For the first book in theDragonlanceHeroes series , The Legend of Huma , the story of the greatest horse in Krynn was told , and how he banished the Dragon - goddess Takhisis and economise the populace . Now , in the third installment of the serial , Michael Williams ’ Weasel ’s Luck , we have the tale of … some kid who ’s primarily concerned with not being murdered .
Weasel , real name Galen Pathwarden , is not a hero , despite the name of the series . Also , there are n’t any Dragonlances in the book . Hell , there are n’t even any firedrake . ( There are a few lance . ) Instead , Galen is conscripted by an malefic hotshot called the Scorpion to mess with a Solamnic knight named Bayard Brightblade , who also conscript Galen to be his squire . The book is chiefly about Galen being very spoilt at both job and complaining a lot .
Weasel ’s Luck is a very unusual Holy Writ . It ’s not a bad book … I do n’t opine . It ’s frequently suspicious , with droll one - liner that would n’t feel out of place in aTerry Pratchittnovel . But there ’s no urgency to any part of the book , even though the overarching plot for most of it is that Bayard needs to get to Castle di Caela to fight in a tourney , pull ahead the hired hand of Enid di Caela in marriage , and end the jinx of the di Caelas harmonise to a vaticination that Bayard found scrawled in the margins of some random tome .
Inset of Larry Elmore’s original cover for Weasel’s Luck.Image: Wizards of the Coast
You ’d think the ticking clock of the tourney would give the plot some momentum , but Weasel ’s Luck care far less than Bayard does . My favorite example is a chapter where Bayard and Galen run into an ogre guard a minute pas who refuse to let them through . Bayard attempts to fight the ogre only to get smash with a individual blow . When Bayard examine again , he ’s rap unconscious for day . The fiend leaves for a while , but Bayard ’s too wounded to be move . When Bayard awakens , he determine that the monster probably only come out at nighttime as it ’s weakened by sunlight . So Bayard has a 10 - hour fight with this ogre , wait for the Sunday to arise , which ends up doing absolutely nothing . It eventually turn out the ogre was master by the Scorpion , who ’s been try on to prevent Bayard from come at the tourney on time . The villain is wildly successful in this .
What does Galen do during this larger-than-life , silent struggle ? Nothing . Much of the book consists of Galen hide when Bayard is in trouble , or cower when the Scorpio taste to get him to waylay the horse briefly . It is baffling that either Bayard or the Scorpion want him around . Galen is a terrible squire ( I reckon he help Bayard put on his armour once in the entire book and is sorry at it ) and I also do n’t have it away why the Scorpio has enlisted his help , because the Scorpio is an immensely sinewy magician who can possess ogres , turn goat into satyrs , and transform into dissimilar people and brute . Galen is nothing but a vast liability , but eventually , the wizard does n’t even take anything of him — he just pops by to threaten the male child and disclose his evil plan .
Speaking of jeopardize the boy , the book has a move subplot — well , it ’s not a plot , if it were a plot , it would advance somewhere — about Galen ’s older , dumber brother Alfric , who licitly wants to murder Galen and gets very , very close at some points . Alfric maintain showing up out of nowhere for no narrative purpose , just to have yet another person who dislikes the principal quality and physically abuses him . It ’s random and unneeded , but at a certain point , there ’s a dour liquid body substance in the repeat and inexorability . I do n’t have a go at it that this is intended , however .
Cover of 2012 reprint.Image: Wizards of the Coast
By the end , however , Galen does manage to acquire a tiny bit of chivalric conscience and bravery — it helps that the Scorpion kidnaps Enid , so a damsel becomes distressed — for a final conflict that palpate aboveboard , like the book has been quietly tense against the rails of a typical zero - to - submarine sandwich YA adventure , only to admit it ’s locked into the drive for the final few chapters and gives up . But , inexplicably , Alfric is take to the final battle , for no other reason than there ’s still at least one unbelievably recreant , fearful character around to add … levity ? I guess ? It , like so much of this novel , is more odd than anything .
The more I write this , the more reasons I find to dislike Weasel ’s Luck , and yet , somehow it save me more concerned than some of the other Dungeons & Dragons novel I ’ve reread . That pronounce , I ’m not particularly enthuse to gibe out the sequel , titled Galen Beknighted . I believe I ’ve begin my filling of Weasel , who roll a 10 . It ’s not a particularly lucky act , but guess what ? Along with no Heroes or Dragonlances , Weasel does n’t really have any luck , either .
Assorted Musings:
As you would expect of a wizard named the Scorpio , he most frequently submit the form of … a raven .
There is a joke ( ? ) early in the Word that Galen and Alfric do share one affair in common , and that ’s that they both get laid to set their doddery coach on fire . I have no idea what ’s give way on there .
Galen ’s dad also wants to remove Galen and Alfric on multiple occasion . So strange .
Image: Wizards of the Coast
Next up : When I read Dragonlance Heroes : The Legend of Huma lo those many moons ago , I followed it up with the agreeably goofy sequel toAzure bond , The Wyvern ’s Spur . So it seems veracious that I switch Weasels for Dragonbaits by reason out the trilogy with Song of the Saurials .
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