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Forgotten Realms: House of Serpents #1
Venom's Taste
Enter the mysterious world of the snake-like yuan-ti...
Hlondeth - A city populated by the humanoid serpents known as the yuan-ti, and ruled by House Extaminos...
This powerful House of Serpents is the ultimate target of The Pox, a human cult whose members worship the goddess of plague and disease, and who begins to work the deadly will of Sibyl's Chosen, a dangerous cabal of yuan-ti who will turn every human in the city into a freakish tainted one, unless Dediana, a yuan-ti half-blood, can stop them all.
Hlondeth - A city populated by the humanoid serpents known as the yuan-ti, and ruled by House Extaminos...
This powerful House of Serpents is the ultimate target of The Pox, a human cult whose members worship the goddess of plague and disease, and who begins to work the deadly will of Sibyl's Chosen, a dangerous cabal of yuan-ti who will turn every human in the city into a freakish tainted one, unless Dediana, a yuan-ti half-blood, can stop them all.
320 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published March 1, 2004
11 people are currently reading
450 people want to read
About the author
Lisa Smedman
79 books114 followersLisa was very much the tomboy growing up in Vancouver, British Columbia--playing in the woods behind her house, building tree forts, damming the creek, playing army with GI Joe dolls, swinging on ropes, playing flashlight tag, building models and go-carts (which she later rode down the street). She also liked reading science fiction novels from the 1940s, the Doc Savage series, and the Harriet the Spy books.
In 1984, she began her professional writing career, first as a journalist then as a fiction writer. She counts science fiction authors Connie Willis, Robert J. Sawyer, and H.G. Wells, and classic books such as Treasure Island, as influences.
Several of Lisa's short science fiction and fantasy stories have been published in various magazines and anthologies, and in 1993 she was named a finalist in the Writers of the Future contest for science fiction and fantasy writers. She has also had three of her one-act plays produced by a Vancouver theater group.
Lisa is the author of Extinction, one of several novels set in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game’s Forgotten Realms universe. Released in 2004, Extinction made the New York Times bestseller list for hardcover fiction.
After authoring several science fiction and fantasy novels, Lisa recently turned her hand to children's books. From Boneshakers to Choppers (2007) explores the social history of motorcycles. Her interest in motorcycles goes way back--as a teenager, Lisa enjoyed trips up the British Columbia coast, riding pillion on friends' motorcycles. She later purchased her own bike, a 50cc machine, to get around town.
Lisa is one of the founders of Adventures Unlimited, a magazine providing scenarios and tips for role-playing games. She has written short fiction for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game's Ravenloft and Dark Sun lines. She has also designed a number of adventures and gaming products for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Cyberpunk, Immortal, Shatterzone, Millennium's End, and Deadlands. Her original games include Valhalla's Gate, a tabletop skirmish miniatures game drawn from Norse mythology and runic lore. An avid gamer, Lisa belongs to the Trumpeter Wargaming Club.
After working for more than 20 years as a journalist, Lisa now divides her time between writing fiction and contributing to the Vancouver Courier (she edits and writes the History's Lens column). Besides a diploma in journalism, she also has a degree in anthropology. She is fascinated by history and archaeology, particularly the Bronze Age. Her future plans include writing more historical fiction, alternative historical fantasy, and game tie-in novels. Lisa is also interested in building models and dioramas, and tabletop miniatures gaming.
She lives in Richmond, British Columbia, with her wife, their son, four cats, and two pugs.
In 1984, she began her professional writing career, first as a journalist then as a fiction writer. She counts science fiction authors Connie Willis, Robert J. Sawyer, and H.G. Wells, and classic books such as Treasure Island, as influences.
Several of Lisa's short science fiction and fantasy stories have been published in various magazines and anthologies, and in 1993 she was named a finalist in the Writers of the Future contest for science fiction and fantasy writers. She has also had three of her one-act plays produced by a Vancouver theater group.
