Dragons of the Hourglass Mage: Lost Chronicles, Volume Three (The Lost Chronicles)

Description

The dramatic conclusion to the Lost Chronicles series!

The War of the Lance is nearing its end—for good or ill. The wizard Raistlin Majere travels to Neraka, the lord city of the Dark Queen. Raistlin ostensibly plans to work for her, though in reality he means to further his own quest for power. The Dark Queen plans to destroy the gods of magic on the Night of the Eye, when all the wizards will congregate. Raistlin has to find a way to thwart the plot, even though this means doing battle with his own sister, the Dragon Highlord Kitiara, and her terrifying ally, the death knight, Lord Soth. And still he must overcome his final foe: the archmagus Fistandantilus, who seeks to kill Raistlin and steal his soul.

The creators of the Dragonlance® world return with their iconic characters, the Companions of he Lance, to show fans the rest of what really happened in the epic battle that determined the fate of the world of Krynn.

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Customer Reviews

Any fantasy audio library will welcome this
Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman's DRAGONS OF THE HOURGLASS MAGE receives a fine performance by veteran narrator Sandra Burr as it tells of Raistlin Majere, who has become a wizard and travels to the lord city of the Dark Queen to work for her. When he finds that one Takhsis means to take control of all wizardly magic, forces of light and darkness line up in a desperate struggle. Any fantasy audio library will welcome this.

2010-02-11 (Oregon, WI USA) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

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Quit While You Are Ahead... Please.
As a long time Dragonlance fan, and a long time Raistlin fan, I have to say this book was boring, contrived and unoriginal. Weiss and Hickman have apparently just totally run out of good ideas, so they really should just quit while they are ahead.

2010-01-31 | Machinegun Joe (Georgia) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 1

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the missing piece of the puzzle
this is the missing part. it is a very good book. but it is not as thriling that the others books of the dragonlance lost chronicle serie. Dont miss the occasion to read it it is quickly read and have a good storieline. but be prepared to follow only one single cacacter. my only disapointeemnt is that the end is rushed. the final conflict is quickly pass over and it assume that ou have read the end on dragon of spring.

2010-01-08 (Saguenay, Canada) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

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Best in the Series, though Lost Chronicles continues it's "Good, but not Great" status.
Dragons of the Hourglass Mage is the conclusion to the Lost Chronicles series, giving many of us a chance to get our eager paws on the story of Raistlin Majere's decent into darkness.

Like in my review of Highlord Skies, I have to say that the overall series of Dragonlance Lost Chronicles has been marred by it's lack of drama, polish and luster comparatively to the original series. Time has indeed cast a sleep spell on the Chronicles series, and I'm not sure fans of the trilogy will ever wake from our dreams of high-fantasy.

I can't say what it was. Was it the epic collapse of TSR, Inc. and the subsequent buy out by Wizards of the Coast? I have a feeling that the corporate nature of Wizards has stagnated the Dragonlance Series, and now authors do not have in Wizards what they had in a trail-blazing company for all things fantasy that TSR was.

Many of us who are reading the Lost Chronicles read the original Chronicles series so many years ago. While I'm sure that a great influx of readers still comes and goes, Dragonlance obviously peaked in it's highest in the mid to late 90's, cresting with the War of the Souls, where novel after novel was being pumped out after the re-release of Chronicles & legends in 1994. But now, any respectable bookseller or library has a collection of Dragonlance novels on standby. I'm not sure if Dragonlance was initially received with fanfare and accolade, but it is quite obvious now that Chronicles has become a classic series, destined for a full-featured hollywood live action film, and that it will be remembered and recognized as a best-selling fantasy trilogy and staple in the genre for a long time.

That is when I read Chronicles, and the escapism provided to me then seems to be missing now. I imagine time has affected me, anchoring me to the ground, but I still look to Weis and Hickman for that lift into the clouds to take me away to their world. It seems that maybe the same has happened to them, because the Lost Chronicles rarely pulled me in so deep that I felt as if I were there until Hourglass Mage.

