Darkness & Light Review

Join me as I review Darkness & Light by Paul B. Thompson and Tonya C. Cook, live! Share your thoughts on this first novel in the Dragonlance Preludes series, released on May 20, 1989 by TSR Inc. You can buy a copy here: https://amzn.to/3RN1TRP

https://youtube.com/live/pAsCx8OGiPo

About Darkness & Light

Five years before the War of the Lance engulfs Krynn, Sturm and Kitiara embark on a wild adventure of magic, power, and love

The Companions have gone their separate ways, each vowing to return with news of the growing darkness in Ansalon. Sturm Brightblade, a warrior whose honor is his life, and Kitiara, a passionate woman of uncertain loyalties, travel north in search of Sturm's long-lost father.

Before they reach their destination, a band of gnomes begs for their help. But nothing with gnomes ever goes as planned, and the two adventurers find themselves crash-landed on, of all places, Lunitari.

The red moon of neutrality is a desolate place of wonder and dangers—of tree-people ruled by a mad monarch; giant ants formed of living crystals; and a mysterious brass dragon dwelling in an obelisk. Together, the honor-bound Solamnic Knight and the remarkable warrior-woman must embark on a perilous adventure that will take them beyond the realms of Ansalon, through love and hate, to darkness and light.

Review

Welcome to another DragonLance Saga review episode. It is Bakukal, Frostkolt the 22nd. My name is Adam and today I am going to give you my review of Darkness & Light by Paul B. Thompson and Tonya C. Cook. I would like to take a moment and thank the members of this YouTube channel, and invite you to consider becoming a member by visiting the link in the description below. You can even pick up Dragonlance gaming materials using my affiliate links. This is my perspective only, and if you have any thoughts or disagree with mine, I invite you to share them in YouTube chat.

The novel starts with the innfellows fighting, laughing and having a good old time, ending in the Inn of the Last Home. A young Tika is tormenting Caramon, and an old Flint is swearing of trading forever. It’s so refreshing to revisit this novel and this time of the companions. It’s like old friends before you grew up and drifted apart. They all make their plans to leave and explore, Kitiara and Sturm are headed north and leave the following morning. They begin by traveling to the coastal town of Zaradene to find passage to Caergoth, but the locals are hostile to all outsiders as they were just raided. This sets up the world of Krynn in this age of despair well. People are distrustful of outsiders. There are raiding parties that scavenge villages and towns. Petty lords warring and raiding. It’s a time of darkness.

They meet an elf in a bar named Tirolan Ambrodel who agrees to take them to Caergoth on his ship the High Crest. It's waiting out in the deeper water. They pay for their passage with gold coin Kitiara was given from mercenary work. It was minted in Silvanesti and everyone makes a big deal about it as the Silvanesti have locked themselves away from the world after the Cataclysm. Again, great world building here. They arrive at Caergoth and see a steam engine Gnome ship in the bay, I don’t know if it was a hint dropped about future gnomish ships or just a fun point of interest. They go into a bar and are attacked by what seem to be Draconians in hoods and cloaks. This is the biggest problem with Dragonlance books. They constantly seed future danger, but by doing so, it would remove the initial shock of the companions seeing the creatures in Dragons of Autumn Twilight. Rather than being confused,