Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth

by Christopher Golden

1st UK edition paperback, new Naughty Dog Playstation game

Genres: Adventure, Fiction, Video Games, Fantasy, Action, Novels, Thriller

323 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2011

About the author

CHRISTOPHER GOLDEN is the New York Times bestselling, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of such novels as Road of Bones, Ararat, Snowblind, Of Saints and Shadows, and Red Hands. With Mike Mignola, he is the co-creator of the Outerverse comic book universe, including such series as Baltimore, Joe Golem: Occult Detective, and Lady Baltimore. As an editor, he has worked on the short story anthologies Seize the Night, Dark Cities, and The New Dead, among others, and he has also written and co-written comic books, video games, screenplays, and a network television pilot. Golden co-hosts the podcast Defenders Dialogue with horror author Brian Keene. In 2015 he founded the popular Merrimack Valley Halloween Book Festival. He was born and raised in Massachusetts, where he still lives with his family. His work has been nominated for the British Fantasy Award, the Eisner Award, and multiple Shirley Jackson Awards. For the Bram Stoker Awards, Golden has been nominated ten times in eight different categories. His original novels have been published in more than fifteen languages in countries around the world. Please visit him at www.christophergolden.com

Reviews

[Ahren · Rating 1 out of 5]

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is an interesting case study in multimedia franchises gone wrong. Based on the popular, critically-acclaimed Uncharted video game series, Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is the one and only tie-in novel and follows the hero of the video game series Nathan Drake and his partner Victor Sullivan on another adventure that takes place between Uncharted 2 and 3 (although is a completely standalone work that makes no references to previous plot lines).

A bit of background on the series for those unfamiliar with the Uncharted brand. In addition to the novel, there have been 5 main games to date (2016), a 4-episode motion comic, and a 6-issue regular comic, all of which revolving around Nathan Drake, a modern day treasure hunter. The series started as an homage to the Tomb Raider series and takes massive inspiration from the Indiana Jones film series. Uncharted games do a good job of capturing the pulpy, adventurous spirit of those films.

After the first two Uncharted games the series began to carve out its own identity and formula and while all of the games in the series are considered good or great by critics the most common criticisms tended to call out the Uncharted formula: Drake and Sully (Victor Sullivan) get a lead on a treasure, most commonly located in a lost city. The duo team up with someone who double-crosses them or are conscripted by someone who forces them to find the treasure. Drake climbs on ancient ruins, fights mercenaries or pirates, and kills enough of them to be considered a mass murderer. Drake finds the treasure and in the process has a showdown with the main antagonist. The lost city crumbles on itself. Drake escapes. The anatagonist does not. Drake ends up with only enough trinkets of treasure to fund his next ill-fated adventure.

There-in lies the strangeness of Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth. It adheres to the Uncharted formula in all of the worst ways and ignores all of the best.

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is brimming with potential and the real shame is that none of it is effectively capitalized upon. The basic plot involves the legend of King Midas hiring Daedalus to work "magic" as an alchemist and hide the king's gold in a series of labyrinths. It's a hodgepodge of cultural references and myths but it works and the creepy cult members in black robes out to stop the truth from spreading are a pretty great addition. Where the novel immediately falters, however is in the level of violence. I know this is slightly hypocritical given that through the course of a typical Uncharted video game Nathan Drake ends up racking up body counts estimated between 300 - 450 victims per game. However the violence in the games is never gory or gratuitous. It's a ridiculous disconnect that occurs because one of the game's core elements of gameplay is shooting a gun. What fun is shooting a gun without someone to shoot at? The whole thing leads to an interesting, yet well-tread analysis of ludonarrative dissonance in video games. The point being that in a fictional medium, in which there is no need to serve shooting a gun as a required element of gameplay there is an opportunity in this novel for Drake to shed his past as a mass-murderer and focus less on action and more on adventure. Surprisingly, The Fourth Labyrinth takes the opposite approach and ratchets the violence up to a whole new level. Not only does Drake end up killing scores of "bad guys" but the detail and description of the violence is more grisly than ever. The impetus for this particular adventure occurs in the opening chapters when Drake and Sully's old friend Luka is found dismembered. It's a sudden dark turn for the franchise and if finding Luka's head sitting on his chest seems like a bit much it's just the tip of the iceberg as throughout the book throats are slashed, people are stabbed, shot and beaten in colorful detail.

