The Dragon King: Book 3 of The Crimson Shadow [Hardcover]

R. A. Salvatore (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1996

In the third installment of the Crimson Shadow trilogy, the evil King Greensparrow of the land of Eriador seeks revenge, and he takes the form of a mammoth dragon to once again battle Luthien Bedwyr.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Plenty of sound and fury but precious little fire rumbles in the belly of Salvatore's pseudo-Tolkien conclusion to the Crimson Shadow trilogy. Here, Avon's foppish evil wizard-king, Greensparrow, and his dragon alter ego provoke Eriador's wizard-king, Brind'Amour, into breaking the flimsy truce achieved in Luthien's Gamble (Forecasts, Jan. 29). Though badly outnumbered by Avon's "cyclopians," Brind'Amour and his assorted allies assault Avon to free Eriador forever. With the help of Luthien (whose magic alter ego is the Crimson Shadow), Katerin (the Shadow's warrior-maid lover), Siobhan (a revengeful half-elf rape victim), Oliver (a mouthy half-pint "halfting") and a flotilla of nouveau Vikings, the wizard-king slashes through acres of monsters and sloshes through torrents of gore. Despite the rivers of blood, however, Salvatore's vocabulary and imagination prove dry. Supposedly noble characters "smirk," "snicker" and "bat their eyes," and no cliche is left unused: even Saddam Hussein is paraphrased for the coming "grandfather of those battles." Salvatore's tired story depends on gratuitous violence and misused motifs from classic sources (Tolkien's Luthien was a fetching Elf-princess, for example, not a male hero with a fragile ego). These lumbering false steps make Salvatore stumble badly in his attempts to evoke memories of Middle Earth.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From Library Journal

In this conclusion of the "Crimson Shadow" trilogy, the wizard King Greensparrow determines to regain control over Eriador. Luthien Bedwyr, as his alter ego the Crimson Shadow, must again fight to keep Eriador free. Recommended for fantasy collections with the first two books.
Copyright 1996 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 344 pages
• Publisher: Warner Books (June 1996)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0446517283
• ISBN-13: 978-0446517287
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (24 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,744,890 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

R.A. Salvatore has spent so many years winding himself into fantasy worlds that he's still trying to figure out how to unwind. He is the author of more than forty novels and more than a dozen New York Times best sellers, including The Two Swords, which debuted at or near the top of many best seller lists.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Salvatore's triumph of imagination, November 30, 1999

By 

K. M. (Illinois) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Dragon King (Crimson Shadow) (Mass Market Paperback)

I have found among many great writers a sense of stability and lustered quality that seems to make them stand out among the rest of the literary world. Those like Stephen King, Peter Straub, John Grisham, and others all title this list. In the Crimson Shadow series, Salvatore has isolated simple characteristics in the most complex characters of Katerin, Luthien, and the universily loved Oliver De'Burrows. Even Brind 'Amour and Greensparrow posses that certain air of genuiune quality. Though some characteristics of the story (especially in The Dragon King) are exceptionally predictable, they add to the completion of yet another chapter in a world that exists only in the mind's eye of the reader. I would recommend this series to any and all who have the time and patience to read it. Trust me, you will be rewarded.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars The final conclusion of the "Crimson Shadow", November 3, 2002

By 

Sir Sparhawk (Bulgaria) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Dragon King (Crimson Shadow) (Mass Market Paperback)

With this book Bob Salvatore concludes his "Crimson Shadow" trilogy - and he does it very good, however not perfect.
The battle descriptions are excellent, but frustrating, because in the whole book you want only one - with the evil Dragon King. But you must wait - it's great finish.

2 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Typical one sided drubbing!, April 29, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: The Dragon King (Crimson Shadow) (Mass Market Paperback)

Without giving away any information, It would seem that if you have read other books by this same author and subbed in the new character names, they all would be the same book. As I read thru this book, I couldn't believe that the "evil" empire is so weak and ineffective yet when the author mentions them, he uses powerful descriptive phrases.."the mighty greensparrow", the "the Great armies of Avon" etc.., yet time after time, they are decimated time after time. The "Good" side has its share of hereos, but they are all very typical...unbeatable in combat, yet each has their own unique personalities..blah blah blah. ....