What do you think?
Rate this book
Forgotten Realms: Shadow of the Avatar #2
Cloak of Shadows
The Shadow Over Faerûn
The Time of Troubles had arrived. The chaos of spilled blood, lawless strife, monsters unleashed, and avatars roaming Faerûn had come.
But wrathful and warring gods were not Faerûn's only problem.
The dreaded and insidious Shadowmasters had seized the opportunity to increase their influence and power while Mystra and her minions were otherwise engaged. The Shadowmasters had woven a mgical cloak of spells that would render the wearer invisible to their rival's magic.
The shadow over Faerûn spreads.
The Shadow Over Faerûn
The Time of Troubles had arrived. The chaos of spilled blood, lawless strife, monsters unleashed, and avatars roaming Faerûn had come.
But wrathful and warring gods were not Faerûn's only problem.
The dreaded and insidious Shadowmasters had seized the opportunity to increase their influence and power while Mystra and her minions were otherwise engaged. The Shadowmasters had woven a mgical cloak of spells that would render the wearer invisible to their rival's magic.
The shadow over Faerûn spreads.
The Time of Troubles had arrived. The chaos of spilled blood, lawless strife, monsters unleashed, and avatars roaming Faerûn had come.
But wrathful and warring gods were not Faerûn's only problem.
The dreaded and insidious Shadowmasters had seized the opportunity to increase their influence and power while Mystra and her minions were otherwise engaged. The Shadowmasters had woven a mgical cloak of spells that would render the wearer invisible to their rival's magic.
The shadow over Faerûn spreads.
The Shadow Over Faerûn
The Time of Troubles had arrived. The chaos of spilled blood, lawless strife, monsters unleashed, and avatars roaming Faerûn had come.
But wrathful and warring gods were not Faerûn's only problem.
The dreaded and insidious Shadowmasters had seized the opportunity to increase their influence and power while Mystra and her minions were otherwise engaged. The Shadowmasters had woven a mgical cloak of spells that would render the wearer invisible to their rival's magic.
The shadow over Faerûn spreads.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published June 1, 1995
9 people are currently reading
718 people want to read
About the author
Ed Greenwood
361 books868 followersEd Greenwood is the creator of the Forgotten Realms fantasy world, which became the setting for his home D&D game in 1975. Play still continues in this long-running campaign, and Ed also keeps busy producing Realmslore for various TSR publications.
Ed has published over two hundred articles in Dragon magazine and Polyhedron newszine, is a lifetime charter member of the Role Playing Game Associaton (RPGA) network, has written over thirty books and modules for TSR, and been Gen Con Game Fair guest of honor several times.
In addition to all these activities, Ed works as a library clerk and has edited over a dozen small press magazines.
Invented the character Elminster from the popular Forgotten Realms RPG series. Currently resides in an old farmhouse in the countryside of Ontario, Canada.
Ed has published over two hundred articles in Dragon magazine and Polyhedron newszine, is a lifetime charter member of the Role Playing Game Associaton (RPGA) network, has written over thirty books and modules for TSR, and been Gen Con Game Fair guest of honor several times.
In addition to all these activities, Ed works as a library clerk and has edited over a dozen small press magazines.
Invented the character Elminster from the popular Forgotten Realms RPG series. Currently resides in an old farmhouse in the countryside of Ontario, Canada.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
January 19, 2023
I waver between one and two stars for this novel only because it was surprisingly better that Ed Greenwood's usual Forgotten Realms books, but it's still quite bad overall and I cannot recommend it to anyone.
The (Comparatively) Good:
* I was shocked to find little bit of character development. The interchangeable psychopathic Harpers that I described in my review for Shadows of Doom remain basically interchangeable and one-dimensional, but they received a little bit of backstory. One of them is revealed to have a compelling urge to kill on occasion, so yay, literal psychopath! What a great foundation for a hero.
* Even Elminster received some character development, in a scene in which he explains why he often needs to take lives, for the good of the realms.
* It was not an endless slay-fest! It very well could have been given the setup (Malaugrym, a society of magic-wielding shapeshifters, take advantage of the chaos caused by the Time of Troubles to try and take out their age-old enemy, Elminster, and thus remove their main obstacle to seizing power in Faerun.) There was certainly some large-scale slaughter, but in total the story had much more variety than the first part of this trilogy.
The (Unsurprisingly) Bad:
* Greenwood's usual bloated sentences.
* The endless jocular comraderie of the main characters; it's tiresome, banal, fails to endear the characters to me at all. Even other people they meet in the book say, "Are they always like this?"
* The lack of a singular story. I found the variety of plot easier to get through than Shadows of Doom, but so much of it was simply Elminster having random mini-encounters. Ostensibly he was countering the chaos of the Time of Troubles, but "Elminster intervenes in a smattering of problematic situations" doesn't make for a unified novel.
* Elminster's damned pipe. It seems to have been intended as an additional character in its own right. No thank you, silly floating magical pipe that goes off to kill Malaugrym by itself.