I have to go on record saying that although I am a hardcore Dragonlance fan, its easy to argue that the last real strong release Weis & Hickman put out was Dragons of Summer Flame. The emotion and drama since then has been "good, but not great", and I think sales and reviews have overall reflected this. It is not to say that the War of the Souls trilogy or Lost Chronicles don't have their uniqueness and place in the Dragonlance series, but it seems to me that Dragons of the Hourglass Mage had a chance to seal this trilogy in epic fanfare and save what could be best described as mediocrity. I ultimately feel it does not do so, the mistakes and missed opportunities combined with what feels like some contrived and unnecessary pockets of reading ultimately keep Hourglass Mage and the Lost Chronicles from greatness, but that does not mean that these books aren't good and not worth reading.


Hourglass Mage is Raistlin Majere's journey into darkness. Without spoilers, the novel starts with his arrival in Palanthas, using the Dragon Orb to escape what he believed was certain death, Raistlin arrives near death but recovers. He then sets out on a singular mission, to gain power, by any means necessary. The memory of what he believes are the deaths of his brother Caramon, Tanis, Tika, Goldmoon & Riverwind are fresh in his mind, and despite what many would think, he is remorseful but he maintains his unwavering ability to control himself and emotions, a trait that has allowed him to survive and a trait that in Legends, almost attains him godhood. He then plans a journey to Neraka, where after discovering the Key to power, attempts to beseech the Queen of Darkness for that power. There he is tangled in the intrigue and inner fighting of the Highlords, and finds himself standing in the position at the end, able to shape the destiny of the world when he meets the Berem the Everman at the foundation stone below the Temple of Takhisis.

We still find ourselves clinging to his every word, his every action, because a part of us inside wishes we could live devoid of emotion like Raistlin does. Raistlin is the dark-side of his twin, and many readers find that he is resembles their dark side as well. As such, he has most easily argued the most popular character in the Dragonlance series. He is not the beloved, he is the most popular.

Just like Crysania, Dalamar and even his own brother, many fans are moths to the flame with Raistlin Majere. I can only think of that simple chapter illustration that best represents it in the Legends novels.

I say the most popular and not the most beloved, because, many will easily state that Tanis, Sturm, Caramon or Tasslehoff are our most beloved characters. Tanis because his conflict, Sturm because of his sacrifice, Caramon because he is the "caring man", and Tasslehoff because of his irresistible humor, charm and good nature. Any who have read Legends cemented their love for Caramon and Tasslehoff, but most notably our complete and utter fascination with Raistlin.


That being said, undoubtedly your expectations are sky-high for this novel, and my personal expectations were no different. It has not been released on paperback so many of you have not read it yet. I have listened to it on unabridged audiobook and have read it on hard cover.

Although I do not like delving too deeply into the realms of expectations, lets get a few facts straight...

First, its been almost 25 years since Chronicles was written. That being said, there is a lot of dust to uncover. Weis and Hickman have changed, and while many argue back and forth of whether for the better or worse, change is there none-the-less. In their podcast about Dragons of Highlord Skies on iTunes, they themselves talk about this. I won't attmept to quote, but you can download it for free on Itunes and hear what they have to say about the Lost Chronicles and how and why they wrote it. Big fans of Weis and Hickman will be happy to hear the voices of those that have shaped their love for the fantasy genre.

This being said, after reading and listening to the book, I am happy with the novel, but I found it good but not great. Perhaps time will cement the Lost Chronicles, but the mistakes may prove costly. It suffers from the same flaws that the entire series has had. Some minor inconstancies, but most importantly, some missed opportunities to elaborate on some huge questions and some summarized items and events from Dragons of Spring Dawning. Combine this and an overall feeling that this may be the last Dragonlance book from Weis and Hickman for some time, considering their other projects, elapsed time and huge success, sometimes, its better to just let it go. Don't get me wrong, I'll read anything they co-write, but even the Rolling Stones will one day have to hang up the guitars. Big fans know that Weis & Hickman have reached this crossroad many times and most awesomely for us, they have grabbed their pouches back from Tas and returned to Krynn many times.

