Dragon Age: Hard in Hightown
Product ID: 70521642
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desertcart.com: Dragon Age: Hard in Hightown: 9781506704043: Tethras, Varric, Kirby, Mary, Various: Books Review: Very nice novella. - Very nice read. It made me want to replay Dragon Age 2 so much. A very good sub story within the grander story of the Dragon Age verse. was kind of short but was still a very good read. I would recommend getting it on sale if you are not a fan of or haven't invested in any of the Dragon Age series of games. A nice, short detective story within a beautiful fantasy universe. It was worth the price. Review: Expensive for the small amount of content, but I loved the story - I enjoyed this book but I do have a few critiques. Firstly, the price is a bit steep for a 72-page story. I was expecting a full-length novel for the cost of this book, but it is actually a short story. It's not broken up into chapters or anything. At least it's a good story. There are some typing errors (quotation marks where none should be, and missing quotation marks where they should exist in the dialogue) but nothing major. The book is fully illustrated and the art is beautiful. There's a picture almost on every other page. (Of course, that means the book is more like 30-some pages and not 72.) But the characters don't look the same every time so I don't understand what that's about. There's a noblewoman who is central to the story, and in two pictures she is seen with short-cropped black hair, one at the beginning of the book and one at the end. But there's another page in the middle of the story where she has long, flowing hair and it's not shaded in. It doesn't make sense... So there are some editing errors in both the text and the artwork. But I was also expecting the book to feature the cast of Dragon Age II. A few of the characters are there, with changed names. For example, Fenris has become "Ferris" and is a bartender at the Hanged Man. Isabela is pretty much unchanged, and is called "Belladonna." Merill is in the alienage and Aveline is the captain of the guard, each also using an alias. If any of the other characters are there, however, I can't tell it. I'm not sure who the main character is even supposed to be, but the plot is about a man about to retire from the guard but first he wants to solve one final murder. So the story is a whodunit murder mystery. I liked the story but it was a bit predictable. A nobleman with an impressive collection of weapons tries to buy the very sword that slayed Andraste. But before he either pays for the acquisition or has it in his hands, he is found murdered. The retiree becomes a detective, trying to figure out who killed the nobleman and why. His trail leads him to Isabela's ship, where she tells him she procured the sword but never got paid before the man was murdered. And he isn't the last to die. I love a good murder mystery, but like I said, it's made pretty obvious early on who the culprit is. And the book concludes rather abruptly with little climax. What I really enjoyed about the story was the setting. I thought I knew Kirkwall, but the book talks about corners you don't actually get to explore in the game. For example, although we visit the elven alienage in Dragon Age II, the book also discusses a dwarven enclave and a foreign quarter where Orlesians and Antivans live. I found those sorts of details fascinating. And the book was well-written and descriptive, just as you might imagine Varric would write. There's even one point where he's struggling to find a way to elegantly describe Belladonna's ship and just gives up: The Dragon's Jewels was a big boat. The largest boat in the harbor. A carved figurehead of a woman painted in vivid colors and making a remarkably lewd gesture drew the eye past the more sedate merchant vessels. The pointy bits towered majestically over the water. The roundish wooden part seemed like it could crush armadas beneath its...s**t, I don't know, wood. It was the greatest boat in the history of boats. If you loved Dragon Age II, I think you'll enjoy this book a lot. If you haven't played the game, it will make you want to. There are a few nitpicky things but as a whole I thought the story was fun and I would read this again, even knowing whodunit in the end.
| Best Sellers Rank | #1,643,428 in Books ( See Top 100 in Books ) #3,681 in TV, Movie & Game Tie-In Fiction #13,632 in Sword & Sorcery Fantasy (Books) #24,124 in Fantasy Action & Adventure |
| Customer Reviews | 4.7 4.7 out of 5 stars (635) |
| Dimensions | 6.18 x 0.47 x 9.29 inches |
| Edition | Illustrated |
| ISBN-10 | 1506704042 |
| ISBN-13 | 978-1506704043 |
| Item Weight | 10.8 ounces |
| Language | English |
| Print length | 72 pages |
| Publication date | July 31, 2018 |
| Publisher | Dark Horse Books |
B**W
Very nice novella.
Very nice read. It made me want to replay Dragon Age 2 so much. A very good sub story within the grander story of the Dragon Age verse. was kind of short but was still a very good read. I would recommend getting it on sale if you are not a fan of or haven't invested in any of the Dragon Age series of games. A nice, short detective story within a beautiful fantasy universe. It was worth the price.
