best critic for you is you, you won't know how good (or bad but not in this case, it is until you give it a read and decide for yourself.

This review is not a 'book report' like many, and you won't get a summary of the book that ruins the story...

Salvatore is an excellent and unique writer. He keeps you reading and interested. I'm continually amazed by how he will introduce subtle things early on that have signifigance long after they are mentioned, almost fogotten... he truly is a great story weaver!

You'll not be disappointed.

If you like fantasy, Elves, magic, good writing, great story line and plot, then this is for you! A+

Despite what the faulty review below says, this is not a mirror of LTR... its more 'grown up', less book filling talk about endless details that LTR features. D&D books such as this seem to have way more actual fantasy than just fantasy characters not really doing anything fantastic as in LTR. These books feature dark elves, (evil), demons, dragons, other plains of exsistance etc... don't recall that in LTR.

Obviously the reviewer didn't read all 3 books in the claim that this is a mirror of LTR for an object of power... hello what was the title of book 1? The crystal shard. And book 3? The halfling's gem... wow, two different books on two different items of power. I guess if you wanted you could draw similarities between Dr. Seuss and this book or anybook.

If you're looking for a good read, this is for you!

Hello, I am a 15 year old high school student, and I just recently purchased all of R. A. Salvatore's novels and I don't regret one single purchase because every single book is a masterpiece that I have yet to find surpassed. I have read hundreds of books and even the so famed LotR collection, and I am sorry, but Tolkien is good, but not nearly as good as Salvatore, he is completely brilliant the way he captures you into his novels after 4 sentences. The way he has you in a completely different world in a matter of mere seconds is amazing. I mean one second you can be in your living room on a rainy day and decide that you would like to read. So you pick up his book and not a minute later you are suddenly watching a heated battle between Drizzt and some very unfortunate goblin army or a few drow soldiers who are very unlucky to be in the path of Drizzt and his extremely powerful friends. How he describes the battles as if he were there, how he builds a complete world and makes things constantly move, and gives each and every character a rich and intriguing personality is just complete genious. I recommend these books to ANYONE who likes fiction, especially if you enjoy action/fantasy. If you are that person who likes action books or likes fantasy books period, you will never make a better purchase

I don't recall ever reading a book that when I closed it and looked up afterwards I thought to myself. I really feel like we had been through so much together.

That's how you'll feel when you're finished writing this book. It spans many years, and involves friend's gained, and friend's lost...sometimes friend's found again.

You'll feel an overwhelming sense of satisfaction, and an unbreakable bond with the characters.

As is typical with an omnibus you get a complete set of books in one with a nice price break, which is always a plus. We have the published introduction of Drizzt Do'Urden, one of the pillars of the Forgotten Realms Franchise. Unfortunately Salvatore had not yet grown into his full talent yet and it shows in comparison to the Dark Elf trilogy. My individual reviews below...

The Crystal Shard.
2.5 stars I reluctantly round down to 2.

The Crystal Shard, Salvatore's first, and worst, entry into the Forgotten Realms franchise. It is obvious from reading the later works that he was still learning the craft of storytelling at this point. Not to say it is terrible, just that it isn't very good, particularly in comparison to Dark Elf Trilogy where he got much better. Even the next book Streams of Silver is muchly improved.

Some of the problems of the book stem from the change of the hero, from Wulfgar to Drizzt. In the introduction to The Cleric Quintent Salvatore briefly mentions that TSR wanted a story about a barbarian hero, and along the way he fell in love with Drizzt and thus the storyline went down that path. No complaints for Drizzt is much more interesting but it does not make for a smooth story progression when the author makes such a radical change.

The other major problem is just that there is too much introduction of major characters to fit comfortably in one book. We have the big five, Drizzt, Wulfgar, Cattie-Brie, Regis and Bruenor as well as a handful of townspeople and barbarians before even getting to the villain. This causes too much to be happening with each character getting a tiny little timeslice of the book before we move on to the next.

The villain, or rather the villain's puppet, I actually liked. A weak willed wanna-be mage given power beyond his wildest dreams is actually only a minor threat. He indulges in wish fulfillment and actually needs to be prodded into action by the sentient Crystal Shard, and of course isn't really up to anything more than playing with his harem. Perhaps not satisfying to those seeking a master villain, but it is clever in a certain way. However, the weakness of the villain, as clever and realistic as I found it doesn't make for great confrontation. When Artemis Entreri appears in Streams of Silver, the stories get much better as Drizzt has an enemy his equal.

Overall I'm afraid I have to call this below average, but with the knowledge that things get better it is worth taking a look at.

Streams of Silver
3.5 stars rounded to 3

Every hero needs a villain! We get the villain in the second book of the Icewind Dale trilogy as well as a much better, though fairly derivative, plot.

Salvatore has improved immensely in this book compared to the weaker Crystal Shard entry. Characterization is a little better as he focuses in on Bruenor and Drizzt, and the plot is much tighter.

The best thing about this book is the introduction of the assassin Artemis Entreri. Supremely skilled, coldly calculating, ruthless and utterly evil he is not only the equal of Drizzt in swordsmanship but also in intelligence. A mirror image of Drizzt with pragmatism replacing compassion. With a little bit of the reader's willing sense of disbelief he provides a sense of real peril for our heroes.

Some of the side trips, particularly the Harpell's are well done and amusing. The expendable villains are also competently portrayed.

Over all a nice improvement over the Crystal Shard, but not yet as good as Dark Elf trilogy.

The Halfling's Gem
3.5 stars

Artemis Entreri returns in the final selection of the Icewind Dale trilogy, doing some really evil things to Regis as he takes him back to Calimport to face the rough justice of the thieve's guild. We get to see Regis grow in this novel, from the shallow, content, manipulative fat halfling in the previous books into someone who has a spine and exhibits real bravery.

Meanwhile our heros pursue them via sea and partake in a high seas adventure battling pirates. A scenario that Salvatore will use again to great effect in the fourth book of The Legacy of the Drow. It is really a great change from dungeon crawling to have some open air adventuring on the high seas.

Upon finally arriving at Calimport, the heroes get to experience treacherous life in the big city, with were-rats, the thieves guild and Artemis Entreri all working together against the group, but each out for their own interests.

As in Streams of Silver, the plotting is fairly tight and the characterization reasonably good.

I enjoyed the story a great deal. This edition of the trilogy is atrocious though. The second and third book have so many spelling and punctuation errors that I was truly dumbfounded. It is obvious from the types of errors that older copies of the books were scanned and run through an OCR program. Then no one went through them to fix the inevitable errors those programs introduce. There is punctuation missing, with sentences running into one another. Periods where there should be commas, commas where there should be periods. Many words are wrong. Capital "I" where there should be lowercase "l", and so on. The errors and numerous enough that they really broke the flow for me as I was reading, having to often try to figure out what was supposed to be said in any given passage instead of the nonsense in front of my eyes. Pass on the collector's edition and hopefully you will get a copy without the errors. I can still hardly believe such a mess was made of this classic series.

To me this is absolutely, without a doubt the best series of books ever.. That isn't to be taken lightly.. I have read Tolkien (Which I loved very much), But Salvatore writes fluently. You never lose interest in his books. So far I have read the Dark Elf Trilogy, and the Icewind Dale Trilogy, and I have one book to finish in the Legacy of the Drow series. I have seen some so-so reviews on the Legacy series, but I'm still hooked. I can't wait to read the Cleric Quintet and see how he ties all the characters from the two series together in his next Drizzt series called The Underdark. And for those of you fascinated with the drow society he is beginning to release a new series based on the drow society called the War of the Spider Queen, first book called Dissolution. Can't wait to catch up.. If you really like good exciting fantasy with intersting characters and societies I also recommend Laura Resnics In Legend Born. Also an excellent read. Have fun.

I am, admittedly, a Drizzt fanatic, and it was the original (separate) versions of this trilogy which first hooked me. The characters are compelling, and I more than once found myself holding my breath to see if they would survive, or shaking my fist at guards when the main character, dark elf Drizzt Do'Urden, was turned away from the gates of yet another city. The storyline, too, is also rich with both action and philosophy, and this particular edition of the trilogy also includes journal entries written by Drizzt, which are a welcome addition.
However, this wonderful book is also not without flaws. Namely, the typos. I have absolutely no idea what R.A. Salvatore's editors were using as their spellchecker (and they should've run a visual sweep anyway), but it is in desperate need of replacing. The worst typo I can bring to mind at the moment is the repeated spelling of the word "alley" as "ally"--those words have two very different meanings in a fight scene. It should be noted that these typos were absent from the original novels, so there is no excuse for the serious lack of editing. Another note on the fight scenes which I noted in the last novel, "The Halfling's Gem," should be made clear. Apparently, these characters are immortal, because they survived things that should have killed at least one of them. The climax of "The Halfling's Gem" stretched my believability in the story to its limits and beyond, I am sorry to note, and the Companions lost a bit of my respect. (Though they did regain it in later novels, where they were more human and less of demi-gods.)
The other flaw in the story appears in "Streams of Silver," with its tale of Mithril (or Mithral, as certain editors have taken to spelling it) Hall, gray dwarves and the dragon Shimmergloom, runs an all-too-familiar road--one already taken by J.R.R. Tolkien with Moria in the Fellowship of the Ring. As much as I do admire one particular character's noble sacrifice and another's silent tribute to him (which I will never, ever forget), the entire climax of the novel rings too similarly with LotR for my liking.
Still, the rest of the trilogy is enjoyable, with its unforgettable, laughable, and romantic moments. Definitely a must for fantasy fans, if you can stomach the typos.

This is the series that started off the Legacy of Drizzt. Perhaps the best group of books I have read, and re-read, and re-read again, and again. I can never get tired of them. Perhaps I'm wrong in saying, or more likely others have their own opinions and I'll probably be slain in my sleep for saying this, but I believe RA Salvatore is the best author I have come across, better than Tolkien, and Jordan, I mean how many of their characters did you actually relate to? You didn't, you just read about them, but you picture in your head and feel like Salvatores characters are real, or almost, because a piece of you is in them, while I'm sure you have never crushed a demons head, for the most part they have the same plights as us, love, hate, insecurities, etc. and Salvatore brings it out and lets you feel it. I only hope Salvatore keeps pumping out books about Drizzt, or maybe one about the character I relate to the most, Mr. Artemis Entreri..... lol If you don't own them, or haven't read them, pick them all up, from the Crystal Shard to The Silent Blade, you will not regrett it.

