In 1985, Barbara Hambly published Dragonsbane, the story of how "a bespectacled amateur engineer who collected lore about pigs" and his mage-born mistress went south to slay the black dragon Morkeleb but ended up allying with him to save the kingdom from a much more terrible enemy. Dragonshadow continues the story of John Aversin, the Dragonsbane, Jenny Waynest, the Witch of Frost Fell, and Morkeleb.

It's four years later, and John and Jenny find themselves facing mages and dragons controlled by demons who have trapped their souls. One of the captured mages is Ian, their 12-year-old son. Jenny and Morkeleb are also at risk, and to save them all John bargains his own soul as the forfeit if he cannot pay a demon's price.

Hambly creates a believable setting and compellingly real characters without sacrificing the sense of a truly magical world, both beautiful and deadly. This is not yet another predictable sword and sorcery tale. This story concerns the temptations of power and the cost of resisting evil. Grief and loss are inescapable. Unlike Dragonsbane, however, Dragonshadow promises readers another book in which, perhaps, the protagonists will find peace and healing. --Nona Vero


From Publishers Weekly
Relying more on strongly delineated, complex characters than on outlandish wizardry or heroism, this first-rate high fantasy is the follow up to Dragonsbane (1987), one of the prolific and protean Hambly's (Fever Season, etc.) earliest novels. Mageborn Jenny Waynest returns, along with her husband, Lord John Aversin, who long ago earned the title "Dragonsbane" for defeating two dragons. Now the couple must save the Winterlands from the menace of yet another dragon?but the real threat turns out to be worse. Demons from another plane of existence, who prey on the magic and souls of both wizards and dragons, take Jenny and John's mageborn son, 12-year-old Ian, captive. John must turn for help to the powerful Morkeleb, a dragon who loved Jenny and once gave her a dragon's body, magic and immortality?though he later returned her to mortal form when she chose to be with John. All three suffer and sacrifice as they make dark bargains to defeat their formidable foes. With its resourceful, 45-year-old heroine who must make difficult choices, face both emotional and demonic challenges and deal with the pain of her past, Hambly's novel should appeal to mature readers who seek more than flashing swords and simple sorcery. Elegant, intelligent and entertaining, this novel excels as a sequel but readers new to the story won't miss a beat. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Library Journal
Called upon once more to rid the lands of a marauding dragon, Lord John Aversin and his wife, the wizard Jenny Waynest, discover a horror far worse than the winged monsters of legend. The bespectacled hero of Dragonsbane (Ballantine, 1987), now middle-aged and burdened with concerns for a family and a landed holding, finds that his only hope of saving all that he holds dear lies in gaining the help of a dragon he once sought to slay. Hambly's talent for elegant storytelling and her gift for creating appealing characters places her in the forefront of contemporary fantasists and makes this title a good selection for most libraries. Copyright 1999 Reed Business Information, Inc.


From Kirkus Reviews
From the author of Icefalcon's Quest (1998), among others, a sequel to Dragonsbane. These are the further adventures of bespectacled, bookish dragon-slayer John Aversin, Thane of the Winterlands, and his wizardly wife, Jenny Waynest. When a dragon attacks the Winterlands, John must go alone to kill the creature, Jenny being preoccupied with subduing a powerful but untrained bandit wizard. But Ian, John's 12-year-old mage-born son, follows his father, ready with his healing skills. Though John wounds the dragon, he is badly injured himself, but as Ian steps forward, a mysterious mage intervenes, enslaving the dragon by saving its life, and abducting Ian as John watches helplessly. Soon this mage, Caradoc, enslaves more dragons and wizards. After Jenny helps John recover, he floats off in a hot-air balloon to consult Morkeleb the Black, oldest and greatest of dragons. But Morkeleb, who loves Jenny and once transformed her into a dragon, isn't interesteduntil the enslaved dragons and wizards, orchestrated by Caradoc, attack him. John, meanwhile, delving into ancient texts, learns that Caradoc has sold his soul to a demon; crucially, the souls of those Caradoc has enslaved are trapped within gemstones, not lost forever. Even with Morkeleb's help, though, John and Jenny are no match for Caradoc's demon-powered wizardry. Worse, when Jenny attempts to use her dragon-powers against demon-Caradoc, he drinks her magic and enslaves her too, forcing her to perform unspeakable acts while relishing her agony and revulsion. John, risking eternal torment, must get help from demons even more powerful than Caradoc's masters, but he finds that his wizardly allies, the gnomes, refuse to help him fulfill his part of the bargain. Beautifully concise, adroitly plotted, inventive, and insightful: a wrenching affair that works its barbed pleasures ever deeper into the enthralled, horrified reader. -- Copyright ©1999, Kirkus Associates, LP. All rights reserved.


