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HeartQuest #1
Ring of the Ruby Dragon
You are Chandell, apprentice to your famed jeweler father, who has been kidnapped by creatures under the mystic spell of the evil red dragon. Somehow, you must try to rescue him. Perhaps the pouch of gems with unknown magical powers will help...
He is Coren, a bequilling young knight hoping to prove himself on his first quest. And then there is Sir Toreck, the older, more experienced fighter, with reasons of his own for joining you. Each one offers to help you, but each has his won way of reacting to your special magic.
Will your fantasy adventure lead you to your first romance, or will the decisions you make carry you into realms from which there is not return?
He is Coren, a bequilling young knight hoping to prove himself on his first quest. And then there is Sir Toreck, the older, more experienced fighter, with reasons of his own for joining you. Each one offers to help you, but each has his won way of reacting to your special magic.
Will your fantasy adventure lead you to your first romance, or will the decisions you make carry you into realms from which there is not return?
157 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1983
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
December 10, 2017
[This is an old review I'm just now adding to Goodreads.]
This was my first “choose your own adventure” book since I read Cinderella: Ninja Warrior almost a year ago. While that one featured better writing, I'd argue that this one was a better “choose your own adventure” - it included both more choices and more endings. Ring of the Ruby Dragon managed to occupy me for an entire day.
In Ring of the Ruby Dragon, you are Chandelle (yes, this is a traditional “choose your own adventure,” so it's written in the second person). Your father is a jeweler, and you've been his apprentice for five years. While on a journey to acquire emeralds for special jewelry for Lord Darkell, you and your father are attacked by a centaur and some winged lions. When you regain consciousness, your father is gone, and all you have are the ioun stones he told you about when you were a child. Each one has magical abilities, but you don't know exactly what they can all do. A young knight named Coren crosses your path, and you have to decide whether to trust in his abilities or head to town and find someone more experienced who can help you rescue your father.
If I counted correctly, the book includes a total of 18 endings. Of those endings, 12 are what I would call “bad,” five are “good,” and one is best described as “neutral.” “Good” and “bad” are somewhat debatable. For example, although Coren was almost always Chandelle's love interest, some routes led to Sir Torbeck being her love interest instead. I thought Torbeck's routes were some of the worst in the book. It was a little disappointing, because I initially found Torbeck to be more appealing.
One of his “good” endings involved Chandelle realizing that she would have to learn not to be jealous of his roving eye. Another involved Chandelle being okay with the idea that Torbeck was a wanderer and might not stick around. Even when things were going well with Torbeck, the ending could still suddenly turn sour – a couple routes resulted in both the loss of Chandelle's father and bitterness between her and her companions. Torbeck's routes were also the only ones that occasionally led to Chandelle accidentally killing everyone.
The first choice in the book turned out to be very important. Depending on which path you chose, you might end up skipping out on most of the book's creatures, characters, and events. As it turned out, I chose the wrong path. Although a good ending was still possible, the story was fairly boring, and Coren kind of annoyed me. Unfortunately, trying to abandon him led to me being enslaved. Several times.
The other choice was much more fun and led to routes with a lot more variety: mermaids, a halfling character named Jancy, Torbeck, a naga (who reminded me of Eeyore), a golden dragon, a couple different kinds of giants, dolphins, a talking door (capable of vaporizing anyone who wasn't truly in love), and more.
As a romance, this book left something to be desired. Torbeck's endings were kind of depressing, even when they were “good.” Coren was boring, and his desire to prove himself as a knight meant he occasionally required a little too much ego stroking (but don't go overboard, or he'll die and you'll end up enslaved). This was published in 1983, and it showed. Chandelle struggled with knowing when to take the initiative. Should she confess her feelings to Coren before he'd made his clear to her? Should she allow Torbeck to make all her decisions for her, or should she trust her own judgment? I was usually pleased with the way some of these decisions worked out, although the stuff with Torbeck...ugh.
While the romance didn't really grab me, I still enjoyed working my way through all the paths and endings. There was surprisingly little overlap among the various routes, so almost every choice led to some new event or character. I doubt I'd ever reread this, but I'm considering putting in an ILL request for another one of the books in the series.
Rating Note:
I honestly have no clue how to rate something like this, but I needed to pick a rating for my records. My final choice of 2.5 stars (rounded up to 3 for Goodreads) seemed like a good compromise between the story (meh), the writing (mediocre, unless you consider the complex issues involved in creating a coherent "choose your own adventure" with this many possible endings and paths), and the overall entertainment value (pretty good).
