The Tomb of Horrors

Dungeons & Dragons: Greyhawk, Book 6

By: Keith Francis Strohm

Narrated by: Bernard Setaro Clark

Length: 10 hrs and 16 mins

Publisher's Summary

Kaerion Whitehart was once a mighty paladin, but sins of the past have cast him far from the light. Together with an elf mercenary, he now survives by the might of his sword alone.

In exchange for a hefty purse, the two friends agree to accompany a band of patriots into a tomb haunted by fear and legend. They soon find the mission growing beyond their control. As warring factions vie for the ultimate prize of a long-dead wizard, Kaerion finds himself caught between death and redemption.

The Tomb of Horrors is the latest title in the Greyhawk Classics series, a set of novels that revisits the most popular adventures of the original Dungeons & Dragons game.

©2002 Wizards of the Coast LLC (P)2013 Audible, Inc.

I’ve not read much fantasy fiction

Any additional comments?

Not being acquainted with fantasy fiction, other than J. R. R. Tolkien’s masterful works Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit, I wouldn't know where to start. So picking something set in the World of Greyhawk that’s based on one of the greatest Dungeons & Dragons modules of all time seemed a good place to start.

I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook. My only criticism is it took a little long to establish the plot, taking away from time in the tomb, and it seemed to end abruptly. Although, if you think about it, that’s not much different from typical D&D campaign.

okay but kind of lame

I like the Justicar books but other than that this series was entirely pointless because this was not a series other than the justicar books it was more or less six different books that they just put together and called a series there's no overarching themes no connections to any of the other books except the Justicar books and there's no satisfying conclusion to the series because it was not a series

A great listen.

It was wonderful to hear a classic D&D adventure. I look forward to hearing more.

Is the Tomb of Horrors in this book?

Obviously, it is. But, the book is basically broken up into three parts and the characters enter the Tomb in the last third of the book.
The characters are meh at best. I didn't care if any of them lived or died honestly. they were flat, except for the Paladin. he does have a good, although very predictable, pay off at the end. But I still didn't care if he lived or died. No one else has a backstory and they are all flat NPC's. So what could possibly take up the first two thirds of the book? this:
PALADIN: boo hoo im a bad person and no one will understand why so i wont say anything (gets drunk alot)
BAD GUYS: we will rule the world
GOOD GUYS: we must get the riches for our kingdom salvation
BULLYWUGS: um..."San Dimas High School football rules.” (yes bullywugs are a major part of Tomb of Horros...bullywugs)

Great Performance and Good Story!

Like most of the Greyhawk classic books the story was good, but this one didn't have an epilogue. And Bernard Clark did a great job in narration once again.

Best Greyhawk story thus far...

Tomb of Horrors was a great story about a group that enters the Tomb. the story takes you through all the memorable rooms in the dungeon if you had ever gone through the adventure while playing D&D. There was a very cool twist at the end for the main character, completing the story arch that carried him through the story. I really liked this story.

deus ex machina

Good, but kind of ruined at the end by one of the oldest of literary sins.

if you play d&d do not get this book

first part up to act 3 it is not bad 3.75 stars. then it gets into the tomb and goes down hill fast. the writer obviously did not know the adventure. he for sure never played the game. he jumps around forgetting things and rushing by everything. it is a Mad dash to the end. it is as if he wanted to write a book and someone made him do it over this adventure. when he gets to the good part he is done writing and wants to quit. it is bad!!!

Better then I thought

I think the the narrator should do all the dungeons and dragons book. Overall I found they book good. i don't want to give away much, but definitely worth a listen!

Good, not great.. few spoilers..

The performance was really good. The narration is clear and concise with enough emphasis and inflection to intone emotion without feeling overwrought.
The writing, however, could be overwrought at times. I appreciate that the author took the time to develop character, but I would have appreciated it even more if the story had involved Acererak as a major antagonist. It seems half the book is used building context for the dungeon crawl and I found myself at times wondering when it would finally get to the famous material.
Acererak and the Tomb itself could have taken more central role and more page count. But, they seem simply bolted on as setting for a redemption story.
If Wizards was worried about spoilers for the famous module, there were very few. But the book does do a great job of evoking the Tomb for nostalgia seekers like me.
I can’t help but think that the book could have been another 100 pages, had a few more spoilers and been a more satisfying experience.

Slow to start but a faithful rendition of classic tomb

The book flows slowly to begin with. Character building took far too long hence the 4 stars. Once the tomb proper is found it is a faithful leap into the classic d&d dungeon. The encounters in the tomb are adequately portrayed and the action towards the end well described creating an emotional and exhilarating climax to the tale. Worth a listen to anyone nostalgic or interested enough into the makings of D&Ds most infamous dungeon crawl adventure.