RED SONJA: CONSUMED is a novel by Gail Simone, who is the author of my favorite run of the RED SONJA comic. Red Sonja herself is one of the most succe
RED SONJA: CONSUMED is a novel by Gail Simone, who is the author of my favorite run of the RED SONJA comic. Red Sonja herself is one of the most successful spin off characters in modern fiction as a creation of Roy Thomas, based on Sonya of Rogatino in “The Shadow of the Vulture.” Even if you’re not familiar with the character, you’re probably familiar with the chain mail bikini clad barbarian archetype that burned itself into the brains of many a teenage boy (as well as girl). Impractical an outfit as it may be, she has had hundreds of adventures and fascinating stories in the Sword and Sorcery genre and is only really rivaled by Conan himself.
Gail Simone’s run was mildly controversial because she re-imagined the character in several ways from the classic Thomas incarnation. The classic Thomas incarnation was straight, a survivor of sexual assault, and bound by an oath never to lie with a man unless he first defeated her in battle. Most of which was depicted in the Brigitte Nielsen movie. Gail Simone’s Red Sonja was gleefully bisexual, thankfully spared such a trauma (but not the death of her village), and every bit as amorous as Conan himself. Several Dynamite writers have continued this element with regards to her past and sexuality.
Red Sonja: Consumed follows the Gail Simone comic incarnation (no kidding, I know) but with several key differences. This seems to be a more experienced Red Sonja, feeling more in her thirties if not forties, rather than the younger incarnation that is still making her legend. She’s also slightly smarter and wiser as the one from the comics had a tendency toward lunkheadery that may or may not be related to her copious alcohol consumption. This Sonja is at the height of her legend and not entirely happy with the fact she’s inspiring scores of young women to follow in her footsteps.
The premise is Sonja is hired to rob a local queen of a precious golden asp arm bracelet. Sonja takes the opportunity to seduce her and make off in the middle of the night. Were this Conan, she would send her forces to chase him and he’d give a big speech about he can’t be tied down. This seems to have been Sonja’s plan but it doesn’t work out nearly so well. Said Queen, Ysidra, has had her heart broken and Sonja feels like crap for robbing someone who had shown her affection. There’s also her employer who wants the asp, an uprising of supernatural monsters, and the usual corrupt kings as well as guards.
Sex and sexuality is handled interestingly in Gail Simone’s Hyborian Age. It’s a far more egalitarian society with more common female warriors (not that Howard’s was lacking as we see in Valeria and Belit) but not equality. Sonja carouses quite a bit with both a threesome with two bathers (male and female) as well as briefly joining a polycule of Hyrkanian warriors (same). This will mean nothing to some fans and just a reflection of the sexually charged world of Howard updated to the 21st century. Others will be put off by it, especially those who think her vow as an important part of her character.
The action is excellent and there’s some well-done characterization throughout. Red Sonja gets deconstructed as we see a somewhat more mature perspective on her life of free-booting, drinking, and sleeping around with no attachments being incredibly fun in her twenties but less rewarding as time marches on. Then it’s just lonely and pathetic. It’s pretty easy to see how the “romances” will end up as well as the main plot but that doesn’t mean it’s not rewarding to reach them both. I recommend this for Sword and Sorcery fans as well as those who enjoy “lone wanderer” fantasy....more
RED SONJA: CONSUMED is a novel by Gail Simone, who is the author of my favorite run of the RED SONJA comic. Red Sonja herself is one of the most succeRED SONJA: CONSUMED is a novel by Gail Simone, who is the author of my favorite run of the RED SONJA comic. Red Sonja herself is one of the most successful spin off characters in modern fiction as a creation of Roy Thomas, based on Sonya of Rogatino in “The Shadow of the Vulture.” Even if you’re not familiar with the character, you’re probably familiar with the chain mail bikini clad barbarian archetype that burned itself into the brains of many a teenage boy (as well as girl). Impractical an outfit as it may be, she has had hundreds of adventures and fascinating stories in the Sword and Sorcery genre and is only really rivaled by Conan himself.
