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Dungeons & Dragons Iconic Series #2
The Living Dead
Hunting parties from an elven village are mysteriously disappearing. Similar mysteries plague a dwarven settlement on the far side of the mountains. Each side blames the other. Only a band of tried and true heroes can root out what sinister force manipulates these normally peaceful people.But can they conquer that evil before the tribes go to war?
196 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2002
5 people are currently reading
116 people want to read
About the author
T.H. Lain
16 books9 followersT.H. Lain was a collective pseudonym used by nine separate authors writing under Wizards of the Coast's Dungeons & Dragons novels imprint.
According to Peter Archer, WotC's Director of Publishing, the decision to credit the Dungeons & Dragons novels to just one author was made to ensure they would be shelved together, as well as to spark a certain measure of curiosity and speculation as to T.H. Lain's identity. However, it was already obvious to many from the stylistic differences between volumes that Lain's output was the work of many authors rather than one.
In December 2003, WotC formally announced the nine authors whose work was published under the T.H. Lain name.
According to Peter Archer, WotC's Director of Publishing, the decision to credit the Dungeons & Dragons novels to just one author was made to ensure they would be shelved together, as well as to spark a certain measure of curiosity and speculation as to T.H. Lain's identity. However, it was already obvious to many from the stylistic differences between volumes that Lain's output was the work of many authors rather than one.
In December 2003, WotC formally announced the nine authors whose work was published under the T.H. Lain name.
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Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews
January 17, 2019
Ok... enough with the negative reviews already. If any of you negative reviewers picked this book expecting a great work of literature, you probably don't have the brains required to write a good review anyway.
They say "99% of Scifi/Fantasy is crap... but then 99% of everything is crap." Look, this book is what it is... Fantasy fodder for our imagination. It is the printed equivalent of the Saturday morning serial movies with horrible cliffhangers of my youth.
People aren't reading this because they want a complete character arc. They don't want literary perfection. They want stories about Mialee and Lida and Tordek. They want them to win glorious battles at overwhelming odds. They want tag lines to use in their Saturday night regular D&D game with their friends.
Don't judge this book by Tolkien, Martin, or Eddings. Judge this book by its satisfied fans. It's a fun read.
They say "99% of Scifi/Fantasy is crap... but then 99% of everything is crap." Look, this book is what it is... Fantasy fodder for our imagination. It is the printed equivalent of the Saturday morning serial movies with horrible cliffhangers of my youth.
People aren't reading this because they want a complete character arc. They don't want literary perfection. They want stories about Mialee and Lida and Tordek. They want them to win glorious battles at overwhelming odds. They want tag lines to use in their Saturday night regular D&D game with their friends.
Don't judge this book by Tolkien, Martin, or Eddings. Judge this book by its satisfied fans. It's a fun read.
October 1, 2023
Based on the main characters from the D&D Third Edition Handbook, this book features the elven wizard Mialee, the half-elf bard Devis, and the elven ranger Soveliss. This book is more of a campaign feeling than a single dungeon delving, with a main villain and 1,000 years worth of history. The character’s are more powerful than in the first book of the series.
November 4, 2007
This is the first Dungeons and Dragons themed book I have read. I decided to read it on a whim and through a little encouragement from my husband. I love fantasy and sci fi and things like that, but I have honestly never read an action adventure book like that since I was young. It only took me about 10 minutes to get into this book! It was a great and very smooth read. I enjoyed the characters and the plot line. Description throughout was amazing. I don't think this will be the last D&D book I read.
March 5, 2018
I grabbed this for pennies at a library book sale solely because it was a D&D book and also because it looked like it belonged to no D&D book series that I had ever encountered. It looked so bad that I thought it must have been self-published, but no, there was the Wizards of the Coast imprint on the spine and the copyright page was legit. I had to look it up here on Goodreads just to make sure, and imagine my surprise to see a whole series of books by this author. {EDIT: I now know that T.H. Lain is a pseudonym used by WotC for this series of books, if Wikipedia is to be believed then this was written by one Cory Herndon}. I held on to it until I had time to throw away on a likely terrible book, which happened on a recent trip due to a death. Fitting given the title? Perhaps not. On with the review:
At the risk of repeating myself: this book looks terrible at a glance. I hate to judge a book by its cover, but there are clear concerns here. The cover art is simply awful. Does that flat-headed, constipated elf have some kind of chromosomal disorder? Why don't her legs even remotely join together at the groin? The book is rather thin too, at about 180 pages of sparse text, this is definitely more in the 'novella' range.