R.A. Salvatore has a way of making his characters come to life, and with the Icewind Dale trilogy, it is no exception. These books shed some more life on Drizzt, everyone's favorite dark elf. As well as his friends Bruenor, and Cattie-Brie. The three books in this series, are full of action and adventure, suspense and emotional moments. They are all great, none of them could get much better. Salvatore's writing style is great, making you see what is happening in his head, and making you lose yourself in his world.
The three books in this series, show that battle that these friends must make. Bringing in new characters like Wulfgar and Artemis, Drizzt's archenemy. Before you start this series, make sure that you read the dark elf trilogy first, just so you get what is going on. If you are a fan of fantasy, or Drizzt, this books is a must!

This is a very well written epic. Starting with a young barbarian(actually someone more wimpy on pg 1 of story 1) and I'll say no more. The author must take fantasy very seriously to write it this interesting. Most fantasy authors are mushy "filler" books but this one is not, except for the fighting scenes which are a bit long, a whole chapter or two at one point, but at least they are well discribed and very graphic(not recommended for your 17 and under group). Drizzt odviously isn't someone I would mess with being ambi-dextrous and all, like all good rangers should be. A very good tale in the Dale. I am only 2/3's of the way through the first story but I can say that if the 1st one is good they all will be, I can't wait to read the others! Read the book and you'll love the game even more!

I don't have much to say here that everyone else hasn't said. This is an excellent series and well worth any fantasy reader's time. Salvatore isn't always the most original author, but his characters are so compelling you won't care. Drizzt, Bruenor, Cattie-Brie and Wulfgar all seemed like demipowers in 'the Legacy,' the first Salvatore novel that I read, and this is the series in which to discover how they got that way. Knocking off demons and dragons does a lot for one's level. Most importantly, these characters are likeable, unlike a certain priest that plays the protagonist in a certain Salvatore quintet. Read this series if you haven't already, but avoid this hardcover - its typos are the work of a Cyricist. Hey, Wizards of the Coast, did you really have to insult some of the Forgotten Realms' best literature by butchering the narrative like this? I agree with everyone else: Buy the paperbacks.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy Collector's Edition is three books in one. This book holds a story of adventure, danger, friendship, magic, monsters, the search for a dwarven mine, a want-to-be tyrent, a powerful shard, a troublesome gem,a powerful thieth guild, were rats, Tarterus, and an obsessed to kill Drizzt D'o Urden assassin named Enteri.

Join Drizzt(a dark elf), Wulfgar(a barbarian), cattie-brie(a human), Bruenor(a dwarf), Regis(a halfling), and Guenhyvar(a panther spirit from the astral plain)on a journey to find a lost homeland,defeat Akar Kessell, save the troublesome Regis from the Calimport guild.

I would recomend this book to ages 10-15 asuming they are willing to read a 1040 pages.I would also recomed ages 16-20 for imature teanagers and adults.Before you read this book I would also recomend that you read The Dark Elf Trilogy book first and after this book Legacy of The Drow(dark elf).

let's review: we have a dark elf and his companions. A dwarf, a human, a halfling, a barbarian. An antagonist. All these characters are well defined and descriptive. They have qualities and philosophies that are endearing to that of the world in which we really do exist. For a fan of these characters they become as real as anything in life itself. This is the main reason that they continue in the authors heart and equally the readers. We also have unique insight into the main characters thoughts and feelings and beliefs. He is a dark elf that was born as all creatures are, inherently good. The choices of his people have forced him from his home in pursuit of not only an inner happiness but also a place that could truly be defined as good. Not always reaching his goal of that idea, I believe he sees the pursuit as fulfilling as the end result. Introspective, enchanting, enjoyable and as real as anything could possibly be. These books are wonderful.

I hate to compare works of others to Tolkien but he did set the standard and Salvatore has come closer than any to reaching that level. Having read Lord Of The Rings (for the first time) 25 years ago i had given up on the fantasy genre as nothing compared to those masterworks of fantasy . Brooks left me wanting and while Goodkind's work is good its just not what i was looking for. Icewind Dale was recomended to me and finally at long last i have found some truly great fantasy. While not as epic and detailed as LOTR it is well worth the read and i am in the process of finding other Forgotten Realms fantasy by Salvatore. Its not LOTR and nothing ever will be but if you've read and loved Tolkien's work then give this a try. Good stuff.

Salvatore's debut of Drizzt, Wulfgar, and all of the others that readers have come to love over the years is just excellent. From the discovery of the Crystal Shard to the scimitar whirling conclusion of the Halfling's Gem. The book in my opinion does not disappoint. The novels are packed full of adventure, intrigue, and yes even a little romance. Salvatore's writing is tight, and imaginative, and his characters quickly endear themselves to the reader. His trademark action sequences never disappoint, and above all else we get our first glimpse into the heart, and mind Drizzt Do'Urden. Yes I must agree with the previous reviewers on their take of the rather shoddy job of proof-reading, but I wouldn't let that spoil a wonderful read!

This series is amazing though if you are going to read this series I recommend you read the Dark elf trilogy that is alsa by R.A. Savatore because it explains the Drizzt Do'Urdens past and why he as a dark elf is on the surface and it will really help this book make sense.

The story is about Drizzt and his friend Buenor, wufgar and Cattie-bree who have to defeat the owner of the crystal shard which is a power weapon which has a mind of it's own. If you like action( because of the wars) and interesting caracthers than you'll love this fabulous book. I will not give away anything from the other two books because in my opinion they are even better. The first book is dull sometimes but the rest EXECELLENT!!!

This is the trilogy that launched the career of one of the greatest fantasy characters ever in existence, the Dark Elf, Drizzt Do'Urden. Such a wonderful character! (It didn't do too much harm for Salvatore's career either!) This trilogy is heavy on the action and fighting sequences but they are balanced with thoughtful character-driven insight and development. And I can't forget to mention one of the best villain's ever to grace the written page, Artemis Entreri. You will rarely see a better written bad guy. If you have stayed away from Forgotten Realms books or others based on games, don't pass this one by. And don't miss the Dark Elf Trilogy either, for a wonderful taste of the early life of Drizzt and the world of the Underdark. Both volumes have a very special place on my crowded book shelves. Good reading!

I got interested in this series because of, one, the author who is a very well known name in the Realms story line and two, I played D&D with my 2 sons several years back under the origional rules and magic before any updated or "improved" versions, when we stopped playing I was a 10th level cleric. It took a while to get back into the story line because of the time lag between then and now but after I did the story flowed better and was easier to understand what was going on. It was very predictable at times but, as in the game, there is always a way out if you think about it and use your imagination. I have since ordered other trilogies with Drizzt Do'Urden and enjoy them very much. He is a most interesting character and the stories are fun to read. You can look into the character and his philosophy and, at least to me, see that they relate very much to the way most people think someone should be. Honorable, trustworthy and above all a devoted friend willing to go the extra mile to help his friends, to live his life as he believes, to follow his ideals. Everyone should do that but few do.

Salvatore is a wonderful story teller in this genre, and the characters in the Icewind Dale cycle are ones you will fall in love with. Anyone who has not heard of Drizzt, the Drow ranger, and reads fantasy literature has been living in a shell. This book, along with the two collector editions of Drizzt's other journeys will be classics, if not already.
Now, the downside. Whoever is responsible for proofreading at the publisher should take a visit to the ophthalmologist. There are glaring typos spread throughout this book, and though they dont make it difficult to tell what is happening, they are distracting and annoying. You would think that this publisher would show better respect for such a creative genius as R.A. Salvatore.
The tales within get 5 stars, the poor proofing gets 3 stars, with an average of 4 stars between the two.
Bradford Hurst, MD
PS Since I'm not a professional writer, I hereby disclaim myself from any poor proofing of my review :)

To those who are curious at R.A. Salvatore's fame at fantasy novels, this is where to start, and what better deal than to get his first trilogy as a compilation of three books ("The Crystal Shard", "Streams of Silver", and "Halfling's Gem") in one thick but complete book.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy is quite a great read especially to Fantasy enthusiasts because Salvatore made it such a feast to the senses with his attention to the characters' combat details. He made his characters well grounded and realistic in terms of behaviour such that it's easy to empathize with each of the key characters.

It is about a group of misfits joined together by fate and consequence, at first to defend their common community, then to save a friend. This trilogy introduced the companions Bruenor Battlehammer the dwarf-king, his adopted human daughter Cattibrie, his later adopted son Wulfgar the barbarian, Regis the halfling thief, and the beloved renegade drow ranger Drizz't Do'urden or Drizzt Daermon Nashezbaernon.

This trilogy spawned a lot of series that launched and continually contributed to the popularity of R.A. Salvatore as a great storyteller.

This is a great piece of reading that I'm sure most of you will keep in your personal libraries for you to read over and over. One of the best readings I ever had my eyes laid on.

I have just finished reading The Icewind Dale trilogy and just can't say enough about it. I thought Terry Broks was good (and believe me he is) but I was completely blown away with this series. Drizzit,Cattie-Brie,Wulfgar and the rest of the gang lead you through one adventure after another. I was hooked by the end of the first chapter. The characters are fleshed out,the pace non-stop,mixed in with a great sense of humor. It also teaches alot about tolerance,and not judging people for what they appear to be. Talk about honor among friends. You could not be in better company. I look forward to getting the rest of Mr Salvatore's books. Please kep them coming!

I grew up having only read J.R.R. Tolken. These books are great! I never picked up another fanasy book thinking how could any another be as good.
It wasn't till last year a friend gave me Homeland. That's were it all started for me. I just started The Legacy. I cannot put these books down. So far I have been immersed in this awesome world R.A. Salvatore has created. Some freinds of mine say they are envious that I am enjoying these books for the first time. I am glad I have many more to go.
I highly suggest Starting right with The Dark Elf Trilogy, Icewind Dale Trilogy, Legacy Of The Drow Collectors Edition, Paths of Darkness, then on to Cleric Quintet. Your in for some great reading!

I read the Icewind Dale trilogy quite a few years(and about 30 Forgotten Realms books) ago, and I still can feel the aura that radiates from the trilogy. I find Middle Earth very shallow compared to the intrigue of Menzoberannzan. The ID set was the begining of it all. Drizzt opens himself to the reader at the begining of every section. Sure, if you read J.r.r. Tolkien you will find the underlying symbolism and allusions(i.e- friendship, sacrafice, good vs evil) but that is not the true allure of Tolkien. The world which engulfs many first time fantasy readers... this is often imitated by sci-fi and fantasy readers.

