Rating: Summary: If you know Rokugan, you'll probably enjoy this book! Review: If you are not familiar with the world of Rokugan through AEG/WotC games, subtract a star from the review for a 3 out of 5. I'm an avid player of Clan War, AEG's miniatures wargame set in the same world, and the prior knowledge that I have about the characters, events, and other Rokugan-specific elements greatly enhanced my enjoyment of the book.Author Stephen Sullivan had a great deal to accomplish in 312 quick-reading pages - a great deal happens in this book. When this combination happens, the writer needs to make hard decisions; certain characters and certain events have to be covered in less detail than perhaps they deserve. This book could have blown up to 600 pages easily; Sullivan did quite well under the circumstances. I'm still struggling with one aspect of the book. Characters - especially the main characters - often do things that seem out of character. While this could be the result of compacting 600 pages to 312 or a product of poor writing, I'm more inclined to think that these actions are very intentionally out of character and serve to fuel one of the major themes of the story. It's a tough call. Those who give the book a poor review will probably point to poor characterizations, uneven pacing, and the feeling that the world of Rokugan (especially things like Magic and culture) has been poorly revealed. I can certainly understand that. For me, the book was a quick read, with interesting characters, plenty of action, set in a world that I already know fairly well. There was enough good stuff here, that I will go on to The Unicorn by A.L. Lassieur. As a side note, I've seen several versions of the story told in this book either on the web or in AEG/WotC products. The differences in the versions have always been attributed to "that is the <insert Clan here> version of events." Even though the book's title is The Scorpion , the book didn't read like "The Scorpion's version"; it reads like it is supposed to be the "actual" story.
Rating: Summary: Gripping suspense and bloody swords! Review: Let's just say that this is one of the most interesting books i've read. It's very well written, with a lot of vivid and sometimes bloody and disgusting detail(just like the best samurai stories). All characters are very well described and they just come alive! It's better than any movie! I swear to god, this book make made me cheer for a few characters more than "Gladiator"(the movie with Russel Crowe) made me cheer for Maximus. This book is fiction and there is some magic stuff in it, like spells, and that usually pushes me away, but fantasy and sword clinging is blended very well together, and with all my love for realism i couldn't put the book down. Again: easy, gripping, intersting read, the book sucks you right in. I would recommend it to anyone, who likes ruthless samurai and spell casting. I hoped i helped you with this review.
Rating: Summary: Scorpion clan sets a puzzle to a very good storyline! Review: Must read to understand the first main plot in Clan War Series. I would say this book is very easy to read even being a non native in English language I had no trouble to get all details. I'm a dragonlance fan and the author in this Debuting Lot5R book give us the same spark in imagination field and in the development of the character...Shoju is a good add to any campaing in rpg too. Have fun!
Rating: Summary: Scorpion clan sets a puzzle to a very good storyline! Review: Must read to understand the first main plot in Clan War Series. I would say this book is very easy to read even being a non native in English language I had no trouble to get all details. I?m a dragonlance fan and the author in this Debuting Lot5R book give us the same spark in imagination field and in the development of the character...Shoju is a good add to any campaing in rpg too. Have fun!
Rating: Summary: L5R rules Review: ok I used to be huge into the card game and rpg but i haven't played them in about 3 years now :( nobody plays anymore but the game was awesome much better then magic because the players made the story thorugh tournaments well this book tells the story of the scorpion clan coup probably one of the most interesting stories in the game which basically started the storyline for the card game up until gold edition
Rating: Summary: Samurai, Ninja, Mysterious quests: Fantastic Story Review: Stephen Sullivan has a unique writing stlye that captures the readers mind with an explosion of action and cunning twists. Having a storyline with this much potential really lets his creative writing style take off. The way he writes leaves you hanging in suspense, wanting more and more. I have read nearly all of the books in the clan war series, and I find that the books he wrote are not only the most interesting, but better than all of the other books also.
Rating: Summary: Pleasant surprise! Review: The only TSR series I am familiar with is the Dragonlance series, a great run of books but a series that has more poor entry's than good ones. I thought that this book, the first in the 'Legends of the 5 Rings' would be a weakly written money grab. Instead, it's a deep and fantastically written novel that opens up a beautiful new world for the reader. The first book, 'Scorpion' does a great job of painting this new world. The series is pure fantasy, but with a more asian influence which is greatly appreciated. Noble samurai, stalking ninja and dejected ronin all share space with dragons and magic, and it's a refreshing change from the more western influenced fantasy that populates most of the bookshelves. Great characters also prop up the story. What was appealing about the book was that there were no one-dimensional 'good' or 'evil' characters, just men and women who had their own perspectives. This poses an intriguing problem for the reader, as the fun of cheering the hero and booing the villain becomes an ambiguous task. It all depends on whose motivations you agree with most, and this vague morality made the story all the more enjoyable. Definately a great read, and at 300 pages proves a slim, quick read that'll introduce you to a bold new world. Highly recomended.
Rating: Summary: A Superb novel Review: The Scorpion is a novel that seemed to go past the expectations that I had for it. As mahy reviewers may say, the novel is a retelling of on of the more famous stories within the Legend of the Five Rings game. While I have heard it many times before, I found the novel to be interesting, adding new insight to the characters. Also, unlike the Magic novels, The Scorpion seemed to have interesting things added into it, and wouldn't require a fan tocompletely enjoy it.
Rating: Summary: Great Review: This book is a great start to a great series. I've read the first four books and I eagerly await delivery of the next three. If you like Japanese or oriental cultures you have to read this fantasy. This book kept me in suspense from the first page to the last. I couldn't put it down. I read the whole book in one day and I've reread it three times since. An absolutely awesome performance from a great company.
Rating: Summary: The Scorpion Legend of the five rings Review: This book so far is the best book I ever read in my whol intire life there is a lot of action and the aouther did a great job writeing this book and he is very detiled.This is a very good book to buy.
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