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Forgotten Realms: Erevis Cale #1-3
The Erevis Cale Trilogy
From the mean streets of Sembia ...
Erevis Cale might just seem like just another loyal butler for just another wealthy family in the merchant realm of Sembia, but he has always been a whole lot more than that. When the world itself is threatened, Erevis Cale takes it personally, and takes the fight all the way to the Plane of Shadow.
This massive trade paperback omnibus edition collects Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight's Mask into one book.
Erevis Cale might just seem like just another loyal butler for just another wealthy family in the merchant realm of Sembia, but he has always been a whole lot more than that. When the world itself is threatened, Erevis Cale takes it personally, and takes the fight all the way to the Plane of Shadow.
This massive trade paperback omnibus edition collects Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight's Mask into one book.
768 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2010
13 people are currently reading
405 people want to read
About the author
Paul S. Kemp
88 books934 followersBestselling speculative fiction author, creator of Egil and Nix, Erevis Cale, drinker of scotch, smoker of cigars, amiable dude. :-)
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
November 22, 2011
I finished the first book out of this three-part omnibus yesterday. It was quite good! The depictions of the different towns and locales was especially good, and Kemp really pulls you into the environment his characters are in.
The short story at the beginning, All the Sinners, Saints, does a tidy job showing off Cale and Riven without getting long winded. It neatly shows Cale's powers as a cleric of Mask, his discomfort at Riven being brought into the fold, as it were, and shows off a bit of their backstory.
I also appreciate his character-building. Cale is dynamic, and you really get a good grip on what his thoughts are while he navigates this new moral ground he's found himself on. Riven is also nicely done. I like that he isn't all 100% pure bad-guy, he has a soft spot for dogs, and I found the scene where he says goodbye to "his girls" heart wrenching. And who says fantasy can't be sweet or emotional? I am not digging Fleet very much. So far, he is a very typical halfling character. He's facing some moral dilemmas like the rest of the cast, but he isn't really grabbing me yet.
The magic is great so far! It's nice to see some magic-slinging fighters that are well crafted.
-----
Finished the second part, and the short story between the second and third parts. The second part of the omnibus isn't as strong as the first part. The action is still there, but it doesn't feel as strong as the first part. It seems easier to write an introduction to a world, and have fun describing the characters and the world. All the stuff with the Sojourner could have been better done, and his parts were dull. During the altercation with Cale and Assoc., you really see his epic powers come into play, so I wanted to know why you didn't get a sense of how powerful he was before that.
Mags is a great character, I think. The romance between Cale and the random serving wench is a little weird, though. It just shows up outta nowhere.
The part with the dragon was really well done, too. That scene was made even better by the intentional placement of the short story about Kesson Rel, I felt.
There is an uneasy truce between Riven and everyone else for the duration of the second story, and that adds a lot of tension to the plot. The author really keeps you guessing as to when or if he will betray the group. It seems like he could go off anytime Cale throws his weight around as being the First of Mask, or anytime he and Fleet have a disagreement.
If this was a standalone book, I would probably give it three of five stars, mostly because the parts with the slaad and the Sojourner killed the momentum any time they showed up.
The author keeps using the spells really creatively. As a D&D player it is really fun to see the spells and checks play out in an adventure.
On to part three!
-----------
There is a short story between parts 2 and 3 that recounts the betrayal of Kesson Rel, the First of Mask (before Cale) and lets the reader know how the dragon in the Plane of Shadows got dragged into this mess.
Right now, I've only read two series in the Forgotten Realms: this and books 1-4 of the Drizzt series. Kemp's writing is much better than Salvatore's, and lacks the melodrama and overwrought language characteristic of a lot of Bad Fantasy. As a D&D player, Kemp's use of spells and checks really lets me see how these functions "feel" like in an adventure setting. I hope that after reading this, it'll be easier to stay in character and really dig into the world, next time my group and I sit down to play.
I'll need to ruminate on part 3 before I type something up. In the mean time...
The short story at the beginning, All the Sinners, Saints, does a tidy job showing off Cale and Riven without getting long winded. It neatly shows Cale's powers as a cleric of Mask, his discomfort at Riven being brought into the fold, as it were, and shows off a bit of their backstory.
I also appreciate his character-building. Cale is dynamic, and you really get a good grip on what his thoughts are while he navigates this new moral ground he's found himself on. Riven is also nicely done. I like that he isn't all 100% pure bad-guy, he has a soft spot for dogs, and I found the scene where he says goodbye to "his girls" heart wrenching. And who says fantasy can't be sweet or emotional? I am not digging Fleet very much. So far, he is a very typical halfling character. He's facing some moral dilemmas like the rest of the cast, but he isn't really grabbing me yet.
The magic is great so far! It's nice to see some magic-slinging fighters that are well crafted.
-----
Finished the second part, and the short story between the second and third parts. The second part of the omnibus isn't as strong as the first part. The action is still there, but it doesn't feel as strong as the first part. It seems easier to write an introduction to a world, and have fun describing the characters and the world. All the stuff with the Sojourner could have been better done, and his parts were dull. During the altercation with Cale and Assoc., you really see his epic powers come into play, so I wanted to know why you didn't get a sense of how powerful he was before that.
Mags is a great character, I think. The romance between Cale and the random serving wench is a little weird, though. It just shows up outta nowhere.
The part with the dragon was really well done, too. That scene was made even better by the intentional placement of the short story about Kesson Rel, I felt.
There is an uneasy truce between Riven and everyone else for the duration of the second story, and that adds a lot of tension to the plot. The author really keeps you guessing as to when or if he will betray the group. It seems like he could go off anytime Cale throws his weight around as being the First of Mask, or anytime he and Fleet have a disagreement.
If this was a standalone book, I would probably give it three of five stars, mostly because the parts with the slaad and the Sojourner killed the momentum any time they showed up.
The author keeps using the spells really creatively. As a D&D player it is really fun to see the spells and checks play out in an adventure.
On to part three!
-----------
There is a short story between parts 2 and 3 that recounts the betrayal of Kesson Rel, the First of Mask (before Cale) and lets the reader know how the dragon in the Plane of Shadows got dragged into this mess.
Right now, I've only read two series in the Forgotten Realms: this and books 1-4 of the Drizzt series. Kemp's writing is much better than Salvatore's, and lacks the melodrama and overwrought language characteristic of a lot of Bad Fantasy. As a D&D player, Kemp's use of spells and checks really lets me see how these functions "feel" like in an adventure setting. I hope that after reading this, it'll be easier to stay in character and really dig into the world, next time my group and I sit down to play.
I'll need to ruminate on part 3 before I type something up. In the mean time...
December 31, 2013
I finished this in a state of surprise. After raising the stakes to considerable heights, Kemp wrote a conclusion that was grounded in personal desires that are relatable with or without the fantastic trappings. The motivation of the big bad guy is so mundane that I wouldn't be surprised if some readers feel cheated. Personally, I found it all wonderful in the truest, awe-begotten sense. What a great idea, and what aplomb Kemp shows in his execution.
Along the way to this big-small ending, Kemp adds liberal doses of magical conflict, big mysteries, sword-toting bad-asses throwing down on smaller shrimps, the camaraderie of heroes-in-the-making, and some fun adventures. At times, I was floored by the scale of Kemp's imagination. Kemp even throws in some mathematical references that could have felt clumsy within the genre, yet fit well in this story. Yes, the D&D setting extends well past credibility into territory that is firmly attached to gaming: heroes suffer mortal wounds, utter a healing spell, and fight on without any lasting trauma; huge battles pile up and combatants soldier on; coincidences abound; plans are so complex as to be absolutely impossible in any real context. So be-it: this is adventure fiction, so why not push the adventure far and see what happens?
I enjoyed these books very much. The fantasy genre has grown since I first made its acquaintance, and I am happy that one can still pick up books that offer a lot of plot tied to just enough substance to make one feel the stakes. Kemp really accomplished something in these series.
Along the way to this big-small ending, Kemp adds liberal doses of magical conflict, big mysteries, sword-toting bad-asses throwing down on smaller shrimps, the camaraderie of heroes-in-the-making, and some fun adventures. At times, I was floored by the scale of Kemp's imagination. Kemp even throws in some mathematical references that could have felt clumsy within the genre, yet fit well in this story. Yes, the D&D setting extends well past credibility into territory that is firmly attached to gaming: heroes suffer mortal wounds, utter a healing spell, and fight on without any lasting trauma; huge battles pile up and combatants soldier on; coincidences abound; plans are so complex as to be absolutely impossible in any real context. So be-it: this is adventure fiction, so why not push the adventure far and see what happens?
I enjoyed these books very much. The fantasy genre has grown since I first made its acquaintance, and I am happy that one can still pick up books that offer a lot of plot tied to just enough substance to make one feel the stakes. Kemp really accomplished something in these series.
July 16, 2010
The Erevis Cale Trilogy Omnibus by Paul S. Kemp- This omnibus contains The Erevis Cale Trilogy along with two short stories. The Erevis Cale Trilogy consists of Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight's Mask. The two short stories are “And All the Sinners, Saints”, which was previously seen in Dragon Magazine #297, and “Soulbound”, which is found in the Realms of the Dragons anthology. The stories take place in the Forgotten Realm universe, which is a setting in Dungeons and Dragons. The story of Erevis Cale starts off with a short story called “Resurrection” in the anthology titled Halls of Stormweather. It continues in Shadow's Witness, which takes place just before The Erevis Cale Trilogy. The story finishes with the Twilight War Trilogy; Shadowbred, Shadowstorm, and Shadowrealm. He wrote the final book in the War of the Spider Queen series called Resurrection and has written a few short stories set in the Forgotten Realms. This latest Forgotten Realms novel, titled Godborn, is due out some time in 2012. Paul S. Kemp has recently been writing novels set in the Star Wars universe. His first novel in the Star Wars universe is Crosscurrent and is currently writing a tie-in with the upcoming video game Star Wars: The Old Republic titled Deceived. The Erevis Cale Trilogy Omnibus was released in June 2010 and published by Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
Review Note: This is the first time I'm reviewing an omnibus, and most likely my only. I have previously reviewed The Erevis Cale Trilogy before this, but I will be taking a whole new look at the books and giving fresh thoughts on them. You can find the other reviews at the following links; Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight's Mask.
“And All the Sinners, Saints”
Erevis Cale just found his god in Mask. While unsure if being a priest of the Shadowlord, Cale decides to try to commune with his god, only to receive a vague vision of what Mask wants Cale to do. At the same time, Drasek Riven is having a similar experience. Now the question is, what does Mask want Cale and Riven to do, and how does he want it done?
Criticisms:
1) Short. This is not a bad thing, but I just wanted more!
Praises:
1) Tie In. I really like how this ties in with what happened with Shadow's Witness and some mentions in Twilight Falling. I always like this little nods.
2) Back Story. Do you need to read Shadow's Witness to know what is going on? No, and it's wonderful. You really got a good idea of what kind of person Cale is, along with who Riven is.
Overall: 5/5
Quick Thoughts:
It's a fun and interesting look at who the main characters. It's almost like a 'character study' and an excellent introduction to The Erevis Cale Trilogy.
Twilight Falling
Erevis Cale is leaving Stormweather Tower, where he's been employed as a butler for the Uskevren family for years and considers them his family. After the family's patriarch died, Cale knows it's time to move on. After saying good-bye to his adoptive family, Cale receives a letter from Drasek Riven to meet him at an inn to discuss something. After arriving at the inn, a fireball destroys the inn and Cale and Riven barely manage to survive the blast. After locating were the fireball came from, the duo confront a shadow adept wizard named Vraggen and his partner, a half-drow by the name of Azriim. After the little skirmish Cale realizes that they are after something the Uskevren has and they were trying to remove Cale from interfering. Arriving back at Stormweather, Cale finds and confronts the thieves who are after an unremarkable sphere, but is unable to stop them. Cale is only able to shear the sphere into two halves, but he is able to recover one of the halves. With the half safely with him, he goes to find his old friend Jak Fleet and get to the bottom of why this sphere is so important. After Riven joins the duo and then trio goes to a sage to get some answers to the sphere. Why does this shadow adept want such a seemingly useless paperweight and can the trio stop Vraggen?
Criticisms:
1) Cale/Tazi. I don't know what it is but for some reason I just never bought into the whole Cale and Tazi (the daughter of the Uskevren's) relationship. In the previous book, Shadow's Witness, it is somewhat believable. In this book, it doesn't seem to work on its own. Not once did I feel a connection between these two and having to be told that Cale loves Tazi just makes it worse. Cale's actions towards Tazi never really made much sense. But I'm chalking this problem up to the next problem with this book.
2) Back Ground. The reason the whole Cale and Tazi love interest doesn't work is that it seems you almost need to read Shadow's Witness to understand it along with a lot of other little references that are made. While for the most part, you don't really need to read the first Cale book, it would help a lot. There are so many references to previous events in the first fifty pages that if you go into this blind, you may miss out on some characterization and some interesting references. I would say you should read Shadow's Witness first, but it's not one hundred percent required, just seventy-five.
Praises:
1) Characters. Aside from me being an absolute Cale and Riven fan-boy, all the other characters are interesting and very unique. Of course you have the good-hearted killer in Cale and you have the sneer to end all sneers that Riven has, but let's instead look at the other characters. We have Jak, who is Cale's conscious. While he may come off as annoying, you really can see the friendship between the two. In reality, he's more like a real person when you compare him to Cale or Riven. With the villains we have the arrogant Vraggen and his blind pursuit to retake the Zhentarim from the followers of Bane and reinstate the control of the Mad God Cyric. He's more of your standard bad guy. However, with his partner Azriim, we have a totally different kind of villain. If you could pick two words to describe Azriim they would be vain and manipulative. He's the guy you never see coming until the end. Rounding out the villains we have Dolgan, Serrin, and Elura. Dolgan's the usual muscled dimwit and Serrin's the stoic killer. Elura doesn't have too many scenes but she's more like a seductress killer type of character. While these three are more stock bad guys, they each fit the mold well. Overall, the characters are just plain amazing.
2) Hints. There are so many subtle hints of things to come that you wouldn't understand them until the happen. After these things happen, you can't help but go back and check out the things you've missed picking up on. It only gets better with multiple reads, because you start noticing things that will come up in the next books as well as things that happen in the next trilogy. It's just wonderful seeing a series tie itself together so nicely.
3) Plot. While the plot was fairly straightforward, it always seemed to keep me on the edge of my seat. Even when you knew something was going to happen, you were still surprised it happened. Everything just seemed to fit in, a la the hints strewn throughout the story. Not to mention that it flowed beautifully. It's straightforward as it needed to be with a few nice turns here and there.
Overall: 4/5
Quick Thoughts:
Twilight Falling is a great beginning to a trilogy. It sets up the characters wonderfully and each of them are unique and memorable in some way. The Cale and Tazi's relationship never felt real however. It just didn't work. The plot is great with some turns, only a little too straightforward. Reading the previous book, Shadow's Witness, would be a good idea to get some of the references that are mentioned here and there. Then you have all the little hints you have that basically tells what's going to happen later on in the story. Overall Twilight Falling is great and it really allows you to know a little more about our main heroes, Cale and Riven.
Dawn of Night
Erevis Cale, Drasek Riven, Jak Fleet, and Magadon all find themselves in the Plane of Shadow. Jak is horrified to see Cale is now more than human, he's become a shade, a being of shadow. As Cale and the group traverse the Plane of Shadow's, tensions start to run high between Cale and Riven, and only escalate from there. After days of travel, Cale is forced to give into his new nature in order to save the group for the horrors of the plane. As they are trying to find a way out of the Plane of Shadow, the mastermind and father behind the Slaadi (or is it Slaad's?) plans to use the Weave Tap for powering a powerful spell. Having sent his Slaadi; Azriim, Dolgan, and Serrin, to the cesspool that is Skullport in order to plant a seed to sap the magical energies of the city. After Cale and the group succeed in escaping, can the group locate and stop the Slaadi from tapping Skullport's magical mantle or do the Slaadi succeed?
Criticisms:
1) The Sojourner. I don't know what it was but his earlier chapters felt like they went on forever. I don't know if it was because the character of the Sojourner was so dull or that the chapters themselves were dry, but I just could barely get through them. I'm leaning more towards a combination of the two. While they were interesting, I just had this feeling of 'so what' while reading them.
