Amber and Blood

Dragonlance: The Dark Disciple #3

by Margaret Weis

The Dark Disciple's fate will alter the future of Krynn. In the concluding volume of this post-War of Souls trilogy, Mina learns the truth about herself and the terrible knowledge drives her insane. Rhys, the monk of Majere, accompanied by his dog Atta and the kender Nightshade, is given the dangerous assignment of guarding the crazed god, escorting her on a long, strange journey to the mysterious place known as Godshome, where Mina hopes to find the answer to the riddle of her existence. Their path is fraught with peril, for the undead Beloved want to make Mina their leader, even as the death knight Krell wants to seize her and Galdar tries to deliver Mina to her most hated enemy.

Genres: Dragonlance, Fantasy, Fiction, Dungeons and Dragons, Adventure, Epic Fantasy, Dragons

325 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2008

About the author

Margaret Edith Weis is an American fantasy and science fiction author of dozens of novels and short stories. At TSR, Inc., she teamed with Tracy Hickman to create the Dragonlance role-playing game (RPG) world. She is founding CEO and owner of Sovereign Press, Inc and Margaret Weis Productions, licensing several popular television and movie franchises to make RPG series in addition to their own.
In 1999, Pyramid magazine named Weis one of The Millennium's Most Influential Persons, saying she and Hickman are "basically responsible for the entire gaming fiction genre". In 2002, she was inducted into the Origins Hall of Fame in part for Dragonlance.

Reviews

[Jim C · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is the third book of a trilogy. We pick up right where we left off from the second book. Mina has discovered she is actually a god and this book is about how she processes that information.

I didn't think this was the best ending for this trilogy. It did end the way it had to end but this book wasn't the most intriguing. For the majority of this book Mina regresses back to a child because of the information. All she wants to do is get home. The problem with this is for the majority of this book we have our characters, Rhys and Nightshade, dealing with a petulant child. Not the most exciting aspect to read when dealing with a fantasy novel. Don't get me wrong. I can easily identify with the character. This year hasn't been the best for me and I would love to regress back to a child. But I cannot. So me identifying with the character was a highlight and always tends to be a highlight with these Dragonlance novels. But the petulant child act did get a little tiresome. And the ending brought everything together but wasn't much of a surprise.

I think this trilogy did end on a thud. The only reason I am giving this three stars instead of two is my connection with the main character and what she was going through. Besides that there wasn't much here. I do know that the authors had a lot drama with the company over rights. I wonder if that came into play while writing this book because I just didn't see much development throughout.

[Tabitha Tomala · Rating 3 out of 5]

I am sad to say this book was not as good as the previous two. The story seemed very rushed, such a long journey they had should not have been cut to nothing by Mina's powers. Maybe a quartet would have been better than a trilogy. This book was also full of mistakes, whether missing words, the wrong words or just plain bad grammar, I think this took away from the story as well.

[Laura Cannone · Rating 5 out of 5]

Fine di questa magnifica e lunga saga... e ora cosa leggo?

[Logan · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Amber and Blood,” by Margaret Weis, is an incredible and interesting just like the rest of the books in the series. It starts off with Rhys Mason the monk and Nightshade who were talking to each other about what had happened to them in the cave. The Rhys notices a small young girl in the water who had turned out to be Mina the person that was threatening to kill them. The thing that wasn’t known to Mina, Rhys, or all of the gods except for a few was that the small red haired girl was very special. Mina wants to go to a mysterious place known as Godshome which isn’t easy to get to because it’s near Neraka the place of the dark queen Takhisis. So they set off on their journey heading to Solace where Nightshade and Rhys’s friend Gerard is but things don’t go as they expected. When they get to Solace they heard rumors of a fight happening in temple square where all the temples for the gods are. As it turns out it was the followers of Chemosh, the god of death, started a fight with one of the followers of a god of light. Rhys later decides to pay a visit to the temple of Majere so that he can speak with the Abbot of Majere for directions to Godshome. He is then attacked by Krell, a bone Acolyte, and has magic bands placed around his wrists and ankles the same thing happened to Mina. Krell was then knocked out by Nightshade which gave Mina a chance to escape and run away. Rhys told Nightshade to go after Mina, then Jenna, a witch lady, released Rhys from the magic bands and fights Krell and wins. Nightshade and Mina find a strange cabin in the woods on their way to Nekara, they ask to come in then they both eat some gingerbread and both fall asleep. Rhys later finds them and starts to converse with the person that turns out to actually be a god who sends them to Nekara with her powers in an instant. The small group then meets up with the person that they were then supposed to meet which was a previous god. When they meet up with him Mina remembers him and starts to attack him but they try to stop her but are seriously injured from trying. In the end Mina just her monolith that signifies that is a god and Rhys returns to his monastery. I really enjoyed this book it was so exciting but very sad especially at the end of the book when Mina attacks Rhys and Nightshade. I loved this book because you get to really enjoy the characters and then the ending just hits you like a truck and you just don’t expect it. It was really exciting when Mina learned about how she was a god and whenever she used her powers to get places faster because it was easy to imagine. One of my favorite moments was when Krell attacked because it seemed like he would win the entire time but then Jenna appeared and helped Rhys. I loved how at the end I expected Mina to just meet with the guy he would show her to Godshome but instead she just went ballistic and then the sad stuff happened. The ending just had such a big impact on me because of what Mina did and how unexpected her actions were. The theme could be even with a bad memory you can still remember people from your past because of how when Mina met Galdar she remembered him right when he said her name. Over all the book was incredible with an extremely sad ending that nearly brought me to tears which doesn’t happen much in books, movies, or any shows most of the time.

