Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman




Image from Amazon.com

  My boyfriend suggested the Dragonlance Chronicles, by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, as an interesting read.  I was hesitant to start this series as I have been burned by similar suggestions from former boyfriends.  However, I have to say that I was pleasantly surprised and plan to willingly continue the series.

I knew that the series was based on the Dungeons & Dragons Role-Playing Game and I was wary of how this would translate into a novel.  (I had read a few books based on a similar Vampire RPG and found it repetitive and dry.)  There were a few things that were clearly game based, i.e. the mage's limitations when it came to spell casting, but they weren't so glaringly obvious that I would have noticed if I hadn't been looking for them.

The descriptions of setting were my favorite part of this book.  The authors didn't get lost in them, à la Tolkien, but they certainly painted a vivid picture.  The beginning description of the town of Solace and the Valenwood Forest was so crisp I felt as if I could actually go there to see these massive giants and the town nestled within the branches.  Xak Tsaroth's description makes me feel like I am at the base of Niagra Falls once more, but with an aging city all around me.  Beautiful detail that envelopes the reader and engages the imagination.

The development of characters is a little predictable at times, but no less interesting.  The complicated back stories of Tanis Half-Elven and Raistlin Majere are enticing enough that I want to read more of the series and unravel the mysteries surrounding them.  These two characters, as well, are interesting in their decisions and motivations throughout the novel.  Some of the minor characters in this first book are two dimensional but I hope they are further developed in later novels.

Definitely a book I would recommend to anyone looking for a new fantasy series to read.