Spero nessuno ne voglia a male se recensisco questo libro considerandolo come parte unico delle "Leggende di Dragonlance" che comprende: "Il destino dei gemelli", "La guerra dei gemelli" e "La sfida dei gemelli". Anche perchè se non erro attualmente si trova in commercio appunto il volume che raccoglie tutti i tre romanzi che comprendono questa seconda parte del ciclo di "Dragonlance".Per chi non lo sapesse (sei appena arrivato da Marte, amico?) "Dragonlance" è un'ampia raccolta di romanzi fantasy, i principali dei quali scritti da Margaret Weis e Tracy Hickman ed editi dalla TSR, a cui è affiancata l'omonima ambientazione del gioco di ruolo Dungeons & Dragons.L'immaginario mondo di Dragonlance ha nome di Krynn e contiene una variegata serie di razze tipicamente ispirata al modello fantastico di molte altre ambientazioni fantasy, tra le quali prima fra tutte quella del Signore degli Anelli di J.R.R.Tolkien, con protagonisti elfi, nani, uomini e draghi. La maggior parte dei romanzi si svolgono nelle varie regioni di Ansalon; esistono diverse divinità maggiori e minori nel mondo di Krynn: il dio buono Paladine, la divinità neutrale Gilean, e il male impersonato da Takhisis (chiamata anche Regina delle Tenebre). Agli dèi viene contrapposto Caos, che in alcune Ere appare con l'intento di distruggere Krynn. A seconda del periodo di tempo, i draghi sono presenti o assenti e anch'essi sono divisi in draghi buoni (detti metallici) e draghi malvagi (o cromatici). Gli esseri umani sono la razza più comune su Krynn, ma elfi, nani, kender, gnomi e minotauri sono anch'esse parti integranti del mondo. I chierici devono i loro poteri magici ai loro dèi, mentre i maghi traggono il loro potere dalle tre Lune: Solinari, Lunitari e Nuitari. Nel corso delle varie guerre di Krynn, appaiono negli schieramenti del male anche esseri detti Draconici. Quest'ultimi sono creazioni corrotte, generati da uova di draghi buoni con l'utilizzo di magia nera.In questa trilogia l'attenzione è puntata su due dei personaggi fondamentali della trilogia precedente, "Le Cronache di Dragonlance", i gemelli Raistlin e Caramon Majere.Direi che questa trilogia, va letta dopo aver letto le cronache e anche se hanno vita indipendente, secondo il mio modesto parere sono da leggere entrambe. I personaggi sono gli stessi, impegnati in un cammino di ricerca e in uno di redenzione personale. Anche questi romanzi sono avvincenti e ben scritti. La figura di Raistilin Majere è semplicemente indimenticabile.C'è da aggiungere che questa seconda trilogia risulta più profonda della prima, c'è sicuramente più introspezione. L'analisi dei due personaggi principali, Caramon e Raistlin mette in luce due personalità complesse, soprattutto quella di Raistlin. Il ritmo è incalzante, con momenti di profonda disperazione; per fortuna non manca il mio secondo personaggio preferito di tutta quanta la saga: Tas, che con la sua allegria stempera il tutto.Se siete appassionati di fantasy classici, non potete farvi mancare entrambe le trilogie. Assolutamente.
