Warcraft. World of Warcraft. Tides of Darkness. World of Warcraft Worlds of Warcraft

Customer Reviews

Nice and enriching storyline

2008-09-28
For those whom are into Warcraft lore. This is one of the books for you.

It has an enriching storyline and once you've started it, you won't want to put it down. The words are simply enough to be understood and the flow of the story is just right.

What?!

2008-09-01
I liked this book, not the best in the series, and a long way from Richard Knaak's writing, but its decent. It's nice to relive the old memories if you used to play the game as a kid, too. But i have one problem with this Rosenberg fellow. Why is Doomhammer, supposedly a smart commander, so dumb?! When his orcs are unable to batter down the gates of Capital City, he doesn't tell the dragon to use its fire to burn them down, which would have granted him an easy victory. No, he sends it off. WHAT?! How could anyone be so stupid? And when Lothar needs to warn the elves of Silvermoon of the threat of the invading Horde, does he send a gryphon rider? No! maybe it's the author.... but, what the crap??? This book is enjoyable, but the lack of realistic-ness in such instances as those gets very annoying very quickly. Beware! If you're not a big fan of warcraft, but are interested in the series, go for the books by Richard A. Knaak.

I loved it

2008-05-17
This is a great book, it's great to be able to read about the heroes and rulers, and then go online and play in the world you were reading about, along with all the other Warcraft Novels, I strongly suggest getting this one.

A well crafted novelization of Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness

2007-12-25
I'm new to Rosenberg, but definitely not to the Warcraft world and it's lore. Rosenberg takes the story of the game, Warcraft II: Tides of Darkness and does a solid job of putting it into a gripping novel that serves as a solid refresher on events that happened years before the setting of World of Warcraft. It also gives you a glimpse into some of the characters that you'll find in the World of Warcraft and give you an idea why there are statues of some of them outside of Stormwind.
For timeline purposes, this book takes place right after the first war between the humans and orcs. It's best to be read after Christie Golden's Rise of the Horde which ends as the horde are starting their initial invasion into Azeroth, and also after Jeff Grubb's The Last Guardian which shows what happens on the human side during the first war. This will give introduce you to a few of the major characters on both sides of the war in Tides of Darkness.
If you're a fan of the Warcraft universe, you should enjoy this novelization of one of the major chapters in the World's history. If not, then chances are this book isn't going to be for you.

An "epic" translation of a saturday morning cartoon..

2007-11-25
While I concede that this book was probably written with 14 year olds in mind, the utter lack of original dialog and detail make this book undeserving of any recognition in the Warcraft canon. The protagonists exchange speeches reminiscent of conversations between He-Man and Skeletor, only without the obligatory commercial break to sell the toys. No this is a Christmas special, so its extra long and extra 'fun', and if you want to know what "really" happened when Doomhammer invaded Lordaeron you'll just have to put up with chapters of it. I didn't pick up the book expecting David Gemmell or Steven Erikson, but I did expect a glimpse into the Warcraft mythos that is typically unavailable through in game quests or source material. Blizz seems to be falling into the same trap TSR did during 2nd edition; allowing bad writing to represent their brand to the public.

True to the lore, right to the point

2007-10-02
After killing the corrupt Warchief Blackhand, Orgrim Doomhammer was quick to seize control over the Orcish Horde. Now he is determined to conquer the rest of Azeroth so that his people will once again have a home of their own in the...

WORLD OF WARCRAFT

Anduin Lothar, former Champion of Stormwind, has left his shattered homeland behind and led his people across the Great Sea to the shores of Lordaeron. There, with the aid of the noble King Terenas, he forges a mighty Alliance with the other human nations. But even that may not be enough to stop the Horde's merciless onslaught.

Elves, dwarves, and trolls enter the fray as the two emerging factions vie for dominance. Will the valiant Alliance prevail, or will the Horde's tide of darkness consume the last vestiges of freedom on Azeroth?

Very disappointing 2007-10-01
I picked up this book with great hopes. For those who are a fan of the online game, or the rpg game, or the card game (yes there are so many!), you should realize that there is a funny, adult sense of humor that pervades everything.

With this novel, I was left with the impression that it was written for 5th-6th graders. There were many opportunities to flesh out the characters that went unrealized, but more importantly, it seemed that the author had a list of things he needed to include in the book and he checked them off one by one.

It felt that the author was relating the "lore" of warcraft not by creating it, but by instead paraphrasing other material. I realize that yea, someone else is in charge of the property, and all that, but this book does not stand on its own and you can really see where it falls apart.

I think the people writing the warcraft novels need to keep in mind their target demographic is not < 13 years of age. If it is, please put this and the next ones in the early reader section so at least your adult fans of warcraft will know what they are getting.

Aaron Rosenberg - Please read! 2007-09-15
I have a point I want to get to, but let me begin by saying that this is an exciting and very well written novel. To be honest, I couldn't put it down. I recommend it not only to the WoW faithful, but also to anyone who enjoys a good fantasy read.

As you see from the title of this review, I'm hoping that Aaron Rosenberg, the book's author, reads this review. Forgive me for addressing him directly.

Mr. Rosenberg - it is clear from this book that you have within you the ability to write a substantial, fully developed, fantasy novel or series. But as I look over the titles you've written, I see that you've mostly confined yourself to books based on role-playing or computer games. I also see that you've written several books for kids. Money in the bank!

Have you considered writing for a more adult audience? Something based on a world or universe of your own creation? With full character development and deeper plot lines? I think such a work from you would be an outstanding read. And I have little doubt that it would be a bestseller among the intended audience.

Back to the book at hand. A worthy read. But, Mr. Rosenberg, you know you can do better.