Posted reviews seem to rate the Magic books based on their faithfulness to "official" storylines or whatever's supposed to be written on the back of the cards. In other words, detail over the body of the tale. Let me remind you: Magic is a fantasy world, a world is a living thing, not subject to unbending rules culled from tournaments nor trades; and as fantasy, is meant to give life to drama, not just the cast. As one who has served in the military, I salute Mr. Moore's achievement of depicting real, desperate human emotions despite the temptations of a patently fantastic setting. An immersing read that stands on its own merits.