I can respect the originality of Middle Earth, and more importantly Ed Greenwood and the Forgotten Realms; but, the very thing that makes a book so great is the way the author brings you through. And honestly, after maturing a bit and expanding my library of fantasy books I find Middle Earth verry shallow. After the oringal fascination of reading about Elves and Dwarves, Orcs and Goblins, Wizards and Hobbits. For starters, why does the land have to be a ravaged and depressing place where the Elder races are but a fading dream and the hope of the world is in the hands of incompetent men. Take the recent movies...they had to be embellished to the point that I couldnt even reconize the root of the stories. Eomer and Tom cut out almost totally, along with many others...so they can add action. Elves at Helms Deep? Did Peter Jackson ever think what 50 or 100 Elves would really do in that battle? I would imagine he didnt. I cant understand why he would try to make the movies something the book was not? Though I would imagine its because people dont generally like a movie with nothing but a boring plot. The whole of fantasy worlds is not a new thing. Thirty years ago elves and ents were a mystery to many, I can thank Mr. Tolkien for changing that. But now that this genre has evolved, deep characters facing everyday struggles, magic, gods, and often heavy action and intriguing plots are the very thing that so many cant get enough of. This is exactly what makes the Icewind Dale set and the following Salvatore novels (and dont forget the short stories:P they are very good, perhaps FR will release a book of his short stories)are all the things I could ever want in a book.

Mr. Salvatore is a very nice guy who I have had the pleasure of conversing with on several times(heh, even if it was while online gaming) and I know he is just so much like me and many others that just love the whole idea of adventuring and have visions of grandeur with a group of friends in front of me on the road and a certain Drow and his panther watching my back. In the Icewind Dale I truly felt like I was there, and what more could I really ask for?

Set in the Forgotten Realms Dungeons & Dragons campaign world, The Icewind Dale Trilogy is the first novel by R.A. Salvatore and introduces the most famous D&D character - Drizzt Do'Urden. The funny part is, only the first book takes place in Icewind Dale.
This is often compared to J.R.R. Tolkien's "The Lord of the Rings," but it really shouldn't be in the way that it is. The only thing I noticed, really, was in the first book it mentions how Bruenor's clan, Battlehammer, had "delved too greedily and too deep," almost an exact line from the books. However, when they do reach the mine, you will find it is wholly unlike Moria (the mine from Tolkien's work). Also, these are, for the most part, three seperate stories which are strung together by the assassin Artemis Entreri who quickly becomes Drizzt's rival, the conflict finally coming to a head in the final novel.
You will be brought in by these books in a way Tolkien could never bring me in (it took me a year to read his series; I read this in four days), you will believe these characters are real, you will believe these fights actually happened and Salvatore just happened to video tape them so he could write down what happened later. His descriptions are very good (though they do not tend to drone on like Tolkien's), and his fight scenes are very detailed. Wulfgar, the mighty Barbarian King, does not merely swing his warhammer; he arcs it down upon his enemies side, sending him flying backwards and into another.
The characters are very vividly described, and they are extremely believable. Drizzt has a very hard time trying to fit into the surface world, as he is a Drow; a dark elf. The dark elven society lives deep underground, in the Underdark, and are quite evil. Everyone fears the drow elves, and not only is he often refused to enter towns, he is quite frequently attacked by the guards. This causes great inner tormoil, as all he does is try to do good, but he cannot live down the reputation of his people. Bruenor Battlehammher is a surly old dwarf, who has trouble expressing himself to his friends, but they know he cares just the same. His adopted human daughter, Cattie-brie, keeps everyone sane (and alive) with her blatant logic and intelligence. And then of course there is the assassin, Artemis Entreri. The polar opposite of Drizzt, he abandoned his emotions long ago, but still matches Drizzt's skill in battle, and they both strive to prove that the path they chose in life was right The other characters you will simply have to meet for yourself.
There is of course a reason I gave it four stars. The manuscript was quite obviously scanned, and never read over. M's turn into two r's, y's into v's, stuff like that. It is still quite readable, and only happens every few pages, not every few sentences. If it would really bother you, just buy the seperate books.
If you liked Tolkien, you will like this. If you like fantasy novels, you will like this. If you can read, you will like this.

You will never forget this book after you read it. Thoughts will pop into your head about it after real life situation. Those who can easily become irrational should not read this book. This is the second best book I have ever read. Salvatore is a genius, if you are a fan of AD&D, Drizzt Do' Urden, or anything related to forgotten realms, this is a must. Salvatore has you in an unbreakable trance before you even read the book. If you havent read The Dark Elf Trilogy, the best book in the world, then dont read this, read the Dark Elf Trilogy first. This books are very well written, and though you find a few spelling errors, your trance will display them correctly anyway. Every time im in a real life situation, I think of this book, and all of Salvatores other books. My fantasy thoughts are based on his code and the forgotten realms ideas. Every time I write a game, I think of the charecers from his point of view, and I put a piece of myself into every one. The best advice I can give is this: "He who fights with monsters should look to it that he himself does not become a monster... when you gaze lng into the abyss, the abyss also gazes into you"~Friedrich Nietzsche

These are the first Forgotten Realms books I have read, my only other experience with the setting being the computer role-playing games (e.g. Baldur's Gate, Icewind Dale). On their own, these are great books, and highly recommended to fantasy readers interested in a fairly fast pace, with more action than details. In terms of how much of your attention they will require, I would place them closer to Harry Potter than Lord of the Rings: something you can put down for a day or two if you need to without worrying about forgetting the name of an obscure character or location. In my case, these books also gave me a better appreciation of some of the locations and creatures that are only lightly touched upon in the games. The books span a wide range of locations, more than just the titular Icewind Dale.

Just a few negatives: By the end of the trilogy, the characters have been through enough far-fetched and dangerous situations that they all should have been killed several times over. (Nevertheless, a fun ride if you don't think about it too much.) The second and third books in this edition have more typos than I have ever seen in a work of fiction; I can only hope that problem is limited to this edition. More annoying was that the first map of the first book is swapped with the second map of the second book, which of course I didn't realize until after I finished the first book. Also note that this is actually printed as *one* thick book with rather large type (note carefully the dimensions), so don't expect to carry it in your pocket.

I give "The Icewind Dale Trilogy Collector's Edition" four out of five stars.

Overall I enjoyed this series, the first I've read from Salvatore. The characters are interesting and most of it was developed pretty well. My major beef is that the combat lost all interest to me early on - and there's a lot of it throughout the series. The problem is that the odds are always overwhelming and the heroes generally come out of it with a few scratches. Every new battle seemed like it was 5 or 10 to 1. Why not 100 to 1 then? After I realized that the heroes were always going to come out fine, it was just a matter of seeing how it played out, which was sometimes interesting, but mostly just unrealistic due to the odds. [Spoiler] I kept hoping that Salvatore would have the guts to kill off a major character, but even when it seemed like he did, that character comes back. The hordes of enemies can't seem to touch our heroes and they're apparently all imbeciles for not resorting to ranged weapons / more advanced tactics once in a while. You might argue that this is keeping with the spirit of D&D-based games, but I don't think so. You survive in the games by having a well balanced party and ways to get healed.

"3 stars?", you ask. "Why?" Several actually. One, it took me a week & a half to get through the Dark Elf trilogy & a month & a half to get through this one. There just wasn't an overpowering urge to see what happens next.
It's not exactly Salvatore's fault though, although I've read better authors. He created some great characters, especially Drizzt & Enteri, but the storyline had no urgency or sense of discovery. The main problem is, and maybe I need to read a book by someone else to tell for certain, but the Realms just isn't a very interesting place. It's just not infused with magic like Krynn of the Dragonlance books(not that I've seen one that is)or the originality of others.

Starting in the frozen North of the Forgotten Realms. This is the little trilogy that would unsuspectingly triumph. Who could imagine the massive audience it would capture? There has been many stories to follow, most just as good if not better. I originally read "The Crystal Shard" in 1989. I would go back for a second reading, but Mr. Salvatore keeps writing new tales that I have barely the time to keep up with!

I particularly liked "The Streams of Silver" the best. While not being truly original, some say "Tolkienesque", it presented characters who would have more staying power than the dead end "lord of the Rings". The springboard of those Dwarven mines has catapulted Drizzt and friends into a whitehot literary stardom. The elastic world of Faerun has an infinite calendar with characters that keep coming back for more.

The Drow are original in the fictional sense. The fabric they are spun with has a basis within our world mythology. Delicate, silent, volatile, dangerous and in Drizzt case heartfelt. This gets my vote as best fantasy trilogy ever. Bad guys who are really good guys alway win!

When compared to the Dark Elf Trilogy, this trilogy falls way short. This book is full of action. The majority of the book involves fight scenes, and I love action in fantasy books. There simply isn't enough in most fantasy novels to keep my interest. Having said that, because there is so much action, the plot in the three books is weak, at best. The first book's plot was an excuse for one fight after another. The second and third book gets much better, as their plots tie together. This is a problem, because it feels as though the first book used the same main characters, but had very little to do with the last two books and does not give it the feeling of a true trilogy. Character building is where this book shines. Each character has their own personality, and you learn to love them, dislike them, or remain neutral. For everyone who reads this book, Drizzt is the character that makes it all worth it. I really felt for this character, and many times, it struck me at how much I could relate to him. As a drow, Drizzt is judged very quickly, and few see the heart he has inside. As a gay guy and also a pagan, I am judged all the time before people know me. Ignorance is ugly, and this book shows that more than any I have ever read. One section in the book Drizzt discusses a captain he met during his travels, and he said, that this man treated everyone with respect, and it did not need to be earned. We should all live by this. Drizzt is the hero to all of us who do not have a safe place in this world, for all of us who will always be the outcast.

I recomend all of the Drizzt Dourden adventures to anyone who enjoys Dungeons and dragons or any role playing games. I have read all of the books excluding "The Lone Drow", which I have just ordered.I do have a few gripes Mr. Salvatore. I find the overly descriptive fight scenes tiresome. I often get lost in the author's attempt to describe Drizzt's every acrobatic move in a fight.I get the point.He is a blender with a heart! The other is his arch nemesis Artemis Entreri. I found myself wanting to know more about him then the main character. After Artemis and Jarlaxle go off on their own , I find myself wanting to read more about their adventures than Drizzt's. Please write A LOT more about Artemis and Jarlaxle.

After reading the Icewind Dale Trilogy I have again been immersed into the rich plots of the Fantasy genre. I read this book due to a recommendation of a friend and I was overjoyed when I found that Salvatore's writing kept me hooked. His plot development through all of his Forgotten Realms novels are excellent and the Icewind Dale Trilogy is just the beginning. I find that it is hard to stray from superlatives when describing the Icewind Dale Trilogy and Slavatore's writing in general.
The real low-down on these books is the character development. Drizzt Do'Urden (the main hero of most of Salvatore's Forgotten Realms novels) is expertly developed. Drizzt is a dark-elf that must overcome the nightmares of his own heritage, and most importantly, gain acceptance among the highly paranoid and unwelcoming surface dwellers. Throughout his travels in the frigid wastelands north of the Spine of the World, Drizzt finds many good friends and fights against unspeakable terrors. Yet, he upholds his own personal code of ethics and virtues like that of a noble paladin. The reader can't help but feel empathetic to him and the entries of his personal memoirs gives an insight into the very essence of Drizzt.
Upon finishing the Icewind Dale saga, I have become an avid reader of Salvatore and I would highly recommend all of the novels in his series. If you are a Tokien fan, this is a must buy. I've debated whether Icewind Dale or the Dark Elf Trilogy would be the best place to start in this series, but I've determined that Icewind Dale is your best bet. On top of everything, this collector's edition (while containing some typos) is well bound in a very attractive package. Make yourself a good cup of coffee and get comfortable, because you've got an excellent read ahead of you. Just remember to allocate plenty of time because I gurantee you won't be able to put this one down.

