Rating: 
Summary: trying to be what it cannot
Review: Secretly Michael Stackpole desires to be like Tolkien, in as much as Tolkien is revered by fans and sells many books in the fantasy genre. To his credit he brings vivid action sequences to his fantasy stories unlike Tolkien. However in DGW he weaves a patchwork backstory that muddies whatever fantasy world he is trying to create. To be honest Fantasy is not Mr. Stackpoles best subject, but it appears to be the one he loves best. So he must be thrilled that someone has coined the term "Military Fantasy" just for him. There are many good, if not great aspects of DGW. Tight, page devouring narrative style; I read the whole book while simultaneously disliking large sections. The story premise seems like teenage saga tripe, but in the end he turns the young hero into a disenfranchised tragic figure. This a trend breaking idea but was also the novel's weakest part. Its hard to make a believable tragic hero out of a young character. This may have worked had DGW been a real Prequel, that is a story line from the series past, but published chronologically second or third. DGW is Stackpole's forced and ill conceived The Hobbit. Four(three) youths begin a journey to adulthood and end up becoming men alongside their elders preparing to battle the evil Chytrine. The teens are archtyppes: a foppish princling and a stalwart Man Firday along with the level headed Tarrant Hawkins. The showdown happens at Fortress Draconis where is hidden a piece of the Dragon crown, Chytrine's desire. The battle scenes are good but the reader is treated to endless streams of bad guys, who never need to be re-supplied with food or water or anything assaulting the castle. In the middle of all this Stackpole supplies the evil horde with an anachronistic canon to attack the castle. Come again? Out of nowhere, artillery? More of the theme that mechanization is bad, guns are for bad guys and good can win the day with bows, arrows, and swords. Other writers are more subtle with their green themes. The book should get a one star except the ending is just too memorable. Much setup for the rest of the series, most of it was pointless especially the "secret society" since it was made up of all the local leaders anyway so what were they fighting that could not be done openly. Answer: it was simply one more thing to take away from the young hero.
Rating: 
Summary: Formulaic fantasy, strains believability
Review: The novel is written decently well, and the writer does have talent. The plot is of a 'heroic fantasy' type, but it takes 'heroic' to a level that strains believability. Everyone likes good guys defeating bad guys with overwhelming odds, but the good guys seems like superhero types with very little weakness in the battle arena. At the very beginning of the book, three 'farmer' small village boys barely into their adulthood ceremony were able to defeat a supposedly fearsome monster by themselves. Mere weeks later at their third battle, they become superheros that slay dozens of enemy warriors each without taking wounds. That's not even mentioning the sword that makes one of them totally invincible to swords and arrows. The few times the author puts one of them in a dangerous situation against impossible odds, you can count on, without fail, a last second save from a friend out of nowhere. The battles are written the same way. Enemies are always routed by the slightest 'flanking', 'surprise', or 'original' battle tactic, nevermind 10 to 1 odds. It makes it difficult to care for the good guys. No suspense equals no interest. The ending can be seen to salvage the style, but not by much.
Rating: 
Summary: An Extremely Exciting Military Fantasy!
Review: I've never read any of Stackpole's previous books, but my local bookseller gave this the big thumbs up and said I'd really enjoy it. He was absolutely right. A very quick read with non-stop action. If you enjoy Forgotten Realms books (Salvatore) then you will really, really enjoy this book. Lots of swords, fighting and action. Blood, guts, and head a rolling (literally). If that's not your cup of tea, I warn you to stay far, far away from this book. As for me, I'm ready for the next book, and look forward to more non-stop excitement. I've even purchased book two (When Dragons Rage), as I'm sure I'll want to jump right into it when I finish Fortress Draconis. This is not Lord of the Rings or The Hobbitt, and definitely not for children or the weary at heart.
Rating: 
Summary: One of my favorite books.
