Customer Reviews

Arena (Magic - The Gathering, No. 1)

5 star:		(67)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(5)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I was wary about reading a book based on a trading card game (even though I love MTG) because of the limits put on the author when much of the world they are writing about is already laid out. Maybe partly because of this trepedition, I found myself unable to put this book down, captivated by the story. Its a damn good book where I didn't really expect to find one. A plesant surprise!

While its true that the occasional attempt to conform the book to the MTG game by casting some of the more popular spells from the game and by trying to explain the limitations and mana requirements of magic took away from the seriousness of the book, the core story is very well told. The plot, characters, landscapes, and action are top-notch and the reader is drawn in by tantalizing mysteries (The main character's true identity isn't revealed until very near the end of the book).

Having played Magic the Gathering (particularly the older editions) will enhance your enjoyment of this book because of some ambiguousness of some of the spells used. With knowledge of what a craw wurm is you'll have a better understanding of what is happening. I'd still say that anyone that hasn't played the game would enjoy this book anyway.

Forstchen was a great choice of author for the first of the MTG books. I look forward to reading more of them and more of his.

Strongly reccomended.

This is the first Magic The Gathering book, and hands down the best. It is the closest of all the books to the true "feel" of the card game, something that none of the last 20 Magic The Gathering books have even come close to. I liked this book so much I went on to read over 12 books by the same author, many of which are great and happen to be about niche markets that I love. *Wing Commander for example*. If you are a fan of Magic The Gathering, you MUST read this book above all others!

I have read this book so many times that the book has actually fallen apart. I just bought copy #2, and am just as enthused by the book as ever. It's definately within my top 5 books of all time, maybe even number 1. THIS IS A MUST READ

Ah yes, Magic the Gathering. The child of Richard Garfield, run through dark magic and incest by the terrifying and evil Wizards of the Coast. I still play Magic, but it will never be like the old days, before Wizards of the Coast became huge. This book was written during the old days, and I reread it every couple years to remind myself of how cool the CCG world was back then.

Arena tells us a story of Garth One-Eye, a mysterious fighter who can control the flow of mana, as he plays a game of cat and mouse (where he's the mouse) in a city ready to tear him apart. Anyone who has seen a Clint Eastwood film will get numerous rushes of recognition. The basic plot of the book follows A Fistful of Dollars, with Garth playing the ruling houses of the city against each other.

So it's a rehash of a familiar plot. Does that make it bad? No. For one thing, it's a familiar plot, but we have to admit it was an entertaining plot as well. And there are twists and turns in this story that go off on their own (albiet Magic the Gathering inspired) direction. But don't be surprised if you start imagining Garth with that Clint sharpness in his voice.

Why read this book? First of all, if you're a fan of the old Magic the Gathering editions, you have to read it, just so you can say you have. Second of all, even if you're not a fan of magic, while it will lose about 10% of its goodness, it's still a great read, easy to pick up and hard to put down.

Any complaints? Only a couple. One, the sequels (by a different author) follow completely different characters and while a couple from Arena appear in later books, the cameos don't quite do them justice. Another downside is that one of the characters, Kirlen, was a potential gold mine of development and plot that only barely gets used.

But I reccomend Arena, especially if it's as cheap as I think it is these days. Pick it up before your next airplane flight or bus ride. It will keep you thouroughly entertained. And it may even make you want to play Magic again.

I read this book when it first came out. And still to this day I remember it being a great read and I just recently purchased it again and re-lived the experience. This is one of my 10 ten favorite books.

The main question on your mind right now has got to be "But isn't this just using a name to sell books?"

And I can tell you no. They could have easily just slapped together some drivel, put the Magic logo on it with the card offer, and it would have sold probably just as well. While you may appreciate its connections to the card game, it's not necessary to enjoy the book. The author adds much to a, at the time, thin background to realize a whole city and a system of magic.

The story does seem to come down to the childish, but not too often, and not enough to distract me from the rest of the book. The best part is learning about the different schools of magic and the people that head them!

The worst of these, let's call them childish asides, is that they put in some PG-13 stuff in that takes up all of a page. During the rest of the book the only reference to it is the phrase "It meant nothing", which comes out more than once. Which is true of the story as well, it meant nothing. It's just added as an afterthought I'm sure, to tantalize the younger reader. As I said however, the main story grabbed me unrelentlessly in such a manner that I could overlook such things.

This is a stand-alone book and, as I understand, does not have any direct connection to the rest of the series (new or old).

First of all, let me state that I am a real person. I first read this book several years ago, and for the life of me, cannot remember where I picked it up. I liked it so much that I read it twice. Not back to back, but for me to read a book more than once definitely says something about the book; by contrast, I've only read the Lord of the Rings books once each.

Arena is fantastic. It is very evocative of the early days of magic, for those of us lucky enough to have been around during that time, and has held up amazingly well through time; even reading through it now (this will be my third reading), the book continues to be relevant to modern day Magic's tournament scene. This is no more evident than in this passage:

"The powers had perverted it all, changing it from at least an honorable profession into a selling to the highest bidder and the entertaining of the mob. No longer was there ay sense of sessan, the intricate set of codes and rules that had once bound those who could control the mana. The fighting for sessan, for the simple gaining of powers, honor, and face were gone. Increasingly it was for the kill and the lust of the kill."

Many cards that existed in the early days of Magic are mentioned throughout the book, and the story is peppered with references only a true Magic fan will get, though one does not need to know anything about the game in order to read and enjoy the story. It is one of intrigue; anything you could imagine you'd want from an enthralling story.

Pick up a copy and give it a read, you won't be sorry you did.

I'm a big fan of the Fighter-Mages and the Pit Fighters and this was an excellently-written novel that showed the best and worst of the Fighters. Any true fan would have to agree that this is perhaps the best of the early M:tG novels published as it has action, adventure, a little romance, a wonderful storyline, and just enough suspense to keep you reading long after you wanted to take that much-needed restroom break. I've read my copy so many times the pages are yellow and worn and the cover's creased. It's an excellent read. I've read most every book in the series save the newest and some of the older ones and I have yet to find one I liked as much. My brother feels the same and is the reason I bought my second copy and my stepfather, not even a fan of the card game, can't put the book down as it's now HIS turn to read it. Odessey gave only a fraction of the true Fighter spirit Arena delivers. Garth One-Eye would laugh in Kamahl's face and send the Barbarian back to the mountains in shame. :)

This book was one of the best M:TG books i have ever read! Clayton Emery is my other favorite! This book has a lot of action and spells! Trust me, I am a SERIOUS MAGIC THE GATHERING PLAYER!

This is definetly one of the best books i have ever read. Although i dont play M:tG anymore, i first read it when i was seriously obsessed with the game. i forgot about it for a few years, and picked it up about 4 hours ago. Now that im older and have more of a sence for good literature ,I am very impressed with this book and reccomend it to anyone who is partial to the fantasy genre. The plot development and twists and they way the charecters are developed in a way where you learn to either love or hate them with a passion is masterfull. This is a great book and will be enjoyed by anyone, magic player or not, girl or guy, whatever. read this book, it's excelent!