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Forgotten Realms: The Dungeons #4
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond
Explore the terrifying depths of the dungeons of Faerun!
The Siegebreakers are a tight-knit group of eccentric mercenaries who boast they can safely bring down the walls of any fortress, and will do so for the right amount of coin. But when the walls of their latest job crash down on their heads, trapping them in ruins treacherous with magic, monsters, and ever-rising water, it's all they can do to stay alive. Undaunted, the Siegebreakers are determined to escape and finish the job.
The Siegebreakers are a tight-knit group of eccentric mercenaries who boast they can safely bring down the walls of any fortress, and will do so for the right amount of coin. But when the walls of their latest job crash down on their heads, trapping them in ruins treacherous with magic, monsters, and ever-rising water, it's all they can do to stay alive. Undaunted, the Siegebreakers are determined to escape and finish the job.
311 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 27, 2007
12 people are currently reading
378 people want to read
About the author
Rosemary Jones
61 books74 followersPlunged into the Roaring Twenties for the Arkham Horror titles Mask of Silver and its sequels The Deadly Grimoire and The Bootlegger's Dance. A new sequence begins with The Nightmare Quest of April May and The Arcane Gamble of Harvey Waltersin 2025. I've written novels set in the Forgotten Realms, City of the Dead and Crypt of the Moaning Diamond, as well as several short stories and novella Cold Steel and Secrets set in this Dungeons & Dragons world. When not battling cosmic horrors, animated skeletons, and other supernatural foes, I'm authoring tales of Cobalt City, a place of superheroes, super villains, and regular joes just trying to get by. A new expanded edition of Wrecker of Engines and related short stories was issued in 2024.
My other science fiction and fantasy short stories appear in various anthologies. The complete list on my website at rosemaryjones.com.
As the co-author of the Encyclopedia of Collectible Childrens Books, I spent many years collecting and often dip back into these treasures for my own pleasure and entertainment. I currently share my home with 2,000+ volumes, not all cataloged here.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
My other science fiction and fantasy short stories appear in various anthologies. The complete list on my website at rosemaryjones.com.
As the co-author of the Encyclopedia of Collectible Childrens Books, I spent many years collecting and often dip back into these treasures for my own pleasure and entertainment. I currently share my home with 2,000+ volumes, not all cataloged here.
Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name. See this thread for more information.
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Displaying 1 - 23 of 23 reviews
July 18, 2008
A good D&D session is unmistakable. It has a good chemistry, challenging encounters, a sense of urgency, and you never want it to end. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond delivers on all that and more. Ivy is fantastic fun, leading her group of friendly mercenaries, the Siegebreakers, out of a death-trap of their own making.
That might have been one of the most endearing things about the book for me (other than Wiggles the dog and the inspired Bugbear poets...trust me, you'll love them). The Siegebreakers never pretend that they are legendary heroes. They are just great friends and family who look out for each other and are good at what they do. Even when stuck in slowly flooding tunnels with sub-optimal weapons (the half-orc wields a shovel the entire novel, and the Dwarf fighter has only his second-favorite hammer and short sword he rarely remembers to use) they still manage to stumble their way towards destiny. They feel real. They aren't looking to loot a tomb. They don't even want to be there. All they want is to do the job they were hired for and get paid.
Thank goodness for fate throwing a monkey-wrench in the works!
Highly recommended. High fun, occasionally low-brow, and an addictive page turner that had me burning through the pages. And watch out for those Bugbear poets. I'm so using them in a game sometime soon. ;)
That might have been one of the most endearing things about the book for me (other than Wiggles the dog and the inspired Bugbear poets...trust me, you'll love them). The Siegebreakers never pretend that they are legendary heroes. They are just great friends and family who look out for each other and are good at what they do. Even when stuck in slowly flooding tunnels with sub-optimal weapons (the half-orc wields a shovel the entire novel, and the Dwarf fighter has only his second-favorite hammer and short sword he rarely remembers to use) they still manage to stumble their way towards destiny. They feel real. They aren't looking to loot a tomb. They don't even want to be there. All they want is to do the job they were hired for and get paid.
Thank goodness for fate throwing a monkey-wrench in the works!
Highly recommended. High fun, occasionally low-brow, and an addictive page turner that had me burning through the pages. And watch out for those Bugbear poets. I'm so using them in a game sometime soon. ;)
June 5, 2023
Review to come. Need to toss it around in my head a bit.