2) Love Interest. Yet again, we have a problem with an unbelievable and almost silly love interest. While I do know this one between Cale and a tavern waitress named Varra does get better and the whole first meeting was good, I just didn't did like how it was handled. It seemed like Cale is suddenly obsessed with her, and it comes off a little creepy more than sincere. It's just bothersome.
Praises:
1) Characters. Once again, aside from the Sojourner, the characters are wonderful and really dimensional. I'm not going to get into much detail because honestly, I'll just be repeating what I've said above, and I really don't want to. I will say that the relationships between the main heroes do get explored a little more and you get a good look at how they really feel about each other.
2) Setting Descriptions. The places the story goes are just wonderfully described. First off we have the Plane of Shadow's. You really got a great mental picture of how alien and dark this world is. It's just plain creepy. Then later Skullport just radiates vile and disgusting. You could almost smell the place. It just was plain vile. Also, some of the other places the group go to are wonderfully described as well.
3) Twist. The twist at the end you'll never see coming until it's too late. While there is a wonderful build up to it, it still comes as an utter shock. I've read this book about three times now and it still shocks me.
Overall: 4/5
Thoughts:
While not as good as Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night still a wonderful and fast paced read. You'll never want to put the book down for too long and all the little details and hints of what's to come are still there. The descriptions are vivid and you can really picture yourself in these places. The characters are just as good as the previous book, if not better because now you see how their relationship evolves. The only problem I had is with The Sojourner. His parts were dry and horribly boring. While he is a good character himself, something just dragged his scenes down. Also, continuing the problem that Twilight Falling had is the poor love interest. It just never 'felt' right and came off more stalker-y and creepy. But that twist, my god was it good. This is the twist that would put the master of twists to shame. Just wow. Overall Dawn of Night is a good follow-up to Twilight Falling, but doesn't surpass the first book.
“Soulbound”
Kesson Rel is the first Chosen of Mask, who drank from the Chalice that Mask forbade anyone from drinking. Once Kesson drank, he came a shade and transported the temple of Mask from Elgrin Fau to the Plane of Shadow to take revenge on his fellow priests. But due to an oath that prevents followers of Mask from killing one another, unless willing, Kesson has to rely on a Shadow Dragon to do his bidding. After binding the Shadow Dragon Furlinastis, Kesson has the dragon take one priest a day until Avnon Des the Seer is left. Avnon and the priests are unable to stop this from happening, but after a vision Avnon receives of two other Chose of Mask, he knows what he has to do.
Criticisms:
1) Confusing. At first you may ask yourself what this story have to do with The Erevis Cale Trilogy and why isn't one of the main characters the lead in it? Well it ties indirectly into Cale's destiny and the events of the Twilight War Trilogy. Also, you do have references to things that happens in Dawn of Night. But that's not why I'm saying it's confusing, what's confusing is that I really have no idea what was happening. I first read this story in the Realms of the Dragons anthology and there I was utterly lost. In fact, I remember hating this story. I don't recall why other than I have no idea what was happening. The problem with this story is that you really don't know who these people are and why you should care about them. It felt more like a 'history' lesson without any background or explanations of what was happening. However, I will say that having this story come after Dawn of Night does make things easier to follow and understand.
Praises:
1) References. Like I was saying above, it helped that this story followed Dawn of Night. There are a lot of references to that story and it's nice to see some things explained that were left unexplained there. It also gives some nice hints of things to come in the Twilight War Trilogy.
2) Kesson Rel. He is an interesting character. We know that he at some point betrays Mask for the goddess Shar, but we don't know why. This story doesn't explain that but it gives us a little information to who this character is. What I'm trying to say is that you want to know more about him and this story barely whets your appetite for more.
Overall: 3/5
Thoughts:
“Soulbound” is an okay story. There isn't a lot of problems with it being in this omnibus, but by itself, you may be left in the dark. While there is no main characters from The Erevis Cale Trilogy in this story, Kesson Rel fills the shoes nicely. But I wanted to know why he betrayed Mask more than why Elgrin Fau is on the Plane of Shadows. It's an interesting look at another Chosen of Mask and it does tie into upcoming events nicely, but you can skip it if you want to.
Midnight's Mask
After barely escaping Drasek Riven's betrayal and the angry protectors of Skullport (called the skulls), Erevis Cale, Jak Fleet, and Magadon are transported to the Plane of Shadow to escape the chaos. While on the plane, Cale and Magadon realize that Riven's betrayal was planned so the group can get closer to the Sojourner. After Magadon finds where the slaadi and Riven transported to, the group get the drop on the Sojourner and the slaadi. However, when Riven once again betrays the group, they are forced to flee. But yet again, Cale is unsure if Riven is really betraying him. The only thing Cale knows is that the slaadi's next target to tap is a ruin called Sakkors, so Cale transports the group back to Selgaunt to seek the aid of a priestess of Deneir, but come across an old acquaintance. The seer points them in the right direction and tells them that this is only the beginning. However, the slaadi and Riven know exactly where the ruin is, under the water of the Sea of Fallen Stars. As Cale and the group catch up to Riven and the slaadi, they awaken something larger. Are they able to stop the Sojourner from tapping Sakkors, and what exactly is the 'Crown of Flame'?
Criticisms:
1) Love Interest. I'm not going to go into much detail because I'd just be repeating everything I've said before. It just didn't come across quite right. However, you do see something building between Cale and Varra, but not enough to make it any less awkward.
Praises:
1) Characters. Once again, the characters are wonderful and I'm not going to repeat why other than they get deeper. Even the Sojourner gets some depth and there are times when you actually do like him.
2) Emotional. I've read this story three times now and I always seem to tear up at one certain scene, and I will not ruin what this scene is. It's a real emotional scene. I don't know what else to say other than that. It's just beautifully written and it's sad to see this happen to someone who you grew to really care about.
3) Crown of Flame. In my first review of this book, I mentioned how I hated the idea of the Crown of Flame. But now, I honestly love the idea of something so simple and so 'innocent' can cause so much death and destruction. It may be a slight let down, but I'm glad it didn't turn out to be this huge world-changing event. It's an original concept that just works amazingly well.
4) The Ending. Aside from the emotional impact there is, it's just plain breathtaking. The fight sequences are awe-inspiring and exciting. The sword play of Riven alone against the slaadi is just jaw dropping. After reading this, I'm almost convinced that Riven could win out against another well-known Forgotten Realm character named Drizzt Do'Urden. You also have the frantic chase to get to the Weave Tap and it's chaotic, in a good way. You also have the above mentioned emotional scene and the best final battle/ showdown for a while. It's bloody, gory, rage-filled and so wonderful. Finally, you have the spectacular descriptions of what's going on and what's happening. It's an ending you won't soon forget.
Overall: 5/5
Thoughts:
Midnight's Mask is how you should end a trilogy. It's fast paced, exciting, and filled with the right amount of twists to keep you guessing. While the love interest is awkward, at least now we see something building between Cale and Varra in their short scenes. But everything else is near perfect. The characters are wonderful and memorable, the plot is exciting, and it really hits you emotionally. I don't know what else to say about this book other than bravo.
Overall Averaged Omnibus Grade: 4/5
Final Thoughts on the Omnibus:
The Erevis Cale Trilogy is great. That's all I should say. It has likable and deep characters, the overall plot is solid and exciting, and it ends perfectly. The only overarching negative about this trilogy is that the whole 'love interest' thing doesn't seem to work out and comes across as more awkward than meaningful. But that does not in no way detract from the overall story. The core trilogy is great on its own. It continues the story in a logical progression and sets up things that could be answered in the future, but it doesn't come across as 'sequel-bait'. The addition of the two short stories is interesting. The first short story really added some background on the characters of Erevis Cale and Drasek Riven, along with tying into the core trilogy seamlessly. The other short story is a nice story of some past events, but didn't feel necessary and barely tied in. It's good, but ultimately is skip able. Even without those short stories, the original three is well worth the purchase. So am I recommending you go pick up this omnibus this very second? Yes! Drop whatever it is you're doing and go buy this, not to mention that it's wonderful to have all these books in one book.
Review Note: This is the first time I'm reviewing an omnibus, and most likely my only. I have previously reviewed The Erevis Cale Trilogy before this, but I will be taking a whole new look at the books and giving fresh thoughts on them. You can find the other reviews at the following links; Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight's Mask.
