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Fable #3
Fable: Edge of the World
The official prequel novel to the Xbox 360 videogame, Fable:™ The Journey
It’s been almost a decade since the events of Fable 3, when the Hero vanquished the threat across the sea and claimed his throne. As king he led Albion to an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity. But on the night of his wedding to his new queen, ominous word arrives: The darkness has returned.
Beyond a harrowing mountain pass, the exotic desert country Samarkand has been overrun by shadowy forces. Within the walls of its capital city, a mysterious usurper known only as the Empress has seized control. To protect his realm, the king must lead his most trusted allies into a strange land unknown to outsiders. As they forge ahead along Samarkand’s ancient Great Road, populated by undead terrors and fantastic creatures once believed to be the stuff of legend, the king is drawn ever closer to his greatest challenge yet.
But soon Albion is engulfed in a war of its own. As the darkness spreads, town by town, a treacherous force has infiltrated the queen’s circle. Now the fate of all that is good rests with a faint flicker of hope . . . that somewhere, somehow, heroes still do exist.
© 2012 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Microsoft, Fable, Lionhead, the Lionhead logo, Xbox, and the Xbox logo are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.
It’s been almost a decade since the events of Fable 3, when the Hero vanquished the threat across the sea and claimed his throne. As king he led Albion to an era of unprecedented peace and prosperity. But on the night of his wedding to his new queen, ominous word arrives: The darkness has returned.
Beyond a harrowing mountain pass, the exotic desert country Samarkand has been overrun by shadowy forces. Within the walls of its capital city, a mysterious usurper known only as the Empress has seized control. To protect his realm, the king must lead his most trusted allies into a strange land unknown to outsiders. As they forge ahead along Samarkand’s ancient Great Road, populated by undead terrors and fantastic creatures once believed to be the stuff of legend, the king is drawn ever closer to his greatest challenge yet.
But soon Albion is engulfed in a war of its own. As the darkness spreads, town by town, a treacherous force has infiltrated the queen’s circle. Now the fate of all that is good rests with a faint flicker of hope . . . that somewhere, somehow, heroes still do exist.
© 2012 Microsoft Corporation. All Rights Reserved. Microsoft, Fable, Lionhead, the Lionhead logo, Xbox, and the Xbox logo are trademarks of the Microsoft group of companies.
246 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 2012
13 people are currently reading
582 people want to read
About the author
Christie Golden
151 books1,859 followersAward-winning author Christie Golden has written over thirty novels and several short stories in the fields of science fiction, fantasy and horror. She has over a million books in print.
2009 will see no fewer than three novels published. First out in late April will be a World of Warcraft novel, Athas: Rise of the Lich King. This is the first Warcraft novel to appear in hardcover. Fans of the young paladin who fell so far from grace will get to read his definitive story.
In June, Golden’s first Star Wars novel, also a hardcover, sees print. Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi—Omen is the second in a nine-book series she is co-authoring with Aaron Allston and Troy Denning. Also in June comes the conclusion of Golden’s StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga with the release of Twlight, the third book in the series. The first two are Firstborn and Shadow Hunters.
2004 saw the launch of an original fantasy series called The Final Dance, from LUNA Books. The first novel in the series, On Fire's Wings, was published in July of that year. The second, In Stone’s Clasp , came out in September of 2005. With In Stone’s Clasp, Golden won the Colorado Author’s League Top Hand Award for Best Genre Novel for the second time. The third book, Under Sea’s Shadow, is available only as an e-book
Golden is also the author of two original fantasy novels from Ace Books, King's Man and Thief and Instrument of Fate, which made the 1996 Nebula Preliminary Ballot. Under the pen name of Jadrien Bell, she wrote a historical fantasy thriller entitled A.D. 999, which won the Colorado Author's League Top Hand Award for Best Genre Novel of 1999.
Golden launched the TSR Ravenloft line in 1991 with her first novel, the highly successful Vampire of the Mists , which introduced elven vampire Jander Sunstar. Golden followed up Vampire with Dance of the Dead and The Enemy Within . In September of 2006, fifteen years to the month, The Ravenloft Covenant: Vampire of the Mists enabled Jander Sunstar to reach a whole new audience.
Other projects include a slew of Star Trek novels, among them The Murdered Sun , Marooned , and Seven of Nine , and "The Dark Matters Trilogy," Cloak and Dagger , Ghost Dance and Shadow of Heaven .
The Voyager novel relaunch, which includes Homecoming and The Farther Shore , were bestsellers and were the fastest-selling Trek novels of 2003. Golden continued writing VOYAGER novels even though the show went off the air, and enjoyed exploring the creative freedom that gave her in the two-parter called Spirit Walk, which includes Old Wounds and Enemy of my Enemy .