*The primary enemies get old fast. I get it, shapeshifters, constantly morphing, lots of tentacles. All of them (the enemies, not the tentacles) with the same scheming and overconfident personality that infuses all of Greenwood's villains.
*The ending was exceptionally weak. Sharantyr and the Harpers may as well not have been there, their only real function was to carry a sword and a stone with a ghost in it; the ghost and sword did all the work that Elminster while the other "Chosen ofGreenwood Mystra" didn't break a sweat.
The "No Comment":
Ed Greenwood's contemporaneous author photo:
A picture I drew of Elminster while on holiday:
And with that, I appear to have now read 55 Forgotten Realms novels, in publication order. WHYYYYYYYYyyyyy......??????
The (Comparatively) Good:
* I was shocked to find little bit of character development. The interchangeable psychopathic Harpers that I described in my review for Shadows of Doom remain basically interchangeable and one-dimensional, but they received a little bit of backstory. One of them is revealed to have a compelling urge to kill on occasion, so yay, literal psychopath! What a great foundation for a hero.
* Even Elminster received some character development, in a scene in which he explains why he often needs to take lives, for the good of the realms.
* It was not an endless slay-fest! It very well could have been given the setup (Malaugrym, a society of magic-wielding shapeshifters, take advantage of the chaos caused by the Time of Troubles to try and take out their age-old enemy, Elminster, and thus remove their main obstacle to seizing power in Faerun.) There was certainly some large-scale slaughter, but in total the story had much more variety than the first part of this trilogy.
The (Unsurprisingly) Bad:
* Greenwood's usual bloated sentences.
* The endless jocular comraderie of the main characters; it's tiresome, banal, fails to endear the characters to me at all. Even other people they meet in the book say, "Are they always like this?"
* The lack of a singular story. I found the variety of plot easier to get through than Shadows of Doom, but so much of it was simply Elminster having random mini-encounters. Ostensibly he was countering the chaos of the Time of Troubles, but "Elminster intervenes in a smattering of problematic situations" doesn't make for a unified novel.
* Elminster's damned pipe. It seems to have been intended as an additional character in its own right. No thank you, silly floating magical pipe that goes off to kill Malaugrym by itself.
*The primary enemies get old fast. I get it, shapeshifters, constantly morphing, lots of tentacles. All of them (the enemies, not the tentacles) with the same scheming and overconfident personality that infuses all of Greenwood's villains.
*The ending was exceptionally weak. Sharantyr and the Harpers may as well not have been there, their only real function was to carry a sword and a stone with a ghost in it; the ghost and sword did all the work that Elminster while the other "Chosen of
The "No Comment":
Ed Greenwood's contemporaneous author photo:
A picture I drew of Elminster while on holiday:
And with that, I appear to have now read 55 Forgotten Realms novels, in publication order. WHYYYYYYYYyyyyy......??????
February 22, 2018
I am the wrong audience for this book and the trilogy as a whole. It just wasn't for me, so I should keep my comments brief. I have read the first two of the trilogy's books and they are terrible. So far, the Shadow of the Avatar books are like reading some munchkin player's bad D&D game. Four main characters walk through masses of bad guys with no risk or danger. The true heroes of the first two books are magic items, not the characters. A magic healing ring that works miracles saves the day many times, especially in the first book. In "Cloak of Shadows," the real hero is a sword that Sharantyr easily and inexplicably gets from a goddess. The worst offender is Elminster, an uber powerful meddler, trickster and all around annoying personality that cannot be stopped. His magic is always more powerful than a given foe and he always has the right ring, wand or that stupid pipe that does everything. Reading his scenes is tedious and boring.
I have one more book to read then I am, thankfully, done with this trilogy. I paid for the books, said I'd read them, and then they go on eBay. I cannot recommend this book to fantasy readers. It is so awful. But, if you like reading about D&D and how a min/max mentality works, then you might like this.
I have one more book to read then I am, thankfully, done with this trilogy. I paid for the books, said I'd read them, and then they go on eBay. I cannot recommend this book to fantasy readers. It is so awful. But, if you like reading about D&D and how a min/max mentality works, then you might like this.
November 9, 2013
Terrible. I don't understand why this is the second book in a trilogy. Besides the fact it contains main of the same characters as the first Shadows book it is a completely different story.
It also has all the problems of the first book, muddled and confusing scenes, locations and situations. I have no idea what was going on most of the time.
It also has all the problems of the first book, muddled and confusing scenes, locations and situations. I have no idea what was going on most of the time.
November 8, 2019
Book was Okay. The series leaves you confused on when the time of trouble happens. I thought it was suppose to happen in the first book and it happens in this book. It's hard to tell the time of trouble has occurred as just about every person using spells has no problems casting spells. The only thing this book has in common with the first book in this 3 part series is the 4 main characters. The first book set up people and events that this book just left in the past to create new threats and problems.
The book doesn't really give a clear view while reading it where it will lead. It's like the characters are just doing cause and reaction throughout the book. The last hundred pages while interesting feel like a Forgotten Realms version of Alice in Wonderland. Though it was interesting it moved at a slow pace and then jumped to the main battle out of nowhere. The main battle was over in about a page and then the story ended suddenly.