But of course the content is key. Fortunately, it was a fun read in many places, but I had to put aside any critical eye to get there. It is rife with tired RPG cliches. Every chapter is a cliffhanger. The author repeats himself frequently, often within the same page. Nothing can happen without an insertion of goofiness; for example, a character cannot just leap through an open window, he has to bang his head on the way out. The lightness of the narrative was the only thing to sell it for most of the book; towards the end, it was a real slog of an attempt at seriousness. The plot relied increasingly on divine intervention, so much so that the following is a summary of two consecutive chapters (MILD SPOILERS):
-the party is mortally wounded but saved by the healing power of a god/avatar;
-the party is immediately mortally wounded again, and saved by the healing power of the same god/avatar.
It really could have used an editor. Or if it had one, then a much better editor.
My hot take: this is not really a novel per se; it is the author's recounting of a D&D table-top adventure. It reads clearly as if written by a Dungeon Master, albeit probably a good one at that if one were a player at his table. All of the goofy details which are exactly what would be narrated in for fun at the table, the elaborate backstory that is revealed two thirds of the way in, the transition to various adventure locales, all are reminiscent of a short home RPG campaign.
For the record, I left this book at the Philly, PA airport on the leave-a-book/take-a-book shelf, somewhere between terminals 1 and 3 on the departures level, on February 19, 2018.
At the risk of repeating myself: this book looks terrible at a glance. I hate to judge a book by its cover, but there are clear concerns here. The cover art is simply awful. Does that flat-headed, constipated elf have some kind of chromosomal disorder? Why don't her legs even remotely join together at the groin? The book is rather thin too, at about 180 pages of sparse text, this is definitely more in the 'novella' range.
But of course the content is key. Fortunately, it was a fun read in many places, but I had to put aside any critical eye to get there. It is rife with tired RPG cliches. Every chapter is a cliffhanger. The author repeats himself frequently, often within the same page. Nothing can happen without an insertion of goofiness; for example, a character cannot just leap through an open window, he has to bang his head on the way out. The lightness of the narrative was the only thing to sell it for most of the book; towards the end, it was a real slog of an attempt at seriousness. The plot relied increasingly on divine intervention, so much so that the following is a summary of two consecutive chapters (MILD SPOILERS):
-the party is mortally wounded but saved by the healing power of a god/avatar;
-the party is immediately mortally wounded again, and saved by the healing power of the same god/avatar.
It really could have used an editor. Or if it had one, then a much better editor.
My hot take: this is not really a novel per se; it is the author's recounting of a D&D table-top adventure. It reads clearly as if written by a Dungeon Master, albeit probably a good one at that if one were a player at his table. All of the goofy details which are exactly what would be narrated in for fun at the table, the elaborate backstory that is revealed two thirds of the way in, the transition to various adventure locales, all are reminiscent of a short home RPG campaign.
For the record, I left this book at the Philly, PA airport on the leave-a-book/take-a-book shelf, somewhere between terminals 1 and 3 on the departures level, on February 19, 2018.
February 26, 2012
Even if the rating were low for this book, I started to read it. And I didn't understand why people rate it so low, first pages are entertaining. When you start small D&D novel like this you know you won't have any deep so you go for a quick fantasy action escape.
The character are introduced in a simple way, they all seem veteran adventurer. Many joke, good action.
But that stop suddenly, it take me forever to finish the last 100 pages.
A lot of this happen for nothing... the author didn't know how to create drama so many characters dies (and we don't really care about them anyway) or all the heroes didn't stop to get badly hurt so they're in pain most of the time. Even after defeating the bad guy, the author caught the character in a lava eruption...
