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| The Road to Death (The Lost Mark, Book 2) | 
 enlarge | Author: Matt Forbeck
Publisher: Wizards of the Coast
Category: Book
List Price: $6.99
Buy Used: $0.44
You Save: $6.55 (94%)
New (26) Used (27) from $0.44
Avg. Customer Rating:  7 reviews
Sales Rank: 318770
Media: Mass Market Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 384
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.4
Dimensions (in): 6.7 x 4.2 x 1.3
ISBN: 0786939877
Dewey Decimal Number: 813.6
EAN: 9780786939879
ASIN: 0786939877
Publication Date: January 10, 2006
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
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Product Description
The epic Eberron trilogy The Lost Mark continues!
The dark and mysterious world of Eberron continues to expand through RPG products and novels. This is the sixth novel set in the Eberron world.
Matt Forbeck has written and designed games for more than 14 years, for which he has garnered several awards. His most recent title for Wizards of the Coast, Inc. was Marked for Death, the kickoff novel for The Lost Mark trilogy.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 2 more reviews...
 Great follow up to book 1 March 22, 2006
6 out of 7 found this review helpful
The Road to Death is the second in the Lost Mark Trilogy written by Matt Forbeck, the first book is Marked for Death. It needs to be said that the reader needs to read Marked for Death before they attempt this book, or else several things will not mesh. People who regularly read my reviews (not sure how many there are) will remember that I gave the first book a less than stellar review. I still feel the review I gave the first book was well earned, however, this book I absolutely loved! I must say this is the first Eberron book that I have loved. I am eagerly looking forward to December of 2006 when The Queen of Death, the third book in this trilogy, will be released.
This book is both character driven and plot driven. The mix is almost perfect between the two. There is a strong plot element to this novel and one that seems to carry the characters along for the ride. This book fixes the plot problems that I saw with the first book. Mainly the repetitive nature of the plot in Espre getting kidnapped and lost over and over again. This book reveals a much broader brush in which the story is taking place. The motivations of some of the characters are beginning to come through. There is also a twist or two to make sure the reader is paying attention.. As with most books, there is an `end battle' in this one. However, it's not the typical hack `n slash battle which is over and done with. It's a `real' battle that takes time and cunning to survive. Well written.
The character development in this book explodes from the first one. In the first book the characters seemed one dimensional to me. In this book there was so much more about each of the main characters. In fact one of the main `bad guys' from the first book, Te'oma, Forbeck made me care about her, where as the firs book I could have cared less. My only thing about the characters is I would have liked to read a little more about Burch, but hopefully that comes to in the final book. The rest of the character development was stellar.
As I said before, I feel this is the best Eberron book I have red to date. Thus far I have had mixed reviews about the Eberron world, but this book makes me want to keep reading to find the gems that will surface.
I am not a role player in any sense of the imagination, and I think that may be one of the down sides to the Eberron novels. I don't care about gaming rules, stats, and all that. I care about being entertained when I read, that's exactly what this novel did. I would recommend this to people who are curious about the Eberron world and what the novels can bring to the table. Role players will certainly like this book. A definite must read for fantasy fans. Well done Mr. Forbeck!
Surprisingly Satisfying Second Novel! February 2, 2006
3 out of 4 found this review helpful
I say in the title of this review that the novel was surprising satisfying, but I should say that I was hoping, nay expecting, this to be a good book, and Matt Forbeck did not dissapoint.
I gave the first novel a 5 star rating, as one of the first Eberron books to come out it got me hooked on the setting. If I could I would give this novel 6 stars.
This book picks up immediately where the last one left off, and is pretty much action all the way. There is a nice part in the middle where everyone gets to come up for a breather, and then we are back into the thick of it again.
It is the last third of the book that did it for me though, with the introduction of an ancient Dwarven stronghold, being the lair of a rather nasty Dragon. Also the action really kicks into 6th gear, and gives you a powerful dramatic ending.
I think that the characters certainly developed more in this book, and Matt Forbeck wasn't restrained as much as he was in the first one (when he had to introduce us to a rather large cast).
The first book ended on quite a cliffhanger, whereas this one rounds off quite nicely, setting up the final novel in this series. The book does raise quite a few questions, which I will pondering over and will only be answered when the final novel, The Queen of Death, is released later this year!
I certainly hope that Matt goes onto to provide us with more wonderful characters outside of this trilogy, in the Eberron setting, as he has a solid grasp of the world.
 Action-Packed, Fast-Paced Story! January 27, 2006
2 out of 3 found this review helpful
I really enjoyed this book and found it to be even better than the first book in the series. This was filled with adventure and has a very interesting storyline. I really liked the author's fast-paced style.
As I mentioned in my review of the first book (Marked for Death) the premise on which this series is based is extremely interesting and in my opinion pretty original. In Eberron there are twelve Dragonmarked Houses. Select members of these houses develop dragonmarks, which are tattoo-like runes on their bodies that grant spell-like abilities. There was once thirteen dragonmarks but only twelve remain. It was believed that the thirteenth dragonmark was destroyed along with the house that bore it. The premise of the series is that the lost thirteenth mark, The Mark of Death, has returned.
In this second book in the series the characters really start to come into their own. By this I mean that they really start to develop into multidimentional characters rather than cookie-cutter staples of fantasy fiction. I don't want to give any spoilers, but in this book there are a number of interesting conflicts faced by some of the main characters. One struggles to come to grips with her powers, while others struggle with their relationships and how they stand with the group. I found these developments quite interesting and well done.
As in the first book, the author does an excellent job of incorporating a lot of Eberron-specific content into the story without overwhelming the reader. In this series you can clearly see the difference between Eberron and other fantasy settings, which is refreshing.
On a whole, this series is well thought out and filled with all the action and adventure you might expect from a fantasy novel. This book has a number of battle scenes that were well written and the author manages to capture some of the confusion and tension that I would expect in battle.
Overall, I would recommend this book to fans of Eberron, role playing games, and fans of fantasy in general.
The Hits Keep Coming February 11, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
This brief reveiw was initially posted at Essential-Ebberon.com ...
I truly enjoyed the novel and believe that it demonstrates the evolution of Matt Forbeck's style and depth since the first in the series. Matt examines the internal conflicts that plague characters and this is particularly effective in his exploration of theology and the Machivellian issue that questions whether ends justifies the mean. There is a distinctly more sombre tone to The Road To Death, reflecting a shift in the writer's approach to the characters and to the pervasive, and often existential, themes in the campaign world.
Matt Forbeck and Don Bassingthwaite are the forerunners in this campaign novel series!
A bit predictable February 23, 2006
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
The book is a bit predictable. As the plot unfolded I could usually tell what was going to happen next. I find it more interesting as it unveils the world of Eberron and adds color to my D&D campaign. The Character Development for the core members is good. I find it a stretch for a few of the characters to be motivated to help the primary character.
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