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Sage of Shadowdale #3
Elminster Enraged: The Sage of Shadowdale, Book III
Commanded by the vestige of Mystra to work together, Manshoon and Elminster engage instead in a ferocious battle that sends the Sage plummeting into the Underdark as a cloud of ashes. Elminster soon inhabits the body of a fallen dark elf, so that he can begin carrying out Mystra's orders to rally Cormyr's Wizards of War, seek blueflame items to mend immense rifts throughout the realms that are releasing deadly monsters, and prevent the ancient Primordials from rising and unleashing their rage. But his sworn archenemy, Manshoon, has plans as to conquer Cormyr and be the new Emperor, and hunt down the Sage's clones. The battles are fierce, the stakes have never been higher, and the fate of Cormyr is on the line. Meanwhile, War Wizards are being mysteriously assassinated . . .
391 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2012
26 people are currently reading
807 people want to read
About the author
Ed Greenwood
364 books878 followersEd Greenwood is the creator of the Forgotten Realms fantasy world, which became the setting for his home D&D game in 1975. Play still continues in this long-running campaign, and Ed also keeps busy producing Realmslore for various TSR publications.
Ed has published over two hundred articles in Dragon magazine and Polyhedron newszine, is a lifetime charter member of the Role Playing Game Associaton (RPGA) network, has written over thirty books and modules for TSR, and been Gen Con Game Fair guest of honor several times.
In addition to all these activities, Ed works as a library clerk and has edited over a dozen small press magazines.
Invented the character Elminster from the popular Forgotten Realms RPG series. Currently resides in an old farmhouse in the countryside of Ontario, Canada.
Ed has published over two hundred articles in Dragon magazine and Polyhedron newszine, is a lifetime charter member of the Role Playing Game Associaton (RPGA) network, has written over thirty books and modules for TSR, and been Gen Con Game Fair guest of honor several times.
In addition to all these activities, Ed works as a library clerk and has edited over a dozen small press magazines.
Invented the character Elminster from the popular Forgotten Realms RPG series. Currently resides in an old farmhouse in the countryside of Ontario, Canada.
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Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews
February 10, 2013
This book started so interminably slow that it was quite frustrating and I ended up putting it down for some time. It picks up exactly where Bury Elminster Deep leaves off, with Elminster slain by Manshoon and drifting as dust through the Underdark.
Greenwood does his usual job of introducing far too many extraneous characters to the story, ones who either serve no purpose or seem to be important only to be proven false in the next chapter when they are laid low by another, unseen villain. The author's signature vagueness is present here, when brief interludes involving The Simbul appear. The former Witch-Queen of Aglarond is sealing rifts and banishing all many of foul horrors at the behest of Mystra, who is returning to Faerun in an albeit diminished form. As Mystra is returning from the dead (again, and in a manner that is never explained) and her Chosen's powers, along with the magic they derive from the Weave are all lessened, where does The Simbul get the power to seal these rifts? We see at the beginning that an army of drow are being decimated by the creatures emerging from one such rift, but the drow are among the most cunning, most powerful races in the Forgotten Realms, so how is The Simbul able to do so at all? This is never answered. Neither answered is the identity or motive of the person we see scrying on Manshoon's activities. Elminster himself tells Manshoon that he is being manipulated by this person, but deliberately does not tell the vampire lord any more as way of punishment. I can only assume this will be addressed in a later book. Another, slightly frustrating, feature of this story is Greenwood's introduction of a new, never-before-seen Chosen of Mystra. An elven maiden named Symrustar. Elminster happens upon her in the Underdark, having been captured and recently tortured to death. As Elminster absorbs the last of her Silver Fire into himself he also absorbs her consciousness for a time. As the two talk it is learned that Mystra created other Chosen, the identities of whom she kept from Elminster. This seems to be a bit of a Deus ex Machina, as Elminster is able to regain his strength from her, also I am certain this bit of knowledge will come into play down the road.
