Dungeons & Dragons fans will surely love this story. It’s always fun to see a new form of a beloved pastime. But even those who have never heard of D&D will be able to fully enjoy Doric’s story. I myself have only a passing knowledge of D&D but it wasn’t necessary to know anything about the game. This is a great fantasy story that just happens to be set in the world of Dungeons & Dragons. This gave Johnston a preconceived set of rules, species, and locations to begin working in. That saved some of the groundwork of world-building. But the story was all hers and stands alone nicely.

One thing I can say for sure, The Druid’s Call got me excited to see Doric again in the new movie Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves when it comes out! Even if you don’t plan on seeing the movie though, I recommend checking out this book for an uplifting tale of self-acceptance mixed with an exciting adventure.

Johnston’s contribution focuses on Doric, an abandoned tiefling living among the elves of the Neverwinter Wood. Portrayed by Sophia Lillis in the upcoming film—young Beverly Marsh in 2017’s It—Doric is perpetually the odd woman out.

Rejected by her human parents for her infernal appearance and sticking out like the proverbial sore thumb among her elvish kin, she’s convinced herself that the way to fit in, the only true way to head off any additional rejection, is to make herself useful to the tribe.

Unfortunately, her skills as a ranger are lacking—especially when compared to those of her childhood friend Deverel. However, a fateful hunting encounter between Doric, her elven bestie Torrieth, and a displaced bear opens up new avenues when Doric demonstrates an innate knack for druidic magic.

Encouraged by Torrieth and Liavaris, her adopted mother, Doric eventually makes the long journey to Ardeep Forest, home of the Emerald Enclave. With its sole mission to train up the young defenders of the natural world, the Enclave hosts would-be rangers, barbarians, and druids alike, which widens the novel’s scope beyond the reach of Neverwinter and into the greater Sword Coast.

This also gives the book a chance to flex its inclusivity muscles. While D&D‘s history with racial and cultural representation has long been problematic, recent changes to the property have sought to address this issue head-on. As such, Doric finds herself among beings of all shapes, sizes, and hues in the Emerald Enclave.

These include everything from genasi and the giant-kin firbolg (in the form of Doric’s new roomie, Jowenys) to half-orcs, humans, and even another tiefling, each of which is defined by their own intentions rather than any innate “evil” inherent in their race.

Palanus, Doric’s half-orc instructor, uses they/them pronouns, which is woven into the tale in such as way that makes it a total non-issue. This is who Palanus is, and their charges respect it.

Druid's Call
Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: The Druid’s Call cover image
E.K. Johnston does an admirable job of weaving game concepts into Doric’s story. Easy spells like Shape Water are outright referred to as cantrips, while more complicated spellwork is described as drawing on a limited well of power from the caster—an easy enough intro to D&D‘s magic system.

Particular attention is paid to the druid class feature Wild Shape (the ability to shift into an animal form) and the fearsome monster known as the owlbear. While owlbears are not typically included in Wild Shape animal options, keen viewers surely noticed Doric’s transformation in the film’s latest trailer, so this was a nice way to get the otherwise uninitiated up to speed concerning an important aspect of one of the movie’s principle characters.

Aside from Doric herself and a few cameos from Simon the sorcerer (played by Justice Smith in the film), The Druid’s Call doesn’t exactly flaunt its connection to the Honor Among Thieves. It’s much more of a self-contained piece that instead focuses on a single young member before fate ties her together with the larger adventuring party.

Best of all, it does this without leaning too hard into the trappings of the traditional YA character introduction. This isn’t a color-by-numbers coming-of-age story. Demon baby parental abandonment trauma aside, it establishes Doric as a relatable character looking to make her way in the world, even as she understands herself to be a horn-headed, coal-eating deviation often ignored or ridiculed by the populace at large.

I also really appreciate how Johnston totally eschews the tiresome teenage romance subplot. (Aside from a brief courtship between Deverel and Torrieth, the book never dwells too heavily on matters of the heart.) Instead, The Druid’s Call focuses on themes of platonic love, found family, and self-awareness.

My only knock against the book is that the central conflict—that being the friction between Neverwinter’s elven population and a growing group of human clear-cutters damaging the delicate forest ecosystem—isn’t exactly wrapped up by the tale’s end. Given some of the shots in the movie trailer, though, I wholly anticipate this being part of the film’s overarching narrative.

Routinely flashing back from Doric’s real-time journey into the larger world of men to wisps of memory from her isolated childhood, The Druid’s Call reminds readers (regardless of age) that one’s past doesn’t necessarily determine one’s future and, more importantly, that it’s never a bad time to chart a new path not just for the good of yourself but for those you love and cherish as well.

Dungeons & Dragons: Honor Among Thieves: The Druid's Call is very much a prequel to the film, but it also gives an intriguing and heartfelt backstory to one of the main characters that we won't likely see in the movie.

The book, by YA fantasy and sci-fi author E.K. Johnston, essentially tells the tale of how Doric learned to Wild Shape into an owlbear - which we see her do in the movie's trailer. We also see her channel magic in various ways, and this book answers the question: What is she and how can she do that?

In the book, Doric is a young tiefling - a type of humanoid with horns and a scaly tail - whom most humans steer clear from. There's a strong vein of prejudice against tieflings in this world, as many consider them "evil" or even demons. It's because of this prejudice that Doric is neglected by her parents and ultimately abandoned as a child in the woods.

Though she's extremely self-reliant for a child, she comes to live with the wood elves in the Neverwinter Wood - both the elves and the forest teach her invaluable lessons even as she struggles to overcome her fear of abandonment.

When her unique talent for understanding, empathizing with, and communicating with nature fully manifests, she's tasked with "going off the school" at the Emerald Enclave to learn the ways of the druids. And learn she does - including Wild Shaping.

This was one of those rare books where the middle third was much stronger than the first and last thirds. Doric's training and education with the druids were the most interesting aspects of the story, even as she was technically staying in one geographical location.

The best parts of this YA novel were the flashbacks to Doric's heartbreaking childhood and self-discovery in the forest and her druid training. Because this book is a prequel to a movie, the stakes are low and there really isn't a climax. The novel simply ends with Doric fully trained and receiving a letter from a sorcerer to help them on a mission with a couple of other thieves.

Still, if you're interested in the upcoming movie, especially Sophia Lillis' character, you'll enjoy this book.