What do you think?
Rate this book
Forgotten Realms: The Harpers #1
The Parched Sea
Determined to drive a trade route through Anauroch, the Zhentarim have sent an army to enslave the fierce nomads of the great desert. As tribe after tribe fall to the intruders, only a single woman, Rhua, sees the true danger—but what sheik will heed the advice of an outcast witch?
Ruha finds help from an unexpected source. The Harpers, guardians of liberty throughout the Realms, have sent an agent to counter the Zhentarim. If she can help this stranger win the trust of the sheikhs, perhaps he can overcome the tribes’ ancestral rivalries and drive the invaders from the desert.
Ruha finds help from an unexpected source. The Harpers, guardians of liberty throughout the Realms, have sent an agent to counter the Zhentarim. If she can help this stranger win the trust of the sheikhs, perhaps he can overcome the tribes’ ancestral rivalries and drive the invaders from the desert.
310 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published July 1, 1991
65 people are currently reading
1301 people want to read
About the author
Troy Denning
186 books662 followersAlso known as Richard Awlinson.
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Den...
See http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Troy_Den...
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews
September 9, 2017
When going through these shared universes, there's always the occasional book that is so lacking in any redeeming quality that I keep asking myself "why am I doing this?", leading to an existential crisis where I debate the reasons for reading fantasy in the first place.
I believe I have successfully combated this disease this time, but the book was unfortunately still awful.
A lot of these books at least provide some measure of insight into the world, peoples, areas or gods of the Forgotten Realms. The Parched Sea did not even have that. There is nothing wrong with Denning's writing per se, and I have no qualms picking up another book by him if it sounds interesting, but this simply did not have anything appealing in it.
I believe I have successfully combated this disease this time, but the book was unfortunately still awful.
A lot of these books at least provide some measure of insight into the world, peoples, areas or gods of the Forgotten Realms. The Parched Sea did not even have that. There is nothing wrong with Denning's writing per se, and I have no qualms picking up another book by him if it sounds interesting, but this simply did not have anything appealing in it.
August 14, 2017
Yesterday, I enjoyed an unexpectedly long lunch period so was able to complete Troy Denning's The Parched Sea a full day ahead of schedule. This is the first book in "The Harper's" series, part of the Forgotten Realms milieu in the Dungeons and Dragons universe. A note about novels that are game tie-ins: I never expect them to be outstanding literature but I do expect them to be nice diverting entertainment, whisking me off to fantastical worlds and allowing me to excape my own reality. They usually fullfill that task although there are, of course, some exceptions. The Forgotten Realms setting has been better than most for me, especially the works of RA Salvatore although he occassionally misfires as well. The "Harpers" for those that don't know, are a semi-secret group of people devoted to good; i.e. helping people and causes that are in the best interest of others. The Harpers series is an open-ended subset of the greater Forgotten Realms setting, with each book of the 16 in the series being a stand alone novel and written by various authors.
"The Parched Sea" is among the better Forgotten realms novels I've read. I was in a mood to read some relatively straight-forward fantasy, looking for old fashioned adventure and intrigue with powerful magic inserted here and there. This one fit the bill splendidly. The setting is the unforgiving desert of Anauroch on the planet of Faerun (well known to Forgotten Realms fans) The main protagonist is Ruha, a Bedine "witch" outcast that has been married off to another tribe as a way to build an alliance. Lander is the Harper of this novel and has been sent to the desert to thwart the Zhentarim plans to enslave the indigenous peoples of the region. Together they face numerous challenges and attempt to overcome the difficulties of the situation.
I always enjoy novels where ordinary people do extraordinary things even though that sometimes leads to formula writing. Here both main characters have to dig deep and Ruha, especially, is able to call on some awesome magic. But here's what makes this book better than most basic fantasy, especially game tie-ins: the magic can be awesome but it has to be used in unusual and unexpected ways. Tactics and strategy win the battle, not just superior firepower. Mr Denning is an experienced author, and knows the Realms well, as evidenced by his ability to deftly describe the overall setting for the uninitiated reader. I'm often skeptical of authors who began their careers as game designers, knowing they have plenty of creativity but worried that they are only hack writers, churning out plots without regard to characterization, etc. But Mr Denning transcends that typecasting and really succeeds with this story. The characters were multi-dimensional, the story was intriguing, the plot was paced well, and overall it was a very enjoyable read. I'm looking forward to reading more of The Harper's series soon, even though different authors/characters may lead to hits and misses.
"The Parched Sea" is among the better Forgotten realms novels I've read. I was in a mood to read some relatively straight-forward fantasy, looking for old fashioned adventure and intrigue with powerful magic inserted here and there. This one fit the bill splendidly. The setting is the unforgiving desert of Anauroch on the planet of Faerun (well known to Forgotten Realms fans) The main protagonist is Ruha, a Bedine "witch" outcast that has been married off to another tribe as a way to build an alliance. Lander is the Harper of this novel and has been sent to the desert to thwart the Zhentarim plans to enslave the indigenous peoples of the region. Together they face numerous challenges and attempt to overcome the difficulties of the situation.
