Spearwielder's Tale: The Woods Out Back, The Dragon's Dagger, and The Haggis Hunters

Spearwielder's Tale #1-3 omnibus

by R.A. Salvatore

A factory worker becomes a hero in a mystical world of adventure and danger, in this fantasy trilogy from the New York Times–bestselling author.

Gary Leger is desperate for adventure. Daydreaming and fantasy novels are his only escapes, and he spends much of his free time reading in the woods behind his house. That’s when adventure finds him. Or rather, that’s when he’s hit with a tranquilizer arrow . . .

When Gary comes to, he discovers he’s traveled to the land of Faerie, a world populated by creatures from his fantasy novels—and they need his help. Only Gary can wear the enchanted armor that will allow him to wield a magic spear. In a series of adventures, Gary will team up with a trouble-making leprechaun, an aloof elf, a surly dwarf, and more. Together they must face off against a fearsome witch, a deadly dragon, an army, and a wicked king to restore peace to the kingdom.

Praise for the Spearwielder’s Tale

“The book’s fast-paced, good-humored nature draws the reader in and makes the world of Faerie a fine place to visit.” —SF Site on The Woods Out Back

“Gary has a lively time of it in Faerie, which Salvatore recaptures with verve and wit and many nice touches. . . . A classic tale.” —Booklist on The Dragon’s Dagger

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Collections, Science Fiction Fantasy, Epic Fantasy, Forgotten Realms, High Fantasy

958 pages, Kindle Edition

First published September 7, 2004

About the author

As one of the fantasy genre’s most successful authors, R.A. Salvatore enjoys an ever-expanding and tremendously loyal following. His books regularly appear on The New York Times best-seller lists and have sold more than 10,000,000 copies. Salvatore’s original hardcover, The Two Swords, Book III of The Hunter’s Blade Trilogy (October 2004) debuted at # 1 on The Wall Street Journal best-seller list and at # 4 on The New York Times best-seller list. His books have been translated into numerous foreign languages including German, Italian, Finnish, Greek, Hungarian, Turkish, Croatian, Bulgarian, Yiddish, Spanish, Russian, Polish, Portuguese, Czech, and French.

Salvatore’s first published novel, The Crystal Shard from TSR in 1988, became the first volume of the acclaimed Icewind Dale Trilogy and introduced an enormously popular character, the dark elf Drizzt Do’Urden. Since that time, Salvatore has published numerous novels for each of his signature multi-volume series including The Dark Elf Trilogy, Paths of Darkness, The Hunter’s Blades Trilogy, and The Cleric Quintet.

His love affair with fantasy, and with literature in general, began during his sophomore year of college when he was given a copy of J.R.R. Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings as a Christmas gift. He promptly changed his major from computerscience to journalism. He received a Bachelor of Science Degree in Communications from Fitchburg State College in 1981, then returned for the degree he always cherished, the Bachelor of Arts in English. He began writing seriously in 1982, penning the manuscript that would become Echoes of the Fourth Magic. Salvatore held many jobs during those first years as a writer, finally settling in (much to our delight) to write full time in 1990.

The R.A. Salvatore Collection has been established at his alma mater, Fitchburg State College in Fitchburg, Massachusetts, containing the writer’s letters, manuscripts, and other professional papers. He is in good company, as The Salvatore Collection is situated alongside The Robert Cormier Library, which celebrates the writing career of the co-alum and esteemed author of young adult books.

Salvatore is an active member of his community and is on the board of trustees at the local library in Leominster, Massachusetts. He has participated in several American Library Association regional conferences, giving talks on themes including “Adventure fantasy” and “Why young adults read fantasy.” Salvatore himself enjoys a broad range of literary writers including James Joyce, Mark Twain, Geoffrey Chaucer, Shakespeare, Dante, and Sartre. He counts among his favorite genre literary influences Ian Fleming, Arthur Conan Doyle, Fritz Leiber, and of course, J.R.R. Tolkien.

Born in 1959, Salvatore is a native of Massachusetts and resides there with his wife Diane, and their three children, Bryan, Geno, and Caitlin. The family pets include three Japanese Chins, Oliver, Artemis and Ivan, and four cats including Guenhwyvar.

When he isn't writing, Salvatore chases after his three Japanese Chins, takes long walks, hits the gym, and coaches/plays on a fun-league softball team that includes most of his family. His gaming group still meets on Sundays to play.

http://us.macmillan.com/author/rasalv...

