Paths of Darkness
{{Short description|Novel series by R. A. Salvatore}}
{{italic title}}
{{Infobox book series
| name = Paths of Darkness
| books = {{plainlist|
}}
| title_orig =
| translator =
| image =
| image_caption =
| author = R. A. Salvatore
| country = United States
| language = English
| series =
| subject =
| genre = Epic fantasy
| publisher = {{plainlist|
}}
| pub_date = 1998 - 2001
| english_pub_date =
| media_type = Print
| number_of_books = 4
| pages =
| isbn =
| oclc =
| preceded by = Legacy of the Drow
| followed by = The Hunter's Blades Trilogy, The Sellswords
}}
Paths of Darkness is an epic fantasy series of novels chronicling adventures of the renegade drow elf character Drizzt Do'Urden written by R. A. Salvatore. It is the follow-up series to Legacy of the Drow and is followed up by The Hunter's Blades Trilogy, and also followed on from the Servant of the Shard in The Sellswords trilogy.
Todd Lockwood painted the covers for The Silent Blade and The Spine of the World.{{cite journal| last = Kenson| first = Stephen| authorlink = Steve Kenson| title = Profiles: Todd Lockwood| journal = Dragon| issue = #258| page = 96| publisher = Wizards of the Coast| location = Renton, Washington|date=April 1999}}
Works included
- The Silent Blade (1998)
- The Spine of the World (1999)
- Servant of the Shard (2000)*
- Sea of Swords (2001)
Literary significance and reception
The Silent Blade debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at No. 32.{{cite news
| url =https://www.nytimes.com/books/98/11/15/bsp/besthardfiction.html
| title = BEST SELLERS: November 15, 1998
| accessdate = 2008-05-16
| work = The New York Times
}}
The Spine of the World debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at No. 25.{{cite news
| url =https://www.nytimes.com/books/99/10/10/bsp/besthardfiction.html
| title = BEST SELLERS: October 10, 1999
| accessdate = 2008-05-16
| work = The New York Times
}}
Servant of the Shard debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at No. 25.{{cite news
| url =https://www.nytimes.com/books/00/12/03/bsp/besthardfiction.html
| title = BEST SELLERS: December 3, 2000
| accessdate = 2008-05-16
| work = The New York Times
}}
Sea of Swords debuted on the New York Times bestseller list at No. 14.{{cite news
| url =https://query.nytimes.com/gst/fullpage.html?res=9A01E6DE1F39F93BA25752C1A9679C8B63
| title = BEST SELLERS: November 18, 2001
| accessdate = 2008-05-16
| work = The New York Times
| date=November 18, 2001
}}
It was positively reviewed in Publishers Weekly, where it debuted at No. 10 on the hardcover bestsellers list.{{citation | url=http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4612208.html | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140629113235/http://www.highbeam.com/doc/1P2-4612208.html | url-status=dead | archive-date=June 29, 2014 | title=Inside the Best Sellers | work=Chicago Sun-Times | date=November 18, 2001 | accessdate=June 18, 2013}} The reviewers described the novel as a "fast–moving fantasy adventure", although they acknowledged that the book, as the last in a sequence of four, was not for the uninitiated.{{cite journal | last = Zaleski | first = Jeff |author2=Cannon, Peter | year = 2001 | title = Sea of Swords (Book) | journal = Publishers Weekly | volume = 248 | issue = 42 | pages = 52}}
Matt Drake of RPGnet gave the series a 4 (out of 5) for style, stating that "Salvatore's chrome is starting to tarnish in a few spots, but he is still a great fantasy novelist." He gave it a 3 (out of 5) for substance, stating "With the exception of Spine of the World, these stories are a little predictable and trite."{{cite web
| url =http://www.rpg.net/reviews/archive/12/12153.phtml
| title = REVIEW OF PATHS OF DARKNESS: May 3, 2006
| accessdate = 2008-05-16
| publisher = rpg.net
}}
References
{{reflist}}
External links
- {{isfdb series | id=Forgotten_Realms:_Paths_of_Darkness | title= Paths of Darkness}}
{{Salvatore}}
{{D&D topics}}
Category:Book series introduced in 1998
Category:Forgotten Realms novel series