Luckily though, many moments of Hourglass Mage pulled me deep into the Dragonlance world again with great vividness. Weis & Hickman's attention to detail and truly addictive writing is definitely still there. The love of the characters and series shows, and most happily some fresh content and perspective is in abundant amounts. What is most interesting to take away from this book is that Raistlin becomes evil for the better good of the world at that time, even though he ultimately uses this and everything else to his advantage through his intelligence and cunning. The irony is most intentional and will ultimately cement Raistlin Majere's status in the fantasy genre as one of the most truly intriguing and amazing characters ever conceived.

I will leave this review saying that this book was obviously written for the fans, and I thank Margaret Weis & Tracy Hickman for such.


Bottom Line: 4/5
The best of the series, and a must read for hardcore Dragonlance fans. Other more casual fans may find disappointment in the change of tone and pacing that the original series had.



Pros:
-Whoohoo more Raistlin. Raistlin is done well and the character feels right.
-Fresh perspectives , new characters, and large amounts good of new content.
-Story contains a good amount of intrigue and delves into the bickering of the highlords well.
-Iolanthe who appeared in Highlord Skies makes for a great character and addition to Hourglass Mage
-Some old characters return with some surprising previously untold events, including Par-Salian & the Conclave
-An awesome battle between two evil characters. I absolutely want to say who but I can't. Sufficed to say, it was great.



Cons:
-As with the entire series, another chance for some more elaboration with a few plot areas were missed, and they are big let downs.
-Some scenes have you scratching your head, seeming unnecessary and contrived.
-Some minor inconsistencies, though far fewer and much more minor than Dwarven Depths & Highlord Skies had.
-The story of Gilthanis and Silvara is not told, which is a huge let down.
-Rehashing of the plot-line is redundant and dull for those who are already familiar with it.
-Somewhat anti-climactic, those familiar with Chronicles know the ending.

-pdr

2009-12-22 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

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A Bit of a Bomb... so not like Raistlin, 'the' Raistlin
Good read for general DragonLance fans but a disappointment for Raistlin Majere fans. Just like the previous negative reviews stated, 'Raistlin was a leach' and it was so true. At the end of Dragon's of Spring Dawning, where Raistlin shows himself at the end with his new found power, the initial thought was that Raistlin discovered he's new power was through hard work and determination since that was how Raistlin was. However, in this book it seemed that he stumbled into this power without much effort. He was dragged around the whole book and in the last minute Weis and Hickman really quickly through something together that would compensate for the weak state Raistlin was in throughout the book. Which means the ending was poor and not original, same thing happens in Legends!! kinda discrediting the fight between Fistandantilus and Raistlin in that series. The same premature work was done in Dragons of Summer Flame, the authors needed to take there time with this one but perhaps under the pressure and deadline that same thing happen as it did in Summer Flame. However get the book for the sake of finishing this series.

2009-12-01 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 3

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Dragon Wing (The Death Gate Cycle, Book 1)

Product Details

• Notes: Kind New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.
• <a title='Condition Guide' href='/content/Condition_and_S hipping_Guide.htm' target='_blank'>Click here to in consideration of our Condition Guide and Shipping Prices</a>
• ISBN13: 9780553286397
• Contingency: NEW

Description

Preeminent storytellers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman have redefined epic fantasy. Since the publication of their Dragonlance series, millions of readers have enjoyed their imaginative world-building, rich characterization, and intricate storylines. Now these bestsellingauthors bring their talents to one of the most innovative fantasy creations ever in Dragon Wing, the first volume in The Death Gate Cycle.

