Customer Reviews

Death of a Dragon (Forgotten Realms Novel: Cormyr Saga)

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(12)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is the result of a collaboration between two authors, one an experienced, artful writer of fantasy fiction, and the other, Ed Greenwood. They seem to have divided the chore up by setting the novel's four characters in different areas within the realm of Cormyr, with Troy Denning handling the action with Talaslanta and Vangerdahast, and Ed Greenwod handling the war in the north featuring Alusair and Azoun. As a result, half of the novel is competently done. It is pretty easy to figure out which author did which section, because Denning's half completes the story he started in "Beyond the High Road" and is written in fairly engaging prose. Greenwood, on the other hand, writes as though English literature reached its apotheosis in the lesser works of Sir Walter Scott. Consequently, his sections are peppered with snappy dialogue such as the following: "Sir Messenger, rest your horse. We shall tarry here for a time, while the Princess Alusair essays an attack, planned yestereve, on those who harry us." Bad prose and worse dialogue were not a problem in the first book of this series, "Cormyr: A Novel," which was also a collaboration with Ed Greenwood. The first book had as a coauthor Jeff Grubb, one of Greenwood's fellow game designers at TSR/Wizards of the Coast. My theory-- and this is just a guess-- is that due to his greater prestige at TSR Grubb had either the confidence or the clout to tell Greenwood what to do with his dialogue. (I could make a few suggestions along that line myself.) The story is good, with only two plot holes, and Denning's half is easily worth reading. But if you want a combination of story and unleavened writing ability set in a world that looks suspiciously like Cormyr, read Simon R Green's "Blue Moon" series.

An additional note about the series. This is the third book in a trilogy. If you do choose to read this book (not an altogether bad idea-- I've read much, much worse books, like one of Greenwood's solo efforts, for example), I would suggest reading "Beyond the High Road" first, as it does set up much of the plot of "Death of the Dragon," and I rather suspect that someone who read the latter book without reading the former would find "Dragon" confusing. Additionally, volume 1, "Cormyr: A Novel" is genuinely quite good in its own right, beyond what it adds to the understanding of volumes 2 and 3. I'd advise picking that one up whether or not you have any plans to read the last two novels.

The most realistic look at war and rulership that can be found in any Forgotten Realms book. If you're looking for lighthearted fare where all the good guys live, look elsewhere.

If you're looking for an excellent story with characters you can care about, look here.

I've read entire stories where an author has failed to do what Greenwood and Denning manage to do in only a few sentences: Make an individual character, even a short lived one, come alive. And that makes their ends all the more tragic. The soldiers dying in the field aren't generic redshirted security officers being beamed down to die like fodder. They're good hearted, often humorous lads, who you hate to see go.

So good. One of the best FR books I've read. A must read.

read it, finished it, and.... received both emotions: sadness and contentment

pros: some snappy dialouge, plot twists, and some butt-kicking actions! cons: plot holes (Troy and Ed should REALLY work together, not write the tales and get together to see if they matched), plot for Vangerdahast's escape, lots of hack/slash/kill, and a sad ending.... (get your kleenex nearby folks)

orcs, ghazneths, dragon oh my!

grant you, I was indulged by the Rowan's difficulties, was saddened by Talaslanta's choice, and Vangerdahast's difficult choice (fiesty old guy, he's the only one I look forward in reading this book). I find... forgive me...Talaslanta quite boring (pining away for Rowan too much).... Alusair was the most interesting between the two princesses.

I would recommend for you to read the first two AGAIN!

This clever story redeems all of the plotlines previously presented. I feel both authors worked well together. Mr Denning has failed in the past and the poorly executed Return of the Shadowmage trilogy. Ed Greenwood, the creator of this world has presented some of the best and worst offerings of writing within this sprawling series. He returns to the place he knows best,Cormyr.

The prose picks up the pace from the other two novels. In fact, the plot moves rather quickly, thanks to Ed. Tanalasta who whined through the first novels, finally redeems herself as a heroine. The battle scenes are memorable, yet pay homage to Tolkien. The King makes the ultimate sacrifice to save the kingdom he loves. I actually expected him to die in the first novel. His death brought tears to my eyes. He has been a character in these stories for years.

I eagerly await the 4th edition storyline that promises to plotline 20 years into the future. This could be revolutionary to readers and gamers, or drive away fans like vampires at dawn! Is the world ready for the adventures of Azoun V? Time will tell. Thank you for this brilliant creation of yours, Ed.

Though it's presumably the third book in the Cormyr Saga, Death of the Dragon is more the continuation of events that begin in Beyond the High Road. I didn't much like that story, but taken in whole the pair of novels is excellent. These two books should really be one, and probably would be if they weren't so long. A lot of things that didn't make much sense in High Road are cleared up, for example- what made the ghazneths and what exactly is their purpose other than wreaking wanton carnage and destruction. You also learn what exactly happened to Vangerdahast, which was a bit perplexing at the end of High Road. There's a lot of orc-killing in Death of the Dragon (hard to do Forgotten Realms without at least some of that!) and visceral battle. While the plot isn't precisely ingenious, it is exciting and generally fun to follow.