“And All the Sinners, Saints”
Erevis Cale just found his god in Mask. While unsure if being a priest of the Shadowlord, Cale decides to try to commune with his god, only to receive a vague vision of what Mask wants Cale to do. At the same time, Drasek Riven is having a similar experience. Now the question is, what does Mask want Cale and Riven to do, and how does he want it done?
Criticisms:
1) Short. This is not a bad thing, but I just wanted more!
Praises:
1) Tie In. I really like how this ties in with what happened with Shadow's Witness and some mentions in Twilight Falling. I always like this little nods.
2) Back Story. Do you need to read Shadow's Witness to know what is going on? No, and it's wonderful. You really got a good idea of what kind of person Cale is, along with who Riven is.
Overall: 5/5
Quick Thoughts:
It's a fun and interesting look at who the main characters. It's almost like a 'character study' and an excellent introduction to The Erevis Cale Trilogy.
Twilight Falling
Erevis Cale is leaving Stormweather Tower, where he's been employed as a butler for the Uskevren family for years and considers them his family. After the family's patriarch died, Cale knows it's time to move on. After saying good-bye to his adoptive family, Cale receives a letter from Drasek Riven to meet him at an inn to discuss something. After arriving at the inn, a fireball destroys the inn and Cale and Riven barely manage to survive the blast. After locating were the fireball came from, the duo confront a shadow adept wizard named Vraggen and his partner, a half-drow by the name of Azriim. After the little skirmish Cale realizes that they are after something the Uskevren has and they were trying to remove Cale from interfering. Arriving back at Stormweather, Cale finds and confronts the thieves who are after an unremarkable sphere, but is unable to stop them. Cale is only able to shear the sphere into two halves, but he is able to recover one of the halves. With the half safely with him, he goes to find his old friend Jak Fleet and get to the bottom of why this sphere is so important. After Riven joins the duo and then trio goes to a sage to get some answers to the sphere. Why does this shadow adept want such a seemingly useless paperweight and can the trio stop Vraggen?
Criticisms:
1) Cale/Tazi. I don't know what it is but for some reason I just never bought into the whole Cale and Tazi (the daughter of the Uskevren's) relationship. In the previous book, Shadow's Witness, it is somewhat believable. In this book, it doesn't seem to work on its own. Not once did I feel a connection between these two and having to be told that Cale loves Tazi just makes it worse. Cale's actions towards Tazi never really made much sense. But I'm chalking this problem up to the next problem with this book.
2) Back Ground. The reason the whole Cale and Tazi love interest doesn't work is that it seems you almost need to read Shadow's Witness to understand it along with a lot of other little references that are made. While for the most part, you don't really need to read the first Cale book, it would help a lot. There are so many references to previous events in the first fifty pages that if you go into this blind, you may miss out on some characterization and some interesting references. I would say you should read Shadow's Witness first, but it's not one hundred percent required, just seventy-five.
Praises:
1) Characters. Aside from me being an absolute Cale and Riven fan-boy, all the other characters are interesting and very unique. Of course you have the good-hearted killer in Cale and you have the sneer to end all sneers that Riven has, but let's instead look at the other characters. We have Jak, who is Cale's conscious. While he may come off as annoying, you really can see the friendship between the two. In reality, he's more like a real person when you compare him to Cale or Riven. With the villains we have the arrogant Vraggen and his blind pursuit to retake the Zhentarim from the followers of Bane and reinstate the control of the Mad God Cyric. He's more of your standard bad guy. However, with his partner Azriim, we have a totally different kind of villain. If you could pick two words to describe Azriim they would be vain and manipulative. He's the guy you never see coming until the end. Rounding out the villains we have Dolgan, Serrin, and Elura. Dolgan's the usual muscled dimwit and Serrin's the stoic killer. Elura doesn't have too many scenes but she's more like a seductress killer type of character. While these three are more stock bad guys, they each fit the mold well. Overall, the characters are just plain amazing.
2) Hints. There are so many subtle hints of things to come that you wouldn't understand them until the happen. After these things happen, you can't help but go back and check out the things you've missed picking up on. It only gets better with multiple reads, because you start noticing things that will come up in the next books as well as things that happen in the next trilogy. It's just wonderful seeing a series tie itself together so nicely.
3) Plot. While the plot was fairly straightforward, it always seemed to keep me on the edge of my seat. Even when you knew something was going to happen, you were still surprised it happened. Everything just seemed to fit in, a la the hints strewn throughout the story. Not to mention that it flowed beautifully. It's straightforward as it needed to be with a few nice turns here and there.
Overall: 4/5
Quick Thoughts:
Twilight Falling is a great beginning to a trilogy. It sets up the characters wonderfully and each of them are unique and memorable in some way. The Cale and Tazi's relationship never felt real however. It just didn't work. The plot is great with some turns, only a little too straightforward. Reading the previous book, Shadow's Witness, would be a good idea to get some of the references that are mentioned here and there. Then you have all the little hints you have that basically tells what's going to happen later on in the story. Overall Twilight Falling is great and it really allows you to know a little more about our main heroes, Cale and Riven.
Dawn of Night
Erevis Cale, Drasek Riven, Jak Fleet, and Magadon all find themselves in the Plane of Shadow. Jak is horrified to see Cale is now more than human, he's become a shade, a being of shadow. As Cale and the group traverse the Plane of Shadow's, tensions start to run high between Cale and Riven, and only escalate from there. After days of travel, Cale is forced to give into his new nature in order to save the group for the horrors of the plane. As they are trying to find a way out of the Plane of Shadow, the mastermind and father behind the Slaadi (or is it Slaad's?) plans to use the Weave Tap for powering a powerful spell. Having sent his Slaadi; Azriim, Dolgan, and Serrin, to the cesspool that is Skullport in order to plant a seed to sap the magical energies of the city. After Cale and the group succeed in escaping, can the group locate and stop the Slaadi from tapping Skullport's magical mantle or do the Slaadi succeed?
Criticisms:
1) The Sojourner. I don't know what it was but his earlier chapters felt like they went on forever. I don't know if it was because the character of the Sojourner was so dull or that the chapters themselves were dry, but I just could barely get through them. I'm leaning more towards a combination of the two. While they were interesting, I just had this feeling of 'so what' while reading them.
2) Love Interest. Yet again, we have a problem with an unbelievable and almost silly love interest. While I do know this one between Cale and a tavern waitress named Varra does get better and the whole first meeting was good, I just didn't did like how it was handled. It seemed like Cale is suddenly obsessed with her, and it comes off a little creepy more than sincere. It's just bothersome.
Praises:
1) Characters. Once again, aside from the Sojourner, the characters are wonderful and really dimensional. I'm not going to get into much detail because honestly, I'll just be repeating what I've said above, and I really don't want to. I will say that the relationships between the main heroes do get explored a little more and you get a good look at how they really feel about each other.
2) Setting Descriptions. The places the story goes are just wonderfully described. First off we have the Plane of Shadow's. You really got a great mental picture of how alien and dark this world is. It's just plain creepy. Then later Skullport just radiates vile and disgusting. You could almost smell the place. It just was plain vile. Also, some of the other places the group go to are wonderfully described as well.
3) Twist. The twist at the end you'll never see coming until it's too late. While there is a wonderful build up to it, it still comes as an utter shock. I've read this book about three times now and it still shocks me.
Overall: 4/5
Thoughts:
While not as good as Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night still a wonderful and fast paced read. You'll never want to put the book down for too long and all the little details and hints of what's to come are still there. The descriptions are vivid and you can really picture yourself in these places. The characters are just as good as the previous book, if not better because now you see how their relationship evolves. The only problem I had is with The Sojourner. His parts were dry and horribly boring. While he is a good character himself, something just dragged his scenes down. Also, continuing the problem that Twilight Falling had is the poor love interest. It just never 'felt' right and came off more stalker-y and creepy. But that twist, my god was it good. This is the twist that would put the master of twists to shame. Just wow. Overall Dawn of Night is a good follow-up to Twilight Falling, but doesn't surpass the first book.