Golden has also written the novelization of Steven Spielberg's Invasion America and an original "prequel," On The Run , both of which received high praise from producer Harve Bennett. On The Run, a combination medical thriller and science fiction adventure, even prompted Bennett to invite Golden to assist in crafting the second season of the show, if it was renewed.
Golden lives in Loveland, Colorado, with her artist husband and their two cats.
2009 will see no fewer than three novels published. First out in late April will be a World of Warcraft novel, Athas: Rise of the Lich King. This is the first Warcraft novel to appear in hardcover. Fans of the young paladin who fell so far from grace will get to read his definitive story.
In June, Golden’s first Star Wars novel, also a hardcover, sees print. Star Wars: Fate of the Jedi—Omen is the second in a nine-book series she is co-authoring with Aaron Allston and Troy Denning. Also in June comes the conclusion of Golden’s StarCraft: The Dark Templar Saga with the release of Twlight, the third book in the series. The first two are Firstborn and Shadow Hunters.
2004 saw the launch of an original fantasy series called The Final Dance, from LUNA Books. The first novel in the series, On Fire's Wings, was published in July of that year. The second, In Stone’s Clasp , came out in September of 2005. With In Stone’s Clasp, Golden won the Colorado Author’s League Top Hand Award for Best Genre Novel for the second time. The third book, Under Sea’s Shadow, is available only as an e-book
Golden is also the author of two original fantasy novels from Ace Books, King's Man and Thief and Instrument of Fate, which made the 1996 Nebula Preliminary Ballot. Under the pen name of Jadrien Bell, she wrote a historical fantasy thriller entitled A.D. 999, which won the Colorado Author's League Top Hand Award for Best Genre Novel of 1999.
Golden launched the TSR Ravenloft line in 1991 with her first novel, the highly successful Vampire of the Mists , which introduced elven vampire Jander Sunstar. Golden followed up Vampire with Dance of the Dead and The Enemy Within . In September of 2006, fifteen years to the month, The Ravenloft Covenant: Vampire of the Mists enabled Jander Sunstar to reach a whole new audience.
Other projects include a slew of Star Trek novels, among them The Murdered Sun , Marooned , and Seven of Nine , and "The Dark Matters Trilogy," Cloak and Dagger , Ghost Dance and Shadow of Heaven .
The Voyager novel relaunch, which includes Homecoming and The Farther Shore , were bestsellers and were the fastest-selling Trek novels of 2003. Golden continued writing VOYAGER novels even though the show went off the air, and enjoyed exploring the creative freedom that gave her in the two-parter called Spirit Walk, which includes Old Wounds and Enemy of my Enemy .
Golden has also written the novelization of Steven Spielberg's Invasion America and an original "prequel," On The Run , both of which received high praise from producer Harve Bennett. On The Run, a combination medical thriller and science fiction adventure, even prompted Bennett to invite Golden to assist in crafting the second season of the show, if it was renewed.
Golden lives in Loveland, Colorado, with her artist husband and their two cats.
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Displaying 1 - 27 of 27 reviews
January 16, 2015
My first completed novel of 2015 (ie. not manga), and what a stinker!
Being a lover of Fable I ~ III (a series of XBOX fantasy-rpg video games) and fantasy novels, I was all set to adore this book. Alas, it was not meant to be.
This book just crushes everything Fable III was about. The Darkness that was crushed in that game is back and as strong as ever. How, no one knows. So the sacrifices made in the previous battle counted for nothing.
One complaint that other reviewers have addressed is that in Fable III (and II), you could chose to play as a prince or princess (later to be king or queen), and the hero monarch here is most definitely male, being a king an all. While I understand why the author would settle on a gender for clarity when writing, I do wish we could have had a female; or at least maybe a future book featuring a Hero queen instead of a Hero king.
Another problem I have with the king is that EVERYONE LOVES HIM AND HE LOVES EVERYONE ELSE AND EVERYONE HAS A WARM AND FUZZY FEELING!!!! KILL ME NOW!!!! In the game, if you choose to be an altruistic monarch, most of the population will love you. Zoom in on the word most, there; and you can always make individuals hate you depending on if you have rude or violent interactions with them or in front of them. There is no such thing as every citizen loving their leader, even in make-believe Fable.
The king just came off as too happy no matter what happened, and not just to put a brave face on it; his thoughts (told 3rd person) don't ever seem too alarmed about any setback or even about going away to war on his wedding night.
A miner detail I caught early in the book states that the king's hair is getting a bit gray. In the game, the Hero was, I would estimate, 16 - 20 years old, and this book takes place 9 years later; the king is 25 to 29 here. While some people start graying earlier than others (I've caught gray hairs since I was 25, due to having been through a big health ordeal), but here it just seemed to be a week attempt to show that time had passed when the king gazes in the mirror.
Another thing that annoyed me is that the king never had a name. He was "king" to the readers as well as everyone around him. The queen didn't even have a pet name for him. The main character never had a proper name in the game either, but the author is creating a whole lot here that wasn't even loosely mentioned in the game, I don't know why she couldn't just call him something, anything.
And I thought it was a very stupid plot point that as the hero was thinking of . I just thought that was really stupid. Stupid stupid stupid.
Speaking of stupid, here we have the Grand Supreme Idiot, Queen Laylah. Everyone loves her because she is so kind and sweet. So the book says. She's OK, but I don't see her as being very kind or sweet. They say she would go out aming the populace and do good deeds, but she doesn't do it during the course of the novel, nor does she seem to miss it; it's not even on her mind. In fact, she gets vindictive towards the leader of her army, Timmins, because he is rough with her when he teaches her sword fighting (she's learning sword fighting because she's such a useless prat, despite growing up in a region afflicted with demons; she just hid in a hidey-hole all her life, apparently). Come on, he's trying to toughen her up, and he's in the army. My grandfather that lived with me and my family used to be a drill sergeant in the army, and he could be very rough and course sometimes; you have to be when you're going to fight wars, so army men/women can't really be blamed if they are rough around the edges. Because of this, early on she wants Timmins dismissed from service just because he tells her how badly she is progressing to her face. I'm sensitive, but OMG! What a baby! Where is her kindness and understanding now?
Second, the queen hails from Aurora, an isolated place with no government or army; just a woman, Kalan, who speaks for them. She couldn't be further away from politics if she sealed herself in a cave. But as soon as the king is gone to help defend Samarkand from the Darkness, she starts second guessing many of the key bills he enacted that are working perfectly fine, but she thinks could be better suited to the country if she...you know...reversed it.
For example, she wants to enact a curfew that never existed in previous years in the location of her best friend Page's information network. This ring of spies loyal to Page not only supply information to current the king and queen, but they were key in overthrowing the king's evil brother who ruled previously. She expects Page to understand because it's where she and her spies were centralized when they were gathering information on the last king's strategy secrets and such (essentially, Laylah is thinking that someone will try to overthrow her and her husband in the same way and location, though she doesn't use those words exactly). Understandably, in my opinion, Page does not understand because she is performing a service and fiercely loyal to the king, and this could hamper her. Laylah then gets in a huff befitting her childlike intelligence. I don't know why the king married her or what he saw in her.
When the evil Reaver shows up, who her husband himself told her was an awful man who tried to kill him for entertainment, she immediately takes him on board as an advisor while she will not listen to Page or Timmins.
Finally, the ending. What ending? This book seems like it's only half or 2/3 of the way through by the last page (and the story is not continued in the game that this is prequel too, but more on that below). We never learn what the evil Empress's agenda is, .
This novel really doesn't serve well as a good prequel to Fable: The Journey either. Only the prologue and epilogue directly tie in to it, and it doesn't amount to much (the main part of the novel is a continuation of Fable III, which takes place a long time before The Journey, where Heroes haven't existed for decades). I haven't played The Journey, but I've read the plot synopsis online, and none of the characters from the novel/Fable III have anything to do with it, except for Theresa (Theresa is a common thread through the whole series though, so that's nothing special).
I don't know what the point of this novel was, except to ruin my happiness at the end of Fable III.
Being a lover of Fable I ~ III (a series of XBOX fantasy-rpg video games) and fantasy novels, I was all set to adore this book. Alas, it was not meant to be.
This book just crushes everything Fable III was about. The Darkness that was crushed in that game is back and as strong as ever. How, no one knows. So the sacrifices made in the previous battle counted for nothing.
One complaint that other reviewers have addressed is that in Fable III (and II), you could chose to play as a prince or princess (later to be king or queen), and the hero monarch here is most definitely male, being a king an all. While I understand why the author would settle on a gender for clarity when writing, I do wish we could have had a female; or at least maybe a future book featuring a Hero queen instead of a Hero king.
Another problem I have with the king is that EVERYONE LOVES HIM AND HE LOVES EVERYONE ELSE AND EVERYONE HAS A WARM AND FUZZY FEELING!!!! KILL ME NOW!!!! In the game, if you choose to be an altruistic monarch, most of the population will love you. Zoom in on the word most, there; and you can always make individuals hate you depending on if you have rude or violent interactions with them or in front of them. There is no such thing as every citizen loving their leader, even in make-believe Fable.
The king just came off as too happy no matter what happened, and not just to put a brave face on it; his thoughts (told 3rd person) don't ever seem too alarmed about any setback or even about going away to war on his wedding night.
A miner detail I caught early in the book states that the king's hair is getting a bit gray. In the game, the Hero was, I would estimate, 16 - 20 years old, and this book takes place 9 years later; the king is 25 to 29 here. While some people start graying earlier than others (I've caught gray hairs since I was 25, due to having been through a big health ordeal), but here it just seemed to be a week attempt to show that time had passed when the king gazes in the mirror.
