The City of Splendors (The Cities)

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Customer Reviews:

Great for fans [Posted on 2006-09-10]
Im actually surprised by some of the more negative reviews, i found this arguably one of the best d&d based novels i've read, and i have read no small number.

Its a quick fun story with several characters i really enjoyed, the depiction of khelben arunsun in the beginning was better written and painted a more interesting character then the entire blackstaff novel did, though this book does not focus on him. The main characters were amusing and interesting. All in all if your interested in waterdeep, or a fan of the forgotten realms it is worth a read, as mentioned before its become one of my favorite d&d novels.

As for its downside, the primary enemy to me was actually less interesting then the misadventures of the main group, whom manage to in my opinion make up for it, the ending was not my favorite either.

In the end its better then average realms fare, but lacking the epic scope of some of the more famous d&d series, still for a single shot story its fun and provides a interesting look in to the city of splendors.

dry and unimaginative [Posted on 2006-10-18]
being a loyal forgotten realms fan, i was disappointed with greenwood's take on waterdeep. the story line never drew me in and the characters were one dimensional and largely uninteresting. would definitely not recommend this book - thank goodness he didn't write a trilogy.

Not their best... [Posted on 2006-11-14]
I was hoping for something great. Ed Greenwood and Elaine Cunningham together... Well, the prologue was awesome and I bought the book.
Chapter after chapter, I was hoping for the story to get interesting... at last... to no avail.
Not everything was bad. I learned some interesting things about the city and got the feel of some places at least.
I will try to forget this book and fondly remember others I enjoyed so much.

serviceable Forgotten Realms fiction [Posted on 2007-10-18]
I'm mostly positive about this book, but much of the positive comes from nostalgia for the setting.

The characterization, like many D&D novels is just on this side of flat, the bad guys are evil for no reason, the good guys angst but erode the enamel on your teeth with their actions and internal monologue.

I applaud the author for avoiding more Elminster deus ex machina, but the overall effect is of hapless low-level antics. If they have magic, why don't they use it? Don't they know any clerics? Forcing drama by ignoring possible solutions is always a problem for intelligent audiences.

The details and Waterdeep references are nice, and the whole book is an easy read. It's probably worth having only if you were going to buy it in the first place.

Could Have Been Any City... [Posted on 2007-11-14]
I liked the characters in the book, but I thought the city lacked flavor. I purchased this book because of Waterdeep. It is my favorite city in the Forgotten Realms. I feel that more detail should have been devoted to the city. Good read.

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