I always enjoy novels where ordinary people do extraordinary things even though that sometimes leads to formula writing. Here both main characters have to dig deep and Ruha, especially, is able to call on some awesome magic. But here's what makes this book better than most basic fantasy, especially game tie-ins: the magic can be awesome but it has to be used in unusual and unexpected ways. Tactics and strategy win the battle, not just superior firepower. Mr Denning is an experienced author, and knows the Realms well, as evidenced by his ability to deftly describe the overall setting for the uninitiated reader. I'm often skeptical of authors who began their careers as game designers, knowing they have plenty of creativity but worried that they are only hack writers, churning out plots without regard to characterization, etc. But Mr Denning transcends that typecasting and really succeeds with this story. The characters were multi-dimensional, the story was intriguing, the plot was paced well, and overall it was a very enjoyable read. I'm looking forward to reading more of The Harper's series soon, even though different authors/characters may lead to hits and misses.
February 12, 2024
Inspired by the recently released, excellent Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves I undertook to read a Harpers novel for the very first time and was not disappointed.
Lander vs the Lizard Men, probably.
I was initially a little weary of trope-iness but was pleasantly surprised when the occidental Harper agent Lander, from rain-soaked Sembia, actually turned out to be a second banana to our Bedouin-inspired heroine Ruha, an absurdly overpowered "Sand Witch" stymied by her culture's dual drawback of rigid misogyny and superstitious rejection of all forms of magic. It was fun and inspiring to read her journey overcoming these obstacles as well as the murderous intent of the insidious Zhentarim and the harsh desert conditions.
Ruha, probably.
On the downside, while the author does a decent job world-building the tribal structures of the Bedine of the Anauroch desert he does abuse his English-Arabic dictionary a touch too much to describe garments, gear and geography without a word of explanation. Also, for a first book in a series the origins of both the Harpers as an organization as well as Lander as their chosen agent in this matter were, I felt, given short shrift on the whole, though perhaps this could be excused if Denning didn't realize this would be the first published book at the time of its writing.
Next up in my reading the realms journey TBD (open to suggestions!)
February 24, 2009
I really liked this book.
I will admit that I was desperate for some fantasy at the time, and this one filled the slot well. It takes place in the desert of Anaroch. To be perfectly honest, the plot was only soso, but the descriptions of the people and society and culture were intruiguing to me. I love that stuff. This is also only one book, not a series, and I think that plot always suffers when the author is constricted to 300 odd pages. But I'd say he did a good job (also, there is another book with some of the same characters, writen 5 years later, but 11 books down the road. I think that it is intended to be read on it's own.)
SO, this is the first book in the Harper series...
I will admit that I was desperate for some fantasy at the time, and this one filled the slot well. It takes place in the desert of Anaroch. To be perfectly honest, the plot was only soso, but the descriptions of the people and society and culture were intruiguing to me. I love that stuff. This is also only one book, not a series, and I think that plot always suffers when the author is constricted to 300 odd pages. But I'd say he did a good job (also, there is another book with some of the same characters, writen 5 years later, but 11 books down the road. I think that it is intended to be read on it's own.)
SO, this is the first book in the Harper series...
July 15, 2015
The Desert Fantasy sub-genre isn't something you run across everyday. This book was for me like an exotic treat from a mystical land. I thought that the story worked well enough, I loved the two main characters, and there were a few surprises along the way. I was also impressed out how well-researched the book was concerning desert cultures. Even as a Forgotten Realms adventure story, there was so much real-life survival going on that it made the story seem real. You actually don't learn very much about the Harpers or the power-hungry Zentarim, but it doesn't matter because you feel like you are riding along with the characters, desperate to save the desert from exploitation. Me gusta!
September 11, 2008
Basically, this is Dungeons and Dragons meets Lawerence of Arabia. It's utterly predictable and unoriginal, and since its been nearly 20 years since I read it I can't really vouch for its (probably) pretty pedestrian prose. I don't remember whether this was particularly well writen or not, I just could never get over how derivative it was. Troy isn't that bad of a writer for being in the TSR/WotC stable and some of my friends enjoyed this, but that's about as much of a recommendation as I could make.
October 9, 2011
I’ve read my local library out of books I find interesting. I’m going to give the library a break for a month or two, so more new books get shuffled in, and I have some new stuff to read. In the meantime, I decided to go back into my Forgotten Realms book collection, since I’m getting interested in D&D and the setting again, and read some of the more obscure, lesser-known books. The first one I pulled out was The Parched Sea, by Troy Denning, the first book in the Harpers series.
All in all, it was a pretty quick read. The basic plotline is fairly simple: The Zhentarim want to enslave the Bedine to establish safe trading routes through the Anauroch, a Harper is sent to stop them, and zaniness ensues. Lander, the Harper agent, comes off as a typical Harper. He was a fairly bland character, I thought, with the only interesting tidbits about him was that his mother was a Cyricist, and that he wore an eye-patch because a pet falcon he had in his youth pecked that eye out. Ruha, on the other hand, I liked a bit more. She appears in the Return of the Archwizards trilogy (which I read before I picked up this book), so The Parched Sea is something of a prequel for her for those of you who read the books in the order I read them in. I found Ruha more interesting in The Parched Sea than I did in Return of the Archwizards because she was in her “native element”, so to speak. Kadumi, Ruha’s 13-year-old brother-in-law, was an interesting character.
