The Savage Caves

I bought this book hoping for some mindless entertainment on the bus. Turns out, it really isn't that mindless, but it is entertaining. It's a D & D book, so I really wasn't expecting much, but it did a good job of capturing the mood of a good D & D game, a "first adventure" plot to start a campaign. Lotsa action, lotsa fun, and some clever things thrown into a pretty straightforward plot. The only thing that did bother me, as an earlier poster pointed out, was the use of modern slang. Several times, my tenuous suspension of disbelief was shattered by it. In spite of that, I actually found myself worried about Naull and hoping she wouldn't be killed. After the bus ride, I finished the book and bought the The Living Dead the next day. Aside from a fun action-packed fantasy, it does a good job of sticking to third edition D & D rules for the characters, and illustrating their implications to the characters. And, I'm gonna rip off the entire village and cave system situation for my group's next adventure.

Fun book and brought back memories of my bygone gaming days. Best points--lots of well written action, original use of giant spiders and some depth added to the much maligned goblin race (usually just used by DM's as sword-fodder). Bad points--too short and lazily written dialogue (kinda like a real game). Series has definite promise.

Is the best way I can sum up this book quickly. As the first in a new series centered around the Iconic D & D characters as seen in the Player's Handbook, The Savage Caves is a fast and fun read, and does a good job in introducing our heroes, bringing them together in true D & D fashion and setting them on the path to adventure.I gave this book 4 stars out of 5 because it is so very short, and reads more like juvenile fiction than I expected, but don't let that keep you from enjoying the story. T.H. Lain keeps things flowing well, switching from character to character and even showing things from the point of view of the "bad guys" to keep the perspective intruiging. I look forward to seeing how further books in the series evolve the ongoing story of these characters.

I haven't read too many of the other DnD books (Forgotten Realms, Dragonlance, Ravenloft, etc) because I found them, especially the earlier ones, to be a bit too much like a bad gaming session. They also seemed to be written more for Young Adults than grown up gamers like myself. That being said, I am really looking forward to this series. Sort of a back to basics gaming novel, without 20 years of history to have to muddle through.I enjoyed The Savage Caves quite a bit. It sports a rather unique, though, as I said, basic, storyline. The iconic characters in this story are Regdar the human fighter, Jozan the human cleric, Lidda the halfling rogue and Naull the human wizard. The characters are well portrayed, if a little stereotypical (but what do you expect from DnD, which is rife with stereotypes). There is some genuine chemistry between the characters (especially Lidda and Regdar) and a little love interest as well (though not between Regdar and Lidda).I have to say that my favorite character is Jozan. Though this is ostensibly Regdar's book, Jozan shines here, especially in his interaction with Lidda.I do have two complaints about the book, though. The first one is the length. It is a very thin novel and costs as much as a larger one. The print is small, though, so there is some meat to the story, and I didn't feel like I didn't get my money's worth, so that complaint is a small one.The second is the slang. Lidda frequently uses what I consider to be current slang (i.e. "My bad" and the like) which interrupts the flow of the novel, in my opinion, and smacked me in the head with it. Although I don't expect a bunch of "thee"s and "thou"s from the characters, Lidda's slang (not to mention Naull's pumping her fist and exclaiming "Yes!" when she was able to cast a particularly well-timed spell) was a little disconcerting. I removed one star from my review for this, as it really affected the whole feel of the novel.So, all in all a good start, with a few bumps, and I am really looking forward to "The Living Dead".

The Savage Caves by T.H. Lain is a quick and fun return to what gaming should be and can be. Lain does an excellent job of giving the reader a solid little story that has re-kindled my intrest in gaming. The characters (based on D & D 3rd's ICON Characters) are fleshed out and stay true to the character class they represent. Now I am not going to say that this new series is Dragonlance or The Forgotten Realms, its a little stripped down. But thats ok. This little novel is action packed and predictable, but its so FUN. The dialog is pretty funny and a bit hokey, but he only had 182 pages. Hopefully as the series continues, Lain will give us a little more seasoning and depth, but for now enjoy a quick fun read. Forget the grand morality plays, let Lain place a torch in your hand and a mace in the other. Explore the Savage Caves, and still be back in time for bed. A good start to a new book line. Looking forward to the Living Dead.