Customer Reviews

Stormblade: Heroes, Volume Two

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

Being a true DL fan, This book basicly [stunk].

I have a tendency to Compare all DL Books to "The Legend of Huma" and when done so, this book is lacking.

The begining is slow, the write had no idea how to shape a book based on a dwarf. Don't get me wrong, I like Dwarves, they are one of the better races of krynn, but this one was just, bleh.

I continually wanted to find another book. I made myself read it all the way through, and about the middle of the book, it gets pretty good, but the action can't hold this one above water. The rest of the storyline and character descriptions are just way to gone to call it good.

This book [stunk]. If you have nothing else to read, then, by all means this one is for you, but if you can scrape up the $10.00 for a new one, do it! Save this one for when you are ready for bed, because it will put you to sleep!

Blah. Weak. Flat. Boring. These are just a few of the words that describe this book. As with the other Heroes books it's not really part of the Dragonlance canon, so there isn't much to miss if you decide to skip it. There is a bit about the Companions, but it is brief and actually doesn't fit well with the Chronicles (this book takes place between books 1 and 2 of that series). Supposedly the Companions "fought to recover the Hammer of Kharas" but in this book it seems like the fighting was for something else and the Hammer gets found later. I won't dwell on these issues though, let's break the book down a little:

Writing: Its fine, I'm not expecting classical literature in a pulp fantasy novel, and I'm not going to mark a book down for lacking something I didn't hope it would have. The action scenes and dialog were good, but not enough to carry the book.

Story: Except for the fact that it relies on a rather irrational event (A ranger's gifting of a priceless sword to a barmaid he never met before), the rest is borderline. Political events often serve as a good backdrop to stories of love and hate, but this one doesn't really pull it off. The love is contrived, the hate/revenge is simplistic, and the politics are downplayed to be predictable to make room for the action.

Characters: Here is where the book really stumbles. The characters are so predictable and stereotypical (even for fantasy) that you really don't care who lives or dies. The stoic good-hearted elf, the lovesick young human woman, the stubborn honor-bound dwarf, the evil one-eyed henchmen, etc. At the end an important character dies and I really wasn't moved at all.

About halfway through this book I found myself eyeing my shelf for what I wanted to read next, which is not a good sign. Considering how many other (better) Dragonlance books are out there, I would save this one until the end, or just skip it entirely.

This was the first book I read not directly inovlving the companions. At first, I couldn't get into it, because the setting of the scene was rather mundane. But as the story heats up a bit, it makes a yarn well worth reading. There were a couple of holes (didn't the companions kill Verminaard before they came to Thorbardin?), but they are mainly minor.
The characters are fairly simplistic, without much detail into their personalities, apart from the dwarf Stanach, and that infuriating kender Lavim. Piper's flute and Hauk giving the sword away are a bit ridiculous.
This author's work may not quite compare to the Chronicles and Legends series, but is still worth a quick scan. Stormblade is OK.

Thi is a strange book to describe: I've read lots of dragonlance books and several times the first 50-100 pages were a little booring because the writer was setting up the situation.
This is one of those...in the first part (120-150)I spent months...I wasn't cought from the story! But Later on it becomes very dinamic, funny and intriguingand I couldn't stop reading. It has an explosive end, but at the very end it introduces something else: the mith of the "Hammer"...and that's, unfortunally, another story!
A story about relation between Halflings, Half Elves, Uman an Dwarves.
Averall it's good book.

This is possibly the only Draginlance book I wish I had never bought. It reads very 'long' for me; I find myself looking for excuses to set this book down. All the other books in the Heroes series have something to do with either history or with the companions. But, this book is pretty much on its own. There is some interaction with Tanis and Goldmoon, but, other than that, this book doesn't involve the companions.

The storyline seemed to fit everything. But, to be honest, the interaction between the Thorbardin dwarves and the companions is pretty much glossed over in the 'Chronicles' trilogy. This book gives some more information on them around the same time that the companions were seeking shelter from the red dragonarmies.

I don't have much of a reason, but I just didn't enjoy this book. I love to read, but this book didn't ignite that spark; I spent most of my time looking forward to the end. Plus, the kender in this book (I have repressed his name) is thoroughly annoying! Kender do make most stories a lot lighter, but tis one was just plain annoying - give me Tasslehoff any day!

This is probably the best book in the dragonlance series that I've ever read. Nancy you've still got the touch! The story delivers a great plot line with plenty of twists. Plus the dramatic effect that you get as the story progresses and the heroes that you begin to love, die. The battles are terrific.The humor from the kender also lightens the sort of dark murky mood you get after loved heroes die. Unlike some novels where the battle is just non stop and the good guys always win. This is a great novel! BTW I'm not 12 I'm 14 stupid kid review. Anyho my 4 year experience opinion is this book is something great and I'd suggest that you definetly read this as soon as humanly possible!

This has to be the worst DragonLance book I have ever read. Not only are some scenes downright confusing but the fight scenes are as unbelievable as possible. This is a real shame because one of the best Dragonlance books is the one right after this one "Weasels Luck".

Bottom Line: Skip this book and go on to the third in the series.

This book goes to my bio as one of the worst I have ever read. Bad history, bad caracters and especialy bad scenes. Like the one in which a barmaid figths and defeats plate armored dwarven warriors with a dagger! Her description of how magic works in a ADD world and of events in the Dragolance Saga reveals that the author had only passing knowledge of both at time. Dont take me wrong, I am a great fan of ADD and read dozens of novels set in Dragolanced, Ravenloft,Dark Sun and others TSR worlds. I had good expectations for the book.I was disapointed.

This title in the Heroes series by Nancy V. Berberick (a great contributor to the Dragonlance saga) is a very good read.

In the story a sword named Stormblade is forged in Thorbardin, home of the dwarves. It is then stolen, then found. However two groups are trying to recover it - of course, there's the bad guys, and the good guys. Both of these groups are motivated by politics. Although it may seem like another politically moved novel, it has many plot twists and evil things happening to the characters which make you keep reading, as well as feel sorry for the characters.

Besides the main storyline, there is love between the characters, and excellent combat scenes, like those in Legend of Huma (Heroes I, by Richard Knaak). One thing about this book, though; many of the characters are badly injured or killed, and only several main characters remain in the end. Much like a horror novel.

In summary, I thought this was another excellent Dragonlance - Heroes novel. I recommend this book for starting fantasy/Dragonlance readers as well as experienced ones.

well, i'm not quite as enthusiastic as some about this book, but it was definately a good one. It had your action, your drama, your romance, and of course the kender-kind of comedy. From a 15-book dragonlance reader, I would say this is a must-read if your into Dragonlance.