Forged

Rating:
Summary: Flawed but a decent read
Review: I tend to like novels set in RPG settings, because they give a good idea of what the world or setting is really like. RPG rule or setting books can be somewhat dry, almost textbook like.

So I was actually looking forward to Forged, the first novel set in the Oathbound setting from Bastion Press. I like Oathbound, which actually did a good job of conveying the atmosphere of the setting, but it's a bit on the alien side, with lots of strange races, two suns, slightly altered perceptions. So a novel would go a long way to getting a feel of the world. Or so I had hoped.

It starts off okay (well, the first part reads like a romance novel, actually, but not for long). The main character is suddenly taken from his homeworld in an awkward moment (he's either the bodyguard to the queen, or the head of her army, and was sleeping with her), and enters the world of Oathbound, the Forge. So the begining was what I had hoped - seeing the Forge through the eyes of a newly arrived person.

The trouble is, there really isn't much to the novel. Right after he enters the Forge, he meets a friendly dog person (a "Dover", the race is called), then they get captured by the main bad guy of Penance. He spends most of the novel (say 85%) as a captive. He also doesn't do much while he's captive.

So, this novel is a bit of a disappointment as an introduction to the world of Oathbound - very little of the setting is visited - some underground ruins, slave pits, a gladiatorial arena, then main bad guy's palace.

A James Bond novel it's not (though like James Bond, the hero does seem to be a bit of a womanizer), there's really no exotic locations or all that much in the way of action scenes. There are a few fights. But I would have liked a lot more sight-seeing, so to speak.

Usually when a book doesn't focus on a plot or mystery, or sight-seeing, it focuses on characterization. But character development in this could be a lot better. The main character is a Dudley Do-Right sort, and about as bright (which goes a long way in making him likeable, actually, otherwise he would be too perfect). The dog person doesn't seem to have much of a personality, other than always wanting to help (which is perhaps dog-like, but seems a bit contrived, especially how he carries a cask of liquor around his neck. Joke! He really doesn't carry one.). The same could be said for the main character's romantic interest. The villains in the novel are also fairly one dimensional, and without much charm.

The most interesting characer is probably Jezindi, a seeress, but she only plays a tiny role until the very last part of the novel.

Really, for all characters, we never see more than a superifical look into their history or personality. One of the characters says "I'm good for more than a roll between the sheets." But you would never really know that, from reading the book. Because that's pretty much all she does for much of the book.

Still in all, it's not a bad novel. For all it's faults, it's an enjoyable read. While I wasn't glued to it for 12 hours straight like the last Harry Potter novel, it did only take me 3 sittings to read, which is a pretty good.