Gail Simone’s run was mildly controversial because she re-imagined the character in several ways from the classic Thomas incarnation. The classic Thomas incarnation was straight, a survivor of sexual assault, and bound by an oath never to lie with a man unless he first defeated her in battle. Most of which was depicted in the Brigitte Nielsen movie. Gail Simone’s Red Sonja was gleefully bisexual, thankfully spared such a trauma (but not the death of her village), and every bit as amorous as Conan himself. Several Dynamite writers have continued this element with regards to her past and sexuality.
Red Sonja: Consumed follows the Gail Simone comic incarnation (no kidding, I know) but with several key differences. This seems to be a more experienced Red Sonja, feeling more in her thirties if not forties, rather than the younger incarnation that is still making her legend. She’s also slightly smarter and wiser as the one from the comics had a tendency toward lunkheadery that may or may not be related to her copious alcohol consumption. This Sonja is at the height of her legend and not entirely happy with the fact she’s inspiring scores of young women to follow in her footsteps.
The premise is Sonja is hired to rob a local queen of a precious golden asp arm bracelet. Sonja takes the opportunity to seduce her and make off in the middle of the night. Were this Conan, she would send her forces to chase him and he’d give a big speech about he can’t be tied down. This seems to have been Sonja’s plan but it doesn’t work out nearly so well. Said Queen, Ysidra, has had her heart broken and Sonja feels like crap for robbing someone who had shown her affection. There’s also her employer who wants the asp, an uprising of supernatural monsters, and the usual corrupt kings as well as guards.
Sex and sexuality is handled interestingly in Gail Simone’s Hyborian Age. It’s a far more egalitarian society with more common female warriors (not that Howard’s was lacking as we see in Valeria and Belit) but not equality. Sonja carouses quite a bit with both a threesome with two bathers (male and female) as well as briefly joining a polycule of Hyrkanian warriors (same). This will mean nothing to some fans and just a reflection of the sexually charged world of Howard updated to the 21st century. Others will be put off by it, especially those who think her vow as an important part of her character.
The action is excellent and there’s some well-done characterization throughout. Red Sonja gets deconstructed as we see a somewhat more mature perspective on her life of free-booting, drinking, and sleeping around with no attachments being incredibly fun in her twenties but less rewarding as time marches on. Then it’s just lonely and pathetic. It’s pretty easy to see how the “romances” will end up as well as the main plot but that doesn’t mean it’s not rewarding to reach them both. I recommend this for Sword and Sorcery fans as well as those who enjoy “lone wanderer” fantasy....more
GOAT by Allan Batchelder is a fantastic story of a guy who gets turned into, yes, a goat and proceeds to find himself by talking inanimate objects as GOAT by Allan Batchelder is a fantastic story of a guy who gets turned into, yes, a goat and proceeds to find himself by talking inanimate objects as well as other victims of a sci-fi bit of silliness. It's a very fun tale that's a bit on the short side and thoroughly nonserious. I think those seeking a fun afternoon read to relax their brain will find this story to be very entertaining....more
THE NEO-ANARCHIST'S GUIDE TO REAL LIFE is a really useful supplement for 1st Edition Shadowrun. This book provides a lot of information on fashion, coTHE NEO-ANARCHIST'S GUIDE TO REAL LIFE is a really useful supplement for 1st Edition Shadowrun. This book provides a lot of information on fashion, concealable armaments, security systems, the layout of a McDonald's (McHughs) except updated for 2050, how airplanes as well as airports work, plus other incredibly useful material for Shadowrunners trying to immerse themselves in the Sixth Age. I strongly recommend this one as a must-have for Storytellers....more
