Disclosure: I received a copy of this book from the Net Galley in exchange for an honest review. They give me no money, not do they in any way influence my thoughts – those are 100% my own for better or worse.
Synopsis:
Who hasn’t been fascinated by monsters? This book collects some of the best creatures from Dungeons & Dragons, setting them out in an informative illustrated bestiary for beginners and enthusiasts alike.
Whether they’re beasts, spirits, demons, or even aliens, most fantasy worlds are filled with monsters. Some are harmless—many more are deadly. Luckily for the discerning adventurer, this book is here to help distinguish between the two. As a popular series sold at conventions and on Etsy, animators Blanca Martinez de Riuerro and Joe Sparrow have compiled three volumes into one deluxe edition. Each creature comes with a full-color illustration, a set of simplified statistics, a description, and a history section indicating its folkloric history and the scientific phenomena that may have influenced its creation. With creatures like the Archdevil, Dryad, Fire Bat, Gold Dragon, Smoke Devil, Bomb Plant, Ettin, and Spirit Fox, any tabletop player will find the perfect creature for their next campaign.
Hot Take:
The art inside this book was not at all what I expected, and I mean that in the nicest way possible. Being D&D related, I went in expecting some very typical high fantasy-type art – you know, like, Monster Manual type of stuff:
That is not at all what I got, and honestly it was kind of refreshing. They are stylistically very interesting – almost having a sort of Powerpuff Girls-meets-60s cartoon drawing style. I wish that I could show you an example picture, but with this book being as-yet unpublished, I don’t think I can really do that. But trust me, they are in no way what you would expect, and they are mostly very cool (some I wasn’t wild about, but whatever – art is subjective, right?).
The inclusion of character attributes, stats, and monster history was really neat. I learned some things about some stuff, and I’m never going to be upset about that. I think the illustration of the Bajang was probably my favorite in the bunch. Additionally, book runs in A-Z format, so if you’re looking for stats on the fly, this book has got you covered too.
My Rating:
Cool art, good info.
Dungeons & Drawings By Blanca MartÃnez de Rituerto, Joe Sparrow Andrews McMeel Publishing Fantasy, Reference, Art ISBN: 1524852015 ISBN13: 9781524852016 Expected Publication: November 12, 2019
Cool!