The Dream Spheres

Forgotten Realms: Songs & Swords #5

by Elaine Cunningham

Welcome to Waterdeep

Here, everything imaginable is for sale. Even dreams can be purchased if one is willing to pay the price.

When the sale of dream spheres threatens the life of his newfound half sister, Danilo Thann joins forces with Arilyn Moonblade to uncover the source of this deadly trade. Their search leads them into the dark heart of Waterdeep, and to personal secrets that could destroy them both.

Elaine Cunningham returns to the City of Splendors and the characters that made her one of the most popular Forgotten Realms authors.

Genres: Forgotten Realms, Fantasy, Fiction, Dungeons and Dragons, High Fantasy, Romance, Collections

384 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1999

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.


Elaine Cunningham is an American fantasy author.

Reviews

[Sohvi]

When you and your friends start a nostalgic book club and you think it is a good idea to read the whole Swords and songs series. White wine wasn't enough. I recommend whiskey or vodka. Possibly both.

[Kelly McBride · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was the first D&D novel I ever read - and personally, none of the books I have read since have topped it. Elves having drama all over Waterdeep, getting to see some of Skullport, fun characters with interesting relationships, centered on a magical object that I'm interested in. It had it all!

[PRJ Greenwell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Another entertaining mess from Ms Cunningham. I like how her novels are plotted with more complexity than the average D&D story, but many of these tangled threads don't unravel by the conclusion. This is no exception. There's things touched on in this novel that aren't fully explored, and a few of the fully explored things have no true resolution. Net result: a mess. It's set up for a sequel that's never apparently been published, nor is it likely to (AFAIK), and you can only guess at the future prospects of some of the characters, especially Isabeau Thione.

Oh well. It was fun while it lasted.

[Daniel Willis · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disclaimer: I've never been enraptured by the Waterdeep setting nor have read any of the previous books about these characters, Danilo, Arilyn, and Elaith. So reading it as a standalone book I was lost. Most of the family politics and alluded to characters that a Waterdeep fan would know were not explained adequately enough. The backplot recouting of the 3 main characters had me feeling there was no cohesion in this series -- e.g. "Oh yeh we were suppose to forever irrevocably hate each other from the last book but I didn't know there would be another book and now the plot demands we all work together so, wham, all is forgiven, kiss and make up."

As far as the plot, there was some mystery going on, but it was convoluted and confusing. Even when the characters explained it at the end it was rambling and incoherent, like the author never really developed it thoroughly. I figured out the villain early on. The blurb talked about a long lost half-sister as if it were the focus of the book, but she was a very minor character who died off really quickly (and yet the brother acted like it was a great lost because the plot demanded it) The final battle scene was short and unsatisfying, which sadly is far too common in Forgotten Realms novels. Even the titular "dream spheres", which were described nicely in the beginning and I really looked forward the author exploring further, ended up being just a faceless commodity the families were fighting over, might as well have called them baubles.

Overall not much to recommend unfortunately.

[RoxanaSparrow · Rating 5 out of 5]

Este libro me gustó tanto que lo devoré en una semana. Volver a ver trabajando juntos a Danilo Thann y Arilyn Hojaluna ha sido un auténtico pasote. 

En esta historia, nuestros protagonistas investigan una serie de sucesos alrededor de unas esferas mágicas que transmiten sueños deseados a quienes las utilizan. Además, descubrimos una hermana de Danilo que él no sabía que tenía, lo que añade un giro interesante. La trama también se entrelaza mucho con los nobles de Waterdeep.

Lo que más disfruté del libro fue ver cómo la relación romántica entre Danilo y Arilyn sigue avanzando, a pesar de los impedimentos a los que se enfrentan como pareja. 

Aunque la trama principal y la relación entre los protagonistas quedan bastante bien cerradas, hay un par de cosas que se quedan en el aire. Descubrí que la autora, Elaine Cunningham, estaba trabajando en un sexto libro, pero Wizards of the Coast no se lo permitió publicar. ¡Qué pena que ese libro nunca viera la luz, porque habría sido increíble! 

Dicho esto, he terminado con una serie de cinco libros que me ha encantado y que seguramente volveré a leer en el futuro. Me deja con un toque de nostalgia porque me habría gustado tener más, pero también con mucha felicidad, ya que la historia no me ha defraudado en ningún momento. 

Además, estoy muy contenta de haber conocido a un personaje tan peculiar como Danilo Thann, que se ha convertido en mi bardo favorito. Sin duda, seguiré explorando otras obras de Elaine Cunningham.

[Stuart Schneider · Rating 4 out of 5]

More like 4 1/2 stars. A thrilling conclusion to this series, shaping up for sequel(s) that I do not know whether or not exist at this point (more research required (yes, even I need to do research once in a while of books that escaped my notice over the years). I was able to discern the likely ending of the mystery surrounding this plot line, but it did not detract from my enjoyment of following the 3 main characters involved as well as the bad girl in this one. I am hopeful that there is more to their written story that was published, but if not, I am satisfied with my imagination in filling in my own answers to their eventually story ending. I have made a decision to find and read every FR novel left that is not a part of my collection currently, but this will take time and a few more years of tracking down and reading. Onward!

