Tag: Margaret Weis

Last week Midnight talked to Sprinkles about Dragonlance Chronicles by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Today he is excited to be talking about the sequel trilogy, Dragonlance Legends. The trilogy, consisting of three books (Time of the Twins, War of the Twins, and Test of the Twins) was originally published in 1986. The edition Midnight is posing with in the photos below is the fortieth anniversary edition, published in 2026.

Sprinkles: So here we are, Midnight, talking about the next trilogy in the Dragonlance universe.

Midnight: Yes. Marshmallow has had some very busy weeks and so I am filling in for the time being.

Sprinkles: And we are grateful for that. And this is another book you really like, right?

Midnight: Yes. I have many fond memories of this trilogy. I think I like it even better than the first one.

Sprinkles: Really? That is interesting. Can you explain why?

Midnight: It explores the relationship between the brothers Majere, the enigmatic wizard Raistlin and his good-natured and protective twin brother Caramon. Tagging along with them is Tasslehoff Burrfoot, a halfling of sorts who has a habit of borrowing things from others without asking.

Sprinkles: Some might call that stealing.

Midnight: Some might. Tasslehoff is a fun character, and he was often a source of comic relief in the first series. But here he often keeps the story moving, and inserts some occasional light-hearted moments in between periods of dark drama.

Sprinkles: What dark drama? Can you say something about that? You told us about evil dragons in your earlier review. Are they still causing trouble in this book?

Midnight: The dark queen has been prevented from conquering the world in the first trilogy. So this trilogy does not focus so much on the large-scale good-versus-evil, saving the world kind of plot. Instead, it focuses more on whether Raistlin can be rescued from the darkness himself.

Sprinkles: You almost make it sound like a psychological drama. Where one of the main characters is losing his soul and maybe his brother is trying to help him fight to keep it.

Midnight: I guess it is kind of like that, but with a lot more action and high fantasy. It is a lot more interesting than just a psychological drama”. Raistlin was always physically weak but smart and powerful with magic. Despite his frailty he had incredible ambition and confidence in his abilities. Let’s just say that throughout the first series, it’s not clear whether he will embrace the darker side of his ambitions.

Sprinkles: That sounds intriguing. And also in the meantime, they are traveling all over the world, right?

Midnight: Well, it starts out in a familiar place, where we find that Caramon has not taken well to settling down after the war from the first series. He is in a bad place emotionally, after the conflicts with his brother in the first series. His old friend Tasslehoff visits him and finds him in a sorry state, a pitiful shell of his former self. They go on a quest that will not only restore Caramon to his former self but hopefully will also redeem his wayward brother.

Sprinkles: So that quest is what the traveling is all about?

Midnight: It is not so much traveling geographically but they travel through time. They go back three hundred years, to the time before the Cataclysm, a world-altering event that set the stage for everything to come.

Sprinkles: Wait, so there is time travel here. And this is not science fiction.

Midnight: Not science fiction. Definitely fantasy. What is fascinating is that they return to legendary times, spoken of only in terms of myths and legends in the first series. I should also mention that one of the new characters that travels with them is Crysania, a good priestess who is determined to save Raistlin’s soul.

Sprinkles: I am guessing there is a love triangle or something?

Midnight: Of sorts, but it is not mushy like that. I think it is clear from the start that Crysania is determined to prevent Raistlin from becoming the ultimate force of evil that he could become. But she is blinded by her naivete and optimism.

Sprinkles: Hmm, that is a pretty detailed plot setup Midnight. I hope it has intrigued some of our readers.

Midnight: Yes, if you make it to the end, you’ll know all about how important bunnies are to the plot.

Sprinkles: Oh now, they have to read the book! And they really should. I really enjoyed reading them myself. One after another. It was hard to stop in between the books; it was so engaging.

Midnight: Yep. It is a very addicting mix of high fantasy and drama, written in plain and accessible language.

Sprinkles: No Tolkien, we are saying.

Midnight: No. it is not Tolkien, but like all works of the high fantasy genre, it owes much to the professor.

Sprinkles: And of course you love Tolkien too. I know. Anyways, I think this might be a good place to wrap up this review. What do you think?

Midnight: I agree. I must go feed.

Sprinkles: Are we doing the creepy vampire thing again?

Midnight: Infer what you will, my dear Sprinkles.

Sprinkles: Okay. I will do that. Is there something you would like to tell our readers as we end this?

Midnight: A bunny such as myself does not do simple catch-phrases and sound bytes. But I will say this: Farewell, dear reader. Until such a time as the Black Bunny deems it fit to grace the world with his august presence.