I will concede these points: 1. there is some pretty shabby writing in War of the Twins; 2. the more Tasslehoff Burrfoot, beloved Kender, becomes like a cliched high school girl, the more insufferable he becomes; 3. it's hard to swallow that Raistlin would make the mistakes he makes; 4. so much evil is done by the supposedly "good" characters without any recognition that their acts are evil that I am fairly certain that what I love about the book is not intended by the authors; 5. the authors have a silly conception of "Infinite Good" and "Infinite Evil"; 6. the portrayals of Kender, Gully Dwarves, Dewar and Gnomes are examples of conventional Fantasy racism and are hard for me to overlook. So, yes, I concede that this isn't the best book in the world. But I love it anyway. Somewhere, despite all of its many flaws, War of the Twins speaks to me. There is good in Raistlin, more than even the authors know, and his good is fundamental to the evil he consciously perpetrates. Raistlin does some bad things because he has seen and experienced terrible things in his life, and he never wants those things to happen to him or any of the oppressed again. So he will do what he believes he must for the good of the many (and if that means he will have power, so be it). This is contrasted (and, again, I doubt the authors' intended this) with people who believe they are good, who are appalled by Raistlin's actions, then carry out similar or worse actions through prejudice, ignorance or mere omission. Their evil is unconscious (and I am not convinced it is even recognized as evil by the authors), but if it is consciously undertaken they actively think of it as good.Whether they meant to or not, Weis & Hickman offer a true representation of one of the muddy aspects of good and evil. We have the "evil" man doing what he does because he thinks it is right, and "good" folks doing evil without even realizing it or rationalizing their actions with ease. Regardless of its flaws, War of the Twins is a personal fave for me simply because of the way it stumbles onto something meaningful in the good and evil debate, and because it offers me something that few other books can: license to love the "bad guy" Raistlin, who may not be so bad after all.
What do You think about War Of The Twins (2004)?
(This review is about the whole trilogy)This is an amazing series. Suffice it to say that I'm not a book re-reader and those three are the only books I've ever read for a second time!! They are that good! In my opinion, (which admittedly was formed when I was much more inexperienced reader and might be a little foggy from the passage of time) this series has everything a reader might expect from a good fantasy read. Very well written and distinct characters, passion, drama, magic, more magic, exotic locations, time travel (oh yes!), frenetic pace, excitement and a grand finale!! Even though this is typically a plot-driven series, the main fuel behind the plot are the characters and their aims and deeper wishes.Seriously, if you're a fan of fantasy, just go read it! You will not be disappointed.
—Antonis
This book came to me as a birthday present, from two very good friends who had never read any of the series. They just knew that a) I'm a twin and b) I love dragons. What they DIDN'T realize was that this was the second in this particular storyline, and since I'd never read any of the other Dragonlance books I ended up jumping in with no prior knowledge of the characters, or the world, or the story. And you know what? It worked perfectly. The characters were so wonderfully written that I ended up falling in love with them anyway, even without really knowing at first who exactly they were, why they were in the past, or what Raistlin and Cameron were trying to accomplish. I did end up reading all of Chronicles, Tales, and Legends, and throughout the whole series THESE were the characters I loved best.It's also probably one of the reasons why I like Tasselhoff, when he annoys the tar out of everybody else. Tas grows up a lot in the Legends storyline, so there's not quite as much of the "Your wallet must have fallen in my pocket and HEY LOOK A SQUIRREL!" that appears in the other series.
—Kathryn
At some point later, perhaps I'll rant on about how much I love this series - at least the early Hickman-Weis core narrative. (The first 6 books, plus a later seventh, about 10 years later.) So much of it might be mired in nostalgia and newness; it was the first true adult fantasy stuff I had ever read. I was 11 years old. I got fully immersed. The characters are so compelling, from archmage Raistlin (perhaps the best fantasy character of all time, up there with Drizzt D'Ourden) all they way down to the impish Kinder, Tasselhoff. And it's adult - there is violence, sex, heartbreak, war and betrayal and sacrifice. I realize more and more how this work shaped my early views about writing... Like I said, perhaps I'll wax more nostalgic on these later. Just know that in my heart, the first six books are a 6 on a scale of 1 to 5.(Same review posted to each of first six books for now. IF YOU LOVE FANTASY, READ THESE)I'm sure most people love the first trilogy - Chronicles - more than this second one, centred around the twins, sickly magician and enormous warrior Caramon. But I love this part of the epic tale. The twins are deserving of the focus, and it's not like the other key characters are pushed into the corners either. The war of the lance is far from resolved when this trilogy starts, and the way it all turns out is mesmerizing.
—Blair