I really enjoyed the story and characters portrayed by Salvatore in this trilogy. From Drizzt, to Artemis Entreri and everywhere inbetween, the characterization is great and the story is well developed. My problem with this version of the book is the horrid spelling and grammatical errors! It seems that when they printed this collectors edition of the novels, they lost all sense of quality editing. While the Crystal Shard (first book) is in pretty good shape, the second and third books are horrbily marred with spelling and grammatical errors. It is a shame, because it does not do justice to the books.

Overall I want to say the books are a great fantasy read and I recommend them! I just cannot wholeheartedly recommend this version because of the inexcusable errors. Do yourself a favor and buy the paperback gift set, or the individual hardcover books, not this one. I did reviews of the individual books and covered more of the content in my reviews there. Here I wanted to speak on this particular edition/collection.

I'm one of those people who goes to a book store and buys what he thinks looks cool, reads a chapter sets the book down and never reads it agian, such was the case with this book, untill I read the first chapter, all through the next day I kept thinking about it, how awe inspiring the writing was, and the amazing power of the words, not to mention an incredible story line and well just plain awesomeness of the characters, so I picked it up again the next night, and the next, and the next, soon I was staying up until 3:00 am reading, all the while saying "Just one more page and I'm done" then Salvatore throws in a HUGE twist and I just cant put it down untill im ready to just drop dead. The book worth buying, ARE YOU KIDDING ME!!!!! If I could buy one book in my life it would be this one! It also introduced me to a completly new world that, I swear I have read almost every book based on the Forgotten Realms, and any book by R.A. (robert) Salvatore. As for the others in the series buy or check out as many as possible, I am just pissing myself waiting for the book coming out this october "The Twin Blades" the third instalment in the "Hunter's Blades" series. This book made me completly obsessed with fantasy novels, If you are even SEMI interested in fantasy books this book is A DEFINATE READ. But but but, im done praising the book, There are some cons :'(. First the amount of typos in the book, doesn't really matter but you will notice them almost certainly, next the journals while cool at first will get annoying as they reapeadly point out the same things just in different ways read some but not all of them. That's really all, I could'nt praise it anymore if I tried. If anyone knows where I could contact Salvatore I would greatly appreciate it if you emailed me at [email protected]

While not a huge fan of huge fantasy collections such as Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms, R.A. Salvatore has made me reconsider my position. This series is simply fantastic! It is full of non-stop action by characters I quickly learned to love for their deep, well-crafted personalities. I guess I first read the series years and years and YEARS ago shortly after it first came out, but it had been so long I remembered almost none of it. The Icewind Dale Trilogy brought me back to my younger days of hard-core fantasy reading. Only one bad thing to say -- reading this particular edition is an absolute horror as to typos. Definitely read the series, but buy the paperbacks separately. It will save you money and vastly improve your enjoyment, plus get the cover art for all three!

Just finished this book. Personally, I wish it was more than just a trilogy so I could still be reading it. The character development of Drizzt, Wulfgar, Bruenor, etc is exceptional and you feel as if you can relate to them as the story progresses. The imagery of each action and location is equally as vivid, which is something many books seem to lack these days.
After reading quite a few of RA Salvatore's novels, he has quickly become one of my favorite authors to read. When you open one of Salvatore's books, prepare for quite an enjoyable read.

It's hard to believe a book like this exists.
I am a great fan of the LOtR books, but any person who has read those novels will realize that they need to be set to a better pace.
And so, the Icewind Dale Trilogy was the book most needed in the fantasy writing world. By the first sentence, I was hooked. And who wouldn't be? I've recommended it to all my friends and family, and I think anybody who hasn't read these books should hurry up and start.
I have read many fantasy novels (about 200 or so per year), and I want to start writing my own. If inspiration can be found in any novel or series thereof, that series is the Icewind Dale Trilogy.
It has anything anybody could ask for- halflings, elves, dwarves, redemption, dragons, giant spiders, assassins, magic, amazing fight scenes, evil elves (how cool is that?) and even a spark of romance. Unlike so many other novels, however, Salvatore doesn't overdo it on the romance.
For anybody who has ever enjoyed fantasy writing, you really should love this book.
If you aren't into fantasy, read this book anyway.
I can just about promise you'll be hooked by the first page. Or maybe even the first three words.

This is great. Not only do we get some of the very first Forgotten Realms books in one edition, but we get even MORE Drizzt.
The Icewind Dale trillogy tells of Drizzt and his new found life one the surface after he escapes from the nasty underdark (the dark elf trillogy). We follow him and his new found friends all across the sword coast on great adventures that are only the beginning of the absolutly mind blowing "Drizzt Saga".
Get this book, you will be lost without it.

I eagerly read the trilogy in four days after finishing the Dark Elf Trilogy, and I was very impressed with the quality of Salvatore's work! The action never ceases, with a great cast of characters travelling through a hostile realm on various quests. Certainly one of the best series for readers to start learning about Faerun, more often known as the Forgotten Realms, since the band of adventurers are not restricted to their tundra home, the Icewind Dale - quite the opposite! Great cities, a village of wizards, mountains, caverns, swamps, the sea (yes, there are pirates), mystical castles and towers, hidden mines, forests, plains, the desert, sewers - all along the Sword's Coast, and the adventurers even go to a hellish realm... need I say more? (For anyone wanting to learn about the home of the drow, check out Dark Elf Trilogy.) A very good introduction to the Forgotten Realms for any reader curious about its appeal to so many people and AD&D gamers! And then there's the appearance of famous Drizzt Do'Urden, of course, although my favorite character was Bruenor, the incredibly *tough* dwarf! Anyone who likes dwarves, this is a must read! But they definitely need to hire a better editor, there were way too many typos in the second half. But don't let that worry you - the story's enough to keep you reading, hence the five stars.

This collector's edition omnibus contains all three Icewind Dale books in one volume.
Set in the popular Forgotten Realms world, this book brings names you might hear about in other D&D products to life. Many computer games have been set in the locations described by Bob Salvatore and your enjoyment of them will only increase after reading this book.
Story-wise it's a good romp. It won't leave you pondering any great mysteries, but it is hard to put down. The characters are colourful for the most part, and Salvatore doesn't waste time giving masses of back story - you are given enough of a description for you to pick up the 'character' of a character, then you are back into the story. The exception is Drizzt, who forms the focus of the book. There are several 'thought meditations' throughout the book which attempt to develop Drizzt into a deeper, in some ways tormented character. For the most part this does well in setting up some atmosphere for the book, but doesn't really develop Drizzt's character too much. It does seem to be more for effect than anything else. As the writing progresses though, Salvatore expresses more skill in revealing Drizzt's torments and the third book plays on the question of true identity quite well, if a little too obviously.
For the fact that it is such a fun read, with locals and places that add so much to the whole D&D experience, this get's 4 stars.
But then there's the publishing.
Unfortunatly, whatever was done to turn this into a collectors edition seems to have collected nothing but typos. I have not seen the original books, but there are an unacceptably high number of typos, mis-spellings and bad grammer in this book. It's nothing that's going to stop you reading it. But it does wake you from the magic of the books a few times. Which is a shame.
Never-the-less, at this price you can't really complain too much and will find yourself suitable satisfied for quite some time.

Enjoyable, this is a well written story that feels comfortable, the characters are likable, the plot is fun, the bad guys are interesting, and the story unfolds at a pleasant pace. It is well worth the money! Better than the usual Forgotten Realms stories of late!
OVERALL SCORE: (A)
READABILITY: (A-), PLOT: (B+), CHARATERS: (A), DIALOGUE: (B+), SETTING: (B+), ACTION/COMBAT: (A), MONSTERS/ANTAGONISTS: (A-), ROMANCE: (C), SEX: (n/a), AGE LEVEL: (PG)

The Halfling's Gem is the book that inspired me to read. R.A. Salvatore writes the best books that I have ever read. The Halfling's Gem is about four companions Drizzt, Bruenor, Wulfgar, and Catti-brie. They are trying to rescue the Halfling Regis from a deadly assassin. If the assassin can control a magical Panther, Regis will die in a real game of cat and mouse. I encourage everyone to read the Dark Elf and Ice Windale Trilogies. They are great books.

I have to admit I was not a very big fan of the D&D world. But after reading Salvatores Icewind Dale Trilogy, I am hooked. He has a way to make almost anything seem interesting, and takes enough time to vividly describe whats goin' down.
I had no problem understanding what most of the monsters looked like, or the characters for that matter.
If you are a D&D veterain or just a newb wanting to get into the D&D universe, I highly recomend getting any of Salvatores books. I did, and I love them all.
I do however recomend this series order below. For all of his books with Dizzt in it.
1) Icewind Dale Trilogy
2) The Dark Elf Trilogy - This is a prequal to Icewind Dale but you should read Icewind Dale before reading this.
3) Legacy of the Drow - four book series
4) Paths of Darkness - four book series
5) The Hunter's Blades Trilogy

I reas this book after the dark elf trilogy(which is also very good) and found it to be almost as good as its prequel. The main character is very enjoyable and even the archvillain is fascinating. The supporting characters are all unique and well written so that you actualy care about them. I reccomend this to anyone who likes swashbuckling fantasy. Even people who don't particularly care for fantasy should enjoy it. My hat's off to R.A. Salvatore for writing such good books.

Salvatore has weaved what could be the perfect mix of enthralling adventure with stirring philosophical views. Drizzt is the past-troubled Drow star on a trek of endless integrity. His powerful will in the face of insurmountable adversity inspires admiration and jealousy; all people should follow in such virtuous footsteps. For dazzling adventure, or riveting human emotional ties anybody could do exponentially times worse than this book.

This series starts off quick, and right off you know you will be loving the character Drizzt. All of the characters are richly developed over the next few books but you cant help being drawn to the mysterious dark elf. The author writes about 20 books with this character in them, but this is where it all began. I would suggest reading the dark elf trilogy first even though it was written after this one as it takes place before this series. The author, R. A. Salvitore, said in his notes in a later bookt hat after he wrote this trilogy the fan letters all asked about Drizzt and hence the dark elf books. This is an excellent read and I would reccomend it to anyone who likes good fantasy action. Once you start you will have to buy them all.