February 22, 2011
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond by Rosemary Jones
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond is the final book in The Dungeons series of stand-alone novels. The series contains three other entries, which are written by different authors. Since each novel is a stand-alone novel, you can read the series out-of-order and should be able to pick them up without any prior knowledge. The Dungeons series is set in the Forgotten Realms setting of Dungeons and Dragons. The other novels in this series are Depths of Madness by Erik Scott de Bie, The Howling Delve by Jaleigh Johnson, and Stardeep by Bruce R. Cordell. This is Rosemary Jones' first full-length novel set in the Forgotten Realms. Her second is part of the Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep titled City of the Dead. She has written a few short stories for various anthologies as well as co-authoring Encyclopedia of Collectible Children's Books. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was released December 2007 and published by Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
A siege has befallen the city of Tsurlagol and the it's up to the noble-minded knights of Procampur to take the city back. The ruler of Procampur has tasked a group of mercenaries conveniently named the Siegebreakers to break the siege. The Siegebreakers have a simple plan. After discovering that one of Tsurlagol's walls are weakened, they will dig under the wall and flood the tunnels, causing the wall to collapse. At least it sounds simple. The digging is taking longer than the Thultyrl, the ruler of Procampur, would like and is constantly asking Ivy, the 'commander' of the Siegebreakers, for updates. After one such meeting, Ivy is accompanied by a Procampur officer named Sanval to check out how the progress of the dig is coming along. However, she finds her companions lounging about. After berating them, the group heads into the tunnel, only to have it collapse under their feet. Ivy finds herself in the river that they were planning to use to topple the wall, but easily swims to shore where she finds Sanval and her friends; an old dwarf named Mumchance, a half-genasi water elementalist named Gunderal, a half-orc warrior named Zuzzara, and an odd tiefling-esque thief named Kid. Trapped underground, the group discover ruins of a buried Tsurlagol. They must find their way out of the ruins before the water rises too high and drowns them all. However, there are more dangers lurking in the ancient ruins aside from the rising water level.
Criticisms:
1) Slow. The biggest issue that Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has is the snail-like pace of the story. Quite frankly, this story is boring. The first half of the novel felt like it was dragged out for almost no reason. Nothing seemed to be happening. There were things going on, but they took forever to really develop into anything. By the time something developed, all interest was lost. Everything seemed to happen so slowly. Dialogue was needlessly drawn out as well. The pace does pick up around the halfway point, but it barely picks up. Every scene feels like it goes on and on, without ever having an ending. Dialogue felt like it was needlessly repeated, actions seemed to take forever, and descriptions felt long-winded. At least, that's what it felt like while reading through the book. The worst part of this is that I felt myself falling asleep after a page. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was slow to the point of being boring.
2) Characters. The other big issue that Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has is that the characters are extremely bland and uninteresting. No one really stood out and I barely remember anyone's name five minutes after putting the book down. The best way to describe the characters would just be in a word or two. Let's look at Ivy, the leader of the Siegebreakers, for example. Ivy had really one defining trait. She wore dirty and mismatched armor. That's it. Everything else about her was generic to the point of annoyance. Sanval is the opposite of Ivy. He was clean and well-kept. Oh, and he had a horribly long list of last names. Kid seemed to be the most unusual of the bunch, but never really amounted to anything other than a tracker with a unique build. Mumchance was a generic dwarf with a soft spot for stray animals. That's all. The only interesting thing about Gunderal and Zuzzara, the two half-humans, is that they are half-sisters. Also, Gunderal likes being pretty. Zuzzara is tall. Later in the story we are introduced to Archlis, a mage who is looking for something in the ruins of Tsurlagol. That's pretty much his character right there. All in all, the characters weren't complex, lacked any real depth, and were as generic as possible.
3) Simple. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has a very straightforward and simple premise, a group of adventurer's find themselves trapped underground and must find a way out or die. Simple, right? There are times that a premise like this can work really well. This is a time when it falls flat. It never really felt like the Siegebreakers were in any trouble from anything they encountered. The rising water seemed to be little more than a minor issue. In fact, it was only present at the beginning of the novel and at the end. The creatures that the group face seemed to go down with ease and never felt dangerous. In order to really make a premise like this work, there needed to be a feeling of danger.
