Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden

I'm currently reading the module "Icewind Dale: Rime of the Frostmaiden."  I don't read every module, just the ones I think I might run someday, assuming I ever DM again.  So far I own the following 5e modules:  The Curse of Strahd, Tomb of Annihilation, Tales from the Yawning Portal, Ghosts of Saltmarsh, and both Waterdeep modules.  

I've read through most of them.  A couple of them lost my interest about halfway through, but I think I can still use some elements of the book.  My favorites are the non-linear ones.  Curse of Strahd and Tomb of Annihilation are especially good about giving players the freedom to explore, and different playthroughs will undoubtedly feel like entirely different stories.

Rime of the Frostmaiden is also very good about this.  You can start the adventure in any one of ten different towns (collectively known as "Ten Towns"), and each town has its own minor quests.  Some of these quests encourage you to explore the other towns and the outlying areas.

As you gain levels, you start exploring the farther reaches of Icewind Dale, heading into the more dangerous tundras and facing deadlier enemies.  You'll pick up harder side quests, but you still have the freedom to accept or ignore certain plot hooks.  However, you will start to notice some common threads to some of these quests, hints at greater evils at work.

Of course, everything gradually leads up to the main quest, which involves defeating the goddess Auril.  She has been keeping the sun from rising in Icewind Dale, making the harsh land even harder to survive in.  I noticed that it shared a plot point that is similar to Curse of Strahd - once you find yourself in Icewind Dale, it's difficult to leave until the final boss is defeated.  I suppose this keeps you from fleeing, leveling up a few times somewhere safer, and coming back with fresh supplies and magic items.

Also like Curse of Strahd, Rime of the Frostmaiden has been described as a horror-themed adventure.  While it certainly does have some horror elements, I fail to see the overall theme.  Curse of Strahd is full of horror icons like vampires, zombies, and werewolves.  Icewind Dale has a harsh environment, and a few shout-outs to movies like Alien and The Thing, but for the most part it seemed about as horror-themed as any other D&D module.  Tomb of Annihilation is much scarier, IMO.

Still, it's a decent adventure.  I think the most notable selling point is the freedom.  It's practically an open world MMO given how much leeway characters have to forge their own path, especially in the early levels.  It's not my favorite 5e module, but it's probably in the top five.