World of Warcraft: The Shattering: Book One of Cataclysm [Mass Market Paperback]

Christie Golden (Author)

Book Description

Release date: May 31, 2011 | Series: World of Warcraft

In her NY Times bestseller, THE SHATTERING, now in mass market paperback, Christie Golden delivers a sensational tie-in to the newest World of Warcraft game expansion.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

New York Times bestselling and award-winning author Christie Golden has written more than forty novels and several short stories in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Among her many projects are over a dozen Star Trek novels and several original fantasy novels. An avid player of World of Warcraft, she has written two manga short stories and several novels in that world (Lord of the Clans, Rise of the Horde, Arthas: Rise of the Lich King, and The Shattering: Prelude to Cataclysm, Thrall: Twilight of the Aspects, and Jaina Proudmoore: Tides of War). She has also written the StarCraft Dark Templar Saga: Firstborn, Shadow Hunters, and Twilight, as well as the most recent hardcover, Devils’ Due. Golden is also the writer of three books in the major nine-book Star Wars series Fate of the Jedi (in collaboration with Aaron Allston and Troy Denning). Golden lives in Tennessee. She welcomes visitors to her website: ChristieGolden.com.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 432 pages
• Publisher: Pocket Star; Reprint edition (May 31, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1439172749
• ISBN-13: 978-1439172742
• Product Dimensions: 4.4 x 1.1 x 7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.8 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (92 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #131,896 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Award-winning author Christie Golden has written over thirty novels and several short stories in the fields of science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Golden launched the TSR Ravenloft line in 1991 with her first novel, the highly successful Vampire of the Mists. She is the author of several original fantasy novels, including On Fire's Wings, In Stone's Clasp, and Under Sea's Shadow, the first three in her multi-book fantasy series The Final Dance from LUNA Books.Among Golden's other projects are over a dozen Star Trek novels and the well-received StarCraft Dark Templar trilogy, Firstborn, Shadow Hunters, and the forthcoming Twilight. An avid player of Blizzard's MMORPG World of Warcraft, Golden has written several novels in that world (Lord of the Clans, Rise of the Horde) with three more in the works. She has also written two Warcraft manga stories for Tokyopop, I Got What Yule Need and A Warrior Made. Golden lives in Colorado with her husband and two cats.

Amazon Author Rankbeta 

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#96 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

#96 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

39 of 42 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars The Shattering was a great read for a Warcraft lore geek like me. October 20, 2010

By danny

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Once I started reading this book, I couldn't put it down until I finished it, same with my wife when she started reading it.

I have been playing the Warcraft games since they first came out and have been buying all the books as soon as they are published. I am a lore geek, and this book answered ALOT of questions I had about changes coming in the Cataclysm expansion. I was lucky enough to get into the beta, and a few of the changes confused me since I had no backstory to understand WHY these changes were made. The Shattering answered every single question I had made, and even gave me a newfound respect for Garrosh Hellscream, a character that I had previously loathed.

I can't recommend this book highly enough, buy it, borrow it, whatever, and read it!

Anyone who likes Warcraft needs to read this book, it clears up many things in the transition to the new World of Warcraft expansion, Cataclysm, and it is also an amazing read, like Golden's other Warcraft work.

10/10 no contest!

17 of 19 people found the following review helpful

5.0 out of 5 stars GOLDEN AGE FOR BLIZZARD BOOKS October 19, 2010

By Ron White

Format:Hardcover

This may be the most epic warcraft book ever written!!!!! I am still wowed, speechless, and enthralled by what i just put down. I've never been this excited to play a game expansion in my life. I don't want to spoil the experience for anyone, so i will not hit on the plot scenarios of the book. So much happens. I got to understand characters i've seen in game for years so much more. Golden did her masterwork with this one. Also, is it just me or has blizzard's books just been kicking ass these last few years? Golden has been doing an amazing job, but even the other lesser talked about books like the manga and more have all been really good.

This is a must read. I just pre-ordered the game after reading the end. can't wait.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Great lore piece, disappointed reader December 5, 2010

By Angelo Pompeo

Format:Hardcover|Amazon Verified Purchase

Let me preface this hopefully succinct review and say I'm rating this not solely as a book on Warcraft lore, but by the standards of any book. Most game-based lore type books would barely rate one star in my opinion, and I consider them more "guilty reads", so I mean three stars as a compliment.

The good:

Christie Golden does a great job of giving you a sense of the lore figures, even if you only have a cursory familiarity with Warcraft lore. In fact, I would highly recommend this book to anyone wanting to gain a quick, synopsis of not only those-present lore character's history, but demeanor.

Often when an author is challenged with multiple view points, a reader can feel disappointed "just as s/he is getting comfortable" with a POV and being taken away at an interesting point. Golden does a solid job of keeping the various threads of her tale engaging, and the bulk of my disappointment arose elsewhere (read further).

The bad:

I primarily bought this book for lore I felt was lacking in the game, and really, in most Warcraft lore books, specifically: Voljin, Sylvanas, Lor'themar Theron, and Prophet Velen. Curiously the only leader absent that I didn't care about was Mekkatorque. As a lore reader, I was sorely disappointed to see them absent amidst such critical moments in the game's canon. As a general sci-fi fantasy reader, I was thoroughly disappointed in the, as what other reviewers here have labeled rushed (and in my opinion, lazy), writing. Having to juggle so many "players" in a game's history can be a challenge, but anyone who has read the likes of Steven Erikson or George R.R. Martin are familiar with how a five star author handles such a challenge. Leaving them out so completely was despite their obvious symbiotic relations to the present-characters and activities was just amazing and, as I try to reason the "why", lazy. Thus, three stars.

As others have pointed out here, I also felt many scenes were rushed or resolved not through an evolution of character, but through necessity to move the story. Writing like this is why "plot driven" carries such a negative connotation in today's literature. Again, I understand the author's constraints, but am judging her through the world of sci-fi, and not solely game-based lore. For the latter, she did not disappoint anymore than another author. By the former, she was a three star author, at best.

Finally, the price was just too high. I learned nothing new that I wasn't formerly aware of through information on Blizzard's official website, or through the in game activities. Truly, at $6 this would have been a bargain on my Kindle. Instead, I feel strangely bitter that I purchased it, and would not recommend it to a friend.

Summary:
Not shockingly, the book is for fan boys and lore hounds of the Warcraft canon. I'm not sure how anyone could buy this book expecting otherwise. If you've been absent from Azeroth for some months (or years) and want to quickly (and I mean quickly, it's a short read) catch up on where your old friends and are before this exciting new expansion released, I would recommend this book. If you've been relatively active in game, and take any time to read the official site for new information, I would save your money until the price on this book comes down to a value that represents what it has to offer.