Review Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf by R. A. Salvatore

Vengeance of the Iron Dwarf Companions Codex III R. A. Salvatore

R.A. Salvatore’s New York Times best-selling tale of the dark elf Drizzt Do'Urden continues immediately on the heels of Rise of the King, with an expanding war and greater danger to the finally-reunited Companions of the Hall.
Bloody war rages across the Forgotten Realms world in the third book of the Companions Codex, the latest series in R.A. Salvatore’s New York Times best-selling saga of dark elf Drizzt Do'Urden.
In the evolving world of the Forgotten Realms setting, the Sundering has given way to months of cloud-cloaked darkness, and war rages under that oppressive sky. The orcs have broken a hard-fought treaty that's held, however tentatively, for a hundred years, and the time to settle old scores has devolved into an all-out brawl for control of the ancient realms of the North.

Publishes in US: March 3rd 2015 by Wizards of the Coast
Genre: adult sci fi
Source: netgalley
Series? The Legend of Drizzt #27, Companions Codex #3

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(Manly) bio: Allan is my husband, and will be an occasional guest reviewer on my blog. He's in his 30z and a nerd who loves (mostly) adult science fiction, namely space operas.

      This book was a difficult one for me. It was very hard to get into at the start, and there were multiple occasions where I considered putting it down and writing this review as a “Did Not Finish.” The only thing that really kept me going through those parts was the fact that I’ve been following the adventures of Drizzt Do’Urden since 1999, and I couldn’t give up on him now. Good choice. An old friend returned. And an old enemy showed an entirely new side of himself, and brought with him the promise of intrigue and chaos that has me eagerly waiting to find out what happens next.

Allan’s review: 3.75 out of 5

      Salvatore has always been excellent at allowing readers inside Drizzt’s inner monologue, allowing more than just glimpses into what Drizzt hopes for, fears, and has trouble wrapping his mind, heart, and conscience around. This book is no exception. In fact, in this book it seems to go even deeper than usual, with Drizzt seeing even less in black and white than he usually does. The inner turmoil within Drizzt has always been a fascinating contrast to his unshakable warrior exterior, and in this book you get to delve a little deeper into the mind of an already complex character.

      The typical Salvatore storytelling is fully present and accounted for. Readers get an appropriate level of world-building that doesn’t distract from the story at hand, and you spend just as much time as ever laughing at the dwarves in their ale-fueled bluster, cringing at the pure evil that is the Drow, and wondering as always, what chaos the return of the old friend is going to unleash upon the world.

Although I’m normally a big fan of Salvatore’s fight scenes, they left me a little underwhelmed this time around. I’m used to Drizzt’s elven speed and reflexes, and the superhuman strength of both Wulfgar and Bruenor, but I felt like the descriptions of Brother Afafrenfere’s hand and foot fighting was just over the top. This was the one real negative for me that I can point at.

         Overall, this book was both entertaining and enlightening to read, even if it wasn’t the best or fastest paced book in Drizzt’s universe. The plot twist at the very end of the book is enough, all by itself, to make me want to read the next book to find out just how far upside down the world of Faerun is about to turn.