The Silent Blade (Forgotten Realms: Paths of Darkness, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #11)

The Silent Blade (Paths of Darkness #1)

4.06 of 5 stars 4.06  ·  rating details  ·  7,360 ratings  ·  56 reviews
Can the Crystal Shard be destroyed at last?

Drizzt is determined to destroy the evil Crystal Shard, and seeks out the help of the scholar-priest Cadderly. But instead, his worst fears are realized, and Crenshinibon falls into the hands of the dark elf mercenary Jarlaxle and his unlikely ally Artemis Entreri.

The Silent Blade is the book that brought Drizzt back to the Realms...more
Mass Market Paperback, 394 pages
Published October 1st 1998 by Wizards of the Coast (first published 1998)
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Homeland by R.A. SalvatoreThe Icewind Dale Trilogy Collector's Edition by R.A. SalvatoreLegacy of the Drow Collector's Edition by R.A. SalvatoreThe Hunter's Blades Collector's Edition by R.A. SalvatoreThe Thousand Orcs by R.A. Salvatore
The Best Fantasy World Legend, R.A. Salvatore!
10th out of 13 books — 27 voters
A Game of Thrones by George R.R. MartinThe Hobbit & The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. TolkienThe Chronicles of Narnia by C.S. LewisThe Name of the Wind by Patrick RothfussThe Eye of the World by Robert Jordan
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Community Reviews

(showing 1-30 of 3,000)
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Jeremy Stephens
I would like to start off by saying that I'm tired of Drizzt Do'urden. He was cool for about the first seven or eight books in which he appeared but as the series goes on he has become a rather repetitive and boring character. Years ago I found myself enthralled by the many fight scenes in which he goes around slaughtering orcs, goblins or whatever else with his mighty scimitars but it has gotten to the point now to where such scenes are so common place and repetitive that they seem like filler...more
Angie
I feel sooo bad. But I am just not in the mood for this book. I have about 80 pages left but am going to give up and move onto another book.


Edit* I have decided to not go back and finish this book. When I jump on the Drizzt bandwagon again I will just skip this one. With 80 pages left I simply look up what ends up happening.

This book is all filler and I can't take it!


http://angelasanxiouslife.blogspot.co...
Branwen
Wow, I'm pretty sure this is the lowest rating I have ever given a Drizzt book! And it really is a character issue rather than a writing/storyline issue. As always, I love Salvatore's writing style, I love his detailed action scenes and setting descriptions, and I love Drizzt, Catti-brie, Bruenor, Gwen, and even Regis. But I've never liked Wulfgar, and that feeling just exploded in this book. He was a bit of a sexist pig in previous books, but he got a lot worse in this book. I'm sorry that you...more
Ricky Ganci
High quality Salvatore and Drizzt, and, lo and behold, the secondary plots were excellent: Wulfgar’s incredibly profound and difficult inner turmoil in the aftermath of his seven years’ torture at the hands of Errtu, and the refuge that all too many people in the real world turn to when their “inner and past demons” come raging: alcohol. Wulfgar has turned to violence, sex, and booze to forget his tortures, and this conflict has raised his stock for me in the saga—he’s so much different than he...more
Lauren
The Silent Blade, the eleventh Drizzt book, begins a fresh new adventure for the Companions of the Hall. As Drizzt and company head out to Spirit Soaring to have Cadderly destroy the (same old) Crystal Shard, monsters hound them at every turn. Wulfgar struggles with inner demons until he finds a place as a bouncer for a rough tavern in Luskan, where he has a great time bashing heads and drinking booze. Artemis Entreri travels back to his roots in Calimport to begin reestablishing his name and fo...more
A.N. Vidrine
I've always liked most of R.A. Salvatore's work. But I have to admit, this series starts to go downhill at this book. I don't like Wulfgar, and his decent into madness and drink feels a little bit overused. Gee...that also happened to an overly-tall warrior in another fantasy series (Dragonlance). And Drizzt's role (the only one I truly care about) starts to decrease. But Jarlaxle is a great villian, so he kind of makes up for it. And he continues into the next books, so that is one bonus.

I just...more
Michael Alexander Henke
It has been quite a number of years since I read a Drizzt book, or any Dungeons and Dragons book for that matter. Not that I grew to dislike them, I just didn't make the effort to put them in my reading schedule. I decided to make time, since they've been sitting on the shelf, staring me in the face for so long. Being that this is the 11th book in the series, there isn't much to say at this point. If you haven't read any of them, you won't be starting here, and if you have, you already know how...more
James
Jul 27, 2011 James added it
Thus begins the waning of the series. Salvatore first engaged us with an exotic culture, with clever plots to decipher in the wondrously detailed world of the drow. Through Menzoberranzan, Icewind Dale and Mithril Hall the story unfolded.

