This is book two in the Way of the Drow sub-series, and book 38 in the Legend of Drizzt series. I gave book one Starlight Enclave 5 stars as well.

I have loved the Drizzt series since high school, and this one is no different. My only critique would be that there were a few sub-plots in this book that felt somewhat recycled from some of the other books in the series. But after 38 books, maybe that is unavoidable?

I very much so enjoyed the secondary plotline of the battle in the original Drow city, which I feel like all of us who have been reading Drizzt throughout the years have been waiting for. I can't wait in the next book to find out if Drizzt goes back to help fight for his birthplace, and if the city is redeemed and the fight against Lolth will finally end.

This series is very formative for me, the characters and their stories are close to my heart. There have always been a lot of characters, but that's never bothered me, as it was the case that we're shown enough of them to make them feel familiar, at least to me.

Unfortunately, a recent trend that I've been noticing is that the characters are growing more distant. The writing has changed to become more like watching the events as a distant viewer rather than being in the midst of them. When we first got to see Callidae, some of that distance was remedied, but with the return to familiar old locales like Menzoberranzan in Glacier's Edge, the distance returns. It feels like there's less heart, less interest on the author's part in revisiting these old locales, even as fresh new events are unfolding. There's a similar sense to familiar old characters, who are no less beloved by me, but a lot of their actions and developments feel shallow, rushed, or disinterested.

This was one of my favorite books written by Salvatore, which says a lot. The Drizzt series was phenomenal.
It made you think about whether or not there was a line that you wouldn’t cross for those people in your life that you loved.

This story is simply amazing. Even though it is the second installment of a trilogy, it is not just a filler book. Book one left us on an epic cliffhanger and book two doesn't resolve that until at least a third of the way through, but that is perfectly fine. The first part of the story is building up to the inevitable civil war in Menzoberranzan. The more I see of Yvonnel the more I love the character.
The rest of the story catches up with Drizzt's struggle to find balance between his hunter/warrior instincts and his monk training after his transcendence and the mission to the polar north to discover the fates of Cattie-Brie, Zaknafein and Entreri. There is plenty of action and adventure with our new Aevendrow and Blaspheme friends and old familiar companions. It is really hard to talk about this story without giving away too much but I will say there is some very impressive doo-dad magic. Oo-oi! Hehehe.

Thank you to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for the opportunity to enjoy this e-ARC. (which I pre-ordered before I was half way through reading)

With 40 something books in the Drittz series I can't even tell you who the characters are in this book without spoiling something. Assuming you're caught up: This story has multiple prospectives following multiple groups of people across Faerun. A unknown drow is teleported to Catti-Brie's rooms in the Hosttower but refuses to speak about any of the companions, Drizzt is with the grandmaster of flowers trying to learn to combine his monk and ranger fighting techniques, and the Drow in Menzoberranzan are preparing for a civil war as many houses have turned against the worship of Loth.

I dont usually like the 2nd book in a trilogy more than the first but in this case I do. There is less of Drizzt's inner feelings and more actions and political intrigue. The drow story is setting up mostly for the end of the series and possibly another redemption arc within Drizzt's family. I'm very interested to see where the story in Callidae is going and how the city will be saved. Pikel is still one of my favorite character's from as far back as the Cleric Quintet and I'd recommend this book on his appearance alone.

Book one in the Way of the Drow trilogy ended with some of our heroes in deep trouble. I was worried that that plot wouldn't be resolved in this second book but it is if that is holding you back from reading this until the 3rd book comes out.

Overall I highly recommend this and all of the Drizzt books.

ARC from Netgalley.
Coming off of one of the most epic cliffhangers this long series has had, Glacier's Edge jumps right in with Jarlaxle, stuck at the bottom of his portable hole, wondering how long he'll have to wait to be able to get out. The threat is still very real and the cold is creeping in...
At the Monastery of the Yellow Rose, Drizzt (with daughter Brie-Zara in tow) continues his monk training with Grandmaster Kane, only with an added level. Drizzt needs to learn to control "The Hunter", the pure instinct fighter, grown out of necessity in times where Drizzt needs speed and rage. However now, he must merge his monk training with "The Hunter"... becoming unstoppable...
Menzoberranzan, city of Lolth-worshipping Drow, is under stress and chaos. With the Blaspheme army of driders converted back to drow recently, Lolth's hold on the city is cracking. House Baenre has chosen to go against the horrible Spider Queen and some houses have sided with her, while some have not. Will the drow learn to live without the influence of chaos?
Callidae, the polar ice buried city of the aevendrow, lives in relative peace. But invading creatures threaten their borders... perhaps the Companions of the Hall can help them AFTER saving their frozen friends?

Salvatore has another masterpiece here. Can't wait to meet the Lorendrow in the third book of this trilogy, but I really love how the author has yet again set a new status quo for fantasy and it's ever evolving landscape.

High recommend.

