The Dark Elf Trilogy: Homeland, Exile, Sojourn (Forgotten Realms)

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Summary: A fitting end to the dark elf trilogy
Review: The dark elf trilogy was definintely the best trilogy that I have ever read. As is the dark elf series itself. In Sojourn Drizzt is beginning to learn of Toril's harsh surface, so very different from the world from which he has come. There are many obstacles that Drizzt must overcome in this book, one of them including the sun itself. Although this book may seem to lack a plot and excitement, it was the best way that a book in this position could be written. I would reccomend this book to any Drizzt fan.

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Summary: One of Salvatore's Greatest works
Review: There could not be a better way to end the Dark Elf Trilogy than with this book. After I read it, I HAD to read the entire series (10+ books) and since have read every book he has written. My only regret is that I don't own this one and can't find it anywhere.
If anyone wants to sell...

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Summary: WARNING AFTER READING THIS BOOK YOU WILL BE HOOKED!
Review: This is one of the best books I have ever read. And I have read hundreds and hundreds. Salvatore writes incredible battle scenes, and creates characters you love and characters you thoroughly hate. This was the first of his books I read and afterwards I had to read the entire series(10 books so far with another by different author soon). Must read for fantasy or AD&D fan

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Summary: THE BEST I'm hooked
Review: Salvatore takes us on a wonderful journey of Faeruns Surface. As we follow Drizzt on a timeless trip, we see the racism and hatred against the evil drow race. I found this book in small book table at my church I was just getting into playing AD&D, and the book looked interesting enough, so I bought it. Now, I've read all of Salvatore's books about Drizzt! Like I said, I'm hooked

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Summary: Singly one of the best books I have read!
Review: R.A. Salvatore weaves one of the most fantastic stories I have ever read! He takes us into a dark elf's world and shows us the trials the dark elf goes through, just to be accepted by the world. The dark elf, Drizzt, is noble and but, grossly misunderstood by the surface world. The friends Drizzt makes are for a life-time. With the heart of a ranger and the strength of a lion, Drizzt leaves his past behind and lives for the future. I'd recommend this book to anyone who loves to read a well-written book.

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Summary: Suffers from poor writing and dull characters
Review: Sojourn is the conclusion of the Dark Elf Trilogy which began with Homeland, continued in Exile and ends here. If you've not read the first two books then I suggest you do so now because the third book is a direct continuation of the other books and you'll be missing out quite a lot by starting here.

Exile was a notch below Homeland. It suffered from poor characters and a very predictable storyline and Sojourn isn't much different. None of the characters from the first two books remain(besides Drizzt of course) so the reader has to deal with a whole new cast. For the most part, these new characters are very one dimensional and similar to the characters in Exile in that there's no attachment to the characters. They're just stage props that Drizzt interacts with before moving on to yet another part of his journey. Characters leave or die out of the blue and they're not very fleshed out. The only decent character Montolio receives almost no development besides a page or two about his past. The author could have spent more time on the characters instead of writing overly long, 10 page battles that go nowhere.

The action returns here in quantity as in the books before. Again, it feels that more of the book is spent in fights than anything else and the battles themselves are completely too long and are littered with many unnecessary descriptions.

The writing too is the worst yet. There are many sentences that just don't read well at all and show a very amateur style. The book itself is very simplisticly written so it will appeal to the younger crowd but if you're looking for some deep, well written fantasy then look elsewhere.

The poor writing, weak and boring characters, and overly long battles are the main downfalls of the book. The world still remains rather interesting with interesting creatures and a lush, although not fully developed world. The story is rather weak too as it just continues on the course exile took. The story is uninspired and nothing much really happens throughout; Drizzt just moves from one place to another with a few small stops and adventures. It's probably the worst part of the Dark Elf Trilogy although the ending does introduce some new characters that may bode well for the Icewind Dale trilogy.

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Summary: Fun, but shallow.
Review: As a trilogy, it was fun, light and fast reading. Salvatore's best side, perhaps because of his expirience in script writing, are the battle descriptions. They are indeed very much alive and very detailed. However, this series is nothing more than a nice action film. The characters are shallow, the plot is naive and unoriginal, the attempts to give some meaning or philosophical thought, or to make the reader somehow identify with the characters are weak and get lost because of the shallowness of the plot and characters. The literary tricks and metaphors are odd and clear. Overall, Salvatore cannot make his book be more than a DnD based book. His writing is not good enough to make the books have a literary value of their own.

However, Salvatore did create one of the coolest characters in Fantasy history, one that will be written in the annales of Fantasy next to Gandalf, Bilbo and Frodo and Raistlin Majere. Even though Drizzt is not the deepest character around, it doesn't matter. Like any good action hero, his life are merely a background, just because you can't have a character that comes out of nowhere. What's important about him is what he can do with his hands. For that, and only for that, Drizzt is worth your money and time.

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Summary: Awesome, but had a few flaws
Review: read this book. Obsessed with Drizz't? You will find him here. Love vivid action in your books? You will find it here. Tired of lazy, vapid descriptions? You will not find that here. Sick of no sense of place and situation? You will be happy to know, you will not find that here.
Drizz't's story rolls along as he journeys with Guenwhyvar through his life and decisions. His scimitars carve out the way, along with his strong ideals. Excellent prose invites the reader to join this popular hero on his quest for himself.

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Summary: Wonderful ending to the Trilogy, and open to the sequels
Review: This book was an wonderful ending to the Dark Elf Trilogy. It moves into the conflicts Drizzt encounters with the people, the elements, and even himself. Salvator leads the reader into the very depths of Drizzt's soul, as he questions his decision to leave his homeland and how different the surface world truly is. The story follows his thoughts and has so many twists and turns to keep the reader guessing. The only dissapointment I found in the book was I wondered what was to become of the remainder Drizzt's family in Menzoberranzan. Besides that, this has been yet another excellent book from Mr. Salvator.

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Summary: All I can say is WOW!
Review: I started this series a couple of years back when I picked up Homeland, book one of the series in paperback. At that point I became a Salvatore and Drizzt fan. I've read all the books up to 1000 Orcs and I can tell you this, I can't put one of his books down. They are indeed very good. Meeting the man in person was a special bonus. He is very kind and likes to put names to faces. I talked with him on and off on his message board at rasalvatore.com and when I met him and told him my handle on the board he immediately knew me. I would recommend this book and series to anyone reading fantasy or anyone wanting to start reading fantasy. You'll get hooked. I did.