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World of Warcraft #4

Beyond the Dark Portal

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The ageing orc shaman Ner'zhul has seized control of the Horde and reopened the Dark Portal. His brutal warriors once again encroach upon Azeroth, laying siege to the newly constructed stronghold of Nethergarde Keep.

There, the archmage Khadgar and the Alliance commander, Turalyon, lead humanity and its elven and dwarven allies in fighting this new invasion. Even so, disturbing questions arise. Khadgar learns of orcish incursions farther abroad: small groups of orcs who seem to pursue a goal other than simple conquest.

Worse yet, black dragons have also been sighted and appear to be aiding the orcs. To counter Ner'zhul's dark schemes, the Alliance must now invade the orcs' ruined homeworld of Draenor. Can Khadgar and his companions stop the nefarious shaman in time to stave off the destruction of two worlds?

426 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2008

258 people are currently reading
3399 people want to read

About the author

Aaron Rosenberg

233 books117 followers
Aaron Rosenberg is an award-winning, bestselling novelist, children’s book author, and game designer. He's written original fiction (including the NOOK-bestselling humorous science fiction novel No Small Bills, the Dread Remora space-opera series, and the O.C.L.T. supernatural thriller series), tie-in novels (including the PsiPhi winner Collective Hindsight for Star Trek: SCE, the Daemon Gates trilogy for Warhammer, Tides of Darkness and the Scribe-nominated Beyond the Dark Portal for WarCraft, Hunt and Run for Stargate: Atlantis, and Substitution Method and Road Less Traveled for Eureka), young adult novels (including the Scribe-winning Bandslam: The Novel and books for iCarly and Ben10), children's books (including an original Scholastic Bestseller series, Pete and Penny's Pizza Puzzles, and work for PowerPuff Girls and Transformers Animated), roleplaying games (including original games like Asylum and Spookshow, the Origins Award-winning Gamemastering Secrets, and sections of The Supernatural Roleplaying Game, Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay, and The Deryni Roleplaying Game), short stories, webcomics, essays, and educational books. He has ranged from mystery to speculative fiction to drama to comedy, always with the same intent—to tell a good story. You can visit him online at gryphonrose.com or follow him on Twitter @gryphonrose.

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5 stars
1,794 (33%)
4 stars
2,073 (38%)
3 stars
1,258 (23%)
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1 star
25 (<1%)
Displaying 1 - 30 of 156 reviews
Profile Image for Markus.
489 reviews1,960 followers
July 16, 2015
“Long have I dreamed of death. I have seen him, spoken with him. I have seen the death of my people, the death of all I have loved. And this—this image I wear to honor that. I did not wish to come forth, but I now believe that I owe it to my people to lead them once more.”

The invasion of Azeroth has ended in disastrous failure for the Horde. The evil leaders Blackhand and Gul’dan lie dead on foreign soil, and even the great Orgrim Doomhammer has been defeated by the forces of the Alliance. The last hope of the orcish people lies with the once so powerful shaman who guided them into the future once before…

This was definitely the best Warcraft book so far besides the ones written by Christie Golden. Might just be because it was co-written by Christie Golden.

Beyond the Dark Portal wraps up the story of the invasion of Azeroth and the first clashes of orcs and humans, the story that began with Rise of the Horde and was continued in Tides of Darkness. And I was actually pretty impressed. There is nothing great here (Rise of the Horde is probably the only Warcraft book to have that), but it more than adequately presents the last bit of the tale of the Old Horde, thus getting one step closer to solving the giant puzzle that is the history and lore of the Warcraft universe.

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Profile Image for Leeanna.
538 reviews100 followers
November 27, 2009
World of Warcraft: Beyond the Dark Portal, by Aaron Rosenberg and Christie Golden

"Beyond the Dark Portal" is a novelization of the video game Warcraft II: Beyond the Dark Portal. Because it is a novelization, the authors are somewhat limited in what they can do, but all said, it's a decent novel for Warcraft fans. I found it particularly useful for background on the previous Warcraft games, because while I haven't played them I have been an avid World of Warcraft player for a few years.