Salvatore is brilliant. There's no doubt about that. Heck, if I could make as much money off of one of my characters as Bob's made off of Drizzt, I could die a happy man. The Icewind Dale Trilogy is a work of art, beautifully written and wonderfully played out. Within this book, you will find some of the best characters in ANY novel, fantasy or otherwise. The only problem is the typos. There's probably 1 typo every 3-4 pages. y's become v's, l's become I's, etc. It seems they scanned Salvatore's hand-written work through a text analyser and didn't thoroughly proof-read it. It doesn't destroy the book, not by any means, but it does become a bit irritating. This is one of the best stories I have ever read, and would LOUDLY suggest it to anyone who can read the English language -- or any language this book has been translated into. But, if typos really bother you alot, buy the seperate paperbacks instead of the hardcover, because there's definitely a healthy amount of em.

To not know the name Drizzt is to not be a true fan of great fantasy novels. Salavtore is a brilliant author that tells the story of this dark hero and his friends with a master-crafted ability that is second to none. The vivid depictions, the epic showdowns between good an evil...they are astounding! You really come to care about the characters, even some of the bad guys like Artemis. I love this book!

I have been reading about Drizzt Do'Urden for over a year now. This trilogy is the best place to start in my opinion. The book was a joy to read and Salvatore flows through the characters and the stories with passion. I am about halfway done with the writings of Drizzt that I know of. Hopefully, he will continue to live on in more stories. Drizzt and his companions have captured my heart. Never have I enjoyed fantasy as much as I do now. THANK YOU R.A. Salvatore

I'm new to the series and on a friends advice went and started the Dark Elf Trilogy first. After reading that in its entirety I read the Icewind Dale Trilogy and I have to say I can't wait for my next book to get to me in the mail. These books, all 6 of the 2 trilogys are amazing. I have read Dragonlance Chronicles and thought them to be very good but these two series were just awesome. Salvatore is a great writer and its a shame I didn't hear about him earlier.

Fantasy reading is part of my life now thanks to my most favorite author, R.A. Salvatore. "The Icewind Dale Trilogy" is the second book I have ever completed and loved every single moment and word in the book. Drizzt is and will always be the most loved fantasy character in time. Salvatore's writing style is so easy to comtemplate and read that it's amazing. You never find yourself lost or in confusion about certain parts. The book just runs in perfect harmony. After reading one of the sub books a night, I found myself smiling while going to bed. You can actually find yourself in the world that Salvatore creates before you.
This books gets my full recommendation as does "The Dark Elf Trilogy" which I am currently reading. You must read this book if you LOVE fantasy reading! Don't pass it up. Read it today!

Let me start this off: I have been a fantasy fan ever since I started playing Warcraft III([...] and actually started to really care about stories since The Lord of the Rings.

The Icewind Dale trilogy, to my great pleasure, combines these two loves into one, amazing, expierence. I loved to see how the characters evolve, even the villians. I loved to see how Wulfgar's love for the innocent, and rude, Cattie-brie evolved from a teen friendship to total "I'm in love!". I was horrified to learn that Bruenor nearly died in his fiery sacrifice in the Mithral Halls, only to be overjoyed when he emerged from teh ruins, covered in ash, but relativley unharmed. I chered for Drizzt in his confrontation with Enteri.

If you love fantasy, and adventure, or just want to waste a week, read this book.

You'll be reading it again after that, I assure you. At least, until you buy "The Legacy of the Drow".

This trilogy is phenominal. Once I finished the Dark Elf series, I just had to jump right into the Icewind dale series. I highly suggest that you read them in chronological order of the trilogies so you understand more about the character of Drizzt. I have bought the books in the collectors editions and they will stay in my library for some time. Cant wait to read the thousand orcs series.

So far I've enjoyed everything I've read from RAS. Spoke to him once, briefly, about a project he was doing with online gaming (years ago) and he seems like a nice fella, too. I enjoy his well-fleshed characters and world building.

This book was amazing, I loved the game and decided to read the book and I wasn't disappointed. It's a great book full of action, adventure, and the continuing conquest of five friends with personal goals and hardships. The books main focus is on a drow elf named Drizzt Do'Urden who encounters things like many of the African-Americans did during the times of harsh racism and rejection. Because of the color of his skin and the reputation of his heretage, hostility meet him at every turn, even those whose lives he had saved just minutes before meet him with frightened shock and anger. Countless nights of mine were spent reading this book, some even went on into the early hours of the mourning; I was unable to put the book down. I would recommend this book to anyone who was considering reading it and know they would not be let down, but be careful; this book can cause severe loss of sleep.

I haven't read a lot of fantasy books, but I have greatly enjoyed those that I have read. I've seen Drizzt in Baldur's Gate 2, a Neverwinter Nights parody, and read about him in forums. I thought I'd give Salvatore a shot when I found out Drizzt is a character in several books. When I read Icewind Dale, I felt like I was in that world, watching everything unfold. I felt the story flowed very well and Salvatore's characters were described in such a way that you could have a vivid picture in your mind. Also, I've played the game Icewind Dale and Baldur's Gate 2, so seeing them in the book gave me a sense of familiarity. I would highly recommend this book to anyone who loves fantasy.

I have always been a fantasy fan, but this book so far has topped them all. I got the all-in-one trilogy as a gift, and I hadn't even tried Salvatore before. After the first three pages I was sucked-in. I used all my free time that I could to read, staying up late into the night just so I could find a good stopping point. There weren't any! I love great authors such as C.S. Lewis, Anne McCaffery, Stephen Lawhead, Mercedes Lackey, etc, but Salvatore blew me away with this phenominal work of art. I was captivated by the reality of the characters and my growing love and concern for each of them. I didn't ever feel like I was reading a book. I was living it. I despised the evil and hoped for the good. There is no denying it---this is one of the best collections you will EVER find. Happy reading!

The introduction of Drizzt, and all his friends. A must if your a fan. And to find them all in one book is great. Come north to the frozen lands of Icewind Dale. Go on adventures with a band of the best of spirits you could ever hope you could meet. Here you will find tales of tragidy, friendship, love, and luck. All tied together with great battle descriptions, and witty humor. Once you enter the Dale you may never want to leave. Unless its to mythril hall of course.

Wait for the re-edit

The Ice Wind Dale Trilogy was R A Salvatore's first work and it clearly shows as it does not reach the standard set by his later works. The book is overly cliche' with shallow stereotypical characters following an all too common fantasy plot line. This work is rife with glaring inconsistencies in character development that contradict Salvatore's later more ground breaking works. I strongly recommend reading The Dark Elf Trilogy before even considering reading Icewind. However, Icewind is not entirely without merit. I prefer to see it as merely a rough draft of what may someday be a great fantasy novel. Salvatore promises a re-edit in of Icewind in the future and I would encourage readers to be patient and wait for the re-edited version to be published.

For those who do decide to read this rough draft note to take with a grain of salt any tid bits of background information provided. These details so essential to character development will likely change in the re-edit and will not be consistent with any other work outside of Icewind. This especially holds true to the character Drizzt Do'Urden who appears in Icewind as a stereotypical rogue character with a troubled past compared to the deeper sympathetic character represented in the larger series. The actions of Drizzt in Icewind at times appear to to confirm the very prejudices the reader is supposed to believe are unfairly levied against the drow. For example in Icewind Drizzt recounts killing Masoj over an issue involving Guenhwyvar's pride in being used to hunt fleeing gnomes while in Homeland Drizzt only reluctantly is forced to kill Masoj in a desperate act of self defense.

As follows are reviews of each of the three books in Icewind.

The Crystal Shard: This is the weakest and least developed book in the entire series with the characters revealed in their shallowest forms. The thin plot of this one book revolves around the human settlement of Ten Towns being invaded...twice. First by a Barbarian hoard which is promptly slaughtered and then a second time by a Goblin and Orc army under control of this ridiculous parody of a wizard named Akar Kessell. The main characters are reduced to little more then killing machines especially Drizzt who single handedly kills countless barbarians, orcs, goblins, giants, and trolls. He slices, he dices, he writes ironic commentary on why people don't accept him as anything more then a merciless killer. When the barbarians broke ranks and fled Drizzt was the first to charge in cutting them down turning their route in a massacre not caring to stop the whirl of his blades until he passes out from exhaustion. And then he wonders why people are kicking him. He was the only drow these people had ever seen and he was honestly making his people look bad.

Streams of Silver: The main storyline in this book follows Bruenor's quest to retake Mithral Hall for clan battlehammer. However, it is the two sub plots with Artemis Ertreri stalking the halfling Regis and the wizard Dendybar hunting Drizzt that make this book interesting. Every rogue needs a counterpart and Artemis Entreri is Drizzt's. Entreri is every bit the melee fighter as Drizzt and just as cunning. When Entreri spares Drizzt's life and they form an unlikely alliance you are just as likely to find yourself rooting for Entreri as you are to be rooting for Drizzt. Overall this is a much more solid work and for at times makes for exciting reading.

The Halfling's Gem: This book picks up right where the last one left off with Entreri forcing Regis back to Calimport to face the vengeful Pasha Pook. Drizzt and Wolfgar are in quick pursuit determined not to leave Regis to the mercy of the Calimport thieves guild. The characters are more developed by this point and the pacing of this book is much faster. The slight love interest between Drizzt and Catti-Brie shows a deeper side to the drow not evident in the previous two books. Overall the writing style is much improved here and it makes for much more enjoyable reading.

Once again I must reiterate my conclusion that it would be best to wait for the coming re-edit. The glaring inconsistencies, numerous grammatical errors, and simply poor writing style of the first 500 pages really put a sour taste in my mouth even through I rather enjoyed the second 500 pages.

My whole family is a fan of R.A. Salvatore and Drizzt! We have read his books numerous times! If you like D&D, LOTR, and a little bit of GOT, you will enjoy these books. Make sure you start from the 1st of the series though!

Always having been a big fan of fantasy, but never delving into the Forgotten Realm or Dragonlance genre of it, i gave the icewind dale trilogy when i saw it show up in paperback at my bookstore. I was smacked in the face when possibly one of the best stories i had ever read. I was amazed at how impressed i was with Salvatores ability to really make you think you know and understand his characters. You grow really attached to almost all of them, and would hate to see anything bad to happen to any. I was quick to order all of his other trilogies and i went to my local used bookstore and have picked up all the 2nd hand copies of d&d books i could find. I thank this trilogy for making the dragonlance/forgotten realm trademark my new favorites in fantasy.

I read these books back-to-back. I absolutely enjoyed this action/adventure driven reading experience. That Dark Elf is one bad mutha. Swords a flashin' a plenty, along with a cool Conan-type barbarian friend, and a dwarf who likes to kick butt, this was a finely written trilogy the likes that Hollywood oughta make into a fully animated full-length motion picture.