Now, with The Silent Blade, we have slouched to dumbed-down explanations of plot currents, hazy, ill-described emotional subplots, and increasingly lackluster swordplay. Calishite politics are interesting (though much better described in Servant of the Shard), a...more
James
What can RA Salvatore do to make the reader actually like and cheer for Artemis Entreri? I'm not sure, but that actually happened. This was a very fun book and I was totally happy about how everything cliffhanged when I read it. One of his better books.
Plot: Drizzt, Bruenor, Cattie-Brie, and Regis are now reunited with Wulfgar, but the latter has "issues" related to being tortured in Hell for 5 years. Meanwhile, Artemis Entreri returns to Calimport where the various factions want to control him,...more
Marco
In the 11th volume of the Dark Elf series, Drizzt, Catti-Brie, Bruenor and Wulfgar travel South to try to destroy the evil Crystal Shard. Along the way Wulfgar has to confront the internal daemons born during his ordeal as a prisoner, Artemis has to come to terms with his new old life, and Jarlaxle is extending his reach further toward the surface. I liked this book, the plot is fast paced and entertaining, but some parts of it really troubled me: I did not like the unjustified use of violence,...more
Matthew Miller
My previous review of this book put it in a more favorable light, but now that I've had some time to really think it over, I'm changing some things. The ending was really good, so I think that was the only thing I was remembering about when I wrote my first review.

R. A. Salvatore continues to be an interesting and original writer despite the fact that this is the 11th book about the same character. His writing style is quick and easy to understand, without being unclear, and his combat scenes ar...more
David Williams
At the end of Passage to Dawn it was discovered that Wulfgar was not dead. Instead he had been held prisoner for many years by the demon Errtu. He was freed during the battle between Errtu and Drizzt. At the end of the battle Drizzt also gained control of Crenshinibon, the sentient crystal shard. Drizzt hopes that Cadderly will be able to help him destroy the evil artifact once and for all. The five companion, Drizzt, Bruenor, Regis, Catti-Brie, and Wulfgar head out for Spirit Soaring, Cadderly’...more
Kati
This book feels like a one big filler, I don't even know why. It just plods along, there's no big climax or anything. It follows three story lines: Drizzt, Catti-brie, Regis and Bruenor's, then Wulfgar's and Entreri's. It's a good book but, I don't know, the spark's missing, I guess.

Also, what really irked me was how Drizzt and Catti-brie, mostly it was those two, were all about how they wanted to give Wulfgar time and space to get better - and at the same time they kept nagging and nagging, wan...more
Jessica
Drizzt wall. Even though I still really enjoyed the story, I ended up hitting the Drizzt wall.

So yes, the story was entertaining and enjoyable, which I expect from a Drizzt novel. What I didn't expect, though (and ultimately, what I ended up struggling with) was the three different story lines. Drizzt and his traveling companions made up one part, Entreri and his dealings in Calimport and with Jarlaxle made up the second part, and Wulfgar and his whoring around Luskan made up the third.