[✨ Gramy ✨ · Rating 4 out of 5]

.
This is definitely a worthwhile, fantasy, adventure that I enjoyed very much.

Would recommend!

[Edith Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

It felt like it took a long time to chew through the first half of the book. It was still the wonderful writing of Weis but felt a little dragged. In all it was still what we came for. Kender and all.

[Jessica · Rating 2 out of 5]

Amber and Blood is the third book in the post-War of the Souls trilogy in the Dragonlance series of books. This trilogy is called Dark Disciple, and it focuses on Mina, a character that was introduced in the War of the Souls trilogy. For those who know nothing about Dragonlance lore, this review is not going to make a whole lot of sense, and I feel compelled to tell you that there are series spoilers in this review.
In the last book in the trilogy we discovered that Mina was actually a god - all this time she thought the gods were working through her, but it was really her power that was working. She was created at the beginning of time as a god of Light, but as her existence upset the balance between Darkness and Light, she was put into eternal slumber. She awoke when Takhisis stole the world, which precipitated the War of the Souls. Takhisis convinced Mina to work for Darkness, and Mina never discovered that she was meant to be a goddess on the side of Light. It's no wonder that at the beginning of Amber and Blood, she goes crazy and appears as the aspect of a six-year-old child, before she became a vehicle of Takhisis' will. Amber and Blood follows Mina's journey to Godshome, where she is drawn for some inexplicable purpose. She is joined by Brother Rhys, a monk, and Nightshade, a kender (with common sense), and their dog Atta. The choices she makes could upset the balance of power in the universe, but no one seems to no what she might do.
I really only finished this book because I wanted to see how Weis would end the trilogy. The book itself was definitely not great. I enjoyed it for the Dragonlance storyline, but even that really wasn't enough to make me care about what happened. It's disappointing, because I know that Weis can do better, at least I have read better books by her and Tracy Hickman together (The Deathgate Cycle is a must read for anyone who enjoys fantasy). But the latest Dragonlance books, especially this series, have really been a let-down.

[Chris Witt · Rating 2 out of 5]

Well well well. Let's see here...

I started to like this book better than the first two books of the trilogy. Not great. But decent.

Then it descended into a bunch of nonsense. Here are some of the highlights.

1) Frequent exchanges between the lead character (as a child) and a kender that read like this:

"Yes you are."
"No I'm not!"
"Are too!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"Am not!"
"Are too!"
"Am not!"

And so forth...

2) Hey! Did you know there's a dog in this book?! It's name is Atta, and it's black and white and cute and loyal and fluffy and defends its master and, oh, it's just great! It's a dog!

Seriously. Enough with the dog.

3) A "Hollywood ending" that you probably saw a mile away. The only saving grace of it was that I thought that's how the "War of Souls" trilogy would end. Instead they dragged it out over the course of six books. Come to think of it, that part of it actually sucks as well.

In short, I'd suggest not reading this trilogy. You probably have something more useful you could be doing with your time.

[Menion · Rating 4 out of 5]

A solid ending to a solid series. Weis does a good job carrying the series on her own. Now, if she, or she and Hickman, would just go back there so we can see what is going on in Krynn! I really hate the fact that the series may never resume thanks to the clowns at Wizards of the Coast. What other company could be so stupid that instead of letting craftsmen like Weiss and Hickman write their series, they spend their time publishing crappy Magic cards? (they have run that game into the ground in the past three years, too many stupid mechanics, too many cards period, and no re-publishing of the good cards). Enough: Wizards, you are an embarrassment as a company! Try focusing on quality material, instead of just dollar signs. Geez, does Trump run the company?

[Jeannie Glanville · Rating 3 out of 5]

I did not like the way this series ended. Mina belonged with Chemosh! I enjoyed the series, as I loved Mina from the War of Souls. Even though I felt a little let down with the ending of the series, upon reflection, it was a good way to end it. I felt a little betrayed by the gods, but what can you expect when Fizban is no longer around?

[jlf · Rating 1 out of 5]

I was astounded by how terrible this was. It really made me afraid-- what if all these books have been equally terrible, and for some reason Ive just been blind to the truth til now? I mean, I've dutifully read practically every new Dragonlance for the last 15 years. Am I fucking retarded or was this just extra terrible or what?

[Hadas · Rating 5 out of 5]

The last book of Dragonlance! It was an amazing ride and I'm so sad it's over :(

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

Always a pleasure to let Margaret Weis sweep you away for a few hundred pages. After reading the War of the Souls a year ago, over twenty years since devouring everything Dragonlance as a teenager, I was surprised to find how much I still enjoyed Weis and Hickman's writing. I was eager to continue Mina's story as well, although I wouldn't consider her one of the strengths of the War of the Souls books. Amber and Blood is the third book of the Dark Disciple trilogy and brings Mina's story full circle, literally back to the dramatic opening scene when she appears in a flash of lightning and meets Galdar the minotaur. Without Hickman, there is something a little more careless (and perhaps carefree) about the writing, but it's still got the same quick humour, snappy dialogue and a dense feeling of fantasy immersion. It's always been a neat trick, to turn books intended to connect and extent a roleplay setting into genuinely absorbing fantasy epics. The War of the Souls did that magnificently. The Dark Disciple has some loose ends to tidy up but it also leaves many of the previous stories by the wayside. The fate of the elves has been left (unfortunately) to someone else to tell, their woes a mere historical backdrop. Instead, Weis chooses to focus on her Mina, the red-haired mysterious girl who was loved by Goldmoon and favoured by the Dark Queen, who was a vessel of power yet whose name was chanted and loved by thousands.

Weis makes some interesting and daring decisions and, on the whole, it makes sense. All of the Dragonlance books have the shadow of the Gods looming over the plot, true Grecian plotters and manipulators. Here Weis pulls the Gods truly onto the centre stage as their strive to fill the void left by the Dark Queen. Mina is seduced by Chemosh and he strives for supremacy against the other evil deities while the good pantheon does its usual frustrating thing of trying not to interfere and leave the mortals to decide their fate. For all the popularity of fantasy books about Gods (particularly the Greeks), from Riordan to Gaiman, Weis manages here to create the best homage to their ancient, meddling Greek Gods that I have read. Chemosh and the others are full of betrayals, insecurities, passions and power. Together with Mina, the God of Death forms a legion of undead, vampiric seducers. There is something darkly comic in the plot. It lacks the urgency and the threat of earlier Dragonlance books. It feels like we are mixed up in the games of the Gods and not in a struggle for survival. Even the heroes, the monk Rhys and the obligatory kender sidekick Nightshade, are difficult to take too seriously. Mortal agency is in short supply and the old sense of physical adventuring is limited because whenever the plot requires it the Gods engineer some form of transportation to take the story all over the continent. It makes the story feel a bit forced, cobbled together, and rushed.

However, it didn't take away too much of my enjoyment. I found Rhys's spiritual journey engaging. The machinations of the Gods, particularly Chemosh and Zeboim, were wickedly fun, almost like a more lighthearted Sandman. The gruesome, fat Death Knight Krell allows for some almost slapstick actions scenes. Nightshade is a lovely character, full of all the affection that Weis conjures up for her little characters, those that always make a difference in the end. Gerard, hero of the War of the Souls, and Jenna, make excellent cameos and the balance of contemplation, dialogue and action is nicely poised. Mina is the most problematic character and sympathy for her is a troubled thing. In the third book of the trilogy she reverts to her child form as guilt for her past actions catch up with her. The revelations of her origins are, while not surprisingly, well used to explain Mina and her plight. It becomes Rhys's job to champion her agency, her right to choose, and take her back to Godshome to confront the father who abandoned her and reunite with the minotaur who cared for her, to face the demons of her acts of evil and define herself in the face of the Gods who would possess her. There are definitely flaws in this trilogy and each book does retread some of the same ground, explaining everything too often, but overall I think it was a success and an intriguing read, one that fleshes out the fascinating Dragonlance deities and gives Mina a disturbing and sometimes beautiful narrative and an identity of her own.

[Alex · Rating 2 out of 5]

Sad that my Weis/Hickman Dragonlance readthrough ends - at least chronologically (I have a few gaps to fill in yet) and he timeline of Krynn pretty much wraps on what is probably the weakest volume of the lot. Seeds threaded in earlier volumes come to nought and, whereas the War of Souls trilogy felt overlong yet ended with quite a neat narrative coup, this is far too short, fails to develop its cast of characters and ... just ends on a fancy. Indeed, this entire volume struggles to muster a point, giving us an almost nice sequence with the Beloved (the God Chemosh's zombies) which ultimately sees them crash out of the story after 2 volumes of buildup with no fanfare, just to prove a point about Mina.

And what a point it isn't. Her arc felt done after the previous trilogy and these subsequent volumes try to cement her status as a.dragonlance.character. and it just feels a step too fair.

Ultimately I wanted a bit more adventure that I could connect to here, and instead we were offered more magical zapping around a huge map that offered little sense of forward purpose and little connected story. I may have been critical of the previous two books in this series, but they did, at least, leave me wanting the next one. This one has left me glad that it's over - not to say that I didn't enjoy it, but at no point did I feel like I was in the world of Krynn so much as the hands of an authorial puppetmaster, and any fantasy, even the zany, needs some decent sense of immersion.

[Michiel · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ooit. Via de Poort des doods-serie, ben ik in lang geleden in contact gekomen met de Dragonlance boeken.
Gewoon lekkere mainstream fantasy boeken zoals fantasy boeken moeten zijn.
Van de Dragonlance boeken zijn er inmiddels een hele serie van verschenen. De boeken door Weis & Hickman uit deze serie zijn grotendeels in het Nederlands vertaald, maar dat is slechts het topje van de ijsberg.
The Dark Disciple trilogie begint waar The War of Souls (oorlog der zielen) trilogie stopt.
Mina heeft haar Godin verloren en is van plan voor eeuwig bij haar graf te blijven. De God van de dood Chemosh denkt hier anders over en lijft haar met zijn charmes. Hij geeft haar de gave om een soort leger van vampiers te maken.
Vanaf hier begint eigenlijk de ontdekkingstocht voor Mina over wie ze nu werkelijk is.
Een goed Dragonlance verhaal kan natuurlijk niet zonder bijzonder reisgezelschap.
De monnik in dienst van de God Majere genaamd Rhys, een kender die achtergebleven zielen kan zien: Nightsade en de schaapshond Atta komen min of meer per ongeluk terecht in een ruzie tussn de Goden over Mina.
Kortom genoeg elementen voor een mooie Trilogie. En dat is het.
Voor liefhebbers van feelgood fantasy met de spanning van een Netflixserie en de humor uit een Marvelfilm, raad ik deze zeer zeker aan.
Gelukkig zijn de boeken redelijk eenvoudig in het Engels te vinden op het grote internet.
Dragonlance: Dikke tip!

[Cesare Bartolini · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a very dignified ending to a series that started a bit weakly. It also goes back to the usual style by Margaret Weis, and maybe it came out better exactly because she was working with something more familiar.

First off, the presence of the gods disappears almost completely. This removes something that I saw as a marked flaw in the previous two installments, because I really didn't like the way the gods were represented, and especially the fact that they didn't convey any sense of divinity. They appeared to be nothing more than powerful humans, but I expect, when gods are involved, that there is a feeling of grandeur that was totally lacking in Chemosh, Zeboim, and Nuitari as depicted in the first two books of this series.

Mina, on the other hand, conveys that very sense of divinity, albeit in her quirky way (being incredibly powerful but imprisoned in the mind of a child).

The story is consistent, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, including its various plot twists. When the reader assumes that the plot is going in a certain way, the author suddenly turns the cards on the table, and a totally unexpected plot line begins, such as the events in Solace. The conclusion, on the other hand, is rather predictable, but it was probably the only reasonable way in which the story could end - unless the author were planning to dismantle the whole Dragonlance setting and start it again.

Extremely recommended for any Dragonlance of Margaret Weis fan.

[Stephanie Vickery · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5 (rounded down to 2) - This was a really disappointing read for me, especially considering how much I loved the first two books. I started doubting if the first two were as good as I remembered or if it was just this one that dropped the ball. I think it’s the latter but I might reread them later just to be sure. Anyway, this book is riddled with spelling and grammatical errors, which I would understand if it was a rare occurrence but they’re literally everywhere. The beginning was basically them speaking for a million pages about what happened in the other two books (yes, I get it. I DID read them after all…) and Mina, who I never particularly loved but had no problem with in the other novels, was almost unbearable to me in this one.