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Customer Reviews

Kindle version has a lot of problems.
I'd first read this series back when it came out and I was a teenager, and I remember them only being so-so back then. I decided to give them another try, and after reading Dragonwing I'm not sure I'm going to make it through the rest again. It shouldn't come as any surprise to me, but the characters are pretty one-dimensional and the dialogue doesn't sound real. And how many times does Alfred need to trip or Limbeck start rattling off a speech while no one's listening? We get that Alfred is clumsy after the first 15 times he trips... it doesn't need to keep happening every other page!

Anyway, the real reason I wanted to write this review wasn't to complain about the content of the book, but rather how the Kindle version turned out. There are a lot of problems with text that got garbled and came out with the wrong characters. For example, if there's a line in the book that says "I'll go get it.", it might appear in the Kindle version as "I'11 go get it". There's also quite a few cases of words with letters missing. It's impossible to go more than 2 pages without hitting an error like this, and in some cases you might see 5 or 6 on a page. It's not a huge deal since you can still tell what the word is supposed to be, but it's pretty annoying that this was such a low-quality digital conversion.

2010-03-05 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 2

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Fantastic
This book (in fact, the entire series) is absolutely fantastic- I have read a lot of fantasy and this is by far one of my all time favorite series.

2010-03-03 | paul the latino (Kalamazoo, MI) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

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In Arianus... The Saga Begins
The first contemporary fantasy series I read was The Death Gate Cycle by frequent collaborators Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. That was many moons ago and years after having discovered and micro-read The Lord Of The Rings and The Hobbit, which remain the classics of the genre. The Death Gate Cycle, however, sucked me in to further read and explore the genre. Years later, with the follow-up reading, this book is still marvelous.

Weis and Hickman have written many more books either jointly or individually. Unfortunately however, none of them come close to the series at hand. While many consider the Dragonlance series to be their best, and they are indeed good, the seven books, which begin here, remain unmatched.
Humans, Welves (elves) and Gegs (dwarves) occupy the realm of sky, Arianus, but not together or in peace. The Sartan have mysteriously disappeared and legends of the Patryn are withering in time. The human Mysteriarch have abandoned their human brethren and withdrawn to the unreachable High Realm, but something is afoot. The Death Gate has opened.

With plenty of action and rich characterizations Dragon Wing - Volume 1 is both a fast-paced story and the foundation for the six books that follow and complete the series. Much to the authors' credit it is not obvious who is good and who is evil.

As an aside, with Tracy Hickman being a Latter-Day Saint, the Sartan's Musings at the book's end introduce the name and concept of Elihn, God In One, which is almost literally a variation on the Mormon Elohim, God The Father.
Adorned with great cover artwork and including tablature and explanations on magic Dragon Wing is a superb fantasy book.

2009-10-19 (Toronto, Canada) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

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Highly Recommend
When I first open the book of Volume 1, I was hooked!!! Could not put the book down, Haplo is a great charater as well as Alfred. What a combination of a team. I had to order the other 6 volumes and all the books did not let me down. Wish there were more. Great writing and I would highly recommend all the volumes.!!

2009-10-08 | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

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Glad I Found This Series...
I forget what drew me to this book when it sat on the bookshelf one year on a casual trip to the book store. I suppose it was probably the word "Dragon" in the title, but whatever it was, I'm glad I bought it. Hickman and Weis have a flare for fantasy that I so rarely see in other books. The casual story of a Prince to be assassinated gets turned into something else completely. And no one is exactly who they seem.

As it turns out, dragons play a smaller part than the Dwarves/Gegs. It's a story of two condemned men, and the circumstances that brought them to the same place; just as it is a story about magic, power, and the struggle for freedom and understanding.

2009-06-09 | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 5

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Elven Star: The Death Gate Cycle, Volume 2 (A Death Gate Novel)

Product Details

• Environment: NEW
• ISBN13: 9780553290981
• Notes: Discredit New from Publisher. No Remainder Mark.

