The Dawning of a New Age

Dragonlance: Dragons of a New Age #1

by Jean Rabe

The Summer of Chaos has ended. Ansalon's nightmare has only just begun.
The gods have departed the world, heralding a new Age of Mortals. But before the dust of war can settle, vast shadows cover the land. Dragons have come to Ansalon, larger and more powerful than any ever seen, and they will wreak havoc on nations still trembling from war. As the lands themselves begin to change under the dire magic of the new dragon overlords, new heroes arise to lead the fight for freedom.
The first book in a rerelease of a key trilogy in the Dragonlance saga, this trilogy covers key events that take place between "Dragons of Summer Flame" and the bestselling" "War of Souls trilogy. Will all-new artwork and cover designs, these books tie in with The Dhamon Saga.

Genres: Dragonlance, Fantasy, Fiction, Dungeons and Dragons, High Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Adventure

352 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published January 1, 1996

About the author

When I am not writing, I toss tennis balls to my cadre of dogs. My house is filled with books and dogs, you can smell both when you walk in the front door. It's a good smell.

I have 36 published novels and am currently writing in the mystery genre. My latest mystery, The Dead of Winter, was a finalist for the Claymore Award and is the first in the Piper Blackwell series.

I live in a tiny town in the middle of Illinois that has a Dollar General, a pizza place with exceedingly slow service, a veterinarian (good thing, eh?), and train tracks...lots of train tracks.

Reviews

[Jenny · Rating 3 out of 5]

*****2.5*****
This book was difficult to get into. I love the Dragonlance world, but the story took too long to build up and contained way too much exposition. Once the main story got started, it was a lot better, but I didn’t feel connected to most of the characters. It turns out dragons, at least Rabe’s dragons, are not that interesting, and I couldn’t understand Skie/Khellendros’ obsession with Kitiara even after reading Dragons of the Highlord Skies (sic?). A lot happens, but I leave the book with the sense that nothing of substance happened.

Still, the book is action packed once it gets going, and I did appreciate some of the characters. I also like that Rabe obviously knows the DL world well. Everything makes sense within the context of Krynn. Granted, the gods are gone, and the dragons have reworked most of the land, so Rabe gave herself a way out of having to follow exactly in Weiss and Hickman’s footsteps, but she portrays the various races well, and the former characters she incorporates into the story act like themselves. Nothing is jarring or out of place.
Overall, I enjoyed the book enough to read on in the series. It wasn’t bad—Rabe is a decent writer, and as I said, I did like some of the characters. Plus, the book ends on a cliffhanger of sorts, so I’m curious about what happens next. I also want to get to Weiss and Hickman’s next series, the first two books of which I found at the used bookstore, and I feel like I should read this series and the Dhamon Saga first for continuity.
I only recommend this if you love DL and don’t mind writers other than Weiss and Hickman tackling the world but also if you want to bridge the information between Dragons of Summer Flame and The War of Souls.

[liquid soap · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book is the reason why I don't read any Dragonlance books not witten by Weis and/or Hickman.

[Shannon Appelcline · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book's biggest problem is that it tries to entirely bridge the gap following the Summer of Chaos. Thus we got confusing interrelations with the previous novel, following by a long span when there's no clear protagonist, as 90 pages go by. The story only really starts after that.

Beyond that, the writing feels unpolished, and the romantic dialogue is particularly bad. I'm also not convinced by the super-villain evilness of the dragon overlords. However, the book also reads quickly and has some quite good action sequences. I think it would have earned 3 stars if not for the problems with the overall structure.

[Ross Kitson · Rating 3 out of 5]

Much better than I expected. Clearly Rabe had been given the unenviable task of following the 're-set' of Dragons of Summer Flame, which I'll admit I struggled with. To Rabe's credit she packs a lot of fresh setting into the book, which unfortunately makes the first half read like a DnD sourcebook. When the plot gets going it is fair enough, built around a journey and start of a quest. The return of older characters fleshes out the book, and gives it some kudos.
Saying that it sort of lacks direction and build up, with the finale feeling a little contrived. Nonetheless, I'm interested enough to read book 2.

