Starred review from March 15, 2004
Three universes converge—faerie, goblin and human—in this impressive and provocative fantasy, the first of a new series from bestseller Tracy Hickman and her Dragonlance cocreator, Laura Hickman. Galen Arvad, a newly married blacksmith, struggles to discover the nature of a dream state connecting him with inhabitants of the faerie and goblin realms. Galen tries to hide this uncanny connection, but fails when he runs afoul of the Dragon Priests in Benyn Township, whose people equate magic with insanity. Galen's wife, Berkita, and his dwarf friend, Cephas, vow to rescue him. Meanwhile, Galen strives to understand how his fate intermingles with the destiny of a faerie Seeker who wishes to aid her war-torn people and a goblin toiling amid the vast mechanical machines left by Titans. This emotionally intense novel's meticulously crafted magical system and likable characters evoke an atmosphere both timely and timeless. While lively action sequences and rich descriptive passages provide plenty of excitement, mature examinations of politics and individual responsibility lend philosophical weight and emotional poignancy. Sure to hit many bestseller lists, this is a fine example of socially conscious and unpredictable imaginative fiction.
April 15, 2004
Three worlds-one in which faeries war with hordes of magical beasts, another in which goblins dwell amid ruins of a machine-building race of Titans, and a third inhabited by humans but ruled by dragons-exist in a state of turmoil. When Galen Arvad, a young blacksmith whose powerful dreams draw the attention of the Grand Inquisitor, becomes a prisoner in a house filled with lunatics, he discovers that he has the power to open the ways among all three worlds-a talent that could mean either freedom or disaster. The husband-and-wife authors of the "Dragonlance" series have written a fast-paced, well-developed tale of bravery and virtue in the face of godlike opponents. For most fantasy collections.
Copyright 2004 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.