Description

On steamy Pryan, never-ending sunlight and plentiful rain have created a jungle so vast that humans and elves dwell high in the trees and only dwarves live anywhere near the ground. From the treetops the aristocratic elves sell weapons to the other races, whose incessant warfare sends a steady steam of profits and essential resources skyward. Now, generations of dissent and race hatred will not heal -- not even under the threat of annihilation at the hands of legendary Titans. Armed with little more than their wits and prophecy, an elf, a human, and a dwarf must unite to try to save the world from destruction.

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Customer Reviews

In Pryan... The Saga Takes Flight
Elven Star is the second volume in the series of seven that comprise The Death Gate Cycle. It follows Dragon Wing (The Death Gate Cycle, Book 1), which takes place in the realm of air and precedes Fire Sea: The Death Gate Cycle, Volume 3 (A Death Gate Novel), which takes place on the realm of stone. Oddly, the cover of Volume 1, the realm of air, was red, while Eleven Star of the realm of fire has blue artwork.

Pryan, realm of fire, has four suns, which corresponds to the four realms the Sartan fashioned. The suns shine constantly. It is thick with vegetation and a surface rarely seen or visited. On this sundered world the plot initially revolves around the elves, but ultimately the humans and dwarves and their joint interactions becomes the essence of the story. Haplo, a powerful Patryn, is here and seeking clues and fomenting despair. The equally powerful Sartan have gone missing. Adding to the mystery is the human wizard Zifnab whose accompanying dragon is a puzzling catalyst to the story. The races, characters and species with whom fantasy buffs are so familiar take on new forms and complex narratives. The action is never lacking. The reader is also given a more detailed explanation of the Labyrinth and the Nexus and the tribulations of the Patryn.

Several points of interest particular to this volume:
-Apparently, discerning who is a Patryn is not as complex as the prequel, Dragon Wing, wanted us to believe. There is a particular hair characteristic that Alfred, the Sartan, missed in that book. Identifying the Satryn is apparently so easy as well that even an elven maiden could figure it out.
-Adding to the richness is the aforementioned old wizard Zifnab who is incredibly powerful and constantly refers to the olden days of human technology and quotes from The Lord Of The Rings. Zifnab is shrewd enough to know that Haplo is coming. Zifnab's dragon is pivotal in the story too and supplies some comic relief.
-Lenthan Quindiniar is the patriarch of the elven family. He seeks his beloved dead wife and tugs at the heart with his romanticism. His desire to ascend to the stars to be with his wife has religious overtones courtesy of the authors. Then again, he is a mad man.
-Lenthan's daughter Calandra has taken over the family's business of selling weapons to all sides. Unmarried, she is willing to die for the family business. "What are men, after all, but creatures who spend your money and interfere in your life," she reckons. The elves live in a matriarchal society.

Haplo comes close to solving the puzzles of Pryan. He will report back to his Lord before preparing to journey to Abarrach.

Volume two is exciting, rich and textured. It comes with the typically detailed fantasy artwork and sets one up for the next chapter.

2009-11-30 (Toronto, Canada) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 4

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Better than the last one for sure
This was much better Dragon wing, but I got bored. The wizard character was the most entertaining and I'd like to see a series based on his character. I feel no desire to keep going with the series.

2009-11-18 (Charlotte, NC USA) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 3

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Hilarious Work!
This book was hilarious! Zifnab? Oh, come on! It's freaking Fizban for crying out loud. Weis is a Goddess. She can write some of the funniest awesome. Zifnab (Fizban) and his easily offended dragon made the book. I actually had to buy this one, ya'll.

2009-05-11 | Dave (KY) | Helpful Votes: 1 | Rating: 5

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Great series
One of the great book series available. I am a DL fan, but this series is better and short and sweet with 7 books. All were good without other authors to ruin anything.

2008-11-22 (Memphis) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

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Could not put it down
The book is great. The authors make you care about the characters and it's hard to put it down - I agree with some reviewers that the beginning is little bit slow...but later the pace is picked up. Also as I read the book I noticed that I did not want it to end...the reading process itself gave so much pleasure.

2008-10-24 (NEW YORK,USA) | Helpful Votes: 0 | Rating: 5

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