[Avaminn F'nett · Rating 5 out of 5]

I'm not quite sure why this didn't get good reviews. Unlike lots of other Dragonlance books not written by Weis and Hickman, this one actually has a good writing style. I don't like it nearly as much as the original books but I still really enjoyed it. Plus, I really liked the kender character.

[☆Ruth☆ · Rating 2 out of 5]

A rather odd book in the DL epic, with a large portion of the narrative devoted a few exceedingly powerful dragons, who have taken over much of Krynn. Basically I wasn't too keen on reading about the dragons who are a cruel, blood-thirsty and thoroughly unpleasant lot! However Palin is reintroduced part way through and Goldmoon makes a token appearance, which helped to link the story back to the main saga.
The writing is a bit erratic - some parts flow smoothly and carry the narrative well, whereas there are other places where it feels clumsy and lacks sophistication. With regard to plot, well I would be hard-pushed to determine what it was really... there's a 'band of brothers', a 'quest' of sorts - although that was never very well defined - a couple of fatalities and a few battles. At the end of the book I felt that nothing had progressed much further than at the beginning.

[Shanna · Rating 4 out of 5]

The war is over, the world of Ansalon is trying to rebuild and pull itself back together. Magic has disappeared, as well as the Gods, making this the New Age of Mortals. A select few of the strongest most terrifying dragons swoop in while the world is still so fragile, they proclaim their dominance and control over the land. Death and destruction follow. A new unexpected group of heroes band together to fight this seemingly new war against evil and the dragons. Will they be able to work together and defeat the dragons before its too late to restore order? A great addition to the dragonlance series. I love how favorite old characters make appearances in this book as they pass the torch down to the next generation of heroes. The characters are deep and relatable. Can't wait to read more.

[Alex · Rating 3 out of 5]

A clear ***1/2

Jean Rabe seems to have taken a lot of flak for these books over the years. I guess that Weis and Hickman had already upset their fanbase by writing another Dragonlance novel that wasn’t as good as the ones that would always be considered the best of the bunch, as if not repeatedly topping yourself was a massive crime (although hello! Death Gate Cycle, people!), and now they were out for blood. Jean Rabe. What have you done? You wrote a Dragonlance book that also wasn’t as good as the Legends trilogy so YOU SUCK! YOU RUINED DRAGONLANCE. BLAARRGHGAHHRGHHH. I’m not saying that it wouldn’t have been nice if another author could have come in and confidently written a trilogy which successful recaptured that kind of compelling craziness, but it’s not obligatory and on the evidence of this first book it’s not as if Ms.Rabe isn’t trying really hard.

So, for what it’s worth, despite picking this up with a dread certainty that I would hate it but had to read it in order to make my way towards The War of Souls, I had quite a blast with this book.

Since Weis and Hickman left Krynn on a bit of a sour note and in a bit of a conundrum, there’s a huge necessity to get from A-B; with both Gods and magic gone from the world what story is there to tell? Whilst I’m not on board with everything that Rabe does, particularly Skie’s obsession with finding Kitiara (C’mon, it’s a badass dragon. Kitiara’s dead, move on!), I was highly appreciative of Rabe’s efforts to –rather than simply pluck out a bunch of new heroes, set them on a quest, rediscover more Gods, replay the Chronicles, as it were - set some interesting wheel’s spinning in terms of changing the concept of power on Krynn and working in a new magic system. It takes a good hundred pages and for some may be a little dry, but I enjoyed spending time with the Dragons, seeing them react to the new status quo and discovering that they could take advantage, with Skie creating the new spawn a decent stand-in for the Draconian threat from earlier books.
When we finally got to our new heroes it did at least feel like they had something to fight for.
Still, there are problems. Krynn never quite feels as large and, well, magical, here as it has done in the past. There’s a good scene when Skie attacks Palanthas, but elsewhere an awful lot of “Oh yeah, it’s 30 years later and the dragons are controlling x territory now”. That’s a problem because we know Krynn too well not to want experience its pain along with it. The “here are a bunch of smalltime heroes discovering the world along with the reader” narrative can’t, unfortunately, work a second time around so convincingly (or in the case of Dragonlance with its many spin-off novels, probably the 20th) and this is made to feel even clunkier here as characters that go-on to play a larger part of the narrative just seem to wander into it with little fanfare or context. This new Krynn is not yet as compelling as the old Krynn because we’re either not seeing it or we’re seeing it through the eyes of characters who story is not yet as original or compelling. Sure, that’s a tall order since by necessity Rabe has to play with the old tropes or risk destroying a D&D fanbase that’s already quite angry.