So it look like a movie with good actor but a bad scenario... wonder if the author could have made a better book if he got more time and page to develop his idea. Too much cliché in this one.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
April 4, 2019
I've had this book since I was younger, been into these kinds of books for quite a while. Finally got around to re-reading it, smooth read. I enjoyed it a bit more to the previous one in the series, exploring the goblin caves was good but wasn't as engaging I suppose. Either way, enjoyed the book, will probably read the next one in the series when I can pick it up too
January 19, 2016
Buena historia. Algo corta y medio confusa pero se salva la aventura.
January 11, 2019
It's an ok book. It starts good but it gets a little ridiculous by the end. Of course it's meant to represent a small dnd campaign but the very rapid escalation of the scope of both the heroes and the villains in the end of the book left a sour taste in my mouth, especially since, looking at the series and having read the 7th one, we see the scope escalating much more gracefully in the later books
October 6, 2025
Another amazing book in the classic D&D series. I love how in this book they use the Bard as a true character instead of the bumbling fool that most books make the class. Well written story, vivid characters, action scenes that will keep you on your toes, and a bit of romance. You really couldn’t ask for more in a book.
August 12, 2017
While it certainly has its moments, the initial appearance of wights in a tavern and the setting for the climax among them, this one's a little uneven for much of the story. Still, it's certainly served the purpose I was reading it for; staving off the D&D itch between play sessions.
December 15, 2022
Another tale that brings you to the edge of your seat,and keeps you going till the end. Again in the D&D setup,and not long at all.so a light read for anyone looking for adventure.
November 7, 2012
Why do I continue reading this T. H. Lain series?! Probably because I've bought them and they're short enough to flip through quickly. Plus the fact that it's much easier to write negative reviews.
As a fantasy story, it was derivative and illogical - just your regular zombie infestation with a rather pathetic archvillain thrown in, even has the mandatory family-with-a-child in a last-stand situation. Character motives were weak. Protagonist choice is weird - they keep dying and almost dying - if I'm a powerful mage with a powerful spouse, and I have a thousand years to plan, I'd pick more promising candidates and plan more contingencies and backup plans.
As a story, the plot is weak and felt like it's just dragging along, with character thoughts and reflections feeling more like filler trying to pad it longer. The book is poorly researched and the story poorly executed, with improbable things like a zombie/ghoul/wight (the book itself wasn't sure) barging into a tavern in the middle of a pretty large town holding a dismembered halfling foot (how it got dismembered was never explained, just to be dramatic, which failed of course). Undead regularly attacking settlements with no reaction at all from the citizenry, the archvillain being capable of zipping here and there, molten metal flying an incredibly long distance in a tunnel, absolutely no food and water concerns, weird volcano behaviour... that's more than enough typing.
As a D&D story... it was pretty horrible. A lot of D&D rules were disregarded and ignored. Death and resurrection, controlling undead, turning undead, a wight that feels more like an underpowered lich, possession of undead bodies, bardic abilities, wizard familiars, spellcasting, deities and avatars, ... badly integrated as plot elements for some, never bothered to reconcile with the rules at all for others.
So why do I keep reading this series even though I know it's bad? I guess it's kinda gives me a different form of entertainment - the eye-rolling kind. It's like watching a children's cartoon - you're not supposed to take it seriously. Even the book tries to inject some jokes about itself (or at least, I hoped that the book wasn't trying to take itself seriously).
As a fantasy story, it was derivative and illogical - just your regular zombie infestation with a rather pathetic archvillain thrown in, even has the mandatory family-with-a-child in a last-stand situation. Character motives were weak. Protagonist choice is weird - they keep dying and almost dying - if I'm a powerful mage with a powerful spouse, and I have a thousand years to plan, I'd pick more promising candidates and plan more contingencies and backup plans.
As a story, the plot is weak and felt like it's just dragging along, with character thoughts and reflections feeling more like filler trying to pad it longer. The book is poorly researched and the story poorly executed, with improbable things like a zombie/ghoul/wight (the book itself wasn't sure) barging into a tavern in the middle of a pretty large town holding a dismembered halfling foot (how it got dismembered was never explained, just to be dramatic, which failed of course). Undead regularly attacking settlements with no reaction at all from the citizenry, the archvillain being capable of zipping here and there, molten metal flying an incredibly long distance in a tunnel, absolutely no food and water concerns, weird volcano behaviour... that's more than enough typing.
