When it was time to start this book I was a little sad as it was the last book in the series. The Dragonslayer’s Return is the third and final book in The Spearwielder’s Tale trilogy by R. A. Salvatore. It chronicles the third trip Gary Leger takes to Faerie. The story opens with Gary and his wife Diane taking a vacation in England and while there Diane gets more and more frustrated with Gary as he becomes obsessed with finding a passage to Faerie while there. Gary wants to go back to Faerie in order to escape dealing with the loss of his father the previous year. Meanwhile in Faerie, Mickey, Kelsey and Geno, and to a lesser extent Gerbil and Tommy, are dealing with their own issues. King Kinnemore and Prince Geldion are trying to convince Baron Pwyll to proclaim Kinnemore as the dragonslayer instead of himself. Refusing to do so Pwyll is sentenced to death by the King and declares Gary as the dragonslayer with his final moments. Shortly thereafter, all out war ignites as the forces of Kinnemore attack the elves in Tir Na n’Og. Feeling the need for a symbol Kelsey convinces Mickey to bring Gary back to help out despite Mickey’s reluctance to get Gary involved. Having been prepared and waiting for the call to travel to Faerie, Gary convinces the sprite powering the journey to also take Diane with him in order to prove that Faerie exists. Once there, Gary and Diane work with the others to find a way to stop the war with King Kinnemore and to take out once and for all his backer, the evil witch Ceridwen.
There were a lot of things about this book that made it a great continuation of the previous books and yet at the same time there were a lot of things that were rather surprising about this story. I definitely found it intriguing to see that Diane was able to utilize her camera that was accidently brought with them. Mind you I never thought I would see a camera used as a weapon but in the circumstances the flash does present a great way to disorient the enemy. I was also surprised by how long the battery on the camera lasted as I would have thought that is would have died way earlier in the story but it doesn’t. The camera, a seemingly mundane object to us, proves useful in multiple ways in the story as it also seems to be able to see through glamours, like the ones Mickey creates. The group actually uses that particular ability of cameras to great effect over the course of the war and it ultimately gives them the opportunity to find a way to end the war. At the same time Diane’s use of the camera shows just how well she is able to adapt to actually being in the land of Faerie, especially considering she didn’t actually believe Gary about having traveled there. Much like Gary always seems to do, Diane steps up to the plate and does an excellent job of helping with whatever seems to be the problem this time. However, she does struggle somewhat to accept Gary rushing into danger while wearing armor and carrying a spear. As always, the book does a great job of blending the mundane in the form of Gary, Diane and their camera, with the magical and mystical in the form of the land of Faerie. I give this book 4.5 out of 5 stars.
Overall, it was a good book and definitely one that I would recommend to others, especially to people who are fans of the fantasy genre in general or of R. A. Salvatore in particular. I would also specifically recommend it to people who enjoy reading about the land of Faerie and are potentially looking for a somewhat unique take on that realm. Make sure to keep in mind that this is the third and final book in the series so you should actually start with the first book, The Woods Out Back. The book is aimed primarily at adults but it could potentially appeal to young adults or older teens as well though there is a decent amount of violence they should probably be aware of before diving in. I do not think it would be suitable for readers younger than that though due to the level of violence present in the story. If you do decide to read this series feel free to share your thoughts in the comments. I would also be interested in suggestions for other books that deal with the realm of Faerie for future reading if anyone happens to know any.