Praises:
1) Humor. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was surprisingly funny. In fact, the book almost comes off as a parody of Dungeons and Dragons novels. There was also a lot humor that was actually funny. Some of the banter between the characters had me chuckling. There were quite a few humorous situations that put a smile on my face as well. Some of the humor didn't work and came off as cheesy or weak. But I do have to say that it was funny a story and vastly different from the previous novels in The Dungeons series. Instead of taking a dark storyline, we have a humorous romp through a dungeon.
2) Dungeon. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond does do a great job at making you feel like you are in a dungeon. Having the majority of the story take place underground really made you feel like you were underground. There were some great moments that helped the feeling of being in a dungeon as well. Having branching tunnels, sound carrying around, and not being able to see you hand in front of your face. These things really added to that dungeon feeling. There were a few times when I felt a little claustrophobic as well. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond did a great job at making you feel like you were in a dungeon.
Side Notes:
1) Wiggles. Am I the only one that could not stand the dog?
2) Bugbear Brothers. The Bugbear brothers were probably the most interesting characters because they were very unusual. I really wished that more time was spent on them.
3) Cover Art. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has some good cover art. It's not the best, but it still works. The muted color scheme doesn't seem all that muted, with the yellows and greens. The green water, in particular, really does catch your eye. The scene itself is also interesting. You have Ivy looking like she's about to drown and some sort of hand is about to grab her. It shows a lot of action going on. However, it seems like her body is really distorted, more so than it would be underwater like that. The sword on her waist seems to really be the focus of the scene, rather than Ivy. It looks bold and in your face, and it shouldn't. Overall, the cover art is pretty good and will catch your eye.
Overall: 2/5
Final Thoughts:
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond can be summed up in one word; boring. The story meanders along at a snail's pace and nothing seems to happen. It felt like it took five minutes to just read a page at some points. There were more than a few times that I found myself falling asleep. Also, the characters aren't that interesting. They are just generic, bland, and not very unique. After reading this story, you'll probably forget them. Also, the story had a simple premise done wrong. I never felt like the group was in trouble and you almost need that in a story like this. Thankfully, it's a pretty funny story and that wasn't something I was expecting. Having the previous three books be darker stories, I assumed that this one would be dark as well. It wasn't and I'm happy it wasn't. There were times when Crypt of the Moaning Diamond felt like it was a parody, and that was interesting. Also, this is the first book in the series that really felt like it took place in a dungeon, and I liked that. The atmosphere had that dungeonesque feel to it that the others didn't have. Overall, I can't recommend Crypt of the Moaning Diamond. It would be a good book for someone starting out reading Dungeons and Dragons novels, but it's a little too boring to keep you interested.
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond is the final book in The Dungeons series of stand-alone novels. The series contains three other entries, which are written by different authors. Since each novel is a stand-alone novel, you can read the series out-of-order and should be able to pick them up without any prior knowledge. The Dungeons series is set in the Forgotten Realms setting of Dungeons and Dragons. The other novels in this series are Depths of Madness by Erik Scott de Bie, The Howling Delve by Jaleigh Johnson, and Stardeep by Bruce R. Cordell. This is Rosemary Jones' first full-length novel set in the Forgotten Realms. Her second is part of the Ed Greenwood Presents Waterdeep titled City of the Dead. She has written a few short stories for various anthologies as well as co-authoring Encyclopedia of Collectible Children's Books. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was released December 2007 and published by Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
A siege has befallen the city of Tsurlagol and the it's up to the noble-minded knights of Procampur to take the city back. The ruler of Procampur has tasked a group of mercenaries conveniently named the Siegebreakers to break the siege. The Siegebreakers have a simple plan. After discovering that one of Tsurlagol's walls are weakened, they will dig under the wall and flood the tunnels, causing the wall to collapse. At least it sounds simple. The digging is taking longer than the Thultyrl, the ruler of Procampur, would like and is constantly asking Ivy, the 'commander' of the Siegebreakers, for updates. After one such meeting, Ivy is accompanied by a Procampur officer named Sanval to check out how the progress of the dig is coming along. However, she finds her companions lounging about. After berating them, the group heads into the tunnel, only to have it collapse under their feet. Ivy finds herself in the river that they were planning to use to topple the wall, but easily swims to shore where she finds Sanval and her friends; an old dwarf named Mumchance, a half-genasi water elementalist named Gunderal, a half-orc warrior named Zuzzara, and an odd tiefling-esque thief named Kid. Trapped underground, the group discover ruins of a buried Tsurlagol. They must find their way out of the ruins before the water rises too high and drowns them all. However, there are more dangers lurking in the ancient ruins aside from the rising water level.