“Soulbound”
Kesson Rel is the first Chosen of Mask, who drank from the Chalice that Mask forbade anyone from drinking. Once Kesson drank, he came a shade and transported the temple of Mask from Elgrin Fau to the Plane of Shadow to take revenge on his fellow priests. But due to an oath that prevents followers of Mask from killing one another, unless willing, Kesson has to rely on a Shadow Dragon to do his bidding. After binding the Shadow Dragon Furlinastis, Kesson has the dragon take one priest a day until Avnon Des the Seer is left. Avnon and the priests are unable to stop this from happening, but after a vision Avnon receives of two other Chose of Mask, he knows what he has to do.
Criticisms:
1) Confusing. At first you may ask yourself what this story have to do with The Erevis Cale Trilogy and why isn't one of the main characters the lead in it? Well it ties indirectly into Cale's destiny and the events of the Twilight War Trilogy. Also, you do have references to things that happens in Dawn of Night. But that's not why I'm saying it's confusing, what's confusing is that I really have no idea what was happening. I first read this story in the Realms of the Dragons anthology and there I was utterly lost. In fact, I remember hating this story. I don't recall why other than I have no idea what was happening. The problem with this story is that you really don't know who these people are and why you should care about them. It felt more like a 'history' lesson without any background or explanations of what was happening. However, I will say that having this story come after Dawn of Night does make things easier to follow and understand.
Praises:
1) References. Like I was saying above, it helped that this story followed Dawn of Night. There are a lot of references to that story and it's nice to see some things explained that were left unexplained there. It also gives some nice hints of things to come in the Twilight War Trilogy.
2) Kesson Rel. He is an interesting character. We know that he at some point betrays Mask for the goddess Shar, but we don't know why. This story doesn't explain that but it gives us a little information to who this character is. What I'm trying to say is that you want to know more about him and this story barely whets your appetite for more.
Overall: 3/5
Thoughts:
“Soulbound” is an okay story. There isn't a lot of problems with it being in this omnibus, but by itself, you may be left in the dark. While there is no main characters from The Erevis Cale Trilogy in this story, Kesson Rel fills the shoes nicely. But I wanted to know why he betrayed Mask more than why Elgrin Fau is on the Plane of Shadows. It's an interesting look at another Chosen of Mask and it does tie into upcoming events nicely, but you can skip it if you want to.
Midnight's Mask
After barely escaping Drasek Riven's betrayal and the angry protectors of Skullport (called the skulls), Erevis Cale, Jak Fleet, and Magadon are transported to the Plane of Shadow to escape the chaos. While on the plane, Cale and Magadon realize that Riven's betrayal was planned so the group can get closer to the Sojourner. After Magadon finds where the slaadi and Riven transported to, the group get the drop on the Sojourner and the slaadi. However, when Riven once again betrays the group, they are forced to flee. But yet again, Cale is unsure if Riven is really betraying him. The only thing Cale knows is that the slaadi's next target to tap is a ruin called Sakkors, so Cale transports the group back to Selgaunt to seek the aid of a priestess of Deneir, but come across an old acquaintance. The seer points them in the right direction and tells them that this is only the beginning. However, the slaadi and Riven know exactly where the ruin is, under the water of the Sea of Fallen Stars. As Cale and the group catch up to Riven and the slaadi, they awaken something larger. Are they able to stop the Sojourner from tapping Sakkors, and what exactly is the 'Crown of Flame'?
Criticisms:
1) Love Interest. I'm not going to go into much detail because I'd just be repeating everything I've said before. It just didn't come across quite right. However, you do see something building between Cale and Varra, but not enough to make it any less awkward.
Praises:
1) Characters. Once again, the characters are wonderful and I'm not going to repeat why other than they get deeper. Even the Sojourner gets some depth and there are times when you actually do like him.
2) Emotional. I've read this story three times now and I always seem to tear up at one certain scene, and I will not ruin what this scene is. It's a real emotional scene. I don't know what else to say other than that. It's just beautifully written and it's sad to see this happen to someone who you grew to really care about.
3) Crown of Flame. In my first review of this book, I mentioned how I hated the idea of the Crown of Flame. But now, I honestly love the idea of something so simple and so 'innocent' can cause so much death and destruction. It may be a slight let down, but I'm glad it didn't turn out to be this huge world-changing event. It's an original concept that just works amazingly well.
4) The Ending. Aside from the emotional impact there is, it's just plain breathtaking. The fight sequences are awe-inspiring and exciting. The sword play of Riven alone against the slaadi is just jaw dropping. After reading this, I'm almost convinced that Riven could win out against another well-known Forgotten Realm character named Drizzt Do'Urden. You also have the frantic chase to get to the Weave Tap and it's chaotic, in a good way. You also have the above mentioned emotional scene and the best final battle/ showdown for a while. It's bloody, gory, rage-filled and so wonderful. Finally, you have the spectacular descriptions of what's going on and what's happening. It's an ending you won't soon forget.
Overall: 5/5
Thoughts:
Midnight's Mask is how you should end a trilogy. It's fast paced, exciting, and filled with the right amount of twists to keep you guessing. While the love interest is awkward, at least now we see something building between Cale and Varra in their short scenes. But everything else is near perfect. The characters are wonderful and memorable, the plot is exciting, and it really hits you emotionally. I don't know what else to say about this book other than bravo.
Overall Averaged Omnibus Grade: 4/5
Final Thoughts on the Omnibus:
The Erevis Cale Trilogy is great. That's all I should say. It has likable and deep characters, the overall plot is solid and exciting, and it ends perfectly. The only overarching negative about this trilogy is that the whole 'love interest' thing doesn't seem to work out and comes across as more awkward than meaningful. But that does not in no way detract from the overall story. The core trilogy is great on its own. It continues the story in a logical progression and sets up things that could be answered in the future, but it doesn't come across as 'sequel-bait'. The addition of the two short stories is interesting. The first short story really added some background on the characters of Erevis Cale and Drasek Riven, along with tying into the core trilogy seamlessly. The other short story is a nice story of some past events, but didn't feel necessary and barely tied in. It's good, but ultimately is skip able. Even without those short stories, the original three is well worth the purchase. So am I recommending you go pick up this omnibus this very second? Yes! Drop whatever it is you're doing and go buy this, not to mention that it's wonderful to have all these books in one book.
August 6, 2015
This is a continuation of the Sembia series novel Shadow's Witness in the FR cosmology. People who wish to read this book would be advised to first check out the previous one if they want to fully grasp what's going on in this one, but one could read just this one without missing much.
When I first read Drizzt, something like this is what I was hoping for. It's dark fantasy Fritz Leiber-style and it's really good given that it's a book based in a DnD setting. Although I understand it's written to set certain things in place in the setting world and it's building up for another trilogy, it can stand out as its own thing. The story FOR ONCE does not focus on saving the world. Well in the end this is kinda what's happening but it's not done from the beginning and it's done in a very good way.
The first book starts kinda slowly but it builds up in the middle and it finally speeds up during the ending. It's the worst of the three because it has basically searching and investigation. It has some battles but they are mediocre and the main great thing is it's characters and the interactions with each other. Also the villains don't feel very threatening(though they do some pretty nasty things), see criticisms in the end. Great cliffhanger during the ending.
The second book is a lot better in terms of how it speeds up. Half the book is based on the finale of the previous one, with the main characters stuck and exploring the Plane of Shadows (which is a very cool setting) and the other half is following the villain(s) plan. More character development. After the middle part the protagonists follow the villains and try to figure out what their plan is so they can stop it. Great set up, nice battles, GREAT VILLAIN and nice ending with a sorta plot twist.
The final book, like the previous one, starts immediately where the last one ended and it's the fastest paced from the three. I think it has the most action from the three, also. Again the main characters follow and try to thwart the villains, finally they confront the big villain, great reveal in the end and character resolution. The chasing may become tiresome, especially compared to the great setting from book 2, but what a great ending setting the pieces for the next installment and closing plot hooks, while leaving some open for future installments.
Characters: What's great about these characters, besides their relationships with another is that they do not fall under "alignment restrictions", which is neat. I love the protagonist interaction with EVERYONE here. Erevis Cale is a great character, you can sympathize with and I greatly enjoy seeing him work with the others. The other characters are just following him but they all have solid backgrounds and personalities. I like his "alliance of convenience" and love-hate relationship they have with Riven. I like the bond they share with Magadon. I like the way Jak is giving him advice and is his moral center. The side characters are ok too and not bland. I especially like the mad Chosen of the God of Knowledge with his philosophy and theories. The main villain is WONDERFUL in the sense that in spite of doing evil things he can rationalize it in such a way you almost sympathize with him. And the way he's written is beautiful in what his viewpoints and his goals are, to the point you almost feel sorry for him in the end. The other villains are just there I would say, except one who is really enjoyable because his is suave and has no problems doing whatever to earn his freedom, as long things are optically pleasing and there are no profanities involved.
