The Shattered Lands (Dreaming Dark #2, Eberron) review

    THE SHATTERED LAND by Keith Baker is the second volume of The Dreaming Dark trilogy set in the Eberron universe of Dungeons and Dragons. Try saying that three times fast. Eberron is a fantasy steampunk (or "dungeonpunk" if you want to be one of *those* guys) setting where airships and lightning rails substitute for planes and trains while wands replace guns. It's a great setting and I rank it up there with Vampire: The Masquerade and Call of Cthulhu for my all-time favorite places to visit in my imagination.

    The previous book was a noir detective story about investigating a mysterious serial killer of dragonmarks operating in the fantastical city of Sharn. Lei, Jode, Pierce, and Daine are a group of exiled Cyreans whose country was eradicated by a mysterious magical disaster that has left them refugees. It dealt with topics of racism, classicism, prejudice, and corruption without being tied to any real life events. Overall, I really enjoyed it and was anxious to see what the second volume would tackle.

    To my mild disappointment (but only mild), The Shattered Land bypasses all of the seedy underbelly of Sharn and politics of Khorvaire to go on a mission to the continent of Xen'drik. Xen'drik is every pulp adventure jungle story combined with it being the place that Eberron's fantasy Indiana Jones and Lara Croft would inhabit full time. Daine is dying of a constant assault on his consciousness by a dream demon called a quori and his acquaintance, Lakashtai, says his only hope lies in the far off land.

    Xen'drik is kind of fascinating in that it's the primary means that most people will encounter Eberron out "in the wild" due to being the place where Dungeons and Dragons Online was set and the video game Dragonshard. I suspect because it would take a lot more effort to realize the more mechanized continent of Khorvaire (Arcanum: Of Steamworks and Magics Obscura is the closest RPG available right now and its decades old). Anyway, we get the corrupt city of Stormreach, meet multiple feuding drow tribes, and also get some insight into the lost giant civilization. 

    The real appeal of the Dreaming Dark trilogy is the characters, though. Daine, Pierce, and Lei have a great dynamic between them even if Jode's absence is noticeable. Daine is the cynic who refuses to believe in anything bigger and wider than himself but is still a good friend. Pierce is the loyal follower but starting to think that life is more than just obeying orders. Lei is the most curious and idealistic but also suspicious of anyone who gets too close to Daine. We also have the mysterious Lakashtai that really surprised me with so many unexpected twists regarding her.

    I think this is definitely Pierce's book as we see him deal with warforged who are clearly traumatized by their time of slavery and want to punish humanity for their crimes. Seeing Pierce lured in by that, not because he hates humans but because he's desperately lonely for the camaraderie of his own kind, is an interesting commentary on radicalization. It also has an entirely sexless romance that appealed to me as he connects with his own mechanical version of a femme fatale.

    I think if you're looking for how to play the cultures of Xen'drik and its societies then this is the book for you. The drow not being Underdark dwelling evil matriarchs was a choice I really enjoyed. Here, they're every secret native group protecting or trying to break open ancient evils that you see in things like The Last Crusade or The Mummy. They also have their own unique attitudes far removed from the typical morality or ethics of the Khorvaire but understandable given their situation.

    In conclusion, The Shattered Land is a fantastic follow up to The City of Towers. Do I miss some of the fantastic noir sensibility of the previous book? Yes. I definitely hope Keith Baker will someday return to the mean streets of Sharn. However, we get to see a proper pulpy jungle adventure here as well as insight into drow that don't worship the Spider Queen. I'm definitely reading the sequel.

9/10 

Available here