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
This was my first “choose your own adventure” book since I read Cinderella: Ninja Warrior almost a year ago. While that one featured better writing, I'd argue that this one was a better “choose your own adventure” - it included both more choices and more endings. Ring of the Ruby Dragon managed to occupy me for an entire day.
In Ring of the Ruby Dragon, you are Chandelle (yes, this is a traditional “choose your own adventure,” so it's written in the second person). Your father is a jeweler, and you've been his apprentice for five years. While on a journey to acquire emeralds for special jewelry for Lord Darkell, you and your father are attacked by a centaur and some winged lions. When you regain consciousness, your father is gone, and all you have are the ioun stones he told you about when you were a child. Each one has magical abilities, but you don't know exactly what they can all do. A young knight named Coren crosses your path, and you have to decide whether to trust in his abilities or head to town and find someone more experienced who can help you rescue your father.
If I counted correctly, the book includes a total of 18 endings. Of those endings, 12 are what I would call “bad,” five are “good,” and one is best described as “neutral.” “Good” and “bad” are somewhat debatable. For example, although Coren was almost always Chandelle's love interest, some routes led to Sir Torbeck being her love interest instead. I thought Torbeck's routes were some of the worst in the book. It was a little disappointing, because I initially found Torbeck to be more appealing.
One of his “good” endings involved Chandelle realizing that she would have to learn not to be jealous of his roving eye. Another involved Chandelle being okay with the idea that Torbeck was a wanderer and might not stick around. Even when things were going well with Torbeck, the ending could still suddenly turn sour – a couple routes resulted in both the loss of Chandelle's father and bitterness between her and her companions. Torbeck's routes were also the only ones that occasionally led to Chandelle accidentally killing everyone.
The first choice in the book turned out to be very important. Depending on which path you chose, you might end up skipping out on most of the book's creatures, characters, and events. As it turned out, I chose the wrong path. Although a good ending was still possible, the story was fairly boring, and Coren kind of annoyed me. Unfortunately, trying to abandon him led to me being enslaved. Several times.
The other choice was much more fun and led to routes with a lot more variety: mermaids, a halfling character named Jancy, Torbeck, a naga (who reminded me of Eeyore), a golden dragon, a couple different kinds of giants, dolphins, a talking door (capable of vaporizing anyone who wasn't truly in love), and more.
As a romance, this book left something to be desired. Torbeck's endings were kind of depressing, even when they were “good.” Coren was boring, and his desire to prove himself as a knight meant he occasionally required a little too much ego stroking (but don't go overboard, or he'll die and you'll end up enslaved). This was published in 1983, and it showed. Chandelle struggled with knowing when to take the initiative. Should she confess her feelings to Coren before he'd made his clear to her? Should she allow Torbeck to make all her decisions for her, or should she trust her own judgment? I was usually pleased with the way some of these decisions worked out, although the stuff with Torbeck...ugh.
While the romance didn't really grab me, I still enjoyed working my way through all the paths and endings. There was surprisingly little overlap among the various routes, so almost every choice led to some new event or character. I doubt I'd ever reread this, but I'm considering putting in an ILL request for another one of the books in the series.
Rating Note:
I honestly have no clue how to rate something like this, but I needed to pick a rating for my records. My final choice of 2.5 stars (rounded up to 3 for Goodreads) seemed like a good compromise between the story (meh), the writing (mediocre, unless you consider the complex issues involved in creating a coherent "choose your own adventure" with this many possible endings and paths), and the overall entertainment value (pretty good).
(Original review posted on A Library Girl's Familiar Diversions.)
September 21, 2015
I don't know where to begin. For one thing I thought this was for adults, not tween/teens, so that was disappointing. For another there's no real sense of time unless the lath specifically needs an amount to pass) so these deep feelings she has make no sense.
I did appreciate that any time she was negative, selfish, a brat or judgemental the book slapped her down with a horrible Bad Ending.
Meanwhile it never occurred to me before but these types of books were the pre cursor to the otome/visual novel games I like. Except saving multiple times for dif endings is hella easier then rereading TSTL life multiple times.
I did appreciate that any time she was negative, selfish, a brat or judgemental the book slapped her down with a horrible Bad Ending.
