Promise Of The Witch-King

I loved the ending, everything about it. I liked the epilogue, Jarlaxle secretly planning for his and Entreri's future, and Entreri's encounter with someone he thought an enemy. In Promise of the Witch-King, we follow the stories of former Legend of Drizzt antagonists, making their way across the world. What Artemis Entreri is searching for is unclear. Jarlaxle is searching for power, but hopefully not something like the Crystal Shard, which was very bad for him in Servent of The Shard (which I just realized it's been six years since I read!).  I wonder what R.A. Salvatore has waiting for them in Road of the Patriarch.

A fifth of the way through the novel and I'm reminded about how much I like the way Salvatore writes female characters. Ellery, Calihye and Parissus are all strong and independent. They can handle themselves against any man or monster. They echo the strength and skill we find in Catti-Brie from the Drizzt novels and Danica from The Cleric Quintet. Salvatore makes it a part of his story that within the world of Forgotten Realms women have to fight twice as hard to get the same rank and respect as men, but that doesn't mean that it is impossible. I think it just might be a bit of life in art. 

I recent wrote about the anti-hero.  Of course, I used Deadpool as an example, finding a dark hero, someone who was "bad", but is now "good" or at least "good-ish" I think is relateable.  We all make bad choices sometimes, some more than others, and we sometimes wonder if we can come back from that.  I don't think Jarlaxle is trying to come back from any of his choices.  Having read several books featuring his character, I think he he did the best with the situation given to him, he's a different kind of anti-hero than his friend.  Right now, Jarlaxle's choices seem to be leading him on a good path. Will that last? Entreri also did the best with what he had, but he closed off from his emotions. Now, with perhaps the help of a magic flute, his emotions are opening up and they are definitely affecting his choices, though he still doesn't have a problem with killing people who are in his way.  Promise of the Witch-King was balanced in the best way, action, emotion, dialogue and descriptions of a battle-torn landscape, with a plot that kept moving.  I had a hard time putting down Witch-King.  Even if you haven't read any Drizzt books or any Forgotten Realms stories, I think Promise of the Witch-King might be a fun place to jump in.