While most of the orcs left their planet to wreck havoc on Azeroth, some remained exiled on Draenor, or escaped back to Draenor through the Dark Portal after their disastrous war with the humans. Ner'zhul, the orc responsible for the corruption of the orcs, plays a starring role as he once again takes control of the remaining orcs on Draenor, reforming the Horde with the intent of finding another planet for the orcs to invade. The heroes of "Tides of Darkness," the previous book (and video game) in the series - Khadgar and Turalyon, learn of the orcs' plans and take the Dark Portal to Draenor, intent on stopping Ner'zhul to save Azeroth - and other worlds - from the devastation of the Horde.

I wish Christie Golden had solo written this book, rather than pairing with Aaron Rosenberg. "Beyond the Dark Portal" suffers from some of the same issues as "Tides of Darkness," which was written by Rosenberg. It's somewhat one-sided, focusing on the humans, while leaving the orcs as flat villains. The characterization is better, probably due to Golden's assistance. There's even a bit of a romance; some happiness amid the carnage. The battle scenes are far from realistic or even possible, with undefined numbers of orcs being killed. The Horde left on Draenor is supposed to be small, but they can't be too small if they're getting killed in every chapter. The pacing of travel also seems unrealistic, with both sides covering vast distances in what seems like no time at all.

I enjoy this book because I am a World of Warcraft fan and player. If you're a WoW player and considering this book, you'll probably enjoy it as it does give a lead in to The Burning Crusade expansion, and provides some nice background and lore.

3/5.
Profile Image for دانیال بهزادی.
245 reviews130 followers
June 1, 2019
‫کتاب‌های وارکرفت همیشه برای من یکی از موردعلاقه‌ها بودن. فکر می‌کنم رکورد خوندن سریع یک کتابم هم متعلّق به یکی از کتاب‌های همین سریه که اون رو از زمان خریدنش در نمایشگاه کتاب تا رسیدن به خونه،‌تموم کردم. این شد نقطهٔ عطفی در فرایند کتابخونی من… چرا که وقتی به بی‌وارکرفتی بعد از تموم شدنش رسیدم، تصمیم گرفتم که از این به بعد کتاب‌ها رو هرچه‌قدر هم قشنگ باشن، با سرعت نخونم و بذار آروم آروم مزمزه‌اشون کنم.
‫ولی خب… با در ردست گرفتن این کتاب، متوجّه شدم که این کار، مخصوصاً برای کتاب‌های سری وارکرفت، اصلاً کار آسونی نیست!
Profile Image for Adrian.
59 reviews3 followers
September 26, 2016
Don't bother. It's not just as bad as the previous one, this one somehow manages to be worse!

Brace yourselves as SPOILERS start below.



The way this is written, the way he formulates ideas is just atrocious. Important elements are not focused upon, and trivial things are explained in so much detail that is just boring. Stories go nowhere, actions don't make sense, characters do things that are completely against their own backstory and motivation, it's just a big mess. I would have been much better off to read some resumes of these two books, just to get the gist of what was supposed to happen so i could move on with the story. Compared to this mess, the next book called "Lord of the clans" is simply awesome.

I initially gave this 2 stars for the universe... but i can't do that. 1 Star all the way and i hope most people will read my SPOILER summary of the book and save themselves some neurons.
Profile Image for Pinkerton.
513 reviews50 followers
July 24, 2019
La guerra con l’Orda a quanto pare non è finita e i cattivi da affrontare sono, incredibile ma vero, ancora più caxxuti di prima!
Profile Image for Jay Schmitt.
9 reviews1 follower
December 15, 2008
If you are one of the 12 million people playing The World of Warcraft MMORPG (massive multiplayer online role playing game) you will appreciate how this book incorporates the game lore into the current game play in The Burning Crusade. Lots of reference to familiar quests and characters while being a very easy and enjoyable read. Finished just in time for Wrath of the Lich King. Just a quick word about the game from a non game player, if you really enjoy immersing yourself into a great fantasy epic, try this game. Be warned though, as 12 million people have found, it can be extremely captivating. I feel like I am living a role in an ever evolving saga. It's not just a game, its a very interactive and exciting social phenomena. 12 million people can't be wrong...
Profile Image for Maria.
149 reviews1 follower
July 14, 2023
Angsty romance between two of my favorite characters. Khadgar being a badass. Horde getting their asses whooped. An entire world crumbling. Deathwing being an asshole, as usual. Need I say more? Loved this.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Vojtěch.
866 reviews140 followers
September 1, 2018
O něco slabší než předchozí díl. Tak jsem zvědav, co nás čeká dál.
Profile Image for Marian.
129 reviews6 followers
November 20, 2024
Все як завжди епічно і гармонійно з двох сторін конфлікту, ця книга гармонійно вписується та продовжує історію війни між орками та людьми. Старі персонажі з новими амбіціями і цілями. Короч топ, шо тут розказувати
Profile Image for Vivien Varga.
32 reviews2 followers
Read
April 2, 2021
DNF
I'm pretty sure that Golden has nothing to do with this book whatsoever, she was only needed to keep Aaron's phenomenal stupidities in check but she's failed spectacularly.
Profile Image for James.
23 reviews3 followers
November 21, 2024
Took a lot longer to get through than expected but great for any WOW fan.
Profile Image for Theresa.
1,554 reviews44 followers
November 23, 2014
If ever I think I could make it through a war story, this book proved to me I cannot. A lot of these World Of Warcraft books are showing me that. Too much for my sensitive heart.

