» Advertisement «

THE CITY OF TOWERS REVIEWED
Edited by Joshua Rowan
December 21, 2005

FINAL VERDICT: B+

Book Title: The City of Towers, The Dreaming Dark Book I, Eberron Campaign

Author: Keith Baker

Size: 378 Total Pages (Story: 325; Appendix: 22; Glossary: 31)

Timeline: Dravago 22 (late spring) thru Nym 2 (early summer) 996 YK - 2 years after the Last War ends.

Primary Location: City of Sharn (Nation of Breland, Continent of Khorvaire)

Background: The Last War is now over after the destruction of an entire nation - Cyre - caused by what is only described as The Mourning, an event that transformed nearly everything in its path into terrible creatures. Out of this horror comes four heroes. Although we are introduced to all four of them in the war itself, it isn't until the aftermath and their arrival in Sharn, also known as the City of Towers, that the story really begins. It is within the boundaries of Sharn that the vast majority of this particular tale takes place.

Synopsis: As the original creator of the entire Eberron Campaign for Dungeons & Dragons, there is no better expert on the subject than Keith Baker, who makes his debut as a novelist with The City of Towers. Because this is one of the first novels based on Eberron to be published, it also serves as essentially an introductory history lesson about Baker's world since many people may not have already grabbed the definitive Eberron Campaign Source Book quite yet. If nothing else, The City of Towers provides extensive descriptions about the city of Sharn and shares many of the unique features about Eberron's race populations, magic & technology, religious mythologies, and political motivations that you won't find in any other D&D universe.

However, at the core of this novel you will find a story that is much more about the characters than the world they live in. Although there are many colorful and well-described people that fill the pages, Baker really only focuses on four of them - Daine (Human Fighter), previously a Captain in the Cyre Army who has a mysterious past; Lady Lei d'Cannith (Human Artificer), a troubled young woman struggling with the politics of her infamous family; Pierce (Warforged Ranger), a construct created specifically for war and who now no longer has a cause; and Jode (Halfling Cleric), a dragonmarked healer who serves as Daine's best friend and confidant. Set up in the style of a traditional D&D adventure, we follow these four from their original involvement in the destruction of Cyre to their arrival in Sharn and how they learn to cope with being refugees in a city that could just as well do without them.

As with any good D&D Dungeon Master storyteller, Baker spends plenty of time sending them into dangerous environments, he makes sure that there is no shortage of confrontations for them to deal with, and he keeps the pace non-stop and exciting with every single encounter. As with most D&D adventures, the main focus of the story centers on the quartet's need to make some money - at one point, Daine even has to sell his grandfather's sword just to have enough coin for them to stay in an inn. This then leads to them taking on a dangerous mission from an old friend that inolves tracking down some stolen dragonshards (minerals with unique magical powers). There are also several "mini-quests" along the way that helps us get to know each of the characters separately a bit more. And in the end, the entire purpose is to get you, the reader, to really get to know and care about every one of these people and to leave you wanting more - which is an obvious indicator at the quality of what you've been reading. And Baker succeeds. By the time the story finally comes to close, you are immediately left wishing that BOOK II was already out so that you can continue the story and find out what happens next….

Conclusion: While Baker does fall back on the trappings of formulaic fantasy writing at times to tell his story, he also does it in a manner that keeps you turning the pages (cliffhangers at the end of each chapter, unique primary and secondary characters that stand out, plots that provide extensive twists and turns and constantly keep you guessing). You might think that a book which also serves as a teaching aid might get dry at times, but I never found that to be the case. He incorporates the lessons about Eberron into the novel so well that it isn't until later that you even realize he's been spoon-feeding you specific details about his world rather than simply writing a story. The bottom line result of this is that The City of Towers easily becomes an essential tool for anyone wanting to learn more about Eberron AND for those that just want to enjoy a well-told fantasy story about characters that feel real and that you hope to see a lot more of in the future. Not every new novelist can pull this off, and oftentimes you may find yourself reading these genre-specific books more because you feel you have to rather than because you want to. That won't be the case here though and I highly recommend that everyone take the time to hunt down this one at your local bookstore or library and check it out.