Dragon Age: Asunder

The story was absolutely captivating and opened my mind to further question and research the dragon age lore. There were many moments that brought tears to my eyes, the characters were well written and represented, and the text was very well structured. Five out of five.

A truly enjoyable read for any Dragon age fan, Although there is a slight contradiction in the story that affects The Awakening DLC for Dragon Age Origins, regarding the Dwarf Grey warden that works with the Architect.

Alas, David Gaider goes a bit George R.R. Martin, as all of the three Dragon Age tie-in books so far, including this one, just has to involve a group of people traveling somewhere in order to do something. Which I suppose is fitting for a book based on a video game world--you go off and do quests and whatnot. It's a very fun read though.

Fans of the game series (and if you're reading the book, you probably are one) will probably enjoy:
- The backdrop - centered around the Templar/Mage conflict, with a healthy (unhealthy?) dash of demons thrown in. You'd be surprised (or maybe not so surprised--more details-oriented fans have debated this for a while actually) who they can possess.
- The events of Dragon Age 2 are mentioned. This book begins approximately one year after the finale in Kirkwall.
- A little more background info about what we had previously only seen in in-game codices and brief mentions, including some interesting but not really in-depth tidbits about the more powerful Chantry figures.
- Cameos! Yay. It takes place in Orlais, so you might be able to guess who makes an appearance. Someone else does too, at the same time resolving a small but quite long-standing debate about a detail in the "canon" Dragon Age storyline.

If you've never played the game then I don't think this book will stand out at all. It is well-written, but those who come in not already knowing a bit about the world of Thedas would probably feel a bit lost.

Another little tidbit in the Kindle edition that I found annoying is that apparently the book refuses to write the verb "lie" (as in "lie down") in past tense. Numerous times I see things along the lines of: "Her head hit something hard. She lie there, the world spinning..." and "Then, in the darkest moments when he lie there starving and thirsty...". Not sure if this is in the print version as well but it bothers me. Still, this is an excellent book if a flaw such as this bears mentioning.

I did read the other two tie-in books as well, Stolen Throne and The Calling. I was pretty excited about this book being released, and I pre-ordered it. It's a pretty quick read, and I finished it in a day.

TL; DR:
As this book is obviously intended to be a bridge between DA2 and DA 3, read it if you loved Origins, maybe-liked-a-little-bit DA2, and still have high hopes for Dragon Age 3!

I'm looking forward to Inquisition now. Cole seems to be a very important character. Hope to hear more from Rhys and the other mages. This is only the beginning of the veil breaking, correct? I cannot wait!

WWith cameos from Origins characters and story continuing from after the events of DA2, this story gives you a look at the lives of both mages and templars in the aftermath of the kirkwall. Not just a good video game book, but a good book for any fantasy fan.

Following both Dragon age games this book gives more back story to life in the circle of magic where characters from the games make appearances and one has their story told if your a fan I would recommend this book.

An excellent addition to the conflict that began in the end of DA2 and almost required reading for those following the series to Inquisition. A real introduction to Cole's story arc, which becomes much more poignant, and good to expand the blame on the beginning of the mage-templar war, who falls unfairly in Ander's actions in the in-game dialogue.

The Templars are Rock
The Chantry is Paper
The mages are Scissors
Together they form a whole that contains the power of Dragon Age.
Not even the Dark Spawn, and Dragon attended Blight, can stand before their united strength.
But... This only works when they agree to follow the forms that shape the power of their wholeness.
As we have seen in Dragon Age 1 and 2 the center is not holding.
If you played DA 2, you may well remember that Flemeth tells Hawke: "You have my sympathy"
She well knows that try as Hawke might, the game of Rock, Paper, Scissors is falling apart.
Now comes Dragon age Asunder. What more ominous a name than Asunder could you imagine.
Read the book to discover for yourself how this plays out.

