Bones of the Dragon (Dragonships of Vindras)

Like most Weis and Hickman fans, I started with Dragonlance (and the Legends trilogy to be more specific). Having read Bones of the Dragon, I have high hopes that this could be their best series since. BTW, why are you reading this review? Read the first chapter available from Amazon and decide for yourself!

The world of the Vidrasi is both similar and different from other W&H series.
SIMILARITIES
1. The gods are present and affect lives on a seemingly mortal by mortal basis.
2. Dragons, who doesn't love these powerful, intelligent, and opinionated beings? In this book, they operate on both the physical and spiritual planes which raises some interesting possibilities going forward...
3. Warriors, priestesses, and magic (oh my).
DIFFERENCES
1. Gore. There's more gore in this book than in any of their previous work, but it is a big part of the culture of the Vindrasi.
2. Lack of humor. I didn't miss it when I was reading, but another reviewer pointed it out and I have to agree, there aren't many 'haha' moments (unless you like laughing at Skylan).
3. Fae magic. My favorite character in this book was Wulfe who is the son of a fairie and a human. His story is intesting and unbelievable to the Torgun, but it has a lot of possibilities in the future books.

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Had this been the PILOT program for a new TV series, the network would have pulled it right after the 1st broadcast--it's THAT bad. I had great hopes for this new trek into dragon fantasy, BUT...it's ploddingly SLOW, the characters are SHALLOW, the threats to the "hero" SEEM CONTRIVED, and "ogre" enemies FAR FETCHED in concept, and the story-line is SOPHOMORIC at best--pure DRIVEL and TRIPE. So the dragon ISN'T COMING to save them when called, the "oracles" WON'T ANSWER their summons for help or CAN'T INVOKE their powers, the weather extremes are WREAKING HAVOC throughout the land, and the "gods" they pray to have been DECLARED DEAD. Sounds like the 21st Century we're having globally today! Having trouble getting to sleep?...then my ONLY recommendation is to buy this book as it's sure to push you into dreamland fast!

Three stars is just right here: this one was right in the middle, for me. I am a fan of Weis and Hickman, though not a fanatic, so I was excited about a book that had both vikings and dragons. Yet it took me a bit longer than usual to finish the book, and despite the exciting plot elements -- which abound -- it felt like it dragged at times. I read some of the critical reviews of this book here, and I was trying to think of problems I saw, flaws I could pinpoint, but I couldn't do it. But I also can't rave about the book, because there is something missing, some intangible element that would make this a great book, which it isn't.

The basic theme is an interesting one: what would you do if your gods abandoned you? Perhaps even -- died? The story is played out in a character several reviewers had trouble with: Skylan Ivorson. I had trouble with him, too, but only for the reason I was supposed to: Skylan is an idiot. He is a beautiful young man with flowing golden locks and piercing blue eyes; he is the son of the chief of his tribe of the Vindras people, and their war chief, as he is the greatest warrior. Skylan has been blessed by the gods, and he knows it. So throughout the first half of the book, Skylan assumes he can do anything, have anything he wants, and his patron deity, Torval, will help him to get it, since he honors Torval with every conquest, every victory (all of which -- coincidentally, of course -- honor Skylan as well). So Skylan, who is one of the point of view characters (and a very well-written one, since he is a fool but not a bad guy and that is how his narrative voice sounds), has very little patience with people who want to do things differently, who want to think instead of charge ahead, who want to negotiate instead of fight. He has especially little patience for the woman he loves, because she keeps being coy -- because she is actually in love with his best friend, Garn, the smart one; an open secret which everyone in the village has figured out. Except Skylan.

So when ogres invade, telling the Vindrasi that their gods have lost a war in heaven and died, Skylan wants to kill them all, and eventually he gets his wish -- though that, of course, is the question: do the Vindrasi succeed in driving off the ogres because their gods are not dead, but supporting them in their struggle? Or is it the greater fighting ability of the Vindrasi, combined with the might of the dragon who takes their side? We are not sure.

This is really only the beginning of the story; the Chief of Chiefs of the Vindrasi is an atheist, and (coincidentally, I'm sure) an incredible scumbag who betrays his people for the sake of his cowardice; he is dealt with in a very surprising way, and it leads to a whole new plot line that I wasn't expecting. I suppose if I had an issue with this book it was there: I didn't really like the direction Skylan went, or the choices he makes. But that can't be a criticism of the book, since I wasn't supposed to like either one. I did really enjoy the magical creatures in the book, the druids and the Fey and the giants, especially -- though I didn't care for the dragons, which was certainly a problem, as they are rather important to a book called "Bones of the Dragon," first in the Dragonships series. They seemed too pat, too easy, almost too mythical; their origin story and their reasons for helping the Vindrasi are less interesting than if they had simply been left as a question mark, their motives and history mysterious. I would also criticize the women in the book, who are shallow and silly and evil, except that I liked the Owl Woman character enormously, and the girl Aylaen, whom Skylan loves, is great, except for the way she and Garn deal with their love triangle problem, and for the way she acts at the end of the book.