Nightshade, Atta and Rhys were the only reason I managed to push through, but even then I felt their parts and the plot in general felt scrambled together; like the author didn’t know how to end the series and had no ideas, but also threw too many in simultaneously 😅

[Matt Littrell · Rating 4 out of 5]

I found myself thoroughly enjoying this trilogy. And at the same time thinking it was silly. As others have said there are so many spelling errors and missing words it's distracting, but in spite of them I still enjoyed this tale.
So many people seem to love kender. I find them amusing, but more often than not simply annoying. I was so taken aback by a kender I truly enjoyed. A nightstalker. Even his "class name" is great. The monk, Rhys, and his dog I also really enjoyed. Overall it's a weird, but interesting tale, and one I recommend reading, though it doesn't truly feel like a dragonlance story.

[Cindy Mitchell *Kiss the Book* · Rating 3 out of 5]

Weis, Margaret Amber and Blood, 325 p. Wizards of the Coast - Language: PG, Sexual Content: G, Violence: PG-13.

Mina is the reason the Gods are in an uproar. She is the one who will upset the balance of good and evil with whatever side she joins. They are eager the persuade her to their side, but, Mina has her own plans.

I liked this book. It was easy to get into, regardless of the fact that it is the 3rd of the series. It flows together nicely and ends pretty well.

MS, HS - OPTIONAL - Student Reviewer: KH
http://kissthebook.blogspot.com/2008/...

[Skywalker333 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Nightshade and Rhys are among the best characters in all of Dragonlance.
The "big reveal" of the 2nd book is great.
And the whole concept about a true mayhem between the gods and bringing all of them to the front had a lot of promise. But after the 1st book, it got squandered in petty infighting, idiotic behavior and very very poor pacing.

So much promise, it could have been so much more, but alas halfway in this trilogy falls of the rails and becomes more of a generic fanfiction and an average one at that.

[Brandon Stout · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a great conclusion to this trilogy. This work no longer had the things I didn't like about the first two books. This is a great work of Mina going through a process of self discovery. I might have had it end differently, but it still had a great ending, and that's what is great about it. In a way, the reader is like a person in the universe, wanting Mina to go one way or another, but in the end, it won't be what any person in the Dragonlance universe wants, or what the reader wants, but what Mina chooses.

[Jim Nowhere · Rating 3 out of 5]

the ending was better than the first bit of this made me suspect it would be.
I won't rehash the other reviews as they state what works and what doesn't better then I could.

As the final part of this trilogy, and final part (i think) in the tale of Mina it is worth reading through, provided you've read the others and enjoy Rhys and Nightshade.

[Pere Turambar · Rating 5 out of 5]

Un gran final para la trilogía de Mina. Se ha podido saber más qué y porqué es así Mina. Muchas más deidades apareciendo, cosa que siempre me ha parecido muy interesante en DL.

Personajes muy entrañables Rhys, Beleño y Atta. Han acabado siendo un gran grupo. Me hubiera gustado leer más sobre ellos.

(mi Cuenta de leídos de DL - > 64)

[Chet · Rating 2 out of 5]

Among the weakest of Weis’ series I was disappointed in this third book. She managed to make Mina even more annoying by turning her into a six year old. And also gave Nightshade, a Kender, a really negative outlook which is not very appropriate. I did like the ending, particularly when Paladine showed up but the rest of the book was not that good.

[Gabor Hernadi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Probably this is the best book of the trilogy. The gods aren’t in the foreground so much and the journey of the heroes with the changed Mina is an entertaining one.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Full review here:

https://jamesgenrebooks.blogspot.com/...

Fun reading, if not quite as epic as other stories in teh series

[Pablo Joel Aciares · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hermoso final para una trilogia apasionante

[Ryan · Rating 4 out of 5]

A satisfying conclusion to this trilogy, though I found the ending to be predictable. Worth a read to experience the conclusion of Mina’s arc, though I probably won’t need to read it again.

[Elrond · Rating 4 out of 5]

Me esperaba un final más épico, pero al final ha sido el libro más flojo de los tres. No obstante, hacía tiempo que una trilogía no me enganchaba tanto y eso hay que remarcarlo.

[Matias · Rating 4 out of 5]

En lo literario, Krynn es mi lugar en el mundo. Y cada vez que tomo un libro de Dragonlance me siento en mi casa. Así que difícilmente soy objetivo. Me entretuve muchísimo, pese a un final apresurado. Mina es un gran personaje, y en el 80% de este libro se le hace plena justicia.