Today Midnight talks to Sprinkles about Dragonlance Chronicles, a classic fantasy trilogy from 1984-1985, written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. The copy he is posing with in the photos below is the fortieth anniversary edition, collecting all three books in one beautiful volume, published in 2025.

Sprinkles: So Midnight and I are here, talking about a giant classic of the fantasy genre.

Midnight: Actually, this giant book I am posing with is not as large as it looks. I am just very small. And it is a recent anniversary edition that brings together the three books of the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy.

Sprinkles: Okay, tell us about the three books then.

Midnight: These books actually began as novelizations of pre-designed Dungeons and Dragons adventures (called modules). I believe that the series of modules and the whole promotional campaign was designed to recenter the Dungeons and Dragons experience around dragons.

Sprinkles: Ooh, we all love dragons in this family!

Midnight: Indeed, are not rabbits really dragons, just smaller and furrier?

Sprinkles: I am sure Caramel would love that!

Midnight: However the Dragonlance novels became very very popular, in large part due to the memorable characters and the dramatic story line. It does not have the literary aspirations of Tolkien, and as such, is a much easier read.

Sprinkles: I must agree. I read these books and loved them! With Tolkien I have not been as successful. Yet. I am going to read The Silmarillion, after your review last week.

Midnight: I will ensure that you do. It would be most unwise to disappoint the black rabbit.

Sprinkles: Okay, I think I am supposed to feel intimidated here. Let us say I am appropriately intimidated. And move on to the review.

Midnight: Sure. The Dragonlance Chronicles is what might be described as a straightforward good-versus-evil, save-the-world story line. To a large extent this is true. This is no Game of Thrones, filled with morally gray characters.

Sprinkles: I do not think I’d say Game of Thrones characters are morally gray, I’d say most of them are straight-out bad people. But anyway I think I get what you mean. In this series, there are bad people and there are good people trying to fight them.

Midnight. Yeah. The main plot revolves around a party of adventurers who are trying to prevent the ultimate triumph of the big bad goddess of evil dragons who wants to rule the world.

Sprinkles: So tell me about your favorite character in the series.

Midnight: Perhaps my favorite character is the only one of the main heroes who is morally gray. I am talking about the wizard Raistlin, a sickly and frail young man of great talent and aspirations. His twin brother Caramon is a powerful and good-natured warrior and they make an interesting pair.

Sprinkles: The Wikipedia article about him says that he is both a protagonist and an antagonist. I had not heard that said before about any other fictional character.

Midnight: As I said, he is morally gray. In fact Raistlin and Caramon proved so compelling that the authors wrote a second trilogy, Dragonlance Legends, centered around them and their complicated relationship.

Sprinkles: Oh, maybe you will review those books, too, some time.

Midnight: Most definitely.

Sprinkles: So tell me a bit more about this goddess of evil dragons.

Midnight: Her evil dragons have reawakened and are causing trouble in the world once more. The good dragons are nowhere to be seen, leaving the people of Krynn, the world of the books, at the mercy of the evil dragons and the Draconians, a race of dragon-like humanoids, who appeared with the rise of the evil dragons.

Sprinkles: No bunnies anywhere?

Midnight: In fact fans of the series will recognize the significance of the bunnies, or rather, of a particular “bunny”, to the relationship between the twins. But that will have to wait for the second trilogy. For this trilogy, bunnies might be lurking in the background. But they are never not there, of course. We often lurk in the darkness, with humans oblivious to our plans.

Sprinkles: Okay, Midnight. Thank you for that ominous reminder. But you know a lot of young humans read this blog, so we do not want to scare them.

Midnight: If they knew how big I was, they’d probably not be scared. But okay.

Sprinkles: What else would you like to tell us about Dragonlance Chronicles?

Midnight: I’ve read and reread this series many times since I was a young bunny. It is a good read, high adventure in a world of high fantasy. The characters are very colorful and concrete; you get to know them really well, at least as well as the authors want you to get to know them, of course.

Sprinkles: So all in all, we both agree that these are great books to read. I read them really fast even though they are quite long as a whole. The adventure is fascinating and captivating.

Midnight: Yes.

Sprinkles: Okay, midnight. Than you for coming out of your hiding place for this review. I think this will be a good place to wrap things up. Anything else you would like our readers to know?

Midnight: There is also an anniversary edition of Dragonlance Legends, and I look forward to reviewing that at some point in the future.

Sprinkles: That will be great, Midnight, thank you. I will look forward to it!

Midnight: Till then, I bid you all adieu.