Item - Children of the Dragon

[Rating: 1/10]
[Recommended? NO]

First and foremost, I would like to note before my assessment that this title is NOT an interactive work of fiction. For the sake of reviewing these books with regards to their historical value and contributory merits in the broader scope of interactive literature - as this site is dedicated toward the preservation and legacy of - my assessments are therefore accomplished with the intention of remarking upon these books' status/quality from that perspective.

Rose Estes has written some pretty remarkable books at times in her career. And it truly does appear that she aimed to inspire wonder in readers with each individual story she crafted. But there are times that it really shows when she was working under deadline, and never has it been more so obvious than with her standalone epic fantasy children's novella "Children of the Dragon". The scope of the aspirations are appreciable - admirable at times, even - but the sense of adventure, danger and excitement is misplaced in the finished product, since the book builds and grows and develops... only to end very, VERY abruptly.

I really wanted to get attached to the story's characters and scenarios and sincerely compelling offerings for the imagination, but the crazy thing is, the story ends just as it's about to get really interesting. The finished product is by no means upsetting - and certainly not as much of a letdown as the (pain-inducing) conclusion to Shinobu Kaitani's Liar Game - but the whole reading experience does end up feeling rather redundant by the time it's through. It's too bad, since Rose Estes has demonstrated frequently in the Endless Quest series that she can command, direct and maintain a steady number of plot lines under an impressive variety of situations. I think that she had a good sense of how to draw up endings a lot of the time as well, which does add insult to injury since "Children of the Dragon" hardly even tries to wrap anything up. Conflict is unresolved, the characters (and all of Gallardia) are left with an uncertain future, the world all around is teeming with threatening peril and plenty of chaos - and that's it, just about.

At the end of the day I cannot recommend this standalone adventure as a whole; fun as it may be, when a book sets up its premise and refuses to follow through, it may as well not have been written. And while the book does stand out among Rose Estes' varied output, I don't personally think this one holds out on its own or accomplishes what it originally set out to do, which is a real shame since this truly could've been an all-time classic. ^^

(Mysteriously disappears into the shadows.)

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