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Welcome back again to our 10th Book Club discussion.  It's in single digits here in PA.  I wonder what the weather's like in the cemeteries of Waterdeep?  I think we're about to find out...

This forum will cover the Prologue and Chapters 1-4.

That's pages 1-51. Looking forward to your thoughts as always. 


(Note:  For those of you who are speedy readers, there's a related short story about the Carvers in Realms of the Dead, which Rosemary said takes place just before this novel.  So, go read that first if you have it and then dive into the book.)

I just want to say that I have read a lot of FR novels (just about to finish reading my 246th) and City of the Dead is my absolute favorite.

I just love this book, I love the story, I love the characters and I hope to read more about them.

Others might miss the world shaking RSEs or clashing deities, but to me stories like this are what I want to read about in the Realms (incidently I think the foreword Ed wrote for one of the Waterdeep novels about how you can keep the flights of dragons at home and still tell a great story should have been the foreword for CoD instead, it just fits so well). 

Hola,
> Many parts of book production (cover, intros, back copy blurb), the author doesn't see until the very > "end" 
But they nailed the cover on this one--absolutely beautiful!

Who did the Art?

I have just started this as well [great title for the Prolog!]...the Nook Copy took a while to sort out--I tried to use a gift card online which was a mistake--so far, my experience with eBooks points to the Kindle as being the way more simple platform for actually downloading material--I am interested to see what differences I discover in the reading process.

I do not think I read the short story mentioned above--is that available online or only in the Print Book?  Thanks, David S.

 

I finished the first section, and once again I'm hooked on one of these Waterdeep books.  I really think in retrospect this is going to be one of the best series of novels that Wizards has ever released.

I keep meaning to re-read the short story from Realms of the Dead, but just didn't have time this week.  I enjoy the references to it throughout the first few chapters.  As anyone knows who has read my posts before, I love when authors continue threads and stories throughout novels and create interconnectivity in their work (and with the work of other Realms authors).

The two things that strike me the most in the beginning of this novel are the difference in story and character from the "typical" D&D novel.  Most D&D novels start out with some action - usually a fight scene with monsters or thugs or something.  This novel runs over 40 pages before that happens.  Even though editors typically push to "start with the action," the slower start and build up in this story makes it feel more gothic and rich as we get to know the characters and setting.  (The setting is so important to all of these Waterdeep books.  They're named after places, after all.)

The second difference is with Sophraea.  Most female protagonists in D&D fantasy have to be turned into warriors or spellcasters right away like their male counterparts to make them interesting and viable heroes.  But look at Sophraea - she's a girl who wears dresses and dreams of working in a dress shop.  We've read a few other books in the Book Club with female leads, but none that were actually normal women with no aspirations to be thieves or pirates or something.  She's just a normal, smart female living in Waterdeep. I'm sure she's going to turn into much more, but starting her off this way makes her (and her family) seem more real, which goes a long way in creating fantasy stories that are not cliche or formulaic.

There's a lot of intrigue here as well - Stunk, Adarbrent, the young male wizard - and I have no idea where it's going, which is good!

One last note - I love the Carver names like Astute and Perspicacity.  That paired with the cemetery makes it feel very Nathaniel Hawthorne to me, like House of Seven Gables or something.  New England gothic.  Anyway, very interested to keep reading!