Yet, I enjoyed this first entry into the Fifth Age series of books because I felt like Jean Rabe believed in it and genuinely wanted to be writing it and delivering a story for the fans and that would keep this world alive and interesting. No, she doesn’t eke any more character out of the already fairly flat Palin Majere or make much of his romance with Usha or rise to power as head of the magicians (simply skipping over time) and her new hero Dhamon only becomes remotely interesting in the past chapter or two as his past is revealed and he suddenly turns into a dragon-killing maniac (incidentally, the climax and cliffhanger ending worked really well for me), there’s yet another kender, dwarf, mute half-ogre (no, wait, this is new) and a rebel elven babe, but Rabe clearly wants to tell her near-hackneyed story in the best way possible and it’s easy to get lost in the superb detail of her many and varied fight scenes or, yes, yet-again the wonder of Krynn. For example, the heroes capture a Spawn, shrink it and put it in a bottle, but it can still communicate with its master “Skie” who instructs it to spy on the heroes, but the jokes on them, Skie thinks that the spawn can escape anytime he wishes. Later on he says “it’s Ok, you can come home now” and the spawn realizes it’s actually stuck in the bottle, and Skie just comments “oh well, you did your job, never mind”. That’s about as Dragonlance as it gets. There’s a new magic system coming into play too but Rabe doesn’t throw it at us in one go. Palin and the wizard conclave manage to work out that they can still use some magic if they draw power from magical artefacts. Meanwhile, new character Feril can perform her own kind of mystical magic which allows her to commune with animals, not needing spellbooks or memorization etc. a power hitherto unknown amongst wizards on Krynn. At first I thought this may be an easy way out for Rabe, but honestly, it’s not Dragonlance without magic and it does create a bunch of questions that need answering.

I think that the problem people mostly have with this book, ironically, is that it’s easy and fun. Back in the 80s this was essentially the appeal of the Chronicles and Legends series; they did light-hearted, frothy entertainment better than everything else. The mass fabtasy readership had already moved on by the mid-90s as fantasy epics first got longer and then they got darker and teens growing up were starting to be disappointed that Dragonlance was never as deep and complex as they’d thought it was. Yet personally I keep returning to this world for the fun it provides and it keeps surprising me in its ability to provide it.

[James · Rating 4 out of 5]

Good story about smart dragons and silly adventurers. The heroes spent half their time trying to replace clothes that had been torn up in fights. It never seemed to occur to them that armor might have been useful when fighting things with claws and swords. Magic seems to be a bit broken at this point in the timeline. It's very difficult for magic users to use without being completely exhausted after one spell. It did have some interesting characters though.

[Kevin Potter · Rating 4 out of 5]

All in all, I enjoyed this book a lot more the second time around.

Yes, there are about four incorrect facts in the book, but I see this as an editing failure rather than a writing one. Yes, some of the dialogue is a bit on the ridiculous side. But it's still a wonderful story with great characters. The new ones are well developed and the existing ones are true to their sources.

Highly recommend to any Dragonlance fan, especially those who have thus far dodged the Fifth Age.

