This book covers the story of Thrall between Warcraft 2 and Warcraft 3. It is one of the first storylines within the Warcraft universe to present the orcs as something more than just monsters. It also has the advantage of covering a part of the Warcraft story that isn't already covered in the games. That evidently allowed the author to develop some characters and relationships without usual need to include Events, the bane of most Warcraft novels. Yes, there are certainly things that happen. It is an adventure novel. The adventures are more personal though and related to the characters directly.