''Return to Quag Keep'', a 2006 fantasy novel by

Andre Norton Andre Alice Norton (born Alice Mary Norton, February 17, 1912 – March 17, 2005) was an American writer of science fiction and fantasy, who also wrote works of historical and contemporary fiction. She wrote primarily under the pen name ...

and

Jean Rabe Jean Rabe is an American journalist, editor, gamer and writer of fantasy and mystery. After a career as a newspaper reporter, she was employed by TSR, Inc. for several years as head of the Role Playing Game Association and editor of the ''Polyhe ...

, is a sequel to the fantasy novel ''

Quag Keep ''Quag Keep'' is a fantasy novel by Andre Norton published in 1978. Written after Norton had participated in a session of ''Dungeons & Dragons'' with Gary Gygax, it was the first novel to be set in Gygax's World of Greyhawk, and the first to be b ...

'' written by Norton in 1978. Although Norton and Rabe began their collaboration in the early 2000s, Norton's death in 2005 meant that Rabe had to complete the novel on her own. Many critics were not impressed with the finished work.

Plot summary

In Norton's previous book ''Quag Keep'', ''

Dungeons & Dragons ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (commonly abbreviated as ''D&D'' or ''DnD'') is a fantasy tabletop role-playing game (RPG) originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson. The game was first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. (TS ...

'' seven players had been mysteriously transported to the world of

Greyhawk Greyhawk, also known as the World of Greyhawk, is a fictional world designed as a campaign setting for the ''Dungeons & Dragons'' fantasy roleplaying game. Although not the first campaign world developed for ''Dungeons & Dragons''— Dave Arneso ...

. In this sequel, the adventurers trapped in Greyhawk regain their memories and learn that they are gamers from Earth. They seek to return home.

Publication history

Gary Gygax Ernest Gary Gygax ( ; July 27, 1938 – March 4, 2008) was an American game designer and author best known for co-creating the pioneering role-playing game ''Dungeons & Dragons'' (''D&D'') with Dave Arneson. In the 1960s, Gygax created an ...

co-invented the game of '' D&D'', and formed the company TSR in 1974 to publish the new game. Two years later, Gygax invited the popular sf/fantasy author

to play a session of ''D&D'' set within his own home campaign world of Greyhawk. Norton subsequently wrote a novel titled ''Quag Keep'', the first novel based on a role-playing game. The book was published in 1978. In the early 2000s, Norton and Jean Rabe began to collaborate on a sequel to ''Quag Keep'', but Norton died before the book was completed. Rabe subsequently finished ''Return to Quag Keep'', which was published by

Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese sci ...

in 2006. (ISFDB). Retrieved March 28, 2013.

Reception

Critics were unimpressed by this novel. ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'' didn't think Rabe's writing compared to her predecessor's, saying, "For the most part, the story and characters lack the magic and imagination typical of the late SF Grand Master Norton at her best."

Don D'Ammassa Donald Eugene D'Ammassa (born April 24, 1946) is an American fantasy, science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts ...

also reviewed Rabe's sequel for the ''

Science Fiction Chronicle DNA Publications was an American publishing company that existed from 1993 to 2007 and was run by the husband-and-wife team of Warren Lapine and Angela Kessler. Initially based in Massachusetts, DNA Publications relocated to Radford, Virginia. A ...

'' and called it "another routine quest adventure with the same cast of characters. It's not a bad story, but it doesn't read like something Norton would have written, not does it feel like it's based on a role-playing game." '' Kirkus Reviews'' called it "Derivative, stale rubbish."

References

{{Andre Norton 2006 novels Novels based on Dungeons & Dragons Novels by Andre Norton Novels by Jean Rabe Tor Books books