Dragonshadow

Rating:
Summary: Dragonshadow
Review: A good sequel to Dragonsbane, I very much enjoyed reading more about the lives of Jenny and John in the Winterlands. What I like best about Hambly's fantasy writing is that the characters always come to life unlike the majority of books in this genre where the characters tend to be cardboard cutouts with a lot of snappy or tediously faux-Midevil lines. With rare exceptions, Hambly's books are the only fantasy books I ever read. Does anyone know know if the author is ever going to write a prequel to Dragonsbane? I would love to hear more about Jenny and John's early years, like the story of how Jenny trained her magic and Johns first dragon slaying, and of course about how they met. We get tantantalyzing glimpses of these stories in the other books in the series, but I would enjoy reading all the details.

Rating:
Summary: Not Recommended
Review: Although this book is as wonderfully written as everything else by Barbara Hambly, I found it to be incredibly depressing. There is not a single bright spot or light moment in the entire novel; it's simply one long desperate struggle that brutalizes the characters. The ending is a real downer. It's obviously going to have a sequel but at this moment I sincerely doubt that I will read it.

Rating:
Summary: Not Recommended
Review: Although this book is as wonderfully written as everything else by Barbara Hambly, I found it to be incredibly depressing. There is not a single bright spot or light moment in the entire novel; it's simply one long desperate struggle that brutalizes the characters. The ending is a real downer. It's obviously going to have a sequel but at this moment I sincerely doubt that I will read it.

Rating:
Summary: Ms. Hambly is an excellent writer, and THAT is the problem
Review: Barbara Hambly is a master of her craft. She's excellent creating "atmospheres" for her books and stories. She's so skilled in wrapping her readers in the "essence" of the worlds she creates, in making her readers "feel" the environment of where her characters live, that sometimes that is her downfall.
The atmosphere in "Dragonshadow" is not a pleasant one. Her characters are immersed in a battle, not for their lives, but for their very souls, against demons of the worst kind. Demons that can possess a living person, and use his or her body to do horrible acts of violence, while the person itself remains trapped, and is forced to see, and LIKE, what the demon is doing.
This is not a story for the faint of heart. It isn't pretty, and it's so well written, that you really don't want to finish it.
It's just that the plot is very good, but you definitely don't like what is happening to the characters. Let's face it: it seems that Ms. Hambly is taking revenge against her two main characters, Jenny and John, for some unthinkable wrong they'd done to her.

But, if you can endure such torment as reading this book represents, then, when you read the next book, "The Knight of the Demon Queen", you'll know that all the torture and the uneasy feelings where worth it! (Also, when you finish "Kight of the Demon Queen", you'll be wishing you already had "Dragonstar" to finally know what the hell is going to happen to Jenny and John).

Rating:
Summary: Ms. Hambly is an excellent writer, and THAT is the problem
Review: Barbara Hambly is a master of her craft. She's excellent creating "atmospheres" for her books and stories. She's so skilled in wrapping her readers in the "essence" of the worlds she creates, in making her readers "feel" the environment of where her characters live, that sometimes that is her downfall.
The atmosphere in "Dragonshadow" is not a pleasant one. Her characters are immersed in a battle, not for their lives, but for their very souls, against demons of the worst kind. Demons that can possess a living person, and use his or her body to do horrible acts of violence, while the person itself remains trapped, and is forced to see, and LIKE, what the demon is doing.
This is not a story for the faint of heart. It isn't pretty, and it's so well written, that you really don't want to finish it.
It's just that the plot is very good, but you definitely don't like what is happening to the characters. Let's face it: it seems that Ms. Hambly is taking revenge against her two main characters, Jenny and John, for some unthinkable wrong they'd done to her.

But, if you can endure such torment as reading this book represents, then, when you read the next book, "The Knight of the Demon Queen", you'll know that all the torture and the uneasy feelings where worth it! (Also, when you finish "Kight of the Demon Queen", you'll be wishing you already had "Dragonstar" to finally know what the hell is going to happen to Jenny and John).

Rating:
Summary: Agonizing
Review: Don't get me wrong--I am a huge Barbara Hambley fan. Her Windrose Chronicles were some of my favorite books ever, and I've enjoyed all her other works immensely--until this one. The motivations of the villains were ignored or poorly explained, and the story meandered hopelessly at some points. Sadly, the book ended on such a depressing note that I felt it would have been better for all concerned if all the main characters had simply died--tragedy is one thing, but pointless suffering serves little purpose. This book left a bad taste in my mouth and regretfully ruined the excellent _Dragonsbane_ for me. I will be far less eager to rush out and buy Ms. Hambley's next work in hardback as I did with this one.