This book gave me more Turalyon and Alleria. In full bloom love too. Well they had to fight to get there, but what's a little angst in the midst of war? I have become very attached to the alliance through these books and I truly didn't think that was possible. I miss stories of orcs being good people and not just blood lust savages.

After the alliance goes through the dark portal to Draenor, it becomes a non stop thrill ride. there are so many twists and turns, the book becomes impossible to put down.

Profile Image for John Devlin.
Author 121 books104 followers
April 12, 2023
Less memorable than the others and there’s a perfunctory quality to some of the battles, but it’s Azeroth, draenor, the hellfire citadel, auchindon, nagrand and many places my toons have battled over…and now I know the lore
Profile Image for Ru Viljoen.
33 reviews3 followers
September 14, 2011
Enjoyed reading this, but continually note the poor quality of the storytelling.
Profile Image for Dan Stefanovich.
157 reviews
September 24, 2025
The overall story is about what you would expect - the Alliance venture through the Dark Portal to fight the Horde and close it for good - but Aaron Rosenburg and Christine Golden's "Beyond the Dark Portal" is just, plainly, poorly written, and parrots incredibly cliche plot hooks and dialogue ("YOU MAY HAVE BESTED ME, BUT CAN YOU BEST...MY CHILDREN?!") far too often: probably best to just read the synopsis of this one.
Profile Image for Monika Stachniuk.
Author 1 book3 followers
October 20, 2024
I couldn't get past 50%. This book is all about lengthy descriptions and almost no action. When we get action, Horde gets into battle and it's fine but then there are multiple pages with boring dialogues and info dumps. After reading 'Sylvanas', 'Arthas' and one book about Horde by Golden, I was pretty pumped to read this. Dissappointed :(
Profile Image for Dasha.
2 reviews
July 23, 2022
The only thing I liked about the book is Khadgar
Profile Image for Jared.
13 reviews
December 11, 2025
Fun book! Some classic Alliance v Horde stories with all the main characters, really enjoyable.
206 reviews
June 27, 2024
“Beyond the Dark Portal” is a novelization of the second Warcraft video game, which shares the same title. It’s an action packed fantasy story covering multiple worlds, as the good Alliance forces must chase the Horde across the Dark Portal, into their homeland.

I have never played Warcraft, but I definitely have played World of Warcraft. I’ve also read a few other novels in the Warcraft world, so I wasn’t completely unaware of the world. Just hadn’t played the game!

Anyways, I’ll start with this: the book is better than it has any right to be. There’s some clever writing in the book! Poetic prose occasionally makes an appearance and the characters are wrought with emotion and thought. I was impressed by the characterization and description work.

The dialogue is very okay. I think part of it is game dialogue, which shines through. The more intrapersonal dialogues were well written, but the battlefield ones were not.

While the characters’ are good and so is the character conflict, the names are malarkey. Part of the book feels bogged down by its ties to the Warcraft world. There are characters who basically show up and say their line and then disappear. If you don’t know who these people are they would be completely useless. Garrosh and Rexxar are the ones that come to mind. Same with Gruul(?). They didn’t NEED to be in the book at all, but had to show up once to basically look at the camera and say “World of Warcraft”.