HARLEQUIN is another Shadowrun 1st Edition supplement that I really enjoyed. It has its flaws, not the least being the fact it centers around a David HARLEQUIN is another Shadowrun 1st Edition supplement that I really enjoyed. It has its flaws, not the least being the fact it centers around a David Bowie-esque elf Gary Stu that manipulates everything behind the scenes. The actual adventures are pretty good as they are mostly "normal" Shadowruns like assassinating an elvish hate group, robbing the equivalent of Random House, and dealing with a couple of ambushes. There's a rather unpleasant adventure where the "bad guy" elf has set himself up as a god in an Amazon plantation worshiped by the native peoples (and they use a real life name for them) but that's easily thrown away....more
SHADOWBEAT is a supplement for 1st Edition and deals with stuff you wouldn't normally think of existing in Shadowrun like what sort of music they listSHADOWBEAT is a supplement for 1st Edition and deals with stuff you wouldn't normally think of existing in Shadowrun like what sort of music they listen to, what sort of sports they watch, and what channels exist among other things that are primarily flavor text in the setting. I really enjoyed this almost entirely fluff supplement. Those who are looking for more crunchy material than what Urban Brawl and Combat Biker are or whether the 2055 Japanese Olympics will allow Metas to play should look elsewhere....more
SUPER TUESDAY!: VOTE FOR DUNKELZAHN FOR PRESIDENT is an adventure for Shadowrun 2nd Edition and deals with the election of 2055 which is the first AmeSUPER TUESDAY!: VOTE FOR DUNKELZAHN FOR PRESIDENT is an adventure for Shadowrun 2nd Edition and deals with the election of 2055 which is the first American election with a dragon on the ballot. While players are meant to side with the dragon because, well, dragon, there's a lot of interesting candidates ranging from a hippie Al Gore type (this was in the 1990s) caring about the environment versus a crazy human-superiority obsessed nutjob. In the end, we know how the election went with Dunkelzahn being assassinated on the same day of his election, but it's still quite enjoyable. Only one of the adventures (The Illuminated Brethren one) was a dud....more
MECURIAL is another Shadowrun adventure of 1st Edition and one of the ones that I quite like. The player characters are invited to guard nova music stMECURIAL is another Shadowrun adventure of 1st Edition and one of the ones that I quite like. The player characters are invited to guard nova music star, Maria Mercurial, who is a former chip-addict and suffers from DID. Her new manager has framed her old manager for chip dealing and is planning on selling her out to the Yakuza and Aztechnology in order to cover his debts (she has a bunch of proprietary information in her head from her days as a cyber secretary). The player characters have to save her, hold her up in some place safe, and eventually deal with an Aztechnology assassin and his dragon lover. Top notch adventure....more
UNIVERSAL BROTHERHOOD is an adventure that has the PCs investigate the mysterious bug-worshiping cult that turns an otherwise common Shadowrun into a UNIVERSAL BROTHERHOOD is an adventure that has the PCs investigate the mysterious bug-worshiping cult that turns an otherwise common Shadowrun into a quest to uncover the secrets of a world-destroying threat. Basically, very Invasion of the Body Snatchers meets Raymond Chandler. I really like the NPC detective who will only make things harder for the PCs. Sadly, I wish the Universal Brotherhood had more detail on its operations. Half of the book is also detailing investigating it by people other than the PCs....more
The SEATTLE SOURCEBOOK is a Shadowrun supplement that details the Emerald City as a place where you can do a lot of fascinating adventures in its multThe SEATTLE SOURCEBOOK is a Shadowrun supplement that details the Emerald City as a place where you can do a lot of fascinating adventures in its multiple districts. The book suffers a bit that a lot of it is just detailing bars, organ grinder docs, hotels, and so on while telling you how racist they are against humans or elves. The Night of Rage and the role of race among the various factions in the city provides plenty of fodder for gaming, though. This book has a lot of flavor and that's something I love in all of my classic supplements....more
