AdmundfortGeographer
Getting lost in fantasy maps
I wanted to thank you for updates and new mini-reviews of these books as you finish them. I'm paying attention as I look for my next books. I've started the Don Bassingthwait series right now.
Eberron novel line. Any standouts?
- Thread starter AdmundfortGeographer
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AdmundfortGeographer
Getting lost in fantasy maps
Before getting to The Binding Stone I had a detour to the Warhammer line and finished Death's Legacy (third book after Death's Messenger, and Death's City) by Sandy Mitchell. Before that I had just finished Keith Baker's third book. I enjoyed it a lot. It feels like a logical extension of the previous books, so if you enjoyed the prior books you should enjoy the third just as much. Also, it seems clear that more books are planned in the series.
I'm a stickler for world-building and cosmology-building, and in those areas there were some twists in the book that some might have objections to, I believe. I believe that the twists were foreshadowed, or at least hinted at as possibilities, in the Eberron Campaign Sourcebook.
I'm a stickler for world-building and cosmology-building, and in those areas there were some twists in the book that some might have objections to, I believe. I believe that the twists were foreshadowed, or at least hinted at as possibilities, in the Eberron Campaign Sourcebook.
Duncan Haldane
Explorer
I've read the first few Eberron novels, and far too many FR and DL ones ;-)
Keith Baker's are good, but his lack of novel writing experience shows. I look forward to seeing him improve his writing.
Don Brassingtons were excellent. Characters were provocative, consistent, believable. There's even an element of possible homosexuality in the books, which is alluded to, but not focused on or spelt out - deliberate, considering their audience, IMO. Far more mature than the usual D&D novel, without being too adult or over the top.
I will read more of Keith's but I really look forward to reading Don's.
Duncan
Keith Baker's are good, but his lack of novel writing experience shows. I look forward to seeing him improve his writing.
Don Brassingtons were excellent. Characters were provocative, consistent, believable. There's even an element of possible homosexuality in the books, which is alluded to, but not focused on or spelt out - deliberate, considering their audience, IMO. Far more mature than the usual D&D novel, without being too adult or over the top.
I will read more of Keith's but I really look forward to reading Don's.
Duncan
The Human Target
Adventurer
The Binding Stone (Don Bassingthwait)
The Grieving Tree (Don Bassingthwait)
Those are two I've read so far, I've got the third in my pull box at my local comicbook store.
There pretty good DnD books in general, and seem to grasp the Eberron flavor nicely.
My main gripe is the psionic character. Not only is she kinda boring, but she really is a terrible psionicist. She seems more like a second edition "psionics aren't a class" psion. She pretty much only does three things. Its like my problem with R.A. Salvatore and his clerics/mages. The don't feel like actual DnD characters.
The Grieving Tree (Don Bassingthwait)
Those are two I've read so far, I've got the third in my pull box at my local comicbook store.
There pretty good DnD books in general, and seem to grasp the Eberron flavor nicely.
My main gripe is the psionic character. Not only is she kinda boring, but she really is a terrible psionicist. She seems more like a second edition "psionics aren't a class" psion. She pretty much only does three things. Its like my problem with R.A. Salvatore and his clerics/mages. The don't feel like actual DnD characters.
AdmundfortGeographer
Getting lost in fantasy maps
I'm only through the first book. But the psionic character is really not something you would be able to create using the rules. I'm not expecting her to do much due to her nature. (I'm trying to avoid spoilers.) If there would be something to criticise is that she's so far outside what can be done in the rules.The Human Target said:
And, :\ , I'm not seeing the subtle homosexuality Duncan seems to have observed.
The Human Target
Adventurer
It bother me even more because we so rarely see a psionic character in DnD fiction, and now that we have one she's pretty far off the mark.Eric Anondson said:I'm only through the first book. But the psionic character is really not something you would be able to create using the rules. I'm not expecting her to do much due to her nature. (I'm trying to avoid spoilers.) If there would be something to criticise is that she's so far outside what can be done in the rules.
And, :\ , I'm not seeing the subtle homosexuality Duncan seems to have observed.
My kingdom for a psion that seems to have power points!
