The Pirate King (Forgotten Realms: Transitions, Book 2)

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Editorial Reviews:

Product Description
Drizzt returns to Luskan, and the Realms will never be the same!

The Arcane Brotherhood has long held the city of Luskan in their power, but when corruption eats away at their ranks, Captain Deudermont comes to the rescue of a city that has become a safe haven for the Sword Coast's most dangerous pirates. But rescuing a city from itself may not be as easy as Deudermont thinks, and when Drizzt can't talk him out of it, he'll be forced to help.

Drizzt is back in action again, and bringing more changes to the Forgotten Realms setting. This all new hardcover adventure will keep Drizzt fans guessing the whole way, with edge-of-your-seat action and plot twists that even the most casual reader of the Forgotten Realms novel line can't afford to miss!

Customer Reviews: Read 11 more reviews...

4 out of 5 stars

Transitions, aptly named October 15, 2008
21 out of 21 found this review helpful

The Pirate King by R.A. Salvatore is the second book in the Transitions Trilogy set in the Forgotten Realms. The first book in the trilogy is titled The Orc King: Transitions, Book I (Transitions) with the third book being titled The Ghost King (scheduled for release in October, 2009). 2008 marks the 20th Anniversary of the iconic character, Drizzt Do'Urden, on top of that the title of the latest trilogy - Transitions - is just that. A transition from the current rule set of the Forgotten Realms to the new 4th Edition. There are many differences in the new 4th Edition, some positive and some I will wait to make a definite opinion on. As an aside, if you have not read The Stowaway: Stone of Tymora, Book I (Stone of Tymora) by R.A. and Geno Salvatore you may want to do so before reading this book. One of the characters from that book plays a prominent role in this novel. This trilogy appears to be a way to get Drizzt to the `new' Realms and tell how he came to where he is. Here are my thoughts on the novel.

The plot of this book is, for all intended purposes, dived up into three distinct sections. The first focusing on Captain Deudermont and a mission he agrees to be apart of. This mission is unlike anything he has ever done before and will certainly tax him to his limits. As always, he surrounds himself with powerful friends, but there are equally as powerful (if not more powerful) enemies as well. The second section of the novel focuses on a journey Drizzt undertakes to finally, after four years, find out the fate of one of his dear friends. The third section focuses on the consequences of the choices that Captain Deudermont made previously and how that affects not only him but the city of Luskan as well. This book is a little different from past Drizzt novels, in that it focuses on other characters than just the Companions of the Hall. Also, the reader is able to get a really good sense of the conditions of Luskan. I really feel that Mr. Salvatore really shined in this book in his ability to allow the reader to see Luskan. Drizzt is not as introspective in this book as in previous books, but that does not diminish the plot in anyway. It is a gritty novel with much suffering and death. The overall feel of the book is one that I would anticipate fourth edition novels to be like.

Many of the characters in this novel and old hat for many readers. Characters such as Drizzt, Regis, Deudermont, and Robillard. However, there is the addition of several new characters as well such as; the five Luskan captains, the Crow, and Arklem Greeth to name a few. While there are certainly a lot of characters in this book, it never feels like there are too many. Each characters seems to serve a purpose, and none are written in merely as fluff. One thing I lightly complained about in The Orc King was that there is only so much that can be written about certain characters before they become stagnant. I would be remiss if I did not say that the characterization in this novel is very well done. We get to see new sides of several characters. Some characters make choices that I would not have guessed they would have made, but the circumstances they are under force those decisions. The character development is also some of the best of the recent novels as well. I would love to say more about it, but I do not want to spoil anything for anyone. I will say that I was able to connect with each and every character and rarely can I say that about any novel.

A couple minor criticisms about this novel:

1 - It seems pretty evident, that Mr. Salvatore is being forced to do some things with the story that he otherwise would not have done. This appears to be coming from the push to the 4th edition and making everything congruent. While I think Mr. Salvatore did the best he could, it does, at times, create moments of the story feeling forced.

2 - The, for lack of a better way to describe it, middle `section' of the book didn't seem to flow with the rest of the story. It seemed really out of context and almost as though it was a short story put into the middle of a novel. With how the rest of the novel felt, and flowed, the middle just seemed out of place.

Some things I liked about this novel:

1 - The overall grittiness of the novel. It felt much like some of Mr. Salvatore's Demon Wars work. It didn't have that happy-go-lucky, everything will be okay in the end, type feel. I rather enjoyed not knowing until the end how each character would fare.

2 - As I mentioned above, the characterization and character development was really done well. None of the characters followed the traditional lines that we would expect them to follow. When characters begin to make decisions that are unexpected, it creates a sense of newness and makes you want to keep reading. That is how I felt with this novel.

Overall I enjoyed this novel quite a bit. The middle section seemed to bog down a little bit, but once everything worked itself out and the story was back in Luskan it really picked up and flowed smoothly. The ending leaves me clamoring for the next book to see how things play out. Fans of Salvatore and the Forgotten Realms will certainly want to pick this book up and see the changes that are happening. Some of those changes surprised me quite a bit, so I can really only guess what will happen in the next book. Transitions is an apt title to call this trilogy, I can not think of a more appropriate word. This is a book that I whole-heartedly recommend to those who are this far along in the series. Only time will tell what is in store for Drizzt and the Forgotten Realms.