Another thing that annoyed me is that the king never had a name. He was "king" to the readers as well as everyone around him. The queen didn't even have a pet name for him. The main character never had a proper name in the game either, but the author is creating a whole lot here that wasn't even loosely mentioned in the game, I don't know why she couldn't just call him something, anything.
And I thought it was a very stupid plot point that as the hero was thinking of . I just thought that was really stupid. Stupid stupid stupid.
Speaking of stupid, here we have the Grand Supreme Idiot, Queen Laylah. Everyone loves her because she is so kind and sweet. So the book says. She's OK, but I don't see her as being very kind or sweet. They say she would go out aming the populace and do good deeds, but she doesn't do it during the course of the novel, nor does she seem to miss it; it's not even on her mind. In fact, she gets vindictive towards the leader of her army, Timmins, because he is rough with her when he teaches her sword fighting (she's learning sword fighting because she's such a useless prat, despite growing up in a region afflicted with demons; she just hid in a hidey-hole all her life, apparently). Come on, he's trying to toughen her up, and he's in the army. My grandfather that lived with me and my family used to be a drill sergeant in the army, and he could be very rough and course sometimes; you have to be when you're going to fight wars, so army men/women can't really be blamed if they are rough around the edges. Because of this, early on she wants Timmins dismissed from service just because he tells her how badly she is progressing to her face. I'm sensitive, but OMG! What a baby! Where is her kindness and understanding now?
Second, the queen hails from Aurora, an isolated place with no government or army; just a woman, Kalan, who speaks for them. She couldn't be further away from politics if she sealed herself in a cave. But as soon as the king is gone to help defend Samarkand from the Darkness, she starts second guessing many of the key bills he enacted that are working perfectly fine, but she thinks could be better suited to the country if she...you know...reversed it.
For example, she wants to enact a curfew that never existed in previous years in the location of her best friend Page's information network. This ring of spies loyal to Page not only supply information to current the king and queen, but they were key in overthrowing the king's evil brother who ruled previously. She expects Page to understand because it's where she and her spies were centralized when they were gathering information on the last king's strategy secrets and such (essentially, Laylah is thinking that someone will try to overthrow her and her husband in the same way and location, though she doesn't use those words exactly). Understandably, in my opinion, Page does not understand because she is performing a service and fiercely loyal to the king, and this could hamper her. Laylah then gets in a huff befitting her childlike intelligence. I don't know why the king married her or what he saw in her.
When the evil Reaver shows up, who her husband himself told her was an awful man who tried to kill him for entertainment, she immediately takes him on board as an advisor while she will not listen to Page or Timmins.
Finally, the ending. What ending? This book seems like it's only half or 2/3 of the way through by the last page (and the story is not continued in the game that this is prequel too, but more on that below). We never learn what the evil Empress's agenda is, .
This novel really doesn't serve well as a good prequel to Fable: The Journey either. Only the prologue and epilogue directly tie in to it, and it doesn't amount to much (the main part of the novel is a continuation of Fable III, which takes place a long time before The Journey, where Heroes haven't existed for decades). I haven't played The Journey, but I've read the plot synopsis online, and none of the characters from the novel/Fable III have anything to do with it, except for Theresa (Theresa is a common thread through the whole series though, so that's nothing special).
I don't know what the point of this novel was, except to ruin my happiness at the end of Fable III.
October 25, 2024
Great Fable book, it ties the events of the previous books by a different author and the events of the game very well. It has the juxtaposed comedy and gruesomeness of Fable with an original storyline. The ending also floored me since it wasn’t at all what I was expecting.
August 22, 2013
The beginning of this book was quite confusing. It did not give a solid "lead" into the actual story. It took me reading it a few times too just ignore the first few pages and continue reading. It isn't until the very end it somewhat connects. As I continued to read, the plot began taking form. It continued to improve as I got deeper into the actual story.
There were several key characters but primarily King of Albion; his new queen, Laylah;" the royal dog", Rex; the king's loyal subjects, Page, Captain Jack Timmons, Ben Finn, and Shan from Samarkand. Of special interest is also Jasper, devoted servant; Reaver , a villain/hero & Barrow, the butler. Other key characters are added toward the end of the book.
After a vicious battle, the king and hero rules Albion. He takes a bride. On their wedding day following the ceremony, Shan from Samakand arrives, exhausted, with a warning the greatly feared "Dark Shadows" are coming. It is deiced the king and his army will have to go to Samakand to fight there before the enemy can penetrate the border of Albion. Within days. the king, Ben. and his army leave on their journey to war. Laylah is left with Page, Jack and Rex. To say much more would ruin the story. Needless to say the rest of the book "danced" between the two groups.