The fabulous Lord of Waterdeep, Mirt the Moneylender makes far too few appearances in this title and since he has no effect on the plot I wonder if he needed to be included at all. Arclath Delcastle and Amarune Whitewave take a backseat in this book, receiving little in the way of character development or worthy 'screen time' as it were. This despite Elminster Must Die and Bury Elminster Deep setting the pair up as Greenwood's successors to his 'Knights of Myth Drannor'; characters quite important to the Realms but not all-powerful like Elminster and the Seven Sisters.
With these complaints aside allow me to describe what I did enjoy about the book. Greenwood's dialogue is again, as always, top-notch. His characters are glib and witty in a way that never diminishes the setting or takes the reader out of the moment. Many are the times when reading one of Greenwood's novels that I have become jealous at how he manages to have his characters turn a phrase. This book also introduces us to some new parts of the Kingdom of Cormyr. Particularly Irlingstar Keep, a prison for nobles hidden in the far away reaches of the Forest Kingdom, nearer to Sembia. While I mentioned at the beginning that this book does indeed start very slow, the final 80-90 pages are action-packed and fast-paced. Many loose ends are resolved, often satisfactorily for the reader, and at least one tearjerking moment occurs for longtime Greenwood/Elminster fans.
Overall Elminster Enraged was an enjoyable, if flawed, read. If anyone is interested in reading about the adventures of Elminster, Sage of Shadowdale or the Forgotten Realms in general I cannot stress enough: DO NOT start with this title. Forgotten Realms fiction has been published for nearly three decades and this book assumes readers are at least somewhat familiar with it. However if you are a longtime fan of the Realms and its characters then I think you will find this book a fun read.
Greenwood does his usual job of introducing far too many extraneous characters to the story, ones who either serve no purpose or seem to be important only to be proven false in the next chapter when they are laid low by another, unseen villain. The author's signature vagueness is present here, when brief interludes involving The Simbul appear. The former Witch-Queen of Aglarond is sealing rifts and banishing all many of foul horrors at the behest of Mystra, who is returning to Faerun in an albeit diminished form. As Mystra is returning from the dead (again, and in a manner that is never explained) and her Chosen's powers, along with the magic they derive from the Weave are all lessened, where does The Simbul get the power to seal these rifts? We see at the beginning that an army of drow are being decimated by the creatures emerging from one such rift, but the drow are among the most cunning, most powerful races in the Forgotten Realms, so how is The Simbul able to do so at all? This is never answered. Neither answered is the identity or motive of the person we see scrying on Manshoon's activities. Elminster himself tells Manshoon that he is being manipulated by this person, but deliberately does not tell the vampire lord any more as way of punishment. I can only assume this will be addressed in a later book. Another, slightly frustrating, feature of this story is Greenwood's introduction of a new, never-before-seen Chosen of Mystra. An elven maiden named Symrustar. Elminster happens upon her in the Underdark, having been captured and recently tortured to death. As Elminster absorbs the last of her Silver Fire into himself he also absorbs her consciousness for a time. As the two talk it is learned that Mystra created other Chosen, the identities of whom she kept from Elminster. This seems to be a bit of a Deus ex Machina, as Elminster is able to regain his strength from her, also I am certain this bit of knowledge will come into play down the road.
The fabulous Lord of Waterdeep, Mirt the Moneylender makes far too few appearances in this title and since he has no effect on the plot I wonder if he needed to be included at all. Arclath Delcastle and Amarune Whitewave take a backseat in this book, receiving little in the way of character development or worthy 'screen time' as it were. This despite Elminster Must Die and Bury Elminster Deep setting the pair up as Greenwood's successors to his 'Knights of Myth Drannor'; characters quite important to the Realms but not all-powerful like Elminster and the Seven Sisters.
With these complaints aside allow me to describe what I did enjoy about the book. Greenwood's dialogue is again, as always, top-notch. His characters are glib and witty in a way that never diminishes the setting or takes the reader out of the moment. Many are the times when reading one of Greenwood's novels that I have become jealous at how he manages to have his characters turn a phrase. This book also introduces us to some new parts of the Kingdom of Cormyr. Particularly Irlingstar Keep, a prison for nobles hidden in the far away reaches of the Forest Kingdom, nearer to Sembia. While I mentioned at the beginning that this book does indeed start very slow, the final 80-90 pages are action-packed and fast-paced. Many loose ends are resolved, often satisfactorily for the reader, and at least one tearjerking moment occurs for longtime Greenwood/Elminster fans.
