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The Dragon Of Despair by Jane Lindsjold check out website: www.tor.com
These are no ordinary wolves, they are a vital element of the creatures that are the Royal Beasts. The story finds Firekeeper/Lady Blysse recruited to find out the plans of the evil sorceress Melina Shield. She has caused terrible uproar before and Firekeeper knows how dangerous she can be. Melina's marriage to the ruler in a foreign land brings possible huge consequences, for this land has far more liberal attitudes to magic.
Melina has actually found out that a legend that repeats over and over in stories that children read and revered myths that librarians guard like the book Gestapo has some basis in truth. She sees a great potential in a dragon that has been bound to the land and the water. The dragon of despair could be the power she ultimately strives to achieve over her enemies. You wouldn't know it from reading that synopsis that I had real trouble understanding what had gone on previous to this book. The fact is, this cannot really be seen as a stand-alone book in any shape or form. The background is so inundated with words for the sake of words that it is hard to see the wood for the trees. Do you like olive oil? Good because that's what you feel as if you are wading through when you read this book. The first two hundred pages or so revolves around finding out exactly what the countrymen believe and heard through gossip about Melina's actions. This is the politically driven fantasy I had heard about? Apparently so. The gossip is repeated so often that you want to shake the story to move it along. The style of writing is very poor. The grammar is unreservedly bad. For an example, Firekeeper shows her true self through an act of pure altruism and the character comments about it as "with such thoughtless thoughtfulness". Okay and there are four words out of six hundred and seventy pages worth, I rest my case m'lord! I think it is down to the style that the overall book is confusing. Each character generally has two names, even some place names have a dual identity, making it even harder to catch up on what has happened. There is a family tree at the front of the book, but it gives only one name out of the two, giving more confusion for the reader. There is also a map but what this adds to the story was beyond me. Aside from that, the names of people and places are just so cliché, they leave a lot to be desired. The characters are two dimensional, Edlin/Lord Kestrel is made out to be a bit of a toff so he adds 'what', 'good show' and 'I say' to the end of nearly every comment. A stereotype which is just downright overdone. Individual characters seem fuzzy and ill-defined. You cannot really read it without asking who is speaking. Princess Sapphire, Prince Shad and King Tedric in a conversation merge into one as a result. The story is limp. While the overall premise of the trilogy is one that has great scope and should work very well, it hasn't been utilised in this volume. Unfortunately, Linskold's research is blatantly showing when there are interactions between wolf and woman, it feels contrived and over explained. If the wolf acts submissively you are told that he is, rather than the expressions being matched to the actions. There is a possibility that this book turned out the way it did because of a deadline laid for the author Linskold. Maybe not as much thought and time went into this one as may have been allowed for the first two in the series. If that is the case then it is a damn shame that such an encouraging premise wasn't used to its full potential. I was really let down by this book. For anyone who has read the previous ones and enjoyed them, by all means, go ahead and have a read. Donna Jones
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OTHER REVIEWS - March 2004
Chasing Science by Frederick Pohl Wolves Of The Calla by Stephen King and illustrated by Bernie Wrighton The Mammoth Book Of Native Americans edited by Jon E. Lewis Changing Planes by Ursula Le Guin Red Star Rising: More Chronicles Of Pern by Anne McCaffrey Three Hearts And Three Lions by Poul Anderson Downward To The Earth by Robert Silverberg Buffy: Seven Crows by John Vornholt The Dragon Of Despair by Jane Lindsjold Gunpowder Empire by Harry Turtledove Barry Trotter And The Unnecessary Sequel by Michael Gerber Fitcher’s Brides by Gregory Frost Mammoth Book Of Best New Horror 2003 The Moon’s Shadow by Catherine Asaro Which Way To The Future: Selected Essays From Analog by Stanley Schmidt
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'The
Dragon Of Despair' is the last in Jane Linskold's fantasy trilogy
about a young woman who was saved from catastrophe by a pack of
wolves and raised as their own. 
Simultaneously,
settlers - much like the ones that Firekeeper's parents were a part
- have come and taken over an area close to where the Royal Beasts
dwell. Unease over their presence causes some serious disagreements
among the wolves especially and Firekeeper has the sinking feeling
that war will break out between the humans, that her roots are borne
from and the wolves that are her adoptive family. 
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