[Pablo Raak · Rating 2 out of 5]

Cometí un grave error teniendo expectativas por este libro. La idea de volver a Krynn (el lugar dónde pasé mi niñez tardía) me atraía, y la idea de verla dominada por dragones megalomaniacos se me antojaba tan parecida a Sol Oscuro ("Dark Sun") que no podia evitar hacer cabriolas en mi mente pensando en todas las cosas que podían ocurrir. Imaginando todas las cosas "guays" que se podían sacar de la idea de un mundo de fantasía cuasi-postapocalíptico dominado por dragones.

Evidentemente, me había hecho demasiadas ilusiones, por eso la caída dolió más cuando llegó.

Leer libros de la "Quinta Era" es autoconvecerte poco a poco de que los autores de las novelas originales sólo querían darle más bombo al mundo que crearon en aquellas novelas que tantos hemos leído de niños (y no tan niños). Es como esos libros de criaturas mágicas y de casas extranjeras que J.K. Rowling se afana en intentar meter en la boca de los fans de Harry Potter, o esos interminables libros-enciclopedia de las casas de Juego de Tronos hechos por fans, para fans. Merchandising, puro, simple y frío merchandising.

Y como todo merchandising está bien, pero no puedes pretender que sea una cosa a la que darle culto.

Lo reconozco, como todo merchandising, cumple en sus aspectos comerciales: ¿quieres ver más Krynn? Tranquilo, vas a ver mucho Krynn. ¿Quieres ver más de tus personajes favoritos de las trilogías originales? Tranquilo, vas a verles. ¿Quieres ver dragones haciendo dragonadas? Tranquilo, vas a hartarte. Pero no esperes un worldbuilding consistente, unos personajes queribles o unos dragones que hagan algo más que ser malos de series animadas de los 80 o llorar (sí, lloran, y bastante).

Lo digo en serio: los personajes de esta novela son vacíos como una maldita ficha de D&D hecha en una tarde, y aunque les cojas cariño, no sientes tampoco especial dolor porque desaparezcan de la narración temporalmente. No los echas de menos. Y los dragones son más simples que una tabla de planchar, además de rematadamente idiotas. Maldita sea, ¡sé que pedía demasiado esperando que Khellendros, Malys, Sable o Escarcha tuvieran la malicia bien construida de los Reyes Hechicero de Athas pero, por las tres lunas que estos dragones te dejan frío! Tal vez salvaría a Khellendros (¿os acordáis de Skie? Ese), porque sus interacciones cuando salía eran dignas del Doctor Mad del Inspector Gadget. Y claro, no puedo competir contra algo tan divertido como el Inspector Gadget.

Pero ninguna decepción en cuanto a personajes se compara a la decepción tan ENORME que es la narración. No sé si en inglés es mejor, pero en español es un soberano insulto. Las muertes, cuando las hay, son tan patéticas en su narración, y tan repentinas, que te dan ganas de que el personaje reviva sólo para que le puedan dar una muerte más digna. Y las interacciones de los dragones con su entorno están narradas sin gracia y sin saber cuando dar pocos detalles y cuando se dan demasiados. Puedo decir con sinceridad, y me duele, que he leído fanfiction dragonkin en tumblr mejor escrita que esto.

Por cierto que Jean Rabe tiene una obsesión malsana con la ropa. En serio. Creo que si quitas los párrafos en los que se dedican a describirte las ropas de los personajes el libro se queda en la mitad de páginas. Eso sin contar la ENORME CANTIDAD de veces en las que pierden ropa, se les rompe, se les moja o se les mancha y, claro, tienen que cambiarla. Bonus points sin encima se la cambian en plan Dragon Ball, rompiéndola directamente con los músculos. Aw yeah.

Dos estrellas porque en realidad, salí contento de poder haberlo leído. Y de haber vuelto a Kryn. Pero sólo dos estrellas porque no puede ser que me sepa perfectamente el color de las polainas de Ampolla en cada escena (ay, si es que tengo que querer a esa kender) y no sepa que tiene canas hasta la página 176.