Finally, the plot is very okay. It works for a game but not so much for a book. The one thing I think is complete BS is when Ner’zhul teleports to escape his pursuers. Why tf didn’t he do that in the first place?? In a video game, it comes off as padding for more content. Annoying, but fine. In a book, it just feels like nonsense. The plot in general was very simple fantasy but with some holes for sure,


So, as a Warcraft fan, I enjoyed this quite a bit. Even for me, though, there were plenty it characters I didn’t recognize or know their importance. The book was really fun with surprisingly good writing, but somewhat bogged down by the game plot and game world. If you like WoW and reading, this will be a nice fun book to read over the weekend. If not? Skip it and read “The Assassin’s Apprentice” for your fantasy fix. 3/5, somehow 1000x better than the God of War novelization.
Profile Image for Jason Ray Carney.
Author 39 books76 followers
January 9, 2020
This is an entertaining, escapist read if you are a fan of the Warcraft series of games and have read previous Warcraft novels or seen the movie by Duncan Jones. It’s impressive how all these various texts interact and contribute to a secondary world that, as one explores it deeper, starts to feel autonomous and real (in a way). The writers (dual authored) definately assume the reader will bring prior knowledge of the Warcraft lore to it (they are audience savvy), and therein lies its unique pleasure. In this novel you get to learn about the fate of characters you already know: Khadgar, the apprentice of Medivh. You also learn about the fate of the Orcish Horde and their new shaman leader, Ner’zhul. The black dragon, Deathwing, shows up for some mayhem. There are also references to orcish heroes and villains, i.e. the Hellscreams, Gul’dan, etc.. There is even a chilling (pun intended) cameo of the Lich King as a young boy (a great moment). Stylistically speaking, the novel blends action, dialog, and exposition is a satisfying and balanced way. The worst escapist fantasy consists of non-stop and meaningless fight scenes, and this novel does not make this mistake. To an extent, the novel unoriginally re-tells a story already told: a group of noble warriors (orcs) search for a new world and are manipulated by a charismatic, self-interested leader. Their enemies are righteous defenders (humans) who struggle to keep their hatred of their enemies in check. In other words, it re-hashes the overarching “theme” of Warcraft in general. But, let’s he honest, we don’t read such novels for philosophical, spiritual, or aesthetic nuance. To summarize: this novel is well-written fantasy, entertaining, fun, and good for escapism.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Peji Da.
22 reviews14 followers
March 19, 2016
"You have been betrayed repeatedly, each time by another orc claiming leadership, and still you continue down that same path," Rcxxar said softly, though his eyes burned with rage. "You have no reason left to fight! Before, we fought to protect our people by claiming this world for them. But they are gone! We no longer need this world! With the handful left, you could find a place the humans have never gone and claim it without shedding a single drop of blood!"
"Where would be the glory in that?" one of the other orcs shouted.
Grom nodded. "What is life without battle?" he demanded of Rcxxar. "You are a warrior—you understand that! Fighting keeps us strong, keeps us sharp!"
"Perhaps," the half-breed admitted, "But why fight when there is no need? Why fight just for its own sake? That is not fighting to save anyone, or to win anything, or even for glory. It is fighting from sheer blood lust, from love of violence alone. And I am sick of that. I want no part of it."


Profile Image for Ann.
154 reviews4 followers
July 5, 2013
I'm honestly loving the World of Warcraft books! Nonstop action, great characters, and heart stopping suspense! For someone like me, who cannot play the games due to a visual impairment, I'm really enjoying these novels! If you are someone like myself, who could not play these games, however still enjoy fantasy, definitely pick up these books! Everything in this series so far, has been self explanatory, and extremely understandable when it comes to the different world and the characters I'm able to pick up everything so far, even though I cannot play the games. Overall, it's an amazing fantasy read, and fun, exciting, and full of suspense and action!
Profile Image for Tina.
312 reviews6 followers
July 21, 2014
It was a well balanced book, considering Christie's contribution on the Horde lore. Previous novel was a bit bland and made the orcs look like mindless savages, without a reason or background for their current behaviour.
I can't say I was impressed by this book, it was descriptive enough but somehow mundane in terms of writing style. Then again, I've only read it for the lore, so I wasn't expecting a masterpiece, considering the story was already laid out in-game and there wasn't much freedom in altering the storyline.
Profile Image for Цветозар.
466 reviews92 followers
May 6, 2016

Beyond the Dark Portal is a novelization of the Warcraft 2 video game. So as such it should certainly be terrible. But Warcraft's world is one that just simply works in literary form and that stacked on top of Christie Golden's co-authorship of this book makes it even better since Warcraft isn't known for its quality of writing. That said, Christie Golden and Aaron Rosenberg do a fine job at re-telling the story and do it in a damn enjoyable manner.