SHADOWRUN is one of my all time favorite games and this is where it all began. It's harsh, political, and utterly serious about talking about the consSHADOWRUN is one of my all time favorite games and this is where it all began. It's harsh, political, and utterly serious about talking about the consequences of 10% of the world dying from plague and another 10% becoming orcs or elves. Cyberpunk Dungeons and Dragons in our world is such a weird premise it's hard to even know where to address it but I think it's still a fascinating world. 1st Edition is where it all began and I think this is probably where everyone should start as the later incarnations of the Sixth World just lack the raw emotion of the first one. The rules are terrible but the world-building is grand and ANGRY at the world. It is pure punk despite its silliness....more
THE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO GAME OF THRONES is a fan supplement that I think is a much better guide to the series than FIRE CANNOT KILL A DRAGON despite tTHE UNOFFICIAL GUIDE TO GAME OF THRONES is a fan supplement that I think is a much better guide to the series than FIRE CANNOT KILL A DRAGON despite the less availability of interviews. There's a fantastic amount of enthusiasm from the author regarding fan theories like the little brother who kills Cersei, matters like Jon Snow's parentage, costuming, and more. It also sensibly discusses the fact the show overtook George R.R. Martin's books and we might never get the full story. ...more
SPRAWL SITES isn't one of my favorite books in the Shadowrun line but it gets props for the fact that it contains dozens of short adventure hooks thatSPRAWL SITES isn't one of my favorite books in the Shadowrun line but it gets props for the fact that it contains dozens of short adventure hooks that would be more useful than 90% of all supplements if you are lacking material for the evening. It also contains a bunch of generic building maps that I didn't find very useful plus ten pages of blank notes in the back. Still, I give props to any book that contains a bunch of racist anti-meta villains you get to shoot up. ...more
NEVER DEAL WITH A DRAGON by Robert N. Charrette is the first Shadowrun novel and the first volume of the Secrets of Power trilogy. It is our first intNEVER DEAL WITH A DRAGON by Robert N. Charrette is the first Shadowrun novel and the first volume of the Secrets of Power trilogy. It is our first introduction to Shadowrun from the literary side of things and if you've never played the game, Shadowrun is a cyberpunk fantasy where magic returned to the Earth in 2012. Huge chunks of humanity were mutated into races like elves, dwarves, orcs, and trolls. If that sounds silly, it is. If that sounds awesome, it is. If you're a person who loves "pure" cyberpunk and hate the sound of that, well, this isn't the book for you.
The premise is that Sam Verner is a white male human heterosexual Christian protagonist, which is not a criticism but just a note that it's somewhat noticeable in Shadowrun (as well as cyberpunk in general), that works as a programmer for the Japanese Renraku megacorp. His life is reasonably okay until his sister is transformed into an Ork and he immediately finds himself shunned by polite society. His wee gets worse as he's sent to Seattle and the plane is hijacked by a group of Shadowrunners that he ends up accidentally befriending.
I like the book's mixture of magic and cyberpunk elements by never winking at the reader or commenting on how strange it is. By playing it straight, the book's weirder elements have a chance to shine. Sam Verner is a guy who was raised by a fundamentalist who refused to acknowledge magic and tried to shield his children as much as possible from it. However, magic (and chaos) proceeds to find Sam even when he's trying to live as lawful and orderly a world as possible.
The depiction of Shadowrunners in the book is also interesting as we get to see them do some pretty awful things at the start but show each other loyalty that you wouldn't expect from hardened criminals. It felt very much like a tabletop RPG in that once you were accepted as a member of the "player characters" that they would go to elaborate lengths for one another.
I like how the various plots and counter-plots in the book build up like a game of Vampire: The Masquerade. There's several separate corporate conspiracies going on simultaneously with Sam Verner suspected to be at the bottom of them, ironically, because everyone believes no one can be as squeaky clean as him. This includes a plot by Mr. Drake who, shock of shocks, is actually a dragon. If I had any complaints, I would say that I didn't like the handling of Sam Verner's girlfriend who seems to exist solely to give himself someone to avenge.