P:D.: Palin Majere es un pelín idiota y si Usha corta con él se lo merece. Pero eso sí, Rabe, no necesito que me recuerdes que Usha tiene los ojos de un sensual color miel en cada maldita escena que sale.

[Lana · Rating 5 out of 5]

I do truly believe that this is not the age of mortals but that of the great dragons, who have turned evil and are so much bigger and cutting up krynn into their separate territories and terrains! we have the great red malystrix, the great blue formerly known as skye and partner to kitiara now know as kellandros, then there is beryl and the great white who lives in the ice terrain he created! they are out to dominate krynn and they are viewing humans who have since lost nearly all their magic as cattle but a new set of heroes have appeared!! will they be able to overcome these huge dragons who still retain their own magic? again a great and exciting read!

[Thomas · Rating 3 out of 5]

Review of the Dragons of a New Age Trilogy.

It's not an easy task to step into Weis and Hickman's shoes and write a central trilogy for an established fantasy world. Weis and Hickman are professional performers of high fantasy and, despite the fact that Dragonlance is essentially a fantasy world created for a roleplaying game, they created a world that exists independent of its typecast mould. They invented characters that they cared deeply about and that readers could sympathise with. Jean Rabe tries to put her stamp upon the the series as it enters a new age. The Chaos War has upended most of Krynn's power structures and those holes are filled by newer, bigger, vicious dragons. Kellendros is a portal traveling blue dragon searching for the human soulmate, Kitiara, while Malystryx is a foreign red monster without a shred of compassion. As the dragons divide up the land and rally Dark Knights to control the populace, Goodmoon, now an old lady, teams up with Palin Majere and gathers a new generation of heroes. Rabe strikes the balance quite well, not relying too much on Weis and Hickman's main characters but giving them their due. Palin Majere, as the main mover and shaker, develops well into a troubled, frustrated soul still determined to make the world a better place. In the first book he is the only older character to play a major role as we are introduced to a new and varied cast - Dhamon, Feril, Rig, Shaon, Blister, Jasper and Groller. The success of the trilogy hangs on the shoulders of those characters.

It's a shaky start but by the end of the first book some of the characters start to come into their own. Rig is a welcome protagonist, brave, reckless and unforgiving. Blister breaks the kender mould and has a lovable heart. Feril, a nature sorceress elf, is just a cool addition to a fantasy adventure. Shaon's sensitive, stubborn soul provides the first book with some believable sense of tragedy. Groller, the deaf half-ogre, and Jasper, Goldmoon's apprentice, seem initially irrelevant but both grow as the trilogy progresses. A lot of the book's success, however, depends on Dhamon. The typical tortured soul/troubled past hero gives the first and second books of the trilogy its twists and turns. It's a shame that Dhamon himself is rather lacking in character because some of the plots that revolve around him are quite intriguing. Rabe is actually very good at withholding secrets and tying her many loose ends together. The disadvantage of this is the sheer number of plots and characters that she tries to bring in. The second book, Day of the Tempest, suffers greatly from this. Adventures in the white dragon's realm and the green dragon's jungle are rushed and over-populated, despite some exciting scenes. Everyone, no doubt, would favour different additions to the story - I enjoyed, for example, the return of Gilthanas and the conclusion of his romance with Silvara - but Rabe has chosen to put all of them in and the result is a bit cluttered. I would have liked to read about Ulin, Palin's son, and his lust for knowledge and magic, but there isn't time here to make the story work.