Rating:
Summary: diappointing
Review: Drangonsbane was a unusual unexpected treasure. The characters were believeable, the situations understandable and the plot had enough twists to keep anyone interested. The characters were different which was one of the good points. In this book, there is much too much suffering and agonizing and handwringing. The characters are stuck in the worst of their agonies of the first book, and have not progressed, but regressed. The plot is too complicated to understand. Do not buy this! I love most of her books

Rating:
Summary: When lackluster sequels happen to good books...
Review: Having read and loved "Dragonsbane", I was eagerly awaiting the sequel, "Dragonshadow". Deep down I think I knew it wouldn't be as good, but I was hoping. And, sadly, my hunch was borne out by a well-written but lackluster book. The character development that is one of the things that delights me about Hambly's books wasn't there in this one. We are never properly introduced to Ian, we know next to nothing about Caradoc, and there's little or no development of motives for some of the main characters. (So why IS Rocklys invading the south? Why DID Caradoc decide to traffic with demons? Whatever happened to all the bandits that were threatening the north?) Things just happened for no apparant reason, and a lot of bad things happened to the main characters that seemed to have no real purpose behind them. (Heaping trials and tribulations upon our Hero for his betterment is one thing, but some of the things that happen to Jenny and John leave me shaking my head. I mean, I know how much Hambly likes torturing her main characters, but really! If I'd wanted to read a hack n' slash, I would have. It's well written pointless gore, but pointless gore all the same.) All in all, I found the book forgettable, although there were some good parts, and it had the trademark Hambly prose. I don't regret buying it, but I should have waited for the paperback...

If you're a die-hard Hambly fan, you'll probably enjoy this, but if you've never read her before, try starting with something else (Like "Dragonsbane" or the Darwath trilogy)

Rating:
Summary: I loved it!
Review: I don't understand why most of you didn't like this book. Maybe it's because I read it before Dragonsbane, but I was completely mesmorized by it. The story was powerful, the demons and their hold on the characters was terrifying, and the dragons were beautifully described. I could not put this book down. As for the gruesome details, yes, they were there, but they had a purpose - to fill the reader with horror and fascination, and build up the story for the ending. I'll admit I was a bit frustrated with the ending, but only because it never finished, but was left open-ended. I am buying the next book as soon as I see it. As for Dragonsbane, I finally read it, and found it lacking the twisted plot and incredible emotional impact of it's sequel.

Rating:
Summary: New Country
Review: I had read Dragonsbane so long ago and considered it a beautiful stand-alone novel. Over the years I must have read that book at least three more times, and it occupied a very special place in my heart.

When Dragonshadow appeared I was shocked. Could it be? A sequel to Dragonsbane? I rushed out to buy it the next day, eager to shut myself in for a day or two and delve into it from beginning to end. As I read I was happy to reconnect with the characters of the first novel; they were like long lost friends I had not seen in so long, but something started to occur to me as I read: Morkeleb's importance had lessened since I read of him last. Now Hambly's Winterlands series expanded to introduce us to the Skerries of Light, where droves of dragonkind traveled the skies, and showed us how frail they were to possession by demons. In this story, my favorite black dragon seems so much weaker. He is no longer the sensual shadow of focus in Hambly's world, but rather one of the "main characters" in an effort to save the world from the clutches of an evil mage named Caradoc. The dark politics and macabre scenes of the demons at play with their victims gave this storyline an entirely different feel, so much that it felt mutated beyond all recognition as having ties to the original Dragonsbane.

Having said this, Dragonshadow is a beautifully written book. The darkness and mood is a welcome emotional texture. Where Morkeleb weakens in importance another new character rises to capture our imagination: Aohila, the Demon Queen. She's bad, she's beautiful, and she's a demon trapped behind a black mirror who John Aversin must bargain with. Aohila's charm as a character is rich, like a delicious deep red wine. Every time I read of her I wanted more, and Hambly wisely keeps her a rare character throughout the series.

In concluding, lovers of the original Dragonsbane would do well to read this book, but brace for a new world first. Empty your need for the old story to continue, and get ready for a wilder, darker journey into the heart of human temptation and suffering.