Everquest: The Rogue's Hour

While a little flowery in language the overall story was well done with characters easy to hate - very few to love. For those who play in the Everquest world this is a great addition and will make a great series. Hopefully Bob Salvatore will also write a book or two and bring in some of the other great fantasy writers. Scott Ciencin has done some great work for Wizards of the Coast which I loved but this was just not up to his best work, thus a 4 star.

Fears grow with justifiable cause. The magically contained malevolent Dragon of World's End will be released by evil necromancers, wizards, and shadowknights who have obtained the last object they need to bring forth the scourge. In Southern Qeynos, a stranger stops Sizemore the Red and Bully Duetchmar from acting stupidly by preventing their assault on a woman. Afterward, the stranger admits to the lady that he has no idea who he is or anything else. Using the name Rileigh he flees by sea from a necromancer and a shadowknight. Rileigh finds others trying to kill or ally with him on his great quest that he seems to be the only one not to know what it is. Quickly concluding that he cannot trust friend or foe, Rileigh wonders if his greatest enemy is his own past as he hunts for four objects of power that once chained the deadly dragon even as he wonders if he switched sides and released the killing beast. Obviously taken from the interactive online fantasy game, R.A. SALVATORE PRESENTS EVERQUEST: THE ROGUE'S HOUR is a terrific epic saga starring a delightful hero who keeps his sense of humor throughout his dangerous adventures. Those not familiar with the Everquest Universe will enjoy the tale as Rileigh will remind readers of Hans Solo in a fantasy realm. The support cast makes the universe seem genuine or brings out the good and bad of the reluctant champion. Targeting gamesters, other genre readers will appreciate the tale and seek other works by Scott Ciencin (see the Charmed LUCK BE A LADY or the Angel NEMESIS) Harriet Klausner