One element that I liked a great deal about The Parched Sea was that, when a chapter had a Bedine character as it’s main focus, it was written with a specifically Bedine point of view. For example, At’ar is the Bedine goddess of the sun who, like in the cultures of plenty of ancient civilizations, actually is the sun. When mentioning the sun, Denning would reference it as At’ar, rather than as the sun. Same thing with other elements of the desert, such as sandstorms, for example. Sandstorms weren’t sandstorms. Sandstorms were Kozah’s wrath. Relatively minor things, but they make the novel feel a lot more exotic, since the Bedine are such a relatively exotic culture. Lander’s discussions about religious synthesis of Cyric being N’asr, and Eldath being free everywhere else on Faerûn were interesting little factoids that enriched the story.
Another feature that makes the book feel more exotic is the regular use of the Bedine language. I actually have a problem with this, though. These pseudo-Arabic words are used throughout the book, but translations are not given anywhere. Context clues help, as do repeated uses, but a dictionary of these terms at the end of the book would have been appreciated- I don’t keep an Arabic dictionary or the Anauroch sourcebook on hand at all times, and thus, sometimes came across words that were never specifically defined that basically went over my head. Such things didn’t take away my understanding of what was going on in the story, but not remembering what ‘X’ meant and saying to myself, “Yeah, okay, whatever…” isn’t exactly the best thing you happening.
The overall plotline, which was a basic trope- the bad guys lead a force to somewhere where the lone good guy has to unify people that don’t necessarily like each other in order to repel them- was a little weak and unrealistic, I think. The Zhentish force, it was mentioned, numbered 2,000, plus Abashi mercenaries. Yes, they had magic, something the Bedine didn’t have, and were a unified fighting force, unlike the Bedine, but I find it very unrealistic that 2,000 Zhents, plus their mercenaries, would actually pose a threat to subjugating the Bedine, throughout the entire Anauroch. The ending to the book, another trope- foreigner who is tired of living with unfair rules decides to move to a place where he can be free- was also unrealistic. Lander the Sembian, who was going to take Ruha back to Sembia with him, died. We know that Ruha eventually left the Anauroch, made it to Sembia (presumably) and became a Harper based on the Return of the Archwizards. Ruha, who had basically no support in leaving the Anauroch and making it to Sembia, a completely foreign land, somehow did, and even somehow became a Harper, despite not knowing anybody. Not saying it couldn’t happen, but…
All in all, it was a pretty quick read. The basic plotline is fairly simple: The Zhentarim want to enslave the Bedine to establish safe trading routes through the Anauroch, a Harper is sent to stop them, and zaniness ensues. Lander, the Harper agent, comes off as a typical Harper. He was a fairly bland character, I thought, with the only interesting tidbits about him was that his mother was a Cyricist, and that he wore an eye-patch because a pet falcon he had in his youth pecked that eye out. Ruha, on the other hand, I liked a bit more. She appears in the Return of the Archwizards trilogy (which I read before I picked up this book), so The Parched Sea is something of a prequel for her for those of you who read the books in the order I read them in. I found Ruha more interesting in The Parched Sea than I did in Return of the Archwizards because she was in her “native element”, so to speak. Kadumi, Ruha’s 13-year-old brother-in-law, was an interesting character.
One element that I liked a great deal about The Parched Sea was that, when a chapter had a Bedine character as it’s main focus, it was written with a specifically Bedine point of view. For example, At’ar is the Bedine goddess of the sun who, like in the cultures of plenty of ancient civilizations, actually is the sun. When mentioning the sun, Denning would reference it as At’ar, rather than as the sun. Same thing with other elements of the desert, such as sandstorms, for example. Sandstorms weren’t sandstorms. Sandstorms were Kozah’s wrath. Relatively minor things, but they make the novel feel a lot more exotic, since the Bedine are such a relatively exotic culture. Lander’s discussions about religious synthesis of Cyric being N’asr, and Eldath being free everywhere else on Faerûn were interesting little factoids that enriched the story.
Another feature that makes the book feel more exotic is the regular use of the Bedine language. I actually have a problem with this, though. These pseudo-Arabic words are used throughout the book, but translations are not given anywhere. Context clues help, as do repeated uses, but a dictionary of these terms at the end of the book would have been appreciated- I don’t keep an Arabic dictionary or the Anauroch sourcebook on hand at all times, and thus, sometimes came across words that were never specifically defined that basically went over my head. Such things didn’t take away my understanding of what was going on in the story, but not remembering what ‘X’ meant and saying to myself, “Yeah, okay, whatever…” isn’t exactly the best thing you happening.