Profile Image for Kellie.
182 reviews2 followers
August 12, 2014
I love WoW lore and this book, along with the other books regarding Draenor, really helped me understand how the orcs came to Azeroth. Their history with the Draenei was sad...such senseless slaughter, all at the hands of a greedy Sargeras and his minions. But that's for another day. I high enjoyed all of the Dark Portal books in which Khadgar plays a prominent role. Two thumbs up!
Profile Image for Andre.
1,420 reviews105 followers
December 12, 2016
You can tell, that this here was written many, many years after the game since you have tons of species and elements in it that have been invented only after World of Warcraft was launched, like Arakoa, Draenei etc.
So, I would say book and game don't have much in common.
Profile Image for Kim.
16 reviews9 followers
May 9, 2012
Just to clarify all my World of Warcraft and Warcraft book reviews. If you played the games, the stars are correct. If you didn't, subtract 2 stars from all of my reviews.
Profile Image for Des.
24 reviews3 followers
July 26, 2019
Dreadful. Informative, but excruciating to sit through the Alliance half.
Profile Image for Sacha Valero.
Author 14 books22 followers
September 13, 2019
Having lost the war on Azeroth, the Horde, leaderless with Doomhammer captured, returned to Draenor.

The damage Guldan and the Warlock's had done to Dreanor left the planet dying so Ner'zhul convinces what's left of the Horde that he can open rifts to other worlds for them, but he needs a few items from Azeroth.

Sending Hellscream (who's never been) to Azeroth he attacks the Alliance as a distraction while others set about finding the artifacts Ner'zhul requires.

Once they have what they need the Horde retreats, and Khadgar realizes what's happened, and that the damage to Draenor was leaking into Azeroth and what was the Black Morass is now the Blasted Lands. Khadgar needs two of the artifacts that was taken to close the portal forever or Azeroth will suffer the same fate as Draenor so he, Turalyon, and Alleria marshal and army and pursue.

On the other side we're in Hellfire Peninsula and the Alliance construct Honor Hold. From there they take Hellfire Citadel. Once the Citadel is theirs Turalyon, Khadgar, and Alleria travel north to Blades Edge following the trail of Guldan's skull while the remaining army takes a course into Terrokar Foreset, Auchindown, and then on to Shadowmoon Valley and the Black Temple.

We're introduced to the Arakkoa and Dranai. It's a really well written book, great pace, and a great addition to the lore. The one question I have is that with the exception of the Gronn and a handful of sick Orc's in Nagrand, the remaining Horde on Draenor is all but wiped out, and there didn't seem to be many females left on Azeroth, yet they flourished?
Profile Image for Pedro António Carvalho.
78 reviews29 followers
September 15, 2020
3,5/5⭐
EN~🇬🇧.
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The continuation of the Warcraft story that I wanted to know after years of playing the online game. This time we get to know what happened to Draenor and why it became what now is known as Outland, what happened to Turalyon and Alleria and a handful of other stuff.
Again I'm enjoying this a lot just because it's such an easy read that transports me right into that virtual world. It's really easy to imagine it when you have explored it countless times. Will probably only return to these series next year so it's a good thing that I can still play the game to keep me hooked 😁.
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PT~🇵🇹
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Continuação da história de Warcraft que sempre quis ler agora anos a jogar o jogo online. Neste livro ficamos a saber o que aconteceu com Draenor e porque é que se tornou no que é hoje conhecido como Outland, o que aconteceu com Turalyon e Alleria e um punhado de outras coisas interessantes.
Mais uma vez estou a gostar imenso de ler isso mesmo porque é uma leitura fácil que me transporta para um mundo virtual que me fascina. É mesmo fácil de imaginar quando já o exploraste várias vezes. Provavelmente só voltarei a esta série no próximo ano por isso ainda bem que posso ir jogando para matar as saudades 😁
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