Criticisms:
1) Slow. The biggest issue that Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has is the snail-like pace of the story. Quite frankly, this story is boring. The first half of the novel felt like it was dragged out for almost no reason. Nothing seemed to be happening. There were things going on, but they took forever to really develop into anything. By the time something developed, all interest was lost. Everything seemed to happen so slowly. Dialogue was needlessly drawn out as well. The pace does pick up around the halfway point, but it barely picks up. Every scene feels like it goes on and on, without ever having an ending. Dialogue felt like it was needlessly repeated, actions seemed to take forever, and descriptions felt long-winded. At least, that's what it felt like while reading through the book. The worst part of this is that I felt myself falling asleep after a page. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was slow to the point of being boring.
2) Characters. The other big issue that Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has is that the characters are extremely bland and uninteresting. No one really stood out and I barely remember anyone's name five minutes after putting the book down. The best way to describe the characters would just be in a word or two. Let's look at Ivy, the leader of the Siegebreakers, for example. Ivy had really one defining trait. She wore dirty and mismatched armor. That's it. Everything else about her was generic to the point of annoyance. Sanval is the opposite of Ivy. He was clean and well-kept. Oh, and he had a horribly long list of last names. Kid seemed to be the most unusual of the bunch, but never really amounted to anything other than a tracker with a unique build. Mumchance was a generic dwarf with a soft spot for stray animals. That's all. The only interesting thing about Gunderal and Zuzzara, the two half-humans, is that they are half-sisters. Also, Gunderal likes being pretty. Zuzzara is tall. Later in the story we are introduced to Archlis, a mage who is looking for something in the ruins of Tsurlagol. That's pretty much his character right there. All in all, the characters weren't complex, lacked any real depth, and were as generic as possible.
3) Simple. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has a very straightforward and simple premise, a group of adventurer's find themselves trapped underground and must find a way out or die. Simple, right? There are times that a premise like this can work really well. This is a time when it falls flat. It never really felt like the Siegebreakers were in any trouble from anything they encountered. The rising water seemed to be little more than a minor issue. In fact, it was only present at the beginning of the novel and at the end. The creatures that the group face seemed to go down with ease and never felt dangerous. In order to really make a premise like this work, there needed to be a feeling of danger.
Praises:
1) Humor. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond was surprisingly funny. In fact, the book almost comes off as a parody of Dungeons and Dragons novels. There was also a lot humor that was actually funny. Some of the banter between the characters had me chuckling. There were quite a few humorous situations that put a smile on my face as well. Some of the humor didn't work and came off as cheesy or weak. But I do have to say that it was funny a story and vastly different from the previous novels in The Dungeons series. Instead of taking a dark storyline, we have a humorous romp through a dungeon.
2) Dungeon. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond does do a great job at making you feel like you are in a dungeon. Having the majority of the story take place underground really made you feel like you were underground. There were some great moments that helped the feeling of being in a dungeon as well. Having branching tunnels, sound carrying around, and not being able to see you hand in front of your face. These things really added to that dungeon feeling. There were a few times when I felt a little claustrophobic as well. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond did a great job at making you feel like you were in a dungeon.
Side Notes:
1) Wiggles. Am I the only one that could not stand the dog?
2) Bugbear Brothers. The Bugbear brothers were probably the most interesting characters because they were very unusual. I really wished that more time was spent on them.
3) Cover Art. Crypt of the Moaning Diamond has some good cover art. It's not the best, but it still works. The muted color scheme doesn't seem all that muted, with the yellows and greens. The green water, in particular, really does catch your eye. The scene itself is also interesting. You have Ivy looking like she's about to drown and some sort of hand is about to grab her. It shows a lot of action going on. However, it seems like her body is really distorted, more so than it would be underwater like that. The sword on her waist seems to really be the focus of the scene, rather than Ivy. It looks bold and in your face, and it shouldn't. Overall, the cover art is pretty good and will catch your eye.
Overall: 2/5
Final Thoughts:
Crypt of the Moaning Diamond can be summed up in one word; boring. The story meanders along at a snail's pace and nothing seems to happen. It felt like it took five minutes to just read a page at some points. There were more than a few times that I found myself falling asleep. Also, the characters aren't that interesting. They are just generic, bland, and not very unique. After reading this story, you'll probably forget them. Also, the story had a simple premise done wrong. I never felt like the group was in trouble and you almost need that in a story like this. Thankfully, it's a pretty funny story and that wasn't something I was expecting. Having the previous three books be darker stories, I assumed that this one would be dark as well. It wasn't and I'm happy it wasn't. There were times when Crypt of the Moaning Diamond felt like it was a parody, and that was interesting. Also, this is the first book in the series that really felt like it took place in a dungeon, and I liked that. The atmosphere had that dungeonesque feel to it that the others didn't have. Overall, I can't recommend Crypt of the Moaning Diamond. It would be a good book for someone starting out reading Dungeons and Dragons novels, but it's a little too boring to keep you interested.
September 7, 2022
Basic dungeon crawl but with too many characters to keep track of. Some of the scenarios were well done.
February 20, 2008
A funny, feel-good romp through a dungeon. Different, I know, and that's a good thing.
July 29, 2008
In this fast-paced novel, Jones (somehow) manages to allow her characters to fall in love without changing their personalities.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
May 9, 2025
This was an okay read for the Forgotten Realms universe.
The book read like a summary of an actual D&D campaign…the problem with that is you can never explain and describe the fun and emotion of what happened at the table to someone that was not there. So, for me, this one fell short.
A party of 7 (I think, there were a lot of characters) are hired by the leaders of Procampur to help them retake a fortress that was overrun by an Orc led army. Ivy, the leader, is a rough-around-the-edges fighter with sassy attitude. The group is tasked with weakening the fortress walls so that the Procampur army can breach the defenses. The team decides to use the nearby river to compromise the ground around the wall.
This, of course, leads them all underground, there is a collapse in the tunnels they are preparing, and they all get swept away by the underground river. Now they are in a great underground dungeon with the twin pressures of completing their job and also not drowning in the river they have rerouted.
They run into all kinds of enemies underground, from poetic Bugbears to Arch Mages. The battle scenes sometimes take up entire chapters. The conversations between the characters also seemed to take a long time. And while sometimes the banter is amusing, and the battles are sorta dynamic….all of this made it feel like the author was trying to simply write up the campaign they played.
The ending also felt like too much time was spent wrapping things up.
Another Forgotten Realms book in the bag.
The book read like a summary of an actual D&D campaign…the problem with that is you can never explain and describe the fun and emotion of what happened at the table to someone that was not there. So, for me, this one fell short.
A party of 7 (I think, there were a lot of characters) are hired by the leaders of Procampur to help them retake a fortress that was overrun by an Orc led army. Ivy, the leader, is a rough-around-the-edges fighter with sassy attitude. The group is tasked with weakening the fortress walls so that the Procampur army can breach the defenses. The team decides to use the nearby river to compromise the ground around the wall.
This, of course, leads them all underground, there is a collapse in the tunnels they are preparing, and they all get swept away by the underground river. Now they are in a great underground dungeon with the twin pressures of completing their job and also not drowning in the river they have rerouted.
They run into all kinds of enemies underground, from poetic Bugbears to Arch Mages. The battle scenes sometimes take up entire chapters. The conversations between the characters also seemed to take a long time. And while sometimes the banter is amusing, and the battles are sorta dynamic….all of this made it feel like the author was trying to simply write up the campaign they played.
The ending also felt like too much time was spent wrapping things up.
Another Forgotten Realms book in the bag.
March 19, 2023
Rating between 3.5 & 4
A fantasy novel set in the D&D setting of Forgotten Reams - a relatively basic plot line, nothing that hasn’t been seen or read before really, so it should be an average rating usually but I found myself enjoying the characters and plot more than I expected.
Perhaps because it was not as long as fantasy novels all seem to be at the moment, and it had a simple story to tell, with a well described group of characters, in a short time frame - it just clicked with me. I haven’t read about or played any D&D for several decades so the creatures and places didn’t mean anything to me - but since the same is true anytime you pick up a new standalone novel or the opening book in a series I don’t think I really missed anything there.
I found it a really easy read that passed the time nicely and entertained me whilst I was reading it.
By the end I did want another story with this group of characters and if one had been written I would have been hunting it down immediately.
Overall I would recommend this as a nice change from the current fantasy scene of overlong books that always seem to be part of a larger series with over complicated plots.
