Dragonsbane (©1985)

John Aversin is one of the few people to ever battle a dragon and live to tell the tale.  Jenny Waynest is a witch of limited ability, who is his companion. Their relatively quiet lives are turned upside down by the arrival of Gareth, a rather bookish youth who has come seeking the aid of the Dragonsbane. They soon find themselves pitted against an evil sorceress, and an ancient dragon.

The story unfolds nicely, and really is more about Jenny than about John. I really enjoyed the relationship that developed between Jenny and the dragon.  Some nice touches, particularly the reason why dragons have a horde (no spoilers here).  All in all a nice easy story that doesn't hurt the brain.

Dragonshadow (©1999)

Dragonshadow picks up the pieces of John and Jenny's lives. The story doesn't exactly leap from the page, but there are times when the plot and action are engaging. John and Jenny once again find themselves knee deep in dragon doo-doo, and along the way meet up with demon possessed mages - including their young son Ian, dragons, traitors and gnomes of the non-lawn variety.

Morkeleb the Black features prominently in this story again, and he's an interesting character. The lead characters are likeable, but aren't the typical "good guys" in fact Barbara goes to great lengths to portray them as ordinary people with warts and all. This installment in what looks to be an ongoing series ends with a less than happy ending, and promises more grief for our heroes in future volumes.

It's interesting how many years passed between books - I guess she finally found the hook she was waiting for to continue the story. This isn't fluffy fantasy, and it's slow to the point of boring at times but it's worth pushing through to see how things turn out. Not pleasant, but rewarding.

Reviewed May 16, 2002

Kinght of the Demon Queen (©2000)

I’m not sure what to think of this one. Like the last book in this series it ends abruptly and doesn’t really resolve much. This one is even darker than the previous installment. John is now under order of death for his involvement with Demons. Jenny has lost her magic, and is a wandering exercise in self pity. Aohila the Demon Queen recruits a reluctant John to get some things for her from various hells.

The last hell, where the majority of the novel is set, being a future world that would be at home in Bladerunner. The book never really quite takes off despite some engaging moments. There really are some cool moments, but there's just too much in the way of holes and loose ends. I’ll probably read the next book just to see how or if Barbara will wind this thing up.

Up to this point I’d recommend any one curious about the series to read the first book and call it quits. After all it took her 15 years to continue the story, so it can stand alone if it has to.

Reviewed June 7, 2002

Dragonstar (©2002)

"Surely you jest sir? Four stars?" 'Tis true. Dragonstar finally delivers on the promise of the previous two books - which were really chapters that in my opinion did not stand well alone. This will make one hell of an omnibus, and my disappointment with the last book is somewhat assuaged with this final installment in the series.

Once again we have John the bookworm warrior, and Jenny his wife, and Morkeleb. We also get a bunch of wicked demons and lots of ensuing nastiness. There was a fair amount of hinting at some past history between the dragons Morkeleb and Corvin which never comes to anything. There are also a lot of secondary characters which get a fair amount of page time but don't really do much for the overall story. Miss Mab the Gnome comes to mind.

While not a perfect book, I was propelled along by the story, and as it went along I found myself rethinking my position on the previous books when taken as part of the whole, and was amazed by how much I remembered from them and how they set the foundation for Dragonstar. As I said, these books will make a great omnibus so that they can be read as a single novel.

Of course Barbara's not an idiot and she left room for new adventures.

Reviewed February 21, 2004