As a D&D story... it was pretty horrible. A lot of D&D rules were disregarded and ignored. Death and resurrection, controlling undead, turning undead, a wight that feels more like an underpowered lich, possession of undead bodies, bardic abilities, wizard familiars, spellcasting, deities and avatars, ... badly integrated as plot elements for some, never bothered to reconcile with the rules at all for others.
So why do I keep reading this series even though I know it's bad? I guess it's kinda gives me a different form of entertainment - the eye-rolling kind. It's like watching a children's cartoon - you're not supposed to take it seriously. Even the book tries to inject some jokes about itself (or at least, I hoped that the book wasn't trying to take itself seriously).
November 16, 2015
The beginning of The Living Dead starts off quickly with a wight attacking the main characters. Right from the start, I really enjoyed all of the characters that T.H. Lain created in this tale of swords, music and magic. As the tale unfolds, I became slightly lost in the ever-increasing storyline. This story seemed to rely on a lot of things that happened in the past, which wasn't something I was prepared for. I wanted a lot of action, like in the first Dungeons & Dragons book, The Savage Caves.
Still, the characters are all very interesting and surprised me as they evolved through the story. I really liked the mage and the bard the best and hope that more stories are written about them and about Redgar, the main character in The Savage Caves.
Overall, The Living Dead is a good story, an enjoyable to read and a nice edition to the new books in the Dungeons & Dragons universe.
I rated this book a 7 out of 10.
Still, the characters are all very interesting and surprised me as they evolved through the story. I really liked the mage and the bard the best and hope that more stories are written about them and about Redgar, the main character in The Savage Caves.
Overall, The Living Dead is a good story, an enjoyable to read and a nice edition to the new books in the Dungeons & Dragons universe.
I rated this book a 7 out of 10.
October 23, 2015
Some solid 2-star waist deep Pseudo D&d 3.5 stuff here. I'd have made it 3 stars if it at least resembled an adventure -- something you could point a non-player too and be like, "yeah, like this, but better and more interactive." No... despite this being an obvious WotC appendage, it doesn't do the game or itself justice.
Still, I've read worse. And it's self aware enough to know that it needed to be a REAL short read. And you could build an adventure out of it -- combined with some materials. Plus the writing was decent, like the Author at least gave it the time of day. So, yes, solid 2-star performance.
Still, I've read worse. And it's self aware enough to know that it needed to be a REAL short read. And you could build an adventure out of it -- combined with some materials. Plus the writing was decent, like the Author at least gave it the time of day. So, yes, solid 2-star performance.
April 20, 2010
All right, this is actually my first novel. I swear I won't do this with anything else I write unless it's also under a pen name.
T.H. Lain was a house pseudonym (google it) WotC used for a specific line of D&D novels during the 3rd Edition era that starred the iconic characters from the rule books. I was chosen to write this one--a torrid little sort-of zombie story with the elf wizard, the half-elf bard, a giant zombie squid, and an amnesia elf who mysteriously dual-wields, because why not.
Hey, that's worth two stars, isn't it?
T.H. Lain was a house pseudonym (google it) WotC used for a specific line of D&D novels during the 3rd Edition era that starred the iconic characters from the rule books. I was chosen to write this one--a torrid little sort-of zombie story with the elf wizard, the half-elf bard, a giant zombie squid, and an amnesia elf who mysteriously dual-wields, because why not.
Hey, that's worth two stars, isn't it?
July 1, 2015
This is not a bad book, but for it to have been effective, it needed another 200 or so pages. There was just no adequate time to develop the characters or the situation. The plot was just too big for the amount of pages that WoTC allotted for this story.
January 5, 2010
This is a terrible book. Bad pacing and boring characters contribute to this book's downfall. Avoid this like the plague.
April 30, 2011
I dont know why I still read these books. Nostalgia I suppose, but the characters are very flat and the plot is fairly non-existant, however it's a quick and fairly fun read.
Read
May 21, 2012recommended by my husband
June 3, 2013
Ugh. I mean, ugh.
May 15, 2013
another solid adventure by Lain. I like his balance of humor and action.
December 17, 2014
haha wat. So glad I still got more of these.
Displaying 1 - 22 of 22 reviews