Preview
  • Blackstaff Tower

  • Forgotten Realms: Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep, Book 1
  • By: Steven E. Schend
  • Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
  • Length: 11 hrs and 11 mins
  • 4.0 out of 5 stars (187 ratings)

Prime logo Prime members: New to Audible?
Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
Premium Plus auto-renews for $14.95/mo after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Blackstaff Tower

By: Steven E. Schend
Narrated by: James Patrick Cronin
Try for $0.00

$14.95/month after 30 days. Cancel anytime.

Buy for $24.95

Buy for $24.95

Pay using card ending in
By confirming your purchase, you agree to Audible's Conditions of Use and Amazon's Privacy Notice. Taxes where applicable.

Publisher's summary

A Call for Heroes!

A young group of friends stumble across a terrifying conspiracy that holds the heir to the Blackstaff, the defender of the city of Waterdeep, in terrible danger. These friends must search deep within themselves to become the heroes their city needs to save its champion from those who would see both brought low.

Ed Greenwood, beloved author and creator of the Forgotten Realms, presents the first book in a brand-new series dedicated to showcasing both the City of Splendors and our most talented up-and-coming authors. A series of stand-alone adventurers, this book and the series to which it belongs were written specifically for those readers with no prior knowledge of the Forgotten Realms, making it an excellent entry point for new readers.

©2008 Wizards of the Coast LLC (P)2013 Audible, Inc.
activate_Holiday_promo_in_buybox_DT_T2

What listeners say about Blackstaff Tower

Average customer ratings
Overall
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    83
  • 4 Stars
    51
  • 3 Stars
    36
  • 2 Stars
    10
  • 1 Stars
    7
Performance
  • 3.5 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    58
  • 4 Stars
    46
  • 3 Stars
    39
  • 2 Stars
    11
  • 1 Stars
    13
Story
  • 4 out of 5 stars
  • 5 Stars
    77
  • 4 Stars
    55
  • 3 Stars
    22
  • 2 Stars
    9
  • 1 Stars
    4

Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.

Sort by:
Filter by:
  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Sniffles!

The story was decently written and fun to learn about famous characters. But the narrator was really hard to listen to. Not only was his voice tinny but he sniffled every so often which drove me nuts. Can't decide if I want to return it because of the narrator or get the next one because of the story.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

Muy disfrutable promedio

El narrador es mediocre, si bien agradable la mayoría del tiempo. Usa tonos poco naturales en algunos diálogos y uno de los protagonistas, cierto mercenario, tiene una vez exagerada que parece una sátira más que una voz real, y corta un poco la inmersión. De un modo u otro, si como yo buscas una historia de intriga clásica de reinos olvidados, o ahondar en la gran ciudad de Aguas Profundas, no te defraudará

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

The story keeps your attention.

I am along time lover of forgotten realms novels, as well as a tabletop gamer. This book does not dissapoint. Good action and dramatic tension overall.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

2 people found this helpful

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

good story, good overview of waterdeep

the narration is for the most part good, aside from being brutally unlistenable on some of the character choices.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    4 out of 5 stars

The narrator definitely detracts from the story but it is overall a pretty good listen

The other reviews are right that the narrator's voice impressions are pretty terrible. It is far too goofy and lame. The book deserves a rerecording.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    5 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    4 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    5 out of 5 stars

A great listen(read).

The narrator's style of delivery took a few minutes for me to get used to. Once I accepted that the rest of the book was fantastic for me. Which is not surprising, being a DM from1980-1993, I am an avid follower of forgotten realms lore. I have read almost every book in forgotten realms and won't stop til I have finished them all.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Zero Tension

It kept putting the characters in positions to learn and grow, then they would just solve the puzzles or defeat the enemy with little to no effort.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars

Narrator was too terrible

The narration would have been ok, if he hadn't tried to do voices. It's tolerable in the prologue, but already in chapter one it becomes unbearable. This book deserves better.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    2 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    3 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Fine for a college writing assignment but not published

This is mediocre fan fiction. Characters are flat and story seems forced but that wasn’t the worst of it. The characters, both hero and villain, explain what they did after the author describes the scene. They explain their powers, share their motivations, tell their opponents how they could have done better etc. it is unbearable.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

  • Overall
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Performance
    1 out of 5 stars
  • Story
    2 out of 5 stars

Hard to Listen to

The Narrator made a number of questionable decisions, including voicing one of the main characters as a dumbed down Kermit the Frog. Overall his performance made this the first audio book on Audible that I just couldn't finish. The story is so-so, but entertaining enough that a good performance would have allowed me to see it through to the end.

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

You voted on this review!

You reported this review!

3 people found this helpful