David Gaider's Dragon Age: Asunder was an absolute joy to read. The plot is great and he has even been able to include the sense of a "party" that is reflective of the games. The book does offer a good amount of crucial information that is more than likely going to be a at the very least acknowledged in DAIII. If your a Dragon Age fan, and cant wait to get your hands on whats happening in Thedas until Dragon Age III, then Asunder is your solution... I even think we even get introduced to one of our future party members... Can you guess which one?

My biggest complaint about Dragon Age Asunder is that it boasts a huge claim to an addition to the mythos. A secret that can change the entire world. But, just as Dragon Age 2 claimed that Hawke was the cause of so many great changes, this makes many claims without backing them up.

Now, hear me out here. This book is stuffed to the brim with references to The Hero of Ferelden, and I almost feel it's pandering. Given that Hawke was supposed to be the big deal, we never really see him/her mentioned. We DO see Anders, THOF, - shoot, a good deal of things. (My boyfriend all the while whining 'I killed Wynne this is stupid) But the big deal of what Hawke did? Never really mentioned. This is very mage centric and I was super excited for that. What new will it add? What addition will we finally see?

This is spoiler territory, so stay away if you don't want spoilers.

It doesn't give us any new information for squat. It's heavily implied at the end of the book that we're pretty much at the same point. The Fade is bad and tricks mages. I was hoping we'd learn something about the Fade even if Rhys did end up being tricked, but we didn't. We learned it's as mysterious as ever and will undoubtedly trick even the best of mages. Mr. Gaider doesn't do well at towing the line when it comes to the mages. Instead he likes to emphasize there is no in between, there is no solution, it will probably end badly and from what we know 'oh well'.

I'm agitated by that. Why wouldn't we learn more about the Fade at least? Why are we stuck with poor prose and barely any additions to the actual story. We have a book that genuinely stuffs into our faces the one interesting plot point as a possibility nearly from the beginning. We'd have been far more interested or intrigued if we learned it out of nowhere, instead it is heavily implied. I loved The Stolen Throne and I loved The Calling- but this book falls short. It does nothing more than to extend the conflict in our minds. Mages versus Templars everyone! This book was a huge advertisement with no true progress. We go from 'the mages are probably going to rebel' to 'the mages are definitely going to rebel'. And that's all well and good...

But I'm really just peeved at the Cole and Rhys thing. It should have been written better. We should have been given more details, more exposition, more facts about The Fade. Instead we get a disappointing, OOPS ANOTHER MAGE FELL FOR THE OLD FADE TRICK. That is very poor writing.

Three and a half stars would be more adequate, but I can't give it four stars. The book is good, though some of it's flaws bothered me more than those in The Masked Empire. Repetition is a even bigger issue in this book, you loose count of the times you'll read the word sweat. Cole is a fraction of the character it was in Inquisition, and Adrian's arch breaks down at the end.
Despite that the changing perspective is present in this book as well, and it had the same great effect that it had in The Masked Empire, Rhys and Evangeline are very good characters that give depth to the mage templar conflict, and their relationship throughout the book is fantastic. (Minor spoiler) Wynne is a nice addition to the book, and seeing the once hopeful companion disillusioned makes for a fascinating arch. The plot is also very solid, the reason for the rebellion and the clash of the factions inside the circle coupled with the desperate actions of the seekers make for a volatile and tense environment. Justinia is also a surprisingly good character despite the limited appearance in the book, and her quest for justice without upsetting the balance is relatable.

Overall it's a good read, recommended for those that like the universe. As for major reason for the three stars, read bellow, but be warned I can't discuss it without spoiling the book.

MAJOR SPOILERS if you care about this stuff. As said before I hated the end of Adrian's arch, the witty outspoken character becomes a fanatic out of nowhere, willing to frame, and possible kill Rhys, a man that she cared about. Saying that she did it for jealously alone doesn't fit the character. And a mage responsible for murder would hardly improve their case, nor would blackmailing Wynne with Rhys. The infuriating thing is that had she killed the mage in order to save him from tranquility and the lord seeker tried to incriminate Rhys it would make a lot more sense, as Adrian would defend her view and tranquility, and the lord seeker would gain a reason to stop the meeting of the mages with the Divine.