There is plenty of action and adventure. Both groups encounters many challenges. The reader experiences emotions of frustration, incredulousness, sentimentality, outrage, curiosity...just to mention a few.
There is romance, love, hate, loyalty, deceit, betrayal, cunning, violence, monsters, evil, good, etc.
While inexperienced Laylah tries to valiantly run the kingdom of Albion, she finds it much more difficult than she believed. She makes blunders and good choices, as well. The king and his group runs into many severe and unexpected challenges. In the end, the reader is left with great anticipation for the next book of the series. I highly recommend you have the next book ready to read.
The cover is a great visual addition to the story. The depiction of it becomes clear later in the book and is a super "lead" into the next of the series.
I feel this is a little too mature for elementary age. It is very violent at times, and could be quite frightening for young children. There are also references to "the wedding night" that is a little advanced for children... or should be. It is recommended for Middle-School age students and HS age. Especially toward the last half of the book, it emphasizes some important qualities and teaching tools that could be discussed with youth or in book clubs. These are also made into a video game collection.
This was generously donated by Christie Golden requesting an honest book review of which I am giving.
My review of this book offers a weak Four Stars rating. Weak because of the beginning and a few unclear parts of the story. Four Stars due to the adventure, action, and literary value in the last two-thirds of the book, which was very well written. It was also cleanly written, so parents - except for the violence - feel at ease with your youth reading this.
There were several key characters but primarily King of Albion; his new queen, Laylah;" the royal dog", Rex; the king's loyal subjects, Page, Captain Jack Timmons, Ben Finn, and Shan from Samarkand. Of special interest is also Jasper, devoted servant; Reaver , a villain/hero & Barrow, the butler. Other key characters are added toward the end of the book.
After a vicious battle, the king and hero rules Albion. He takes a bride. On their wedding day following the ceremony, Shan from Samakand arrives, exhausted, with a warning the greatly feared "Dark Shadows" are coming. It is deiced the king and his army will have to go to Samakand to fight there before the enemy can penetrate the border of Albion. Within days. the king, Ben. and his army leave on their journey to war. Laylah is left with Page, Jack and Rex. To say much more would ruin the story. Needless to say the rest of the book "danced" between the two groups.
There is plenty of action and adventure. Both groups encounters many challenges. The reader experiences emotions of frustration, incredulousness, sentimentality, outrage, curiosity...just to mention a few.
There is romance, love, hate, loyalty, deceit, betrayal, cunning, violence, monsters, evil, good, etc.
While inexperienced Laylah tries to valiantly run the kingdom of Albion, she finds it much more difficult than she believed. She makes blunders and good choices, as well. The king and his group runs into many severe and unexpected challenges. In the end, the reader is left with great anticipation for the next book of the series. I highly recommend you have the next book ready to read.
The cover is a great visual addition to the story. The depiction of it becomes clear later in the book and is a super "lead" into the next of the series.
I feel this is a little too mature for elementary age. It is very violent at times, and could be quite frightening for young children. There are also references to "the wedding night" that is a little advanced for children... or should be. It is recommended for Middle-School age students and HS age. Especially toward the last half of the book, it emphasizes some important qualities and teaching tools that could be discussed with youth or in book clubs. These are also made into a video game collection.
This was generously donated by Christie Golden requesting an honest book review of which I am giving.
My review of this book offers a weak Four Stars rating. Weak because of the beginning and a few unclear parts of the story. Four Stars due to the adventure, action, and literary value in the last two-thirds of the book, which was very well written. It was also cleanly written, so parents - except for the violence - feel at ease with your youth reading this.
March 16, 2017
As someone who loves the Fable games, I was so excited to find this book at the store but almost as soon as I started reading it I was disappointed. First of all, I was a little disappointed that the author did not opt to have a female Queen as Fable 3, the game this book picks up after, allows the gamer to pick between boy or girl. Regardless, it was just a little thing for me and I kept on reading. The characters in the book, in my opinion, are true to their personalities in the game but she doesn't go too far with them so they all read like a bunch of 2-dimensional robots every now and then giving one-liners, there's no depth to any of them. The King gets married to the most obnoxious, awful character named Laylah, which was created by the author. She whines about everything from beginning to end and I ended up feeling glad when things went horribly wrong for her because she rarely made a wise decision on anything. I was disappointed that the author opted to make the King get married in the first place as the game is supposed to be based on adventure and while you can get married it really is such a tiny part in the actual game that it's basically irrelevant. Furthermore, any time the author mentioned sex it made me cringe because she wrote allusions to it like a shy middle school girl and the topic should have been left out of the book completely.
