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Forgotten Realms: The Rogues #2
The Black Bouquet
The second title in a series of stand-alone adventures about the secret life of rogues.
He thought it was a game.
He thought no one would get hurt.
He thought he could trust a tanarukk bandit.
He thought he was hired for his skill and cunning.
He thought it was just another victim, just another mark.
He thought he could do his job without turning the entire city against him.
He was wrong.
Second in a new series that brings to life the people who survive on the fringes and in the shadows of the Forgotten Realms world--The Rogues.
He thought it was a game.
He thought no one would get hurt.
He thought he could trust a tanarukk bandit.
He thought he was hired for his skill and cunning.
He thought it was just another victim, just another mark.
He thought he could do his job without turning the entire city against him.
He was wrong.
Second in a new series that brings to life the people who survive on the fringes and in the shadows of the Forgotten Realms world--The Rogues.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 2003
5 people are currently reading
410 people want to read
About the author
Richard Lee Byers
198 books370 followersA resident of the Tampa Bay area, Richard spends much of his leisure time fencing, playing poker, shooting pool and is a frequent guest at Florida science-fiction conventions. His current projects include new novels set in the Forgotten Realms universe and the eBook post-apocalyptic superhero series The Impostor.
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Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews
June 10, 2018
this book could have been better. I really liked the setting, the characters and the plot. at some point though too many sides, plot twists and unexpected changes happened. it's a real gift for a writer to come up with plot twists that leave the audience baffled. but if this happens so many times with so many characters and interests involved, it loses its purpose and also gets tiring to follow. too bad, because otherwise this book was a solid fantasy book with suspense, good battles and intriguing characters.
April 13, 2025
This was a fun read in a new section of Forgotten Realms that I had not visited before, that of the city of Obele in the Border Kingdoms South of The Lake of Steam
We are introduced to three major characters: Miri the ranger, Aeron the thief, and Sefris a dark cleric of Shar. We watch as these three characters revolve around each other, joining forces or opposing each other at different points in the story.
There are several other great characters that the major players come up against, and the rough-and-tumble city of Obele is a great backdrop for this adventure.
I thought this was fun romp and have enjoyed the Thieves Novels a lot!
We are introduced to three major characters: Miri the ranger, Aeron the thief, and Sefris a dark cleric of Shar. We watch as these three characters revolve around each other, joining forces or opposing each other at different points in the story.
There are several other great characters that the major players come up against, and the rough-and-tumble city of Obele is a great backdrop for this adventure.
I thought this was fun romp and have enjoyed the Thieves Novels a lot!
February 2, 2019
"I always hoped to steer you toward an honest, upright manner of living. I'm starting to be glad it didn't work."
September 2, 2025
I've read dozens of Dragonlance and Forgotten Realms books and most are okay - nothing great but enjoyable, nonetheless. This was actually really good.
October 9, 2011
Like the other books in the series, The Black Bouquet places an emphasis on the Rogue, and some of the going-ons in Faerûn concerning Rogues.
The Black Bouquet is set in the city-state of Oeble, a nation within the Border Kingdoms. There’s nothing wrong with that, in and of itself, but I think that this is a flaw with the book. Mind you, again, there’s nothing wrong with Oeble- it is described in good detail, and definitely succeeds in making the place seem like a lawless cesspool you really don’t want to live in. The fact that Oeble is a Border Kingdom, one of the places on Faerûn’s map that is relatively blank and detail-light, makes the setting feel generic. We know, since the novel is canon, that Oeble is a city-state in the Border Kingdoms, and exists on Faerûn, but it feels generic enough that it could be written into any other fantasy setting. Not enough ‘cross-pollenization’ exists within the book, I think, to really make Oeble seem Faerûnian.
