After the events of the first book, the NPCs turned adventurers find themselves on the run. They choose to visit the small town of Briarwillow, hoping to avoid trouble, but of course it wouldn't be much of a story if things worked out that way. The inhabitants of Briarwillow were infected by an illness that seems to have been magically cured, however, something isn't quite right. The citizens are clearly being magically compelled so the NPCs decide to leave and go get help from the mages guild when all of the sudden the Paladin in the party can't move. He quickly realizes that his god won't allow him to leave these people in need so he is going to have to stay to try to solve this mystery. However, getting professional help from the mages is still the better idea, so it's time to split the party...

There is still a dual nature to this story where there is a real world group of players playing a D&D-like game in the same world at the same time that this group of NPCs is adventuring. The actions of the two groups never directly meet, but their actions do have a ripple effect on each other. This to me is the unique hook this series brings to the table but for now it goes mostly unrealized. Most of the time is spent following the NPCs, which are an odd combination of races, classes, and skills not normally seen in fantasy games, like a half-orc mage and a gnome paladin that throws knives. Despite this uniqueness I still find the NPCs to be mostly forgettable and it wasn't until the end of this book that some of them started to get interesting. 

Ultimately this series is only for RPG gamers and even then it isn't a slam dunk must read. However, if you are looking for some lighter fare that calls up your fond memories playing D&D then this might fill that niche for you. The audiobook version is narrated by Roger Wayne and he does a solid job of it, although I don't feel strongly that listening to this is better than reading.