Hero by R.A. Salvatore

Genre: Fantasy

Series: Homecoming #3 | Legend of Drizzt #30

Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (October 25, 2016)

Author Information: Website | Twitter

Length: 384 pages

My Rating: 4 out of 5 stars.

So it ends. Thirty books, lots of derring-do, a few hundred swords fights, a plethora of vile drow machinations, and what could be Drizzt Do’Urden final story concludes in a satisfactory way, one which will leave long time fans smiling but with tears in their eyes. R.A. Salvatore Homecoming trilogy bringing this legendary character to a comfortable resting place; his friends (Companions old and new) gathered round as they raise their mugs in tribute to him. All of it reinforcing that Drizzt Do’Urden is one of the legendary fantasy characters out there and that R.A. Salvatore knows exactly how to write him.

Peace has finally come to the Underdark. At least, a form of it. The demonic hordes having been thrown back by Drizzt Do’Urden, working in conjunction with the reborn Yvonne the Eternal; their bitter alliance granting Drizzt the power to defeat Demogorgon and gain he and his imprisoned companions freedom from Menzoberranzan, the City of Spiders. Naturally, the drow fall back into their house-on-house infighting immediately afterwards, yet that is merely the drow way.

Besides his life and a small hope he might have inspired some change in his homeland, Drizzt leaves Menzoberranzan will one other thing: A belief that his whole life is an illusion. Everything which has happened since he supposedly escaped his homeland years ago (Basically the whole Legend of Drizzt series for those calculating that statement.) nothing more than a huge lie, an epic web of deceit spun around him by the goddess Lolth. Every memory, every friend, every tender moment, every second of bravery or hope in his remembered life merely a tool being sharpened to cut out his heart whenever the goddess of the drow wishes to crush his soul. This causing him to view his beloved Catti-Brie as a demon, his friend Bruenor an illusion, his very life a miserable joke to be disbelieved and destroyed!

Catti-Brie, Bruenor, Jarlaxle, Artemis Entreri, and all the rest immediately work on restoring their beloved drow to his old self. None of it works. The strongest magic no match for this disease of the mind. Nothing able to restore to Drizzt his belief in the world around him. A violent stranger having replaced the noble, heroic person the Companions of the Hall fought beside, died for and even been reborn to aid.

What is left to do? Ultimately, Drizzt’s beloved and his closest friends do the only thing left to them: They send him away. His fate to reside in the Monastery of the Yellow Rose, where they pray either Afafrenfere’s sect can cure him, or he can live out the remainder of his life shut away from the world he now despises.

Meanwhile, Regis a.k.a. Spider Parrafin and Wulfgar are making their way eastward toward Delthuntle, Aglarond and Regis’ long dreamt reunion with his beloved Donnola Topolino. The pair enjoying their adventures as they meet old companions along the way, brave violent seas, face off with pirates, and eventually wash up on Donnola Topolino’s doorstep, where Regis finds he fears his one true love might have already forgotten him.

Inevitably, both these tales lead toward one another. Wulfgar and Regis finding themselves reunited with a friend unlooked for, and all of it concluding in an epic ceremony in Gauntlgrym, where lose, love, family, and acceptance are central themes.

There are probably lots of things I could point to as positives and negatives of this 30th installment of the Drizzt Saga. That is usually what I do at this point in my reviews. But I’m not going to do with Hero. Honestly, you either love this series or you don’t by this point. Nothing I write is going to keep a longtime reader from picking this novel up, and haters . . . well, they gonna hate. So I’ve decided to merely write down my feelings as I closed my e-reader.

I was sad. My eyes did tear up a little.

I was also happy. A smile of contentment crossed my face.

I felt a deep satisfaction that I had been there when all this started with The Crystal Shard and that I was here when it ended.

And, finally, I was angry and really pissed when an old character shows up in the doorway and . . . Salvatore shuts the damn door in my face. REALLY? You had to end the damn story that way? OMG that was cold.

Then, after I stopped cursing Salvatore for the above, I was thankful. Happy that R.A. Salvatore first picked up a pen and dreamed up Drizzt Do’Urden years ago. Nope, he might not be the most original fantasy protagonist ever, but this famous drow has stood the test of time, entertaining so many fantasy fans, new and old. And for that alone, the author deserves a huge THANK YOU.

In conclusion, if you are a fan of The Legend of Drizzt, you must read Hero.  If for no other reason, do it to bid farewell to these heroes as they reach the end of their journey.  And when you do, I have a sneaky suspicion that as you see the mist part before them  you will experience the same feelings of joy and pain as I did.

I received an advanced reading copy of this book from the publisher in exchange for a fair and honest review. I’d like to thank them for allowing me to receive this review copy and inform everyone that the review you have read is my opinion alone.

Purchase the book at Amazon.