R.A. Salvatore paints an almost tangible world with his three books in the Icewind Dale Trilogy. The Crystal Shard I hold as one of the best fantasy books I have ever read. The following two are good, but not fantastic, as instead of crafting a masterful plot you feel Salvatore is rushing you through. What makes all the books shine however is the creation of lovable and despicable characters. There is development in all the characters in these three books, Drizzt especially. And it is a joy to see the transformations in his personality and the mental and emotional struggles he must go through.
The collectors edition paperback is convenient but reader beware, there are numerous typos. Something you don't expect in a "collectors edition".

Salvatore's plot is always exciting and enjoyable, and this collection is no exception. However, it appears that in converting the originals to this edition the publishers had a few problems with their typeset. There are many very unusual typos in the book, especially The Halfling's Gem, and some which actually make the story confusing. Example, a substituted bracket ']' instead of the letter 'i' on more than one occasion. I haven't read the original paperbacks, but I don't think anyone, let alone R.A. Salvatore, would make such dumb mistakes. It just doesn't figure if you look at a keyboard layout. Anyhow, get the originals instead of this.

The beginning of the Drizzt series of books, it draws you in and gets you started down the road to appreciating the fantasy genre. It is written so well that you will find yourself addicted and looking for the rest of the series. I haven't stopped reading yet.

The three books of the Icewind Dale trilogy are the most wonderful stories I have ever read. Drizzt Do'Urden is quite possibly the most intriguing character, with his wonderful agility and fighting ability, his wisdom, and his ability to take a deep from of segregation so lightly. Salvatore is a tremendous author. All the characters and places he creates are so believable. I could not put this book down. There is only one problem...which made me give the book a 4 instead of a 5. About halfway during Streams of Silver, the book's grammar goes from flawless to 5th grader esque. In one of the chapters in Streams of Silver, i counted SIX spelling mistakes! That is totally unforgivable, especially for a book with such a great story.
Well typos aside, the stories are fabulous. This is a definate pickup.

I realize most people have read the Tolkien books prior to any other fantasy fiction selections, but Terry Brooks was the first author in this area that I happened to read. I first read Sword of Shannara and only later Tolkien's books. I have to say that I have read all of the books following Sword of Shannara and still found The Iceland Dale Trilogy to be riveting. I found the insightful teachings of Drizzt Do'Urden between chapters to be the most inspiring writing in this genre including both of the above writers. I have just begun reading the Dark Elf Trilogy and can't comment on that yet, but I thought this collection was a great journey. There are a few typos, but they didn't interfere with the great storyline and the thoughts it invoked.

Three action packed stories that keep you wanting more. Sure, parts are formulaic, but I felt myself drawn in and wanting to read more. And isn't that really the true measure of a good book? The characters are thoroughly developed, and the antagonist(s) are really enjoyable as well. A good read for anyone who enjoys Fantasy and especially AD&D/D&D.

from the underdark trilogy to the hunters trilogy its the same unbending principles that has seen the character through his mother's distaste and his fathers sideways embrace and approval. From loosing yourself fully, and having that 1 friend bring you back to what you essentially are and keeping you from the dark pit. From staying the course that is excepted....or breaking the bounds and looking for something better even to the extremes of what one was born for... a better way for life. and all this just before sunborne. my complaint....my last complaint was that the big mac came with pickles....two worlds. And i thank you RA for bringing me a better one. i'll live here but i'll dream there.........NOW TO ICEWIND DALE.
2 meet under odd situation...(trapper was a nuisance....he died i hope for his deed to the elf, who knows what yin and yang will provide for him or his dog,} Drow VS Dwarf =understanding. i'm betting that drizzt could have been blown over by a leaf at that cairn that night......the message bruenor gave him as it was understood was "welcome home". words never expected, words never uttered before in this situation....but they were meant evidencenced in the rest of the saga.
if you have heart, mind that has a little free space to wander, and are into ups and downs like a rollercoaster, i very highly reccommend this....and all other from this extraordinary writer.
[...]

Looking back now, after more than a decade since I first read this book, it's obvious to me that this book quite literally altered the course of my entire life.. This book is largely to blame for the passion I developed for reading and the benefits that came along with it.

The story is wonderful. Salvatore is a magnificent author, who thouroughly develops his characters, and keeps you glued to the storyline. However, the book is utterly littered with typos. (No kidding, I'd say on average a typo every 2-3 pages.) This interupts the continuity of the book greatly, as you are forced time and time again to stop and figure out what he meant to say. Lack of quotes, misplaced letters...and exactly who is Br~enor (page 775)? It's almost like they scanned in the origional documents into a text recognition program, where random y's turn to v's, u's to ~'s, and punctuation is disregarded. Very dissapointing. I love the books, but don't buy the hardback. Get them individually in soft cover.

I read the Dark Elf Trilogy, exploring Drizzt's background, before I started on this series, and I can definitely attest to how much Salvatore improved by the time he started the DE trilogy.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy is quite obviously the work of a beginning author. It is not well written in any sense of the word. The dialogue is some of the worst I've ever seen, so stilted and contrived that it could have been written by a ten-year-old. Just try to read some of the lines the characters say without grimacing in horror or laughing your head off. Half the time the characters sound like they're trying way too hard to read lines in a poorly-written play, and the rest of the time they're children shouting and waving their weapons in futile attempts to appear threatening and epic while using! Exclamation! Marks! In! Every! Single! Sentence! Not ter mentionin' de overdun accents ov ol' Bruenor an Catti-brie, which 'll really grind on ye aftar a while o' listenin' to dem.

On the plus side, it's funny. Seriously, it's so ridiculous it's hilarious. It makes for a load of unintended comedy. If you don't take it seriously and just treat it as a casual read, it can get really enjoyable.

The same goes for the prose, which is not only below that of the average writer, but tends to switch POV characters BETWEEN PARAGRAPHS, multiple times in each chapter. While the writing was only average in the Dark Elf Trilogy, it is terrible here. Add onto that, the trilogy borrows quite liberally from Tolkien and is littered with typos to boot. While I could understand if the author made a couple of typos without noticing while writing, most of them should have been caught on revision, and seriously, any human could read through this and spot most of them. How can it be justified that paragraphs sometimes stop and become new paragraphs in the middle of a sentence? Ugh.

Normally, this would be a recipe for me to call these series terrible, but thankfully, Salvatore manages to have enough redeeming features in this tale to keep it from those depths. It has a lot of great characters, an interesting plot, a good setting, consistently entertaining events, awesome commentary and prologues written by Drizzt, and lots and lots of neat weapons.(Aegis-Fang, the ice saber, etc.) The rivalry between Drizzt and Entreri is particularly compelling. Of course, the characterization isn't perfect. The romance is nothing impressive, and I'd sure have liked it if Drizzt had said a little more rather than just hanging around as a Brooding Loner until the Halfling's Gem, which is where everything gets better and the drow takes a more front-seat role.

The villains are quite interesting. The cowardly and bumbling mage who is elevated to Dark Lord status upon finding an Artifact of Doom. The ruthlessly ambitious old wizard and his golem, who search for the Crystal Shard. The ice-dragon who lies helpless and vulnerable when he thinks his life is threatened, but gains the supernatural will to escape his bounds when his treasure is threatened. And especially Artemis Entreri, the hardcore assassin with his own twisted morals, who presents an equal and opposite to Drizzt Do'Urden and clashes with him not just because events, but because of their opposite outlooks on life and accomplishment.

In other cases, such as the endings, I'd consider the series to be good but not great. A lot could have been improved on the endings in particular if things were taken more slowly rather than glossed over in short order, and if Drizzt's motivations for fighting Kessel had been explained beyond, "I'm the hero, he's the bad guy. Put 'em up."

In conclusion, the Icewind Dale series is a good casual read, worth getting but nothing exceptional, and you'll have to ignore quite a few problems to enjoy it fully.

This was amazing! It arrived only two days after I ordered it. I got an email saying that the book had damage, which I thought meant that It would be falling apart. When it arrived, the book had slightly used corners, like it had been flipped through once or twice. THAT'S IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The story was just as good as I remembered, and my sister loved it to!!!!!

I had read the trilogy before, in the individual paperbacks. Unfortunately, I was stupid enough to re-sell those paperbacks. I wanted to reread the story, and this hardbound edition seemed perfect. And, I truly loved reading it again, and hope to enjoy reading it yet again in the future. However, I was very disappointed in Wizards of the Coast and their editing (or lack thereof). I've never before seen so many typos. There were times when I was not even sure what the word was supposed to be, even though I got the gist of the sentence. But on the whole, I do reccommend this book.

I read the book Streams of Silver by R.A Salvatore. I like this book because I hardly ever read books but this book I got caught on. It was a great fantasy adventure. I never got bored of it. I would give this book a five star rating. I would recommend this book to people that like fantasy adventures.

Drizzt DoUrden is an amazment, his charecter idea alone is ... I couldnt begin to imagine the word that fits there. The only book I've read better than this is The Dark Elf Trilogy, also by Salvatore. If you are religous, I consider it a sin to not read this book, if your not read it anyway.(the book has nothing to do with religion, at least in a specific format, but it should be ranked above the bible.)

You can't go wrong with Salvatore. Here in the Icewind Dale Omnibus, you get three stories rich in characters placed in a world of adventure. I first read these years ago seperately and am glad to have found them altogether. Much easier to handle.

If you have never tried Salvatore

This was an excellent trilogy! I have read salvatore since he started the Dark Elf Trilogy and I must say that this was an excellent pickup to where the Dark Elf Trilogy left off. I really enjoyed the way that salvatore portrayed the struggle of one to overcome the negativity of his race. It is something that we all should think about in our everyday life. Not just with 1 character does he do this but with all. It has an excellent moral message as well as an excellent adventure. Enjoy! And when you finish this, read the rest opf the series and see what happens!

I have been a fan of this Genre for a long time now. I have been looking for a good storyline that would keep me interested for some time (longer than just one book). This is a great set of stories. The characters are pretty well fleshed out and the action is frequent and descriptive. As other reviewers have stated, the typos and grammatical errors are quite numerous, but they're easy to overlook if you're not too anal about them. I blew through this book rather quickly because it was hard to put down. I highly recommend it.

You can't go wrong with Salvatore. Here in the Icewind Dale Omnibus, you get three stories rich in characters placed in a world of adventure. I first read these years ago seperately and am glad to have found them altogether. Much easier to handle.

If you have never tried Salvatore

This was an excellent trilogy! I have read salvatore since he started the Dark Elf Trilogy and I must say that this was an excellent pickup to where the Dark Elf Trilogy left off. I really enjoyed the way that salvatore portrayed the struggle of one to overcome the negativity of his race. It is something that we all should think about in our everyday life. Not just with 1 character does he do this but with all. It has an excellent moral message as well as an excellent adventure. Enjoy! And when you finish this, read the rest opf the series and see what happens!