The overall plotline, which was a basic trope- the bad guys lead a force to somewhere where the lone good guy has to unify people that don’t necessarily like each other in order to repel them- was a little weak and unrealistic, I think. The Zhentish force, it was mentioned, numbered 2,000, plus Abashi mercenaries. Yes, they had magic, something the Bedine didn’t have, and were a unified fighting force, unlike the Bedine, but I find it very unrealistic that 2,000 Zhents, plus their mercenaries, would actually pose a threat to subjugating the Bedine, throughout the entire Anauroch. The ending to the book, another trope- foreigner who is tired of living with unfair rules decides to move to a place where he can be free- was also unrealistic. Lander the Sembian, who was going to take Ruha back to Sembia with him, died. We know that Ruha eventually left the Anauroch, made it to Sembia (presumably) and became a Harper based on the Return of the Archwizards. Ruha, who had basically no support in leaving the Anauroch and making it to Sembia, a completely foreign land, somehow did, and even somehow became a Harper, despite not knowing anybody. Not saying it couldn’t happen, but…
May 23, 2023
3.5 stars
Nice little Bedouin inspired fantasy story. Had less of a fantastical feel than many other fantasy books, but was still fun at fleshing out the culture of a part of the forgotten realms world. I listened to the audio book, but not sure. If it was riveting enough to fully keep my attention to everything, might have been better to read on paper. Character work was okay, but I wish they expanded more on some of the characters, I don't feel like I cared enough about certain characters that were built up etc.
Nice little Bedouin inspired fantasy story. Had less of a fantastical feel than many other fantasy books, but was still fun at fleshing out the culture of a part of the forgotten realms world. I listened to the audio book, but not sure. If it was riveting enough to fully keep my attention to everything, might have been better to read on paper. Character work was okay, but I wish they expanded more on some of the characters, I don't feel like I cared enough about certain characters that were built up etc.
April 5, 2019
Reading the Forgotten Realms novels in publication order, it is interesting to see what comes out of specific writers over time. Troy Denning wrote the least-intolerable book in the gods-awful Avatar trilogy (Waterdeep), then the pretty-good second entry in the Empires trilogy (Dragonwall), which worked fairly well as a semi-standalone novel, although it suffered in comparison to the first entry in that series (Horselords) by David Cook. Here in The Parched Sea, we finally get to see a Troy Denning treatment of the Realms, wholly unleashed from the narrative requirements of others.
The Harpers "series" of novels was published in the early 1990's. There is no continuing storyline; rather each entry simply had to have some connection to The Harpers of Forgotten Realms lore. As such, it seems to me as it TSR simply told any interested authors, "Write whatever you want as long as it has a Harper in it somewhere". The Parched Sea would not have suffered if the character Lander identified with any other group instead.
It is good! You have the barely-disguised translation of "Bedouin" to "The Bedine" to describe a desert-dwelling culture. Troy Denning paints a rich people here, and manages to evoke a vivid, life-filled desert without compromising the harsh nature of the environment. The characters are well-developed and empathetic. The story is compelling. I do not recall any instance of dragging plot. There is a proper amount of action packed into a tight just-over-300 pages. There are just enough fantasy elements to keep it planted firmly in Dungeons & Dragons lore, while retaining the uniqueness of the desert setting of Anauroch.
One thing in particular that I appreciated, was that this is the first Forgotten Realms novel that portrays the Zhentarim as any kind of legitimate threat. Earlier in publication order, they were featured in the Avatar trilogy and in Ed Greenwood's Spellfire, and in both of those cases the Zhentarim were pitifully laughable enemies, bumbling fools screaming "Evil!" without any competence, diminishing in turn the standing of the 'heroes' who oppose them. Here, this enemy nation is portrayed as a reasonable threat for the first time.
My reading of this novel was broken up by a number of other books (often a stream of library loans that I was running out of time on) and the need to study for and write a professional certification exam, so what could have been an easy few days' read turned into almost 3 months. But despite these long interruptions, The Parched Sea maintained my interest and appreciation of the characters, which I take to signify the quality of this book, as far as pulp fantasy enjoyments (my favourite kind of enjoyments) go.
The Harpers "series" of novels was published in the early 1990's. There is no continuing storyline; rather each entry simply had to have some connection to The Harpers of Forgotten Realms lore. As such, it seems to me as it TSR simply told any interested authors, "Write whatever you want as long as it has a Harper in it somewhere". The Parched Sea would not have suffered if the character Lander identified with any other group instead.
It is good! You have the barely-disguised translation of "Bedouin" to "The Bedine" to describe a desert-dwelling culture. Troy Denning paints a rich people here, and manages to evoke a vivid, life-filled desert without compromising the harsh nature of the environment. The characters are well-developed and empathetic. The story is compelling. I do not recall any instance of dragging plot. There is a proper amount of action packed into a tight just-over-300 pages. There are just enough fantasy elements to keep it planted firmly in Dungeons & Dragons lore, while retaining the uniqueness of the desert setting of Anauroch.
One thing in particular that I appreciated, was that this is the first Forgotten Realms novel that portrays the Zhentarim as any kind of legitimate threat. Earlier in publication order, they were featured in the Avatar trilogy and in Ed Greenwood's Spellfire, and in both of those cases the Zhentarim were pitifully laughable enemies, bumbling fools screaming "Evil!" without any competence, diminishing in turn the standing of the 'heroes' who oppose them. Here, this enemy nation is portrayed as a reasonable threat for the first time.
