The Queen of Stone

Eberron: Thorn of Breland, Book 1

By: Keith Baker

Narrated by: Bernadette Dunne

In the land of monsters, you'll want her by your side. Nyrielle Tam - better known by her code name, Thorn - is a Dark Lantern sent undercover to a summit in the monstrous kingdom of Droaam. The beasts of Droaam have organized and want recognition from the kingdoms of Khorvaire. Breland attends to gauge its neighbors' reaction to the new state's demands of equality... and to take the opportunity to recover something long ago stolen by the mysterious Sheshka, Queen of the Medusas. It's up to Thorn to accomplish both, while keeping her King and Country out of war. The creator of the world of Eberron returns with a series that shows off Eberron's cross-genre capabilities - all the smarts and action of a spy thriller, with the magic and depth of world only fantasy can create. There's something here for every fan!

©2008 Wizards of the Coast LLC (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

A good story

In Ebarron, things are a bit different. These are not the characterizations that we all expect from reading the ecologies in the monster manuals. The author really brings the diverse characters in the story alive in ways that are unexpected and unique whatever their ‘monster type’ may happen to be.

Keith Baker is a fine storyteller, Well worth a listen.

Intrigue and more monsters

Overall I enjoyed the story. I might have been hampered by the time it took me to finish this one, but some of the twists just didn't feel like they fit, almost as if they were just there to get the protagonist out of something she was in over her head with. I'm starting to get Baker's "grotesque monsters are people too" theme, attributing selfless motivations and even dare I say love to them; something I've noted quite prevalent and unique to Eberron.The author showing what he really wants to of his official D&D setting beyond the geography.

great story set in eberron

Great story, the characters keep you locked in just to see what's next. The narrator's voice really does the books characters justice, she brought the story to life.

Fun action and intrigue-packed story

An imaginative mystery-adventure in the brilliant and robust setting of Eberron. I normally don't like assassin type characters but Thorn has some interesting facets to her and the supporting characters feel multidimensional as well. Offers a thoughtful view into the workings and culture of Droaam, the nation of monsters, creating for scenes like hydras fighting werebear trolls in forests of petrified armies. Keith improved greatly as a writer between this and the Dreaming Dark series.

Baker is awesome

Baker's creation, Eberron, has quickly become my favorite world for both gaming and stories. Did not at all see the end of this one coming.

Thorn seeks Talon

Thoroughly enjoyed learning about Droaam. The Sisters are absolutely terrifying. This seemed much better written than the Dreaming Dark trilogy. Looking forward to the next book.

Good, but not as good as The Dreaming Dark

Title says it all. It was very enjoyable, and it's been great inspiration for my Ebberon campaign. But I still liked The Dreaming Dark more.

A Solid Eberron Book with Interesting Characters

I enjoy books set in the D&D or Ebarron worlds as long as they are well-written. It's not just the world that I like - the story and characters have to be engaging as well. I want a well-crafted story. Baker really built the world of Eberron, so he does a good job of fleshing it out on the written page, and this novel is pretty solid for what it is. It does start kind of chaotically, and the beginning was a little hard to follow. However, it does settle into a cohesive story that kept me interested. Like a lot of these genre books, it does try to cram a little too many elements into one story. But there is a good level of consistency that brought the book around to a satisfying conclusion in the end.