Dragons Deal

Dragons #3

by Robert Lynn Asprin, Jody Lynn Nye

New York Times bestselling author Robert Asprin and Jody Lynn Nye up the ante in the latest tale of dragons in the Big Easy!

As head dragon and owner of a successful gambling operation in New Orleans, Griffen McCandles has a lot on his plate. Especially since the Krewe of Fafnir-a society of dragons-has asked him to be the king of their Mardi Gras parade. Being the king is a huge honor, and despite the extra responsibilities, Griffen can't resist the Krewe's offer to lead the biggest party of the year.

But not everyone is happy with Griffen's new leadership status. A group of powerful dragons is out to bankrupt his business, from the inside out. And when a young dragon in Griffen's employ is murdered, it becomes clear that certain dragons will stop at nothing to dethrone the new king...

View our feature on Robert Asprin and Jody Lynn Nye's Dragons Deal.

Genres: Fantasy, Urban Fantasy, Dragons, Fiction, Humor, Science Fiction, Adult

400 pages, Paperback

First published October 25, 2010

About the author

Robert (Lynn) Asprin was born in 1946. While he wrote some stand alone novels such as The Cold Cash War, Tambu, and The Bug Wars and also the Duncan & Mallory Illustrated stories, Bob is best known for his series fantasy, such as the Myth Adventures of Aahz and Skeeve, the Phule's Company novels, and the Time Scout novels written with Linda Evans. He also edited the groundbreaking Thieves' World anthology series with Lynn Abbey. Other collaborations include License Invoked (set in the French Quarter of New Orleans) and several Myth Adventures novels, all written with Jody Lynn Nye.

Bob's final solo work was a contemporary fantasy series called Dragons, again set in New Orleans.

Bob passed away suddenly on May 22, 2008. He is survived by his daughter and son, his mother and his sister.

Reviews

[Jess Mahler · Rating 2 out of 5]

An enjoyable read but didn't really stand out. I enjoyed seeing the way the interactions with the Eastern Dragons played out and getting an "inside" look at Mardi Gras. But not as good a read as the first two in the series. I probably won't be buying the forth.

[Walt · Rating 3 out of 5]

Perhaps the last book to be released by Robert Asprin, it lacks some of the humor that usually accompanies his work. In place of humor and creativity is an underlying sense of sexual tension that sets this volume apart from the other two dragon books and his works in general. Once again, Griffin McCandles is facing an unseen adversary; but unlike the other two books, Griffen displays only fleeting concerns to the serious problems facing him and his future, focusing instead on immediate pleasures and self gratification. Of all of Asprin's memorable characters, Griffen is presented more as a suddenly spoiled child, instead of the reluctant hero and genius.

The plot progressed nicely with the mysteries becoming increasingly tricky to solve. In the last few chapters, everything wraps suddenly and anticlimactically. Mysterious characters like "Stoner" come out appearing to be more crazy than brilliant. Even the mystique surrounding Melinda, another powerful force guiding the Griffen's is presented in a sloppy sort of way. The reader is left to wonder how much of the novel Asprin finished, and how much Nye concluded. The characters and plot belong to Griffen, but the conclusion is atypical of his novels.

[Marilyn Fontane · Rating 5 out of 5]

I loved it. I like the series. I like New Orleans and Mardi Gras. I thought the plot was interesting and how expensive it is to be in the parade. There were spots where you could tell that Asprin didn't write the whole thing as he did the first two, but I find it very likely that he at least outlined and planned the story. I was so sorry when he died. I had hopes for the Dragon series as a strong alternative to the Skeeve and Aaze stories. But at least the third lives up to the expectations. I read it during Mardi Gras, and even though I wasn't in Louisiana, I felt like it.

[Johnny · Rating 4 out of 5]

It’s a gamble to rear children in a sheltered environment—especially if they can be forced out of that environment and forced to parse situations they never dreamed they would ever face. Griffen McCandles, his very surname a play on his dragon heritage and affinity for fire, didn’t even know about his dragon heritage until he was experiencing a crisis as a result of that heritage. Griffen and his sister Valerie are dragons of great power, but just as children of wealth with no training in investments and children in strict religious environments, they don’t know how to deal with challenges beyond their sheltered experience. Dragon’s Deal is the third book in a delightful series about Griffen and Valerie. In typical comedic fashion, they have trouble figuring things out because of all the external complications that keep encroaching upon their attention.

In Dragon’s Wild, Griffen discovers that he is a dragon facing a modern St. George, an assassin for dragons if you’ll pardon the assonance. In Dragon’s Luck, he faces new complications while trying to navigate the forces in a supernatural conclave while Valerie faces a “draconic” threat of her own. Dragon’s Deal bears some resemblance to the second book in that Griffen has been recruited by both natural and supernatural allies to rule over a Mardi Gras krewe while other forces threaten to destroy his reputation, and correlative to that, his business.

I don’t believe it would be a spoiler to suggest that these books follow the classic “U” shape of comedy. Things seem good as a once-in-a-lifetime (perhaps, literally) opportunity drops uninvited into Griffen’s (and/or Valerie’s) lap. Griffen agrees to do whatever is necessary, but complication after complication cast a wet, foggy shadow over what had appeared to be his charmed life. At the same time, conflicting spheres of interest between his more mundane professional responsibilities and the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity cause hard feelings, guilt, and more. Since Griffen’s more mundane responsibilities are technically illegal, complications from law enforcement also enter the picture from time-to-time. Add complications in his love life (admittedly brought on by his own complacency) and you have a tremendous arc downward.