E**A
Expensive for the small amount of content, but I loved the story
I enjoyed this book but I do have a few critiques. Firstly, the price is a bit steep for a 72-page story. I was expecting a full-length novel for the cost of this book, but it is actually a short story. It's not broken up into chapters or anything. At least it's a good story. There are some typing errors (quotation marks where none should be, and missing quotation marks where they should exist in the dialogue) but nothing major. The book is fully illustrated and the art is beautiful. There's a picture almost on every other page. (Of course, that means the book is more like 30-some pages and not 72.) But the characters don't look the same every time so I don't understand what that's about. There's a noblewoman who is central to the story, and in two pictures she is seen with short-cropped black hair, one at the beginning of the book and one at the end. But there's another page in the middle of the story where she has long, flowing hair and it's not shaded in. It doesn't make sense... So there are some editing errors in both the text and the artwork. But I was also expecting the book to feature the cast of Dragon Age II. A few of the characters are there, with changed names. For example, Fenris has become "Ferris" and is a bartender at the Hanged Man. Isabela is pretty much unchanged, and is called "Belladonna." Merill is in the alienage and Aveline is the captain of the guard, each also using an alias. If any of the other characters are there, however, I can't tell it. I'm not sure who the main character is even supposed to be, but the plot is about a man about to retire from the guard but first he wants to solve one final murder. So the story is a whodunit murder mystery. I liked the story but it was a bit predictable. A nobleman with an impressive collection of weapons tries to buy the very sword that slayed Andraste. But before he either pays for the acquisition or has it in his hands, he is found murdered. The retiree becomes a detective, trying to figure out who killed the nobleman and why. His trail leads him to Isabela's ship, where she tells him she procured the sword but never got paid before the man was murdered. And he isn't the last to die. I love a good murder mystery, but like I said, it's made pretty obvious early on who the culprit is. And the book concludes rather abruptly with little climax. What I really enjoyed about the story was the setting. I thought I knew Kirkwall, but the book talks about corners you don't actually get to explore in the game. For example, although we visit the elven alienage in Dragon Age II, the book also discusses a dwarven enclave and a foreign quarter where Orlesians and Antivans live. I found those sorts of details fascinating. And the book was well-written and descriptive, just as you might imagine Varric would write. There's even one point where he's struggling to find a way to elegantly describe Belladonna's ship and just gives up: The Dragon's Jewels was a big boat. The largest boat in the harbor. A carved figurehead of a woman painted in vivid colors and making a remarkably lewd gesture drew the eye past the more sedate merchant vessels. The pointy bits towered majestically over the water. The roundish wooden part seemed like it could crush armadas beneath its...s**t, I don't know, wood. It was the greatest boat in the history of boats. If you loved Dragon Age II, I think you'll enjoy this book a lot. If you haven't played the game, it will make you want to. There are a few nitpicky things but as a whole I thought the story was fun and I would read this again, even knowing whodunit in the end.
J**J
Shorter than what I was expecting.
It's only 72 pages, which includes the 24 illustrations. It more or less expands the codex entries from the game. A friend shared a video of Brian Bloom reading an excerpt from the story; however, the book he's holding looks like it has triple the amount of pages. Rather deceiving. I loved how characters from Dragon Age 2 had "cameos" (one in particular had me laugh a little because no way that would happen knowing this character). It was an interesting read but I would have liked to have seen a larger story. There was so much potential that more could have been built on the plot or continued after the end.
B**B
Short but submersive
The cameos had me chuckling and the story was intriguing. It was shorter than I had anticipated but we can blame Aveline for that. Varric had promised Aveline just 3 more chapter and Donnic would be retiring because he was too old for this shit anyways. It was still a delight to read. For a Dragon Age fan it only enhances the submersion making you feel like a citizen of Kirkwall, reading the newest novella from everyone's favorite dwarf. It has left me to speculate though, which member of Hawke's little band of misfits is Donnen?
L**Z
It felt like being back in Kirkwall.
I’ve been a devotee of Messere Tethras for quite some time, but to be honest, this is the first of his books I’ve ever had the opportunity to read. What a delight! Action packed, beautifully illustrated, and full of mystery and mayhem from cover to cover. It left me in such high spirits, I immediately began planning a return visit to Kirkwall so I could once again see the book’s settings for myself. I do hope that Ms. Kirby persuades the author to collaborate with her again so that we might enjoy more of his genius in the future.
A**.
This is Varric's story and not a full-length novel like the other books in the Dragon Age series
This is Varric's story and not a full-length novel like the other books in the Dragon Age series. But it was fun and I was smiling the whole way through. The illustrations were wonderful. The nods to the DA2 characters were amazing. This is perfect for Dragon Age fans while we wait for the next game installment!
A**H
Thank you for writing Varric he is a great friend. and thank you for his novels.
Hope all is well after the unfair laid off. Nice book. Hope you make Hard in Hightown 2. Varric won’t be the same without you.
M**E
Immancabile per gli appassionati della saga, divertente al punto giusto e con illustrazioni bellissime... il maestro Tethras non si smentisce mai :)
D**Z
Simple pero muy disfrutable. Para fans de la saga.
V**T
Read this several times and it's always a good read, Varric is a favourite character of mine in the Dragon Age series for his stories
A**N
Lots of good stuff in here. Pretty much everyone makes an appearance -- in the best way possible. The only way this could be better is if it were longer. Thanks for the terrific read
A**O
El libro en sí me encanta, es una lectura genial y viene con unas ilustraciones fantásticas, pero me enviaron un ejemplar donde los bordes de las páginas estaban mal cortados.
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