Customer Reviews

Dragonslayer's Return (Spearwielder's Tale)

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This entire Series is a little juvenile. I read this book and the other tow in the trilogy (The Woods Out Back and The Dragons Dagger) and they were all good. This is an easy read which is part of the reason that I don't think that this is Salvatore's best work. I got the feeling that this might have been one of his earlier attempts before he found his real writing niche. I love all of Salvatore's boooks and am now about 4 books from reading them all. This Particular book and series has great characters. I liked the Leprechan especially. There was a lot of good comedy and there were several fights but these weren't as Dynamic as, say, the Dark Elf books by Salvatore. All in all though this book has a good story, be it predictable at times. I did enjoy this book because the basic premice of the books was good. Somewhat like the Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay who is also a very good writer. This book and this series (Becuase you might as well read the whole series) are worth the time and this would be a good one to read to your kids at night. I hope this helps.

The final installment in R.A. Salvatore's Spearweilder series, "The Dragonslayer's Return" is, like its predecessors, a good read that sometimes flirts with greatness, but never really lives up to its potential. In fact, as a conclusion to a trilogy, it is somewhat disappointing, although without completely destroying the series.

Obviously Drizzt Do'Urden creator R.A. Salvatore is deeply connected to these books, and feels very strongly about the subject matter. Again we join Gary (named after Salvatore's own brother, presumably) from Real-earth, and his wife Diane (named after Salvatore's own wife), as they embark upon a journey to the realm of Faerie (a shallow version of Middle-earth, essentially) to destroy once and for all the wicked witch who terrorizes the land. What ensues are a lot of heavy-handed war sequences and some smaller battles that are overflowing with Salvatore's zesty action descriptions. Though action is certainly one of Salvatore's strengths, he often gets carried away, and this is particularly true in "The Dragonslayer's Return." The repetitive nature of these action setpieces leads, sooner or later, to boredom, and skimming ahead to read the inevitable outcome.

Most disappointing, though, is the series conclusion, which doesn't pack as much punch as you might wish (and bears an uncanny similarity to a certain sequence in the film, "Conan the Destroyer"). Salvatore seems almost rushed to deliver an ending as well, and deprives his readers of what could be a more emotional farewell between the residents of Real-earth and their Faerie pals. Like a Hollywood film, it seems that once the action is finished, the story races toward a finale, therefore depriving itself of slower, more character-driven moments. This is a great loss to the series - though not a completely crippling one, by any means.

Though Salvatore uses these books to get a bit preachy at times, his messages are generally worthy ones, and his themes mostly adhere to those embraced by his obvious mentor, J.R.R. Tolkien. The characters are vivid and colorful (though, strangely, Real-earth natives Gary and Diane are perhaps the least interesting), and the humor is generally right on the mark. Again, though, Salvatore tries in vain to balance light-hearted fun with the horrors of war and violence, and though the other two volumes in the series suffered similar difficulties, "The Dragonslayer's Return" is the biggest offender. It's a tough balancing act to be sure, and Salvatore, at least during this stage in his career, just wasn't up to the task.

All quibbles aside, "The Dragonslayer's Return" is, like its forebears, a fast read, and though it has its lulls, it's still a good sword `n sorcery novel, sure to retain the fans of the previous tomes. It just gets a bit too self-important sometimes, and never really makes the most of its winning premise. Still, I can't help but recommend it to the world's dreamers, who will almost surely find something to like here.

The final entry in The Spearweilder's Tale is The Dragon Slayer's Return. This book has all the charm of the previous two with a couple of new characters - including Gary's girlfriend, now his wife, who we briefly met in The Dragon's Dagger. I have to admit that this book is my favorite of the three (though I love them all) largely due to this new addition. I mean really, Gary's a great everyman and he deserves a sweet girl...who also happens to kick some tale herself. (hehehe...hey, I've got to amuse myself somehow right).

Overall: 9/10

The Dragon Slayer's Return brings The Spearweilder's Tale to a strong close, and leaves the reader simultaneously satisfied, and ready for more. While many authors will tell you that you can only end a book two ways - too early or too late - Salvatore manages to end this one right on time. It is a satisfying finish that is truly rare in literature of any kind. This book sees the return of the with Ceridwyn, which multiplies the heroes already dire problems with the evil king of Faerie. All in all, it is a great story that finishes the series with a surprising twist.

Writing: 8.5/10

Salvatore's writing is somewhat improved in The Dragon Slayer's Return. His use of sentence and paragraph structure, while never bad, is a little better, which makes the book an even more enjoyable read.

Characters: 10/10

Diane, Gary's wife, is a great new character who makes the entire book feel like it is both the first and last in the series. Her character brings a fresh perspective on everything, and allows Gary to take up Kelsey's role of teacher from the first book. Not only does her presence allow the already familiar character's to be more strongly developed, but she is a well built and fully realized character in her own right.

World: 6.5/10
The Dragon Slayer's Return moves fairly quickly, and so it returns to the quick and dirty explanations of the world that you saw in The Woods Out Back. Again, the humor and strong characters generally make up for this, but you world addicts out there will be disappointed by the lack of extended details and new information.

