For those readers wishing an unspoiled read of this novel, be warned as spoilers may follow.
Against the Giants is a novelization of the D&D classic series of the same name (or, for those keeping track, the G-series in 1978). Nominally set in the world of Greyhawk, Emerson works out the story of a village boy (Lhors) coming of age as he fights against giants that destroyed his home and family.
The novel is hard to follow in places, and some of the character development of the supporting characters is lost as we are seeing the events unfold around Lhors. At the end, I felt that I was cheated from seeing certain things, like the budding romance between the half-elven ranger and human mage. I will admit that, as the story is more about Lhors and his struggles to make his way in the world, I can see why this comes as such a surprise.
Most of the novel takes place as the party is moving through the steading of the hill giant chief, we see exploration and combat, but there is little mystery as to who is controlling the hill giant raiders that have been terrorizing the landscape. We come across the drow-influence in this part, so any “surprise” alliance at the end is almost a let down.
The adventurers fight their way through the steading and end up heading, via magic, to a glacial rift where they fight more giants—frost giants, this time—and move on to the fire giants lair where the take on the domineering drow and return home to have an army finish taking out the giants and their holds.
What struck me about this book, unlike many other novelizations, this book had only a plot skeleton to refer to—like many of the D&D modules towards the beginning. The story feels bear in spots, like the author didn’t have enough information to further develop. Though I enjoyed the adventure story, I was left with wanting more details to pull out of this book.
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