R.A. Salvatore?

[Chief Falling Rock]

I've been flirting with Fantasy with stuff like the Dresden Files lately (great series) but I'm wanting to get full blown into it, and I've always heard R.A. Salvatore is the man. But my only question is where do I start? Theres so many books? Does it matter what series I start with cuz I noticed a lot of books are trilogies. Do you have to read these trilogies in some kind of order or do they all kind of exist in their own universes. Any help would be appreciated. Wikipedia is helpful, I just didn't know if I should start a certain trilogy first.

[UzumakiW]

You should start with the Dark Elf Trilogy. I haven't read the whole series, but I'm pretty sure that's the first book to introduce Drizzt.

[Joker]

Dark Elf Trilogy for sure.Then after that I think there are four more with Drizzt.

[toxicangel19]

I've been flirting with Fantasy with stuff like the Dresden Files lately (great series) but I'm wanting to get full blown into it, and I've always heard R.A. Salvatore is the man. But my only question is where do I start? Theres so many books? Does it matter what series I start with cuz I noticed a lot of books are trilogies. Do you have to read these trilogies in some kind of order or do they all kind of exist in their own universes. Any help would be appreciated. Wikipedia is helpful, I just didn't know if I should start a certain trilogy first.

OMG im the biggest r.a fan ever....yes start with the dark elf trilogy you want to know drizzit d'urden's past before andy of the other characters that come along lately!!! dark elf trilogy then the crystal shard then streams of silver then the halflings gem...it continues on from there but his newest book is called the orc king just to let ya know...and hes good at leavin cliffhangers

[Stormrider]

You can start either with The Dark Elf trilogy (Homeland, Exile, Sojourn) or The Icewind Dale trilogy (The Crystal Shard, Streams of Silver, The Halfling's Gem)

The Dark Elf trilogy is first chronologically, but the Icewind Dale trilogy was written first... So it can really be read in either order. But I wouldn't read any of the other stuff until after those two, since the other books reference alot of stuff that happened in those two trilogies.

R.A. Salvatore books are the only time I respect dwarves in fantasy. Especially Pikel. Haha

[Chief Falling Rock]

thanks guys! Icewind Dale was the first one on wikipedia, but like stormrider said it was written first. I'll start with the dark elf trilogy first. I think theres an omnibus with all in that trilogy in one. I think I'll look for that.

[Chief Falling Rock]

I just started Homeland yesterday and I'm already 100 pages into it (thats fast for me) I'm lovin it so far.

[Scrilla]

Those are my fav series, I still need to read the Orc King though. Once I get my grubby hands on that one I will need a new series to start reading.

[Darkgod]

Listen, forget what they say.... start with the icewind dale trilogy... its his first books, and not to mention Drizzt isn't even supposed to be the main character. Wulfgar is, but drizzt was written better, and loved by many. Since RA. was the second writer in Forgotten realms, he reads Darkwalker on the Moonshaes and thought everyone was either into druidism, or barbarianism, this making Wulfgar the main. When he started to write Drizzt though, he saw endless possibilities.

Nothing from Drizzt's past is referenced in Icewind Dale, but after that they start to reference the Dark Elf Triology (particulary his family, the Banrae family, Bregan DeAerthe etc etc.)

So I would say:

Icewind Dale
Dark Elf
Legacy ( possibly the best book)
Starless Night
Siege of Darkness
Passage to Dawn
The Silent Blade
The Spine of the World ( not a Drizzt book, and probally the worst one)
Servant of the Shard
Sea of Swords
The Thousand Orcs
The Lone Drow
The Two Swords
The Orc King
The Pirate King
The Ghost King (October 2009)

Plus Short Stories:

Dark Mirror Realms of Valor Feb
The Third Level Realms of Infamy
Guenhwyvar Realms of Magic
That Curious Sword Realms of Shadow
Empty Joys The Best of the Realms
Wickless In the Nether Realms of Dragons
Comrades at Odds Realms of the Elves

Artemis And Jarlaxle Stories:

Servant of the Shard
The Promise of the Witch King
Road of the Patriarch

And Finally, non Drizzt stories in FR:

The Cleric Quintet

Canticle
In Sylvan Shadows
Night Masks
The Fallen Fortress
The Chaos Curse


As I said, i recomend to read the Icewind Dale triology first. You encounter the main characters in all these books, not to mention the biggest baddie for drizzt, Artemis. Homeland is great, Exile is Ok, but Sojourn is boring to me. Also later on Drizzt does encounter the characters from the Cleric Quintet.