Reviews

This one took a lot longer than I thought. The letters in my edition of the book were tiny and even though there was only 330ish pages, my reading was very slow.
The book definitely was not what I expected it to be plot wise.
The humble upbringing of a young wizard apprentice I thought this would be was definitely a lot more action packed and not humble at all. And that was not a bad thing!
I liked how the book was organized in smaller chapters and had even some illustrations before each more meaningful plot course change. The interesting character quotes from the world of Forgotten Realms were cool as well. Some, I even wanted to write down.
Some parts of the plot screamed to be a summary of D&D party adventures because of the grand schemes and high fun factor for the characters and the reader.
The ending was rather ambitious and I really liked that!

max343's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark emotional medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

leagolas's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.5

I wanted to like this more but I found myself not wanting to pick it up again after a while. There were more than a few instances where I just didn't understand what was going on and many parts of the plot just felt so inconsequential :/

ebbie_casuallereading's review against another edition

Go to review page

3.0

Interesting read to get an idea of how Elminster started and some lore about Mystra. First part of the book is more fun (~before Myrjala is introduced) than the last part in my opinion, because at some point, it felt like some kind of DragonBall trope of "almost dying a lot, than becoming more powerful" (without really becoming more powerful that much) over and over.
Still enjoyed it a lot and I was actually impressed with the gender switching thing and how it was handle. I'll definitely be reading the next one soon.

ramblingbard's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous funny lighthearted mysterious medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.0

flashy99's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous relaxing medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

3.75

tkat's review against another edition

Go to review page

4.0

For those who know the Forgotten Realms, you also know about Elminster the Sage of Shadowdale. One of the greatest mages within the history of the world as well as a Chosen of the Mother of Magic, the goddess Mystra.

This is a really good start to one of the most iconic characters of the Forgotten Realms world. Here we are introduced to Elminster as a young child, just before his mother and father are killed by a magelord of the kingdom of Athalantar. And we stand beside him as he discovers his heritage as the last prince of the realm that destroyed his family.

Both these events shape Elminster drastically, but nothing more so than meeting the goddess of magic herself in the flesh, and having her lay a path of knowledge before him, a path that would lead to vengeance for his slain family, and an eternal life of love and service to a goddess who demanded nothing more or less than for her people to learn more of the world around them.

I liked the love story between Mystra and Elminster. It explains much of how and why he became her Chosen. Because when you think about it, how else can you serve your goddess in the way that Elminster does here and throughout the centuries if you did not know and love her as a woman?

More...