Uncharted games are also known for their spectacular visuals and "set-piece" moments. These are huge action sequences that are amazing to watch and exciting to play. For example, Drake survives a train derailment, climbs out of the wreckage only to have to fight his way out of a horde of enemies, or escape a collapsing building, or a cruise ship capsizing, or a cargo plane crashing into a desert. These amazing moments led to Nathan Drake being referred to as the John McClane of video games (the plucky, unkillable hero of the Die Hard films) and became one of the main draws of the franchise. What ridiculous situation will Nathan Drake find himself in next, and how will he miraculously survive by the skin of his teeth? Which is why it's so strange that The Fourth Labyrinth has none of these moments. These sequences were done in the video games at great cost, often pushing the boundaries of the technology on which the games run. In a film these would be elaborate multi-million dollar sequences. A novel is the perfect medium to top them all as there are no restrictions to the imagination. Yet, nothing.

The set and production design also play a large, jaw-dropping role in Uncharted games as Drake will stumble onto a lost city or an ancient temple and find himself confronted by massive gorgeous statues or breath-taking vistas and archictecture. This is another aspect of the series completely lost in the novel as The Fourth Labyrinth takes place in a series of labyrinths. Underground structures with stone floors, stone, walls and stone ceilings. Imagery about as vivid as a dungeon from the original The Legend of Zelda game.

Christopher Golden is a good writer. His prose is well-constructed and the imagery he conjures is vivid without being overly descriptive. The Fourth Labyrinth was produced in 2011, a ridiculously busy year for the Uncharted franchise. The studio responsible for Uncharted had farmed out development of the PS Vita game Uncharted: The Golden Abyss to Bend Studios and had split their development team for Uncharted 3 to start work on their next big game The Last of Us. I assume that the collaborative environment for telling stories in the Uncharted universe was a bit challenging for Christopher Golden and as a result we receive a story with one-dimensional characters and zero character development. It's a shame because telling Uncharted stories in novel form had the potential to capitalize on all of the things that made Uncharted great while shedding all of the criticisms that have held the games back.

[Natalie · Rating 5 out of 5]

2025 reread:

I’ve read this multiple times now, but for some reason this book was really giving me Golden Abyss vibes this time around. Jada reminded me a lot of Marisa. I can’t believe I never saw the similarity before now!

**reread for Book Scavenger Hunt — a book (from any age group) adapted to a game (or vice versa)**
______________________________________________
2023 reread:

I think this GIF says it all...



_______________________________________________
2021 reread:

So once again Nathan Drake saved the day, while getting the crap kicked out of him, and killing a million or so mercenaries. It kind of looked something like this in my head:








**reread for book scavenger hunt - an adventure book** (because a book based on a video game character is clearly perfect for this category!)

________________________________________
Original review:

4.5 stars, rounded up to 5 because I love Nate Drake!

I am a big fan of the Uncharted series (who isn’t?) and I was super excited to read this novelization. I thought the author did an excellent job with Nate’s witty quips and I could totally hear Nolan North’s voice in my head as I was reading. Sully was good as well (I also heard Richard McGonagle’s voice in my head) and the banter between the two is part of what makes the games so great. I was glad to see it was included here as well. They also have a great friendship and are always there for each other no matter what. Sully is a great father figure to Nathan.



The story was not as good as some of the stories of the games, but I enjoyed it. The book read like one long cutscene playing in my head so that was pretty cool. I’m sad Elena wasn’t in the book though - I love her and she just adds something so fun to the dynamic of Drake and Sully.

If you’re a fan of the games, you will likely enjoy this book.

P. S. I love Nate Drake.

[Max Faddick · Rating 5 out of 5]

The tie-in business is a hard business, whether it’s a movie adaptation of a book, a book that preludes a movie, or a television spin off of a beloved film series, the core fan base always throws heated criticism in the way of the tie-in’s creators because their take on the universe didn't quite do justice to the original. Luckily, Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth not only does right by the pre-existing universe, it also expands on it in ways only achievable through sound literature. The Fourth Labyrinth begins in an instantly recognizable situation to anyone who is familiar with the previous chapters in the saga, and then quickly takes a nose-dive into an interesting, mysterious, and uncharacteristically dark plot twist. We open the book with Nathan Drake (treasure hunter, thief, wisecracker and main protagonist ) having just finished a job in South America when he gets a phone call from his best friend and partner in crime; Victor Sullivan. Sullivan (Sully) informs Drake that a close friend of his, an Archeologist named Luka, had been brutally murdered over what Sully believes to be the Historical discovery of the century. Luka’s daughter, and Sully’s god-daughter, Jada, is believed to be in danger by the same unknown that killed Luka, so Sully asks for Nate’s help in protecting her, finding out who or what killed Luka, and if his discoveries were worth his untimely end.
The narrative is surprisingly engaging and manages to keep the fast action movie pacing that Uncharted is know for without loosing suspense or character development. Mainly, the new edition to the crew; Jada, is particularly interesting, and the back-and-forth between characters manages to be witty without losing momentum. Unlike previous Uncharted titles, Fourth Labyrinth finds an intimidating protagonist, whose aura of menace can be attributed to his secrecy. The suspense that this villain gives off is fifty percent of why Fourth Labyrinth is such an enjoyable title, with the other fifty falling on the humorous dialogue. These two elements play surprisingly well in tandem together, and the giddy anticipation mixed in with the clever sitcom style dialogue experienced while reading through the mystery can be likened to watching a scary movie with a funny friend. Overall, Christopher Golden’s (the author) Uncharted novel is one to be commemorated by the series’ devoted fans, as it manages to find it’s own unique tone without ever losing the series’ immediate charm.
Uncharted is funny, dark, and personable, which is why I would strongly recommend it to any Harry Potter fans. While reading, you feel in touch with the characters, almost as if you’re there with them. This is one of the main reasons why J.K. Rowling’s Potter books were so engaging and as such is why Uncharted is a strong recommendation. The verbal exchanges make you smile, the characters develop strongly, and the conclusion is satisfying. Both books overall do a great job of telling a strong story not void of all human emotion, but rather one of personality and atmosphere. In conclusion, Fourth Labyrinth is a solid read for anyone who appreciates strong characters, solid mysteries, and archeology. (9.6/10)

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

UNCHARTED: THE FOURTH LABYRINTH features a poor man's Indiana Jones and was written by a guy probably best-known for a big stack of HELLBOY and BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER tie-ins. With that in mind, the book is exactly what you'd expect. EXACTLY what you'd expect.
Christopher Golden does manage to capture some of that Indiana Jones flavor, despite the book's overall sloppiness (which I assume comes from it being rushed). However, he completely fails to do justice to the Nathan Drake character, who comes across here as nothing more than "Generic Action Man." I think Golden tried to portray him as being charming and intelligent, but to me he came across as just the opposite.
Another thing is that whoever came up with the plot (whether Golden himself or the Naughty Dog game company) went WAY overboard in packing too much lore into a single story. When Drake isn't busy solving one of Daedalus' secret labyrinths, he's off exploring Atlantis, fighting off minotaurs, learning the truth about alchemy, or ensuring that the secret to mind control doesn't fall into the wrong hands--all while staving off the occasional ninja attack. As you might guess, it gets to be a bit much.
But what really drags this book down is all the idiotic banter among the main characters. Golden simply doesn't have an ear for humorous dialog, as demonstrated in his BUFFY novels. UNCHARTED: THE FOURTH LABYRINTH is at its most enjoyable during the final few chapters, when things have gotten so dire that the characters no longer have time for inane jokes.

[Sophie Jones · Rating 2 out of 5]

I found this tie in very bland. The book explores 4 labyrinths, 3 or which are almost identical. The story doesn't seem to go anywhere as the plot itself is rather boring. The uncharted games are known for putting a twist on history which the book delivers but it doesn't quite pack the punch. Drake seems very egotistical and isn't all that likeable as he refers to every women by their looks and nothing more. The cocky retorts the writer writes also don't quite hit the mark.

There's also a lot of violence in the book that doesn't quite work. In a game it doesn't matter how believable a situation is as the unrealistic sections are there just for the sake of gameplay (etc Drake killing 400 bad guys per mission) in the book however, which is set in quite a realistic setting, Drake and his team get away with landing a plane with 2 dead bodies onboard and having a car chase through New York and no one bats an eyelid.... seemed just ridiculous in the end.

There were loads of other issues I had with this book as well. The characters seemed 2D and non of them were particularly likeable. Even though this was supposedly set between games 2 and 3 there's no mention of any of the other cast members from the game series.

It's a mediocre book and a forgettable adventure.

[Cheryl Hall · Rating 2 out of 5]

I'll give this book two and a half stars.

I have to admit that I'm a little disappointed with Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth, I had expected a fun, quick read with the characters of one of my favourite game series. However it took me well over a week to read it as I often set it aside for days at a time.

The overall premise was alright but the characters of Drake and Sully lacked the definition of their game counter parts and I frequently questioned lines of their dialogue or wondered about omissions, for example unless I somehow overlooked it Sully doesn't utter his signature line once.

Also I became increasingly infuriated whenever Golden's original character Jada's magenta hair bangs were mentioned.

I'd still recommend this for fans of the Uncharted series but don't expect the same quality of character development.

[Madison King · Rating 4 out of 5]

Different style to what I am used to but enjoyed the action haha!

[Dennis · Rating 2 out of 5]

Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth should have ticked all the boxes for me - a brand new adventure featuring characters I love from a video game I adore, ancient mysteries, ninjas, conspiracies and buried treasure? You son of a b*tch, I'm in.

However, I ultimately found the book very disappointing. The story itself - our heroes on the trail of Daedalus' secret "fourth labyrinth" and the treasures within - would have been interesting enough, had it not been for the bland, uninspiring writing and character dialogue. I often found myself having to re-read pages as I'd missed or simply forgotten important events, or due to confusion as to whether a character had been killed or not. And sometimes the writing is so bad it takes you completely out of things - within the first three pages there's a weird reference to how a girl's cinnamon skin colour had put Drake off cinnamon, only for the story to go into oddly strange detail a few pages later about how Drake's favourite snack is a cinnamon bun - and honestly I never truly got back on track right from that first chapter.

Adventure stories are fairly simple - Hero goes after McGuffin, fights baddies, solves puzzles and dodges traps along the way, all while cracking witty one-liners. But The Fourth Labyrinth never manages to establish what our heroes (and villains) are going after until it's far too late in the story, what the stakes are if they fail, the action scenes are too poorly written to follow, and the snappy camaraderie of the established Uncharted characters feels lacking. There seems to be a lot of focus on the original characters (Jada in particular), to the point where I suspect this was initially written as an original story only for the publishers demand it become an Uncharted adaptation. As such, it feels less like a tale from the Uncharted series and more like a half-arsed fan fiction.

[Marlene Freitag · Rating 2 out of 5]

I really wanted to like this, partly because Uncharted was a big part of my youth, but it just wasn’t good. The story is kind of lackluster and predictable, the writing gives off major pick-me-vibes and of course you can’t miss the casual misogyny and racism. So, don’t waste your time with this!

[Matthew Rettino · Rating 3 out of 5]

I didn't feel that this novel captured the same joy and pleasure as the video game, but then again, is it really possible for any novel to do that at all? I would have found it more rewarding to read a novelization that used the storytelling strategies that made Uncharted 2: Among Thieves such an effective and memorable game. The Fourth Labyrinth consists of a murder mystery, as a past acquaintance of Sully winds up dead. Drake helps out his mentor to find the killer and becomes embroiled in a mystery involving four labyrinths built by Daedalus, whom the author treats as a kind of an ancient conman. Unfortunately, this results in the fact that Drake is not the self-motivated protagonist from Among Thieves. It's more Sully's story, in truth, or the story of Sully's niece, whose father was killed and who strikes up a (platonic) relationship with Drake. The story could have still happened without Drake in it, which to be felt disappointing. Despite this, there were amusing and suspenseful moments, despite the author somewhat skipping out on the setting details that made the video game settings Shambhala, El Dorado, and the City of Brass feel so immersive and three-dimensional.

[Kathy · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was excited to win this advanced copy through Goodreads First Reads because I have enjoyed the video game (it is by far my favorite). There is something about the Indian Jonesesque quality of the story line that makes anyone long for adventures in foreign and exotic places. Christopher Golden did a good job of capturing the essence of Sully and Nate that makes the video game so popular. You have to love the father/son/brother relationship that Sully and Nate share and how even though they are rascals, they inevitably try to do the right thing. This book is a tie-in to Uncharted 3, due out November 2011, and can't help but increase the excitement for that. If you have not played Uncharted, you can still enjoy the book as a stand alone. You'll learn a little history and bear witness to a lot of action. It is kind of like the 39 Clues for adults. Great fun!

[Maura Shelton · Rating 1 out of 5]

It isn’t often that a book stops me in my tracks within the first chapter. The Nathan Drake I have played and learned to love wouldn’t size up a 19 year old girl, demean her while he’s rescuing her, and state, “…she said bitterly in that aren’t you a dumbass tone young women seem to perfect so early”, and also Drake wouldn’t call a said 19 year old melodramatic for crying her eyes out when she is recaptured to be taken back to the bed she had been cuffed to. And that was just the first chapter. This was a shameful depiction of the fun hero Nathan Drake from the Uncharted game series. There is some strong projection from the author about his thoughts toward women. Uncharted is meant to be a fun adventure, but it seems the author only wanted to go on that adventure with his bros. To top it off, the writing was poor.

[Drew · Rating 3 out of 5]

Golden manages to capture the feel of the Uncharted video games faithfully, but there are a few caveats. It doesn't reference any of the previous games, but merely drops you in the middle of this story with the expectation that if you're reading an Uncharted novel, then you're already familiar with the characters. As far as the main characters, Nate and Sully, you don't get much character development. They stay pretty close to their evolution in the games and nothing more. You do get some development in the supporting characters, but unless they show up in the video games or a sequel novel, I'm not attached. Overall it's a fun adventure novel whether you're a fan of the series or not. If you're familiar with the series, however, then it's a safe bet you'll enjoy the book.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Christopher Golden never disappoints with his numerous media tie-ins. Being a fan of the Uncharted game series, I wasn't sure how well the action adventure aspect of the game series would translate to a novel, but the story was excellent. The fortune hunter aspect was well-elaborated with the numerous archaelogical digs and the globe-trotting of Nate Drake, Victor Sullivan, and a new character Jada (not seen in any of the PS3 games thus far). And the action sequences (particularly all the game scenes of Drake crashing through things was well incorporated without being monotonous or two game-esque). It was a great story, and one fans of the series will love and even newcomers can enjoy since previous knowledge of the series isn't necessary for this standalone story.

[K. · Rating 3 out of 5]

Trigger warnings: misogyny, violence, death of a friend, racism, gun violence.

2.5 stars.

I knew nothing of the Uncharted series going into this book other than that there's a movie with Tom Holland coming out next year and the trailer was a lot of fun. So I grabbed this and it was...a steaming turd.

Look, maybe for people who've played the game and know the characters, it's great. As someone who knew nothing, it started with some godawful racism on page 1 and quickly got worse.

As an action-adventure story? Sure. Fine. It's full of action and mayhem and puzzles to be solved. But this was just a big ol' ball of yikes with a side of THAT'S NOT HOW MUSEUMS WORK.

I'll still watch the movie though. Fingers crossed it's less gross than this was.

[Matt Sayer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Perfectly captures the essence of the Uncharted games, providing an exhilarating Indiana Jones adventure infused with history, mystery and action. Existing characters mimic their game counterparts accurately, and new characters are wonderful additions. Great for fans of the franchise, as well as anyone who loves a good action adventure story.

[travis williams · Rating 5 out of 5]

Already in charted waters

I already read this book though I did enjoy it a lot I have a lot of books to read so I have to 're read this some other day I didn't have any dislike for this book love uncharted series and I recommend this book to any body who played the games your in for a treat

[Edu Dethklok · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un libro basado en la franquicia de Sony Uncharted, pero no hace falta haber jugado a los juegos anteriormente. Se puede leer como una historia cerrada e independiente, divertida y amena. Recomendada para los fans incondicionales de Indiana Jones.

[McKenzie · Rating 5 out of 5]

It reads as though it could be a seamless addition to the Uncharted games, and I loved every single moment. My only complaint is that I fear we will never see the sequel teased at the end of the story, which promised to be another fun adventure for Nathan Drake.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

You don’t get many games that capture lightning in a bottle quite like Uncharted. With engaging storylines, despicable villains and loveable main characters, turning the popular series into a book was always going to make for a tough challenge.

But luckily, Golden was up to the task. He starts the novel off at a thunderous pace with loveable rogue, Nathan Drake, avoiding capture in Ecuador. However, that’s merely a starter - a round of poppadoms, before the mixed grill arrives.

After ordering a delicious pastry, our hero gets a call from his old pal Victor Sullivan. The cigar smoking gent has just lost a close friend under very grizzly circumstances, and thus Sully will stop at nothing to help the man’s daughter find the truth.

The trio start their action packed journey in New York and begin to look into Jada’s Dad’s archaeological findings. Luka had been looking into labyrinths with a businessman named Tyr Henriksen. However, for unknown reasons, he decided to step away from the entrepreneur, who had a close relationship with his wife. Consequently, Jada suspected her step mother could have something to do with the crime.

Our protagonists find out as much as they can in the Big Apple before heading to Luka’s apartment for further research. However, they arrive to the building ablaze and bullets being fired in their direction. This forces them to retreat and to head to Egypt to look for one of at least three hidden labyrinths.

At this point, we’re almost certain that Henriksen ad Luka’s widow, Olivia, are behind the attack. But when the wicked step mom arrives in Crocodopolis, we’re led in a different direction.

After an awkward encounter in a cafe, a gang attempts to kidnap Jada. But much to their dismay, they’re assassinated by a group of hooded men, which puts a very interesting twist on the story.

After telling the young girl to go home, we have to wonder what’s hidden in these labyrinths.

Nate, Sully and Jada explore the underground maze before heading to Greece to do the exact same thing, which being honest, slows the pace dramatically. However, when they discover where the final labyrinth is, the tale explodes into life.

There’s twists, turns and the reality of the situation makes for a truly satisfying read. The revelation, truly lives up to all expectations. The last fifteen pages contain enough drama to make the hairs on the back of your neck stand to attention. And the author presents a moral dilemma that leaves you thinking long after putting the novel down.