Review
"She writes darn good books, our Barbara!"
--ANNE MCCAFFREY

"FIRST-RATE HIGH FANTASY . . . ELEGANT, INTELLIGENT, AND ENTERTAINING."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"I might be slightly prejudiced for dragons, and I am definitely prejudiced in favor of anything Barbara Hambly wants to do with her main characters, Lord John and Jenny . . . She handles the action with great skill and charm, and the universe with beautiful imagery."
--ANNE MCCAFFREY


Review
"She writes darn good books, our Barbara!"
--ANNE MCCAFFREY

"FIRST-RATE HIGH FANTASY . . . ELEGANT, INTELLIGENT, AND ENTERTAINING."
--Publishers Weekly (starred review)

"I might be slightly prejudiced for dragons, and I am definitely prejudiced in favor of anything Barbara Hambly wants to do with her main characters, Lord John and Jenny . . . She handles the action with great skill and charm, and the universe with beautiful imagery."
--ANNE MCCAFFREY

FROM THE PUBLISHER

In a world where most people live and die without glimpsing a single dragon, Lord John Aversin, - with the help of his mageborn wife, Jenny Waynest - has fought and defeated two, earning the proud title of Dragonsbane. But there are creatures more terrifying than dragons. Demonspawn from a dark dimension have learned to drink the magic - and the souls - of mages and dragons alike, turning their victims into empty vessels. And now they've stolen John and Jenny's mageborn son, twelve-year-old Ian. In desperation, John seeks the help of the eldest and strongest dragon: Morkeleb the Black. Once Morkeleb tried to take Jenny from John. He gave her a dragon's body, a dragon's magic, and she gloried in it for a time. But in the end she became a woman again, rejecting Morkeleb for John. Now the three of them must overcome the anger and bitterness of the past and work together for the future of Ian and all that lives.

FROM THE CRITICS

Publishers Weekly

Relying more on strongly delineated, complex characters than on outlandish wizardry or heroism, this first-rate high fantasy is the follow up to Dragonsbane (1987), one of the prolific and protean Hambly's (Fever Season, etc.) earliest novels. Mageborn Jenny Waynest returns, along with her husband, Lord John Aversin, who long ago earned the title "Dragonsbane" for defeating two dragons. Now the couple must save the Winterlands from the menace of yet another dragon--but the real threat turns out to be worse. Demons from another plane of existence, who prey on the magic and souls of both wizards and dragons, take Jenny and John's mageborn son, 12-year-old Ian, captive. John must turn for help to the powerful Morkeleb, a dragon who loved Jenny and once gave her a dragon's body, magic and immortality--though he later returned her to mortal form when she chose to be with John. All three suffer and sacrifice as they make dark bargains to defeat their formidable foes. With its resourceful, 45-year-old heroine who must make difficult choices, face both emotional and demonic challenges and deal with the pain of her past, Hambly's novel should appeal to mature readers who seek more than flashing swords and simple sorcery. Elegant, intelligent and entertaining, this novel excels as a sequel but readers new to the story won't miss a beat. (Mar.)