A lot of things are packed into a very small book without anything really going anywhere or any explanations for anything. The King goes on a quest to defeat The Darkness and makes blunder after blunder after blunder. Then he gets a dragon (????WHY????) and flies off to a monastery and despite the fact that there's a huge, important task at hand he decides to stay there for a few days learning new tricks which he never brings up again after the fact. Towards the end I was dying to get the book over with and really disappointed that out of a really fun and great game the author was unsuccessful with writing even a decently interesting story.
A lot of things are packed into a very small book without anything really going anywhere or any explanations for anything. The King goes on a quest to defeat The Darkness and makes blunder after blunder after blunder. Then he gets a dragon (????WHY????) and flies off to a monastery and despite the fact that there's a huge, important task at hand he decides to stay there for a few days learning new tricks which he never brings up again after the fact. Towards the end I was dying to get the book over with and really disappointed that out of a really fun and great game the author was unsuccessful with writing even a decently interesting story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 20, 2016
A good bridge between Fable 3 and F:Journey, my only stumbling point is that I played F3 as a female, so I had no king :p
The book is well written - Percy is hilarious, and Reaver an ass. Need to go finish Journey to see if they finished up the story at any point, as this is definitely a "to be continued" situation.
The book is well written - Percy is hilarious, and Reaver an ass. Need to go finish Journey to see if they finished up the story at any point, as this is definitely a "to be continued" situation.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 28, 2021
As someone who has played the absolute hell out of Fable II and III, I had higher hopes for this book. Sadly, for a book so short, it often just plodded along, never quite seeming to reach any of the end goals in its plot and subplots.
I also felt there was a lot of black and white going on in terms of characterization; Ben Finn was the only canon character who felt 100% true to his game counterpart. Page, Timmins and Reaver felt off. Especially Reaver. For all the terrible things he's capable of, I get pretty tired of people acting as though just because he's capable of this horror or that horror, he is capable of ALL horrors. Even he had his limits, however vile he could otherwise be.
I also found it frustrating that the king was never given a name. That might make sense in game, but the books should have no such constraints. Likewise, his character was rather bland and predictable.
Laylah was...okay? I won't hate on her as others have (I was okay with her being flawed and falling for Reaver's line--it was believable, as the man is pretty damn slick when he wants to be) but I did find it contradictory to have her so beloved by the people, so naive and doe-eyed and ultimately infantilized by those who know her.
All in all, the book isn't terrible--it just fell short for me, personally. I think I'll stick to reading my friend's Fable fanfiction. Her writing is a lot crisper, for one, and for two, her take on what follows Fable III is a sight more interesting and original.
I also felt there was a lot of black and white going on in terms of characterization; Ben Finn was the only canon character who felt 100% true to his game counterpart. Page, Timmins and Reaver felt off. Especially Reaver. For all the terrible things he's capable of, I get pretty tired of people acting as though just because he's capable of this horror or that horror, he is capable of ALL horrors. Even he had his limits, however vile he could otherwise be.
I also found it frustrating that the king was never given a name. That might make sense in game, but the books should have no such constraints. Likewise, his character was rather bland and predictable.
Laylah was...okay? I won't hate on her as others have (I was okay with her being flawed and falling for Reaver's line--it was believable, as the man is pretty damn slick when he wants to be) but I did find it contradictory to have her so beloved by the people, so naive and doe-eyed and ultimately infantilized by those who know her.
All in all, the book isn't terrible--it just fell short for me, personally. I think I'll stick to reading my friend's Fable fanfiction. Her writing is a lot crisper, for one, and for two, her take on what follows Fable III is a sight more interesting and original.
October 21, 2024
As a Fable fan, I would not recommend reading this book.
I have read Christie Golden's stuff before, generally a fan. This book, not so much.
Arguments can be made that it was not a smart idea for a video game series that prides itself on player choice, and every player's game begin different, to then write a sequel book that canonizes the player as a very specific person. The previous two books in this series did fine without doing so.
I understand why this was done, but disagree with it.
The largest reason I dislike the book, some would regard as a spoiler. I do not personally, to me it is more of a caution, but suit yourself.
If you are a Fable fan, I would steer clear.
The first two books in the series are fine, while this one is sadly a waste of time for the reason in the spoiler tag above.
I have read Christie Golden's stuff before, generally a fan. This book, not so much.
Arguments can be made that it was not a smart idea for a video game series that prides itself on player choice, and every player's game begin different, to then write a sequel book that canonizes the player as a very specific person. The previous two books in this series did fine without doing so.
I understand why this was done, but disagree with it.
The largest reason I dislike the book, some would regard as a spoiler. I do not personally, to me it is more of a caution, but suit yourself.
If you are a Fable fan, I would steer clear.
The first two books in the series are fine, while this one is sadly a waste of time for the reason in the spoiler tag above.