While the book doesn’t stand out as an all time great, it’s more than worth picking up a copy. Golden captures Drake’s charm and also showcases a warmer side to Sully, as we see how much he cares about Jada. And personally, I wouldn’t mind a sequel.

[SW · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is my favorite video game franchise, so I was excited to find this book. It felt a lot like one of the games with the amount of goons with guns, strange crumbling ruins that Drake and his crew just happen to make crumble faster, and a strange cult with ties to ancient rituals.
I will say, I got a little annoyed with Jada. She's got people trying to kill her and she's got bright magenta hair. Put on a hat! Like, your just asking to be unalived next. I guess it makes sense that she doesn't have as much experience with fighting for her life like Drake and Sully, but she could have had a better appreciation for their knowledge.
No matter. It was still a fun read, but the games are still better. 🎮

[Rafael Baena · Rating 3 out of 5]

Leer esta novela es como estar jugando a una de las entregas del videojuego. Es sencilla, ligera, entretenida y divertida.
Como aspecto negativo, el final es algo apresurado, y la traducción tiene bastantes erratas que la editorial debería revisar. Pero por lo demás, ha cumplido muchísimo.

[Ondra Král · Rating 3 out of 5]

Sice dávám jen 3* (nic víc než akční béčko to není), ale má to všechno, co člověk od Uncharted chce.

[liv · Rating 2 out of 5]

marginally better than the uncharted movie but that’s not saying much

[Troy Weiler · Rating 5 out of 5]

Got exactly what I expected! I just wish they called him Nate more than Drake! Personal preference though. Super fun read!

[Ayşe · Rating 3 out of 5]

the games are better

[Ashley Crowe · Rating 2 out of 5]

I know it can be difficult to make other media based off a game series so in reality my expectations shouldn't have been high for this book. But I went in with a slight bit of optimism thinking it may be alright. Alas I was disappointed. Story wise the labyrinths and alchemy were interesting, and how the Minotaurs are just people that get roped into doing it. It was the characters themselves that fell flat for me. Nathan Drake just seemed like a complete idiot who was just along for the ride instead of the main protag. Sully was just kind of there smoking a cigar. And I kept getting mixed signals with Jada. Is Nathan attracted to her, pretty sure he's too old for her? Does he see her like a sister? And the antagonists, Tyr and Olivia, made me think of the Germans from Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade complete with betrayal and dying over some treasure. Even someone who has never touched the games would probably think they were boring if this book is anything to go by. Naughty Dog needs to try again, or maybe stick with comics to get the visual narrative as well.

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a huge fan of the games, I had to give this a try. Overall this is a strong three stars but felt that it wasn't quite right for a four star rating. The beginning of the book starts off pretty well then dies off quickly as it works to dump information and set up relationships. Then by the middle of the book when they arrive in Egypt, things start to pick up and have the same feelings the games had created for me. This definitely is a bit of biased rating due to my experience the with games and I had ultimately set the expectation of the book pretty high. Overall though, it is another good story of Drake and Sully and would recommend it to anyone who has played the game or is interested in giving it a go!

[Cameron · Rating 4 out of 5]

As with any adventure novel worth its weight in long lost treasure, The Forth Labyrinth has a dashing hero, a plot neck deep in mythology and legend, and a group of adventure archaeologists traveling around the globe to places whose names I can't pronounce on my own. It's got everything you would expect and could want out of a story of this type. It's good. Really good, actually, but anyone outside Uncharted's fanbase won't appreciate it nearly as much as those in it. However, there's still an enjoyable tale to be told here either way.