This is a pretty entertaining book from beginning to end as I came to like all of the characters with Sally Tsung, Dodger, Ghost, and Ms. Crenshaw that are a great deal more interesting than the somewhat naive Sam Verner. There's a lot of use of the signature characters from the 1st Edition Shadowrun sourcebook and I like when tabletop games take that attitude. The cross-pollination of tabletop games with the fiction is well done throughout the book....more
THE WORLD OF CRITICAL ROLE is a nonfiction book that chronicles the creation of the Critical Role Twitch stream that has since exploded into a massiveTHE WORLD OF CRITICAL ROLE is a nonfiction book that chronicles the creation of the Critical Role Twitch stream that has since exploded into a massively successful multimedia franchise that includes comics as well as animated cartoons. In a very real way, it contributed to the massive successful of 5th Edition Dungeons and Dragons as well as led to a slew of imitators for everything from Call of Cthulhu to Shadowrun.
The origin of Critical Role was Felicia Day convincing Matt Mercer and the other voice actors playing at his home game to air their D&D game on her channel. From there, they proceed to develop a massive Twitch following and that moved on to becoming a marketing juggernaut. The book covers most of the history in a somewhat superficial but, mostly, accurate way.
I say mostly accurate because the book more or less writes out Orion Acada and his character of Tiberius, only mentioning him as a "guest" party member despite his role in the founding of the franchise. It also overlooks some of the smaller controversies that dogged Critical Role. It doesn't mention the backlash that Marish Ray got about her character of Keyleth or the controversy of "broomgate" where Laura stole another party member's magic broom.
Basically, this is a fine book but it's also very much a love fest for Critical Role that doesn't include any of the controversies or the occassionally unpleasant elements of fandom. It's a puff piece that loses points because a lot of that would have been interesting and lended some authenticity to the story about the struggles some of the individuals involved had to overcome. We all know fans aren't always great people, particularly against women.
Despite this, the book has a lot of fascinating bits in it about the world of Exandria and the character arcs for the first two campaigns. There's character studies of all the characters as well as biographies for the actors. We also get write-ups for Will Wheaton and other guest stars plus their characters. Just because it doesn't dive deeply into the negative elements doesn't mean it's not something worth buying if you are a "critter." We also get surprisingly deep into the real life backstories of the actors with some stories, like Ashley Johnson and Taelsin Jaffe being particularly fascinating.
In conclusion, I don't recommend purchasing this book if you are not already a fan of either Vox Machina or the Mighty Nein. This makes the most sense if you're familiar with Campaigns 1 and 2 but doesn't cover the events of 3 at all. Still, it's a fun coffee table book and enjoyable for hardcore fans....more
CITY IN THE DRAGON’S EYE by Jordan Loyal Short is one of the best fantasy novels written in 2024 and like the author’s DREADBOUND ODE series or Richard Nell’s KINGS OF PARADISE, probably the best thing you can get for “fantasy literature” on Kindle Unlimited. If you think this is overly high praise, take my advice when I say that this is a five-star book of an actual scale were five means “fantastic” not “I have no real complaints and don’t want to undermine the author due to the internet algorithm gods.”
The premise is that this takes place in a 17th-to-19th century-esque steampunk world where magic exists alongside science, but it lacks the “cutesy” quality of much steampunk. It also has elements of the Post-WW1 era where the protagonist’s country has just lost a massive war with many veterans left broken by the experience while others feel they were betrayed by their leaders surrendering.
Viktor has a particularly problematic affliction, though, in that he now has scales across his body from where he used magic that has infected him with dragon. I mean that literally in that people who use too much magic are turned into dragons and treated like lepers as it happens. He’s fired from every job and made an outcast. Seeking a cure so that he doesn’t have to spend the rest of his life in misery, he ends up uncovering a secret society that wishes to start a new war. Victor is no hero, though. He just wants to get cured of what is probably insoluble.
There’s also Izola, who is working at a university with her ex-husband. Unfortunately, the latter has just achieved tenure and finds the prospect of his disgruntled former spouse moving up the ranks to be intolerable. Having her career scuttled in the most painfully banal way possible, Izola searches for another way to distinguish herself. Her path crosses with Viktor in a way that goes in several unexpected directions.
