Stuff of Legends

Old-school tabletop gamers wanting a bit of nostalgia are the only ones likely to enjoy this formulaic fantasy. Retired hero Jordan the Red is enjoying a peaceful game of chess with a fishing buddy when the peace and quiet is rudely disrupted by eager fanboy Eliott and his winsome elven babysitter, Kess. Jordan does his best to stay retired, but Eliott pleas relentlessly for a quest until the hero reluctantly returns to action. Gibson relies heavily on the standard and often tired tropes of fantasy, and if he'd managed to do anything new with them, this might have been a bright, appealing, and lively book. Instead, the reader is left with a cartoony world and a cast of two-dimensional characters in what comes off as a poor man's Terry Pratchett. (Aug.)