The Sentinels: Stone of Tymora, Book III [Paperback]

Being a fan of RA Salvatore, I ordered this and the previous books in the trilogy. I understand this is aimed at young adults, but I expected the same caliber or writing that Salvatore has in his other books, but unfortunately this collaboration was depthless and altogether unsatisfying. That being said, if you want background on the Maimun character that makes an appearance in "The Pirate King", this is where you're going to find it. I like to be thorough, so I read it, but you shouldn't expect it to be as drawing as his other works.

Disclaimer-If you read the review and feel there is a spoiler in it, please let me know and I will remove that section. Also, if you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask. Thank you.

The Sentinels is the concluding novel to the Stone of Tymora trilogy by R.A. & Geno Salvatore. The first book is The Stowaway and the second is The Shadowmask.

The Sentinels continues right were The Shadowmask ends. Maimun is still held captive by pirates and only through telling his tale is he kept alive, and his tale continues on the Sea Sprite were he is continuing his quest to discover a way to destroy the stone of Tymora. There are a few subplots that deal with the learning of a couple main characters to develop them further, a love interest, and the history of the creation of the stone.

For a small young adult book with large print, it still too me a while to read it. The story was interesting, but just didn't really grasp me as well as the second book did. In this light, I was not as invested as I was with the other book to read through it right away. Even the fight scenes, which were good, were a chore to read as they seemed over detailed to me. The pacing was average and the book did move along at an even pace. There are a few places where it gets bogged down a little. It flowed quite well and aside from some grammatical errors, each scene played right into the next. The characters seemed to be the same though most of the book. Though there is some development, especially with their fighting prowess, but aside from that, they are same throughout.

Some Criticisms:

1. As I mentioned, there are some grammatical errors, but what got to me the most was there is a part in the story were the paragraph ends with no period and missing words. That was the most annoying part.

2. The characters were a bit of a letdown this time around. I just wasn't as excited to read about them. Though they still have their flaws and seem real enough, there just wasn't as much development as I felt there should have been.

3. For the most part, this book is detailed rather well, but it seems that Geno wants to emulate his father so much that the fight scenes became overly detailed and made reading them more of a chore than an enjoyment for me.

Some Positives:

1. The twists at the end were the saving grace of this one. They were really unexpected and added nicely to the story. What I thought was going to be very predictable, and there are some predictable areas, really through me for a loop.

2. It was nice to relive some of the aspects of R.A. Salvatore's earlier works as there is a small explanation of where this book would fit in with the rest of the Drizzt series. The way it was described, I would put this one somewhere within The Legacy, Siege of Darkness, and Starless Night.

3. Once the main plot line got moving forward towards the end and everything was coming together, the book was much better to read and more interesting. Also the way the other plot lines were closed up was well done.

Overall, this one could have been done better, but at least there was closure and everything ended in its own way. I just wish the magic was there like it was in the second book. The main reason for me to push to the end was to see how everything turns out and get to the next book I am about to read. I don't mind reading YA books, but this one could have been so much better. I would only recommend this to hardcore fans and those who like a little bit of Drizzt in there. I would recommend this series as a whole for the younger crowd to be able to get a glimpse of the Forgotten Realms setting and other characters that are still a part of the realms today and those in the past.

Happy reading.

-Dimndbangr

The Sentinels is a quick-paced, suspenseful quest that will keep you up reading past your bedtime. I liked the bantering between Joen and Maimum--it was realistic and totally brought the story to life. The action scenes where Joen uses her daggers are flawless. Even though this is the third book in the trilogy, it works well as a stand-alone. I really enjoyed it. - Review by N.C., 16 yrs old, Biblio Reads Children's Book Review

› Go to Amazon.com to see all 3 reviews  3.3 out of 5 stars