Reviews

[Scott · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the omnibus and I reviewed each book individually but since I read the omnibus I wanted to toss out a quick rating/review for the omnibus as a whole.

3 stars but just barely.
I read because I'm a completionist and since Salvatore is one of my favorite writers I just have to read everything he's ever written.

Gary (a thinly disguised real world version of Bob Salvatore) travels a few times to Fairie to save the day. Good stories, great characters but really obvious that he wrote these early in his career. He had all the building blocks for a great tale but just didn't have the experience yet to pull it off.

I'm glad I read these but I would not call them all that good. The characters are so good that they kept me turning the pages but the writing was just poor enough that I did not mind putting the book down.

Recommended for those of you who are completionists like me otherwise...Salvatore has many many great books out there to choose from.

[Christopher · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been growing tired of Junior High level books about grand journeys to take X item to Y location. It seemed like every fantasy novel I've read had the typical cookie-cutter characters. Insert Elf, Dwarf, Halfing of some form, Woman warrior (with occasional fanservice), and underdog hero. Boring!

What made this thrilogy (yes thrilogy - new word 03/30/09) different you may ask? I mean, it has an elf, and it has a dwarf, and oh man there's an ignorant and impoverished race of human which doesn't 'get' the other mythical races. Yes indeed young sprouts.

This book had an extra ingredient in the fantasy recepie - a tie-in to the real world and the futilities we all feel knowing we can't change it or stand for such black and white ideals like the fantasy worlds we all read about and escape to. We're nothing here but a breeding-object owning-mass of life enslaved to the corporations and governments which make up our larger-than-life worlds. Wow - sorry.

Anyways, young Gary Ledger represents you and me - more me because I'm writing the review and I darn near say so. He fights with coming to terms with having an escape the likes you and me have always dreamed. A world of our fantasies where adventure, exhilerating living, and even earned fame. He is our Willy Lowman - in armor.

Beyond that we finally get to read about what it would be like to quest with a Leprechaun and a giant - turns out it's quite good. Illusions and powerful uppercuts. We also get to see subtle, but refreshing differences in the dwavish stereotypes. There's just enough change from the typical fantasy to make this different from the last book you picked up with a flowy script for title, and no I don't mean "The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants."

Humor aside, from this writer's experience - the Spearwielder's Tale was the most enjoyable fantasy story I've read since Stardust by Neil Gaiman. I now wish I had this book signed by R.A. instead of the Paths of Darkness Collector's Edition Forgotten Realms - this one will be a keeper I hope to read to my kids when they come along.

[Clay · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Woods Out Back

The woods Out Back was a roller coaster in terms of speed. At some points it was exciting and at others, the story seemed to come to a halt. In the final act though, it was fast paced and very exciting.
I do like the references to The Hobbit by J.R.R. Tolkien. Seeing as I read it a few years ago, it was easy to remember what they were talking about, even if it wasn't in detail.

Overall I give The Woods Out Back a 3/5.

The Dragon's Dagger

The Dragon's Dagger did what it was meant to do. Be a sequel that connects books 1 and 3. I really enjoyed it, but I felt there were too many fight scenes. I love a good fight every now and then, but I much prefer plot over all else. Also, I am in love with the final fight. It was just sooooooo good. Plus, the epilogue just made me more excited to start the final book.
However, there were points where I felt it drag on which is why it took so long for me to finish, but once it picked up, it was smooth sailing from there.

That's why my overall rating of The Dragon's Dagger is 3/5.

Dragonslayer's Return

Dragonslayer's Return, the third book in Spearwielder's Tale, is definitely the best in the trilogy. The story is fast paced, it never felt slow, besides the beginning, and it has the best action. Even the plot twists aren't too bad. I would rate Dragonslayer's Return 4/5.

This isn't a trilogy I'd recommend to everyone like Lord of the Rings, but if you want a fantasy novel that's inspired by LotR, then I would say try it. If anything else, you could always pick up the third book. It's easy to catch up.

Overall, I'd give Spearwielder's Tale a 3/5.

[Max · Rating 2 out of 5]

There was a certain nostalgia factor in reading this. When I was in high school, I had a bunch of these big paperback omnibus editions of RA Salvatore's Drizzt books that I would carry around with me and read, with the books getting dinged up by being in my school bag. I really enjoyed working my way through a giant tome filled with fantasy adventure. These days most of my RA Salvatore stuff is in ebook and I haven't touched any of it in a while. But I figured it'd be fun to read this one in print omnibus since I happened to still have it sitting on my shelf when all the others had gone away.