Lisa is the author of Extinction, one of several novels set in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game’s Forgotten Realms universe. Released in 2004, Extinction made the New York Times bestseller list for hardcover fiction.
After authoring several science fiction and fantasy novels, Lisa recently turned her hand to children's books. From Boneshakers to Choppers (2007) explores the social history of motorcycles. Her interest in motorcycles goes way back--as a teenager, Lisa enjoyed trips up the British Columbia coast, riding pillion on friends' motorcycles. She later purchased her own bike, a 50cc machine, to get around town.
Lisa is one of the founders of Adventures Unlimited, a magazine providing scenarios and tips for role-playing games. She has written short fiction for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game's Ravenloft and Dark Sun lines. She has also designed a number of adventures and gaming products for Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Cyberpunk, Immortal, Shatterzone, Millennium's End, and Deadlands. Her original games include Valhalla's Gate, a tabletop skirmish miniatures game drawn from Norse mythology and runic lore. An avid gamer, Lisa belongs to the Trumpeter Wargaming Club.
After working for more than 20 years as a journalist, Lisa now divides her time between writing fiction and contributing to the Vancouver Courier (she edits and writes the History's Lens column). Besides a diploma in journalism, she also has a degree in anthropology. She is fascinated by history and archaeology, particularly the Bronze Age. Her future plans include writing more historical fiction, alternative historical fantasy, and game tie-in novels. Lisa is also interested in building models and dioramas, and tabletop miniatures gaming.
She lives in Richmond, British Columbia, with her wife, their son, four cats, and two pugs.
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Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews
July 18, 2022
Some interesting bits but the story as a whole felt incomplete and the main character was really just a guy with an overly complicated life. It also felt D&D adjacent rather than the real thing. But some interesting color on Yuan-Ti. Readability 6. Rating 4.
October 21, 2021
Venom's Taste has a relentless pace that kept me engaged the whole way. Arvin is a well-crafted roguish character, and I especially like how his profession as a rope-maker - atypical for a D&D protagonist - was, ahem, woven into the story.
Overall a solid novel, though I wish it had added more to the world of the Realms.
Overall a solid novel, though I wish it had added more to the world of the Realms.
July 30, 2021
This saga helped me to create my D&D character (a yuan ti pureblood wizard).
I will never be able to thank Lisa Smedman enough.
It is true when they say: a book is worth a thousand blogs.
I will never be able to thank Lisa Smedman enough.
It is true when they say: a book is worth a thousand blogs.
June 26, 2023
I haven’t read a Forgotten Realms novel for quite some while ever since they turned the whole from high magic to low. And I picked this up purely because I know the author from the Shadowrun setting and the blurb reads all right. And I’m not disappointed. This is not outstanding fantasy or anything but good sold work if you like the sword&sorcery sub-genre. And I will definitely continue with the trilogy.
March 14, 2025
It's a pretty good story, all in all. Unfortunately it took 2/3rds of the book to get there. The first 160 pages were a slog, with some pretty hefty info dumping (like the adnd 2nd edition psionic attacks and defenses, methodically described in a few sequential paragraphs).
The last 1/3rd of the book was great though. So I'm definitely going to read the next book in the series. Here's to hoping the author kept it up!
The last 1/3rd of the book was great though. So I'm definitely going to read the next book in the series. Here's to hoping the author kept it up!
August 10, 2022
A lovely and dark tale off the beaten path of Forgotten Realms. A must for anyone intrigued by the Yuan-Ti.
August 16, 2011
Fun book! There's a bit of intrigue here, a bit of serpent goodness, and psionics! Also poison and disease. It all makes for an interesting departure from the typical Forgotten Realms story of swashbuckling and high magic. I've been a fan of the hot southern reaches of the Realms for a while, and it's really neat to see a story based there.
It's also cool to see Smedman's take on the yuan-ti ruled city of Hlondeth. Non-human cultures are always a challenge to pull off, but I think Smedman does a fine job of it here.