Thank you to Netgalley and the good folks at Harper Voyager for an advance e copy of the book in exchange for a fair and honest review. R. A. Salvatore continues to wow in the second installment of his latest series. The book begins and ends with tremendous action sequences, for which fans of Salvatore will be both familiar and excited. I say this to make sure that readers know there is a tremendous payoff to the setup that occupies the interior of the book. This part I also loved, because it deals with psychological growth as a theme. The author accomplishes this in multiple ways, which I will elucidate in a way that minimized spoiling: there is a character struggling with a magic induced mental block, there are characters struggling against their inner instincts in favor of a better outcome, and there is a character achieving growth, even after 30 years of character development, by continuing to master and balance emotions. This drive towards character growth keeps this world fresh for me. Salvatore in various series has redeemed races, like the orcs, showing how they can evolve, From inception, he has been interested in characters like Drizzt that buck the trends of their race, and that study continues here too. The redemption of Entreri is a huge example of this as well. I realize these books are meant mainly for escapism and entertainment, and they definitely accomplish that, but there is always a meditation on what it means to be good, or to be an individual...and often a combination of this. So this book will be great for a casual fan of the genre, or someone dipping their toe in after catching a D & D bug from watching Stranger Things, though I'd recommend starting with at least the first book in this series. But more than that, people who may think they are jaded about the genre or the author can rest assured that even though there are a lot of familiar characters, they are constantly growing, and that change can catalyze interest on a higher level. It will amaze you how much philosophy gets mixed in with the story, while not ever getting preachy or messing with the plot. Pick up this book!

This book was really, really good. More to the point, it was really satisfying.

As a middle book, especially one that ended on a cliffhanger, it had a delicate needle to thread in resolving enough of the outstanding issues of the first book that it wouldn't feel like it hadn't 'done' anything, while leaving enough issues open (or opening enough new issues) that it would still feel like you had to wait for the next book to truly resolve things. And it did this admirably well. The major issues outstanding in the cliffhanger were all satisfactorily and cleanly resolved, with an exciting climax and enough time given to the aftermath to really pay it off. The largest issue of the trilogy (which is, the war brewing in Menzoberranzan to try to change society entirely vs the old guard who think that things must remain as terrible as they are) was pushed along until it was clear there needed to be a breaking point. And Dinin, poor Dinin, is left as our newly raised issue that needs to be resolved next book -- along with several issues about the REAL threats to Callidae.

In addition, I really liked the way Menzoberranzan and Callidae are being not just reflected as foils but paralleled. Not in how they're behaving, but in their isolation, and what the dangers and hopes would be from opening themselves up to the world. Menzoberranzan is a broken city BECAUSE it has been taunt to fear the outside world as a threat, after all.

Finally, the emotional core of this book was really well done. I was surprised at how much there was a parallel between Drizzt and Catti-Brie, Azzudonna and Zak, and Jarlaxle and Kimmuriel in terms of the grief and fear and need to be reunited, and the way that played out. It was just really solid, really emotional, really moving, and it served really well to pull things together.

Because, basically, we're seeing how the story of Menzoberranzan is a story of families (as it ought to be, given the whole ruling system of 'houses'). This book takes the time to really talk about how the parent-child bonds are destroyed in the current society, with 'Mother-daughter-granddaughter' being used only as a way to establish a leading matrilineal line, rather than any affection. But it's about how these hurt children and parents want to reclaim this, how they give up on love because they don't think they'll be allowed to have it, but how they can choose to rebuild this when they both want and choose to, and reflected back with Zak, with Drizzt and Catti-Brie, with their baby Brie. <spoiler>With Doumwielle too, who is being offered what she deserves, finally.</spoiler>. I'm excited and interested to see how these thematic parallels will all pay off in the third book, and I have my theory as to an element I suspect will be brought back in... but we will see if I'm right.

As you can see, this book excited me. It was fun to read, and it genuinely has got me theorizing and examining themes and engaging with it. I can't wait for the finale!

Glacier's Edge is another awesome installment in the Legend of Drizzt series. This is 2nd in the Way of the Drow trilogy, and continues the split narratives between Jarlaxle and his group in the wilds of glacial tundra, those still at the Hosttower and the Harpell household, and Drizzt who is visiting Grandmaster Kane. Oh yes, and the drow in Menzoberranzan.

Usually, I have one person or group whose story I prefer to follow. Here, I was equally invested in all of them. Of course, it doesn't hurt that each group had favourite people in it. Drizzt for one. Jarlaxle and Entreri. Gromph. Quenthel.

The story, and its greater implications for the drow themselves, drew me along, calling to the cultural anthropologist in me. I'd love the chance to immerse myself in Callidae and its culture. For the most part, the drow have been portrayed as 'evil', and *no* culture is purely good or evil. Not the least because those are moral concepts. 'There is nothing that is good nor bad but that thinking makes it so.' I'm so glad we are seeing more and more drow not under Lolth's influence.

And clearly I need to catch back up with the series!! When my lucky black cat Drizzt passed, I stopped reading for a time. I missed 6 books, and just jumped right back in without reading the missing ones. I missed the start of Gromph and Jarlaxle's new circumstances.

I loved getting to see old friends again too. One was a big surprise that tickled me. Now that the secret of Callidae is known by more than Jarlaxle's group, it opens up so many more possibilities. I don't know the logistics of establishing trade connections with Bregan D'aerthe, but I can see that happening.

Highly recommended for any D&D or Legend of Drizzt fans, or if you just want fun fantasy.

*******Many thanks to Netgalley and Harper Voyager for providing an egalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Another excellent Drizzt book from R.A. Salvatore. This entire series is such an awesome entry point for new fantasy readers looking to get into the genre. I can't wait for the next one as I consume every one of these books like the fabulous popcorn reads that they are. This is no different with Salvatore's trademark excellent battle depictions and fun character dialogue. Loved it!