There are some important themes here like responsibility, loyalty, religion and what it means to have power. It's quiet different from Spiderman's "power-responsibility" theme, in this story to have great power means you have to lose something. The protagonist is losing his humanity the more power he gets. The villain, while all-powerful cannot enjoy simple things. The protagonist is lost, while the villain knows exactly what he wants. Erevis Cale wants the power because his God needs him to do things greater than a human could do. In contrast the villain has all the power yet desires such a mundane thing.
Criticisms: Although I thoroughly enjoyed and praised it I have some observations to make. The main villain is great, but while being set up beautifully and described as incredibly powerful, he doesn't do something incredible. I mean in the end YES he does but why is he allowing the main characters to attack him and his minions by surprise? Why doesn't he take measures against them if he's so smart, instead of allowing them to escape? Even in battle he doesn't show all this power he's supposed to have, except a few instances. The villain in first book is weak(also power-wise) and not interesting so doesn't feel like a threat at all but I understand as he's being used and is not the TRUE villain.
Why the main characters aren't looking for help after a while/ They constantly say how this is bigger than them and yet they are still going. Ok, again this is to show how they must surpass the difficulties and a reason is kinda given but why, at least, not do something about their enemies escaping all the time and having to chase them around?
Also with the protagonist's ability to "teleport" the moving from place to place can get tiresome, as well as while the main plot develops the protagonists just teleport from place to place at will and seem at ease with resting, regrouping and doing side quests. Finally some incidents where the main characters seem to have plot armor and can't be killed.
All in all a great trilogy, greatly underrated and I while I believe it should be 3.5 stars, I rated it with a 4 stars score.
When I first read Drizzt, something like this is what I was hoping for. It's dark fantasy Fritz Leiber-style and it's really good given that it's a book based in a DnD setting. Although I understand it's written to set certain things in place in the setting world and it's building up for another trilogy, it can stand out as its own thing. The story FOR ONCE does not focus on saving the world. Well in the end this is kinda what's happening but it's not done from the beginning and it's done in a very good way.
The first book starts kinda slowly but it builds up in the middle and it finally speeds up during the ending. It's the worst of the three because it has basically searching and investigation. It has some battles but they are mediocre and the main great thing is it's characters and the interactions with each other. Also the villains don't feel very threatening(though they do some pretty nasty things), see criticisms in the end. Great cliffhanger during the ending.
The second book is a lot better in terms of how it speeds up. Half the book is based on the finale of the previous one, with the main characters stuck and exploring the Plane of Shadows (which is a very cool setting) and the other half is following the villain(s) plan. More character development. After the middle part the protagonists follow the villains and try to figure out what their plan is so they can stop it. Great set up, nice battles, GREAT VILLAIN and nice ending with a sorta plot twist.
The final book, like the previous one, starts immediately where the last one ended and it's the fastest paced from the three. I think it has the most action from the three, also. Again the main characters follow and try to thwart the villains, finally they confront the big villain, great reveal in the end and character resolution. The chasing may become tiresome, especially compared to the great setting from book 2, but what a great ending setting the pieces for the next installment and closing plot hooks, while leaving some open for future installments.
Characters: What's great about these characters, besides their relationships with another is that they do not fall under "alignment restrictions", which is neat. I love the protagonist interaction with EVERYONE here. Erevis Cale is a great character, you can sympathize with and I greatly enjoy seeing him work with the others. The other characters are just following him but they all have solid backgrounds and personalities. I like his "alliance of convenience" and love-hate relationship they have with Riven. I like the bond they share with Magadon. I like the way Jak is giving him advice and is his moral center. The side characters are ok too and not bland. I especially like the mad Chosen of the God of Knowledge with his philosophy and theories. The main villain is WONDERFUL in the sense that in spite of doing evil things he can rationalize it in such a way you almost sympathize with him. And the way he's written is beautiful in what his viewpoints and his goals are, to the point you almost feel sorry for him in the end. The other villains are just there I would say, except one who is really enjoyable because his is suave and has no problems doing whatever to earn his freedom, as long things are optically pleasing and there are no profanities involved.
There are some important themes here like responsibility, loyalty, religion and what it means to have power. It's quiet different from Spiderman's "power-responsibility" theme, in this story to have great power means you have to lose something. The protagonist is losing his humanity the more power he gets. The villain, while all-powerful cannot enjoy simple things. The protagonist is lost, while the villain knows exactly what he wants. Erevis Cale wants the power because his God needs him to do things greater than a human could do. In contrast the villain has all the power yet desires such a mundane thing.
Criticisms: Although I thoroughly enjoyed and praised it I have some observations to make. The main villain is great, but while being set up beautifully and described as incredibly powerful, he doesn't do something incredible. I mean in the end YES he does but why is he allowing the main characters to attack him and his minions by surprise? Why doesn't he take measures against them if he's so smart, instead of allowing them to escape? Even in battle he doesn't show all this power he's supposed to have, except a few instances. The villain in first book is weak(also power-wise) and not interesting so doesn't feel like a threat at all but I understand as he's being used and is not the TRUE villain.
Why the main characters aren't looking for help after a while/ They constantly say how this is bigger than them and yet they are still going. Ok, again this is to show how they must surpass the difficulties and a reason is kinda given but why, at least, not do something about their enemies escaping all the time and having to chase them around?
Also with the protagonist's ability to "teleport" the moving from place to place can get tiresome, as well as while the main plot develops the protagonists just teleport from place to place at will and seem at ease with resting, regrouping and doing side quests. Finally some incidents where the main characters seem to have plot armor and can't be killed.
All in all a great trilogy, greatly underrated and I while I believe it should be 3.5 stars, I rated it with a 4 stars score.
September 17, 2013
I read each of the books separately so what follows is my combined review from all three books (which are included in this omnibus):
Book One: Twilight Falling (12/16/12 to 12/29/12)
This book is a must read for any Forgotten Realms fan. Kemp does a masterful job of character development and immersion of Realmslore. Conflict feels real and you are introduced to deities and geography within the Realms, particularly Sembia and Mask and Cyric, in a very interesting way. The ending was excellent as well. You had me at Gnoll trackers :)
Book Two: Dawn of Night (12/29/12 to 1/3/13)
What a ride!
Again, strong character development interspersed with deep and varied Realsmlore makes Kemp's writing style highly addictive. In my view, he is a masterful bottom up storyteller who draws you in with an intense focus on character. Setting is a function of the characters's journey and in this instance, as in all of the Cale books I've read thus far, it really engages.
As a big Realms fan, I throughly appreciate Paul's attention to detail in fleshing out areas that scream for the spotlight. Examples in this book include, Skullport (and The Skulls), Starmantle, The Weave Tap, and Elgrin Fau, to name a few.
A Realms fan be you? Read this you must.
Book Three: Midnight's Mask (1/3/13 to 1/6/13)
From Gnoll trackers (TF) and Skullport slavers (DoN) to pirates on the Inner Sea, and Netherese ruins (MM), this third book in the trilogy of Erevis Cale is not lacking in action or suspense by any stretch! A sentient kraken?! Yep. Loved it.
Once again, I will emphasize that Paul does a fantastic job at making your care about his characters (love or hate). In my view, this book got a little more gritty and also re-introduced a love sub plot for Cale - more interesting than Thazi IMO.
The ending left some threads untied for Cale and Magadon which I hope I will get to grab onto again when I crack the spines of the Shadow Wars trilogy. I found the resolution of Riven to be well done; an homage to the little guy.
Note to Paul: great work with "the girls" (I am a dog guy so really enjoyed this aspect of Drasek)!
January 16, 2012
I. Love. Erevis Cale. Full stop.
The trilogy managed to keep me engaged from start to finish. Characters I didn't much care for (Jak Fleet) I ended up loving by the end.
Let's face it, it's popcorn reading. It didn't challenge me. It wasn't complicated. The plot twists were a delight and I found myself shouting at the book a couple of times saying 'OH NO YOU DIDN'T' which is why I have ended up loving this book so much. Kemp managed to make me love these characters to the point I really was fully invested in what happened to them.