Review: This book is awesome. The first 20 pages or so are a little bit slow and kind of weird if you just took a glance at it. But don't be turned away. You'll soon realize that all the history information on masks and rituals means a great deal to the later story line. Again, this book is awesome and anyone who likes fantasy books with magic and sword fighting will love it. I really like the way Stackpole describes magick and how it works. Definitely pick this book up. Don't forget to get Fortress DRaconis, else you'll regret it when you finish this book.
Rating:
Summary: An Ominous Beginning
Review: The Dark Glory War is a prequel to the Dragoncrown War series. It occurs decades before the Dragoncrown War itself. In this novel, Tarrant Hawkins, Rounce Playfair, Bosleigh Norrington, and Naysmith Carver are eighteen years old Oriosan lads and have received their first adult mask; now they are on display before the Societies and are selected by one for a survival ordeal. After being dropped off in the wilderness without weapons, the four are making their way back to Valsina when they encounter and kill a temeryx. Leigh runs for help while Tarrant and Nay drag out the wounded Rounce on a travois. When the rescuers find them, Rounce is taken back to town and the other three join the hunt for the remaining frostclaws. After catching up to the pack, they find that it also includes gibberkin and is lead by a vylaen, all creatures of Chytrine, the tyrant of the north. These deeds lead to the induction of Tarrant, Leigh and Nay into the Knights of the Phoenix, a Great Society dedicated to the preservation of civilization. They are admitted as Minor Fledglings, skipping the rank of Hatchling, a great honor indeed. They soon find that Lord Norrington, Leigh's father, is a fellow member of the Society, as is Tarrant's father. Rounce has been severely wounded in the leg by the temeryx and will never become a warrior, so he has not been inducted into the Society with his friends. These deeds also entitle the three to be included in a mission to warn the Oriosan court. Since the Queen has left Meredo to attend the international Harvest Festival, the group will have to journey to Yslin, capital of Alcida. On the way, they are followed by gibberkin and barricade themselves in the ruins of Atval, a city destroyed by dragons. There Leigh finds, or is found by, the magical sword Temmer. This story tells of the meeting between Tarrant and Resolute, the Vorquellyn elf, and the battle with Chytrine's creatures. It ends with the destruction of the old sullanciri and the making of the new. Recommended for Stackpole fans and anyone who enjoys well crafted sword and sorcery epics.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent fantasy!
Review: I "stumbled" upon Michael Stackpole's fantasy works beginning with [Talion: Revenant] and was instantly captivated by his storytelling. So far, I've collected most of his fantasy novels and have to say that he maintains a consistent level of excellent writing in all of those works! I eagerly awaited the publication of [DGW] and finished it over a weekend! The ending is a bit surprising, but I think that makes the novel all the more original. The character development and the maturation process for Tarrant Hawkins is very finely done. I just finished the follow-up, [Fortress Draconis] last night and have to say that this is one series that I can't wait to read all the way through! And unlike some authors, Mr. Stackpole has already stated that this will be a trilogy ([DGW] is the prequel), so there is a light at the end of this tunnel. In summary, I highly recommend this novel and all the other fantasy novels by this great author. Although I haven't ventured yet into his sci-fi works, I plan to do so soon and expect the same level of excellent writing!
Rating:
Summary: How many heads in that pile?