A fantasy novel set in the D&D setting of Forgotten Reams - a relatively basic plot line, nothing that hasn’t been seen or read before really, so it should be an average rating usually but I found myself enjoying the characters and plot more than I expected.
Perhaps because it was not as long as fantasy novels all seem to be at the moment, and it had a simple story to tell, with a well described group of characters, in a short time frame - it just clicked with me. I haven’t read about or played any D&D for several decades so the creatures and places didn’t mean anything to me - but since the same is true anytime you pick up a new standalone novel or the opening book in a series I don’t think I really missed anything there.
I found it a really easy read that passed the time nicely and entertained me whilst I was reading it.
By the end I did want another story with this group of characters and if one had been written I would have been hunting it down immediately.
Overall I would recommend this as a nice change from the current fantasy scene of overlong books that always seem to be part of a larger series with over complicated plots.
April 25, 2020
"If you could not laugh at bad luck, then you could end up your life crying."
"He who saves himself first lives to save the rest of us."
"She walked as the world did not own her."
"He who saves himself first lives to save the rest of us."
"She walked as the world did not own her."
May 24, 2020
Forgotten Realms book which I was reading for research purposes on an area I am planning to use for a D&D campaign!
Was fine but nothing out of the ordinary.
Was fine but nothing out of the ordinary.
October 9, 2011
I know a bunch of people who like this novel. Unfortunately, I am not among the ranks of those individuals. I didn’t like this book very much. Having liked Depths of Madness a lot, and Stadeep, to a degree, I picked up this book in the series next, figuring that this would be another novel that I’d like. Well, I really didn’t enjoy it too much.
Let’s start with the characters. Of all of the protagonists, I only liked Captain Sanval. I enjoy lawful good characters, and Sanval is one of the few novel protagonists who are certainly lawful good, as opposed to some other alignment. The Dwarf character, Mumchance, was very well written, I’ll mention, but the fact that I don’t particularly enjoy Dwarves makes me like the character less. All of the other protagonists- Ivy, Kid, Zuzzara, Gunderal, they didn’t really do it for me. Ivy was a decent character, but was somewhat bland- the stereotypical “dirty heroine” type of character, very much like Cattie-Brie, from the Drizzt novels. Kid, I simply didn’t enjoy. Zuzzara and Gunderal just annoyed me. Not only do I find the pairing of a Genasi and Half-Orc sisters unlikely, but their personalities (particularly Gunderal) aggravated me, and made me like the two even less.
The plot was very slow. When I began the book, I was figuring that there was going to be some dungeon delving to penetrate the walls of Tsurlagol. This quickly changed, when the Siegebreakers fell into the “undercity” beneath Tsurlagol. This is where the problem lies. For too long, the protagonists seemed to simply be wandering around, clueless as to what to do, where to go, how to escape, and so on, every so often encountering something that attacked them, or something they didn’t fully understand. While this sort of thing is the staple of a D&D campaign, it really detracts from the novel. For too long, the protagonists were simply wandering around, trying to escape, but not knowing how. This caused me to quickly lose interest in the tedious connection I had to the characters to begin with, as I turned page after page of relative nothingness, waiting for the protagonists to advance the story, to encounter some kind of antagonist.
Let’s start with the characters. Of all of the protagonists, I only liked Captain Sanval. I enjoy lawful good characters, and Sanval is one of the few novel protagonists who are certainly lawful good, as opposed to some other alignment. The Dwarf character, Mumchance, was very well written, I’ll mention, but the fact that I don’t particularly enjoy Dwarves makes me like the character less. All of the other protagonists- Ivy, Kid, Zuzzara, Gunderal, they didn’t really do it for me. Ivy was a decent character, but was somewhat bland- the stereotypical “dirty heroine” type of character, very much like Cattie-Brie, from the Drizzt novels. Kid, I simply didn’t enjoy. Zuzzara and Gunderal just annoyed me. Not only do I find the pairing of a Genasi and Half-Orc sisters unlikely, but their personalities (particularly Gunderal) aggravated me, and made me like the two even less.