I didn’t really feel that any of the characters stood out, except Sefris, one of the two antagonists of the novel. Aeron, one of the two main characters, was a generic thief without anything that really set him apart from any number of the many thief characters who have appeared in Forgotten Realms novels, sourcebooks, and games over the years. There was nothing specifically wrong with his character, but there was nothing that made him stand out as anything special, either. Miri, the second of the two main characters, I liked her better. She is a Ranger who was very much out of her element, in the cesspool that is Oeble, so that aspect of the character was interesting. A country bumpkin, so to speak, in the big city. In a way, that hamstrung the character. For the most part, her abilities consisted of tracking and archery. I am sure that if there were scenes that took place in the wilderness, she’d seem like a more dynamic character. Her full array of abilities, and her ‘relative worth’ weren’t explored in full, so I think I discounted her a bit as a result. Kesk, one of two antagonists, was a decent character. He was a Tanaruuk, and it’s not often that you see Tanaruuk in novels- let alone relatively smart ones. I enjoyed that fact. Although he seemingly was a Barbarian, or maybe a Fighter, he wasn’t stupid. Not enough was done to make him seem like more than a generic brute, though. Don’t get me wrong, he was more cerebral than just “Kesk smash puny Humans!”, but as a highly successful and powerful organized criminal, he and his lackeys seemed too bumbling. His Tanaruuk was underutilized, as well, I think. He used his natural Tanaruuk abilities exactly once, that I can remember. All in all, he could have just as easily been an Orc, or Half-Orc, a Hobgoblin, and nothing in the story would have been particularly changed. Sefris, the last antagonist, was easily the best character in the novel. Sharrans in sourcebooks, for whatever reason, most people find annoying (the overabundance of shadows and such), but more often than not, in novels, they’re interesting. For much of the first half of the book, she seemed too much the type of character that annoys me- ready for anything, always having an ace up their sleeve. For the second half of the novel, she was a lot more tolerable, though her death, when viewed through that above lens, seemed a bit abrupt.
The plot of the book was boring for the first half or so. Until Sephris and Miri teamed up to find Aeron, I found the book something of a snooze fest. It did feel realistic, though. Aeron, after stealing the lockbox at the beginning, was unable to find a magician to dispel the wards on it, and call it a day. Living in a city filled with relative scumbags, I enjoyed the fact that he was betrayed multiple times, by people he considered friends. I really enjoyed the fact that, at the end of the day, all the Black Bouquet was was a perfumery- a completely mundane, ordinary perfumery. The lesson that ‘not all that is valuable is magical’ is a nice lesson to see in a high fantasy world, like the Forgotten Realms is. Once Sefris was killed, three-quarters through the book, everything seemed to fall into place much too quickly/easily/predictably, without enough hitches. Not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with that, but…And, I am overjoyed that Aeron and Miri did not fall in love in a corny romance, like too many other fantasy books do.
The Black Bouquet is set in the city-state of Oeble, a nation within the Border Kingdoms. There’s nothing wrong with that, in and of itself, but I think that this is a flaw with the book. Mind you, again, there’s nothing wrong with Oeble- it is described in good detail, and definitely succeeds in making the place seem like a lawless cesspool you really don’t want to live in. The fact that Oeble is a Border Kingdom, one of the places on Faerûn’s map that is relatively blank and detail-light, makes the setting feel generic. We know, since the novel is canon, that Oeble is a city-state in the Border Kingdoms, and exists on Faerûn, but it feels generic enough that it could be written into any other fantasy setting. Not enough ‘cross-pollenization’ exists within the book, I think, to really make Oeble seem Faerûnian.
I didn’t really feel that any of the characters stood out, except Sefris, one of the two antagonists of the novel. Aeron, one of the two main characters, was a generic thief without anything that really set him apart from any number of the many thief characters who have appeared in Forgotten Realms novels, sourcebooks, and games over the years. There was nothing specifically wrong with his character, but there was nothing that made him stand out as anything special, either. Miri, the second of the two main characters, I liked her better. She is a Ranger who was very much out of her element, in the cesspool that is Oeble, so that aspect of the character was interesting. A country bumpkin, so to speak, in the big city. In a way, that hamstrung the character. For the most part, her abilities consisted of tracking and archery. I am sure that if there were scenes that took place in the wilderness, she’d seem like a more dynamic character. Her full array of abilities, and her ‘relative worth’ weren’t explored in full, so I think I discounted her a bit as a result. Kesk, one of two antagonists, was a decent character. He was a Tanaruuk, and it’s not often that you see Tanaruuk in novels- let alone relatively smart ones. I enjoyed that fact. Although he seemingly was a Barbarian, or maybe a Fighter, he wasn’t stupid. Not enough was done to make him seem like more than a generic brute, though. Don’t get me wrong, he was more cerebral than just “Kesk smash puny Humans!”, but as a highly successful and powerful organized criminal, he and his lackeys seemed too bumbling. His Tanaruuk was underutilized, as well, I think. He used his natural Tanaruuk abilities exactly once, that I can remember. All in all, he could have just as easily been an Orc, or Half-Orc, a Hobgoblin, and nothing in the story would have been particularly changed. Sefris, the last antagonist, was easily the best character in the novel. Sharrans in sourcebooks, for whatever reason, most people find annoying (the overabundance of shadows and such), but more often than not, in novels, they’re interesting. For much of the first half of the book, she seemed too much the type of character that annoys me- ready for anything, always having an ace up their sleeve. For the second half of the novel, she was a lot more tolerable, though her death, when viewed through that above lens, seemed a bit abrupt.
The plot of the book was boring for the first half or so. Until Sephris and Miri teamed up to find Aeron, I found the book something of a snooze fest. It did feel realistic, though. Aeron, after stealing the lockbox at the beginning, was unable to find a magician to dispel the wards on it, and call it a day. Living in a city filled with relative scumbags, I enjoyed the fact that he was betrayed multiple times, by people he considered friends. I really enjoyed the fact that, at the end of the day, all the Black Bouquet was was a perfumery- a completely mundane, ordinary perfumery. The lesson that ‘not all that is valuable is magical’ is a nice lesson to see in a high fantasy world, like the Forgotten Realms is. Once Sefris was killed, three-quarters through the book, everything seemed to fall into place much too quickly/easily/predictably, without enough hitches. Not that there’s necessarily anything wrong with that, but…And, I am overjoyed that Aeron and Miri did not fall in love in a corny romance, like too many other fantasy books do.
April 4, 2021
The second book in the rogue series, which i'm reading out of order, is a pleasant and relatively quick read. As with the series, the protagonist is a rogue, and he gets involved in something that puts him neck deep in trouble. It was kind of a mixed bag though.
The characters were interesting enough, although i can't help feeling they were a little underdeveloped and cliched. Aeron, the protagonist, was all right, trusting more in his brains than his brawn, but a not very deep character. Miri, a wilderness ranger, who is out of her element feels a little stuck up, and similarly felt could've been more. One of the villains, Sefris, was the best of the lot. A rather believeable take on a worshipper of a dark goddess. The other villain, a tanarruk, also felt wasted. His fiendish nature wasn't really taken advantage of and you could replace him with a normal human or orc and it would feel no difference.
The setting itself felt generic. The city of Oeble in the Border Kingdoms; not a region I'm familiar with but I'm not so sure about a Faerunian surface city with goblinkind being part of the open population. But then again, they're not particularly noteworthy. You could replace them with humans to little effect.
It was kind of odd that the titular black bouquet is neither a dangerous relic from the past nor a power powerful magic item capable of affecting tremendous change. It's kind of refreshing that it's not, but also kind of disappointing with its mundaneness. The plot itself was fine, with the somewhat predictable twists here and there, but appropriate enough given the theme of the series.
On the whole, a likeable story, and an appropriate ending, where our protagonist turns a not-quite-a-new-leaf.