September 21, 2025
This book negates or devalues many, most, or if you chose to play a female, ALL of the choices made in Fable III. (Hero King is unmarried, and childless, for one, so bye-bye Elise romance and any kids you had/adopted. He's also all-good and seemingly kept all his promises made during the Revolution, for another; so sucks to be you if you went the way of the tyrant.)
The whole book feels rushed almost immediately and even more so when it ends about half-way through the story.
The game this is supposed to be a prequel to (Fable: The Journey) does not actually continue the story (actually a good thing since it flopped so hard and is all but impossible to play now) and we've been left hanging from a cliff since 2012.
A certain blind seeress does show up to offer "hope" of a kind but in her usual, infuriatingly vague way.
honestly, this book made me want to avoid others by the same author. I assume the plot was not completely her idea but I did not like the writing style as major battles were waged and quest obstacles were overcome in a handful of sentences. Also noticed a few editing mistakes. overall just feels rushed and clumsy.
The whole book feels rushed almost immediately and even more so when it ends about half-way through the story.
The game this is supposed to be a prequel to (Fable: The Journey) does not actually continue the story (actually a good thing since it flopped so hard and is all but impossible to play now) and we've been left hanging from a cliff since 2012.
A certain blind seeress does show up to offer "hope" of a kind but in her usual, infuriatingly vague way.
honestly, this book made me want to avoid others by the same author. I assume the plot was not completely her idea but I did not like the writing style as major battles were waged and quest obstacles were overcome in a handful of sentences. Also noticed a few editing mistakes. overall just feels rushed and clumsy.
March 22, 2024
For those who haven’t played Fable and decided to pick this book up, I can understand why you didn’t like it. For those who did play Fable and decided to pick this book up, I can still understand why you didn’t like it.
The idea was there, but not executed very well. The plot feels rushed, so it’s hard to connect with the characters and have empathy when bad things happen to them. However, I did connect to a few characters, but that’s only because I played the game and felt like I’d already gone on adventures with them.
The book ends on a cliffhanger and a “To Be Continued…” But it’s been 12 years with no new release, so I don’t have a lot of hope.
For a short book based off a video game, it was an all right read. I probably won’t read it again, but now I have an itch to replay all the Fable games.
The idea was there, but not executed very well. The plot feels rushed, so it’s hard to connect with the characters and have empathy when bad things happen to them. However, I did connect to a few characters, but that’s only because I played the game and felt like I’d already gone on adventures with them.
The book ends on a cliffhanger and a “To Be Continued…” But it’s been 12 years with no new release, so I don’t have a lot of hope.
For a short book based off a video game, it was an all right read. I probably won’t read it again, but now I have an itch to replay all the Fable games.
June 14, 2018
Este libro me ha drenado horas de felicidad.
Vaya puta agonía, el Rondador estaba muy fetén, vale, pero poner un puto enemigo que sea "La Oscuridad" en un juego donde puedes ser malo o bueno es una patochada de dimensiones colosales y hacer un libro donde el protagonista en si proviene de un juego donde no tiene personalidad también (Encima si haces que el resto de los personajes tengan personalidad genérica 1)
Conclusión: Que Fable IV sea sobre la época de los Arcontes, sobre la era de los heroes o cualquier punto entre eso y Fable II pero de Fable III para delante solamente hay desgracia argumental
Vaya puta agonía, el Rondador estaba muy fetén, vale, pero poner un puto enemigo que sea "La Oscuridad" en un juego donde puedes ser malo o bueno es una patochada de dimensiones colosales y hacer un libro donde el protagonista en si proviene de un juego donde no tiene personalidad también (Encima si haces que el resto de los personajes tengan personalidad genérica 1)
Conclusión: Que Fable IV sea sobre la época de los Arcontes, sobre la era de los heroes o cualquier punto entre eso y Fable II pero de Fable III para delante solamente hay desgracia argumental
May 9, 2023
I was apprehensive about reading this; the thought of reading someone else’s version of my hero put me off. Additionally having not enjoyed Fable: Blood of Heroes I was nervous to pick this up.
I was completely wrong, I loved reading this! I enjoyed having the ‘gang’ back (Page, Ben, Sabine, Jasper etc). Switching between Albion and Samarkand was really interesting.
It’s a shame about the ending though, the cliffhanger is setting up Fable: The Journey (which I haven’t played) so I wish it had a satisfying conclusion.
I was completely wrong, I loved reading this! I enjoyed having the ‘gang’ back (Page, Ben, Sabine, Jasper etc). Switching between Albion and Samarkand was really interesting.
It’s a shame about the ending though, the cliffhanger is setting up Fable: The Journey (which I haven’t played) so I wish it had a satisfying conclusion.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
November 17, 2023
This book ends on a cliffhanger that the games never answer.
That may seem like a spoiler but it’s not, it’s just incredibly relevant and important if you plan to pick this up.
Iloved The Balvarine Order, didn’t particularly enjoy Blood Ties and thought they rightfully changed author for this book. The story is phenomenal. It feels like I’m right back in the Fable universe and the way the author described the world had me drifting away while reading it. It’s a great book, but the fact that the story doesn’t get a resolution has to mean it gets marked down.
That may seem like a spoiler but it’s not, it’s just incredibly relevant and important if you plan to pick this up.
Iloved The Balvarine Order, didn’t particularly enjoy Blood Ties and thought they rightfully changed author for this book. The story is phenomenal. It feels like I’m right back in the Fable universe and the way the author described the world had me drifting away while reading it. It’s a great book, but the fact that the story doesn’t get a resolution has to mean it gets marked down.
February 2, 2023
Having played all the fable games, this was a wave of nostalgia. While fable the journey is no longer playable, the game this prequels, the story picks up after fable 3. It’s great to see so many beloved and familiar characters after so many years. Still one of the best game franchises in my opinion. Here’s to hoping fable 4/ the reboot comes soon!
May 22, 2023
I did like this book until its ending and agree with everyone that it is a lot of plodding with no real pay off. I get that its a prequel and its made to set up for the game.
Also the way Reaver is repeatedly called a Dandy in this book feels like everyone is saying Dandy in the same tone as the F-slur. Yes he's queer but holy sh*t theres actual ways hes evil you can focus on.
Also the way Reaver is repeatedly called a Dandy in this book feels like everyone is saying Dandy in the same tone as the F-slur. Yes he's queer but holy sh*t theres actual ways hes evil you can focus on.
April 24, 2018
Another great addition to the world of Fable. Has some slight nods to previous books too which is nice to see.
March 12, 2023
Good book other than the ending. I love Fable and I was devastated by the end and they just left it off with no sequel or closure. Still a fun read but am upset with no closure.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 12, 2024
I just hate the fact they never wrote a sequel for it and left off on a cliff hanger in the middle of a really intense fight. Thought the characters had pretty decent depth.
October 27, 2012
The first thing that struck me when looking at this novel and reading the notes on the back of the cover was how small it was for something with such a big plot, and this did hold up while reading, it did seem as if there should have been a lot more pages contained as the jumps from one thing to the next did at times leave a lot to be desired. In fairness though, I know this is a novel based around the story of an xbox game series and me being very technically not with it, I did expect none of it to make any sense at all, but, in all fairness it is a very easy to follow tale.
Nothing is new or groundbreaking in terms of content, it is a simple kingdom under threat from a long defeated and now regrouped enemy thing but that is never really such a bad point to start out with. The characters are all believable enough and there is enough covered on each important person that I never felt I was missing out. The same can be said for the background to the set up of this quest. All in all, Fable... is ok, just nothing out of the ordinary.
Nothing is new or groundbreaking in terms of content, it is a simple kingdom under threat from a long defeated and now regrouped enemy thing but that is never really such a bad point to start out with. The characters are all believable enough and there is enough covered on each important person that I never felt I was missing out. The same can be said for the background to the set up of this quest. All in all, Fable... is ok, just nothing out of the ordinary.
June 21, 2013
Won from First reads giveaway on GoodReads.
I've never played any of the Fable games, so I was a little skeptical about reading this. But overall it was a okay book the characters and plot were easy to follow. The jumping around made it a little hard to follow at times though.
I've never played any of the Fable games, so I was a little skeptical about reading this. But overall it was a okay book the characters and plot were easy to follow. The jumping around made it a little hard to follow at times though.
March 1, 2015
Hated this book. It's nothing like the first two and just them trying to get people to buy the crap Kinect game they made. So disappointed. No resolution at all, just a giant cliffhanger.
February 19, 2014
Won in a giveaway. Full review to come. Very hard to get into this book despite my love for the game.
March 13, 2013
Not a bad read but the plot ends on a cliffhanger that won't be answered till the game -after- The Journey comes out -.-
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 15, 2014
I love Christie Golden's writing, but this one didn't do it for me.
February 1, 2016
Decent fantasy
Common other world fantasy with the usual suspects. Plot development is good, lacks surprises, but moves along well for this tale.
Common other world fantasy with the usual suspects. Plot development is good, lacks surprises, but moves along well for this tale.
Want to read
August 3, 2012I won this book for free through Goodreads First Reads. Looking forward to reading it. Thank you.
April 15, 2017
For the record I like Christie Golden and I don't really blame her for this book but I hated just about everything that was in this story. Maybe the book is relying on you to have played Fable 3 (witch I have not) to get some level of enjoyment out of it as the characters are barely fleshed out in anyway, and would reference things that happened in the game. Ultimately this book seemed to be filler in between Fable 3 and Fable The Journey but a great deal of nothing much happens that shapes the world it all just feels like faffing about.
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