[Sandro H. · Rating 2 out of 5]

Una decepción total de libro y un final indigno para la historia de Arilyn y Danilo, dos personajes muy buenos que aquí se ven envueltos en un misterio aburrido y, además, innecesariamente enrevesado.

Aprecio la intención de la autora de escribir una historia ambiciosa, que implique a elfos, humanos y a las grandes casas nobles de la ciudad de Aguas Profundas, pero acaba perdiéndose en una sucesión de escenas sin mucho interés, con personajes secundarios que van y vienen sin dejar huella en una trama que de por sí carece de interés.

La propia ciudad de Aguas Profundas, un escenario icónico y lleno de posibilidades, no brilla aquí tanto como en otras novelas, como "La ciudad del esplendor", escrita también por Cunningham junto a Ed Greenwood.

Una pena que esto probablemente vaya a ser lo último que lea de la autora y de estos personajes.

[Mike Carlson · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read this book, MANY years ago (likely in the 90s). I recall being underwhelmed by it. Admittedly, it was the 5th book in the series where I LOVED the 1st book, liked the next 2 an awful lot, and then didn't really like the 4th book too much. Anyway, maybe 3 decades later I re-read the whole series. I was pleasantly surprised by this book. The Dream Spheres was highly entertaining and an excellent read. I very much enjoyed it, and am left wondering whether my memory is really bad, or my tastes have just improved a lot. I'm also left newly saddened that the 6th book in the series, Reclamation, never got published. I would very much like to have been able to read that - Elaine Cunningham did such a good job with these characters, I want to know what happened to them.

[Iain · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'm sorry. I love Cunningham's work in general, but this title was a swing and a miss for me. It dragged to the point of overstaying its welcome. The last chapters in particular were anti-climatic, rushed, and disappointing. It certainly didn't help that I'd "solved" the big mystery chapters at least half way through the book.

Proof I suppose, that not all Cunningham pens is golden.

[Kagan Oztarakci · Rating 3 out of 5]

"The best thing about old friends is that they know you well. Of course, that is also the worst thing about old friends."

"Intentions seldom matter. Impressions on the other hand, matter a great deal."

"...not even the most formidable power can last forever."

[Stacey · Rating 4 out of 5]

My favourite is the third book in this series. This one is decent but ended quite abruptly. I'd like a longer epilogue.

[Drizzita Isilrá · Rating 5 out of 5]

Historia de corrupción en Aguas Profundas entre las principales familias.

[Adam Duclos · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well, I finally finished the Songs and Swords series, chronicling the adventures of the Harper Bard/Mage Danilo Thann and the half elven secret princess moon blade wielding assassin/fighter Arylin. It took me a while to find the fourth book Thornhold, although that turned out to only be tangentially related because Danilo is in it as a side character, so it's been years since I started the series.

Maybe that was why the book didn't tickle my fancy... I was no longer caught up in the character's story, and the plot seemed really slow. I've been getting stuck in a lot of stories lately where I find out I'm in the "book where everyone loses their powers" too, so that didn't help. Danilo's spells go awry and Arylin's sword has its powers go wonky because of the stories macguffin, so there is a lot of angst over that, as well as some relationship stuff, and a lot of side characters whose stories go nowhere.

So yeah, there is a lot in the book that was rather boring...

Danilo must have taken more than a few levels in wizard if his melee fighting is that bad...

Arilyn lets a lot of bad guys get away...

Elaith, the centuries old super fighter/thief/underworld kingpin can't figure out how to go for the kill in his fights...

Here's what gets me the most though... Usually its that the MacGuffin doesn't play by the rules, but here its because none of the characters recognize it. So, the main magic thingy is an elven lore gem that has turned to evil. Evidently, every elf knows about it, the kiira that turned evil, as well as generally knowing what a kiira is, and how to recognize it. Well, Elaith knows, yet he is snookered into buying a fake one, and never realizes it until he is told at the end of the book. Uh, wouldn't he have tried to embed it in his forehead? That's what you do with kiira after all... why would he wait?

Also, the book starts out by introducing a new character, Danilo's unknown little sister, and kills her off partway through the book. Danilo is all sad, etc. Yet earlier, a mage gets killed and Danilo is like "Hey, we're in a DnD world, lets take the guys severed hand and get him raised from the dead... after all, his family is super rich!" The thing is, his own family is equally rich, and he never once thinks to get her raised... What a great brother! Ooh, since she was being stalked by bad guys and such, they could have had her 'reincarnated' into a new body, which would have been even less expensive, reset her age, and they wouldn't be able to recognize her!

Anyway, the book was really slow, and the main battle at the end was kinda lame. It's a sad way to end a series!

[Gerard Van Der Waal · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting murder mystery set against the backdrop of the Waterdeep noble merchant houses and the first book I read that goes into racism against elves in the Forgotten Realms. While the story did not grip me until almost halfway through the book, it’s an entertainig fantasy novel that continues the story of Danilo Than and Elaith Craulnober which are two very entertaining characters.