My reading of this novel was broken up by a number of other books (often a stream of library loans that I was running out of time on) and the need to study for and write a professional certification exam, so what could have been an easy few days' read turned into almost 3 months. But despite these long interruptions, The Parched Sea maintained my interest and appreciation of the characters, which I take to signify the quality of this book, as far as pulp fantasy enjoyments (my favourite kind of enjoyments) go.
May 9, 2023
Never heard of the Harpers or these books from the 1990's until I saw the Dungeons and Dragons movie in 2023 and I looked into it.
Not the best but it was a quick read that kept me reading.
Not the best but it was a quick read that kept me reading.
March 25, 2018
I'd hazard to explain the narrative of this book as an interesting look at a High Fantasy version of corporate politics. The Forgotten Realms D&D setting lends it most of its strength (which is how I found it in the first place), but it's solid in its writing and plot, decent in character development, and sets a good pace (not focusing on battles which become tedious to read for too long).
But what really earns the four from me is the entire premise of the Harpers series - dozens of self contained stories that don't reference each other, but exist only to flesh out the original setting. I respect that for its dedication to storytelling. It's goddamned hard to tie a neat bow on a narrative and end it there in a way that's truly satisfying to readers. And Denning managed it with The Parched Sea.
It's not one of the greats, but it's a solid book by its very nature and a lover of the D&D setting like myself would enjoy the read. Also, I love that even a low-tech setting can have the same horrible shenanigans with corporations that we do in the modern age.
But what really earns the four from me is the entire premise of the Harpers series - dozens of self contained stories that don't reference each other, but exist only to flesh out the original setting. I respect that for its dedication to storytelling. It's goddamned hard to tie a neat bow on a narrative and end it there in a way that's truly satisfying to readers. And Denning managed it with The Parched Sea.
It's not one of the greats, but it's a solid book by its very nature and a lover of the D&D setting like myself would enjoy the read. Also, I love that even a low-tech setting can have the same horrible shenanigans with corporations that we do in the modern age.
August 29, 2021
I have not read 'Seven Pillars of Wisdom' and therefore cannot compare these works. If this is an adaptation of a classic book, then I'm happy to get familiar with this famous autobiographical account through the lenses of Denning's perception.
The author's style is quite smooth and a reader can feel his familiarity with the culture of desert nomads. The plot is linear and predictable, but does not cause much rejection. The characters are quite archetypal, but not monotonous. At the end of the story, there is no gloomy feeling like 'what the hell was that?'.
Despite the fact that I liked this novel much less than, say, the novels of Paul S. Kemp, it is still much better than the works of great and terrible Ed Greenwood.
The author's style is quite smooth and a reader can feel his familiarity with the culture of desert nomads. The plot is linear and predictable, but does not cause much rejection. The characters are quite archetypal, but not monotonous. At the end of the story, there is no gloomy feeling like 'what the hell was that?'.
Despite the fact that I liked this novel much less than, say, the novels of Paul S. Kemp, it is still much better than the works of great and terrible Ed Greenwood.
September 8, 2019
The first entry in the Forgotten Realms' Harpers series, this book is, most definitely, Lawrence of Arabia adapted for D&D. Pretty much. I'll be honest, though: I'm apparently a sucker for this sort of thing. I have no idea why. It surprises me every time. Denning drops in a fair bit of exposition, especially early on, but once I settled in things read along smoothly. Maintained interest throughout. Ending isn't terribly surprising but doesn't shy away where it could and is more rewarding, probably, for it.
March 30, 2019
The book does a good job of keeping you guessing with unexpected yet believable plot twists. Character development is a little sparse and dialog slightly wooden, but those things aside this is one of the better D&D novels I've read - better than many others more famous.
July 22, 2014
Apparently it is a copy of Lawrence of Arabia
22 July 2014
After reading through a number of reviews for other Forgotten Realms books that I had read, and noting the regular comments on how terrible the writing is and how unoriginal the plots are, I decided that, after a 20 year break, I will try to find some that I have not read (because I am not sure if I could really force myself to read one that I have already read) so I thought that I would settle on the Harper's series. As it happened, as soon as I read the blurb for this book it all come flooding back to me – yes, I can add this one to the list of books that I have read.
I can't remember much about it except that it is about a bunch of evil traders (the Zhentirim) trying to force a trade route across a vast desert so that they can make money and screw the inhabitants of the land. I also know that it is about how a group of tribespeople known as the Bedin and one of their women stand up to this evil group of people and defeat them. My friend also claims that when I finished this book I took it to him, handed it to him, and said 'this is rubbish, here, you might like it'. Needless to say that statement really didn't endear it to him, and from what I can remember, to this day he has not read it.
It is interesting to think about the Zhentirim because they have been a stock villain of the Forgotten Realms for, well, forever (though I believe that Zhentil Keep has since been destroyed and is now a haunting ground for demons), and after reading the blurb for this book that I have mostly forgotten about it sounds as if they are like a, well, modern corporation, or corporate state. It appears that the only reason they are entering the Anarouch (which is the name of the desert) is to create a road through it, and the only reason for that is to generate a profit. It seems that a lot of corporations do this as well (and don't care about the impact they have upon the inhabitants, and will do their best to rip the inhabitants off as well), yet what they never seemed to do in the Forgotten Realms is to successfully interweave this evil citadel into the society of the Realms to create an entity upon which the society was dependant, yet inwardly malicious, and in many cases psychotic. I guess that is one of the things that I did not particularly like about the Realms (and Dungeons and Dragons) in that there was a very black and white approach to good and evil and every time I tried to ditch alignment people would jump up and ferociously object.
