The Dragonbone Chair: Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn, Book One

I know that I must have enraged or at least provoked some people with this statement. I find Tad Williams' writing style much more accessible than J.R.R. Tolkien's. It's due in part to my own weakness in not being able to follow Tolkien's long, detailed passages describing the geography of each and every scene. LOTR does have fewer characters to keep track of, this being important as I think I have slight ADD. I had to work very hard to finish the LOTR Trilogy, and I thoroughly appreciate it for its magnificence.Moving on, I don't know what I could add to the great reviews that have come before me so I will try to be succinct: PLEASE KEEP READING! It IS a fantastic piece of work! And although others described the beginning as "slow", I disagree for my part. I appreciated the purposeful, totally believable, character development of Simon, the protagonist. I was delighted and irritated with, empathetic toward, and wholeheartedly rooting for Simon in turns, in very short order. Simon became real to me, almost like adopting a child at the age of 15. William's took the time to paint a whole world, the histories, the cultures of people, rather than just hand it to us for acceptance and move on to the action-which is top notch by the way!There is quite a cast of characters,(I had to go to the appendix in frustration at some points to keep them all straight)however, I felt that none were merely thrown in to advance the story, but that T.W. was writing about things as they really happened, and truly cared about even the most fleeting of these appearances. The players are given such dimension in a surprisingly short space of time. I felt sadness and shock when they befell some misfortune or died, as many of them do. This is not your feel good story where all the good guys make it to the end, and women and children never come to harm.That the "magic" is not forefront in the story, at least until later, is a great selling point for me. Problems are not solved with the wave of a wand or an incantation. Human motivations and politics are are the guts of the story, made even more intriguing by the fantastical nature of events and unique creatures that are manipulated within it. There are so many surprises that keep you glued to your kindle, in my case, reading until late at night and snatching minutes here and there. It is difficult to find a point where you can say,"This is a good place to stop."I'm definitely going to finish the series! My new favorite author!

"The Dragonbone Chair," published in 1988, remains one of the best "Lord of the Rings" clones ever written. While the similarities between that which Tad Williams has given us and that which J.R.R. Tolkien pioneered are more than coincidental, fans of high fantasy who have not yet stepped into the world of Osten Ard will feel as though they are walking in a beloved, familiar place, and yet at the same time it is not a place they have been before, despite the parallels to what they know.The first book in the "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" trilogy, "The Dragonbone Chair" chronicles the tragic adventure of Simon, castle scullion and immature youth, who finds himself apprenticed to the mysterious Dr. Morgenes - who is more than he appears to be. When a battle between brothers, sons of the late King John, escalates ominously, Simon is ripped from the life he knows and forced into the world beyond. In time, he discovers that things in Osten Ard are even worse than they appear, for the dreaded Storm King, deathless renegade of the elf-like Sithi race, is returning to the world, and bringing ruin in his wake. To say that this setup is "traditional" would be a kindness - but despite the clichés, Williams injects a life and passion into his world and characters that is considerably more impressive than the norm. On top of that, his writing is vivid and beautiful, almost poetic. Williams knows how to set the scene, and he has atmosphere to spare. If things are bleak in the novel, prepare to shiver as you read it.The parallels to Tolkien's Middle-Earth are easy to find, but Williams borrows more than he steals. The trolls of Osten Ard, for example, parallel Tolkien's hobbit-folk, for they are small in stature and child-like in appearance - but if hobbits are rural Englishmen, then Williams' trolls are miniature Eskimos. The Sithi certainly owe their existence to Tolkien's elves, but they also parallel the natives of the Americas, and harbor a bitterness toward humanity (or the European settlers, perhaps) that makes them considerably darker in nature than Legolas and his ilk. It is this bitterness that creates the Storm King - so is this "Dark Lord" a creation of the Sithi, or a creation of the humans who wrongfully cast them from their lands? Williams offers less black and less white, and more gray than most.Unfortunately, the pacing of this massive tome is inconsistent. A less committed reader might toss this one aside after the first 100 pages, since very little happens that could not have been greatly condensed. To be blunt, the opening chapters can be a bit of a bore. Patience is certainly a virtue in this instance, though. When the plot begins to thicken, the pages virtually turn themselves. Sure, there are temporary lulls here and there, and I suspect that Williams got a little bit sloppier as he neared the finale, but when that finale comes, and you have read the final chapter, you will long for part two.In the end, "The Dragonbone Chair" may be conventional, but it is immensely compelling, and you will fear the Storm King's wrath. Any fan of high fantasy who has not been treated to "Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn" should remedy that at once.

This was an outstanding series with a compelling backstory, world, and well developed characters (main and secondary). The world is fresh, with great depth on the races, their history, and motives. I found many of the secondary characters extremely well developed whereas many writers merely let them languish.When I started, I had a very hard time getting into it, and was convinced, only in the beginning, I was, spending time reading a novel I'd rather not be reading (I think I've only ever stopped reading 1 or 2 novels In this, or similar genres, out of hundreds over the years, so I ride out and suffer some bad books versus putting them down). I'm not going into detailed plot summary and character analysis in a review, but the main character, Simon, started to feel like a bust at the beginning. Perhaps, he could have undergone his growth and metamorphose without starting quite so lame. Either way, that was a minor distraction only at the beginning of three compelling novels. Good thing for me, I stick with a book, because this book, and the two that follow, became outstanding in my view.This story, its world, and the backstory turned into a thrawling adventure I couldn't put down. The writing resulted in a lot of nights that went way too late for someone who is generally dressed and at work by 6:00 am, and that speaks to the gripping nature of the story and quality of the writing.A must read for serious fiction fans.

Livro muito bom. Vale a pena a leitura!

Tad Williams has become one of the elite Fantasy authors of our day. Every novel that he writes just keeps getting better every time.Dragonbone Chair is the first novel in his Memory, Sorrow and Thorn series. I am currently rereading the novel as I originally read it a loooong time ago. I have to admit I am truly enjoying it the second time around.HIGHLY recommeded.

One of my favorite series!!! Politics, war, frendship, magic. Awesome saga.

Great product. I received it in the best condition. Brand new, out of the printing press. The packing was great. I would recommend this book and this shopping platform to every shopper out there.

As someone getting into reading quite late. I read this book on a holiday & really enjoyed it the whole way through.