The biggest problem is that Rabe spends far too long bogged down in bloody, impossible battles. Far too often, the characters are brought to the brink of death through horrendous injuries, only to be brought back by miraculous healing. Too often are they rescued by fabulous spells. This is all contradictory because the majority of the plot revolves around the fact that magic and the Gods have departed the world. They busy themselves searching for powerful magical artifacts to return magic to the world but always seem to come up with an immensely powerful enchantment whenever it's needed. Groller, in particular, suffers countless deaths - broken back, burned, stabbed - and Rig and Dhamon always fight on with superhuman strength and endless stamina. Rabe isn't afraid to kill off a main character or two but you're never quite sure whether or not they are going to stay dead. Weis & Hickman are also guilty of this, it has to be said, but usually they stay within the boundaries of what the story has led you to believe is possible. By the end, Malystryx and her allies have gathered such power that it all seems a bit ridiculous and climatic battles, such as against the sea dragon Brine, just don't seem probable.

That said, I enjoyed the third book most of all. The tension between Rig and Dhamon is palpable and Jasper comes into his own, ending with some true heroics and providing yet another twist. I liked the mysterious conclave of wizards and the betrayal of Palin - it's one of the tensest scenes in the trilogy. Rabe rushes through the end - the quest to retrieve the crown from the sea elves and the final confrontation - and there is far too much convenient teleporting around to make the grand plot possible, but I liked most of the characters by that point and wanted to know how it ended. There are so many questions left unanswered - Who is the shadow dragon? What happened to the shadow sorcerer? Will Kellendros find Kitiara or will Malystryx have her revenge? And will Dhamon find peace and redemption? When I read these books 20 odd years ago I remember dying to know what happened next. I never did read the follow on trilogy though, which does say something about the less attractive prospect of reading Jean Rabe compared to the draw of letting Weis and Hickman pull you into their next trilogy. This time, I will read on, if only for completion's sake. For Dragonlance fans there is plenty to enjoy here. A few less action scenes, less blood and near death situations, and more of the intrigue and secrets that she does so well, and Jean Rabe would have a much worthier successor to Dragons of Summer Flame.

[Pierre Armel · Rating 1 out of 5]

After reading nine Weis-Hickman in a row, this book was a big disappointment. It was so un-Dragonlance like in feel that I dropped it before the end… and went to find plot summaries of the following two before being able to reunite with Weis and Hickman prose. To be avoided.

[Chris White · Rating 5 out of 5]

Loved this book - reading the 2nd one now. I just finished Summer Flame and jumped to this one. I actually got it on audio book, really awesome.

[Carol & Russell · Rating 5 out of 5]

It was hard to put down.

[Martin Hernandez · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is great. I have no idea why people say that Jean Rabe's trilogy is/was bad. At the very least this sets the tone for the dragonlance universe moving forward. It is indeed bittersweet that our previous heroes from Chronicles are no more, but that's the nature of progress.

A new breed of dragons have descended on Krynn, and quickly established themselves as the overlords of humanity in the absence of the gods. These are the dragons I remember from my youth that have become the standard for all dragon related stories moving forward. Massive, intelligent beasts of boundless magical aptitude that seem such a daunting force that it instills an overwhelming sense of dread. Too many dragon books nowadays make their dragons seem pitifully weak, or as simple beasts to be slain. Here our dragons are essentially akin demigods, as they reshape the landscape, and even create a new form of life [The Spawn]. Beautiful.

Our new group of heroes are, just as in Summer Flame; not as charismatic as the original companions, and that's ok. As the reader we need to stop comparing them [even though I just did]. We have the warrior, a kagonesti elf, some kender, a dwarf, a half ogre, and some sailors/barbarians. As usual they are an eclectic bunch that are suddenly roped together to complete a quest. We also get some heartwarming cameos [probably for the last time] of the last remaining original companions. It is a warm feeling when they show up having read the previous books in the main timeline this last couple months.

Having read the war of souls trilogy years back I know where this trilogy will leave the world of Krynn, or at least what will be the landscape of Krynn at series end. Dragonlance as a universe [for me] is what epic adventure fantasy is all about, and this is definitely that. Others have tried to emulate this type of story, and have missed the mark [Exception: David Estes' Fatemarked trilogy. Also a great read].

I am looking forward to continuing Rabe's trilogy.