Asunder is an atypical fantasy novel set around the premise of a quest (necessary for the fantasy video game genre it is targeting) which means an eclectic group of people travelling out from the Orlaian city of Val Royeaux, with its magisterial White Spire, into the wastelands of the Fade in order to save a mage who has become an Abomination. The group is made up of the mages: Rhys, his mother, Wynne, his friend and sometime lover, Adrian plus a deeply suspicious Templar, Ser Evangeline, who has been tasked by the head of her Order, the Lord Seeker, to keep a strict eye on them. Along for the ride, but hidden from plain view, is a unfriendly and frightened "ghost" - named Cole - who spends most of the novel either apologising for murdering hapless people or dealing with his social anxiety.
The journey's premise is the focal point for the inevitable political machinations that fuel the rage of a land. The people of Thedas fear the mages, a point driven home by the assassination attempt on the Divine early on the book; and so they are bound to the White Spire, watched by the Templars, mistrusted by all. It is a world where they fight so that all understand "not all mages become abominations."
The journey is one which commences as an uneasy fellowship with its typical tavern meetings (described in a manner you can read in a hundred other fantasy books), then proceeds into one-to-one chats away from campfires (resulting in attacks by darkspawn), trips into battle-blasted towns guarded by zealous Golems, the usual run in with hapless bandits, several quick steps across the Veil into the Fade so they can interact with Cole in his reality, a dragon, an elf named Pharamond, a mighty invading army, etc. etc....all of which leads to our Fellowship to their ultimate goal of discovering if the Rite of Tranquillity has become flawed.
Of course, not all journeys are physical and at the soul of the story are the voyages of self-discovery for both Rhys and Cole. The former to understand his place in the world, the depths of his magical ability; the latter to be resurrected, redeemed, yet ultimately betrayed, despised and sent away....all for a new novel to come. It is a story of many betrayals, of the sacrifices a mother will make for her child, of the inevitable fight for power and thrones and the right to rule.
This is a lengthy novel at four hundred plus pages of small print. David Gaider weaves a story that clearly follows the need for transferal to video games. As ever, novels of this type owe much to the phenomenon that has been TSR since the mid-80s; it ticks all the vital ingredients to keep its teenage audience interested, ensure the nostalgia of an older generation tugs at us as we read. The dialogue comes across as screen-play; the action is episodic as it has to be; at times the sentences uttered by the characters are too often proclamations of intent rather than genuine personalities. Yet, for all this, essentially it is a well done version of this sub-genre of fantasy novels. It is a novel that nestles safely and mediocrely in the bosom of its fantasy parents. If you like the concepts of Asunder give it a read. If you're looking for a great fantasy novel...there's better out there.

This book was so amazing. I literally didn't want it to end. One of my favorite games is Dragon Age: Inquisition, so it was really awesome to learn about Cole's past; it let me understand the character more. What's cool about it as well is that some of these characters from the book are included in Cole's dialogue in the game. The author did a very good job at displaying eloquence and an immense vocabulary in the way he chose to write the book. I will definitely be purchasing more Dragon Age books.

I sort of spazzed throughout the book. The story was good, but the best part was how this installment added new information and tied off lose ends in the story. I hope the next game builds off of this novel and becomes a breathtaking game.

I loved the very first Dragon Age book written by David G.; therefore, I bought the next two. I enjoyed the fighting and the use of magic in the book, many of the spells I have actually used in the game!

Females in Gaiders books and the game are often tough and powerful which I love, but feminine at the same time.

My main complaint with the book was the lack of romance. I love the fighting, the spells, the jokes, etc. however, I love a bit of romance too. Gaider's first book seemed to incorporate all of these components which made the book awesome. A mage and templar romance has so much potential to add to the book. But I guess this just wasn't that type of book.