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Summary: Richard Lee Byers
Review: Richard Lee Byers picks up where R.A Salvatore left off and has possibly improved the world of the dark elves. Menzoberranzan is the subterranean city of the dark elf and a place where you can find death at any turn. The main character and his sword master sidekick are very well defined. Even though nobody in this tale is actually a nice person, you find yourself being on Phauron's side and wanting to see this rogue come out on top, which, at least some of the time, he does. He has a personality that I've been told is uncharacteristic of most Drow in that he has a wit and humor not usually associated with them. Overall I say Dissolution is a very good read. I can't wait to read the next bookRecommended: Anything by Robert Jordan and The Price of Immortality by C.M. Whitlock (an Awesome book)
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Summary: Good read, but not Salvatore
Review: Richard Lee Byers wields his vocabulary like a Vorpal Sword. He is a bit wordy but a good writer. However, if he wrote the entire series I probably would stop reading after this book. My First question is who edited this book? No offence, but are there monkeys editing books now! In Dissolution there were sentences with extra words and I even found a period that was missing between two sentences. Hope the next book has a human editor. I usually don't catch many mistakes but I found numerous mistakes in this book. I have a couple issues with the happenings in the book, as well as some things the dark elves say. One such instance is when Phauron calls something "silly." Even as eccentric as Phauron is, he is still a dark elf and, in my opinion, would not use the word 'silly' in the manner it was used. I will not discuss any other issues I had because they would be spoilers. Despite what I perceive to be shortcomings, the plot is very good and the book itself is very interesting. The Dark Elves did act like the Dark Elves Mr. Salvatore created in his Forgotten Realms books. So overall I say Dissolution is a very good read, but remember have a dictionary handy. I can't wait to read the next book.
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Summary: Beware...
Review: So, I really didn't like this book. The only character with any integrity was the sword master. All the other characters were 100% predictable in their actions. I didn't care one bit for anyone they could have all died and well...actually... I probably would have liked the book better if they did. If you are the type of reader who wants to become friends with the characters in the books that you read, this is not the book for you.
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Summary: Possibly only for fans of the Drow!
Review: SUMMARY OF MY REVIEW: If you're a fan of the drow, definitely check this book out but don't have TOO high of expectations. If you're a fan of fight scenes and gore, then you might also be interested in this too.
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In the beginning, Salvatore created the wonderful world of the Menzoberannzan Drow/Dark Elves (Dark Elf Trilogy & Legacy of the Drow). In these books, a majority of the drow characters appeared one-dimensional and personality-less. All they cared about was raising their station in life and vengance. Then Elaine Cunningham, in the _Daughter of the Drow_ books, introduced more of their society and showed that drow have lives much like any other surface race, with their markets, games, agriculture, and even dances. Richard Lee Byers further exploited the drow in _Dissolution_ as did Elaine Cunningham. Not only were the main characters Pharaun and Ryld best friends (friendship is VERY unlike the drow), but he gave them way too much personality as well. I liked the drow better when they were dull, to-the-point and lacked any personal traits, as in Salvatore's books. It made them seem more ruthless killers, made them all the more evil. So even though I, a hardcore drow fan, was a bit disappointed with this book, I'm sure I enjoyed it much more than any fantasy reader who isn't particularly fond of the drow and/or their city Menzoberannzan. If this will be your first time reading about the drow, then don't read this book first! Read _Homeland_ by R. A. Salvatore. Oh! There are also a ton of fight scenes in the book. Whether you like reading melee fights or magic fights, this book has got plenty of them. READ SUMMARY ABOVE...
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Summary: This is going to be one of the best fantasy series ever!