The story just felt like it moved at a slow pace introducing new people and new plots while not really having a clear view of where it was going to lead to. The building up was small and the climax was anticlimactic. According to the next book it's suppose to continue the story.
Upon reading the first two books I don't see how they tie in with the Avatar series as El meet Midnight alone throughout the Avatar series and even supposedly dies in it. Throughout the Shadow's series he's in a quartet. I still feel like this Shadow series is to show how important El is since he's not the main character in the Avatar book series.
The book doesn't really give a clear view while reading it where it will lead. It's like the characters are just doing cause and reaction throughout the book. The last hundred pages while interesting feel like a Forgotten Realms version of Alice in Wonderland. Though it was interesting it moved at a slow pace and then jumped to the main battle out of nowhere. The main battle was over in about a page and then the story ended suddenly.
The story just felt like it moved at a slow pace introducing new people and new plots while not really having a clear view of where it was going to lead to. The building up was small and the climax was anticlimactic. According to the next book it's suppose to continue the story.
Upon reading the first two books I don't see how they tie in with the Avatar series as El meet Midnight alone throughout the Avatar series and even supposedly dies in it. Throughout the Shadow's series he's in a quartet. I still feel like this Shadow series is to show how important El is since he's not the main character in the Avatar book series.
June 15, 2018
Good follow up to book one
A good story for more obscure D&D lore and planes info. Fills in a good portion of the Time of Troubles pretty well. Also this is the first time I can recall reading about a one on one convo with the Overgod Ao which was cool.
A good story for more obscure D&D lore and planes info. Fills in a good portion of the Time of Troubles pretty well. Also this is the first time I can recall reading about a one on one convo with the Overgod Ao which was cool.
July 15, 2021
Gods, Greenwood gets worse and worse as he writes more and more. How it is possible for an author to actually LOSE their ability to write characters is beyond me, but Greenwood manages it. Confusing pace, nonsensical deific intervention, and bizarre characterization fill this "novel".
May 30, 2019
I like the trio of rangers in this story very much, And Elminster getting to speak with Ao is really cool.
January 18, 2022
I've never laughed so much with a Forgotten Realms book before.
April 27, 2024
Good trilogy
May 27, 2010
Synopsis - This book is about the Malaugrym, shapeshifters that live in the demiplane of Shadow, and theiry attempt to rule Toril. In this novel, Sharantyr, Belkram and Itharr go on a mission from Mystra to go to the Castle of Shadows and kill Malaugrym.
Classification -
Audience: 13+
Purpose: Entertainment
Medium: Novel
Genre - Setting: Fantasy
Genre - Style: Idealism
Genre - Plot: Action/Adventure
Crticism - Another excelllent Action/Adventure novel by Ed Greenwood. In Cloak of Shadows once the action starts it never stops until the book is over and the constant shift in plot makes this novel an excellent read for anyone that likes Action/Adventure or Ed Greenwood, the creator of the Forgotten Realms world.
Classification -
Audience: 13+
Purpose: Entertainment
Medium: Novel
Genre - Setting: Fantasy
Genre - Style: Idealism
Genre - Plot: Action/Adventure
Crticism - Another excelllent Action/Adventure novel by Ed Greenwood. In Cloak of Shadows once the action starts it never stops until the book is over and the constant shift in plot makes this novel an excellent read for anyone that likes Action/Adventure or Ed Greenwood, the creator of the Forgotten Realms world.
April 22, 2009
I've decided that there is no telling about this author. I actually enjoyed this book! I was really suprised, but it was a good one. This story focused on the Muaulgrym, a bunch of shapshifters that the Elminster has been chasing around for about 5 books now. Anywho, this story was way better than the first one in this series (unlike the other series I've read by Greenwood), and I'm hoping that somehow the last one will be good as well...we'll see.
March 30, 2008
One of the best series in The Forgotten Realms. Ed Greenwood is masterful at using colourful, hilarious characters while still maintaining the seriousness of his story. This is a series I read over and over.
March 8, 2014
This book is arranged like a journal with fantasy world dates. If follows a couple different characters including Elminster the uber powerful wizard from the forgotten realms. It was an ok read, maybe it would show better if you read the previous book in the series.
June 14, 2016
A time of trouble for all beasties that roam Faerun. Shadowmasters have increased their power while Mystra and company were engaged. The shadow over Faerun spreads over all; old mages Lady Knights, warrior women, shapeshifters, rangers, Necromancers and hobgoblins. A solid fantasy read.
January 19, 2009
Cloak of Shadows (Forgotten Realms: The Shadow of the Avatar, Book 2) by Ed Greenwood (1995)
October 22, 2013
typical greenwood, amazing character bad story
October 14, 2015
Did not feel like a second book in the trilogy - also some of the storytelling was confusing and didnt amount too much. An OK fantasy book but nothing much else there..only for fans. 6/10
December 16, 2021
less good than the first one. cartoonishly evil shape shifters were hard to picture and follow what was happening.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews