What do you think?
Rate this book
Jig the Goblin #1-3
The Legend of Jig Dragonslayer
If you think being a big, strong, brave fantasy hero is hard... just try being Jig the Goblin.
Here, together for the first time, are the uproarious, unforgettable adventures of Jig the Goblin—the most unlikely hero you will ever meet. In this collected omnibus of Goblin Quest , Goblin Hero , and Goblin War , readers will follow the epic (if mostly accidental) exploits of a puny, clumsy, bespectacled runt of a goblin whose intelligence, wit, and unbelievable luck allow him to survive when fate thrusts him into a world much larger—and far more dangerous—than any he ever imagined...
Here, together for the first time, are the uproarious, unforgettable adventures of Jig the Goblin—the most unlikely hero you will ever meet. In this collected omnibus of Goblin Quest , Goblin Hero , and Goblin War , readers will follow the epic (if mostly accidental) exploits of a puny, clumsy, bespectacled runt of a goblin whose intelligence, wit, and unbelievable luck allow him to survive when fate thrusts him into a world much larger—and far more dangerous—than any he ever imagined...
883 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 2009
13 people are currently reading
281 people want to read
About the author
Jim C. Hines
95 books2,395 followersJim C. Hines began his writing career with a trilogy about the irrepressible Jig the goblin, which actor and author Wil Wheaton described as "too f***ing cool for words." He went on to deconstruct fairy tales in his four-book Princess series, made all the world's literature a grimoire in the Magic ex Libris series, and explored the heroic side of spacecraft sanitation in his Janitors of the Post Apocalypse trilogy. His short fiction has appeared in more than fifty magazines and anthologies. Jim has been outspoken about topics like sexism and harassment, and was the editor of the Invisible series—three collections of personal essays about representation in sf/f. He received the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 2012. Jim currently lives in mid-Michigan.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews
June 18, 2018
I stumbled across this quite randomly. A friend said he had read it and it was funny. So I read it. It's funny. I can appreciate an essentially children's story with adult tongue in cheek humor or settings. Neil Gaiman does this exceedingly well. Mr. Hines is no Neil Gaiman. But Jig does live up to it's billing- it never fails to amuse.
Jig is a goblin. One of the weakest and most cowardly goblins. But he is smart. He gets captured by a group of misfit adventurers and thus begins his climb towards greatness. Jig isn't the bravest, or the best combatant, but he always manages to come out ahead. Even if it is by completely random events. You end up liking him and rooting for him. The sarcastic writing style lends itself well to this kind of a darkly humorous fable. I also rather liked Jig's pet fire-spider Smudge.
It is a rather large tome and by the third story, Jig's antics were wearing a wee bit thin. I think the first one is the most entertaining. The rest are ok. While not a trailblazing work by any means, should you be in the mood for a quick laugh about a goblin destined to be a hero-then you will enjoy Jig.
Jig is a goblin. One of the weakest and most cowardly goblins. But he is smart. He gets captured by a group of misfit adventurers and thus begins his climb towards greatness. Jig isn't the bravest, or the best combatant, but he always manages to come out ahead. Even if it is by completely random events. You end up liking him and rooting for him. The sarcastic writing style lends itself well to this kind of a darkly humorous fable. I also rather liked Jig's pet fire-spider Smudge.
It is a rather large tome and by the third story, Jig's antics were wearing a wee bit thin. I think the first one is the most entertaining. The rest are ok. While not a trailblazing work by any means, should you be in the mood for a quick laugh about a goblin destined to be a hero-then you will enjoy Jig.
January 26, 2015
3.5. Jig is an average goblin. Well, maybe a little below average. He's clever, but small, and weak. That's why it's such a surprise when he accidentally gets recruited into a party of adventurers looking to fight the cave's resident dragon. And then, to defend his tribe against an invasion of pixies. And against the combined armies of the region, human, orc, and otherwise. (Goblin Quest, Goblin Hero, and Goblin War, respectively.) Good thing he's got a personal god and a fire spider on his side. I bought The Legend off Jig Dragonslayer to read on a day where I knew I'd be spending a lot of time in transit at airports. I wanted something long, amusing enough to keep me going, but no so complex that my sleep-deprived mind would have trouble sussing it out. And Jig Dragonslayer nicely supplied all three. It's not the most amazing fantasy story I've ever read, or the funniest, but its light satire and perpetually wincing protagonist are charming. Jig Dragonslayer fits nicely in a rather niche category of fantasy, alongside works such as A. Lee Martinez' Too Many Curses and John Moore's Bad Prince Charlie. They're stories that take traditional fantasy tropes and gently twist and mock them, turning the good slightly darker and the dark into a light comedy grey. In that company, Jig Dragonslayer stands at the high end, for me at least. The first book is a parody of the sword and sourcery dungeon crawl (although not overly D&D-influenced), but the second and third spend more time thinking about Jig's world in general. Jig is really the only well-developed character in the trilogy (the attempt to develop his god Noc in the third book fell kind of flat for me) and he doesn't exactly have much character development, but at least there's a rough arc, and it's fun to see him constantly get in over his head through--as he'll insist--no real fault of his own. It didn't rock my world, but it's a really pleasant way to spend some time.
November 9, 2020
Funny and cute. Smidge! If you're a fan it is a must read.
Poor Jig the goblin getting dragged into being a guide for adventurers. Luckily this little shortsighted goblin isn't quite like the others.
Poor Jig the goblin getting dragged into being a guide for adventurers. Luckily this little shortsighted goblin isn't quite like the others.
July 6, 2016
This is a big, fun, fluffy read. Hines has a lighthearted tone and a snide humor, especially speaking through the voices of the unsophisticated, barbaric goblins. I really enjoyed the characterization of Jig the unlikely hero, and the setting of his under-mountain home.
The stories follow the eponymous Jig, a runty goblin trying to survive his belligerent, back-stabbing tribe by staying unnoticed and quiet. He's sneaky rather than strong, perhaps a bit smarter than other goblins but goblin society has no place for brains. The setting is a hollow mountain, probably built to house a powerful artifact and home to a dragon, a necromancer, tribes of ogres, hobgoblins, goblins, venomous lizard-fish, flaming spiders and carrion-eating worms. These denizens subsist by preying on each other, and on adventurers who come seeking the powerful artifact, and the story takes off when Jig finds himself abducted by adventurers to guide them through the caverns.
By twisting the perspective of the story from the supposedly noble and good adventurous to the actually barbaric and evil goblins, Hines created an excellent parody of the epic fantasy genre. The first book is the most readable and the best crafted story, but it's nice to see the further development of the character and the expansion of the world in the sequels.
I really enjoyed these books, largely because of Jig's character and his interactions with the other characters, the non-serious nature of the writing and the humor brought into the stories.
The stories follow the eponymous Jig, a runty goblin trying to survive his belligerent, back-stabbing tribe by staying unnoticed and quiet. He's sneaky rather than strong, perhaps a bit smarter than other goblins but goblin society has no place for brains. The setting is a hollow mountain, probably built to house a powerful artifact and home to a dragon, a necromancer, tribes of ogres, hobgoblins, goblins, venomous lizard-fish, flaming spiders and carrion-eating worms. These denizens subsist by preying on each other, and on adventurers who come seeking the powerful artifact, and the story takes off when Jig finds himself abducted by adventurers to guide them through the caverns.
By twisting the perspective of the story from the supposedly noble and good adventurous to the actually barbaric and evil goblins, Hines created an excellent parody of the epic fantasy genre. The first book is the most readable and the best crafted story, but it's nice to see the further development of the character and the expansion of the world in the sequels.
I really enjoyed these books, largely because of Jig's character and his interactions with the other characters, the non-serious nature of the writing and the humor brought into the stories.
January 28, 2023
Goblin Quest
Jig is a runt of a goblin – between being so tiny, near-sighted, and big-eared, he’s lucky if keeping his head down keeps him out of sight of the bullies, and often has to rely on the tried-and-true goblin retreat to survive. When he finds himself captured by a band of adventurers and enlisted as their guide to find the powerful magic Rod of Creation hidden deep in the mountain where he lives, though, there’s no retreating from them. He’ll have to use all his survival skills and them some if he hopes to not end up yet another dead goblin.
Goblin Hero
Jig has a new moniker after his escapade with the adventurers: Dragonslayer. Though that doesn’t mean he wants to go on any more dangerous quests when he could stay safely in Tymalous Shadowstar’s temple healing the many wounds goblins get day after day. When a new threat arises, though, the goblin chief thinks it will be the perfect way to get rid of Jig. As much as Jig doesn’t want to get involved, he has no choice. He will once again have to use all his tricks to survive and with more than a little luck and godly help, defeat the new threat.