[Peer Lenné · Rating 2 out of 5]

Das Buch stellt eine Herausforderung dar, wenn es darum geht, ihm aufmerksam folgen zu wollen. Die ersten sieben Kapitel sind völlig überflüssig. Wenn überhaupt, hätte man ihren Inhalt in einem kurzen Prolog zusammenfassen sollen. Erst im 10. Kapitel passiert endlich etwas, das man als Handlung bezeichnen könnte. Und das nach einem Drittel des Buches! Hier lernt man auch endlich einige der Hauptprotagonisten kennen. Danach folgen viele unnötige Kapitel, in denen so gut wie gar nichts passiert und die Kämpfe viel zu detailliert beschrieben werden.

Ich gehöre nicht zu denjenigen, die das Buch verurteilen, weil sich die Welt von Dragonlance so stark verändert hat oder weil nicht alle Protagonisten den gängigen Klischees entsprechen. Im Gegenteil, aus meiner Sicht sind die Veränderungen in der Welt ein erzählerischer Fortschritt und der einzige wirklich interessante Charakter ist Blister, eine untypische Kenderin. Leider bleiben die meisten anderen Charaktere bis zum Ende so blass, dass es dem Leser ziemlich egal ist, was mit ihnen passiert.

Die ständigen Wiederholungen der Geschichte von Krynn werden nach einer Weile auch langweilig, da sie für die eigentliche Handlung völlig überflüssig sind.

Auf der positiven Seite ist anzumerken, dass das bisschen Story, das vorhanden ist, durchaus interessant ist und der Cliffhanger Interesse an der Fortsetzung weckt. Es bleibt zu hoffen, dass die Fortsetzung, da sie nicht mehr die Last hat, die Welt komplett zu erklären, besser sein wird.

[Andrea Cannella · Rating 1 out of 5]

Con questo romanzo viene introdotta nella continuity di Dragonlance la "Quinta Era" che sarà poi approfondita e sviluppata tanto con i due volumi che concluderanno la presente trilogia, quanto con altri mini-cicli di vari autori. Il mio voto rappresenta una media (forse un po' generosa) fra una pessima prima parte del romanzo e una successva parte conclusiva solamente bruttina. Nella prima parte vengono infatti tratteggiati gli avvenimenti che intercorrono fra la fine della guerra del Caos (che conclude i cicli precedenti) e l'inizio vero è proprio della presente trilogia. Oltre 30 anni di vicende condensati in 80 pagine stile bignami, che ho portato a termine solo per mia incapacità di abbandonare una lettura. Quando poi la vicende "decolla" (si fa per dire), rimane l'impressione di un romanzo buttato giù in poche settimane, giusto per senso del dovere (o per pagarci le bollette): i personaggi sono appena abbozzati, pur lasciando intuire buone potenzialità (il che acuisce il senso di fastidio), lo sviluppo della trama segue uno schema classico e preconfezionato al punto che vengono saltati alcuni passaggi chiave per spiegare le interazioni fra i protagonisti, quasi dando per scontato che un lettore di Dragonlance, comunque, sappia "come devono andare le cose", al punto da rendere superfluo narrarlo. Una lettura decisamente sconsigliata a chi non sia completamente dipendente dal mondo di Dragonalance.

[Guillermo · Rating 2 out of 5]

Yo, hace mucho había hecho las pases con la 5ta era. Visto desde una perspectiva, es un escenario muy interesante, tanto para el juego de rol, como ambientación en si misma. Por eso decidí leer la trilogía que es el pistoletazo de salida de este periodo de tiempo, ya que leí el que fue el fin.

Pero, lo cierto es que ha Sido duro. Está novela es horrible. Hay un infodump demasiado grande al comienzo de la novela. Tanto que pensé que carecería de trama. Y luego cuando aparecen los personajes la trama me parece estúpida. Ya es la búsqueda de un objeto o partes y resultó que la principal parte estaba en el punto de origen de la aventura. Es un : "NO ME JODAS"

Por otro lado, los personajes son más planos que las tortillas con las que cené hoy. Dios mío. En fin, gracias a Dios no leí esto en mi veintena cuando era fan a ultranza porque me habría dado algo.

