The Icewind Dale Trilogy · #1

The Crystal Shard

R. A. Salvatore

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Akar Kessel, a weak-willed apprentice mage sets in motion events leading to the rediscovery of the magical device, the crystal shard. But is it merely an inanimate device... or is it capable of directing the defeat of Ten-Towns?

Or have the barbarians already arranged for that themselves? Their brutal attack on the villages of Ten-Towns seals their fate, and that of the young barbarian Wulfgar. Left for dead, Wulfgar is rescued by the dwarf, Bruenor, in exchange for five years of service... and friendship. With the help of the dark elf, Drizzt, Bruenor reshapes Wulfgar into a warrior with both brawn and brains.

But is Wulfgar strong enough to reunite the barbarian tribes? Can an unorthodox dwarf and renegade dark elf persuade the people of Ten-Towns to put aside their petty differences in time to stave off the forces of the crystal shard?

Published
1988
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Author

R. A. Salvatore

In a genre known for sprawling maps and ancient prophecies, R. A. Salvatore carved his legacy not just through epic battles, but by giving his heroes a soul. Long before fantasy became mainstream, Salvatore introduced readers to Drizzt Do’Urden—a dark elf torn between the violent culture he was born into and the moral code he chose to follow. This inner struggle, threaded through fast-paced combat and sweeping world-building, struck a nerve. Drizzt wasn’t just another sword-wielding adventurer; he was a philosophical outsider in a genre that rarely stopped to ask why. Raised in Massachusetts, Salvatore didn’t grow up dreaming of dragons—his…