Me, well, I still don't like alignment in Dungeons & Dragons.
22 July 2014
After reading through a number of reviews for other Forgotten Realms books that I had read, and noting the regular comments on how terrible the writing is and how unoriginal the plots are, I decided that, after a 20 year break, I will try to find some that I have not read (because I am not sure if I could really force myself to read one that I have already read) so I thought that I would settle on the Harper's series. As it happened, as soon as I read the blurb for this book it all come flooding back to me – yes, I can add this one to the list of books that I have read.
I can't remember much about it except that it is about a bunch of evil traders (the Zhentirim) trying to force a trade route across a vast desert so that they can make money and screw the inhabitants of the land. I also know that it is about how a group of tribespeople known as the Bedin and one of their women stand up to this evil group of people and defeat them. My friend also claims that when I finished this book I took it to him, handed it to him, and said 'this is rubbish, here, you might like it'. Needless to say that statement really didn't endear it to him, and from what I can remember, to this day he has not read it.
It is interesting to think about the Zhentirim because they have been a stock villain of the Forgotten Realms for, well, forever (though I believe that Zhentil Keep has since been destroyed and is now a haunting ground for demons), and after reading the blurb for this book that I have mostly forgotten about it sounds as if they are like a, well, modern corporation, or corporate state. It appears that the only reason they are entering the Anarouch (which is the name of the desert) is to create a road through it, and the only reason for that is to generate a profit. It seems that a lot of corporations do this as well (and don't care about the impact they have upon the inhabitants, and will do their best to rip the inhabitants off as well), yet what they never seemed to do in the Forgotten Realms is to successfully interweave this evil citadel into the society of the Realms to create an entity upon which the society was dependant, yet inwardly malicious, and in many cases psychotic. I guess that is one of the things that I did not particularly like about the Realms (and Dungeons and Dragons) in that there was a very black and white approach to good and evil and every time I tried to ditch alignment people would jump up and ferociously object.
Me, well, I still don't like alignment in Dungeons & Dragons.
May 6, 2021
I first stumbled into the Forgotten Realms many (*many*...) years ago with Elaine Cunningham Elfshadow and Elfsong and I highly recommend starting there instead. And really just staying there. I picked this up as I figured it was about time that I see what book 1 of The Harpers series was about...
Eh. The setting was solid (love a good desert, very here for the local flora and fauna) and very here for magic-wielding desert ladies (Ruha had so much more promise than she the space she was given) but it took over a third of the book to 1) finally pick up the pace (barely) and 2) introduce anything even _vaguely_ interesting about the other main character (and it wasn't even about him, it was about his mother). If there is a better description of Lander than milquetoast I'll wait for it. Actually I won't as honestly I have better things to do. Or, you know, I could probably find some. I would wait (maybe) to meet his [spoilers... but not really because it has absolutely nothing to do with this story in literally anyway at all and actually very unclear how it was relevant at all] apparently actually demonic mom. She sounds like way more fun.
So this is more like 1.5 stars but rounded up for... the camels maybe? (though Pyramids has much, much better camels - highly, highly recommend Pratchett's camels)
Eh. The setting was solid (love a good desert, very here for the local flora and fauna) and very here for magic-wielding desert ladies (Ruha had so much more promise than she the space she was given) but it took over a third of the book to 1) finally pick up the pace (barely) and 2) introduce anything even _vaguely_ interesting about the other main character (and it wasn't even about him, it was about his mother). If there is a better description of Lander than milquetoast I'll wait for it. Actually I won't as honestly I have better things to do. Or, you know, I could probably find some. I would wait (maybe) to meet his [spoilers... but not really because it has absolutely nothing to do with this story in literally anyway at all and actually very unclear how it was relevant at all] apparently actually demonic mom. She sounds like way more fun.
So this is more like 1.5 stars but rounded up for... the camels maybe? (though Pyramids has much, much better camels - highly, highly recommend Pratchett's camels)
October 30, 2023
An interesting choice for the first of the Harper books, some good ideas but at the end of the day slightly boring. I liked the main character but that's about it. The author clearly read one too many Arabian knights stories and, I can't emphasize this enough, needed to put down his Arabic dictionary! Still a nice intro to one of the main protagonist in the world.
Just okay.
Just okay.
January 8, 2020
I like that this book showcases a fantasy culture that picks up on middle Eastern themes and showcases a strong female lead, who wishes to respect her cultural heritage, despite being ostracized for her magic.
December 27, 2023
This was a bit hard to place. In many ways, it doesn't feel like a Forgotten Realms story at all. For many D&D novels I would say that's a good thing, but I think this one could have benefited with a bit more connection to the world as a whole.
