This is a tricky book to review because it is, in fact, three distinct novels. Each has its own flavor and quality to it.

The first novel, Firedrake, is clearly an author's first novel, and bears the hallmarks of a beginner, namely inconsistencies in character and developing plot. The best example I can think of is that of the Green Dragon. He appears in the first half of the novel as a throwaway character, then is reintroduced later in a role pivotal to the story's conclusion.

What rescues Firedrake is a quick pace and a strong imagination. Shape-shifting dragons felt original. I was sad to see Shade, the entire volume's most interesting character, knocked off. I feel that was a mistake. I haven't looked ahead to the synopses of the subsequent collections in this series, but Mr. Knaak would be a fool to not bring him back somehow.

Ice Dragon demonstrates the maturity of an author in his second novel. Mr. Knaak seems to have had more of a plan in place before beginning to write this one. This is good because shows more thoughtfulness, but the pace suffers so it lacks the fun of Firedrake's unpredictable nature. The plot follows a more typical Lord of the Rings-type of tale, involving a hopeless quest to stop a dark lord (in this case, an "ice dragon") from covering the world in darkness (in this case, endless winter). The love story between the male and female protagonists, which started in the first novel and has developed here into a marriage, is laughably naive.

Wolfhelm brings a much-needed break from the primary character and settings of the first two novels. I applaud Mr. Knaak for taking a risk in branching out with something new, but there's so much description of magic and ethereal matters that I found myself losing my interest.

For all my criticisms, I DID enjoy the heck out this volume. Mr. Knaak's growth is evident here, and I expect that he has continued to get better over the 26 years since these three novels were published. I look forward to reading the next volumes in the "Dragonrealm" series. ( )