Assassin's Creed: Renaissance Paperback – Illustrated, February 23, 2010

From the first page this story was just enthralling to the point that i read the entire book in two days. Very exciting and very interesting.I will now purchase the complete series

I read several reviews of this book and was wary initially of buying (to the point where I read parts of it in a bookstore before buying it here). Finally finished it and 500 odd pages later, this is not just a pithy sewing together of cutaway scenes and story clips. Is it classic literature? No, but it wasn't meant to be. It's sometimes hard to translate action in to book form, especially when done in the luscious hi-def glory that Ubisoft was able to achieve. But what it lacks in geographical description, it makes up in explaining and demonstrating the philosophy of the story of the game itself. You understand what makes an Assassin different from a Templar, you understand what made Ezio tick, what made Altair tick and while it is subtle, it is genuine characterization and if you don't get the memo, then you just aren't trying.While some complained because Sophia wasn't painted with more detail or that the relationship between some of the characters could have been explored better (like the political tension in the royal family for example), I'd still argue it wasn't necessary. This is not Suleiman's story or Yusuf's story, nor was it a love story though there is one; it's Ezio's and Atair's stories and the simplicity of their thoughts and actions were well drawn. It wasn't meant to fill in the gaps, fanfic is much more satisfactory in those cases. The only drawback of this book is that sometimes it borders on being preachy, but I don't think the makers of this game were exactly subtle about whose corner they wanted you to be in.True to the game, absolutely direct about it's philosophy, and it doesn't try to masquerade as anything more than it should be for 10 dollars.

The saga of the Assassin just keeps going on. Each chapter brings another chapter in his pursuit of his fight against the Templars. Once you start you are completely drawn into the Assassin's world.

I am a huge gamer and having played Assassins Creed many times, it was nice to see “inside” what we are RPGing. This book was a lot of fun to read and very insightful. “With you until the end, Ezio!”

This book started off with lots of promise. It got my interest straight away and kept it there for a few chapters. It includes some intesting history facts of the age and enlists some of the characters of the age as well all of which I found very intersting and unique. However the general theme did not change. The Protaganist got better and better at killing and never really got into trouble. He goes from one adventure to another of similar sort with the same outcome. He kills everyone and gets away without problems. I had trouble finding the climax and wondered at many points if it was just a story that went on and on without an end.Overall a good light read if you don't expect much surprise or complex intrigue.

I had just started play AC but when I saw the books I got really excited! It was very good, it kept you on your toes!!

I purchased the book hoping it would be something completely new with Ezio, a unique story told by the author that was unrelated to the series. Sadly, it wasn't. This book was great in refreshing much of what happens in Assassin's Creed 2 and some of the memory assignments you can do in Brotherhood (and perhaps Revelations too, though at the time of writing this review, I've only barely dug into Revelations). But because I knew what to expect, I wasn't sitting on the edge of my seat to read it.The one tidbit I didn't like was that it seemed the author sometimes used too many commas. It's minor, but I frequently had to re-read some sentences to ensure it wasn't a run-on. I do like that there's a glossary in the back for the Italian that's frequently sprinkled in.All in all, if you've not played Assassins Creed 2, this would be great for quickly getting caught up (though I'd recommend the game instead for the visual/aural experience) or if you need a refresher. Otherwise, this might be a bit dull since you'll know what to expect.

Assassin's Creed is my all-time favourite game series; I am enthralled by it! Sadly, right now I moved to te U.S. (I am not originally from here) and thus I had to leave my Xbox behind; well it actually belongs to my brother. My point is, while I am saving up for a new Xbox and to buy the Assassin's Creed games again, reading this novel and the one from Brotherhood has been what has saved me from going insane. I don't know why several people haven't liked it. I had no problems whatsoever with the author's style, and actually this novel helped me to better comprehend what went on in ACII because honestly some assassinations had me a bit confused and happened so fast that I didn't understand who I was killing or why.Great purchase, and I am currently reading Brotherhood! :)Insieme per la vittoria! :D