But it's too bad I chose to revisit the experience with this, because it just isn't all that good. I never read this as a teen, so I don't have fond memories of it, but I recall the stuff I did read being much better. This is a trio of thinly written generic fantasy quests in a setting that stands out mostly because it's got a leprechaun as part of the hero party. The basic idea of a young man from our world who's trying to figure out what to do with his life getting thrust into a fantasy land and having to take up the mantel of the great hero is sound. Too bad the execution is sorely lacking.

Now that I've read this, I can safely say it's going into the donation pile, and unlike the books I read as a teen, I won't be making an effort to replace it with the ebook edition. Even if you're a hardcore fan of the author, I'd advise you to take a pass - this will just disappoint compared to the good stuff.

[Laurel · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 maybe. The third book was the strongest of the three, but that's not really saying a lot. Only my complete inability to not finish a book kept me going through the first two. I thought large parts of it were boring. There seemed to be very little depth to any of the characters or the world of Faerie, so it was hard to feel any investment into the story. I appreciated the attempts at tackling social issues, but it also felt out of left field. It was also annoying that in 662 pages, we could only have five named women characters; one is a main antagonist, two minor villains who don't really contribute, one a "wants to die for glory" gnome who says like 3 sentences, and the last is Gary's wife who is just as big of a Mary Sue character as her husband.

I was really looking forward to reading R.A. Salvatore since he's so prolific in the fantasy genre, but this was just so disappointing, I don't know if I'll want to try any more.

[Jamison Swartz · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ahhh, this book was a lifesaver. I had read all the Drizzt books and i loved them, i was 75% done with all Forgotten Realms books because I ate them up like a woodchipper. I'm devastated that they have stopped making the books, but my Dad dug this one out of storage and I was concerned that it was not Forgotten Realms, so I delved in, not expecting much. I was obsessed, the very way this book was written entranced me, I couldn't stop reading this book. I am interested in writing myself and I might want to spark a legacy for Forgotten Realms books, but the first I'd like to make an offshoot of is this, perhaps before or after the time of the legendary Gary Leger. This book is well-written, enchanting and overall a masterpiece. I loved this book and will read it again soon due to the nostalgia writing this has given me. ( Age 15)

[Amanda Craycraft · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have thoroughly enjoyed this book. I cannot find enough time to read it all. I am a big fan of R.A. Salvatore and highly recommend this book. It contains some real life aspects and then brings in the fantasy. His fight descriptions are detailed as ever and you feel like you are there.

[Laura · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved getting to know the characters. Some of the war scenes were very long but it was still a great book!

[Jon Waughtal · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the first fantasy novel I read and it holds a special place in my life. Such a great trilogy.

[Steve · Rating 3 out of 5]

Good story. 3 stars for worth reading

[Todd · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bottom Line Up Front (BLUF): A trilogy that first comes off as a throw-away Young Adult fantasy, but has some entertaining depth if you delve a bit a deeper -- 3.5 stars.

So the premise of this book is, at first glance, just plain ridiculous. “Modern man transported to the Land of Fairytales”. Really? Putting aside that childish aspect, the concept was beat to death in the `80s, and in some cases done much more famously, in terms of Thomas Covenant’s Illearth trilogy (er, trilogies). So I went into this more than a doubts. (At the very least, thankfully the very first thing that Gary our intrepid hero here does not do is rape the very first individual that crosses his path! That's #notaspoiler #stfu. So there’s that at least!)

But all is not well in Fairytale Land, as we soon find out. Famine, plague, folks hung by their necks until they are dead and left to rot at crossroads, shady barons, an evil witch, a rampaging shape-shifting dragon, et al. Gary our Hero takes a while to get through the “This must be a dream” to “I’m insane” to “If this is an alternate reality, I’ll tough it out” to “Actually, I rather not go back home to the real world” process, and eventually winds up being quite a bad ass in his own right.

This series kept me entertained throughout. Solid characters (that did not always agree with each other), good action sequences, etc. Elves and dwarves and gnomes, on my. I liked that Gary really did not enjoy killing, especially fellow humans. And putting Gary's wife Diane into the thick of things and her not just playing the Token Damsel in Distress role in the last third of the book was a big plus for me, too.