I have been a fan of this Genre for a long time now. I have been looking for a good storyline that would keep me interested for some time (longer than just one book). This is a great set of stories. The characters are pretty well fleshed out and the action is frequent and descriptive. As other reviewers have stated, the typos and grammatical errors are quite numerous, but they're easy to overlook if you're not too anal about them. I blew through this book rather quickly because it was hard to put down. I highly recommend it.

I began reading the Icewind Dale Trilogy for lack of anything better to do. I was not a very big fan of fantasy writing and I refused my younger brother's pleas to read these novels. After reading them, I have to say I don't regret the weeks I spent locked in my room with every book R.A. Salvatore has written.
All of his stories never cease to be exciting and give the reader an understanding of the characters without making everything totally predictable. I would reccomend this book to any reader, even those who think they don't like fantasy.

A great set of books. They are not my favorite but in the top four. Adventure, romance, friendships, magic and sword play all woven together in a great story. Not to Mention some fantastic Characters, and possible the best villan of any fantasy series.

Great book, great characters, especially Drizzt Do' Urden! I have read all of Richard A Knakk's Dragonrealm series, and this is a refreshing new series for me. My wife is a book worm, but usually does not read this type of book. She also loved it! Buy it, you will not regret it!

This is a great book, it has everything a fantasy novel needs. The Icewind Dale Trilogy is a very original story in my opinion and is a really good story. The story keeps you zoned in at all times on what is going to happen next. There is non-stop action throughout the whole book. A big thing in my opinion is that there is a band of heroes that fight together for a common cause. It is always exciting to read of people having each others back through anything. There is also a Superhero type character in the book, Drizzt Do'Urden. Without him, the book would not be what it is, he is a misfit that is an unspoken leader of all the good people in the book.

I have been playing D&D for over 6 years and having this book recommended to me by a friend I decided that I would see what I was missing. After struggling through this poorly written book, I must say that I was happy to see it end.
Luckily, since I did not buy this book myself, I only noticed the "Editorial Review" written by the store tonight when I came to check on the price of this book. As you can see from the Review, they state that "While surely no Tolkien (who is, really?), Bob Salvatore can take pride in the fact that he's brought legions of enthusiastic fans to the genre--and for anyone who's caught themselves in an embarrassed yawn on page 412 of The Silmarillion, that's not a distinction to be taken lightly." While I do not dispute that, if given a good word processing program with an adequate spell checking function, Salvatore can capture an audience, anyone who has gotten bored while reading anything by Tolkien should go pick up some R. L. Stein books because they are not ready to graduate to higher reading.
Just to let you know where I am coming from, I am a Sci-fi reader (Hubbard, Adams, Pournelle, Niven, etc.) and a reader of classical literature (Homer, Vergil, Thucydides, Herodotus, etc.). The first "fantasy" book that I read was the Hobbit and then I proceeded to finish the rest of the series. I have been reading for as long as I can remember and consider myself to be very well read. As always, you can disagree. :)
Whatever the case, I strongly recommend that you buy one book in this series before spending $25+ dollars getting this collection. Personally, I would not waste my money buying this or reading any other books in this series. Stick to Tolkien and you will be fine.

This book is quite possibly the best Drizzt Do'Urden book I have read. Salvatore really put together three good books. The plot are well formatted, the characters are lovable, and even the antagonists are really extraordinary. I recommend this book to anyone who loves a good fantasy/adventure book that they will not want to put down. The only thing that I found bad were the extreme numbers of typing errors, but that did little to stop me from reading this book.

This was an excellent book, while reading it you obtain an incredible picture of everything that is happening in the magestically illustrated world of Icewind Dale. This book spans the genre(s) of fantasy and adventure and would be enjoyable for all readers. The main story follows three characters: Drizzt Do'Urden who is a drow elf, Bruenor the bulky dwarf and Wulfgar, the mighty barbarian of the plains. The three travel through perilous lands and make and lose friends along the way. If you have an imagination and want an escape from the real world I would highly recommend this book!

i do not own this trilogy-in-one, but i do own all books written by salvatore concerning drizzt do'urden. he is and always will be the best character i've ever read about. i'm an avid fan and reader of salvatore's books. this book is well worth the price. the book is so complete about plot and characters that it's like walking on a cloud as to understanding the book. it has a smoothness to reading. and you're unable to predict what would happen next. this is a must buy for avid reader of any genre.

Being a novice when it comes to sitting down and reading any book, i found myself totally fixated on this book. I usually find myself wonder when i start to read books especially sci-fi books. this book was a nice change. I love this book and its characters. I usually have a hard time reading the names because they are rather weird in most books.. but they are well writen and not to mention rounded in this book. I would recomend everyone should read this book, it really streaches your imagination.

An addict as I am to surrealism and fantasy and this book being so discussed I felt an urge to buy it. I'm not of the opinion that it was a total waste of money but I'm not overwhelmed by its contents. It was exciting, and sometimes funny, but it didn't leave a trace of reflection on my mind afterwards. There is no real thought behind it, it's just as if Salvatore wrote it for the one reason to earn some money. Terry Brooks recommendation and gloryfication in the first pages tells nothing of the contents as he is as weak an authour himself. I give the book three stars anyway, since it is entertaining during the time it takes to read. They are not too well-earned though.

I recently purchased the Icewind Dale trilogy and I've got to say it's one of the best fantasy series I've read in years. Drizzt Do'Urden is probably the best character I've ever seen, and the supporting cast is incredible! The plot lines are intriguing and the story unfolds in ways you can't imagine. This is the first series by R.A. Salvatore that I've read, but rest assured I plan to get the rest very soon! Simply excellent!

Doesn't anyone remember their english teachers telling them to show instead of just telling? Salvatore uses a 3rd person perspective that knows every character's thoughts, but they're not actual thoughts, they're just statements of what the characters know. Example: "Drizzt, by far the more battle-seasoned of the two, quickly discerned the mode of attack that offered the best chance of success." This sentence is vague, uses too many words and doesn't tell us anything about what the character is actually doing. I don't recommend you read the over 1,000 pages of sentences like these. Drizzt is about to attack a patrol of giants and we take a moment to hear, once again, how great Drizzt is and what he knows. This writing is immature at best. Read George R.R. Martin's Fire and Ice series and then you'll see what real writing is.

The Icewind Dale Trilogy is by far one of the best series I have read. Granted I am not exactly Ebert of book criticism, however I have read my fair share of them (books that is). I do know enough to base my oppinion off of. The series has all one could look for in a book from action and adventure with all of the perils that go with it, to love and betrayal. If you are looking for a story from a good author R.A. Salvatore's "Icewind Dale Trilogy" is as good as they come

If you like action and none stop adventure, this is the best way to get started.You begin with The Crystal Shard and in it you will begin a journey that will entertained you for a very long time. So please buckle up and enjoy the wild adventures of: Drizzit, Regis, Catti-brie, Bruenor and Wolfgar. As they make their way through the most untamable land in all of Forgotten Realms. Oh; and don't forget your sword, shield and lucky rabbits foot before you go. ENJOY!!!!!!!!!!

Sometimes you good want a good old fashion swords and sorcery romp. Plain characters and a simple plotline make this series a great way to while away a pleasant afternoon or two. Dont expect to have to tax your brain too much these books.
Its no nonsense action style is the reason its so enjoyable but also the reason I only give it 4 stars. 3 Books worth of hack and slash can get a little wearisome no matter how good it is.

I have read the original trilogy and all the other books and short stories that are connected to this story line, and they are some of the best science fiction I have ever read. I would highly recomend that you check this out for yourself. Starting with the Dark Elf Trilogy; you will begin with Drizzt D'ourden's birth, all the way to R.A. Salvatores latest release for this series,Spine Of The World. It wa svery entertaining and I praise R.A. Salvatore for his ingenious writing ability.

Great three books

The characters come to life with the great detail Saalvator brings to the table. There is not another set of books i have gotten into like this. I could not put the books down. These books should be as popular as The Lord of the Righs or the Harry Potter books. Great books everyone should have a shot at reading them.!!!! :)

This book is so awesome. I had a hard time putting it down and im not that interested in books,but this trilogy is worth reading. I have read ever trilogy and i say well done to the author he is now my favorite author

Second favorite trilogy right behind the (The dark Elf Trilogy) I cant say enough about these books. Salvatore has really opened up a new and wonderful world for me to explore. Read the Dark elf trilogy first then read the Icewind dale trilogy and you will be a Salvatore fan for life.

I had a friend at work turn me on to these books, I started reading The Dark Elf Trilogy and was skeptical at first, R.A. Salvatore drops you right into his world and once you find your footing you will not be able to put these books down, I have stayed up till 2 AM saying to my self over and over again "Just one more chapter", and the same goes for The Icewindale Trilogy. Great charters and a great story, Drizzt Do'Urden is a Bad Mofo! lol

I enjoyed this trilogy very much. It has some very colorful and intriging characters in it. There are many dramatic scenes in it that keep you in suspence. It is an epic adventure that thrills to the core. By the last book in the trilogy,"The Halflings Gem", it does get a bit repetitive. You know that know matter how much trouble the group gets into, they will always somehow find a way to prevail. But nevertheless, this trilogy is a hit!

This book has moments where you think it is going to break out of being just another average story, but it fails to do so. Salvatore's style and syntax is very weak (English teachers would have a field day here), the characters are one-dimensional, the plot develops slowly and even the twists in the plots aren't too surprising or exciting. Salvatore has potential b/c he does have good ideas but fails to put them on paper strongly enough in this volume to win me over.

I first came across R.A. Salvatore's novels in my early teens, when my late grandfather, a fantasy nut, recommended the Dark Elf trilogy. I tore through those books. For some reason, I had no interest in reading Salvatore's other books after that - in fact I remember being confused at the sheer number of books he put out in the years after the Dark Elf series.
So last year a good friend suggested that I read the Icewind Dale series, and I figured, What the hell? I bought the collector's version and got about 100 pages in before giving up.
In a nutshell, this series - or at least the god-awful first book - struck me as shameful rip-off of Savage Sword of Conan back-issues, all propped up with enough stereotypical fantasy characters and uninteresting sub-plots.
I know a lot of people love this series, but I found the writing to be horrible and the plot sub-par at best.

This is by far one of the best fantasy books I have read in a long time. The characters are amazing and the plot interesting. It has the ability to keep you hooked, but does not annoy you with a constant stream of cliffhangers and dead ends (well not too many). A must for all fantasy readers.