En fin, seguiré con la que sigue. No queda de otra

[Planar Lucille · Rating 3 out of 5]

I have to say, the beginning of this book is... rough. It's really hard to get into, specifically with how poor the dialogue between people can be. Not that the dragons fare much better. There is just so much dense exposition being dropped for chapters upon chapters, I'm not sure if I picked this up just to read it if I would have stuck through.

However, for those sticking around to get to War of Souls, I will say that it very much starts to pick up as the book goes on, and has a delightfully somewhat diverse cast that can be absent from a lot of Dragonlance books.

I would have given it 2 stars, however a Kender addition to the main party instantly earns a third from me.

[Peldag Atreides · Rating 5 out of 5]

¡Qué buena historia! Ya sin dioses presentes en Krynn, Palin Majere se las debe arreglar para evitar que los dragones tomen el control del mundo. Un nuevo héroe con un pasado que se descubre al final y que sorprende completamente. También ofrece breves apariciones de antiguos héroes (Goldmoon, Tika y Caramon) que hacen que un fan de Dragonlance recuerde los buenos momentos leyendo los primeros libros.

El protagonismo de los dragones en este libro me ha gustado bastante y espero que se mantenga en los dos siguientes. Recomendado.

[Beau · Rating 2 out of 5]

Pretty bad writing for the first 100 pages. The story is a also a bit artificial. But it gets better and there are a couple of interesting characters that seem promising, and it's always fun for me to be back on Krynn, the world of my youth. I plan to finish the trilogy, hoping it continues to improve.

[Matt Littrell · Rating 3 out of 5]

Not a terrible read. I know Rabe had a whole world to tear down and rebuild, a she did a fairly good job of it. This book irrevocably ends Dragonlance as we know it. But to me that isn't a bad thing. Or a good one. It's just different. The characters are a little bland, but I do like the way she's making the world hers. Following in Weis and Hickman's footsteps couldn't have been easy.

[Jeff Granger · Rating 3 out of 5]

Closer to 3.5. Not a bad start to the story, especially given all that the author had to squeeze in. I will give her credit for introducing characters you think are going to be part of the long story then having them die, and in on case, die in a way that does not make them a hero. I will continue the series because I want to know what happens next.

[Taylor Foxx · Rating 3 out of 5]

A great introduction into the Age of Mortals. The writing here is very good compared to what I expected from other reviews. Torn on the ending. I think it was a very good climax, however, I would have liked more of the romance interactions to play out before. All in all, excited to finish this series to reach the War of Souls trilogy

[Presto · Rating 4 out of 5]

Una introducción sublime a la nueva era de Dragonlance, presenta a un grupo nuevo cuyos personajes conectan enseguida con el lector y quieres saber más sobre ellos todo el tiempo. Lo único que lo separa de las 5 estrellas es un inicio un poco pesado con varios saltos temporales que lían un poco, y un final apresurado que habría deseado que se extendiera por unas pocas páginas extra

[Thomas · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was expecting a really bad novel but I actually kind of liked it. That is, already knowing the backstory of the War of Souls trilogy and coming at it right after Summer Flame, this first book did a decent job. Listened to the audiobook and liked the narrator too (except his Southerner Kender voice, that was totally misplaced). Good enough to continue.

[William Whalen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought this was an excellent addition to the Dragonlance Saga. It is much darker in tone than most Dragonlance (Actually edging in the direction of Warhammer.) It had well written characters and a captivating plot.

[E J · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only read this so I could understand what's going leading up to the War of Souls trilogy and the branch-off trilogies.

The audiobook narrator does a great job making the story experience fun. I think Ms. Rabe was done dirty being constricted to tell various story elements before she could tell just some of the story that she wanted, and it shows.