[E J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rather unsatisfying for a Cunningham FR tale. Silver Shadows set the bar so high in terms of story, rhythm and grandeur that was disappointing to read Thornhold and Dream Spheres and to find them both rather lacking.

The gravitas of the danger of the evil kiira warrants either a short story or a long prelude chapter, to which we got neither. As it was, we got next to no impressionable idea of its power except through the telling of a few paragraphs here and there and a brief glimpse in the final clash. In the end, it felt like being anxious to what turned out to be a brief thunderstorm. Shrugs shoulders.

Speaking of short stories, I'd recommend reading two before you read this book and after Thornhold; namely, "Speaking with the Dead", and "Stolen Dreams". They'll give you a bit of context regarding one of the supporting cast members, Isabeau.

All in all, too many red herrings were thrown into the mix. Side plots resolved in ways that one would hope would generate further mention in future stories, but as we know, this is the final book in the S&S series so no more Danilo, Arilyn and Elaith. Unless by some mystical force, Cunningham is able to write, finish and publish Reclamation, that's a bummer so major it deserves all eight elfshadows to haunt Ms. Cunningham until she does (just joking!).

[Jesse · Rating 3 out of 5]

I liked it, but not as much as other books I've read by Cunningham.

The three characters that have been stars of 5(I think) of her books, have come back together one more time; the jaded half-elf, Arilyn, the psudo fop/mage, Danilo, and the evilish crime lord of Waterdeep, Elaith. In this story, they spend their time almost entirely within the city of Waterdeep. This was cool, and I like the way that Cunningham continues to flesh out the "Manhattan" of Forgotten Realms.

The reason I only gave this book 3 stars is because, in my mind, it was lacking in the fantasy arena. And as far as the Forgotten Realms world goes, Cunningham is not the first author to do this. I just need there to be MORE magic and MORE monsters. And there was some...there were some scary lizardmen and an important magic item, but I never felt like these were taking the foreground. It seemed like I was reading about fake politics and emontional issues. I believe that a fantasy novel should have some of this as well to make the world and characters real, but I read fantasy for other reasons.

Anyways, it was a good story and Cunningham is still one of my favorite authors of the Realms. But for 4 or 5 stars, I need dragons and shit...

[Hacedores · Rating 4 out of 5]

Muy bien, llegamos al quinto libro de esta saga. Aunque personalmente para mí es el cuarto, siendo el Bastión del Espino algo más parecido a un spin off que una parte de la saga propiamente dicha.

Una de las cosas que más me ha llamado la atención de este libro es lo bien colocado que está en el tiempo. Como está colocado bastante después de las aventuras sucedidas en el segundo y tercer libro, nos mantiene en la intriga de qué es lo que ha sucedido de lo que no nos hemos enterado.
Sigue leyendo...

[Grzegorz · Rating 5 out of 5]

A big improvement over the previous book, I really enjoyed it. Smaller scale allowed for better descriptions and more character development. Thanks to this, the novel doesn't feel rushed. The book features well-known characters that the author had been able to polish along the years, the plot itself is less predictable and more involving and I simply enjoyed spending so much time in Waterdeep. What I have never encountered to such an extent in a Forgotten Realms' novel were all the racism related problems, which gave the book a slightly deeper and more serious feel. I would give it a 4+/5, but since there are no halves, I think that a slightly overrated 5 is in place.

[Doris · Rating 2 out of 5]

It took over halfway through the book for it to get interesting. I almost tossed it in my discard pile, but kept reading mainly to fill time while traveling and during lunch breaks on those days when I had no errands and no lunch companion. Once it picked up, it was hard to put down.

Recommendation – if you read this, speed read through the first 100 pages or so, just enough to get a feel for the characters. Once the action starts though it engages your interest!

[Ronald Moore · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very good story of the continued problems of Dan and Aralyn weaved into the lives of those in Waterdeep and is Dan,s faith-based of elffriend be kept by the elf that tried to kill him several times.

Very good story of the continued problems of Dan and Arilyn. Weaving the lives of those of Waterdeep,s noble family,s and the troublesome dream spheres. And can Dan,s faith-based of a rouge elf that named him elffriend be trusted.

[Veronica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Neither the mystery plot nor Danilo and Arilyn's relationship drama was really working for me in this book, unfortunately. Also the background characters weren't sketched out as well as they have been in previous books, so... that doesn't leave a whole lot to enjoy. I took a break in the middle of this book to read the most awful racist erotica book I have ever seen and I still didn't feel terribly compelled to put away the terrible erotica and pick this back up.

[Snail in Danger (Sid) Nicolaides · Rating 2 out of 5]

I think that this book was somewhat hampered by its setting (tabletop gaming campaign). And possibly editorial guidelines. I don't know this for certain, but I got the feeling that violence is allowed, and bawdiness is allowed, but that romance is to be limited.

Something that just dawned on me: Danilo and Arilyn are Mulder and Scully. With swords.

[Keith Craig · Rating 3 out of 5]

An average fantasy novel. I can't say I would recommend it but I won't discourage you either. Good mindless entertainment.

[Cindi Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I liked it, but it took to long before it got good. The ending was surprising and Elaith got more than I thought he would. It's a must read:)