This was the first Salvatore book I ever read, and I loved it. It tells a story of three strong willed friends (some less than others) and there search for a home (wont tell you anything more of that) Salvatore brings the characters together in a great way, and adds endless humor (and I mean just plan funny humor). It's a good read

These books were so stupid. I don't know what the fuss has always been about. The world is one-dimensional, unbelievable and paper-dollish; the dwarf is so cliched as to be laughable; Cattie Brie is by far the dumbest name and most annoying character in the annals of fantasy; the barbarian is (again) cliched and ridiculous; the halfling (as usual since Tolkien) is absurd and annoying; the battle scenes are boring, unrealistic and go on forever; the villain is like something out of a bad Saturday morning cartoon. Just pathetic. I started reading the Dark Elf trilogy, dying to know why everyone thinks Salvatore is so great. I couldn't even finish the first book. Just horrid...

well all of you drittz fans hello, these books in my opinion rock the very fantasy world. take for instance our hero drittz, he was to be a side kick,but look at him now. and not to mention cattabre and wolfgar brunor and for comic side-relief regis.what more needs to be said other than keep em coming

i got this book for x-mas and couldn't put it down after that. i read the dark elf trilogy first and if u want to get into this serice read that one first anyways this book diserve 10 stars but i gave it a 5 star cuz thats all they got...Peace out

The first book here, "The Crystal Shard", was to say the least, a passable story. I liked how it created (or presented) the world, races, and characters. The only complaints I had were first of all, that the 'gimmicks' were stretched a tad to thin, and secondly that it seemed too short. By gimmick, I mean things like a mystic cat, that are used over and over again in much the same way, but never expanded upon.

Well, ok, too short can be fixed with the following two books in the trilogy I supposed. Enter a new bad guy, great start. But, rather than a continuing theme or feel, in it's place we get almost the same conversations (even words), almost the same fight scenes, and the same gimmicks that were worn out in the first book. This is the sort of thing that's expected in RPGs, but just doesn't work in a novel. Okay, the horse was different, I'll give you that, but that's all I'll give.

I tried to hold in there, maybe get to the meat of the story later on, but it didn't show. I read the same conversations and fight scenes one too many times. One of the few books I've ever read that I could not bear to finish.

A friend lent me a copy of the Dark Elf Trilogy and I thought that it was the best thing I'd ever read,but then I picked up a copy of the Icewind Dale Trilogy and since then all I've read have been books by Salvatore or books he has worked on or recommended.

to be fair i have only read the first book in this series so my review might be made in haste, but this book was horrible. i call it pop fantasy because all that is in here is action. the story is very basic and typical. there is no intrigue whatsoever in this book. it seems like it goes from fight scene to fight scene without a buildup of more than three characters. i enjoy long series like george r.r. martin and robert jordan so this book was a huge turnoff coming from detailed worlds and characters that appear in those authors books. but if your looking for fight after fight regardless of the story then by this book, if you want to think about whats going to happen next and page turning suspense you definetly wont find it in these books

If you've never read a book by R.A. Salvatore this is the one to read. This is the absolute best book I have ever read and ever since I read this I have been hooked on all of Salvatore's books about Drizzt. The Icewind Dale Trilogy is a definite must-read.

This is a great read, i think that it is better than Lord of the rings because of the great desribtion of battle, which J.R.R toilken lacked heavily, good buy, if you are are Salvatore fan there is no nead for me to tell you to not buy this book

The Icewind Dale Trilogy, along with all of the other books concerning Drizzt Do'Urden, will someday be classics in literature. This series of works is totally riveting, and grasps the reader's attention and emotions. I recommend this book, and Salvatore's other works to any reader, young or old.

I dunno why exactly this book is receiving such heavy praise. In my opinion, it's terrible. REALLY terrible. Every now and then, people ask me for english books worth a read. This book is a cheap lousy piece I wouldn't want anyone to read and think this is all an english-speaking (or writing, rather) can come up with,
being that there is such a great deal of brilliant literature england and america have produced (although i must confess not to have an in-depth knowledge of american literature, but i'll take your word for it guys). That's beside the point however.
Personally, I never saw the point in fantasy literature since most of it is highly unoriginal, just copying the basics from someone who wrote something of this kind before and attaching a new, very naive and very dejavuesque story to it about the greatness of life BEFORE there was, basically, guns. Oh, lets not forget the rabbit-out-of-the-hat guys, cause without them, it'd hardly be any fun.
One of the things that also strikes me is that fantasy literature loathes cities and praises the glories of life in swamps, mountains, cottages etc. This very particular one is plugging tundra life hardly, since the heroes are appalled by the horrible poverty in the city which of course is all the evil old city's fault and not that of the people who run it. Is the author a hillbilly perhaps?
There's no point denying it, this book is so awfully predictable. Every now and then, one of the heroes receives a little flesh wound and is a little desperate in order to make them look more sympathetic. But the outcome is always the same. Dragons, Demons, Hydras, Wererats, Banshees, Trolls, Duergars, Giant Worms... you name it. Nothing escapes from being reduced to a squash when facing Drizzt & The Gang. You can endure that for about one of these three books, but three... that's too much. Someone should have told the author to read The Lord Of The Rings. Perhaps, he would have learned that there are always opponents too big, too strong and whatnot. Perhaps he would have learned that most victories have to be dearer bought than just by a few trickles of blood and a little exhaustion that'll go away after a few nights of sleep and proper wrapping. Then again, perhaps he wouldn't, since plagiate is not even below him. He took the story of Moria from Lord Of The Rings, swapped the Balrog for a black dragon and the goblins for duergars, changed a few names and gave the whole thing a GLORIOUS ending. Well, I'm not sure which is worse, the book or its author. I think I could write a whole deal more about this book, then again, I really don't know why I'm bothering. If you buy it and you hate it as I did don't say I didn't warn ya.

People who dont appreciate books like these must be either illiterate, or people that have a horrible taste for books. I love these books and the way that they're written....anyone that doesnt can go watch a harry potter movie.

I thought the book borrowed too much from LOTR and Terry Brooks books. Situations, plots and names were straight out of LOTR and the Terry Brooks books.

I thought the story kept my interest but I could guess what would happen just from knowing the storyline of other works.

This book is extremly good. If you haven't read the dark elf trilogy read that first, then read this. This series is one of if not the best I have ever read and i have read a lot. R.A. Salavtore is the Man. I recommend this to young and old readers. READ THIS BOOK!

This is a great story, it is a shame it is written so very very badly. The authors "style", and I use the word style loosely, is painfully inadequate, his descrptions are woefully incomplete, especially in battle scenes. I read a lot of fantasy books, this is the first and last I will read from Salvatore.

This is very weak fantasy. It seems like it was written for about a 12 year old audience. I gave it 2 stars because it is slightly entertaining. However if you read these books you don't ever have to worry about anyone important dying. Also Drizzt, the main character, would be awesome if he wasn't such an unchanging whining wuss. It gets really old how he can never make friends since he is untrusted as a "dark elf." The plot is very week it is sorta like a Conan the Barbarian movie exciting and appealing to those who do not want to use their brain at all while viewing.

I just read this from someone elses review and totally agree and wanted to add it:
"If you (still) like Winnie the Pooh or The Smurfs, stories where good and evil are so seperated it is comical, then read this. If you haven't read a lot of books, or you don't like big words or complex plots, read this. If you're a young person (most likely male) and fantasize about how bad ass dual-wielding swords would be, and how bad ass it is to be a loner and a rebel, read this.

Otherwise, save your money, save your time, save your brain, and don't even let a hardcopy of this book enter your visual range. This series is a discredit to humanity."

You don't have to read the prequel "The Dark Elf trilogy" to love "The Icewind Dale Trilogy". R A Salvatore is indeed a genius at what he does. He continues to writes about Drizzt and his buddies because thats what the people demand. We want more Drizzt. In this volume you learn his encounters with the surface and how he learns to deals and cope of what others view of him because of his race. He has alot to prove because the world knows the drow has never been anything but evil. In this case, he's not evil like his race. He learns that it better to have friends than hiding and wandering in the dark being hunted by your own people. If you love Drizzt and his adventures you will definitely love this book!!

Guess the book:

A dwarf, hafling, elf, and human seek to destroy an ancient, sentient evil artifact that enslaves its bearer and bends his will to its own. Along the way-

- The human from the north becomes king

- The "campanions" battle through an abandoned, underground dwarf city that was overrun by evil because the dwarves "dug to deep." While there, one of the group is lost over a bridge covering a deep chasm battling this evil (this person eventually returns)

- The hafling loses a finger

- towers are called "tiriths"

- When the artifact is thwarted, the evil villain's tower crumbles to dust

- One of the heroes has a magic weapon that glows blue

- The group encounters trees that walk and talk

- They encounter a reclusive hermit that seems to have incredible power, yet does not intervene to help the heroes directly (this one's for those who've read the book, the REAL book instead of just watching the movie)

I could go on, and on and on . . .

Where I went to school this was called plagiarism.

I still can't understand the positive reviews for this childish piece of garbage. Sure, the Drizzt character is kind of interesting (read the at least palatable Dark Elf trilogy for a better read) but the story here is simply too idiotic for words. It truly seems to have been written by and for pre-teenagers, or at least adults with that level of sophistication and intelligence. My problems with this book are:

No cliche' is too overused for the story.

No impossible situation is unsurvivable (falling to the bottom of a 'bottomless crevace' and battling you way singlehandedly through an entire army for example)

No character is too shallow

No typographical error shall be corrected

No cutsie character interaction shall go unwritten

Etc., ad nasuem

It's too bad that online reviewers do not put their ages as I am sure the average age for the positive reviews of this book is about twelve. So yourself a favor and read George Martin, Robin Hobb, or just about anything else.

This was my first book by R.A. Salvatore, it was recomended to me by a friend that shares the same interest in Fantacy novels. I admit it took me a couple hundred pages to realy get into it because you are introduced into a new world and there are alot of characters to get familiar with. But with that being said by the time got my feet wet i just couldn't stop reading. Great characters and great story line with plots and action that got me hooked. These books run seemlessly together from one to another like you were reading a 3000 page book, and leaves you still wanting more. The Cleric Quintet Collector's EditionLegacy of the Drow Collector's Edition (Forgotten Realms: Legacy of the Drow)The Hunter's Blades Trilogy Collector's Edition (Forgotten Realms)I have now read all the books in this series and I'm now starting on the spin offs. The Sell Swords Trilogy and The Cleric Quartet.

I bought the book hoping for a quick read. It definitley was quick as i did not finish it due to it borrowing elements from tolkien and even using the same names but for different things as LOTR. A clone defintely

The Icewind Dale Trilogy is an extemely good book. Granted it is all three books rolled into one; which has some problems because of size. If at all possible purchasing the Trilogy in a three book series would be the wiser chose. The smaller paperback books are easier to carry around. But the book is very action packed and has a number of surprises in it. This book got me so wrapped up in the series that I have purchase the next two sets.