The Temple of Elemental Evil (Greyhawk Classics) [Mass Market Paperback]

Thomas M. Reid (Author)

Book Description

Series: Greyhawk | Publication Date: May 1, 2001

A sinister force, long thought destroyed, stirs in the land. As a she-demon bent on wreaking worldwide havoc struggles to escape her prison and a foul demigod plots to bend her to his will, a band of desperate heroes must infiltrate the very heart of darkness in a daring attempt to stop them both.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Wizards of the Coast (May 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0786918640
• ISBN-13: 978-0786918645
• Product Dimensions: 6.9 x 4.2 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 5.9 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (22 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,263,572 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars A Standard Adventure, Popcorn Reading., November 24, 2001

By 

Paul (New Orleans) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Temple of Elemental Evil (Greyhawk Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

"The Temple of Elemental Evil" is another of WoTC's revisits to the legendary dungeons of the early campaigning days of the AD&D world of Greyhawk. There is an undeniable amount of nostalgia for some readers, like myself, but this book reads like popcorn, it's light, it's filling, and it's ultimately no big deal.

Decades have passed since I first visited the Temple of Elemental Evil and the Village of Hommlet. There is an undeniable amount of fun in revisiting places I once saw only through the imagination of my mind and that of my fellow gamers.

The story: Shanhaevel, a young elven wizard is accompanying his aging master on a mysterious mission to the village of Hommlet, for reasons unkown to Shanhaevel. An ambush on the road results in the death of his master, and the burden of the mission falling to the elven wizard.

His task: go with several adventurers to scout out the ruins of the Temple of Elemental Evil, a place of powerful evil (as the name implies, ^_^ ) and find out if the forces of the temple, which were defeated at great cost a decade ago, are on the rise. As often happens, things don't quite go as planned.

Nostalgia aside, this is a fairly pedestrian book. Mr. Reid doesn't spend much time on character development, the group bonds far too fast, etc. The wit and verve of a writer like Paul Kidd, who has written 3 other of the Greyhawk dungeon novels is not apparent in Mr. Reid's style.

So, this book is nothing special, but it doesn't commit any major offenses. The book reads sort of like a checklist: it appears that the author was told he needed to do certain things, which he did, but it still has almost an outline feel to it.

The true rating of this book should be 2.5 stars, but I freely admit to being a tad biased by nostalgia, which is why I gave it 3 stars.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars I liked it, but it wasn't the best book I've ever read, September 19, 2003

By 

K Cole "Kevin" (Rockford, Illinois United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Temple of Elemental Evil (Greyhawk Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

I picked up this book after having played the game more times than I can count (mostly running it). There are several things I really enjoyed about the book, but others that made me feel a little disappointed.

The good:

1: It was great getting a refresher in the structure of the temple, and it brought back a lot of memories. It also gave me some interesting ideas.

2: It was not written in the typical preteen fashion that many books derivative of the games are.

3: It was entertaining.

The Bad:

1: Not the greatest character development -- it seemed a bit rushed.

2: Anyone who's played the game will recognize that this went entirely too easy and quickly to even compare.

3: A bit too many stereotypical elements.

All in all, if you love the game, you will enjoy the book. If you are just looking for a good fantasy novel, try Tolkein or Alexander.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Dull D&D Adventure Novel, January 14, 2003

By 

Brandon M Kennedy (Twentynine Palms, CA United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Temple of Elemental Evil (Greyhawk Classics) (Mass Market Paperback)

There were elements of this novel that could have made a good story but on the whole it was very dry and boring. The prologue was too short. In the span of a hundred pages the main characters go from hardly knowing eachother to being best friends. There is no interesting interaction between them.

The vilians are equally drab. So drab that not even tired old vilian cliches can be attatched to them. They are underdeveloped and you dont believe their motivations. Hedrach seems kind of intriguing at the beginning but as the story develops his intrigue quickly diminishes.

The only reason this book deserves two stars instead of one is that avid gamers will recognize certain familiar elements. Many spells used, and dieties named, and secret doors found will ring bells.

If you want to read a better book set in the Greyhawk campaign world read some of Paul Kidd's novels they are well written and have more interesting characters.