My only, only complaint was the amount of time we were told that Riven sneered. That got a bit old. Honestly, that was my only complaint and I can easily overlook that for the sheer enjoyment of the adventure I was taken on from page one to the end of the third book.
The trilogy managed to keep me engaged from start to finish. Characters I didn't much care for (Jak Fleet) I ended up loving by the end.
Let's face it, it's popcorn reading. It didn't challenge me. It wasn't complicated. The plot twists were a delight and I found myself shouting at the book a couple of times saying 'OH NO YOU DIDN'T' which is why I have ended up loving this book so much. Kemp managed to make me love these characters to the point I really was fully invested in what happened to them.
My only, only complaint was the amount of time we were told that Riven sneered. That got a bit old. Honestly, that was my only complaint and I can easily overlook that for the sheer enjoyment of the adventure I was taken on from page one to the end of the third book.
June 18, 2010
This book not only contains the amazing Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, and Midnight’s Mask into one book, it also has two other harder to find short stories called "All the sinners saints" and "soulbound".
I have the single stories that are in this trilogy and had to find the short stories from other sources such as back issued dragon magazine. I definitly had to pick this up to have them all contained in one really nice addition.
They are all really great stories. Kemp has a way of sucking you into Cale's world. You become extremely attatched to the charecters as they are all very well written.
This was a colletion that I just had to have in addition to his other works. An excellent read for any fan of the realms.
I have the single stories that are in this trilogy and had to find the short stories from other sources such as back issued dragon magazine. I definitly had to pick this up to have them all contained in one really nice addition.
They are all really great stories. Kemp has a way of sucking you into Cale's world. You become extremely attatched to the charecters as they are all very well written.
This was a colletion that I just had to have in addition to his other works. An excellent read for any fan of the realms.
July 4, 2012
Drasek Riven > Drizz't Do'Urden...
September 5, 2014
The best series from the forgotten realms that i have read , and i have read ALOT :D
August 20, 2024
At its core the plot of the story is rather simple, Erevis Cale's (a former assassin) somewhat peaceful life is disrupted when his friend and employer dies of old age. Before he can think of what to do next, powerful thugs rush into his life to steal something his old friend had bought and in doing so truly anger the man. Chasing down powerful people to try and stop them comes with a price on its own and Erevis' service in Mask, the god of thieves and shadows, add its own costs.
Where the books shine is in its descriptions and characters. The author certainly brings the world and its inhabitants to life. It would probably a great inspiration for game masters running a game in these unique settings like Skullport and Sembia. To be clear, I don't think prior knowledge of the Forgotten Realms is necessary, but the story explains little even if you can probably infer most were it is important. The characters also have their unique traits and develop through the story, not just the main character, but the primary antagonists as well, all with their own believable flaws and visible by switching the occasional points of view. Granted, I am not a big fan of it, but it was not done to the point of distraction.
The reason though why I give the series 3 stars is in that there are what I consider some odd plot holes and events that made no real sense, especially in book one. [spoiler]The murder of the sage made no sense, and even without the McGuffin the villains reached their goal which made the whole beginning of book 1 really meaningless.[/spoiler] The big bad evil guy operating in the background was also rather disappointing to me, but that was a very me thing and I can see others really liking the twist. The trilogy is a stand alone story, but at the same time seems to be part of a big one, and while reading those were not necessary, it did left me wondering (although not enough to start looking for earlier and potentially later stories of Erevis Cale).
All in all, a solid read, but with a few bits and pieces that just sapped away some of the enjoyment for me. So 3 solid stars from me.
Where the books shine is in its descriptions and characters. The author certainly brings the world and its inhabitants to life. It would probably a great inspiration for game masters running a game in these unique settings like Skullport and Sembia. To be clear, I don't think prior knowledge of the Forgotten Realms is necessary, but the story explains little even if you can probably infer most were it is important. The characters also have their unique traits and develop through the story, not just the main character, but the primary antagonists as well, all with their own believable flaws and visible by switching the occasional points of view. Granted, I am not a big fan of it, but it was not done to the point of distraction.
The reason though why I give the series 3 stars is in that there are what I consider some odd plot holes and events that made no real sense, especially in book one. [spoiler]The murder of the sage made no sense, and even without the McGuffin the villains reached their goal which made the whole beginning of book 1 really meaningless.[/spoiler] The big bad evil guy operating in the background was also rather disappointing to me, but that was a very me thing and I can see others really liking the twist. The trilogy is a stand alone story, but at the same time seems to be part of a big one, and while reading those were not necessary, it did left me wondering (although not enough to start looking for earlier and potentially later stories of Erevis Cale).
All in all, a solid read, but with a few bits and pieces that just sapped away some of the enjoyment for me. So 3 solid stars from me.
October 11, 2019
Parts were really good, but so much was boring. Large blocks of texts were devoted to the Sojourner's POV, the slaad's POV, and other boring POV. It's a book about Erevis Cale, so tell me what Erevis Cale and his companions are doing. I don't care about those other beings.
Recurring villains always annoy me. In this case it was especially egregious because the author had to stretch believability well past the breaking point in order to keep certain villains alive until the end.
The fight scenes, especially at the end, were so long. Just get to the point.
Recurring villains always annoy me. In this case it was especially egregious because the author had to stretch believability well past the breaking point in order to keep certain villains alive until the end.
The fight scenes, especially at the end, were so long. Just get to the point.
January 22, 2020
Awesome
One of the best Forgotten Realms series I've found
One of the best Forgotten Realms series I've found
February 2, 2020
It's a fun book with strong characters. Cale is well developed during the three books showing how he accepts what he has become as well as understands he has the option to decide what to do with it.
March 19, 2024
Best series in all of the forgotten realms!
December 21, 2012
http://sonsofcorax.wordpress.com/2012...
Paul’s Erevis Cale Trilogy was my first introduction to Forgotten Realms, and to Wizards of the Coast, earlier this year, and it’s turned into a fascination with the entire setting that just refuses to go away. I haven’t read as much within it as I’d like, but the stuff I’ve read has been fairly good so this fascination is definitely here to stay. Plus Paul is an excellent writer in my opinion. This is another from-memory review so if I get anything wrong, I do apologise.
ErevisCaleTrilogyWhat set this omnibus apart from me, more than anything, was Paul’s characterisation. Erevis Cale and Drasek Riven are fantastic assassins with a hint of the cleric about them as they both serve the Mask as his chosen champions. Their is a fantastic buddy rivalry of sorts going on between them, whether that’s in either of the three novels (Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, Midnight’s Mask) or the short story (All The Sinners, Saints). From outright hostility, their relationship to each other becomes one of guarded jealousy, and then eventually mutual respect, which is a great path for these guys across three novels. There are lots of obstacles for them to overcome in each novel, and how they succeed dictates how their relationship develops. Furthermore, if Erevis wasn’t already so bad-ass, Riven would have been my favourite character from the omnibus.
There is a lot of dynamism to both of them, something which is carried forwards to the bad guys as well, who are pretty much like nothing I’ve read of before (in terms of who and what they are that is). Azriim and Vraggen, throughout the course of the omnibus, are portrayed wonderfully. Neither of them is the typical laugh-out-loud-at-everything kind of villain. Their motivations are all too real and understandable. And the audacity of their plans definitely has to be applauded. It’s not often for me that I like bad guys who have such lofty goals that are next to impossible, but through their cunning and intelligence they eventually bring about, to a degree. No moustache-twirling b-movie villains here at all!
There’s also some fantastic world-building here, which was all the more enjoyable since this was my first time with the setting. I liked how Kemp portrayed each of the cities and planes that the characters travel to, and all the different races and species that populate Faerun. It makes for a really lively and rich world brimming with possibilities of all kind. It can be a little too much at times, but that’s fine, really. I expected that difficulty going in, since Forgotten Realms is a truly vast setting.
Dawn of Night is the weakest of the three novels, while Midnight’s Mask is the best, with Twilight Falling being somewhere in between. There is a ton of action in the novels, and some great exploration of character identity and the relationships between mortals and gods. As a first taster of the grand Forgotten Realms setting, The Erevis Cale Trilogy is a recommended pit stop. A really fast-paced collection that leaves you breathless.
