Steven C. (SteveTheDM) - , reviewed on 9/27/2009 + 204 more book reviews

There's been so much hoo-haw about Dragonlance recently, that I figured I'd finally grab a copy and see what the fuss is about.

Now, granted, the very first book written was probably not the *best* choice, seeing as the authors were just getting themselves wrapped around the novelization of a D&D adventure, but it was the start of the saga, so it did seem like the right place to begin.

But the book has trouble. It's got way too many characters in it to be anything more than a plot-driven story, and the themes of the characters in the story never get explored as fully as they ought. There are sections describing underground exploration where lots of words are wasted describing the length of corridors. It feels like it's struggling with the question of whether its audience is adult or not.

The end result is a book that probably really appealed to 13-year-olds back in the early 80s. Today? There are many many more well-written books for 13-year-olds, and it's not all that great a journey for adults in any era. I did want to see how the book ended, so it was better than something needing only to be tossed out, but its companions will suffer at the bottom of my book pile for quite a while, as I pursue other, better written books.

Back to all reviews by this member
Back to all reviews of this book
Back to Book Reviews
Back to Book Details