Plot: 9.5/10

Again, this book is wonderfully plotted, and Salvatore manages to make the cliche interesting, and in some places even surprising. I won't spoil the book for you, but there are some twists and turns that might surprise you.

Pacing: 9/10

Generally The Dragonslayer's Return moved a little fast for my taste. This isn't enough to make it a poor book, or even enough to downgrade it from excellent, but there are portions where you will feel rushed.

Commentary: 3.0/10

The majority of the commentary in this novel focuses on Gary's relationship with his wife - and it really is a great relationship. I hope you enjoy.

Conclusion:

The Dragonslayer's Return is a strong finish to an excellent series. If you haven't already purchased one or more of these books I suggest you get the entire series in one volume here. I think I actually have these books both in individual copies and in the collected volume.

The Dragonslayer's Return starts with Gary looking for a way back to the land of Faerie and the land of Faerie looking at an evil king bent on destroying those who oppose him.

Gary's wife, Diane (he got married after The Dragon's Dagger), makes a splash onto the scene by being a decent fighter and a great puzzle-solver. While she was upset with Gary for ruining their vacation to England, she finally realizes he wasn't just telling tall tales about Faerie. She makes a wonderful companion for Gary as the battle for the safety of Faerie continues to wreak havoc.

Meanwhile, the evil King Kinnemore is trying to rule the land with an iron fist. It's always been known that he was a puppet of Ceridwen the witch, but we finally learn the truth of the relationship. Ceridwen is due to be released from her terms of banishment set by Gary in The Woods Out Back, so her minions of evil are massing to take over the peaceful populace.

While this is the final installment of the series, R. A. Salvatore once again leaves you wanting more. Gary's original companions (Geno, Mickey, Kelsey, Gerbil, and Tommy) don't play as big a role in this book when compared to the first two. Gary and Diane dominate the storyline with their perfect combination of brains and brawn.

Enjoy R. A. Salvatore's Spearwielder's Trilogy and remember this little secret. Gary Leger is Bob Salvatore.

This entire Series is a little juvenile. I read this book and the other tow in the trilogy (The Woods Out Back and The Dragons Dagger) and they were all good. This is an easy read which is part of the reason that I don't think that this is Salvatore's best work. I got the feeling that this might have been one of his earlier attempts before he found his real writing niche. I love all of Salvatore's boooks and am now about 4 books from reading them all. This Particular book and series has great characters. I liked the Leprechan especially. There was a lot of good comedy and there were several fights but these weren't as Dynamic as, say, the Dark Elf books by Salvatore. All in all though this book has a good story, be it predictable at times. I did enjoy this book because the basic premice of the books was good. Somewhat like the Fionavar Tapestry by Guy Gavriel Kay who is also a very good writer. This book and this series (Becuase you might as well read the whole series) are worth the time and this would be a good one to read to your kids at night. I hope this helps.

In this sequel to The Dragon's Dagger, Gary Leger is desperate to return to the land of Faerie. With his father dead, he hopes that somehow the difference in the way time passes in Faerie will allow him to return and meet his father just once more. But, there is terrible trouble in Faerie. King Kinnemore is on the march, seeking to bring all of Faerie under his heel, so that he can present it to the newly released witch Ceridwen. And now Gary, and his new wife Diane must help the inhabitants of Faerie fight for their very survival. Can they save Faerie? Indeed, can they even save themselves?

Overall, I found this to be a better book than the other two in the trilogy. Like them, it starts out excruciatingly slow, as you follow Gary and Diane on their peregrinations, looking for a bridge to Faerie. However, unlike the others, the story is much more serious, and the action more interesting. There are a number of great fight scenes, and the obligatory "outnumbered army facing a horde of bad guys." Admittedly, after the defeat of the enemy, the couple's exit from Faerie does seem somewhat rushed and perfunctory, which is a disappointment.

But, that said, it is an interesting book, with lots of great action and magic and monsters.

After reading the second book and saying what an improvement on the first, this one slips back into the endless unbelievable fight scenes. (See review on Woods Out Back.)

On the plus side, killing off a goodie character early on, nice touch.

On the down side, he had to go and bring the wife. No, please don't - you resisted in the second book, why? So as in the first book now we have a character newly introduced to the world of swords and sourcery, killing brutal monsters with weapons she's never handled before and adjusting just fine to the new world. Well the husband had prepared her of course. I don't think so!

The other down side - RAS's use of humour to switch the king with a haggis. Just didn't work for me. How would a dumb ravanous beast be a suitable fodder for imitating a king. Wouldn't one of her intelligent pawns (the goblin for example) be much more suitable candidates. Seems to me that the plot was ruined because of an excuse to re-introduce a 'joke' character which was not funny in the first book.

I ended up skipping much of this book just because the fight scenes are so boring and predictable. Generally I found no loss in skipping to the end of the fight and working put from there if anyone had suffered as a result. Of course no-one dies, except the last .. oops!

Les.