Rating: 9/10
Paul’s Erevis Cale Trilogy was my first introduction to Forgotten Realms, and to Wizards of the Coast, earlier this year, and it’s turned into a fascination with the entire setting that just refuses to go away. I haven’t read as much within it as I’d like, but the stuff I’ve read has been fairly good so this fascination is definitely here to stay. Plus Paul is an excellent writer in my opinion. This is another from-memory review so if I get anything wrong, I do apologise.
ErevisCaleTrilogyWhat set this omnibus apart from me, more than anything, was Paul’s characterisation. Erevis Cale and Drasek Riven are fantastic assassins with a hint of the cleric about them as they both serve the Mask as his chosen champions. Their is a fantastic buddy rivalry of sorts going on between them, whether that’s in either of the three novels (Twilight Falling, Dawn of Night, Midnight’s Mask) or the short story (All The Sinners, Saints). From outright hostility, their relationship to each other becomes one of guarded jealousy, and then eventually mutual respect, which is a great path for these guys across three novels. There are lots of obstacles for them to overcome in each novel, and how they succeed dictates how their relationship develops. Furthermore, if Erevis wasn’t already so bad-ass, Riven would have been my favourite character from the omnibus.
There is a lot of dynamism to both of them, something which is carried forwards to the bad guys as well, who are pretty much like nothing I’ve read of before (in terms of who and what they are that is). Azriim and Vraggen, throughout the course of the omnibus, are portrayed wonderfully. Neither of them is the typical laugh-out-loud-at-everything kind of villain. Their motivations are all too real and understandable. And the audacity of their plans definitely has to be applauded. It’s not often for me that I like bad guys who have such lofty goals that are next to impossible, but through their cunning and intelligence they eventually bring about, to a degree. No moustache-twirling b-movie villains here at all!
There’s also some fantastic world-building here, which was all the more enjoyable since this was my first time with the setting. I liked how Kemp portrayed each of the cities and planes that the characters travel to, and all the different races and species that populate Faerun. It makes for a really lively and rich world brimming with possibilities of all kind. It can be a little too much at times, but that’s fine, really. I expected that difficulty going in, since Forgotten Realms is a truly vast setting.
Dawn of Night is the weakest of the three novels, while Midnight’s Mask is the best, with Twilight Falling being somewhere in between. There is a ton of action in the novels, and some great exploration of character identity and the relationships between mortals and gods. As a first taster of the grand Forgotten Realms setting, The Erevis Cale Trilogy is a recommended pit stop. A really fast-paced collection that leaves you breathless.
Rating: 9/10
October 1, 2012
I have not read very many Forgotten Realms books other than R.A. Salvatore, which are all pretty awesome. When we wanted to start another series in the same genre (in between Drizzt books) we picked up the first couple of the Forgotten Realm: Sembia series, seeing it as a way to be introduced to a bunch of different authors in the genre. That worked rather well.
Erevis Cale is a character introduced in the first Sembia book, written by Paul S. Kemp. He did something with this character that I found different and interesting: he isn't, strictly speaking, good. Forgotten Realm wikis put him squarely in the "neutral" zone. And that made me curious.
How does a book -- a trilogy, no less -- about a neutral-aligned character serving an evil god go? I was intrigued, and this was a fun read.
It raises eyebrows a few times, though not in the best way. For one, if you don't like to read about people decapitating other people for very little reason, then you'll react badly to a lot of this book. But that's expected, he is not good after all: his god is evil, his companion is clearly evil, what else could you expect? That part didn't bother me. What did bother me is how do you make a hero worthy of a trilogy from someone who isn't heroic? With difficulty, as it turns out.
Kemp did a great job of writing this one, of exposing the internal conflict of a man whose morals are seriously challenged by events around him, but it slowed down in places and took the same turns many times throughout. It felt like the character's inner battles were waged by weak opponents that were tried to be made strong through repetition. We know he loves her, and it pulls at him, and maybe it will pull harder if we read it a dozen more times?
It was an enjoyable series, to be sure, and a lot of fun to read a not-so-good hero. It isn't a must read, but if you want to take a quick trek down neutral territory then this is a good place to pitch a tent.
Erevis Cale is a character introduced in the first Sembia book, written by Paul S. Kemp. He did something with this character that I found different and interesting: he isn't, strictly speaking, good. Forgotten Realm wikis put him squarely in the "neutral" zone. And that made me curious.
How does a book -- a trilogy, no less -- about a neutral-aligned character serving an evil god go? I was intrigued, and this was a fun read.
It raises eyebrows a few times, though not in the best way. For one, if you don't like to read about people decapitating other people for very little reason, then you'll react badly to a lot of this book. But that's expected, he is not good after all: his god is evil, his companion is clearly evil, what else could you expect? That part didn't bother me. What did bother me is how do you make a hero worthy of a trilogy from someone who isn't heroic? With difficulty, as it turns out.
Kemp did a great job of writing this one, of exposing the internal conflict of a man whose morals are seriously challenged by events around him, but it slowed down in places and took the same turns many times throughout. It felt like the character's inner battles were waged by weak opponents that were tried to be made strong through repetition. We know he loves her, and it pulls at him, and maybe it will pull harder if we read it a dozen more times?
It was an enjoyable series, to be sure, and a lot of fun to read a not-so-good hero. It isn't a must read, but if you want to take a quick trek down neutral territory then this is a good place to pitch a tent.
April 2, 2014
Every time I purchase a book in the fantasy genre, I expect to be entertained, fascinated, frightened, and mesmerized by the character studies, and plot. I get that when I read Paul Kemp. There are still some of his works that I haven't read yet, but have no fear, I shall do so as soon as I finish what I'm now reading.
If you haven't read the Erevis Cale Trilogy, I urge you to do so. You will probably add Erevis to your list of fictional heroes, as I have. You will feel the heartwrenching losses, as well as the triumphs. Begin from the very beginning, which is Twilight Falling. The other stories from this trilogy are also in a single volumn.
If you haven't read the Erevis Cale Trilogy, I urge you to do so. You will probably add Erevis to your list of fictional heroes, as I have. You will feel the heartwrenching losses, as well as the triumphs. Begin from the very beginning, which is Twilight Falling. The other stories from this trilogy are also in a single volumn.
January 23, 2014
I discovered PSK through his War of the Spider Queen. Then I read Egil and Nix (which I am obsessed with) so in waiting for the next E&N book, I decided to read PSK's older stuff. As a whole, I like the Cale trilogy. There is a bit of repetition in the encounters between the good guys and the bad guys. I didn't grow super attached to any of the characters. However I did love Azriim a whole bunch and Riven is the most exciting. I would still recommend it I think.
March 20, 2014
A disappointing installment in one of my favorite worlds of swords and sorcery. A being of unimaginable power executes a plan of potentially catastrophic proportions. And the heroes get involved because... they were there? because they think with their swords more than their heads?
The consequence to the world is incidental, despite 700 pages of dire predictions.
A trilogy of interesting characters, all wasted.
The consequence to the world is incidental, despite 700 pages of dire predictions.
A trilogy of interesting characters, all wasted.
May 22, 2014
OK usually I don't comment on books, but this one really needed one. I thought over all it was a good book. Not a great book, though. I really like the main character. He doesn't really break bad on anyone. I mean at the begining of the book it drags its feet then it takes off pretty good. By the end Erevis is a very powerful person but doesn't really just flat out show us just how powerful he is.I also believe it was not wrote exceptionally well, but thats just my opinion.
September 23, 2014
There was a lot to like, here. I read the prequel books, which I also enjoyed, but this went in a different direction, which was quite interesting. It was quite a bit darker than most Forgotten Realms books, featuring a group of rogues that end up with divine patrons, and it goes to some pretty interesting places. I'm interested to see where the next trilogy goes.
July 2, 2012
I like the fact that the main character is finally more like a normal person and not some supreme moral god who can't do anything offensive. I find Erevis Cale much more relatable than characters like drizzt (except in the newest drizzt novels).
January 10, 2011
Good read, entertaining. Interesting characters and story.
March 30, 2011
Worth the reading, but won't read again.
September 30, 2014
Brilliant..Best forgotten realms series i have read and i have read a lot. Great characters,awesome setting,great villains and great flow to the story. Highly recommended.
May 18, 2015
Decent, as far as Forgotten Realms go.
December 2, 2016
Extremely gory but great characters, action and motivations.
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