The third protagonist of the work is an incredibly foolish young dandy named Devin who has coasted his entire life on his father’s wealth as well as power. Unfortunately, this has left him with an overinflated sense of importance that gets him into incredible trouble when he attempts to fix a fight for some quick cash, only to run afoul of a local crime lord. Lacking any real resources, he ends up not so much over his head but several fathoms down.
Jordan Loyal Short is a fantastic writer of prose but his biggest skill is that he’s extremely good at creating vivid believable characters that aren’t typical of fantasy. Viktor’s worries about whether he’ll ever get a girl with his “tumor” or his family now that he can’t hold down a job are infinitely more relatable than your typical hero’s issue with a dark lord. Izola’s inability to be seen at her place of work and regrets about having gotten married too young to a professor who turned out to be only interested in her when she was a worshipful young teacher’s assistant is familiar in a way that former assassin or princess isn’t. Yet, this is still a fantastical world filled with monsters and sorcery.
If I had any complaints about the book, it would be that I think naming the secret society “The Thule Society” was a bit too on the nose. It’s like the author didn’t trust us to get the parallels with the Weimar Republic. Despite that, this is a wholly original secondary world with more allusions to early 20th century history than actual parallels.
In conclusion, if you’re looking for a fantastic new read this Fall then I think you could do far worse than pick this one up. Jordan Loyal Short is an author who manages to be dark without being grimdark and authentic when other authors are archetypal. The fact he’s an indie author versus a mass published one is almost as a shame as I think everyone should try this out....more
Drizzt Do'Urden has journeyed to the surface in order to escape from his evil kin. Honestly, this is my least favorite of the three Homeland trilogy nDrizzt Do'Urden has journeyed to the surface in order to escape from his evil kin. Honestly, this is my least favorite of the three Homeland trilogy novels. The absence of House Do'Urden severely undermines this one and not even the presence of Dove makes up for it. We also lack Cattie Brie until the very end. Still, the art is extremely beautiful. ...more
I am a huge fan of the Legend of Drizzt and the characters involved. The Crystal Shard was never the best of the series, though. It's a very simple plI am a huge fan of the Legend of Drizzt and the characters involved. The Crystal Shard was never the best of the series, though. It's a very simple plot of an evil wizard, a magical artifact, and an attack on a bunch of villages. However, this is a fairly well done comic adaptation that manages to preserve most of the plot despite the fact it is only three issues. Normally, a story adaptation is at least six issues, but the Crystal Shard is a simple plot. I love the character designs and action beats with Cattie Brie being my favorite....more
SOUL RELIC by Samuel Hinton and narrated by Andrea Emmes is a cultivation fantasy, which is a burgeoning genre that basically means developing your elemental powers along very Eastern martial arts principles. The fantasy world the author has created isn’t necessarily any more Asian than Avatar: The Last Airbender but that doesn’t mean it’s not squarely in the genre either. It is something that I think would appeal to both fantasy as well as sports fans.
The premise is that in this world, it is possible to become trained as an aeon-wielder or elemental magician. Raysha is a village girl who was born with a lot of aeon in her reserves but no way to naturally replenish it. This is actually a fairly serious disadvantage and she is denied a chance at university after finally managing to escape her home. Her brother, Vashi, is determined to help her as well even if it means teaming up with an old archaeologist, Hlaya, to explore ruins of a civilization that once had to deal with people like Raysha.
This is very much a classic coming of age journey but is made all the more interesting because of the fact that Raysha and company are fairly out of the larger politics at work. The God of Knowledge has just slaughtered all of the other gods in the region in a coup but none of this is a concern of Rasyha. She has her own problems to deal with that don’t allow her to even think of such bigger deals.
I really liked this story and the characters involved, Raysha is an adorable heroine who may be a bit whiny about her status but quickly won me over with her snarky can-do attitude. I also liked the supporting cast and am interested in seeing where this story goes. Vashi, Hllaya, and Ocatvian are all a good cast of characters for supporting Raysha and keep her attitude from getting too insufferable.
