Sellswords Book Series

[Magnhild Mongolo]

Thetrilogy continues the tale of the infamous assassin, Artemis Entreri (previously featured in books as Drizzt Do'Urden's self-proclaimed archenemy), and the cunning drow mercenary, Jarlaxle (previously relevant as the leader of Bregan D'aerthe, an outlaw group of drow based primarily in and around Menzoberranzan that does business mostly with the drow of Menzoberranzan). Continuing the story of Artemis and Jarlaxle told in the Paths of Darkness series, Artemis and Jarlaxle begin an adventure that tests their skills, their minds, and their souls.

While the two characters are antagonists in the Drizzt Do'Urden series, they are the main characters in The Sellswords trilogy, which are some of the few books in Salvatore's Forgotten Realms novels that do not focus on the legendary drow warrior, Drizzt Do'Urden, as the hero of the novel. The Sellswords develops the two characters more deeply than was possible in the other Salvatore books, giving the reader an in-depth view of the mind of the cold, calculating Artemis Entreri and the ambitious, opportunistic Jarlaxle.

Pat Ferrara of mania.com comments: "The second book of arguably the coolest Forgotten Realms literary spin-off to date, Promise of the Witch-King continues the Sellswords Series without skipping a beat. Tightly knit plotlines, absurd yet memorable and engaging characters, and hellishly fast-paced storytelling culminate in a wild melee of swords and sorcery led by the master himself."[1]

The audio recording of Road of the Patriarch received a favorable review from California Bookwatch, which praised all aspects of the novel, including the plot, the action, and the narration by David Colacci.[2]

Artemis is described as wiry and not being all that tall. He is lean, agile, and muscular. He likes to have a trimmed goatee and a moustache, and has short black hair. He does not laugh or smile all that much.

This is a fun read that allows the reader to see Cadderly and the rest of the gang one more time. Fans of the novel found that this stuck to the main plot and was an intense thrill ride that never lets the reader catch their breath. Some enjoyed the way the book picks up the story of their favorite character of the series and show them as they go their own way. There is a lot of wit and action, more than in the Drizzt stories.

In the Bloodstone Lands. Artemis Entreri, a human assassin and Jarlaxle, his dark elf companion arrive at the wastelands in the frozen north. They are here because their dragon patron requested they come here. Before long, they are caught in a struggle of powerful forces that want them both dead, or worse.

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The Sellswords is a trilogy of fantasy novels written by R. A. Salvatore, the famous SciFi and fantasy author. It contains three books, Servant of the Shard, Promise of the Witch King, and Road of the Patriarch. It is his latest work, (as of 2006) and continues the tale of the infamous assassin, Artemis Entreri, and the cunning drow mercenary, Jarlaxle Baenre. Continuing the story of Artemis and Jarlaxle told in the Paths of Darkness series, Artemis and Jarlaxle begin an adventure that tests their skills, their minds, and their souls. While the two characters are antagonists in the Drizzt Do'Urden series, in The Sellswords Trilogy they are the main characters of some of the few books in Salvatore's Forgotten Realms novels that do not have the legendary drow warrior, Drizzt Do'Urden, as the hero of the novel. The Sellswords develops the two characters more deeply than was possible in the other Salvatore books, giving the reader an in depth view of the mind of the cold, calculating Artemis Entreri and the ambitious, opportunistic Jarlaxle.

After regaining his confidence and will to live, Artemis Entreri finds himself allied with the mercenary Jarlaxle as the drow's tie to the surface world. Caught in the plans of Jarlaxle's band, Bregan D'aerthe, Artemis finds himself back in the Calimport, the city in which he became known as one of the greatest assassins in Faern. Without many ties to the city after spending his time in captivity to the drow, Entreri must once again make his name known while trying to survive against the guilds of Calimport and Jarlaxle's lieutenants, Berg'inyon Baenre, Rai-guy Bondalek, and Kimmuriel Oblodra. At the same time Jarlaxle succumbs to the mental intrusions of the crystal shard, Crenshinibon, as it pushes Jarlaxle to fulfill his unending ambitions. This is also the third novel in the Paths of Darkness series.

Leaving behind their past, Artemis Entreri and Jarlaxle Baenre become mercenaries in the lands of Damara and Vaasa where fame and glory await any who seek it. They are hired by two dragon sisters to uncover artifacts left behind by Zhengyi the Witch King, a powerful lich who ruled the region for many years before falling to the power of King Gareth Dragonsbane and his allies. In this tale of a pair of unlikely heroes, Artemis and Jarlaxle battle mighty foes in search of adventure, glory, and treasure.

In the final episode of this series, Jarlaxle and Entreri find themselves having to answer for their actions at Zhengyi's construct. Both the Spysong Dynasty and the Citadel of Assassins have lost associates at the castle and search for an honest account of the events that took place. Readers are finally told the dark truth behind both Entreri and Jarlaxle's childhoods, as well as a glimpse into the past of their dwarf associate Athrogate. As Entreri's past is revealed and he becomes further involved with Calihye, and a different side of the mysterious assassin is finally shown.

A long time ago, when I was a wee child I read some of the Drizzt Do'Urden books, they really captured my imagination. I'd like to continue reading, but I've lost track of which books contain him, and indeed what order they should be read in.

My actual recommendation is to read them in publication order (swap the first two series) as Drizzt changes significantly between the first series and later ones. To my mind he is more an atypical drow rather than the pure force for good he ends up being in later series.

A mercenary[1] is an independent soldier who has no official allegiance to any lord or country, but who instead hires out his services for payment. They are most commonly known by the term "sellsword,"[2] as they sell their services with a sword.

The quality and reputation of sellswords ranges across a very wide spectrum. They are often professional soldiers, moving from one temporary contract to the next, though particularly poor-quality sellswords might just be a gang of untrained thugs. However, even sellswords who receive no "formal" training make a living by engaging in combat on a regular basis. Thus even a mercenary that is initially low-born and without expensive training will gain a great amount of combat experience ("hands on" training) throughout his career. Provided that he survives that long, a veteran sellsword may become a highly skilled fighter. A sellsword that has significantly distinguished himself in combat may even be rewarded by being dubbed a knight, though this is uncommon. Knights tend to look down on sellswords, due to their usually low-birth and their reputation as rogues.

Songs of chivalry and romance often portray war as a glamorous series of duels between knights in shining armor: fighting for love, honor and homeland. While this may be sometimes the case, in truth a large extent of the day to day combat in real wars in both Westeros and Essos is fought by hired sellswords, often companies of sellswords, fighting only for money. These sellsword armies often switch sides or abandon their employer when they realize that their patron is losing a battle or when the enemy offers them better coin.

Although mounted sellswords are sometimes called "freeriders," strictly speaking they are not the same thing. The difference is that true freeriders do not fight for regular payment, receiving only a share of the food supplies to sustain them and the promise of a share of the plunder (gold, weapons, armor, etc.). Essentially, they are "riders" that fight for "free".

Freeriders are usually a motley mix of two drastically different sources. Some freeriders are hedge knights; low-ranking freelance knights unattached to any noble House, and they are fighting for free because they hope that if they distinguish themselves in combat, they will be formally taken into a lord's service as a sworn sword (who gets regular payment). The other kind of freeriders are truly poor hangers-on, usually farm-boys whose homes were burnt out during the military campaign and who joined up with the army because they have nowhere else to go and are only a step above camp followers. This second type are actually by far the most common freeriders. Either way, freeriders are rarely used in direct combat between armies, instead more often serving as scouts and foragers. They can see combat, but this usually takes the form of raids, burning down enemy villages, often as their own homes were once burned down.

Note: The German dub refers to freeriders as "freier Ritter", or "free knights". Most freeriders are not actually anointed knights - though a great many freeriders are indeed poor "hedge knights". The slight difference in meaning stems from the fact that the German word for "knight", ritter, literally means "rider". "Freeriders" in Westeros can be knights, but they might just be "riders" in the sense that they are farm-boys who ride their horses ahead of the main army as scouts. A closer translation into German would probably be "freier Reiter" as in "riders/scouts".

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