Meanwhile it never occurred to me before but these types of books were the pre cursor to the otome/visual novel games I like. Except saving multiple times for dif endings is hella easier then rereading TSTL life multiple times.
August 31, 2019
I wasn't much interested in the Endless Quest choose your own adventure books, but when I heard that TSR did a shortlived string of "HeartQuest" books aimed at girls (no recommended age) in 1983 that combined 1st Edition Advanced Dungeons and Dragons with second person romance I was immediately intrigued. How would that work, I wondered. Well, these books didn't let me down. Sure, there was some sugary schmaltzyness that can be amusingly silly. I'd've been disappointed if there wasn't. What really impressed me was how many RPG encounters the writer could fit in these books. Also, don't expect to survive your first time reading them. I got Chandelle killed or enslaved the first time I tried it. I can't even spoil it by saying something like "stand by your man" or "treat it just like a D&D adventure and you'll survive" because "good" decisions can get you trapped and bad decisions can lead to more choices. The romantic interest who is the heroin's own age might be a hero but so might the knight who is 10 years older than the 15-year-old girl... or he might end up a snot rag. It all depends on how you "pick a path to romance and adventure" and some happy endings seem more wholesome than others. I went back again and again until I'd exhausted every possible sequence before I wrote this review, so it is also fun to get as much out of the book as you can. BONUSES! A cute female halfling thief - a sprite - a sage (an overlooked part of D&D) - and a witch. Plus, new magic items used creatively and a way to make a 0 level character hold her own in combat.
April 5, 2019
I'm giving The Ring of the Ruby Dragon a perhaps unjustified four stars for although I have a vague recollection of it being very 80s-y, mostly I remember that I absolutely loved it and was very impressed by the choose your own story aspect. What can I say? I'm being loyal to my nine (ish) year old self.
August 28, 2023
Here it is - the very first bit of randomness on my bookshelf which I found thanks to Blue Sky Social (there's still not a huge amount of interesting content there, but it does seem to be warming up a little)! This 40-year old gem (heh) was put out by the publishers of Dungeons & Dragons back in the day in some sort of marketing ploy to get girls to play D&D. I'm sure that didn't work. To put it mildly. Nonetheless, 40 years on I was amused enough with the notion to give this choose your own adventure romance a whirl.
First, it's been years (decades, really) since I've read 1980s teen romance novels so I can't remember if they were all this insipid, or if it's jus this that is so lacking in the romance aspect. Our heroine is a 15-year old (OMG, soooooooooo young) so the "romance" mostly consisted of awkwardness, uncertainty, and a whole lotta jealousy. So much jealousy. Even when I managed to choose my way into longer stories, the romance aspect never rose above lackluster; it was so very tacked on.
As for the choose your own adventure portion - that was fine. Took me about five minutes to remember that I generally find I'm too obsessed with trying to experience every single storyline possible to really enjoy any of the stories. Maybe I should just read it cover to cover, LOL, I might be able to enjoy what I get.
Anyway, it was definitely an amusement - I didn't even mention the fun illustrations! And I'm soooo happy the Jerseyville Free Library not only had a copy, but hardbound the copy so it would last, AND lent me their copy via ILL. Because, while I enjoyed the experience, no way would I pay $100+ for the pleasure.
First, it's been years (decades, really) since I've read 1980s teen romance novels so I can't remember if they were all this insipid, or if it's jus this that is so lacking in the romance aspect. Our heroine is a 15-year old (OMG, soooooooooo young) so the "romance" mostly consisted of awkwardness, uncertainty, and a whole lotta jealousy. So much jealousy. Even when I managed to choose my way into longer stories, the romance aspect never rose above lackluster; it was so very tacked on.
As for the choose your own adventure portion - that was fine. Took me about five minutes to remember that I generally find I'm too obsessed with trying to experience every single storyline possible to really enjoy any of the stories. Maybe I should just read it cover to cover, LOL, I might be able to enjoy what I get.
Anyway, it was definitely an amusement - I didn't even mention the fun illustrations! And I'm soooo happy the Jerseyville Free Library not only had a copy, but hardbound the copy so it would last, AND lent me their copy via ILL. Because, while I enjoyed the experience, no way would I pay $100+ for the pleasure.
January 7, 2019
2.5 de calificación
Es difícil hace una reseña de este libro, ya que nunca antes había leído un "escoge tu propia aventura"; no fue fácil establecer un vinculo con los protagonistas principales, Chandelle, Torbeck y Coren, ya que dependiendo de la elección que hiciera resultaban unos genios o unos tontos de lo peor.