Then, once Griffen (and/or Valerie) have reached the bottom of the “U,” things begin to look up—often via allies that have been made simply by being friendly and doing the right thing, but also by maturation and creativity on behalf of the two young dragons. Despite formidable confrontations and obstacles that seem, at times, like dead ends, the situation seems to arc upward, usually higher than where the protagonists began the process.

I can’t imagine anyone who likes modern fantasy such as The Dresden Files disliking this series of novels—even though they are being completed posthumously by the prolific Jody Lynn Nye. Jody includes puns as part of the humor in these books, but they aren’t as overwhelming as those in Asprin’s other novel series (the Phule’s and Myth- series, respectively) nor as omnipresent as those in the Xanth series by Piers Anthony. Though the take on supernatural creatures existing in the world is a bit different than those in The Dresden Files, I still think part of their charm is that they juxtapose the impossible with the familiar. The next volume is Dragon’s Run and I’ll be reading that one soon.

[Paul · Rating 3 out of 5]

I like reading Robert Asprin's books because they are funny. This book is no where near as funny as most of his books, perhaps because it was co-written by another author. All the characters that you learned to love or hate in the earlier Dragon's Run books are there with one exception (Mose) who is mentioned several times but does not appear in the book.

[Eric Yoxtheimer · Rating 3 out of 5]

I’ve always enjoyed Asprin’s books - from Thieves World to the Myth series (earlier books) - and I did like the first two of the Dragon series, but this one fell a bit flat for me. It didn’t flow well for me. Its plot seemed to far away from the type of plots I’ve loved from him over the years - such as funny puns, reluctant heroes, entertaining characters.

[Ch J Loveall · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great series. Main author dead - the quest to find another of equality will be difficult but must begin. I have read all his other books. Ms Nye - I tried her other stuff and it was not written in a style I cared for.

[Anna Marie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Griffen is in over his head, he just found out that that he is a dragon. And the politics and subterfuge is more than he can handle.

[Bob · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book continues the series but it is the weakest of the three so far. While it has an interesting and enjoyable story line this book moves at a much slower pace than the first two.

[Melody · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fun read

[Doris · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not quite as enjoyable as some of his earlier work, but I’m glad I read it. It tied up the trilogy nicely.

[Nick · Rating 3 out of 5]

Set in a New Orleans with dragons and other non-human creatures, this is the third volume of a series by Asprin and Nye. I don't know whether it's because it lacked Asprin's final polishing, but the book didn't seem as good as the earlier volumes. To me, it was because I began to lose focus on the characters, since I didn't really care about most of them. I really didn't like Etienne, who was just too annoying, and the villainous Eastern Dragons were just weird.
The plot threads that were wrapped up were done too neatly for plausibility, especially the part about Homeland Security. The ones that weren't wrapped up were mildly frustrating, especially the new twist thrown in at the last minute.
I know that Nye continued the story, to wrap up the loose ends created in this one, but I'm not sure I'll ever read it.
That said, I gave it a third star because it really did have some good parts, especially the Mardi Gras story, and the interesting uses of magic during the parade. The setup, though, was part of why I got annoyed with Etienne, and it was really just too hard to feel sorry for Griffen, since he IS technically running a criminal enterprise all through the story. He's just a NICE criminal...

[Doris · Rating 2 out of 5]

This series started off really strong, but the author died, and it was continued by his widow, whose thoughts might be similar, but whose writing style differs, lending a different taste to the series. There is more description, more thinking, and less action / reaction. For instance, I really didn't need the pages of non-action in the poker games, as the results could have been described in a shortened form without losing anything.

I also did not appreciate that this story ended in a cliffhanger. Having Melinda kidnap Val at the end was expected but not a good ending.

Overall, the story did not read smoothly, the story itself surged in bits and spurts, and it was just not simple reading pleasure. Not recommended as a general audience book, but good for those who want to know more about New Orleans and the krewes.

[Red]

I regret the loss of Robert Asprin. Dragons Deal while bringing some items together left me hanging. Griffen gets a call from his uncle Malcolm who is upset that his sister went shopping with Melinda. Then when he checks there is no answer on his sister's phone. Suddenly his sister is missing and the last question of the book is: Where were they? With everything that has gone on before the book still leaves too many questions still to be answered. Hope someone can finish up the series. Hope ever springs eternal.

[Virginia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dragon's Deal By Robert Asprin and Jody Lynn Nye is the next in The Dragons Wild series. In this book Griffen must handle a pregnant sister, tweo girl freinds, Mardi Gras and an attempted coup. A good read for modern dragon lovers.

[Dragonrider · Rating 5 out of 5]

Yes, yes, yes! I thought after Asprin died the series would never have a conclusion, but now it does. Thank you.

I just finshed it and it haves a plot twist, awesome!!!

[Melanie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not the best in the series, of course it wasn't all Asprin's writing. Still I've enjoyed Jody Lynn Nye's writing in the past. This book is only so-so.

[Dragonsnake]

It's fun but the loss of Asprin is palpable.

[Kathy Sebesta · Rating 4 out of 5]

A bit tiresome at times but still a good read.

[Megalion · Rating 4 out of 5]

More poker plus Mardi Gras!

[Robyn Brown · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such a great storyteller ~gone way too soon Mr. Asprin......