Graf
Explorer
I picked up a few Eberron books. I didn’t like any of them actually.
Personally if you’re looking for good ideas and stories you should pick up strong fantasy-fiction (GRRM, Mieville) or read some of the better story hours (Sep, Destan, Piratecat)
KB’s books (I’ve read the first two) aren’t very strong as fiction. The characters are a bit simplistic and the interest is derived more from the situations and events that they face. These are interesting but not really thematically linked in a useful manner.
They are decent for introducing people to Eberron, but they also violate a lot of Eberron tenets a bit unnecessarily. Warforged are immune to Mind Flayer mind-blasts, a House Canith character gets to deactivate construct with her dragonmark in the introduction and the power never turns up again, despite it’s obvious power and utility in later scenes.
You very much get the sense that the world shifts and changes to match the needs of the plot.
The Claws of the Tiger had better characterization. I had hopes because I think Wyatt has very strong creative chops.
But it really felt like a short story that went on for too long. The “big surprise” was agonizingly transparent, which was OK, but he just went on and on repeating the same few scenes (‘elves see something with super human vision” “main character agonizes about wife”).
After a while you are going “elves don’t –have- super human vision” and “the main character couldn’t possibly be this stupid; and if he is Elvin wizard buddy can’t be…”
Then they’re the big reveal and the payoff isn’t worth it.
And the wife’s characterization was terrible. She’s the main plot point, really, she gets a massive amount of “screen time” but she comes off more as some kind of living saint, devoid of any personality beyond “perfect wife & priestess”.
It would have been a decent-to-very-good short story.
But, like with the Baker books, you felt that they were just working to try to make the characters “get from point D to point F”.
That’s not to say that the books were terrible. It’s just that people without significant writing experience need a lot of time, lots of drafts and a very strong editor before they can turn out first rate work.
Personally if you’re looking for good ideas and stories you should pick up strong fantasy-fiction (GRRM, Mieville) or read some of the better story hours (Sep, Destan, Piratecat)
KB’s books (I’ve read the first two) aren’t very strong as fiction. The characters are a bit simplistic and the interest is derived more from the situations and events that they face. These are interesting but not really thematically linked in a useful manner.
They are decent for introducing people to Eberron, but they also violate a lot of Eberron tenets a bit unnecessarily. Warforged are immune to Mind Flayer mind-blasts, a House Canith character gets to deactivate construct with her dragonmark in the introduction and the power never turns up again, despite it’s obvious power and utility in later scenes.
You very much get the sense that the world shifts and changes to match the needs of the plot.
The Claws of the Tiger had better characterization. I had hopes because I think Wyatt has very strong creative chops.
But it really felt like a short story that went on for too long. The “big surprise” was agonizingly transparent, which was OK, but he just went on and on repeating the same few scenes (‘elves see something with super human vision” “main character agonizes about wife”).
After a while you are going “elves don’t –have- super human vision” and “the main character couldn’t possibly be this stupid; and if he is Elvin wizard buddy can’t be…”
Then they’re the big reveal and the payoff isn’t worth it.
And the wife’s characterization was terrible. She’s the main plot point, really, she gets a massive amount of “screen time” but she comes off more as some kind of living saint, devoid of any personality beyond “perfect wife & priestess”.
It would have been a decent-to-very-good short story.
But, like with the Baker books, you felt that they were just working to try to make the characters “get from point D to point F”.
That’s not to say that the books were terrible. It’s just that people without significant writing experience need a lot of time, lots of drafts and a very strong editor before they can turn out first rate work.
BadMojo
First Post
Graf said:
I've nearly finished Keith Baker's second Dreaming Dark book and I've really enjoyed it. I don't know if it's entirely fair to compare his books with two of best fantasy authors (IMO) out there today.
GRRM and Mieville also have a lot more space to develop characters. The Song of Ice & Fire books all hover around 1000 pages and "Perdido Street Station" is at least double the word count of "City of Towers".
Anyway, Paul Crilley's story in the Eberron anthology was excellent and it seems he has another Eberron book on the way called "Night of Long Shadows".
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=products/eberronnovel/959367400
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