Goblin War
Jig never wanted to unseal the mountain, but he didn’t have much choice, either. Especially not with Shadowstar gently prodding him and alluding to some great danger that will threaten all Jig has tried to keep safe so far (himself, oh and the other goblins). Once again Jig finds himself captured by humans (how do they keep doing that to him?), but being a prisoner pales in comparison to the new threat beyond his mountain home. And of course, only Jig Dragonslayer will stand a chance of defeating it, whether or not he wants to. When can a goblin just get a break with some good klak beer and rat tail stew?
Trilogy Review:
I must have picked this up years ago, when I first discovered Hines’ Princess quartet, because it was by him. It took suggesting Goblin Quest as the January book club book that I finally read it, and couldn’t stop until I reached the end of the omnibus. Each book took me less time to read (8 days, 6 days, 5 days), and I enjoyed every moment. Well, Goblin Quest and the first half of Goblin Hero was a bit rough, until I got some perspective from my book club and found the groove: fantasy, reverse D&D style. The goblins are the main characters instead of just being, well, someone for adventurers to kill in a dungeon (mountain), and add in a dash of breaking the fourth wall with some nods to very well-known fantasy series. Yet all in all, Jig’s story, his world, stands on its own and is a fun adventure through and through. Jig is a great goblin hero – not only does he have good instincts, but Hines did a perfect job balancing goblin shortcomings while still making Jig’s decisions and actions feel true and fully in line with them and to himself. Any time Jig thought up a good plan (or adapted his plan once it was ruined), it never felt like he was being smarter than he should be, like the author was forcing skill upon him that he didn’t have.
It was also fun encountering various different goblins, as each book sees Jig enlisting the assistance of different goblins, each of whom gets solidly fleshed out and three-dimensionalized, further breaking the mold of goblins (and hobgoblins) being flat characters to fall under adventurer’s swords. There was Slash (hobgoblin trap-maker) in Goblin Quest, Brak (dim-witted warrior), Grell (old nursery-minding goblin with walking sticks) , and Veka (wanna-be hero and sorcerer) in Goblin Hero, Relka (eager devotee of Shadowstar) and Trok (converted warrior) in Goblin War. (Observation: most goblins have at a “k” in their name – Grell and Jig being the obvious exceptions. Wonder if the goblin language has a lot of “k”s in it too?) Oh and Smudge, Smudge is at least as fun here as he is in his “cameo” in the Libriomancer series!
Typos/inconsistencies:
Goblin Quest
....logic when you snuck down after father." - page 49 - should be "Father"
"[...] a union betwixt Taras of the Oak - he's a tree god - and a human woman named...." Darnak frowned.
"Well, her name's not important. Taras appeared to her [...] But like any good girl, this girl grabbed the nearest hammer and cracked that tortoise on the back. Split Taras's shell right in two. Did I mention she was a dwarven girl?" - page 142 - Either Darnak was changing details on purpose as he told the story (to show us that his myth-telling is not the most reliable), or this is a mistake.
Flecks of color sparkled across the both pools, and finally [...] - page 215 - either remove "the" or "both"
Goblin Hero
Until now, Veka hadn't been sure how she would persuade of the hobgoblins to accompany her. - page 315 - should be "one of the"
"No, Farnax" said Pynne. - page 420 - missing a comma: Farnax,"
...have hobgoblins screaming through the layer on a vengeance... - page 454 - "layer" should be "lair"
...he plunged the arrow into the her back, directly... - page 529 - delete second "the"
[Jig] rested the sword across his chest, making sure the steel came nowhere near the walls of the bubble. His shook so hard he could barely hold on. - page 522 - should be "His hands shook so hard..." or "He shook so hard..."
Goblin War
...each one bent low against bird's neck. - page 782 - should be "against a bird's"
Jig is a runt of a goblin – between being so tiny, near-sighted, and big-eared, he’s lucky if keeping his head down keeps him out of sight of the bullies, and often has to rely on the tried-and-true goblin retreat to survive. When he finds himself captured by a band of adventurers and enlisted as their guide to find the powerful magic Rod of Creation hidden deep in the mountain where he lives, though, there’s no retreating from them. He’ll have to use all his survival skills and them some if he hopes to not end up yet another dead goblin.
Goblin Hero
Jig has a new moniker after his escapade with the adventurers: Dragonslayer. Though that doesn’t mean he wants to go on any more dangerous quests when he could stay safely in Tymalous Shadowstar’s temple healing the many wounds goblins get day after day. When a new threat arises, though, the goblin chief thinks it will be the perfect way to get rid of Jig. As much as Jig doesn’t want to get involved, he has no choice. He will once again have to use all his tricks to survive and with more than a little luck and godly help, defeat the new threat.
Goblin War
Jig never wanted to unseal the mountain, but he didn’t have much choice, either. Especially not with Shadowstar gently prodding him and alluding to some great danger that will threaten all Jig has tried to keep safe so far (himself, oh and the other goblins). Once again Jig finds himself captured by humans (how do they keep doing that to him?), but being a prisoner pales in comparison to the new threat beyond his mountain home. And of course, only Jig Dragonslayer will stand a chance of defeating it, whether or not he wants to. When can a goblin just get a break with some good klak beer and rat tail stew?
Trilogy Review:
I must have picked this up years ago, when I first discovered Hines’ Princess quartet, because it was by him. It took suggesting Goblin Quest as the January book club book that I finally read it, and couldn’t stop until I reached the end of the omnibus. Each book took me less time to read (8 days, 6 days, 5 days), and I enjoyed every moment. Well, Goblin Quest and the first half of Goblin Hero was a bit rough, until I got some perspective from my book club and found the groove: fantasy, reverse D&D style. The goblins are the main characters instead of just being, well, someone for adventurers to kill in a dungeon (mountain), and add in a dash of breaking the fourth wall with some nods to very well-known fantasy series. Yet all in all, Jig’s story, his world, stands on its own and is a fun adventure through and through. Jig is a great goblin hero – not only does he have good instincts, but Hines did a perfect job balancing goblin shortcomings while still making Jig’s decisions and actions feel true and fully in line with them and to himself. Any time Jig thought up a good plan (or adapted his plan once it was ruined), it never felt like he was being smarter than he should be, like the author was forcing skill upon him that he didn’t have.
It was also fun encountering various different goblins, as each book sees Jig enlisting the assistance of different goblins, each of whom gets solidly fleshed out and three-dimensionalized, further breaking the mold of goblins (and hobgoblins) being flat characters to fall under adventurer’s swords. There was Slash (hobgoblin trap-maker) in Goblin Quest, Brak (dim-witted warrior), Grell (old nursery-minding goblin with walking sticks) , and Veka (wanna-be hero and sorcerer) in Goblin Hero, Relka (eager devotee of Shadowstar) and Trok (converted warrior) in Goblin War. (Observation: most goblins have at a “k” in their name – Grell and Jig being the obvious exceptions. Wonder if the goblin language has a lot of “k”s in it too?) Oh and Smudge, Smudge is at least as fun here as he is in his “cameo” in the Libriomancer series!
Typos/inconsistencies:
Goblin Quest
....logic when you snuck down after father." - page 49 - should be "Father"
"[...] a union betwixt Taras of the Oak - he's a tree god - and a human woman named...." Darnak frowned.
"Well, her name's not important. Taras appeared to her [...] But like any good girl, this girl grabbed the nearest hammer and cracked that tortoise on the back. Split Taras's shell right in two. Did I mention she was a dwarven girl?" - page 142 - Either Darnak was changing details on purpose as he told the story (to show us that his myth-telling is not the most reliable), or this is a mistake.
Flecks of color sparkled across the both pools, and finally [...] - page 215 - either remove "the" or "both"
Goblin Hero
Until now, Veka hadn't been sure how she would persuade of the hobgoblins to accompany her. - page 315 - should be "one of the"
"No, Farnax" said Pynne. - page 420 - missing a comma: Farnax,"
...have hobgoblins screaming through the layer on a vengeance... - page 454 - "layer" should be "lair"
...he plunged the arrow into the her back, directly... - page 529 - delete second "the"
[Jig] rested the sword across his chest, making sure the steel came nowhere near the walls of the bubble. His shook so hard he could barely hold on. - page 522 - should be "His hands shook so hard..." or "He shook so hard..."
Goblin War
...each one bent low against bird's neck. - page 782 - should be "against a bird's"
September 8, 2018
This is an omnibus edition of the three Jig the Goblin books. This are humorous satire/homage to standard fantasy novels. Plenty of comedy, and lots of little winks and nods to those who read fantasy or play fantasy role playing games (like the dwarf mapping the dungeon, insisting on measuring each and every room and corridor precisely). The first book is the one played as the most straight comedy/parody, while the other two actually develop characters further and give us quite a bit more worldbuilding. Good fun, and easy reads.