The characters were interesting enough, although i can't help feeling they were a little underdeveloped and cliched. Aeron, the protagonist, was all right, trusting more in his brains than his brawn, but a not very deep character. Miri, a wilderness ranger, who is out of her element feels a little stuck up, and similarly felt could've been more. One of the villains, Sefris, was the best of the lot. A rather believeable take on a worshipper of a dark goddess. The other villain, a tanarruk, also felt wasted. His fiendish nature wasn't really taken advantage of and you could replace him with a normal human or orc and it would feel no difference.
The setting itself felt generic. The city of Oeble in the Border Kingdoms; not a region I'm familiar with but I'm not so sure about a Faerunian surface city with goblinkind being part of the open population. But then again, they're not particularly noteworthy. You could replace them with humans to little effect.
It was kind of odd that the titular black bouquet is neither a dangerous relic from the past nor a power powerful magic item capable of affecting tremendous change. It's kind of refreshing that it's not, but also kind of disappointing with its mundaneness. The plot itself was fine, with the somewhat predictable twists here and there, but appropriate enough given the theme of the series.
On the whole, a likeable story, and an appropriate ending, where our protagonist turns a not-quite-a-new-leaf.
January 8, 2017
Given the premise of the book, we're under the impression that the Black Bouquet is an item of immense power or influence in the world. What we discover however, is that the Black Bouquet is a relic of no special import or significance. It's a book. An important book, but not a book that has the ability to change the world one way or another.
I really enjoyed the end though. Normally and naturally the rogue in the book turns over a new leaf in the end, taking their first steps along the path of good and honesty, and we the reader usually want them to go that way. But this one was refreshing. The rogue remains a rogue, continuing along his path of honorable dishonesty despite how often he almost dies in this one endeaver alone. Refreshing to say the least.
if it wasn't so misleading from the book jacket, I might have enjoyed this better. All in all it wasn't bad, but it could have been better.
I really enjoyed the end though. Normally and naturally the rogue in the book turns over a new leaf in the end, taking their first steps along the path of good and honesty, and we the reader usually want them to go that way. But this one was refreshing. The rogue remains a rogue, continuing along his path of honorable dishonesty despite how often he almost dies in this one endeaver alone. Refreshing to say the least.
if it wasn't so misleading from the book jacket, I might have enjoyed this better. All in all it wasn't bad, but it could have been better.
July 21, 2011
This is Book 2 of the current 4 book series.
I did not enjoy it as much as the first book of the series. I did not find the characters quite as engaging. That could be because i was hoping for a continuation of the characters from book one.
Still a good read and a free standing story, you dont need to read the first book to understand this story. There are no references back to book one.
If you are a fan of cut and slash fantasy you will enjoy this and there is even enough "i didnt see that coming" to keep you on your toes.
I did not enjoy it as much as the first book of the series. I did not find the characters quite as engaging. That could be because i was hoping for a continuation of the characters from book one.
Still a good read and a free standing story, you dont need to read the first book to understand this story. There are no references back to book one.
If you are a fan of cut and slash fantasy you will enjoy this and there is even enough "i didnt see that coming" to keep you on your toes.
June 27, 2014
This book was alright. The story line was interesting, and i enjoyed the characters, however the author's style of writing has discouraged me form continuing reading his works. Many of the sentences seemed unfinished and under developed. I was hoping something would happen between Miri and Aeron, but I understand that such a relationship would deviate from the character's individual personalities.
January 20, 2013
An okay romp through a city of villiany. Okay for a quick, standalone read. The characters felt like they were supposed to be deep, but it wasn't explored in a way that this goal succeeded. The city felt appropriately chaotic and filled with the right kind of dastardly characters, however.
June 15, 2023
This was a great heist novel at the start and I really enjoyed the overall adventure. It was classic Realms fun at its best! Highly recommend!
Displaying 1 - 11 of 11 reviews