‘The Dungeon on Blood Island’ – Ian Livingstone (Scholastic)

Looking back over the blog, it’s been a long time since I last did one of these posts; just over two years in fact so we’re well overdue another ‘Fighting Fantasy’ post here ;o) When the blog was a little younger, I used to have a great time reading these books to my girls but they’ve since moved on to other stuff and… That’s ok :o) I was kind of half expecting it and if I’m being honest, I quite fancied tackling this one on my own (just like I used to, way back in the day) ;o)

So with all that said then, let me tell all about the Dungeon on Blood Island…

Jealous of Baron Sukumvit's Deathtrap Dungeon, Lord Carnuss forced six hundred shackled souls to build the ultimate dungeon on Blood Island. He's filled the labyrinth with savage creatures and deadly traps, and offered the fabled prize of the Golden Orb of Fang to any brave Adventurer who can find it and escape from the dungeon alive. Are YOU brave enough to enter the Dungeon on Blood Island?

If you’re a fan of the series then it pretty much goes without saying that you’ll enjoy ‘The Dungeon on Blood Island’. What’s not to like? We’re back in Allansia, carrying on a story that began in Baron Sukumvit’s ‘Deathtrap Dungeon’ and continued with Lord Carnuss trying to make a point in ‘Trial of Champions’. Where could it go next other than to have Carnuss build a dungeon of his own…?

Going off on a tangent, you used to be able to get ‘Fighting Fantasy’ novels; I’d love to see these come back and explore the relationship between Sukumvit and Carnuss. I think there’s potentially a lot to work with here and an audience of older fans, and new ones too, who would read it. Just putting it out there ;o)

Anyway, back to the book…

From where I was sat, ‘The Dungeon on Blood Island’ suffers a little bit (at least initially) from being a little too similar to the format of ‘Trial of Champions’; you know, fight in the games to earn the right to go into the Dungeon itself. From a plot perspective it makes total sense but I couldn’t help but feel like I was playing ‘Trial’ all over again.

Don’t let that put you off though, the Dungeon itself is an absolute joy to play through (full disclosure, no dice this time) with a very engaging storyline working alongside some challenging puzzles. Well, they challenged me, your mileage will inevitably vary. What really struck me about this book is that if you half complete a puzzle, you still have half a chance to complete the adventure. It will just be a little more difficult to do. I liked that, not everything can be clear cut all the time and I liked the way this book reflects that on the page.

On that note and without giving too much away, this is an adventure that rewards the adventurer who takes the time to stop and look around. I love that approach as it really makes you stop and appreciate all the effort that has gone into the worldbuilding. You really feel like you’re actually a part of what is going on. Talking of which, the illustrations are a definite improvement on earlier Scholastic editions; I really hope that Krizstian Balla sticks around as it’s clear that they really ‘get’ what Allansia is all about.

Maybe not the most original opening then but the rest of ‘The Dungeon on Blood Island’ more than makes up for it. If you’re a fan, I’m not going to tell you to buy the book because, well… You already have, haven’t you? ;o) If you haven’t played it yet, I think you’ll enjoy it.