December 7, 2014
Picked this up on a whim after the cover/title caught my eye in a book store. Perfectly enjoyable if very simple comedy/fantasy combination....kinda like if a (less funny) Douglas Adams wrote a knockoff of Lord of the Rings. Infinitely better than National Lampoons attempt to do exactly that (Bored of the Rings).
March 17, 2024
I'm glad I finally got around to reading about Jig's (mis)adventures. Wonderful stories from beginning to end. I loved the nontraditional take on fantasy heroes and all the twists and turns that went along with it. Definitely worth reading!
February 12, 2015
Goblin Quest - 2/9/15 - 4 Stars
Goblin Hero - 2/9/15 - 4 Stars
Goblin War - 2/11/15 - 3 Stars
Goblin Hero - 2/9/15 - 4 Stars
Goblin War - 2/11/15 - 3 Stars
September 15, 2025
Such a good series! I really loved this series. I like the weak to strong MC trope and this series has an interesting twist on that. Instead of weak to strong the MC went from pitifully weak to, Well, I got it done.....
Good plot development, good char development. Interesting world view, I really liked the prospective the author took with this series. Good use of the divine intervention trope. Many authors over use the divine intervention concept, this was just right. Just a nudge in the right direction, and a slight bump in the power / skills.
I honestly do not have a negative comment to add about this series. I even liked the ending. It was sweet and fitting and a good ending for a MC I was quite invested in.
I will be looking for more books from this author!
Good plot development, good char development. Interesting world view, I really liked the prospective the author took with this series. Good use of the divine intervention trope. Many authors over use the divine intervention concept, this was just right. Just a nudge in the right direction, and a slight bump in the power / skills.
I honestly do not have a negative comment to add about this series. I even liked the ending. It was sweet and fitting and a good ending for a MC I was quite invested in.
I will be looking for more books from this author!
September 13, 2024
Jig is a goblin nerd who gets to be a hero. A god helps. It's funny and engaging. I can say I enjoyed the first book without reservation.
A classic D&D adventuring party captures Jig in the goblin tunnels under the mountain and forces him to be their guide to the dragon lair. It's a brilliant campaign with lots of funny situations and Jig finding clever solutions.
The second and third book got a bit repetitive. The settings were new but the humor grew a bit stale. Who knew goblins who live in filth and don't think twice about cannibalism would be so body shy. The stories were good though.
A classic D&D adventuring party captures Jig in the goblin tunnels under the mountain and forces him to be their guide to the dragon lair. It's a brilliant campaign with lots of funny situations and Jig finding clever solutions.
The second and third book got a bit repetitive. The settings were new but the humor grew a bit stale. Who knew goblins who live in filth and don't think twice about cannibalism would be so body shy. The stories were good though.
Read
July 17, 2021Imagine an epic dungeons and dragons style adventure with monsters mystery and mayhem. Now imagine it’s told from the viewpoint of the lowly three hit point goblin. This three book series tells the adventures of jig the goblin and how he becomes a reluctant hero in a fantasy world. It’s humorous, engaging, and one of my favorite series. If you’d like a good fantasy story that makes you laugh and cheer for the underdog then this is the book series for you.
July 26, 2017
I actually read this in the three separate books (before they were amalgamated together).
It's a typical fantasy endeavor with a hero who is hilarious (he spends most of his time trying to get himself out of the story and has a sarcastic wit that I love).
An easy read that had me (literally) laughing out loud - fast paced drama and excellent writing.
It's a typical fantasy endeavor with a hero who is hilarious (he spends most of his time trying to get himself out of the story and has a sarcastic wit that I love).
An easy read that had me (literally) laughing out loud - fast paced drama and excellent writing.
July 30, 2022
Just finished the first story in this omnibus edition... Love Jim Hines, love Libromancer, not loving Jig so much.
In actuality I never got through the second book... and it landed in my DNF pile years ago... why it showed on my Goodreads page today I'll never know, but obviously it's time to put that book down Goodreads.
In actuality I never got through the second book... and it landed in my DNF pile years ago... why it showed on my Goodreads page today I'll never know, but obviously it's time to put that book down Goodreads.
November 29, 2017
I found this to be a "feel good smile" book rather then the more tiring type of "automated rifle joke laugh out loud" kind of comedy.
Easy to read in the extreme, and i think that is often underestimated how hard it is to do and still have a entertaining story to tell.
Easy to read in the extreme, and i think that is often underestimated how hard it is to do and still have a entertaining story to tell.
September 19, 2019
One of the staple fantasy works everyone who enjoys the fantasy genre should read, even more so if you or anyone you know plays fantasy role playing games! Hilarious, entertaining, well-told, and definitely a reversal of roles in this great romp through the traditional fantasy quest storyline.
May 7, 2017
Top notch. Love Jig. Last of the three was a bit weak.
June 26, 2019
A really entertaining trope flip.
September 22, 2023
Allt öðruvísi bók en aðrar svipaðar bækur. Fyrsti hlutinn var frábær. Hitt ekki.
February 5, 2024
I really liked the first book, but unfortunately did not gel as well with the next 2 in the series.
June 10, 2016
Enter a world of fantasy and adventure in Jim C. Hines The Legend of Jig Dragonslayer.
In Goblin Quest, we travel to one of Adenkar's more lively mountains, venturing down into it's dark tunnels to discover a point of view rarely imagined by mankind. All manner of vile beast dwells here, including a horde of goblins, the scrawniest of the bunch being Jig. Nearly blind in the dim tunnels, Jig is not what you picture when you think of rampaging goblins terrorizing the countryside, but he manages just fine. All is good in Jig's world, until a group of dreaded Adventurers enters the lair. Taken as a guide, the party explains they seek the legendary Rod of Creation, said to be hidden in the depths of the mountain and guarded by the terrible dragon Straum. With hobgoblins, lizard-fish and an army of undead minions, Jig, accompanied by his pet fire-spider Smudge, will have their hands full just staying alive.
Goblin Hero takes us back to the lair where we meet our beloved protagonist, Smudge! I mean Jig! Now known as the mighty Jig Dragonslayer, he is both revered and mocked at, while all he wants to do is live a quiet life. That doesn't seem possible with a god prodding you toward greatness, as Jig is soon to learn. When news comes that there is a disturbance in the lower tunnels, Jig is forced to investigate and soon learns that an army of pixies has taken over, one bent on total domination of the mountain...and the destruction of all within! With a new cast of hilarious characters, Jig is once again forced to don the mantle of a hero, one he'd gladly pass to someone else.
Our trilogy is concluded in Goblin War, which once again takes us by the hand, guiding us to our favorite goblin lair. After the pixie fiasco, Jig, at the behest of Shadowstar, has opened the mountain to the outside world. All become convince this was a grave mistake when soldiers appear on the horizon, storming the lair and taking many prisoner, marching them away to be used as slave labor. The goblins soon learn that the humans are on the defensive, as an orc known as Billa the Bloody has somehow amassed a huge army and is promising to rid the land of the human scourge. Jig soon discovers that the term "rid" is very much open to interpretation, and that Billa has not told them of her final move. With new gods and races added to the mix, this final battle could be the beginning of something new, or the last stroke against all goblinkind.
I could not have been happier with this series! I immediately fell in love with our unwilling, often regretful hero, as well as the multitude of characters that makes this a fun read for everyone. The comedy and often blatant references to other books and movies makes this a cleaver, rip-roaring adventure that is hard to put down. Hines is a wonderful storyteller and a builder of fantastic worlds that really bring out the magic in this book. I highly recommend and will definitely reread I the future.
In Goblin Quest, we travel to one of Adenkar's more lively mountains, venturing down into it's dark tunnels to discover a point of view rarely imagined by mankind. All manner of vile beast dwells here, including a horde of goblins, the scrawniest of the bunch being Jig. Nearly blind in the dim tunnels, Jig is not what you picture when you think of rampaging goblins terrorizing the countryside, but he manages just fine. All is good in Jig's world, until a group of dreaded Adventurers enters the lair. Taken as a guide, the party explains they seek the legendary Rod of Creation, said to be hidden in the depths of the mountain and guarded by the terrible dragon Straum. With hobgoblins, lizard-fish and an army of undead minions, Jig, accompanied by his pet fire-spider Smudge, will have their hands full just staying alive.
Goblin Hero takes us back to the lair where we meet our beloved protagonist, Smudge! I mean Jig! Now known as the mighty Jig Dragonslayer, he is both revered and mocked at, while all he wants to do is live a quiet life. That doesn't seem possible with a god prodding you toward greatness, as Jig is soon to learn. When news comes that there is a disturbance in the lower tunnels, Jig is forced to investigate and soon learns that an army of pixies has taken over, one bent on total domination of the mountain...and the destruction of all within! With a new cast of hilarious characters, Jig is once again forced to don the mantle of a hero, one he'd gladly pass to someone else.
Our trilogy is concluded in Goblin War, which once again takes us by the hand, guiding us to our favorite goblin lair. After the pixie fiasco, Jig, at the behest of Shadowstar, has opened the mountain to the outside world. All become convince this was a grave mistake when soldiers appear on the horizon, storming the lair and taking many prisoner, marching them away to be used as slave labor. The goblins soon learn that the humans are on the defensive, as an orc known as Billa the Bloody has somehow amassed a huge army and is promising to rid the land of the human scourge. Jig soon discovers that the term "rid" is very much open to interpretation, and that Billa has not told them of her final move. With new gods and races added to the mix, this final battle could be the beginning of something new, or the last stroke against all goblinkind.
I could not have been happier with this series! I immediately fell in love with our unwilling, often regretful hero, as well as the multitude of characters that makes this a fun read for everyone. The comedy and often blatant references to other books and movies makes this a cleaver, rip-roaring adventure that is hard to put down. Hines is a wonderful storyteller and a builder of fantastic worlds that really bring out the magic in this book. I highly recommend and will definitely reread I the future.
November 27, 2012
I was first introduced to Jig the Golbin in "When the Hero Comes Home", to my delight and fear I discovered that Jig had three complete books. The Legend of Jig Drangonslayer is the compilation of Jig's three full length adventures. I am not a big fan of serials, as I find I am often disappointed by the sequel books, but Jig was a delightful surprise.
Goblin Quest:
By far my favourite of the three stories, but isn’t that always the case with book 1? Not ways.
Jig, a runt of a Goblin, is a bullied survivor. He bases his actions on how to keep himself alive. To his despair, he is captured and forced to guide a band of “heroes” through his mountain.
These heroes are, of course, the archetypes we all know and love/hate in adventure stories, games, movies, etc. There is the Warrior with more brans than brains, the wizard who’s magic you're just not sure about along with his mental state, the Rogue or thief who is well a thief and too sneaky for you to trust full, and the “Oh, I have one of those” backpack full of who knows whats. We all know them and we all groan when we read them, see them, or have to play against them. To my delight Hines’ uses them brilliantly.
Goblin Hero:
Jig’s is now a hero, much to his despair, and a new threat as entered his mountain.
How does on top Goblin Quest? I went into Goblin Hero, excited for another adventure with Jig but worried. Hines’ brilliantly developed a second book with a new adventure, new obstacles, and the same old Jig. By alternating the point of view the reader is able to see both what is happening with Jig and what is occurring “behind the scenes”. It’s enough to refresh and not hinder or be off putting. Bravo.
Goblin War:
Jig has proven himself twice, can he do it a third time?
Again Hines’ changes up the narrative to give the reader someone else’s perspective, aside from Jig, and its different enough from Goblin Hero not to be hot hat. The conclusion to Jig’s trilogy, left me happy, satisfied, and a bit sad, just like it should.
Goblin Quest:
By far my favourite of the three stories, but isn’t that always the case with book 1? Not ways.
Jig, a runt of a Goblin, is a bullied survivor. He bases his actions on how to keep himself alive. To his despair, he is captured and forced to guide a band of “heroes” through his mountain.
These heroes are, of course, the archetypes we all know and love/hate in adventure stories, games, movies, etc. There is the Warrior with more brans than brains, the wizard who’s magic you're just not sure about along with his mental state, the Rogue or thief who is well a thief and too sneaky for you to trust full, and the “Oh, I have one of those” backpack full of who knows whats. We all know them and we all groan when we read them, see them, or have to play against them. To my delight Hines’ uses them brilliantly.
Goblin Hero:
Jig’s is now a hero, much to his despair, and a new threat as entered his mountain.
How does on top Goblin Quest? I went into Goblin Hero, excited for another adventure with Jig but worried. Hines’ brilliantly developed a second book with a new adventure, new obstacles, and the same old Jig. By alternating the point of view the reader is able to see both what is happening with Jig and what is occurring “behind the scenes”. It’s enough to refresh and not hinder or be off putting. Bravo.
