|
3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sword and sorcery at its best, 2 May 2004
I first read the Chronicles in the 80s aged about 11, and I've come back to them at regular intervals since. As my old copy of the Collector's Edition has finally fallen apart, I was delighted to come across this new annotated version. The first thing to say is that this edition is stunning. The paper is high quality and it features both new cover art and some colour archive material showing the evolution of the characters. The annotations can be intrusive (they're printed in the outside columns of the pages), but I guess that if you want an annotated edition, then they have to go somewhere. As the last reviewer said, the notes do relate mostly to the links between the novels and the AD&D game, so will naturally be of more interest to those who are familiar with this. On to the novels themselves. The first book is the most obviously rooted in the AD&D gameworld and is essentially a classic 'dungeon crawl' adventure, though a very good one. The story really takes off with the division of the characters into separate parties in 'Dragons of Winter Night'. The narrative impressively handles political intrigue as well as action. It is, though, the characterisation that really sets the Chronicles apart. The heroes are well-rounded characters with enough flaws, contradictions and tensions to keep them recognisably human (or elven, dwarven, etc, but you get the point!). The narrative sets their inner struggles within the context of the wider crisis, showing the ways in which events of global importance may be shaped by personal choices. If you've read any AD&D-based fantasy before then you probably already know whether you like it or not. If you do, then the Dragonlance Chronicles and Legends, along with R. A. Salvatore's Icewind Dale Trilogy, rank among the best. Just one final point: this edition seems to be aimed at existing fans, and the annotations contain plot spoilers. If you're reading it for the first time, it may be better to start with the Collector's Edition instead.
|
by Margaret Weis
by Tracy Hickman
by Margaret Weis
by Margaret Weis
by Margaret Weis
With an Amazon.co.uk Gift Certificate, you can get them what they want (even if you don't know what that is). 
Amazon Home