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jovianjournals's review against another edition
challenging
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
razielsky's review
dark
mysterious
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.0
syrinx's review
dark
mysterious
reflective
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
reddjena's review against another edition
4.0
I used this for a class project on Biblical allusions. It was fun and interesting!
ipacho's review against another edition
5.0
Gorgeous drawings, breathtaking writing... This is the finest example where RPG's become pure storytelling art.
nmcannon's review
3.0
As people with the (mis)fortune to know me irl definitely know and people who follow me on social media may know, I've been obsessed with Vampire: the Masquerade this past twelvemonth. As a tabletop setting dating back to 1991, VtM has many rulebooks, novels, comics, and storyteller books available. Enough to get lost in, really. As part of my 2020 GoodReads challenge, I decided to read a selection going along the vague timeline of Vampire and centering on my favorite recurring character, Cuthbert Beckett.
The Book of Nod is the setting's take on the genesis of vampires. In VtM's world, the curse God bestowed upon Caine led to the creation of vampires, with Caine as the first blood drinker. Never heard that one before, am I right? I was confused and amused too. The Book of Nod details how this came about, various laws and advice Caine doled out when he ruled the First City, Enoch, obliquely references how Enoch fell, and the Flood. There are then Proverbs and sayings attributed to various vampire founders, and prophecies concerning the end of vampires as a race.
To add even more interest, The Book of Nod is presented as a primary historical source. Just like in history class, we have footnotes, introductions, and referenced scholastic quibbles over what such-and-such means or the truth of a certain line. The Book is a compilation of fragments painstakingly tracked down and unearthed. Historians and archeologists called the Mnemosyne (or Memory-Seekers) went to great trouble to get this all together, and it was just as fun to read their Indiana Jones-like adventures as it was to read the pseudo-Genesis. The head of the Mnemosyne is Aristotle de Laurent and he's the main writer, but he references his childe Beckett plenty.
Honestly, I didn't think I'd like The Book of Nod as much as I did. I'm Catholic, an amateur historian, and a product of Catholic high school. A lot of media that plays with Christianity annoys me because the writers didn't take the time to really get the culture and history they're parodying. There were some missteps. Chupp calls the Talmud a "Midrashim." which struck me as incorrect? I'm no expert, but the Talmud should at least be considered THE midrash, right? Or just...call it the Talmud. There was a confusing bit about how Caine and Abel were actually separate groups of people who went to war. I was sure this was leading into the accepted Catholic Genesis-is-a-metaphor theory, but then Sun and Moon gods literally cursed/blessed people, so I was confused why/how/where this was different than the Abrahamic God telling Caine to piss off. I guess because there were two gods? Where was the evidence of that?
Overall, however, The Book of Nod was quite a fun bit of world-building. As a reader, writer, and gamer, I delighted. If you're looking for a little extra oomph for your Vampire: the Masquerade experience, it's definitely worth picking up a copy.
The Book of Nod is the setting's take on the genesis of vampires. In VtM's world, the curse God bestowed upon Caine led to the creation of vampires, with Caine as the first blood drinker. Never heard that one before, am I right? I was confused and amused too. The Book of Nod details how this came about, various laws and advice Caine doled out when he ruled the First City, Enoch, obliquely references how Enoch fell, and the Flood. There are then Proverbs and sayings attributed to various vampire founders, and prophecies concerning the end of vampires as a race.
To add even more interest, The Book of Nod is presented as a primary historical source. Just like in history class, we have footnotes, introductions, and referenced scholastic quibbles over what such-and-such means or the truth of a certain line. The Book is a compilation of fragments painstakingly tracked down and unearthed. Historians and archeologists called the Mnemosyne (or Memory-Seekers) went to great trouble to get this all together, and it was just as fun to read their Indiana Jones-like adventures as it was to read the pseudo-Genesis. The head of the Mnemosyne is Aristotle de Laurent and he's the main writer, but he references his childe Beckett plenty.
Honestly, I didn't think I'd like The Book of Nod as much as I did. I'm Catholic, an amateur historian, and a product of Catholic high school. A lot of media that plays with Christianity annoys me because the writers didn't take the time to really get the culture and history they're parodying. There were some missteps. Chupp calls the Talmud a "Midrashim." which struck me as incorrect? I'm no expert, but the Talmud should at least be considered THE midrash, right? Or just...call it the Talmud. There was a confusing bit about how Caine and Abel were actually separate groups of people who went to war. I was sure this was leading into the accepted Catholic Genesis-is-a-metaphor theory, but then Sun and Moon gods literally cursed/blessed people, so I was confused why/how/where this was different than the Abrahamic God telling Caine to piss off. I guess because there were two gods? Where was the evidence of that?
Overall, however, The Book of Nod was quite a fun bit of world-building. As a reader, writer, and gamer, I delighted. If you're looking for a little extra oomph for your Vampire: the Masquerade experience, it's definitely worth picking up a copy.
ipacho's review
5.0
Gorgeous drawings, breathtaking writing... This is the finest example where RPG's become pure storytelling art.
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