The Fallen Fortress (Forgotten Realms: The Cleric Quintet, Book 4) [Paperback]

R. A. Salvatore (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
• ASIN: B001KT1C5W
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)

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 8 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Surprisingly - Disappointing, December 5, 2000

By 

"inksibnut" (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fallen Fortress (Forgotten Realms: The Cleric Quintet, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

I should first say that I grew up on Salvatore's books and have always considered him as a master of fantasy writing... until I read this one. Having enjoyed Canticle, been ok with In Sylvan Shadows, and absolutely loved the concept of the Ghearufu in Night Masks - The Fallen Fortress, as title suggests, fell flat on its face.

Suddenly, Cadderly's steady growth as a character ground to a flat halt. In Fallen Fortress, he is omniscient, all-powerful, etc, etc. He can do anything; nothing affects him. The rendition of his emotional turmoil in this book is flat and hard to sympathize with. This makes for very boring reading. Maturity of characters? I don't think so - everyone here is predictable and does not grow.

Plotwise, there is nothing interesting - there is nothing to match the invention of Cadderly's yo-yo or crossbow in the earlier books, or the originality of the evil artifact mentioned above. Instead, potential plotlines are disappointingly dashed aside. Eg. I was intrigued when a certain villain "came back" - that would have made perfect material for advancing the plot. But instead, the book kills him off unceremoniously, without exploiting his potental (to the plot) - what a waste.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Oo!, October 23, 2004

By 

"Lucky" Thomas "-== Lucky ==-" (United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fallen Fortress (Forgotten Realms: The Cleric Quintet, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

Considering that this is my first Cleric Quintet book that I have read (let alone the first experience with R.A. Salvatore's work), I found this little gem entertaining. The Fallen Fortress falls in line with the genre of RPG novels, but Mr. Salvatore's flair for comic relief (a green bearded dwarf named "Pikel") has forced me to put the book down a few times - from laughing.

I was slightly disappointed by the length of the book, only because the literature was so enjoyable, I wanted more! But hey, there's a lot more where that came from. R.A. Salvatore is reknown for his numerous quality works.

4 Stars. I'd probably give it 5 if was a wee bit longer.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Cadderly is overpowered: worst in the series, August 10, 2002

By 

Bruce H (Toronto, Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Fallen Fortress (Forgotten Realms: The Cleric Quintet, Book 4) (Mass Market Paperback)

This, the fourth book, in Salvatore's "Cleric's Quintet," is probably the worst novel in the five book series. There were a few promising ideas that could have been developed more but alas, no such luck. This book is meant to be the climax of the story, which resolves around the plans of Castle Trinity to conquer part of the Realms.

Cadderly, the lead character, becomes more and more powerful with each passing page. His development seems to have been arrested and I found him less interesting than in the previous books. In "Canticle" (which I've reviewed), Cadderly was inexperienced and he depended on his friends to help him. He also had several internal struggles that gave him some depth. However, here, Cadderly seems to be able to overcome any obstacle with little trouble.

The story development leaves something to be desired as well. Salvatore brings back one of the interesting villains from a previous book ("Nightmasks") and then dispatches him without so much as the villain facing off against Cadderly. Other reviewers have mentioned this and I have to find myself agreeing with them. Cadderly's incredible and frequent use of magic becomes something of deus ex machina. There are supposed to be limits on what magic (i.e. power) can accomplish and it seems something of the balance was lost here. It is a pitfall that every fantasy author must always attempt to steer clear off.

There is one development in this book that hints at what will happen to the Edificant Library (a bastion of priests and good gods) in the following novel. I don't want to say anymore on that note for fear of spoiling the plot.

Please refer to my review of all the other novels in this series.