Review: The Dark Glory War is an excellent example of a military fantasy novel. There are lots of battles, lots of blood, heads flying off everywhere, and a large amount of tactics and strategy. The question has to be: do you like this sort of thing? My answer is yes, to an extent. It almost becomes too much, but not quite. This type of military fantasy isn't for everybody, and if graphic scenes of sword slashes, blood flying, limbs getting chopped off and other extremely violent scenes bother you, then you will not enjoy this book, even if I gave it 10 stars. The book starts by introducing the four boys (Tarrant, Leigh, Rounce and Nay), three friends and a man (Nay) who becomes a friend as the temeryx fight brings them together. They are asked to join a secret society that works beyond the politics of the various provinces. I have to assume that this may have something to do with subsequent books, because even though the Order of the Phoenix is used slightly later on in the book, nothing much is done with them. Another person who isn't used much, despite the fact that he gets name billing in the back cover blurb, is Rounce. He is the casualty in the temeryx attack, and while he lives, he takes no further part in the book and is gone by page 100. Characterization takes a back seat to the plot in this one. None of the characters are given much personality at all. Tarrant, being the narrator (the book is told in first person), is the only one who has any sort of character at all. The rest of the characters are given histories, taking part in the plot, but you don't really feel like you know them. They are a collection of character traits (Leigh is brash and jumps into things without looking, Nay is a simple man with simple ambitions, but is loyal and a good fighter, etc). Tarrant has a romance later in the book that, while not necessarily unbelievable, doesn't really fly off the page because his lover has the same problem as the other characters in the book. They are almost character templates out of a role-playing game rather than characters, with mixed and matched traits put into their "personality column." Tarrant is well-explored. Related to characterization is the fact that the enemies are completely faceless. The only enemy who even gets a name is Chytrine, the "queen" of the north, and even she is completely evil. She'd twirl her moustache if she had one. The rest of the bad guys are hordes and hordes of gibberkin, temeryx (whatever the plural of that is), and three magical creatures that are the generals of the army, and who it takes a lot of magic to kill. These hordes seem to have the same problem that some people who have seen the Lord of the Rings movies complain about: they outnumber the good guys 100 to 1 and still can't do anything. It does become a bit repetitive. Finally, the book ends on a bit of a cliffhanger. It is a complete book in itself, but the ending comes as a complete change of direction for Tarrant's life, and it will be interesting to see what happens to him in subsequent novels. If you stop reading with this book, the immediate story will have an ending, so it's not quite as bad as if the story had just stopped. Still, if this bothers you, then you will probably want to stay away from this book. Personally, I will be checking out the next book, because the description makes it sound like it will be a bit different from this one. You may notice that, even though I give the book four stars, I've been concentrating on the negatives. That's mainly because this book is really only for people who like this sort of thing. There's lots of blood, little characterization and not much of a plot except what links the battles together. If that bothers you, then I'm sure you haven't even reached this far in the review. But if you have, then let me tell you why I enjoyed it. Nobody does this type of book like Stackpole. He makes this stuff interesting, fun, and adds just that little bit of pizzaz to the writing. The battles flow like they were choreographed, and he goes into great detail (both the battles themselves, and the weapons involved as the soldiers get ready for battle). Taken in small doses, this is what military fantasy is all about. It moves quickly, is a fun read, and has that game-like feel that can be enjoyable on occasion. I hope that the next book is a little different. From the descriptions, it sounds a little more low-key. Even so, I have taken a break before looking it up. I have a feeling that too much of this at one time may be hazardous to my health. I know it would be hazardous to my enjoyment of the series. If you like this stuff, then you can't go wrong reading this one.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent
Review: A must read, don't miss it. One of Stackpole's finest novels to date. There is strong character representation in here, and a well-described world. Few authors can pull off a convincing first-person narrative, and Stackpole's experience in this area sets the stage for a rivetting plot. The new twist this time is that the narrator (Tarrant Hawkins) is clearly speaking about past events. This technique will whet your appetite for a sequel; definitely read this novel before the Dragoncrown War books, as it gives a solid platform for those novels to launch from.
Rating:
Summary: Stackpole Rules
Review: I thought this was a great book. It had all the elements of great fantasy book and it has awesome narration. I like how Stackpole often interjects Hawkin's reflections into the telling of the tale to make it seem like an authentic memoir. I can't wait to read the rest of these books.
Rating:
Summary: A Bright Light is Dark Glory War
Review: This book was amazing. The story line was excellent and the details vivid. It was written as if we already knew much of the story, an observer of the times and yet instead of causing confusion to the reader it simply draws one more into the storyline. The plot twist at the ending is unexpected and leaves you ready to go plunder the shelves of the nearest book store for Fortress Draconis because you simply want more of the story.
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