Tantras (Forgotten Realms: The Avatar: Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

by Scott Ciencin (Author) "There were depths to the darkness surrounding Midnight that she feared to explore..." (more)
Key Phrases: scarred cleric, blond sorceress, scarred assassin, Black Lord, God of Strife, Lord Bane (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Product Description
This title is the second in a series of recovers of the popular Avatar series. At the time of its original release, this series presented key events that impacted the entire Forgotten Realms world, and the effects of those events are still felt in current novels. This re-released series will have a cohesive cover design and all-new art. This title was originally released underneath the author pseudonym Richard Awlinson.

About the Author
Scott Ciencin is the author of numerous novels, including Shadowdale, Tantras, and books set in the world of Dinotopia.

Product Details

• Reading level: Young Adult
  
• Mass Market Paperback: 338 pages
• Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (June 1, 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786931086
• ISBN-13: 978-0786931088
• Product Dimensions: 6.8 x 4.2 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 6.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.7 out of 5 stars See all reviews (21 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #607,565 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good bridge between "Shadowdale" and "Waterdeep.", September 27, 2000

By	"bulldog51" (Connellsville, PA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Tantras (Forgotten Realms: Avatar Trilogy, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

The Gods of the Forgotten Realms still wander among the mortals, since the Tablets of Fate have not been returned to the Gods' overlord, Lord Ao. The assault by Bane's Zhentish forces on Shadowdale has been repulsed, but Elminster has gone missing during the battle and is presumed destroyed. The Dalesman put Midnight and Adon on trial for Elminster's murder. But Cyric kills several guards and succeeds in freeing Midnight and Adon, and together the three flee down the River Ashaba and away from Shadowdale. Kelemvor and a force of Dalesmen are sent in pursuit. The chase leads to the occupied city of Scardale, then across the water to the city of Tantras, which will witness a titanic struggle between Bane and Torm, God of Duty and Honor. Along the way, loyalties shift and alliances fracture. By the end of "Tantras," the characters of Midnight, Adon, Kelemvor, and Cyric will be remarkably different than they were at the end of "Shadowdale."

Another reviewer said that this book doesn't work well as a bridge between the lst ("Shadowdale") and 3rd ("Waterdeep") books of the series. I disagree.

This book does not stand on equal footing with the other two books. That being said, "Tantras" is just as good as the others. "Well, wait a minute," you're saying. "Didn't you just say it wasn't as good?" No, that's not what I said. I said it doesn't stand on equal footing. That's because it's a different kind of book. The only reason this book was written, in my opinion, was to set the stage for "Waterdeep" by exploring the different characters and their different motivations in depth. The best part of the book is the journey down the river, because it allows the reader to get insider Cyric's, Midnight's, and Kelemvor's heads and understand what makes them tick. Since Adon is still catatonic for that part of the journey, his motivations don't get the same in-depth treatment.

If you've read "Shadowdale," buy this book. If you haven't, read "Shadowdale" first, because the changes that take place in the main characters will be more profound with the background of "Shadowdale."

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars A Major Improvement, May 5, 2003

By	Yu-jin Chia "Yu-Jin Chia" (Cupertino, CA USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Tantras (Forgotten Realms: Avatar Trilogy, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

This is a classic Forgotten Realms trilogy, and reading it is pretty necessary if you want to make sense of a lot of the goings-on in the Realms. This is especially the case if you care a whit about the FR pantheon, since a lot of the material comes from these books. I have to admit, this was really the only reason I picked them up, and I went ahead and got all three at once.

After reading Shadowdale, I seriously regretted it. Frankly, I couldn't (and still can't) believe that book is the start of a classic anything- let alone a FR trilogy. Compared to any of Salvatore, Denning, or Cunningham's novels, it is utterly pathetic. The characters are flat, and the book reads like a transcript from some Dungeon Master's game (and not a very good DM, at that). Despite the fact that I already had the other two, I was somewhat reluctant to continue.

Fans of the Realms, take heart. This book is good enough that I've forgotten most of the unpleasantries of Shadowdale. I'm pleased to say that Tantras is a huge improvement over its predecessor. It is supposedly written by the same author, Scott Ciencin (a.k.a. Richard Awlinson) and if this really is the same author's work, then he has seriously improved. It's true that the characters are still a bit undeveloped, but at least they don't act like cranky, somewhat deranged children anymore. I'm still not quite sure why Adon is even present, but he does at least do something useful in this book. Additionally, some of the perplexing, seemingly random events that took place in Shadowdale are given at least a partial explanation. For example, the haunted woods that appeared out of nowhere to waylay our heroes was just nature gone bad. Oh.

The villains here are largely what they were before, plus one that you can probably figure out if you've read the FR Campaign Setting. More or less, Midnight, Kelemvor, Adon, and a few extras in red shirts (who die just as quickly as you would expect) are done mucking around and fighting the good fight for people that would rather just hang them. Now they're getting down to business- namely, securing the Tablets of Fate and stopping all the madness. The heroes journey to exotic new places, meet exciting new people, and of course kill them. It's not a very deep or thought-provoking plot, but it is engrossing and fun. In the meantime, ham-fisted but heavily-armed Bane and his ugly sidekick Myrkul are up to their usual no-good, and you can expect to see great deals of violence and slaughter that would seem to indicate that the God of the Dead is the only one winning this whole show... but that's to be decided.

For those that suffered through Shadowdale and thought it to be drivel, it would be a shame to not read Tantras. This is your reward for putting up with the heroes in the first book, and it does satisfy. While still not up to par with some of the other 'non-classic' Forgotten Realms novels, this one is at least enjoyable enough to recommend.

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars AMAZING TRILOGY!!!, June 4, 2004

By	L Gontzes (Athens, Greece) - See all my reviews (TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Tantras (Forgotten Realms: Avatar Trilogy, Book 2) (Mass Market Paperback)

Definitely a great fantasy epic and one of my personal favorites, The Avatar Trilogy- Shadowdale, Tantras, and Waterdeep, is about the Time of Troubles when the Gods walked the Earth (in this case Toril). The books are so incredibly well written that the reader feels that they have been transported to another plane of existence and are actually present among the characters, seeing what they see, feeling what they feel, sensing what they sense. The authors have truly outdone themselves and have presented us with a masterpiece of literature the likes of which we have seen only in JRR Tolkien's work, RA Salvatore's The Dark Elf and Icewind Dale trilogies, and in authors Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's Dragonlance Chronicles and Legends trilogies. Love, honor, bravery, magic, and heroes are all about. In conclusion, it's what Fantasy reading SHOULD be. A GREAT trilogy indeed and a "must read" along with James Lowder's Prince of Lies and Troy Denning's Crucible: The Trial of Cyric! DON'T MISS IT!!!