I liked the book, but not really enough to want to read an entire series on the same story line. Especially not one that delves deeper into the dragons' story. In all honesty, after all the years I've been reading fantasy, I think dragons are pretty well played out. The most interesting dragon story I've read recently has been Naomi Novik's Temeraire series, and the most interesting thing about it is how the dragons are taken out of a traditional fantasy setting and plopped into the Napoleonic Wars. But Eragon? Yech. This book is far better than Paolini's, but still not good enough to make me want to read three more just like it.

As a dedicated Dragonlance fan (Darksword and Seventh Gate!), Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman seem to have lost their way in their last few Dragonlance novels that lack the epic and hopeful feel of these series. Does Bones of the Dragon turn this around? In a word, no. While the setting is unmistakably grittier than any of their previous works, it lacked the magic that made me want to continue reading. I have a rule re: series books. After 100 pages, if I'm not hooked into reading it, I'm not going to be. Needless to say, I wasn't hooked. Perhaps I'll try again, but I cannot recommend this book. You would be better off trying some classic Weis/Hickman (even the Rose of the Prophet was a step up from this novel)

I recently finished this book, I purchased it a couple months ago, but started reading it two days ago. I finished it yesterday. To sum it up... amazing.

Although I am not a big fan of the protagonist, Skylan, there is great deal of background information. There is also an interesting mix of characters, story lines, and cliffhanging moments.
One thing I liked about early Dragonlance works is that learning about Krynn was engaging. Raistlin is still my favorite Dragonlance guy hopefully Wulfe has the same effect. Learning about this new world and all the intricacies of the pantheon was interesting.

Other than the main character and his crappy behavior and immature antics the only sad point is that I have to wait for the next book. :( I hope it comes out soon. It's been a while since I read a book that hooked me the way this one did.

After Wizards' antics with with the Hourglass mage book, I doubt I will read another of their books so its nice to know that Weis and Hickman are branching out to something else.

Weis and Hickman have always been one of my favorite writing teams. The original Dragonlance books were fantastic and have become legendary in the world of fantasy. Many of those characters remain fresh even to this day. Subsequent series by the pair of authors have not reached that level but have still been great fun to read. So when I first heard about the Dragonships series and Bones of the Dragon, the first book of a planned six-book series, I was thrilled.

Now I have read the book. I really wanted to give it at least four stars, but I just can't. The plot is acceptable. We are introduced to the Vindrasi, a nation of sea-raiders very reminiscent of the Vikings. Skylan Ivorson begins the book as their best warrior and assumes the role of Chief of Chiefs later on. He then has the responsibility of leading all his people in times of war and peace. The Vindrasi and particularly the Torgun, Skylan's home clan, feel obligated to go on periodic raids in search of jewels and precious metals to offer to the gods. They love the thrill of battle. Much of the plot is established early on as several boatloads of ogres attack the Torgun and take away a sacred object. Skylan is honor-bound to lead his warriors in a quest to retrieve the object, but the actual resolution of that quest remains for one of the future books.

Bones of the Dragon is packed with battle, lust, evil scheming, dragons, gods, and lying. So you think you have everything you need, and in some ways you do. The tale moves along rapidly. You will always want to read just one more chapter to see what happens. There is plenty of action, and the conclusion leaves ample room for future books.

However, where is the humor? Where are the likeable characters? Who can we pull for? Dragonlance had as much action as anybody could want, but it also had a lot of humor plus characters you wanted to see succeed. Bones of the Dragon is lacking in these areas. There is virtually no humor. Most everything is grim. Then you have trouble actually liking the characters. Skylan is brave but also impetuous and foolish with no reluctance to lie when it suits him. Not to mention overwhelmingly arrogant. Towards the end of the book he appears to be maturing through his many trials, so I guess there is hope for the future.

Bones of the Dragon is not Dragonlance, but then what is? I admit that I did not want to put the book down. I wanted to see what was coming next, and I will certainly read the next book in the series. I hope Weis and Hickman continue writing for a long time.

A little slow in starting. It gets better as it goes!
Like most,it gets hard to put down towards the end! I liked it!

The newest Weis and Hickman series, Dragonships, starts with a bang!
(or is that a whimper?)

The Vindrasi had once been a mighty people. Until recently, few battles were not theirs, nor was plunder and treasure difficult. Fate had been unkind to them, but really it was new gods who vanquished the age old Vindrasi versions. Foced to rely on the Vindrasi, the gods commission a quest for the five bones of the Vektan Dragon. At stake is the fate of the world, and a world that the Vindrasi were once powerful in.

Skylan Ivorson, the main character is strong and impetuous, while Wulfe (half man, half animal) is a good addition to the cast. The authors populate this Nordic world with fascinating people who lived for their gods amidst difficulty. Their skill at creating a civilization out of nothingness is remarkable.

The book is excellent if you enjoy old Norse legends. Artwise, the cover is amazing!

[...]

Tim Lasiuta

Love it. Very lightweight for a hardcover book. Edges feel velvety.

Weis & Hickman are the best. They gave us DragonLance, The Death Gate Cycle, The Darksword Trilogy, and so much more. So it was with great relish and excitement that I began reading this book. Alas, it wasn't what it should have been.

The main characters are not particularly likable. The main character, in fact, is so detestable that I found myself hoping they would quickly kill him off and focus on someone else. That didn't happen. I finally gave it up. I just tossed the book aside and picked up something else. The plodding pace and the totally uninteresting characters were more than I could take.