Item - Fire on the Water

Of the books in this series that I clearly remember reading as a child, this was my least favorite. It's mostly about travel, and there aren't too many monsters to fight or atmospheric dungeons to explore. I also felt at the time that it was unfairly difficult. However, having replayed it now, I think that I was underestimating the book. Although it didn't include the traditional elements that made me enjoy fantasy adventures, it was clearly memorable -- the "whodunnit" sequence and the final sea battle were both enjoyable to revisit. As for being unfair, I think I mustn't have been observant enough when I first played. Some choices that seem random are in fact entirely strategic if you carefully examine the map and illustrations. There are better things yet to come, but this is an entirely worthy sequel to the first book.

More reviews by Demian

One scene in this book, the second in the Lone Wolf series, makes it worth playing all on its own. One of your fellow travelers is trying to kill you. Whom do you accuse? This puzzle can be solved by logic, without rolling any dice.

That's a redeeming feature for me. I know I am an exception, but frankly I've never been a fan of the Lone Wolf narrative style. For example, I don't like to be told straightaway that I - as Lone Wolf - feel fear. I find that too abstract, it makes me feel detached from the story rather than cast as the hero. Instead, tell me about the sinister things, in words that make me afraid, myself, in my role.

Also, the Magnamund setting is black and white, good against evil, and I prefer worlds that are a bit more complex.

The narrative in this volume has a nice flow to it, even if I find the final sequence a bit drawn out. However, there is one bottleneck in the story where you need an item you might have missed simply by taking a left turn instead of a right turn.

More reviews by Florik

It is with this book, the second in the series, where it feels like Joe Dever really hits his stride. After the last rather simple introduction in book 1, Flight from the Dark, this one feels much more complex. Although the mission is a rather generic, get the magic sword quest, it takes you on a range of different scenarios. It includes a journey by ship, several city and village crawls, wilderness and underground travels and even a mini-Cluedo like mystery to solve (in which the artwork is important. Noted to any who wish to download the picture-less version for kindle). It culminates in a climactic battle.

I found it a bit tougher to get through, taking many tries, but you start to get a feel for which Kai skills are most helpful. In fact, the Kai discipline choices give the book more flavour over straight combat oriented books like Fighting Fantasy. There are several instances where you can find yourself weaponless and possessionless, making the choices that much more challenging. Overall, I found it fun and a big step forward from book 1.

My only problems with the book were there were a lot of pick a random number types of passages. While helpful for adding a random element to the book (it's the situation that Fighting Fantasy used Luck rolls for, but there is no Lone Wolf equivalent to Luck rolls), I personally would have preferred a choice or skill check of some sort.

Also the artwork is pretty horrible, with all characters having the same dumpish look. In one section, the artist has to draw what the text describes as a "pretty" girl, but the art shows anything but.

Overall, while still not as fun as Grey Star, Lone Wolf comes a close second as my favorite "game" style book. Highly recommended.

More reviews by Kveto

[Rating: 2/10]
[Recommended? NO]

The reputation of the "Lone Wolf" anticipates and precedes itself fervently, held in high esteem by essentially all gamebook lovers. Having been unsure what to expect within (and pleasantly surprised by) the debut title, "Flight from the Dark", my assumptions were more accurately set when heading into this direct sequel/follow-up, "Fire on the Water". It was nevertheless to my overall surprise that this follow-up served as a completely different kind of experience in comparison to its predecessor - my impression of the series was initially appreciatively reserved going into this one, yet this title completely caused me to rethink my approach to these books. (Interestingly, this book seems detached from the flow it seems to have - the writing moves with the same eloquence as the prequel, while the story and choices are choppy and inconsistent to no end. It's apparent from the beginning that something rather different is being attempted in this "chapter" of the series, and as such it's going to divide EVERY reader on some front.)

Many of the hallmarks of Joe Dever's talented writing and strategic capabilities come back in full force in this adventure, yes - there are some appreciable developments/additions to the already-brilliant interactive system (which rightfully remains considered one of the best systems in gamebook history), and this is of course coupled with the very readable and with-style-to-spare tone that is signature to this series. As such, I was able to invest myself in the adventure as thoroughly (and with as much satisfying completeness) as I had the first time around. That being said, the adventure itself - and the frequent implementation of randomly-decided elements - caused me to be let down quite a bit. The difficulty level is astonishingly high in comparison to the previous story, the sequences are very much predetermined by arbitrary measures, the narrative's approach is far more exhaustive than one can properly brace/prepare for, and the overall meaning of many of the introduced details - such as the lack of consequences for Ronan's death, or the single-sided personalities of the five assassin suspects - are kept remarkably shallow, hollow and ineffective in their application to the narrative; Lone Wolf is less affected than the story makes one think he would be, nor is he as personable or relatable due to the bleaker dynamics in play.

The first time around, I hadn't been sure the "Lone Wolf" books were my cup of tea, and with this second title, I'm even less certain about these classic gamebooks. While I wasn't personally affected or impressed by this gamebook, it is still quite easy to tell why the series has garned the reputation it has - there's plenty of enjoyment for the right reader here, though not nearly as much long-term value as the first entry - and there's some value in seeing the legacy of the series a little differently through this darker, more dangerous quest. ^^

(Mysteriously disappears into the shadows.)

More reviews by Shadeheart