KLIATT

The plot of Dragonshadow finds John Aversin (a.k.a. Dragonsbane) and his sorceress wife, Jenny Waynest, up against soul-stealing demons. These demons gain power and pleasure by inhabiting the bodies of the witches, wizards, and dragons whose souls they have stolen. They thrive on the pain that they cause and the deals that they make with their human allies. Their first victims are John and Jenny's son Ian and the dragon Centhwevir. In order to help them get their son back, Jenny and Ian seek the help of the black dragon Morkeleb. It is from him that they learn that this is not the first time that demons have used the bodies of magical beings in order to enter and control this world. The book starts out rather slowly with Jenny and John on two seemingly separate errands. However, it soon picks up and the reader will be surprised by the many plot twists. The most interesting parts concern Morkeleb, who proves to be the most charismatic character and leaves one wondering why Jenny ever chose to return to human form instead of living out her days as his dragon lover. My main complaint is that there is not enough time spent on Morkeleb or the other dragons. It is not necessary to have read the previous book, Dragonsbane. This one ends with a cliffhanger, which leaves the reader waiting for the next book. There are some disturbing scenes, and while they are not graphic they make this work better suited for older teens and adults. (Sequel to Dragonsbane) KLIATT Codes: SA—Recommended for senior high school students, advanced students, and adults. 1999, Ballantine/Del Rey, 310p, 18cm, 99-091140, $6.99. Ages 16 to adult. Reviewer: Debra Mitts Smith; YA Libn., Glenview P.L., Glenview,IL, July 2000 (Vol. 34 No. 4)

Library Journal

Called upon once more to rid the lands of a marauding dragon, Lord John Aversin and his wife, the wizard Jenny Waynest, discover a horror far worse than the winged monsters of legend. The bespectacled hero of Dragonsbane (Ballantine, 1987), now middle-aged and burdened with concerns for a family and a landed holding, finds that his only hope of saving all that he holds dear lies in gaining the help of a dragon he once sought to slay. Hambly's talent for elegant storytelling and her gift for creating appealing characters places her in the forefront of contemporary fantasists and makes this title a good selection for most libraries. [Previewed in Prepub Alert, LJ 11/1/98.]

Kirkus Reviews

From the author of Icefalcon's Quest (1998), among others, a sequel to Dragonsbane. These are the further adventures of bespectacled, bookish dragon-slayer John Aversin, Thane of the Winterlands, and his wizardly wife, Jenny Waynest. When a dragon attacks the Winterlands, John must go alone to kill the creature, Jenny being preoccupied with subduing a powerful but untrained bandit wizard. But Ian, John's 12-year-old mage-born son, follows his father, ready with his healing skills. Though John wounds the dragon, he is badly injured himself, but as Ian steps forward, a mysterious mage intervenes, enslaving the dragon by saving its life, and abducting Ian as John watches helplessly. Soon this mage, Caradoc, enslaves more dragons and wizards. After Jenny helps John recover, he floats off in a hot-air balloon to consult Morkeleb the Black, oldest and greatest of dragons. But Morkeleb, who loves Jenny and once transformed her into a dragon, isn't interested-until the enslaved dragons and wizards, orchestrated by Caradoc, attack him. John, meanwhile, delving into ancient texts, learns that Caradoc has sold his soul to a demon; crucially, the souls of those Caradoc has enslaved are trapped within gemstones, not lost forever. Even with Morkeleb's help, though, John and Jenny are no match for Caradoc's demon-powered wizardry. Worse, when Jenny attempts to use her dragon-powers against demon-Caradoc, he drinks her magic and enslaves her too, forcing her to perform unspeakable acts while relishing her agony and revulsion. John, risking eternal torment, must get help from demons even more powerful than Caradoc's masters, but he finds that his wizardly allies, the gnomes, refuse to help him fulfillhis part of the bargain. Beautifully concise, adroitly plotted, inventive, and insightful: a wrenching affair that works its barbed pleasures ever deeper into the enthralled, horrified reader. .