La única de la tropa que no me puso en una encrucijada emocional fue Jancy, esa niña fue un pan de Dios.
El amor instantáneo tampoco ayudó mucho a la causa, ya que los intereses amorosos apenas y se conocían, voy a suponer que para las personas que aman el romance a toda costa queda perfecto, pero para mi fue demasiado empalagoso.
Eso si, el mundo en el cual se ambienta la historia está genial, con todas las criaturas mágicas que no había leído antes y el anillo de piedras flotante. No estoy segura de leer más títulos de esta serie pero sin duda me quedé con ganas de buscar más libro-juegos.
Es difícil hace una reseña de este libro, ya que nunca antes había leído un "escoge tu propia aventura"; no fue fácil establecer un vinculo con los protagonistas principales, Chandelle, Torbeck y Coren, ya que dependiendo de la elección que hiciera resultaban unos genios o unos tontos de lo peor.
La única de la tropa que no me puso en una encrucijada emocional fue Jancy, esa niña fue un pan de Dios.
El amor instantáneo tampoco ayudó mucho a la causa, ya que los intereses amorosos apenas y se conocían, voy a suponer que para las personas que aman el romance a toda costa queda perfecto, pero para mi fue demasiado empalagoso.
Eso si, el mundo en el cual se ambienta la historia está genial, con todas las criaturas mágicas que no había leído antes y el anillo de piedras flotante. No estoy segura de leer más títulos de esta serie pero sin duda me quedé con ganas de buscar más libro-juegos.
July 24, 2025
This is an interesting one. I'll admit that besides one entry in the GN awards this year, I haven't read a CYOA in years and wasn't familiar so with the constraints and conventions. This was a fun little romantic romp through the early D&D setting. I love the concept (I have a particular fondness for D&D- Now For Girls! marketing over the year) and can see a lot of fun was had with the idea.
Yes, there are a handful of things that would have to be removed/updated for a republication due to changes in sensibilities (like not wanting a 15 year old romancing a 25 year old man) but with a few small tweaks it holds up pretty well.
The characters were a good mix, though I found Torbeck's story and character more fun than Coren's. Jancy was a delight throughout.
Is it fine literature? Hardly. Did I have fun playing it? Absolutely.
Yes, there are a handful of things that would have to be removed/updated for a republication due to changes in sensibilities (like not wanting a 15 year old romancing a 25 year old man) but with a few small tweaks it holds up pretty well.
The characters were a good mix, though I found Torbeck's story and character more fun than Coren's. Jancy was a delight throughout.
Is it fine literature? Hardly. Did I have fun playing it? Absolutely.
May 5, 2022
Third star is mostly for nostalgia. Read this when I was a kid, and recently read an article that there were a whole series of these. Got them through ILL and am reading through. I did go through every choice iteration. Lots of memories, but pretty silly and simple writing. The premise is that these are "romance" choose your own adventure books, so the protagonist is naturally put in romantic situations with a couple of different adventurer types, depending on the path you choose. Unfortunately, she didn't seem super confident or empowered, and there was a lot of "what should I do to make the big strong man like me?" It was fun to see lots of different creatures and the inner illustrations enhanced the story.
December 11, 2023
As a lover of RL Stine choose your own adventure books, when I heard of this series I HAD to check it out. I thought it was going to be steamy but to my surprise it was actually a wholesome safe-for-everyone story. Obviously with so many endings and only ~150 pages there wasn't a lot of story to get into but it was a fun neat little package that left me feeling like going after an rpg again
October 17, 2022
Was a favorite of mine when I was young! Apparently I’ve grown up so much that a choose your own adventure book I kept getting to the end to quickly.. I guess I’m too sensible now! Haha. Still a fun blast from the past.
November 15, 2016
These Heartquest books are quite bad but they are a hold-over from my childhood. Of all the Heartquest books this was my favorite by far.
March 6, 2023
Enjoyment ★★★★★
Concept ★★★★☆
Writing Style ★★★☆☆
Characters ★★★☆☆
Plot ★★★☆☆
Pacing ★★★★★
Ending(s) ★★★★☆
Concept ★★★★☆
Writing Style ★★★☆☆
Characters ★★★☆☆
Plot ★★★☆☆
Pacing ★★★★★
Ending(s) ★★★★☆
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews