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offbrandcat's review
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
chungledown_bim's review
3.0
Eberron research, didn’t seem very illuminating as far as setting Eberron apart from any other bog-standard fantasy realm, but it was an enjoying enough read. The deus ex machina was a little abrupt & eye-rolling but, again, I wasn’t in it for the story. Is that a spoiler? Almost. I’ll tag it as such. Anyway, I was half expecting steampunk & this wasn’t it.
jeremiah_mccoy's review
3.0
It is a game fiction tie in, but not a terrible one.
The beginning of the books weak, but a few chapters in it picks up and the writer seems to find his footing. It is apparently a follow up series, and unfortunately, it did not explain enough of the previous events to make the references to the previous events clear. The handling of the Queen of Stone character was very well done, as were a number of the interactions. I felt like character was obtuse at times to a frustrating degree, but that is a minor concern. There are a bunch of small points that take away from the whole of this story. The core tale, dealing with the relationship between monsters and men, was excellent, but enough of the elements were fumbled to make the book not live up to its core story. It was still good enough that I wish to read the rest of the series, and I guess that says something in and of itself. Ultimately, the book was a satisfying read, once you get past the awkward beginning.
The beginning of the books weak, but a few chapters in it picks up and the writer seems to find his footing. It is apparently a follow up series, and unfortunately, it did not explain enough of the previous events to make the references to the previous events clear. The handling of the Queen of Stone character was very well done, as were a number of the interactions. I felt like character was obtuse at times to a frustrating degree, but that is a minor concern. There are a bunch of small points that take away from the whole of this story. The core tale, dealing with the relationship between monsters and men, was excellent, but enough of the elements were fumbled to make the book not live up to its core story. It was still good enough that I wish to read the rest of the series, and I guess that says something in and of itself. Ultimately, the book was a satisfying read, once you get past the awkward beginning.
telegramsam's review
4.0
I loved this book! It was formulaic and a quick read but the action and narrative were spot on. Think James Bond in a high fantasy setting, but with him as a female half-elf instead of a white male. Great characters. I loved that the "monsters" were treated as actual people and not a thin template based on species.
I think there could've been more to the story to make it longer and more fleshed out, but it is still a good read. Maybe the main character could've had less magical gadgets or had to be creative with the ones she had, but I gather this book was meant to highlight the potential of the Eberron campaign setting, and so more gadgets was the way to go.
I will definitely be reading the entire series, and it's even made me want to read the earlier Eberron trilogy by Keith Baker, The Dreaming Dark.
I think there could've been more to the story to make it longer and more fleshed out, but it is still a good read. Maybe the main character could've had less magical gadgets or had to be creative with the ones she had, but I gather this book was meant to highlight the potential of the Eberron campaign setting, and so more gadgets was the way to go.
I will definitely be reading the entire series, and it's even made me want to read the earlier Eberron trilogy by Keith Baker, The Dreaming Dark.
vittorioseg's review
2.0
This is for the audiobook.
The audiobook is quite nice, with a great variety of voices and a cadence that its quite noteworthy. Bernadette Dune is a great actress and her ability to inflect emotion and this sense of dread during the second half was incredibly entertaining. But sadly, in the end, the story is still very bland and the characters are more like props than actual characters.
Many times (as is usual with Keith Baker) the decisions and actions are more about marketing the world and the classes than actual good drama. Decisions are constantly made that, even with the explanation, look insane or inane, which is less about don't actually make sense and more than the author honestly can't create prose that engages on the reader and his plot construction is wonky at best. All in all, it is a good novel if you want ideas of how to write a session in Eberron following the guidelines of Kaith Baker, but as a stand-alone novel, it would be just a waste of time.
The audiobook is quite nice, with a great variety of voices and a cadence that its quite noteworthy. Bernadette Dune is a great actress and her ability to inflect emotion and this sense of dread during the second half was incredibly entertaining. But sadly, in the end, the story is still very bland and the characters are more like props than actual characters.
Many times (as is usual with Keith Baker) the decisions and actions are more about marketing the world and the classes than actual good drama. Decisions are constantly made that, even with the explanation, look insane or inane, which is less about don't actually make sense and more than the author honestly can't create prose that engages on the reader and his plot construction is wonky at best. All in all, it is a good novel if you want ideas of how to write a session in Eberron following the guidelines of Kaith Baker, but as a stand-alone novel, it would be just a waste of time.
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