As a matter of fact, Death of the Dragon is great reading- I couldn't put it down... at least for the first 375 pages. I seriously urge readers to STOP there! It is odd, really, since I've found that usually fantasy novels either stay strong all the way through or start weak and end strong. In Death of the Dragon, it starts strong, stays strong, and concludes with a whimper- the ending is probably the lamest conclusion I have EVER read in a novel. It's a real pity, because the rest of it is so great. I'm baffled as to why Greenwood and Denning chose to drag it on for 12 more pages of what amounts to useless drivel that breaks the breakneck pace of the plot and is sopping with ridiculous sentimentality. For a second it looked as if they were trying to end on a happier note, but they didn't succeed in that- and I don't think this would be a good idea anyway.

If you've already read High Road, definitely read Death of the Dragon. It would be a shame to suffer through that novel and not get to this rewarding read. At this point, I see two ways the Cormyr Saga can be resolved- either another book with a well-written finale, or a truncation of the last 12 pages of this one. Since Death of the Dragon was so good for the better part, I would recommend the latter.

I liked this book, and enjoyed reading it. Which is saying a lot considering Ed Greenwood came anywhere near it, and you can see his handywork all over it. Greenwood has a tendancy for trying to cram too many characters in one scene, and for writting extremely poor dialoge, his battles become repetitive after awhile. However I'm straying from my point here, this was a very good read and I enjoyed it. It was a good finale to Beyond the High Road and it makes me want to read more and more of the Forgotten Realms (I'm a Dragonlance reader who is branching out after reading anything and everything with Drizzt Do'Urden in it.)

I would like to add one more thing. After reading Spellfire and Crown of Fire (I never finished Hand of Fire or whatever it was because I was so disgusted), I was afraid to spend my money on any book with Ed Greenwood on the cover. I know many people who won't touch a book that has his name on it. I would encourage those people to take a chance on this one...while Greenwood keeps it from being a great book (his style is so obvious you can tell where he mucked it up)...it is still a book worth reading as it will begin to reshape a very important Kingdom in the Forgotten Realms.

King Azoun IV and Cormyr have been cornerstones of the Forgotten Realms all the way back to the Empires trilogy so long ago. One of the strengths of this shared world is that time passes and things change. From the beginning of this series I realized that it would mark the passing of Azoun IV. Other reviewers have critisized this series in comparison with sweeping mega-novels of other authors. One of the things I have liked about the Realms series is that I'm not expected to have to plod through multiple 700+ page books to reach the conclusion. Granted the battles seemed never ending with knights killing many orcs/goblins before falling themselves but I think that this was the point. As Ilberd Crownsilver discovered, battle is not glorious, it hurts both body and mind. The only real problem I had with the series was that Vangerdahast seemed to resemble Elminster's more sinister little brother. I think the ideal way to experience this series is to read all three books consecutively which I plan to do again in the near future.

Other reviews of this book say that you should read Cormyr: a novel and Beyond the high road before reading this book. I say you should read every FR novel bfore this one if you really want to get everything out of this book. This book has a huge impact on the realms as a whole. I was so wraped up in this climatic book that I didn't do any homework the whole time I was reading it. If you are a long time realms fan this book is gong to have a great deal of meaning to you, if you are a casual fantasy reader this book is going to be a hack and slash book with minor other characteristics. Me being a long time FR fan found this book to be very emotional. It shows the horrors of war and the casualties.... It is noce to see author collaborations such as this, because Denning and Greenwood have played such a big part in making the realms come alive in the past, it only seemed fitting that two authors such as this would take on such a task. Anyways read this book if you enjoy FR novels. If you don't read them, you may be dissapointed.

This is one of the best, if not the best, fantasy epic adventures that I have ever read. The story is gripping; the characters are real; the plot lines are original; the magic is original; there is even an original monster or two; and there is a dragon -- a very big dragon. I read 'Cormyr: A Novel' quite a while ago and was very impressed with the magnitude of the history of the world it described. It stood out as a book-among-books because of its scope and credibility. It weaved two story lines, one of now, a strand of sky blue, and one of then, a strand of gold, to tell a fantastic tale. 'Beyond the High Road' continues the tale of now with lots of references to the tale of then to lay the foundation for 'Death of the Dragon'. Normally, I don't like books that merely set up the next book but I gladly accepted it in this case because of the wonderful story and originality that went into it. 'Cormyr' is not necessary reading but it is strongly recommended and will make 'Dragon' much more enjoyable. Reading 'Beyond the High Road' is an absolute must otherwise the reader will be quite lost and confused.

Without giving too much away, let's just say that this book turns the typical stereotype of never-a-doubt that Good will prevail and stretches it to the extreme. Normally few, if any, good guys actually die. If they do it is only after the momentous battle that is the conclusion of the book. Not here. Greenwood & Denning show much more reality in the battles. They must have taken cues from WWII film footage. You will see where death keeps her sting. This book will draw you into the story and make you read it because what happends next is never predictable. The story is one long perilous journey; there is no safe place to rest and no safe place to close the book.

This trilogy is a must read for any fan of the genre and a great first for someone just beginning it.

My copy of this book is in Hardcover and with any of Ed Greenwood's work you cant put it down.

I hear rumors of Elminister will "die" sometime this year; however, depresssing that is it is also a relief. Ed then will be able to continue righting more fine books like this and maybe open up more knowledge of the 7 sisters.