Guild Wars 2 Novel: Ghosts of Ascalon

TLDR Version: A fairly entertaining by-the-numbers fantasy that is very effective in introducing the world of Guild Wars 2.

As a firm believer of "exposition through experience" when it comes to video games, I have been largly avoiding reading any video game novels. I would rather have that important lore is in the game rather than needing to go out and find the information elsewhere. Granted, it gives writers, publishers, and artists work, I still find it less than ideal.

Ghosts of Ascalon was recommended to me by a friend and seeing that I am jumping into Guild Wars 2 without having any knowledge whatsoever of the franchise, I decided to give it a go. At the very least, it will help me understand the world I will be playing in, and hopefully a better understanding of the different races.

I am happy to say that the book did meet my expectations and provided me with good entertainment for most of it.

I like how the authors didn't take a particular racial trait of one character and beat the reader's head with it. Characters are nicely defined and, more importantly, relatable. Sylvari are probably the race that is most different than what humans are, but Forbeck and Grubb bring's out the character of Killeen nicely and comes out as alien in a way we can understand and appreciate. In fact, all the characters in the book behave in ways that real people in our world can relate to. The band of characters do bond and grow as they march toward impossible odds. In the end, we get to care about the characters and what happens to them and that is what makes a novel good.

Lore exposition has been also nicely handled in the book. From the timeline provided at the beginning to the fireside conversations, the flow of the narrative is very natural and it is very effective in understanding the characters, what they are after, and what their world is like. And everything stays on track with no diverging tales of other heroes. Yes, Logan Thackaray's legend and importance were mentioned, but his character never overshadowed the book's protagonist.

The tone of the book was also mostly excellent. Despite the grim quest the characters are taking, as well as what the main character has gone through, the book never bludgeons the reader with it. The grim tones are nicely balanced with light hearted moments by characters that move forward rather than dwelling in their angst.  

My biggest problem with the book is actually in the last few. Everything near the end feels rather rushed. It's actually a good thing to want to book to go on for several more chapters, but the ending just felt too abrupt. Perhaps it was meant to be that way, but it was certainly out of place with the even pacing found in the rest of the book.

All in all, Ghosts of Ascalon is a remarkable book, even if it doesn't compare to the likes of the original Dragonlance series (though it probably wasn't meant to be). I would recommend it to those who like good fantasy tales. For those who play Guild Wars 2 and have yet to buy it, it is a nice way to ease into the game. I have no idea when the story happens in relation to the game though, but it would be cool to encounter these characters while questing in Tyria.