Dragonlance Chronicles, by Weis and Hickman
The Dragonlance Chronicles, set in the world of Krynn, was the first trilogy outside of the Lord of the Rings, that I really fell in love with. Part of it was the timing. I had recently picked up Dungeons and Dragons again and joined a small group who would get together regularly and play. When I picked up the first book in the Chronicles series, I was totally enthralled and could not put the book down.
The books started after playing through an adventure module the authors created. The good news was Weis and Hickman also created the modules as a well. Better yet, readers could play the adventure themselves and live out their own version of the books. There were a total of 16 modules and I owned everyone of them at one time. Like an idiot, I sold them off later.
I even purchased a lot of the additional books. Because some of the rules for Krynn were different then the rest of the AD&D world, they created a rules supplement. Plus, I purchased a lot of artwork and other books that had details of the world and the adventures. I had never been so immersed in anything before.
Spoiler Free Comments
Admittedly, when I went back and read it years later, I was a little disappointed in the writing. It was clear this was the first novel written by these two, but Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman went on to become juggernauts in the fantasy and gaming world. You could see their writing improve with the series and it does not stop me from recommended this series.
The characters and their development were off the charts. Usually a favorite stands out or when the author switched from one character to another, but not in this case. I found myself as big a Raistlin fan as I was a Tanis fan.
Every character had something to like and, with the exception of maybe Tasslehoff, they all had their flaws and their secrets. It made them all relatable. It made them seem real. In my opinion, this was the real magic of this series. It was the characters and their relationships that made you want to stick with the story.
In fact, the story was a very typical fantasy trope. The game starts in a world with no dragons. Suddenly, the bad guys have evil dragons. The good guys and gals have to try and find the good dragons and then save the world. In reality, the story was just a vehicle to carry the heroes and their relationships forward.
Conclusion
To this day, I still have fond memories of the series and I occasionally return to the Dragonlance Chronicles to visit the Hero of the Lance. It is a series I think everyone who is into fantasy, especially Dungeons and Dragons, should read. Work through the rough writing and you will find a wonderful story about friendships and family. Plus there is plenty of action and dragons breathing fire, acid and ice.
