Customer Reviews

Shadowrun 15: Burning Bright (v. 15)

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Though Nigel Findley was the one of the last true Shadowrun authors, Tom Dowd recently took the late novelists place. Burning Bright has an edge, a quality, that most of the other(and more recent) Shadowrun novels lack. The characters are excellent, as is the plot. I was always confused about what happened in Chicago in the late months of summer. This novel clarified everything.

I honestly didn't find many errors. The actual plot slowed down a little, but before I could get impatient, everything picked back up again. A must read for the Shadowrun fan. Actually, a must read for the casual reader, as well.

Not infrequently I get into debates/arguments about the utility of novels in game universes (for example, do the Forgotten Realms novels make the Realms a better, or worse, game setting?) In those debates, "Burning Bright" is the example I use of a good use of game-related fiction.

Most game-related novels, whatever their other merits, end up with one grave flaw, which over time weakens the utility of the setting as an RPG universe - they end "happily," with the heros triumphant and villans humbled (Zhentil Keep is nuked, Tethyr unified under benign government, etc, etc). This makes the setting gradually less interesting as a place to adventure in. Most authors seem to lack the stomach for anything other than a happy ending, and most readers seem to agree. Also, most such novels answer more questions than they leave you with (reducing the game world's mystery), solve more problems than they introduce (reducing the "threat level").

In Burning Bright, Tom Dowd was bold enough to take another path. He took the road less travelled by, and that made all the difference. In addition to solid characters and a engaging storyline, this book's ending paved the way for a very dangerous, dark game setting (Bug City). While publically exposing the bugs, it left the problem not only unsolved, but more dangerous - and eventually this storythread led to Yeats, Penchyk, and the Empowerment Coalition.

This was one of the first SR novels I ever read, and if only all game related fiction were this good, RPG gaming might not be a withering hobby. . .

A better Shadowrun book. Burning Bright is easily one of the best books of the Shadowrun novel line. The book centers around the bug spirit attack in the city of Chicago, 2050. This was an event which transcended Shadowrun history and served as the large metaplot for the role-playing game. Tom Dowd, the writer behind many of the 6th World's plot lines, weaves a wonderful narrative about a mage who is hired to find the missing son of a corporate family, from there history is made.

The early Shadowrun novels are the best of the series. Burning Bright is a book many hardcore Shadowrun fans should read at some point. The novel is now over eighteen years old, and is probably one of the rarer Shadowrun novels to find. Pick this book up along with anything written by Nigel D. Findley.

If only every Shadowrun novel could be this good. Dowd was definitely one of the best writers for the franchise in the 90s, and Burning Bright is a great example of what the "man meets magic and machine" world of Shadowrun could be in the right hands.

The basic plot is this. Kyle Teller is an Amerindian mage hired by a major megacorp owner in Chicago to find his missing 17-year old son, heir to the company. Seems like a simple premise. This should be just another average, everyday Shadowrun novel, right? Not so fast. Featuring what could be the most interesting and potentially catastrophic plotline in the whole series, this novel is anything but average. It's hard to go into too much detail without giving everything away, but suffice to say that the Chicago we all know and love, and maybe the world itself, may never be the same after this mission, thanks to the shady Universal Brotherhood from '2XS' fame, and possibly creature-spirits from another plane of existence.

Burning Bright, after the basic plot and character introduction, never really lets up. No other novel in the series has as much of that "falling down the rabbit hole" feeling, nor the impact on the world of Shadowrun as this does. If you are a fan of the series, or of great fantasy in general, you owe it to yourself to pick up a copy. There aren't too many books in the series that I would call "must-owns," but this is definitely one of them, and is, imho, the best of them all. There were many times while reading this when I became absolutely engrossed, forgetting that I was actually reading, which is no mean feat considering the 'not-so-believable' subject matter. Too bad Dowd didn't continue writing fiction after this, as he most likely would have been pretty successful in the sci-fi/fantasy field.

Oh well, at least we have Burning Bright.

5 stars as far as gaming-related fiction goes.

Ranking among Shadowrun novels, imo- 1st

(BTW, his previous novel, Night's Pawn, is very nearly on the same level as this, and is well worth tracking down for Shadowrun fans.)

This was the first Shadowrun book I ever read after having picked up the Bug City companion which referenced this novel. Tom Dowd has painted a wonderful picture of the situation in Chicago and the slow build up to the eruption of one of the largest bug hives in the Shadowrun universe. This dark, gritty tale also helps set the mood for anyone interested in running a Bug City campaign and is a must read for any gamemaster.

This book is well-written and engrossing. It's also a lot less "cutesy" and a lot more adult than most Shadowrun novels. Highly recommended!

A good book in and of itself, with an interesting, involving plot and cool characters. The books real strength, though, is for SR players who want the TRUTH about what happened in Chicago that August. When you know how the city ends up, reading about its last days becomes even more interesting... and frightening. Check out the Bug City sourcebook for stats for Teller, Seeks-The-Moon and other major chars

I really enjoyed this book, especially the way they handled magic. Tom Dowd's descriptions of how Teller employs magic give the whole idea more depth than the Shadowrun universe has in the past. It also gives a good first hand look at what Bug City is like, and gives both players and GMs alike a good way to "get into the groove" when playing a campaign located there.

This is one of the better Shadowrun books I have read in a while. Tom Dowd is really skilled. This book also gave me an axcellent background to run a campaign in Bug City.

Definitely the best Shadowrun novel I have had the pleasure to read. Tom Dowd is extremely gifted at bringing a real, human side to the Shadowrun universe. And no this isn't an April Fools joke! '-)