I found the magic system to be well-designed and the writing to be entertaining throughout. I liked how our heroes also came into the sights of the Big Bad. Too often, it’s destiny or contrived but, no, our heroes ended up killing some of his minions in an encounter and things just sort of snowball from there. I really like that.
The narrator does a decent job of representing Raysha and the various characters. Andrea Emmes manages to do also convey the danger as well as inner resentment the character is suffering. I’m eager to listen to the next book in the series. I recommend the audiobook over the text version in fact because I feel she did such an excellent job....more
ELFSONG is the second of Elaine Cunningham's fantastic SONGS AND SWORDS series that was also part of the Harpers series (confused yet?). They're a setELFSONG is the second of Elaine Cunningham's fantastic SONGS AND SWORDS series that was also part of the Harpers series (confused yet?). They're a set of books which follow Harper Assassin (as in a Harper who is an Assassin not an assassin of Harpers, though she was accused of that too), Arilyn Moonblade, and Danilo Than who is a Wizard/Fighter who pretends to be a Bard but is also a Harper. Okay, now I've confused myself. The first book, Elfshadow, was fantastic and really deserved a much longer series. Thankfully, Elaine Cunningham managed to write five books in the series even if I'm sorry to say she never released the completed sixth one.
The premise for Elfsong is that the main pair are split up after the events of the first book. Danilo Thann has been recalled back to Waterdeep and is once more working for his "uncle", Khelben the Blackstaff. A disgruntled bard named Garnet has decided to strike back at the Harpers for, essentially, making the "Spoony Bard" trope into an in-game reality. She points out the grand historical tradition of bards, their important role in politics, and their grand heritage as preservers of history when written lore was unavailable. Garnet points out that bards have been reduced to being a bunch of immature wananbe superheroes in the Harpers and involved more in "fighting evil" than their historical role.
I 100% agree with Garnet and note that Elaine Cunningham is using her knowledge of history to make the argument of the villain all the more effective. Elaine Cunningham is also one of the D&D writers who does extensive research on the game before she does her books so this one is littered with material from THE COMPLETE BOOK OF BARDS, one of the two best of that series alongside THE COMPLETE BOOK OF ELVES (without said book's ridiculous elf-touting). There's Dwarvish Jesters, Riddlemasters, and Elf spellsingers. Danillo also decides to Multiclass as Bard, which is probably as redundant a choice in class as has ever been made.
In any case, Garnet's revenge is a somewhat backhanded way of redeeming the honor of bards as she starts ruining their ancient songs and turning them into hit pieces on the Lords of Waterdeep and Khelben specifically. This is a pretty common thing for "sympathetic" villains as you have them make a perfectly valid point and then blow up a schoolbus of children to show they're bad AKA the "Falcon and the Winter Soldier" effect. Mind you, this isn't a bad storytelling device as if they weren't doing villainous things then the hero wouldn't be fighting them. Still, you have to wonder what benefit to bards there will be when she's allying with the Devil-worshiping Knights of the Shield.
The bulk of the book is the frenemy relationship between Danilo and Elaith Craulnobler the Serpent. An elvish crime lord, Elaith despises Danilo because he's a human, he's a Waterdeep nobleman, he's courting Arilyn, and he's a Harper. Not necessarily in that order. Elaith is very similar to Jaime Lannister in some respects in that he's a naturally honorable person who, having lost his honor, decides to live down to everyone's worst fears.
In conclusion, Elfsong is fantastic and while I sympathized with Garnet's cause, this is not where the book's moral ambiguity lies. It is much more a character piece of Danilo versus Elaith over what constitutes morality. Elaine Cunningham has a very tense relationship regarding elvish and human relationships that I don't recall existing anywhere else in the Realms. I also appreciated the handling of the behind the scenes of the Lords of Waterdeep, which we normally don't get in the Forgotten Realms novels....more
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