The plot was very slow. When I began the book, I was figuring that there was going to be some dungeon delving to penetrate the walls of Tsurlagol. This quickly changed, when the Siegebreakers fell into the “undercity” beneath Tsurlagol. This is where the problem lies. For too long, the protagonists seemed to simply be wandering around, clueless as to what to do, where to go, how to escape, and so on, every so often encountering something that attacked them, or something they didn’t fully understand. While this sort of thing is the staple of a D&D campaign, it really detracts from the novel. For too long, the protagonists were simply wandering around, trying to escape, but not knowing how. This caused me to quickly lose interest in the tedious connection I had to the characters to begin with, as I turned page after page of relative nothingness, waiting for the protagonists to advance the story, to encounter some kind of antagonist.
September 27, 2010
Very enjoyable tale where the dungeown crawlers have another motivation to trudge underground than the quest for treasure (though I guess it is, in a way, delving-for-money).
The story is, in the end, a bit thin (girl meets boy, boy meets girl, girl and boy fall through a hole in a dungeon and fight monsters and find traesure), but hey, it's well told.
Highlights were the bugbear poets. I think they deserve a story of their own.
And it was nice to have some moments where the grimy adventurers have to admit that, yes, a lawful good city-state with a benevolent ruler and where there really isn't a thieves guild, might actually be a nice idea... even if they are a bit stuck-up and have an odd idea about what the color of your roof should be.
The story is, in the end, a bit thin (girl meets boy, boy meets girl, girl and boy fall through a hole in a dungeon and fight monsters and find traesure), but hey, it's well told.
Highlights were the bugbear poets. I think they deserve a story of their own.
And it was nice to have some moments where the grimy adventurers have to admit that, yes, a lawful good city-state with a benevolent ruler and where there really isn't a thieves guild, might actually be a nice idea... even if they are a bit stuck-up and have an odd idea about what the color of your roof should be.
May 23, 2016
It take me a while to read this book, nothing to keep me turning the pages.
Basic plot with no surprise and the author is really repetitive. And the author try too hard too make is character special that make them unbelievable. And again, the easy plot where the hero finding suddenly a magic item helping them...
So the team got trap underground and you got a series of combat and trap until they meet an Archmage. Another series of trap and combat until the big showdown that wasn't worth the book.
Not terrible, just an average book that you won't miss if you never read.
Basic plot with no surprise and the author is really repetitive. And the author try too hard too make is character special that make them unbelievable. And again, the easy plot where the hero finding suddenly a magic item helping them...
So the team got trap underground and you got a series of combat and trap until they meet an Archmage. Another series of trap and combat until the big showdown that wasn't worth the book.
Not terrible, just an average book that you won't miss if you never read.
July 25, 2014
This was my first foray into the fantasy genre in more or less 10 years. Not a bad little tale, a merry bunch of rag-tag adventurers, a war, mysterious dungeons, lore and more. I had no trouble reading it in a couple afternoons. Good fun! On the other hand, it was a bit more of a female perspective then I'd like to read, with a bit much on details of characters costumes and boring girly conversations. Otherwise a good fun read.
August 31, 2013
A fairly pedestrian gaming tie in novel. It was entertaining, but was a bit lighthearted without actually being funny, and had a circus menagerie issue, with the group of 'heroes' consisting of a human, a dwarf, a half-orc, a water genasi, a teifling, and a small white dog. Not quite the more serious adventure story about a group of adventurers plundering a dungeon - our heroes were a group of siege engineers who accidentally get in a dungeon - and the coincidences stretched believibility.
October 28, 2008
The Forgotten Realms don't get much more fun than this! I lively crew of adventurous mercenaries prepared to accept any assignment for the right price find themselves stuck with a very proper military chaperone. Everybody ends up a bit wiser, even the little dog. Fast paced adventure with scary suspense plus giggles. Loved it.
January 19, 2010
So help me, I really enjoyed this. (C checked it out of the library.) Somehow managed to be both accurate to D&D mechanics and a rollicking good story. Strong narrative POV from the main protagonist, both consistent and engaging.
January 18, 2008
As a D&D player, this book was just silly.
January 20, 2008
Really Good book, would be good for someone just getting into the Forgotten Realms setting and series
January 31, 2011
It's been awhile since I read this book, but one of the most memorable parts was the 2 page description of bugbear poetry.
February 25, 2011
The PERFECT dungeon crawl.
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September 12, 2016Reviewed by guest: http://www.fantasyliterature.com/fant...
January 15, 2024
YouTube review 👇🏻👇🏻
https://youtu.be/LMC-67oFbGo?si=nF4Kp...
https://youtu.be/LMC-67oFbGo?si=nF4Kp...
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