I think the overall writing style was decent. I very much liked his colorful and descriptive writing style. He painted a very vivid and entrancing scene in many different moments throughout the book, and in truth, much of his writing felt more elevated than I've read in other fantasy novels, even some of his own (notably the twilight giants). Where it fell short for me was the narrative elements. Firstly, I thought most of the character writing was lackluster. Ruha was the only character who had any growth to speak of. That makes sense given the overall story, but I also found most characters to lack depth or personality.
The overall story felt plodding and presented warped senses of urgency and impact. Most dialog came off as surface level, stiff, and rather rudimentary. The introduction of conflicting cultural elements was interesting, but I think it came off with a bit too much "civilized outsider helping the ignorant." I think there was a sweet spot where it could have worked well, and for sure it could have come off A LOT worse, but it was definitely a sour note that I picked up on reading it for the first time in 2023.
I understand some of the reasons why this book feels aged in my eyes. The set and action writing were engaging, but the dialog, plot, and delivery of the message left much to be desired. I don't think this is indicative of the author's skill, however. I've certainly seen some fantastic writing from Dennings, including (appropiately) Cucible: The Trial of Cyric the Mad. In summation I don't think this was a bad book, but it wasn't very good. I started it because I wanted to read through all of The Harper's series, and though I understand it's a very loosely connected series of novels, I felt that this was a pretty weak start.
I think the overall writing style was decent. I very much liked his colorful and descriptive writing style. He painted a very vivid and entrancing scene in many different moments throughout the book, and in truth, much of his writing felt more elevated than I've read in other fantasy novels, even some of his own (notably the twilight giants). Where it fell short for me was the narrative elements. Firstly, I thought most of the character writing was lackluster. Ruha was the only character who had any growth to speak of. That makes sense given the overall story, but I also found most characters to lack depth or personality.
The overall story felt plodding and presented warped senses of urgency and impact. Most dialog came off as surface level, stiff, and rather rudimentary. The introduction of conflicting cultural elements was interesting, but I think it came off with a bit too much "civilized outsider helping the ignorant." I think there was a sweet spot where it could have worked well, and for sure it could have come off A LOT worse, but it was definitely a sour note that I picked up on reading it for the first time in 2023.
I understand some of the reasons why this book feels aged in my eyes. The set and action writing were engaging, but the dialog, plot, and delivery of the message left much to be desired. I don't think this is indicative of the author's skill, however. I've certainly seen some fantastic writing from Dennings, including (appropiately) Cucible: The Trial of Cyric the Mad. In summation I don't think this was a bad book, but it wasn't very good. I started it because I wanted to read through all of The Harper's series, and though I understand it's a very loosely connected series of novels, I felt that this was a pretty weak start.
December 2, 2022
TSR (no Wizards of the Coast) has produced an impressive library of novels set in their popular D&D worlds - and the Forgotten Realms represents the lion's share of these novels. Some are good, some are not. This one falls right in the middle of that spectrum as a solid "mediocre". The series as a whole offer a lot to fans of the Realms, fleshing out the Harpers as an organization and their impact on the Realms. This particular novel strikes me as an odd choice though as the first novel in the series as it is set in one of the lesser know regions (Anauroch) instead of the more expected and known Dalelands or Sword Coast.
So far as the novel itself, it's a very (very) slow build up, but the action picks up later in the book and becomes a lot more engaging. Once the action picks up, and the Harper protagonist, his recently acquired companions, and several of the local tribes engage in all out battle with the Zhentarim invaders, things become pretty exciting - but it took a lot of pages to get there.
So far as the novel itself, it's a very (very) slow build up, but the action picks up later in the book and becomes a lot more engaging. Once the action picks up, and the Harper protagonist, his recently acquired companions, and several of the local tribes engage in all out battle with the Zhentarim invaders, things become pretty exciting - but it took a lot of pages to get there.
January 23, 2022
This book overall was an Okay book. I was bored with the beginning of the book. There is something about talking about a dessert that bores me. The first book in the Harper set didn't spend much time talking about Harpers or their way of life. For a society that is ran by tradition and superstition it doesn't take long for the sheikhs to listen to a women, respect and heed her advice and to except a witch. The part of the book that was unnecessary..... A. Love. Interest. Just because an author writes a book that has a main male and female character doesn't mean they have to fall in love. Not just fall in love, but be soo hot for each other they can't keep their hands off of each other no mater how much trouble it may get them in with their tribe.
April 3, 2023
Might be more of a 3.5 but I still enjoyed this book! (Nabbed it from a charity shop. What a steal).
I felt this was a little more of a slow burn book, with some societal politics interspersed that isn't really my thing.
Ruha is a witch who is in an outcast in a pretty sexist society. However, this never detracted from her character or own agency. This was especially funny when paired with the Harper who, to put it simply, drank his respect women juice.
The desert was appropriately depicted as a hostile environment and was used interestingly.
The magic was described very well, component casting and all, with creative uses.
Ending was interesting and picked up the pace a bit. Overall plot was a little predictable but good.
I felt this was a little more of a slow burn book, with some societal politics interspersed that isn't really my thing.
Ruha is a witch who is in an outcast in a pretty sexist society. However, this never detracted from her character or own agency. This was especially funny when paired with the Harper who, to put it simply, drank his respect women juice.