Overall Elminster Enraged was an enjoyable, if flawed, read. If anyone is interested in reading about the adventures of Elminster, Sage of Shadowdale or the Forgotten Realms in general I cannot stress enough: DO NOT start with this title. Forgotten Realms fiction has been published for nearly three decades and this book assumes readers are at least somewhat familiar with it. However if you are a longtime fan of the Realms and its characters then I think you will find this book a fun read.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
September 6, 2020
More adventures of Elminster, trying to preserve Mystra's legacy through the spell plague, as Manshoon throws down his wicked schemes
had a pretty good ending
the underdark stuff as great, as was the twists relating to the Simbul
had a pretty good ending
the underdark stuff as great, as was the twists relating to the Simbul
May 13, 2017
The whole book is just boring, written without any creativity
September 15, 2017
Typical Greenwood starts of slow gets exciting here and there and slows way down to build to a fantastic ending that's worth the read.
August 14, 2019
It was good
I just thought the author was all over the place so many different stories that didn't really has anything to do with the main story line.
I just thought the author was all over the place so many different stories that didn't really has anything to do with the main story line.
March 23, 2025
Great read
This is my second read through of this book and I have enjoyed it even more than the first time. Greenwood is an amazing author second to none.
This is my second read through of this book and I have enjoyed it even more than the first time. Greenwood is an amazing author second to none.
July 2, 2013
http://www.rantingdragon.com/review-o...
Elminster Enraged is the third book in Ed Greenwood’s Sage of Shadowdale series. It follows the arch wizard Elminster’s experiences after the death of the Goddess of Magic, Mystra, and the spread of the Spellplague, which renders magic a dangerous and unreliable force. Though no fourth book appears to have been announced yet, the story is such that I imagine another is forthcoming.
This guy just can’t catch a break
Given that the two previous books in this series are called Elminster Must Die and Bury Elminster Deep, and that prior to this he’s also featured in Elminster In Hell, it is no surprise that he’s pretty pissed off at this point. For standard sword & sorcery fantasy, we’ve actually hit a pretty dark place in the story. For those who aren’t familiar with Elminster, he is a Chosen of the Mystra. He’s hundreds of years old at this point, and he has dedicated essentially his entire life to spreading the use of magic in the world and protecting people from the abuses of the powers of evil in the Realms.
When we join him in Elminster Enraged, his Goddess is dead, magic is highly unreliable and dangerous, and those who can use it are viewed with even more suspicion than usual in fantasy. Add to that the fact that the only real legitimate force of magic in the world right now (The War Wizards of Cormyr) basically thinks he’s a fake pretending to be Elminster to steal magic items and generally be a nuisance. All this combines to create an Elminster who is very different than that of the earlier books who could basically go anywhere, do anything, and meet with nothing but awed respect.
But where’s the rage? It’s titular even!
For a book called Elminster Enraged, he really doesn’t get angry all that much. He keeps up the “long-suffering mage” routine pretty well, and he has a few moments of “oh why me” throughout, but serious rage is severely lacking here. Honestly, I know it’s supposed to be a testament to his loyalty to his Goddess that in spite of all the bullshit, he continues doing the job, but it’s getting so unrealistic as to be completely ridiculous. It takes massive amounts of patience and dedication to try to do the right thing when it seems like every single person around you is dead set on screwing themselves over and ignoring your advice. That is hard enough to do for ten minutes; Elminster appears to have been doing it for centuries.
Assuming there’s a next book that picks up exactly where this one leaves off, -it- is the one I’d have called Elminster Enraged. I think I’d have called this one Elminster Trucks Along or Elminster Starts to get Cheesed and really set him loose in the next book. Having watched him get crapped on for the past several books, I was really looking forward to seeing him give in and get a little Dark Side on us, but I was left disappointed.
Why should you read this book?