Review: That's right... This will sit at the ruling table of all fantasy series. It IS that good. You cannot imagine how good the story itself is without reading it. The characters suck you in and each time we switch to follow the next viewpoint, we almost instantly start pulling for that character to come out on top. The hardest part about reading the story is trying to predict who to root for so we can be on the winning side! There is absolutly NO shortage of suprises either. Don't think for one minute while you're reading it that you've got everything figured out. FOR ALL YOU DROW LOVERS: After this series is over, you may never want to read another book about the drow again; it would be hard to surpass the WAR of the Spider Queen.
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Summary: Interesting look at fascinating society
Review: The great Drow (dark elf) city of Menzoberranzan is in danger. The spider god of the Drow has withdrawn her favor and all of the magics that depend on her are now at risk. While the great noble houses continue to tear at one another in typical dark elf fashion, secret forces may be pushing for even greater changes to the status quo. Magic instructor Pharaun is sent to investigate the mysterious way that many of the male Drow (because of their inability to commune with the spider goddess, males are non-dominant in this culture) have vanished. Together with his 'friend' weapon master Ryld Argith, Pharaun probes the slums of Menzoberrazan--slums where excaped slaves, embittered enemies of the Drow, and adventurers coexist in uneasy proximity. Making matters wrose, Pharaun is the target of a family feud--staying alive long enough to investigate, let alone solve, the mystery, may be difficult. Although author Richard Lee Byers clearly prefers the sections of the novel relating to the adventures of Pharaun and Ryld Argith, long scenes deal with other characters and other conflicts in this complex society. Some of this felt like it was setting the stage for the series that DISSOLUTION kicks off rather than being a necessary part of the novel itself. Dark elves are a fascinating subject for an author to explore. Like humans, their motivations are driven by self-interest. Like humans, dark elves often find themselves compelled to cooperate for the common good--lest all of them suffer. Unlike humans, however, dark elves refuse to disguise their self-interest and also refuse to put in place the social institutions that humans use to control our destructive behavior. Author Richard Lee Byers does a fine job exploring the nature of the Drow, the religion that justifies their behavior, and the way that their self-interest can often lead to a strangely 'good' result. I would have liked to see more of this ultimate expression of Adam Smith's discovery that individuals working in their self-interest can somehow generate a result that drives a general good. Instead, Byers's Drow economy is difficult to believe. Could a weapon crafter really afford to slaughter slaves casually to demonstrate the sharpness of his blade? Surely the costs of capturing, feeding, and caring for a slave would make this casual destruction uneconomic--and therefore against the Drow self-interest. I'm still waiting for the novel that truly and consistently extends this concept of Drow self-interest to its logical extreme. DISSOLUTION definitely takes steps in this direction and it's worth reading--but it doesn't quite deliver on the promise.
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Summary: matt j project
Review: the main character and his swordmaster side kick are very well put together.NO one in this tale is really nice to one another many attempted murders,I was in favor for Phauron's side wanting to see what this rogue come out on top out of every one, at lest some of the time he does.He has kind of an odd personality that is best discribed as uncharacteristic of the most of the dark elves( drow ) he is definitly the anti-hero of the incredeble book.
The world is well described a bit to well....( the rubbing of the chin)none of the less exiciting. It made me think of what else could have happened in the other books.It is a fun book and i did not like this crap of a book.
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Summary: Please leave the Underdark to Salvatore
Review: This author butchered the fantastic world of the Underdark laid out by R.A. Salvatore in the Dark Elf Trilogy, etc. The writing was not smooth and distracted from the story at many times in the book, not that the story was written all that well anyway. I did finish the book and will hopefully be happier with the next in the series, but I won't ever read anything written by Richard Lee Byers again.
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Summary: Impressed !!!
Review: This book maintained all of the flavor of Salvatore's novels in the underdark...I felt it was worth every penny!!
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Summary: Dark and beautiful
Review: This book was exilent in the series of Drow stories. Although R.A. Salvatore was not the author or this book Richard Lee Byers did an exilent job of depicting the Drow and their ritualistic ways to the Spider Queen. I recomend this book highly. A sure enjoyment to read.
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