Dragon (Vlad)
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Product Description:
In which Vlad Taltos finds himself, much to his surprise, at the fateful Battle of Baritt's Tomb ? Marching through mud just isn't as much fun as they say. ? After years of surviving in Adrilankha by practicing the trade I know best--killing people for a living--suddenly I'm in the last place any self-respecting assassin wants to be: the army. Worse, I'm right in the middle of a apocalyptic battle between two sorcerous armies, and everyone expects me to play a role they won't explain. All I've got between me and the worst kind of death is my wits. Oh, and a smart-mouthed winged lizard... Amazon.com Review:
Vlad Taltos is not your average sword-and-sorcery hero. He runs a territory for the criminal House Jhereg. He's a witch with a flying reptilian familiar as smart and sarcastic as any sidekick in literature. He's also a master assassin in Adrilankha, the capital of the Dragaeran Empire. (Dragaerans are tall, very long-lived elves; Vlad is an Easterner, or human.)
Steven Brust is not your average fantasy writer. Like his mentor, Roger Zelazny, he enjoys playing with time. Although Dragon is the eighth book about Vlad to be published, most of it takes place between Taltos, the first book chronologically, and Yendi; interludes and an epilogue occur after Yendi, but before Jhereg. Dragon tells the story of the oft-mentioned Battle of Barritt's Tomb, and how Vlad enlisted in a Dragon army (Dragons are the warrior Dragaerans) and learned that war is nothing like assassination. Vlad is quick to let readers know the score. "I'll let you stay confused a little longer, and if you don't trust me to clear everything up, then you can go hang. I've been paid." Trust him. Dragon stands alone, but don't miss the others (after Jhereg come Teckla, Phoenix, Athyra, and Orca). It's a fast-moving, satisfying series. --Nona Vero |