Part of her main character's bag of tricks is his skill at magical rope-making, and I loved the way Smedman wove in details of how these things were constructed. It's cool to think about where all the raw materials (unicorn hair, troll gut, and so on) came from and how difficult they are to work with. It's the little touches like this that make me a real fan of Smedman's writing.
It's also cool to see Smedman's take on the yuan-ti ruled city of Hlondeth. Non-human cultures are always a challenge to pull off, but I think Smedman does a fine job of it here.
Part of her main character's bag of tricks is his skill at magical rope-making, and I loved the way Smedman wove in details of how these things were constructed. It's cool to think about where all the raw materials (unicorn hair, troll gut, and so on) came from and how difficult they are to work with. It's the little touches like this that make me a real fan of Smedman's writing.
October 14, 2011
This is a rather promising start to a new and rather atypical D&D story. It is set in the warmer southern climates and tells the tale of how a man gets twisted into devious conspiracies woven by none other than the dangerous yuan-ti.
The book sets itself apart because it is not the hack-and-slash variety (in fact there's hardly any) but instead it focuses on psionics. Throw in a twisted plot that involves disease, poison, and dissenters and it's a rather good read. Of course, a few plot points tend toward being rather convenient, but nothing too bad. A few proofreading errors here and there (I keep noticing these...). I didn't like Arvin the protagonist initially, but he kinda grew on me, and did make me root for him.
The ending brings a nice closure and whets the appetite for the next book.
The book sets itself apart because it is not the hack-and-slash variety (in fact there's hardly any) but instead it focuses on psionics. Throw in a twisted plot that involves disease, poison, and dissenters and it's a rather good read. Of course, a few plot points tend toward being rather convenient, but nothing too bad. A few proofreading errors here and there (I keep noticing these...). I didn't like Arvin the protagonist initially, but he kinda grew on me, and did make me root for him.
The ending brings a nice closure and whets the appetite for the next book.
February 8, 2014
I liked this book. While I had hoped to learn more about the yuan-ti race, there was just enough to wet my palate and leave me interested in the next book.
The main character is not a yuan-ti, but a human who is sucked into the intrigues of the serpant people. The little bit about the politics and society of the yaun-ti in Hondalath(?if that's how you spell it?) was informative. There are psionics and assasins in this story, which are cool. But the author does use one of those slippery endings that gets the hero out of a lot of trouble in a very convienent and unbelievable way (but this is cheesy fantansy we are talking about). If you are at all into the forgotten realms stuff, I would recomend it.
The main character is not a yuan-ti, but a human who is sucked into the intrigues of the serpant people. The little bit about the politics and society of the yaun-ti in Hondalath(?if that's how you spell it?) was informative. There are psionics and assasins in this story, which are cool. But the author does use one of those slippery endings that gets the hero out of a lot of trouble in a very convienent and unbelievable way (but this is cheesy fantansy we are talking about). If you are at all into the forgotten realms stuff, I would recomend it.
September 11, 2014
I like how it is different from most of the Forgotten Realms books that I have read. Most are related to R.A. Salvatore's Drizzt Do'Urden. Anyway this was a fantastic intro to the Yuan-ti and psionics which isn't featured much. I like how the main character continued to grow and despite becoming more powerful continued to use his brain first. Really want to read the rest of the trilogy now.
January 9, 2012
A good story, but I didnt feel any connection to the characters. I really didnt care if Arvin lived or died, or if he found his friend, or if they stopped the Pox. Maybe the characters will get better further into the series. I hope so, as I plan to read more.
September 27, 2010
Not very good, stopped reading after awhile. Slow and boring.
May 29, 2021
Lisa has a gift with writing characters and developing the story in the books she writes I really enjoyed the world she created and look forward to reading the whole trilogy!
July 11, 2013
Fairly decent yuan-ti tale.
Displaying 1 - 14 of 14 reviews