I unders...more
Eleonore Rigby
Ein sehr spannender Band wieder. R.A. Salvatore schafft es ständig aufs Neue, mich zu beeindrucken, auch, wenn er immer alles niederreißt. Aber genau diese Kämpfe sind ja das richtige für einen Action-Fan wie mich, vor allem gegen Ende war dieser Band nochmal richtig aufregend! Drizzt und seine Gefährten müssen nämlich gewissen Kristallsplitter, den man in diesem Band auch als Kristall der Finsternis betitelt, an einen Ort bringen, wo niemand das tödliche Artefakt vermuten würde - während der ab...more
Jared
I enjoy Salvatore's writing, it does not require much thought or effort to read his books, which make them easy to just sit back and relish them. They are a simple and easy read. I have to say that I am not too excited about this series however. The same villians just keep coming back. Don't you have any new contendors for the Drow or do you have to keep recycling the same old bad guys again and again. Dont get me wrong I like Entreri, but at times I can't help but think that his time has past....more
Terry Costantini
A good Drizzt novel, but I am not exactly sure why it won an Origin Award. The story was predictable and repetitive, and although one could consider it boring, I thing cozy and familiar is a better way of putting it. I like the characters so the story's problems are forgivable. This is a first of the new trilogy, so hopefully it will get better.
Jennifer
Alweer een nieuwe serie over Drizzt en zijn vrienden. Aardig, maar de sjeu is er meer en meer vanaf. Enige echt boeiende deel is Barbaar Wulfgar die als gevolg van een traumatisch verblijf in de hel (vorige trilogie) nu geen contact meer wil met zijn vrienden en zich verliest in drank en zinloze gevechten.
Priest Apostate
Salvatore doesn't disappoint - he still seemlessly develops the characters (making sure to portray them in all their glory (or tragedy), injects some decent amounts of introspection from Drizzt's perspective (which still acts as a profound observation into the human condition), and of course, definitely brings the action.
Kim Maston
Whilst I cringe looking back at all the drizzt books I read, this one was an exception. The only character I cared about in this book was Artemis, Drizzt's disillusioned and deflated arch-nemesis. His evolution of character captured my attention and was the sole reason why I finished reading this book.
Dan Rheingans
Another good book from Salvatore, I found myself enjoying the Artemis Entreri line much more than the issues with Wulfgar and/or Drizzt himself. The book did, however, seemed rushed and choppy -- particuarly the ending. Overall, not one of the better books in the series, but still a fun read.
Justin Anthony
This book was fantastic and brought back many of the characters I really enjoyed reading about in the previous books. On top of the return of previously loved characters, Salvatore sends some of them in such varying paths that I'm excited to once again see where everything ends up.
Matthew
Salvatore returns us to the adventures of Drizzt and his companions. This series starts off with some dark tones hinting at what the future holds. This could be a grim tale for the companions, as seen by Wulfgar's torment.
Nathan
Amazing book, well writen, always surprising you in new ways in the wonderful world they put the characters in. A band of friends set out on a journey to destroy Crenchinibon, a corrupting crystal with dark magics trapped inside.
Jon Wilding
Jun 12, 2011 Jon Wilding rated it 4 of 5 stars Recommends it for: Anyone
You know, you would think that after 10 books about the same character you would start to get tired of reading about his exploits. Well, you would be wrong. Salvatore know just how to keep me interested.
Jason
This book literally stole my breath away at the end. I won't post spoilers, but this book was great. I could not put it down without thinking and wondering what was going to happen next.
Jeff Miller
This was book 11 of a series I have read before, so that gives a clue to how much I like this book and the series. Though the following books in the seriesI have not read and will continue with them next
Caleb Colby
"Loss of empathy might well be the most enduring and deep-cutting scar of all, the silent blade of an unseen enemy, tearing at our hearts and stealing more than our strength"
Wulfette Noire
I'm not sure why I don't like this one as much as the others. I love Artemis Entreri but it seems like this book is focus too much on him instead of Drizzt...
Cecil
This is another great adventure with Drizzt. This book contiues the epic saga of Drizzt and his friends' adventures.
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El título 1 10 May 03, 2011 01:33am  
The Silent Blade (Forgotten Realms: Paths of Darkness, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #11)
The Silent Blade (Forgotten Realms: Paths of Darkness, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #11)
The Silent Blade (Hardcover)
The Silent Blade (Forgotten Realms: Paths of Darkness, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #11)
The Silent Blade (Forgotten Realms: Paths of Darkness, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #11)

1023510
As one of the fantasy genre’s most successful authors, R.A. Salvatore enjoys an ever-expanding and tremendously loyal following. His books regularly appear on The New York Times best-seller lists and have sold more than 10,000,000 copies. Salvatore’s most recent original hardcover, The Two Swords, Book III of The Hunter’s Blade Trilogy (October 2004) debuted at # 1 on The Wall Street Journal best-...more
More about R.A. Salvatore...
Homeland (Forgotten Realms: The Dark Elf Trilogy, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #1) Exile (Forgotten Realms: The Dark Elf Trilogy, #2; Legend of Drizzt, #2) Sojourn (Forgotten Realms: The Dark Elf Trilogy, #3; Legend of Drizzt, #3) The Crystal Shard (Forgotten Realms: Icewind Dale, #1; Legend of Drizzt, #4) The Halfling's Gem (Forgotten Realms: Icewind Dale, #3; Legend of Drizzt, #6)

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“Loss of empathy might well be the most enduring and deep-cutting scar of all, the silent blade of an unseen emey, tearing at our hearts and stealing more than our strength- Drizzt Do'Urden” 9 people liked it
“But love, honest love, requires empathy. It is a sharing—of joy, of pain, of laughter, and of tears. Honest love makes one’s soul a reflection of the partner’s moods. And as a room seems larger when it is lined with mirrors, so do the joys become amplified. And as the individual items within the mirrored room seem less acute, so does pain diminish and fade, stretched thin by the sharing. That is the beauty of love, whether in passion or friendship. A sharing that multiplies the joys and thins the pains.” 4 people liked it
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