The Uncharted series is known for it's huge set pieces and pacing that even Hollywood's most action packed movies struggle to keep up with, combined with excellent presentation and characterization. In attempting to translate that to the novel format, Golden smartly chooses to scale things down a bit as far as set pieces are concerned. This may be disappointing to some, but could you imagine trying to novelize the action of Uncharted 3? Talk about your monumental tasks. Thus, Golden tones things down a bit (the action here is about on par with Uncharted 1) and focuses more on nailing the feel of the characters. And nail it he does. Drake and Sully seem to have been taken right out of the games. The dialogue is suitably witty, the characterization is spot on (mostly), and the motivations feel right in line with the characters. With the exception of one small incident, everything feels just right.

The quality characters don't stop with Naughty Dog's creations either. Golden's own additions to the cast are a joy to read about as well. Jada is a well defined character (perhaps even more so than Elana) and she fits in well with the already established Uncharted veterans. She has the traits normally associated with the typical feisty female that this series loves but with added emotional depth that adds weight to both her character and the overall story. The villains of the story even feel a little more personal here considering their connection to Jada. However, this could be a positive or a negative depending on how you felt about the intentionally archetyped villains of the games.

While the set pieces may be scaled back, the story here is just as exciting as those from the games. It moves along quickly and has plenty of twists and turns in store for readers. I was always anticipating the next opportunity to learn more about Daedalus and his Labyrinths, and when the conversations about the plot are just as exciting as the very well done action scenes, you know you're doing something right story-wise.

As video games become more and more accepted as a storytelling platform and game budgets continue to rise, more money gets poured into seriously developing their stories and characters. This means that not only are the games better, but their adaptions are too, because we have people who care about good stories working hard to create them, as opposed to just throwing something together without consideration of quality. Uncharted: The Fourth Labyrinth is a good example of the results of this. It's not a masterpiece, but it's a pretty big step in the right direction.

And it's fun as hell.

[D.w. · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like this game. I've played it for a little while now, and it is challenging. The idea of a modern day Indiana Jones comes most to mind while playing it. But that is a game, and not a book.

We look at the written word different then we look at video games. And just as when we walk out of a movie based on a book, we do a comparison of the two properties, we must do the same with the book and the game. The book is based on the game franchise, not a particular game as yet.

That is probably one of the failures. The copy I reviewed is also a pre publication copy, and there were too many typos showing either Del Rey has let go too many copy editors, it hasn't had a final edit, or Chris Golden writes to fast to edit his work. Not sure which, but it does detract from the work.

The story itself has some good points, but craft wise, it fails. First as a mystery, we have a dead body, and instead of really wanting to find out more about this body, which is recovered in gruesomeness. We want to find the mysterious title of the book, the 4th Labyrinth which we hope will tie up the loose end of who murdered that body.

The protagonists includes the friend of the deceased as well as the daughter. No matter how important the find will be, murderers, justice would seem to be more important to those involved. The author does not really give us enough development to get away from that.

Further, as Nate and Sully in the video banter to pass the time in the video, and as they are not three dimensional characters in that game, the author carries that banter past an extreme in the book. Nate is never serious, except one or two times in his own thoughts. Otherwise it is all banter, banter, banter. Might as well watch some South Park reruns instead of read this book. If you do not catch the byplay, because you do not live in the author's generation, then you are not going to enjoy this book. It certainly looses rating points because the characters don't know how to speak as Human's do.

We then get to the great part of the game, and what the book lacks. The quest. There is a quest in the book, but it is very linear without trips down the wrong path and clues that we can see that lead us as readers towards the right path. The characters solve this with their help from the deceased, the funky researcher who works for the bad guy, the professor the hero pulls out of his cell phone as needed.

But where the game excels and where Indiana Jones established how this should work, and the B&W serials of the thirties and forties, is that all these great finds are protected by puzzles. It is what we as gamers have to do to unlock the next part of the story. Somehow the puzzles are not challenging and that Nathan figures them out easily, make it seem like anyone with him could do so.

No challenge. That is the underlying way the entire story carries out. No Challenge. And so it is just average. That and the detracting banter make this a once only and only for those who are really fans. For those who want more depth in their reading, this won't have it."l