Book Review: Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: The Road to Neverwinter by Jaleigh Johnson

Hey all, Sam here.

All right, everyone. I had to change up my schedule for posting for today…because we just got back from an early screening of the “Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves” film and I just want to talk about it…….but since the movie isn’t technically out in theaters in the US until the end of this month, I’m going to talk about the prequels instead. Today is one of the prequel novels, and then I have one other novel and the prequel comic to talk about…so I’ll try and see where I can put those into my schedule.

Oh, also, go see the movie when it comes out. It honestly was incredible. We were at a sold out screening, and everyone in the room seemed to enjoy it. We all laughed and cheered and made exclamations at the same time, including a couple different moments of applause (one of which was when the film ended and the credits began), and this is one of the best after-movie experiences I’ve ever been a part of. So many of us were wishing the movie would have been longer, and more than a few people joked about us all gathering the party (AKA all of us) back again in two weeks for our next session (AKA a rewatch of the film).

All right…that’s about all you’re going to get from me as a movie review, but let’s just go ahead and jump into the book review.

Discover the thrilling origin stories of the bard Edgin, the barbarian Holga, and their whole adventuring party in this official prequel to Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves.
 
Edgin Darvis’ life is a mess. All that he has left are his lute, his dashing good looks, and…not much else. After a chance encounter with badass bruiser Holga, Edgin is forced to take a hard look at his bad choices. But the road to redemption is long, and paved with unforeseen expenses. Fortunately, the world is full of rich fools begging to be parted from their money.
 
And so Edgin and Holga do what any sensible entrepreneurs would do—they form a crew.
 
Joined by a charming rogue, Forge Fitzwilliam, and Simon, a sorcerer with an intense inferiority complex, the team sets out to line their pockets with both well-earned and ill-gotten gold. Together, Edgin’s crew battles monsters across the realms: gnoll raiders, fey witches, and more fall beneath their sharp weapons and sharper wit. But when they encounter a new, more sophisticated villain, keen blades and piercing blue eyes may not be enough.
 
Their target? Torlinn Shrake, a wealthy eccentric known for abusing his servants and hosting lavish parties.
 
The plan? Play dress-up, sneak into the Shrake estate, and fill their pockets with as much loot as they can carry.
 
The catch? Shrake is hiding a terrible secret: one that could endanger the lives of everyone Edgin has come to care for—even if the loot is too good to pass up.

My Thoughts

Rating: 5 stars

I guess I should start by saying that you don’t have to read the books or the comic before going to see the movie. You aren’t missing out on anything necessary by just going into the film. BUT, I will say that these books add so much more context to everything. It deepens the emotions and connections to the story and the characters.

Okay, so this book follows Edgin, Holga, Simon, Forge, and Edgin’s daughter Kira. We get a nice glimpse of the fact that, at least when it comes to Edgin and Holga, they’ve been acquainted for basically ten years at this point, so they’re familiar with each other.

We also get a good look at how Edgin and Holga work together and bring the group together, by working with roguish Forge and magical Simon. They, with Kira, actually make a pretty decent team, and we definitely get a sense of their camaraderie with this.

And for those who are fans of classic D&D monsters, there are more than a few in here (and I won’t spoil anything by naming any specific creatures), and more than a few in the movie as well. It is clear to me that the characters and the story are written by someone who understands the game setup, especially class features that are important to the heart of the game so many of us sit around tables and play for hours and hours.

There is humor and shenanigans and planning (and plans going awry) and action and magic and friendship and loot….basically everything you’d expect from the game…but not written as if there is an in game and out of game element. This is fully written as a fantasy novel in a fantasy world, but you can see the nods to game elements, and that makes it read so quickly.

I devoured this book, so eager to follow this band of thieves as they try to fill their pockets and just maybe do a little bit of good in the process. I so loved this group, and how they definitely fit as a found family, and they help each other grow and shore up each other’s weak points. It was just a joy to experience.

Sure, some character types are archetypal or stereotypical, but that is part of the fun of stories like this. We get to see some character or story that might be predictable, but the pieces are arranged in such a way that it seems fresh and fun, and we still have a good time with it. At least, I had a really good time with it.

Honestly, it felt over a bit too soon. This book is only 288 pages long. I wanted more…so I guess it’s a good thing that this is just a prequel to a movie, so we do get more.

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I could just gush and gush about these books and the movie, but I’m going to go ahead and stop now. That is all from me for today. Thank you so much for stopping by, and I’ll be back soon with more geeky content.