"Exciting adult fairy tale"

In the lairs and hiding places of the mountain, various mythological and legendary creatures live. Goblins live here in an uneasy peace with the hobgoblins while avoiding other denizen of the mountain. Jig the Goblin is on military duty, an occupation usually reserved for the toughest but he is no warrior; instead he is a runt picked on by other Goblins. While Jig is on patrol, he meets his worst enemies, adventurers including two princes, a dwarf, and an elf determined to find the Rod of Creation.

Jig knows that Straum the Dragon guards the Rod, but the Goblin has no idea where. Prince Barius, the expedition leader, forces Jig to take him to the lower levels of the mountain. On the trek, they repel a hobgoblin attack, defeat dangerous worms, and triumph over a necromancer and his minions. However, when they reach the dragon's lair, they learn the hard way that the other prince, the magician Ryslind is under the control of Straum. If they want to live, Straum tells them to find the Rod that he does not possess.

Goblins are thought to be weak cowards, but Jig proves his worth as the equal in courage to those on the quest with him as he gets his teammates out of trouble. He learns to be more than just a member of the most scorned base species on the mountain. This exciting adult fairy tale is filled with adventure and action, but the keys to the fantasy are Jig and the belief that the mythological creatures are real in the realm of Jim C. Hines.

Harriet Klausner

Reviewed by Harriet Klausner
Posted November 15, 2004