4 out of 5 stars

Just Good, not Great October 8, 2008
3 out of 6 found this review helpful

I thoroughly enjoyed the Pirate King. Great intrigue, fight scene descriptions and dialogue (The world's gone Gutbuster ! :) There definitely is a twist at the end, although I am still deciding if I agree with it. The ruminations of Drizzt were right on point. I also like the fact that I don't have to wait another year to finish this story. One book told it all. Why is this even a trilogy?
The only criticism I have with this book was the final battle of Drizzt and his foe. Salvatore lazily repeats an outcome he used in a previous book (even with the some of the same characters). You are better than that R.A.

5 out of 5 stars

Battles + Pirates + Intrigue = Heroes in Peril October 14, 2008
2 out of 4 found this review helpful

Overall, this is better than The Orc King, and this book is among my favorite Drizzt books.

Four years have passed since The Orc King, and the uneasy treaty has held. The real action starts when Drizzt and Regis leave Mithril Hall to check up on Wulfgar in Icewind Dale.

In the meantime, Deudermont mounts a "pirate cleansing" campaign. But he doesn't know how complex the alliances run, or who he is really up against.

The action starts quick and runs through most of the book. The cool thing is that Salvatore is mastering weaving intrigue with his battles, giving them much more of a deeper meaning and making the plot that much more dark and interesting. The flavor of The Pirate King is similar to Book one of the Hunter's Blades Trilogy.

Of course there are moral questions posed, another thing Salvatore is mastering, making each book better than the last. Here, Deudermont and Drizzt are wrestling with unintended consequences and how far to go in the name of right.

If you liked the Hunter's Blades Trilogy, you'll love this book. Salvatore did a great job weaving intrigue and action while foreshadowing plot twists. In addition, the heroes are in quite a lot of peril, and find themselves in difficult predicaments...

An awesome book. Looking forward to the third installment, even though the first two of this "trilogy" have seemed more or less standalone books, with a running background storyline/environment (which I'm fine with).

Pick this up. You'll enjoy it.

2 out of 5 stars

Thank goodness for the library November 3, 2008
2 out of 4 found this review helpful

This review will have spoilers, so don't read further if you don't want to have anything revealed.

*********************** Possible Spoilers Below **************************

First, this book finally helped me pinpoint why most of the books following the Icewind Dale and Dark Elf trilogies have been disappointing. The reason is I believe that Drizzt does not make for a good MAIN character (with the exception of the Dark Elf trilogy). The reason being is he has nowhere to grow. He is already a weapons master and his precious principles are already set in stone (quite frankly, he is getting quite self-rightous). In the first trilogy, he is great as a mentor of Wulfgar, with the skill to teach the barbarian to fight, the wisdom to show him a better way, and enough wildness to lead him into trouble.

Second, why is the message suddenly: "Tolerate evil if it is too costly to confront it"? In the last book, we have Drizzt convincing Breunor that they should let Obould have his kingdom, not because the two forces have fought each other to a standstill, but because "maybe he is different, and is looking for something better for the orcs". Yeah, a kingdom built on slaughter, but hey, that was last year.
Now, when his friend Deudermont decides to take on the corrupt power in Luskan that is aiding the pirates he fights, the message is, "it's going ot be a hard fight - maybe we should just leave the EVIL MURDERING LICHE in charge."
The whole book (all of Transitions actually) seems to be about tolerating evil. First, we question the decision to remove an evil liche from power that readly resorts to murder.
Next, once the liche is removed, we see tolerance of the pirate captains. These four captains are committing murder, inciting riots, and none of the "good guys" feel the need to stand up against them.
The Crow then kills his friend and Drizzt just walks away. The same Drizzt that took out Pasha Pook for hunting Reagis. (Don't you think that would cause a similar amount of strife in Calimport as would be caused in Luskan should these captains be "removed"?) The same Drizzt that journeyed back to the Underdark to take on the Drow that attacked Breunor's kingdom. This same "hero" just walks away now? Evil wins? (I just can't wait to see what vile villain gets to win the day in "The Ghost King".)
But at least Drizzt does show at least some moral outrage.
Is it at the liche that unleashes hordes of undead upon the city? Not really, though he at least gets angry after Reagis is hurt.
Is it at the pirate captains' murder and mayhem? Not really.
Then what is it at? His moral outrage is directed towards the Harpels for turning a man who murdered a family by burning them in their house into a rabit (though they admitted Breunor would have had the man executed for the same crime)!?!?

At least Cattie-Brea was not in this one, or at least only breifly. I have not liked her character since Legacy, when she made the dramatic shift from being in love with Wulfgar to showing nothing but resentment for him. (Her relationship with Drizzt always seemed forced to me, as if Salvatore believed that since the focus was to shift from Wulgar to Drizzt, Cattie-Brie should as well.)

That, and the skill in writing give this two stars instead of one. Given that evil wins out in the end, and the "heroes" just shrug it off, forbits me from rating it higher.

5 out of 5 stars

Set a Course for High Adventure! October 13, 2008
1 out of 3 found this review helpful

The Pirate King is easily one of my favorite Drizzt novels. The plot was well paced, the dialogue was smooth, and R.A. Salvatore takes his signature fight scenes to new intensive heights! I'm not going to disclose any spoilers to anyone who hasn't read the book. But what I will say is that the twist at the Pirate King's denouement will leave loyal Forgotten Realms readers hungering for the trilogy's next-and final-installment.

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