"Greyhawk Classics" novels

[Mercurius]

Anyone read any of the "Greyhawk Classics" novels written around 2000, plus or minus a year? I haven't ready any RPG-inspired novels in years, really since the early 90s and the early Forgotten Realms books. My reading time is relatively finite and, as a wannabe writer myself with relatively (snobby) discriminating tastes--I would rather spend it reading "higher quality" scifi/fantasy stuff than your typical RPG novel. But I do find the idea of reading a novelized version of one of the classic adventures strangely appealing, so I was thinking of picking one of these up.

Has anyone read any of these? I'm tempted to pick up Tomb of Horrors, but Against the Giants lures me, although I'm not sure I want to commit to the entire sequence Descent into the Depths of the Earth, Queen of the Demonweb Pits, etc). But is there any one that stands out as particularly better than the rest? Or are they all as bad as I fear?

As far as I can tell, this is the complete list of Greyhawk Classics:

Keep on the Borderlands
Temple of Elemental Evil
Expedition to the Barrier Peaks
White Plume Mountain
Tomb of Horrors
Against the Giants
Descent into the Depths of the Earth
Queen of the Demonweb Pits

 

[Coldwyn]

Anyone read any of the "Greyhawk Classics" novels written around 2000, plus or minus a year? I haven't ready any RPG-inspired novels in years, really since the early 90s and the early Forgotten Realms books. My reading time is relatively finite and, as a wannabe writer myself with relatively (snobby) discriminating tastes--I would rather spend it reading "higher quality" scifi/fantasy stuff than your typical RPG novel. But I do find the idea of reading a novelized version of one of the classic adventures strangely appealing, so I was thinking of picking one of these up.

Has anyone read any of these? I'm tempted to pick up Tomb of Horrors, but Against the Giants lures me, although I'm not sure I want to commit to the entire sequence Descent into the Depths of the Earth, Queen of the Demonweb Pits, etc). But is there any one that stands out as particularly better than the rest? Or are they all as bad as I fear?

As far as I can tell, this is the complete list of Greyhawk Classics:

Keep on the Borderlands
Temple of Elemental Evil
Expedition to the Barrier Peaks
White Plume Mountain
Tomb of Horrors
Against the Giants
Descent into the Depths of the Earth
Queen of the Demonweb Pits

I´ve read most of them. Keep and Temple where pretty meh, white plum, descent and queen on the other hand... Ah well, I loved the humor and would gladly read them again.

 

[Alzrius]

I seriously hated the novelization of Tomb of Horrors. I know that novels need to be character-based to some extent, but this took it way too far. The majority of the book was devoted, not to the Tomb itself, but to the journey to reach the tomb, all the while giving us character exposition for the heroes and villains. The actual Tomb itself, when they finally got there, was so much under-developed backdrop.

On the other hand, I loved the trilogy (White Plume Mountain, Descent into the Depths of the Earth, Queen of the Demonweb Pits) that Paul Kidd wrote. He also focuses heavily on the characters, but makes them so endearing that it's really enjoyable to read about them. Moreover, they don't overshadow the "dungeons" they're set in. Be prepared for the novels to put a twist on things, though. Kidd doesn't feel married to the specifics of either the Greyhawk setting, or how things exactly work in D&D - it's only little details that he changes, but if such breaks from canon annoy you, you'll be annoyed by these books.

Edit: Note that Kidd also wrote two short stories as part of that series. "By the Job" is set before the events of White Plume Mountain in Dragon #271. "Keoland Blues" is set between White Plume Mountain and Descent into the Depths of the Earth in Dragon #278. Finally, you can find Kidd's own 3E stats for his characters (as of the end of Descent into the Depths of the Earth) in Dragon #290.

 

[Lancelot]

As implied by the previous poster, note that (unlike the modules) Against the Giants is not the first installment in the trilogy that ends with Descent and Queen.

Instead, it starts with White Plume Mountain, followed by Descent into the Depths of the Earth and Queen of the Demonweb Pits. The novelization of Against the Giants is a completely separate book.

And, like the previous poster, I quite enjoyed that trilogy. It's not high literature (...what gaming novel is?), but it's a fun read. It's comedy-fantasy, which is somewhat unusual for a gaming series. If you're familiar with the source modules, you'll get a buzz out of seeing some of their more iconic encounters - often "handled" by the characters in a very amusing way.

The characters themselves are one of the most off-beat and diverse bunch I've ever seen. The humor is, at times, fairly risque. There's a healthy dose of mystery and romance. And there's even some character development (...as in, personality development - as opposed to reading about the same angsty drow or his equally angsty barbarian sidekick for 15 books in a row).

All told, if you enjoy a light and fun read, you could do far worse then start with White Plume Mountain. If you like it, there are two more books in the trilogy that develop the characters further.

As for the other Greyhawk Classics books, I've skimmed a couple. The others are all stand-alone and "typical" gaming novelizations. The characters are fairly disposable, the tone is "pulp/serious", and the modules they're based on are mostly backdrop.

 

[Mouseferatu]

I'll add to the chorus. The Paul Kidd trilogy--White Plume, Descent, and Queen--are an absolute blast. Some of the most enjoyable D&D novels I've ever read.

 

[DaveMage]

Another vote for any of the ones with Kidd's name on them. Great reads!

Against the Giants was OK.

Temple of Elemental Evil was painful to read at times due to horrible writing - easily the worst of the ones I read. I have not read Tomb of Horrors or Keep on the Borderlands.

 

[AdmundfortGeographer]

Wow, I'm glad to see all the love for the Paul Kidd Greyhawk novels. They were by far my favorites of the Greyhawk revival novels as well. Total blast. I can remember many of the scenes still today. Pretty much none of the others were on the same level as Paul's but I had a positive reaction to Keith Strohm's.

 

[Shazman]

I'll add to the chorus. The Paul Kidd trilogy--White Plume, Descent, and Queen--are an absolute blast. Some of the most enjoyable D&D novels I've ever read.

I'll second that. I read White Plume Mountain and most of Queen of the Demonweb Pits and loved them. The Justicar is one of my favorite characters of all time.

 

[Derulbaskul]

+1 for Paul Kidd. He really was a breath of fresh air when so many D&D novels at the time were not very good.

"... were not very good" is my way of complying with the board rules rather an accurate statement of how I really felt.

 

[Mouseferatu]

I'll second that. I read White Plume Mountain and most of Queen of the Demonweb Pits and loved them.

You should look for Descent and fill in the gaps. It takes place between those two, and sets up a lot of the character interactions in Queen.