Goblin War:
Jig has proven himself twice, can he do it a third time?
Again Hines’ changes up the narrative to give the reader someone else’s perspective, aside from Jig, and its different enough from Goblin Hero not to be hot hat. The conclusion to Jig’s trilogy, left me happy, satisfied, and a bit sad, just like it should.
September 9, 2015
I don't know if I've somehow offended the writer of this book but if I have please tell how to fix it so that you'll write the fourth book and make everything okay for me again?
Review reader's, don't let that sentence up above concern you or deter you from reading the Legend of Jig Dragonslayer. It's brilliant. Jig is brilliant, not everybody survives like in some books (actually dead goblins is a frequent theme to be honest) and Smudge and Tym are freaking grand! So is Braf and Grell. It's rather brillaint in my generally not so humble opinion. Hence the reason after reading the blurb of book one that I went and ordered the Omnibus edition so I had all 3 stories ready to go. I can't really convince you to read this and I'm not very sure on how best articulate why I enjoyed this book so much to convince you that you might as well so I leave it to you to figure out if a cowardly goblin and his pet fire-spider would make a good story. =)
As a random side note: I now have an even greater dislike of civilisation since this book.
Review reader's, don't let that sentence up above concern you or deter you from reading the Legend of Jig Dragonslayer. It's brilliant. Jig is brilliant, not everybody survives like in some books (actually dead goblins is a frequent theme to be honest) and Smudge and Tym are freaking grand! So is Braf and Grell. It's rather brillaint in my generally not so humble opinion. Hence the reason after reading the blurb of book one that I went and ordered the Omnibus edition so I had all 3 stories ready to go. I can't really convince you to read this and I'm not very sure on how best articulate why I enjoyed this book so much to convince you that you might as well so I leave it to you to figure out if a cowardly goblin and his pet fire-spider would make a good story. =)
As a random side note: I now have an even greater dislike of civilisation since this book.
September 29, 2015
I liked the books; it was interesting how Jig would get out of the situations he found himself in.
In the third story, I kept waiting for another character from the first book to reappear because others did, but it never happened. I guess there are some lose ends that might lead to a continuation, or just something for us to imagine and wonder about. What really happened to Tymalous Shadowstar for one. I suppose the curse was not lifted, but there's also the interesting possibility that Noc didn't try to kill him again.
In the third story, I kept waiting for another character from the first book to reappear because others did, but it never happened. I guess there are some lose ends that might lead to a continuation, or just something for us to imagine and wonder about. What really happened to Tymalous Shadowstar for one. I suppose the curse was not lifted, but there's also the interesting possibility that Noc didn't try to kill him again.
January 19, 2013
This is an excellent collection. Jig Dragonslayer quickly became one of my favorite characters. The stories were interesting and complex. My only complaint was that, by the time I got to the third story, it seemed as though it contained just more of the same. But, upon reflection, that was not really the case. I think if I had spaced out my reading of the stories I would not have felt this way. On the other hand, with all three Jig stories in one place, I did not want to put it down...
December 12, 2013
So far, these books are fun and fluffy fantasy. I like the little bits of cleverness and the fun hijinks. Will be reading the third book soon.
Third book was my favorite. I liked learning about Tymalous Shadowstar, and I liked seeing Jig get to take charge and gain a little more confidence than he had before. Overall, a really fun series.
Third book was my favorite. I liked learning about Tymalous Shadowstar, and I liked seeing Jig get to take charge and gain a little more confidence than he had before. Overall, a really fun series.
February 24, 2024
Jim Hines sits firmly in the Fantasy Satire genera.
Not quite up to the levels of Terry Pratchett that I judge others by..but pretty close.
His weaving into the story all the well known mechanics and tropes of an RPG gaming session from the viewpoint of a goblin NPC are spot on.
Not quite up to the levels of Terry Pratchett that I judge others by..but pretty close.
His weaving into the story all the well known mechanics and tropes of an RPG gaming session from the viewpoint of a goblin NPC are spot on.
November 21, 2013
Loved it! Quirky, fun, funny, just plain enjoyable.
August 13, 2013
finished it in 4 days and it's a trilogy what do you think?
September 9, 2013
loved the book, a lot of laughs following the exploits of an inept goblin who manages with the help of a god to stumble through sticky situations and come out alive to become a hero
Displaying 1 - 30 of 35 reviews