Customer Reviews

The Brothers Majere (Dragonlance: Preludes, Book 3)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(3)

 

 

Yes, the premise of disappearing cats seems a bit ridiculous to say the least, but somehow envolving Raistlin automatically gives the story a little dignity.

The plot envolves a scared city that is losing all the cats that are supposed to protect the town. Raistlin and Caramon are naturally called in to solve the mystery which slowly evolves into a murder case when town officials end up dead, looking like they've been killed by a very large cat. Enter Shavas, a beautiful official that shows more interest in both twins than is professional and is much more than what she seems. Eventually all hell breaks loose (literally) and Bast, the cat lord, comes to help.

Raistlin is much softer in this book than the later version. He gripes and complains and treats Caramon awful, but he truly seems to care about his brother. Caramon is just the big old dope he always is and I wish Bast was a real character that was used again in later novels. Shavas is a wonderful archvillain and even when the action gets a little confusing at the end, she's always a perfect story line to go back to.

This really was a good book in this series. Read it if only to see a younger, kinder Raistlin.

The only reason I bought this book is because I am a big-time Raistlin fan. I thought it would probably be lame. But hey, it had Raistlin in it! I had to give it a try. It turned out to be an excellent book. In not even one chapter was there a torpid moment. And the ending was beautifully heartwarming. I reccomend this book to any Raistlin and Caramon fan.

After reading the first two books in this series, I was pleasantly surprised with this one. There are only a few very minor inconsistencies which aren't really worth mentioning. The main reason I think this one turned out was Margaret Weis contributed some advice as it says in the dedication section.

It isn't the kind of gold that the original books were, but all in all, the Raistlin was believable, the Caramon was believable, and the story was pretty good.

On the down side though, the book had a couple slow spots in it that I had to force myself to keep reading through. My favorite thing was probably that Raistlin stays true to form and uses his wits to deal with problems more often than just using magic.

I would give it 3 1/2 stars if I could, but I can't so I give it a 4. All in all, it is a relativley good book with a mix of minor mistakes and redeeming qualities that I am glad I took the time to read.

In the dark years before the War of the Lance, the story of the brothers Majere, being the young warrior, Caramon, and his magic-using twin, Raistlin, is told.

After Raistlin's magical test, Caramon and Raistlin need a job. So they sell out their abilities to a town in order to find the missing cats. As the two brothers search, their paths become danger-filled and mysterious, finally pulling together into a intriging ending.

I just finished Brothers in Arms.. I thought it was a great book, but there are a number of contradictions in the two. Remember this book was supposed to be transcribed by Dalamar.. there can be a number of Contradictions in it.. including how powerful he was at the time. Also, Remember Dalamar even though Raistlin's apprentice did not like him much, but respected him as the most powerful mage to walk Krynn. The things that he would have written would not dishonor his Shalifi.

this is the first dragonlance book i ever read. if you have not read any dragonlance books before, i think you should read the chronicles first, and then this book. this is about the twins raistlin and caramon majere and the time before the war of the lance. while looking for mercenary work and some money, the twins stumble onto an old mystery of cats, the undead, and ancient prophocies. raistlin must find the will power and the love for his brother he has under all his hate and jealousy. he must find the part of him that remains a mystery to everyone, even himself to save his brothers life, and possibly the world of krynn.

I liked Brothers Majere. It is, however, essentially a crime novel set in the DL world. I thought this added rather than detracted to the effect though.
I would rate Kevin Stein among the great Dragonlance authors, although I was surprised to learn this is the only one he's written. Surely he deserves more writing assignments than some other DL authors I could name.
Brother Majere is one of the much better Preludes, leaving Darkness and Light far behind. It is a must to any Raistlin fan, and though it occasionally differs from Brothers in Arms, the differences are not too important and don't impact too much on the story.
Read this book.

Let me just start off by saying that I do not like the concept of writers using other author's characters. For that reason, I cheerfully would tell you not to bother with almost all the Dragonlance books dealing with the Companions that are not written by Weis and Hickman. But "Brothers Majere" is an exception for a number of reasons. Kevin Stein is a decent enough writer to guide the story along and he does have some interesting supporting characters. While purists may not like his take on Raistilin and Caramon, this is a book set when the twins were still young and before Weis came out with "The Raistlin Chronicles." Stein does no harm with the established characters which is more than one can say about most of the other Preludes writers.

Stein gets points for thinking outside the box. Instead of presenting a grand epic, Stein presents a mystery with Raistlin as Holmes and Caramon as Watson. Surprisingly, it works. Part of the book's success may be because it is so different than the rest of the saga. Granted, Raistlin and Caramon are two of the stronger characters in the Dragonlance rotation. But some credit must go to the author. Stein is a decent enough craftsman in assembling a plot and a solid writer in constructing sentences and dialogue. While not spectacular, "Brothers Majere" is a solid addition to the saga. Kevin Stein has been able to carve out a nice border kingdom in the land of Weis and Hickman. That's no small achievement considering how many other writers failed in the same role.

A short time after Raistlin takes his test, He and Caramon are in desperate need of money, and after a botched assassination attempt, they head to a city that seems to be having some trouble.

What starts out as what seems to be a small problem concerning a town's wierd fasination with cats, leads to a problem of god-like proportions. How can Caramon and Raistlin hope to defeat such an evil? With the help of a rather irritating kender.

Earwig Lockpicker comes along with the twins, (even after the twins try to leave him behind more than once) and plays a major role in the direction of the story. While some writers totally butcher the original Caramon and Raistlin (doing no justice to the Cam and Raist written by Wies and Hickman), Kevin Stein does a masterful job in portraying the twins how they should be, with just the right amount of love and animosity between the two.

Judging from the summary on the back cover I didn't expect more than an average novel like most of the Prelude series. Then I started reading... Boy, was I wrong! The relationship of the twins is really in best Weis/Hickman style, the characters are convincing, and the story leaves you a long time wondering: What's really going on in Mereklar? Who are the bad guys here? There's something about Shavas but Bast doesn't seem to fit the descricption of "good guy", either. Also, I loved the portrayal of Raistlin's vague memories of this deal with Fistandantilus, coming back in some airy dream that he can't recall in the morning. The only thing I found a bit unnecessary were the occasional trips into modern literature which could have been avoided. But since they don't interfere much with the storyline I think it's okay. A REALLY good book and a must read for every fan of the twins!