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Birthright #5
The Spider's Test
Ambition and destiny drive one man to confront the insane lord of the Spiderfell. Richard Endier has no choice. For the sake of his people, he must meet the Spider on the creature's own ground in a battle of wit and deception. The future of a new kingdom hangs in the balance. Original.
308 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published September 1, 1996
67 people want to read
About the author
Dixie Lee McKeone
19 books13 followersAfter spending thirteen years working as a civil engineer and surveyor, Dixie Lee McKeone (who has also published two romance novels under the pseudonym Jane Lovelace and Science Fiction as Lee McKeone) began writing romance, mystery, and science-fiction novels.
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
February 3, 2012
I still remember reading this book all those years ago. At the time I was playing birthright day and night and start reading the books. This was by far the best. It had one of the most interesting antagonist on this setting (aside with Manslayer)called The Spider.
This novel is about the ambition and destiny that drive one man to confront the insane lord of the Spiderfell. Richard Endier has no choice. For the sake of his people, he must meet the Spider on the creature's own ground in a battle of wit and deception. The future of a new kingdom hangs in the balance. The book didn't leave the premises of the game and Dixie sure knew what he was doing. I would advice to anyone that played that game or anyone who just want to read a good novel. This isn't a book to win any award but neither is one to throw out.
This novel is about the ambition and destiny that drive one man to confront the insane lord of the Spiderfell. Richard Endier has no choice. For the sake of his people, he must meet the Spider on the creature's own ground in a battle of wit and deception. The future of a new kingdom hangs in the balance. The book didn't leave the premises of the game and Dixie sure knew what he was doing. I would advice to anyone that played that game or anyone who just want to read a good novel. This isn't a book to win any award but neither is one to throw out.
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December 7, 2025This was an interesting enough story about a group of humans seeking to create their own settlements between a human kingdom on one side and the realm of an evil spider/goblin monster on the other.
This is the last published book in the Birthright series, but Richard Baker did write another novel called The Falcon and the Wolf that fell through the cracks in the switch between TSR and WotC. He has uploaded the PDF if you want to read another Birthright novel.
This is the last published book in the Birthright series, but Richard Baker did write another novel called The Falcon and the Wolf that fell through the cracks in the switch between TSR and WotC. He has uploaded the PDF if you want to read another Birthright novel.
April 9, 2025
Okay, let me start of with saying that if you like the Birthright setting, this is a must-read. The same goes, to a lesser degree, for people who are going to work with the Seeds of War TTRPG or MCDM's Kingdom's and Warfare TTRPG manuals. Because it does give a great insight into how holdings and the like work.
That's a lot of RPG speak, I know. Which is probably why the book itself is only mediocre: it feels like a short realm description in a Sourcebook stretched out to fit an entire paperback. Not to say it's poorly written.
It starts out slow and slightly not grokking. But after the first few chapters, when you're lulled into complacency, there's a well executed (DnD tropey) plot twist that allows for some high adventure. Only to bog down in the last stretch.
I think, if the author had gotten a bit more leeway in scope, it could have been a great two/three part series. As it stands, it's a solid introduction to the Birthright setting (and its legacy products as described above), but falls short as a stand-alone.
That's a lot of RPG speak, I know. Which is probably why the book itself is only mediocre: it feels like a short realm description in a Sourcebook stretched out to fit an entire paperback. Not to say it's poorly written.
It starts out slow and slightly not grokking. But after the first few chapters, when you're lulled into complacency, there's a well executed (DnD tropey) plot twist that allows for some high adventure. Only to bog down in the last stretch.
I think, if the author had gotten a bit more leeway in scope, it could have been a great two/three part series. As it stands, it's a solid introduction to the Birthright setting (and its legacy products as described above), but falls short as a stand-alone.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews