Rating: 
Summary: Fast moving and well written
Review: I like this book a lot. It was fast paced, and I found it hard to put down. The combat scenes were some of the best written I have seen in a long time. They were paced well, and very detailed at the same time.
I also enjoyed the characters. Flawed characters always add an element of realism to the story, and allow the reader to relate and feel the emotions and hardships of the characters.
I recommend giving this book a try, and I look forward to more from Strohm in the future.
Rating: 
Summary: Enjoyable fantasy with more than a touch of feeling
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. If nothing else, the author impressed me with his very acute portrayal of the emotional spirits of all his characters. Few are the books nowadays where all their characters are believable, distinct and sympathizable. The wonder it is that in TOMB OF HORRORS, Strohm makes every character real and with feeling. Even minor characters are given names and significance, giving them space to be real in the story.Strohm's protagonists are first-class representations of their stereotype - the agonized fallen paladin; the Legolas-like elf, the witty, pretty bard; the old, frisson-laden mage; the stately, stern cleric - let's just say that their personalities are not original, and yet Strohm breathes life into them. Each has different dimensions in their personalities, capable of opposite ends of emotions, just like real people. They speak like real people, and Strohm takes care to enter into the minds of each character when they are in focus. This authorial trait is oddly rare, even in some of the most popular fantasy writers of today. TOMB OF HORRORS, in other words, is not so much about the tomb, but really a novel of characters and characterization. Don't read this book thinking you are about to embark on a physical, action adventure. You should be reading this to follow the story of its lead character - whose fate, though predictable, is resolved with enough originality such that I kept wanting to turn the page to see how he gets through his spiritual predicament, and how he ultimately redeems himself, and of course saves the day... Yes, certainly there are a few loose ends by the end of the book, and one can see how the story can be lengthened. But this is all forgotten considering Strohm's spectacular conclusion which somehow avoids the worst clichés. I am impressed with the way he resolves the characters' plots. It would be fascinating to learn more about each of them, perhaps in a prequel, perhaps in a sequel.
Rating:
Summary: Great story... but needs more to fill me up.
Review: I'd actually give it about 4 1/2 stars, but that's not an option. Awesome book, though! Very easy read, and keeps you wanting to keep reading and reading to get thru it. I like the ending as well, but i feel a little bit like they're building up for a sequel. It needs more, and left some things unfinished and unanswered. I actually like the books "White Plume Mountain", "Descent Into The Depths", and "Queen Of The Demonweb" (all by Paul Kidd), but this one came in a very close 2nd to that series. I highly recommend getting a copy and checking it out yourself. :>
Rating:
Summary: Great story... but needs more to fill me up.
Review: I'd actually give it about 4 1/2 stars, but that's not an option. Awesome book, though! Very easy read, and keeps you wanting to keep reading and reading to get thru it. I like the ending as well, but i feel a little bit like they're building up for a sequel. It needs more, and left some things unfinished and unanswered. I actually like the books "White Plume Mountain", "Descent Into The Depths", and "Queen Of The Demonweb" (all by Paul Kidd), but this one came in a very close 2nd to that series. I highly recommend getting a copy and checking it out yourself. :>
Rating:
Summary: Don't Let the Source of the Story Fool You
Review: Just because it's based on a 25 year old D&D module, don't be put off. This is one of the best single volume fantasy books I've read. Good story. Great character development. I really enjoyed it. Put on the last part of the LOTR sound track (the battle in the woods) and read the battle with the Gargoyle. You'll get goosebumps. The only reason that I gave it four stars is that there is no sequel yet. We need to see more of the fallen Paladin, the Elven Ranger and the Half-Elf Bard. Read it. Unless you're really picky and expect all fantasy to be on Tolkien's level (and there's nothing wrong with that), you'll like it.
Rating: 
Summary: What a let down...
Review: Mr. Strohm must have a strong belief that "getting there is MORE than half the fun", because it wasn't until I'd slogged through the first tiresome 200 pages that we FINALLY came to the fondly remembered skull-faced stones on the hillside hiding Acerak's tomb. The journey there included some interesting introductions to the protagonists, including a fallen Paladin and his rogue ranger companion, a withered old wizard, a half-elven bard love interest with a chip on her shoulder, and a brash egotistical nobleman. However, the evil priest in pursuit of the heros was equally as irrelevant as the lizard men and frogmen encounters in the swamps. The last 120 pages felt very rushed, glossing through some of the best traps and tricks of the old AD&D module of the same name. More than once, the heros quickly discovered the solutions to the traps in a heartbeat, or worse, skipped over entire encounters at some points by making summary comments in flashbacks. And all for what? So that when we ultimately came to the tomb, Acerak played a MINOR supporting role in the encounter, getting swatted down like an annoying fly with a holy sword... CLEARLY, the author had NO faith in the material he had to work with to tell a compelling and exciting tale of its own, choosing instead to superimpose his own chaotic storyline which could have taken place in ANY dungeon environ. I picked up the book to read one of the greatest adventures of all time, and found it to be little more that a pale backdrop and window dressing behind a generic adventure. What a let down...
Rating: 
Summary: Pretty good - agree with the cut off for page count though
Review: No, it's not Tolkien or Weis & Hickman. It's a novel about one of the most challenging AD&D modules of all time. With that in mind, it's a pretty good read. Characters, while not fully three dimensional, have a history and dialog is good. This was very faithful to the original module and highly enjoyable for anyone that played it. The only real negative here has already been mentioned. It appears there was an attempt to keep page count down. That's a real shame since it glosses over a lot of the dungeon detail and ends a little abruptly. This could have easily gone another 150 pages and been a more fully developed adventure with more robust characters. If you're a fan of the old AD&D game, you'll like this. If you never played it, it's a little light for a good fantasy novel.
Rating:
Summary: Pretty good - agree with the cut off for page count though
Review: No, it's not Tolkien or Weis & Hickman. It's a novel about one of the most challenging AD&D modules of all time. With that in mind, it's a pretty good read. Characters, while not fully three dimensional, have a history and dialog is good. This was very faithful to the original module and highly enjoyable for anyone that played it. The only real negative here has already been mentioned. It appears there was an attempt to keep page count down. That's a real shame since it glosses over a lot of the dungeon detail and ends a little abruptly. This could have easily gone another 150 pages and been a more fully developed adventure with more robust characters. If you're a fan of the old AD&D game, you'll like this. If you never played it, it's a little light for a good fantasy novel.
Rating: 
Summary: if you picked it up, you should probably expect what you get
Review: ok...first, i really feel i need to justify why i read this in the first place. the cover caught my eye, and upon a cursory inspection, the characters seemed interesting and the pros definatly had potential. so here's what i found: the author has potential, but needs to keep writing. and i'd just like to say that i feel i kept the fact that he is the vice president of the pokemon product testing group out of my head when i evaluated this book. the characters don't seem to have any meat on them, and the plot is lacking. the dialog is good, reminiscent of an enjoyable screenplay, but this just isn't the book for anyone who isn't reading it because of a sense of nostalgia brought on by the old moduale it's based on. granted, i didn't pick it up expectig tolkien's sweep, martin's unpredictable realism, or jordan and goodkind's fluid prose and epic stories, but it definatly falls far short of D&D signiture author salvatore, or the much lauded team of weis and hickman. all in all, if you're up for a fantasy read, and the only books on the shelf are this one and something by ed greenwood, it's tomb of horrors all the way!
Rating:
Summary: A good story, but a little rushed
Review: Realistically, this book rates about 3.5 stars, better by far than Emerson's two Grayhawk books, not as good as Paul Kidd's trilogy. The two main characters, the elvish ranger and the fallen paladin, are among the most compelling in the Grayhawk books. Similar to Kidd's Justicar, they deserve to have their own stories written about them outside of the Grayhawk series. Well fleshed out. The rest of the supporting cast is also well-written, and the author allows them plenty of time to get aquainted and to interact, which is vital to make the characters interesting. Unfortunately, as other reviewer have already pointed out, this long lead time allows little time for the actual dungeon adventure, and even though I had never played that particular module, I could tell that lots of things were being left out. But I think that is a common problem in all these Grayhawk books: obviously a page limit (word count) was given and some authors handled it better than others. Keith Strohm rises to the challenge relatively well here, delivering a story with compelling characters in interesting circumstances. The ending feels a bit rushed, but was overall satisfying. I think there is big potential here for a sequel or two here, similar to the works of Paul Kidd. The fate of several foes and at least one companion remains unresolved at the end of the book, lending to its "rushed" feeling. But this is a good read, and former (and current) D&Ders and fantasy fans alike should enjoy its twists and turns. I highly recommend it.
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