This was still a great book, despite the fact that the rage made little more than a brief cameo. Elminster is an excellent character, and Greenwood writes him very well and very consistently (a feat, considering he first appeared in print twenty-five years ago). As a story, it was quite enjoyable. It is a little tough, as somebody who spent so much time in the main chronology of the Forgotten Realms, to keep track of everything happening now nearly 100 years later in Realms time, but it was worth it.
Elminster really is a character for the ages. At once serious and absurd, stoic and passionate, he struggles to do what he knows he should, even when nobody around him understands. He’s also one of the most completely written characters in history, with thousands of pages dedicated to him from a young man up to now, 1200 years later.
Elminster Enraged is the third book in Ed Greenwood’s Sage of Shadowdale series. It follows the arch wizard Elminster’s experiences after the death of the Goddess of Magic, Mystra, and the spread of the Spellplague, which renders magic a dangerous and unreliable force. Though no fourth book appears to have been announced yet, the story is such that I imagine another is forthcoming.
This guy just can’t catch a break
Given that the two previous books in this series are called Elminster Must Die and Bury Elminster Deep, and that prior to this he’s also featured in Elminster In Hell, it is no surprise that he’s pretty pissed off at this point. For standard sword & sorcery fantasy, we’ve actually hit a pretty dark place in the story. For those who aren’t familiar with Elminster, he is a Chosen of the Mystra. He’s hundreds of years old at this point, and he has dedicated essentially his entire life to spreading the use of magic in the world and protecting people from the abuses of the powers of evil in the Realms.
When we join him in Elminster Enraged, his Goddess is dead, magic is highly unreliable and dangerous, and those who can use it are viewed with even more suspicion than usual in fantasy. Add to that the fact that the only real legitimate force of magic in the world right now (The War Wizards of Cormyr) basically thinks he’s a fake pretending to be Elminster to steal magic items and generally be a nuisance. All this combines to create an Elminster who is very different than that of the earlier books who could basically go anywhere, do anything, and meet with nothing but awed respect.
But where’s the rage? It’s titular even!
For a book called Elminster Enraged, he really doesn’t get angry all that much. He keeps up the “long-suffering mage” routine pretty well, and he has a few moments of “oh why me” throughout, but serious rage is severely lacking here. Honestly, I know it’s supposed to be a testament to his loyalty to his Goddess that in spite of all the bullshit, he continues doing the job, but it’s getting so unrealistic as to be completely ridiculous. It takes massive amounts of patience and dedication to try to do the right thing when it seems like every single person around you is dead set on screwing themselves over and ignoring your advice. That is hard enough to do for ten minutes; Elminster appears to have been doing it for centuries.
Assuming there’s a next book that picks up exactly where this one leaves off, -it- is the one I’d have called Elminster Enraged. I think I’d have called this one Elminster Trucks Along or Elminster Starts to get Cheesed and really set him loose in the next book. Having watched him get crapped on for the past several books, I was really looking forward to seeing him give in and get a little Dark Side on us, but I was left disappointed.
Why should you read this book?
This was still a great book, despite the fact that the rage made little more than a brief cameo. Elminster is an excellent character, and Greenwood writes him very well and very consistently (a feat, considering he first appeared in print twenty-five years ago). As a story, it was quite enjoyable. It is a little tough, as somebody who spent so much time in the main chronology of the Forgotten Realms, to keep track of everything happening now nearly 100 years later in Realms time, but it was worth it.
Elminster really is a character for the ages. At once serious and absurd, stoic and passionate, he struggles to do what he knows he should, even when nobody around him understands. He’s also one of the most completely written characters in history, with thousands of pages dedicated to him from a young man up to now, 1200 years later.
July 30, 2015
This book was kind of a muddle, and it is only partially the authors fault. Wizards of the Coast thrust the Spellplague onto the Forgotten Realms authors without their permission or voice, and this book mostly seems trying to hit the reset button on the changes that reboot forced on him. Elminister is as entertaining to read as always, but his descendant Arune and her paramour Arclath feel tacked onto the story like a after thought or dangling thread. Mirt's storyline seems similarly pointless (he has never been a character I cared for though) For those interested in the ongoing plot of Forgotten realms this book brings forth a lot of changes for Elminster and Cormyr both and sets up even more changes to come in the Sundering Series, and is worth reading for that no matter what.
Also in case anyone has made it this far into the series without noticing Ed Greenwood is a dirty old pervert, and so is Elminster. He spends entirely too much time in the series describing the curves of the female characters and Elminster and Mirt have between them apparently slept with every female in Faerun at one time or another.
In summary: this book is only worthwhile if you are already caught up series and love Forgotten Realms lore. There are many better FR books.
Also in case anyone has made it this far into the series without noticing Ed Greenwood is a dirty old pervert, and so is Elminster. He spends entirely too much time in the series describing the curves of the female characters and Elminster and Mirt have between them apparently slept with every female in Faerun at one time or another.
In summary: this book is only worthwhile if you are already caught up series and love Forgotten Realms lore. There are many better FR books.
September 7, 2012
Ed Greenwood writes an excited conclusion to the Sage of Shadowdale series. The story picks up right were Bury Elminster Deep ended. The story continues with a focus on a Cormyrian prison holding traitorous nobles. Like the other books in the series, the narrative jumps a lot, from character to character, to seemingly random noble. This can sometimes make the narrative hard to follow, but Ed makes it work in the end as you see all the jumble begin to take shape in the second half of the book and begin to realize how everything is connected.
The ending is great fun, it bumped this from 4 to 5 stars. Elminster gets well.. enraged. Its a lot of fun, stick with the jumps, and you'll come to a conclusion that had me smiling as a reader, as a fan of Ed's, and definitely as a fan of the Realms.
The ending is great fun, it bumped this from 4 to 5 stars. Elminster gets well.. enraged. Its a lot of fun, stick with the jumps, and you'll come to a conclusion that had me smiling as a reader, as a fan of Ed's, and definitely as a fan of the Realms.
February 15, 2014
There's a good story buried in here somewhere. Sad that you have to filter it out of all the nonsense. Smashing a keyboard to come up with names is simply lazy (let's not get started on the huge cast of characters for such a small book). You can't pass off random letters as words just because it's a fantasy setting. Fake curse words are just that, fake. Real curses are based in reality, they're not simply syllables that sound good together, they're based of societal taboos and animosity. Pray tell, where in the realms does "hrast", "tlarn", "farruck" (that one at least is semi-acceptable), or "naed" come from? I'm certain this would have been a 5 star book had Richard Lee Byers, Richard Baker, or (miss him in FR) Troy Denning written the story.
April 10, 2013
The first two books in this series didn't do too much for me. I felt Greenwood's penchant for a lot of background characters with weird names ran amok and detracted from the story a bit too much. Thankfully, he reined that tendency in a lot for this book, and it's much stronger for it. the focus is on Elminster and the people helping him, as well as his enemies. While there are a few asides with background characters, by the end of the story almost all of them have tied into the plot instead of distracting from it. And the ending is just explosive... literally. Lastly, it leaves the story in a good place for future installments. Hopefully there's more to come.
July 25, 2014
This was quicker paced than some previous Elminster books, which I appreciated, while still having the characteristics you would associate with Greenwood's writing. It wrapped up a lot of things from the trilogy of which it is a part, going from Cormyr in a state of civil war to a shaky detente. A lot more happens than in a normal book, and when I finished it, I was ready to read the next one, rather than wanting to take a break, which recommends it quite a bit.
December 22, 2012
Another solid tale by Ed Greenwood. I miss the days before the spell plague and to see an old school character show the new world whats what was fun to read.
March 13, 2013
eBook Purchase Date: September 7, 2012
July 8, 2013
Not that great to start, Elminster is kind of lame, other characters are very lacking, story just isn't that great. Last chapter manages to save it though.
April 24, 2014
Always LOVE Ed Greenwood Elminster and others
August 31, 2014
there isn't much more I can say that I haven't said about this entire series so what I will say is, not the worst of the bunch but still sucks ass
August 22, 2015
Another fun romp through the Realms courtesy of Mr. Greenwood.
November 24, 2020
This book is referenced so often as groundbreaking for the lore changes, but all the stuff that has monumental effects on the world are brushed aside for more 1 dimensional prose.
Displaying 1 - 19 of 19 reviews