Shadow's Witness

by Paul S. Kemp

Book Overview

When a terrible evil is unleashed on the city of Selgaunt, Erevis Cale, the loyal butler of the Uskevren family, discovers that his ties to the underworld have placed the Uskevrens in deadly peril and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 078691677X
• ISBN13: 9780786916771
• Release Date: November 2000
• Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
• Length: 312 Pages
• Weight: 0.38 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 4.2" x 6.9"

Customer Reviews

Shadow's Witness: Sembia: Gateway to the Realms, Book II

To be honest, Paul S. Kemp and Erevis Cale were my introduction to Sembia. I am more than a little fond of Erevis and the characters around him as created and presented by Mr. Kemp. If you are like me, and you've been introduced to the events of Stormweather and Sembia via the Erevis Cale trilogy, then you will be thrilled to see more of Cale in just about any form or fashion. Shadow's Witness though will be both a blessing and a curse to those who expect to see Cale in all of his dark glory as portrayed in that trilogy. The blessing is that the story remains as enjoyable as that trilogy and the filling in of some of the blanks makes for a certain personal satisfaction, I think. The curse is that Cale seems to be so much less than the Cale as already displayed, and a certain "hurry up and get tougher Cale" feeling might introduce itself to an impatient reader. On a side note, a further glimpse into the Uskevren family and their household is very much welcome, since they have tremendous potential for us the readers, which I guess the various authors that expand our awareness of those characters also recognise. But I would take a lot of effort to top Erevis Cale. Another fantastic bit of work by Mr. Kemp.

Great

"Shadow's Witness" is the second book of the Sembia series, and the first novel of the respective series, since the first book was a set of short stories. Paul S. Kemp truly unleashes his writing talent in this book, bringing us a great story about even better characters. The character(s) really carry this book. Erevis Cale, whose interesting concept was introduced in the "Halls of Stormweather" anthology, is given flesh and blood in this book with his constant introspective, dilemmas, and most importantly, those little details that really differentiate good characters from truly great ones. Supporting characters are also very good, with a little left to be desired in the villain department. Somehow, I enjoy human(oid) villains much better than demons and such. The plot is also good, not overly complicated, but with strong twists and turns. I only wished for a little bit more intrigue and scheming, but after all, this is a character-driven book. Kemp breaths life into city of Selgaunt, the setting of this book, and gives the other authors in these series a great foundations to build on. Very rich in lore, this book. I must say that I've read "Erevis Cale" trilogy before this book, and I guess it took out the suspense for me a bit, since I knew, generally, how it was going to end. If you liked this book (and you really should've), then you ought to check out above mentioned "Erevis Cale" trilogy (A fantastic trilogy), and the subsequent "Twilight War" trilogy. There is also a good short story indirectly connected to Erevis Cale in "Realms of Dragons I" anthology. All of the mentioned was written by Kemp, of course. Check out this novel, you will get an evening of great fun.

An excellent read!

After reading the short story about Erevis Cale in "Halls of Stormweather" I was very excited to get my hands on this full novel about him. The Characters in "Shadow's Wintess" are quite a nice change from your average Hero's in Fantasy novels and thats what makes the difference in this novel. Its about time that some rogues took center stage in a novel instead of being the supporting characters. The novel begins very strong, but around page 250 in begins to lag a bit. Fortuneatly it does end on a high note leaving the reader wanting more. There are so many unfinished aspects of this novel that a sequel is inevitable, or so I hope. Because of the small amount of monotonous reading around the fourth quarter of the novel I was tempted to give it only four stars, but the extra little things that appeal to me as a long time Forgotten Realms reader earned the fifth star. Extras such as the appearance of a few organizations that have been neglected in the more recent Forgotten Realms novels such as the Harpers, Night Mask affiliations, and the Zhentarim. For being written by a first time novel author this book is excellent!

An Excellent Realms Novel

Shadow's Witness was a wonderfully dark, and entertaining novel, and I can give it 2 big thumbs up!! The novel takes place shortly after the first book in the Sembia series, Halls Of Stormweather, and as it has been said before. You should go read that one first. Erevis Cale the mysterious, and ever loyal butler is up to his doublet in demonic trouble, and only Jak Fleet veteran thief, and cleric is able to assist him. The book is rich with intrigue, and I was enthralled with Kemp's characters, and vibrant story telling ability. Kemp's characater of Cale is the perfect blend of tortured soul, and anti-hero. We know what he is capable of, but still would trust him with our lives. I hope to see much more of Kemp's work, and much more of Erevis Cale!!

Hard-Hitting and Intense

A few things. If you haven't read Cale's prequel story in Halls of Stormweather, you should do so first. It adds depth to the conflicts in this book. Also, be advised that this book has a fair amount of violence in it, but it works very well to highlight the evilness of the villains, and the terrible world Cale is stuck in. ON to the reveiw.This book picks up where Halls left off and further explores the conflicts in Cale's life, his relationship with Jak Fleet, his secret past, etc. And in addition, another layer of inner conflict is added in this novel, but I won't spoil that for you by writing about it.The novel starts out dark and intense, keeps up throughout, and ends in a very satisfying way (but still leaves plenty open for sequels). Cale's guildmaster, the Rightous Man, has a summoning go awry in his efforts to destroy a rival, and all Hell breaks loose in Selgaunt. When Cale and the family he loves are directly effected, he takes action and the novel takes off like a bullet. I read this whole thing in one sitting. In the process of facing external demons, Cale also must face his internal demons. He does, and the tale is well told.IMO, Cale is one of the best characters to come along in FR books for a long time. If you want a wild ride, have a read.