The desert was appropriately depicted as a hostile environment and was used interestingly.
The magic was described very well, component casting and all, with creative uses.
Ending was interesting and picked up the pace a bit. Overall plot was a little predictable but good.
November 26, 2020
BLUF: Ugh.
To expound on this, given that this book came out in the early 90's, it makes sense that TSR would want to expand their Forgotten Realms campaign to include the Arabian desert, since American interests were starting to wander in that direction. And naturally, they did it in an incredibly heavy-handed way.
On top of that, this is the first entry in the FR-sprawling Harpers series, each entry of which is a stand alone adventure on its own, with a couple interweaving themes. As a result, the characters don't really get a chance to shine, and overall this just feels like an easier way to read the Anauroch campaign setting.
To expound on this, given that this book came out in the early 90's, it makes sense that TSR would want to expand their Forgotten Realms campaign to include the Arabian desert, since American interests were starting to wander in that direction. And naturally, they did it in an incredibly heavy-handed way.
On top of that, this is the first entry in the FR-sprawling Harpers series, each entry of which is a stand alone adventure on its own, with a couple interweaving themes. As a result, the characters don't really get a chance to shine, and overall this just feels like an easier way to read the Anauroch campaign setting.
August 9, 2017
Yes, as most reviewers have stated, this is a D&D rewrite of Lawrence of Arabia, but accusing a book of lifting its plot from a prior work is a pointless thing considering most fiction works in existence have done precisely this, and it's the done thing.
But on its own merits, The Parched Sea is a lightweight and enjoyable read, which is exactly how your Dungeons and Dragons fiction should be. There are no profundities here, no depths of character or complex plotting. It's a simply told tale that does its job. Shame about that rushed and abrupt ending though.
But on its own merits, The Parched Sea is a lightweight and enjoyable read, which is exactly how your Dungeons and Dragons fiction should be. There are no profundities here, no depths of character or complex plotting. It's a simply told tale that does its job. Shame about that rushed and abrupt ending though.
February 28, 2025
This book is kind of ahead of it's time. It is one of the better D&D tie-in novels & I have enjoyed Mr. Denning's other work as well. It is ahead because the primary character is a woman who is an Arabic /Muslim trope (in a fantasy game setting) and she is the heroine of the story. It is barely a Harper-centric novel as a Harper is a main character in the story but that's it. It gets a little repetitive and that caused some drag. It gets that extra * (most tie-ins get 3 if their any good) because of the main character Ruha.
February 8, 2018
Spoilers: None of the characters were likable, you pretty much had to deal with Arabs treating their women like second class citizens just like in the real world. Ruha was trying to escape these oppressive people because she's a woman and a sorceress.(or witch as she keeps being insultingly called and spat at) in the end she stayed with the men that treated her like crap.
By the end I was really hoping they all got slaughtered.
By the end I was really hoping they all got slaughtered.
March 3, 2022
In pratica un gioco dell'oca di D&D con cammelli e beduini, dalla trama piuttosto risibile (cacciare via gli Zhentarim), scene di battaglia piuttosto grossolane (la sconfitta degli asabis fa ridere) e con un finale che s'interrompe di colpo al termine della battaglia finale. Nonostante questi difetti, "The Parched Sea" è stata una piacevole lettura, il personaggio di Ruha è simpatico e l'ambientazione fa' comunque il suo effetto. Non arriviamo a tre stelle, ma non ci manca moltissimo.
May 22, 2022
A series of battles across the desert sands. A brief but uninteresting romance between a white man and a widow.
The feeling of hot desert was well portrayed, but there wasn't much tension or worry for me for the characters. They just felt a bit flat, as did the battles, though they were clear.
Also, the Harpers didn't feel very thematic. Just a regular do-gooder with a lightly flushed out past that didn't have any real meaning to the plot.
The feeling of hot desert was well portrayed, but there wasn't much tension or worry for me for the characters. They just felt a bit flat, as did the battles, though they were clear.
Also, the Harpers didn't feel very thematic. Just a regular do-gooder with a lightly flushed out past that didn't have any real meaning to the plot.
August 2, 2022
The story has enough consistency for the reader to be able to finish the book, that's why it gets two stars.
There are no real characters in the novel, only "types" and "clichés". Same goes for the story, the setting, and even the magic. The moment you've read the first three pages and know it's book one of the Harper series, it's over, nothing new is ever added, unless you're like me and go on for the sake of some details on the Forgotten Realms and Zhentarim.
There are no real characters in the novel, only "types" and "clichés". Same goes for the story, the setting, and even the magic. The moment you've read the first three pages and know it's book one of the Harper series, it's over, nothing new is ever added, unless you're like me and go on for the sake of some details on the Forgotten Realms and Zhentarim.
April 25, 2024
What can I say, I love a classic TSR DND novel. I played a DND char who made contact with the Harper's organization and became an agent for them. Always wanted to explore that more in game but never really got the chance. This book helped give me more insight on what it meant to be a Harper in the forgotten realms. Book one of the open ended Harper sage was very good. A bittersweet ending but one that fit the story. Looking forward to the other Harper and TSR novels over the summer.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 68 reviews