Some interesting minor plot twists here there that make up for the somewhat telegraphed grand finale(s), but I find that acceptable considering the overall tone of the three books. Sometimes foreseeing the final act of a play out doesn't make it any less enjoyable.

Although a somewhat obscure slice of R.A. Salvatore's catalog, this is a surprisingly solid and enjoyable read.

[Jeff · Rating 3 out of 5]

No we've added the evil witch, a rock eating dwarf and a Giant named Tommy. Robert the dragon we've yet to meet, but the leprechaun said Tolkien got the look right.
Book 2, The Woods Out Back, finished 13 dec '14, is a great start to the set. A breezy, fast pace(for walking everywhere), and a firm grounding in the characters, if not to much in their motivations. It also exposed some of the undercurrents perking, & the various attitudes toward them. Looking forward to book 2: The Dragon's Dagger! Robert the Dragon played well and now in book 3, where Gary (main human character, if you're keeping track, manages to take his wife into the land of Fairy, and a war. New sub hero, Prince Gelidon? We shall see.

book 3 was a good wrap up and this is a solid 3 star book across all the novels. good summer novel and intro into fantasy. I was sorry to see it end.

[Amanda Hamilton · Rating 3 out of 5]

For a book that is an made up of three books in a trilogy, it was actually pretty easy to get through. It was fun and adventurous and yeah. I liked it. Like the "Landover" story I read WAY back a few months ago, its a fish out of water story but it didn't come off so much as a self-insert situation. Maybe because the main character Gary was in too much danger to be totally awesome. It was realistic how at first he wasn't sure of himself and gradually began to feel more confident and heroic.

I hesitant a little bit to describe it as such but its rollicking. It does leave a tiny sliver open for a continuation but I don't know. As far as I know, that's all there is to this story but I haven't looked up Salvatore's oeuvre to check.

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed it well enough. For the most part. For a fantasy book that had a lot going on, it was actually sort of slow to me. I never wanted to put it down, but I never was really excited to pick it back up. And I could have done without the commentary. The author's main character makes comments about how war in real life is so horrible/political/unnecessary and then the main character goes to the fantasy land and is forever fighting. But I suppose it's all OK because when he fights he fights to maim not to kill and he feels bad when he does end up killing someone. Give me a break. Just fight the fights however you want to fight them and stop talking about it.

[Noel · Rating 4 out of 5]

It was a cute story. Salvatore began to use the word "maw" too much for my taste... but I enjoyed it. If you like Fantasy, and are okay with everything working out in the end then it's great read. Parts of it move much quicker than other parts... But the dedication makes it all worth while... To J.R.R. Tolkien and Fleetwood Mac... I mean that right there is priceless.

[Jeremy · Rating 4 out of 5]

Loads of fun! Contrived and over the top, but somewhat aware of itself at the same time. Fans of fantasy who want to step out of the D&D universe might want to check this one out. Much like his other book sets, this is a fast easy read and, in my opinion, slots somewhere between young adult and mature fiction.

[Krzysztof Kot · Rating 1 out of 5]

Picked this up in search of some good, mindless, fantasy. It was certainly mindless. Poorly written, predictable plot and characters that I had a hard time seeing as anything but two dimensional archetypes. Pity.

[Evelyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a great high fantasy. I seriously recommend this to people who want it all from elves, leprechauns, and dragons.

[Kelly · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not too bad but it took me a very long time to actually get into this and like it. I would say by the 3rd book I was hooked.

[David Robins · Rating 4 out of 5]

The rest of the trilogy continues in the same vein as the first; good yarn, well told.

[CaReese Mukulu · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good fantasy story. True to the faerie lore. Well written.

[Chad · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is one of my all time favorite series. I don't think I have ever connected more with a character or wanted to fall right into the pages of a book than I did with the Spearwielder's Tale.

[margaret neill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very entertaining

R.A. Salvatore is always a good read great character building as well as describing the world of his stories. One of my favorite authors

[Julie · Rating 2 out of 5]

A good read. But not one of Salvatore's best.

[Joseph Schlag · Rating 3 out of 5]

good battle scene descriptions. hokey characters.

[Nuranar · Rating 3 out of 5]

A fun read! I don't remember a whole lot of details, but it will be fun to read again.

[Juan 🇵🇷 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Book One: 2⭐⭐
Book Two: 3⭐⭐⭐

[Joshua Goff]

R.A. Salvatore is by far my favorite author and this is the series that introduced me to him ind it is by far my favorite series. His ability to paint a picture with words is extraordinary.