- Published: October 3, 2022
- Updated: October 3, 2022
- University / College: Queensland University of Technology (QUT)
- Level: Intermediate School
- Language: English
- Downloads: 47
Order 536125 Topic: The Dragon Heir “ The Dragon Heir” is the final installment in the trilogy by Cinda Williams Chima. It is a perfectly structured tale that arrives at a convincing conclusion. Chima, as in the earlier works, creates a wizarding world, full of troubles and uncertainties. It is at perpetual war with itself. The story is so powerful, the lacuna that we find in the interplay of the characters, is soon forgotten. The peace-mongers are of a special category of people, like warriors, enchanters and wizards. They can be contacted at the sanctuary of the town of Trinity. At the very beginning of the story Chima describes an incident that will demand the attention of the readers and make them feel that something strange and tangible is going to happen. She (2008, p. 6) writes, “ Min kept two decks of cards in a battered wooden box with a cross carved into the top. She called them “ gypsy cards,” but they looked like regular playing cards to Madison, with a few extras. The box also held a leather pouch full of pebble and little bones, but Madison had never seen Min use those.” The author has a tough job to perform, when three characters are created possessing different types of powers. Firstly, it is a magical world, unfamiliar to the reader and one has no previous experience to compare their doings and undoing. Magical situations have no absolute reason. The happenings in various situations, the twists and turns are to be appreciated as per the ‘ laws’ governing the magical world. Only the final outcomes of such magical happenings will enchant the reader, if they appeal to the hearts. The author has also to keep the interest of the reader going and the suspense mounting. The magical stories are essentially complex, but that complexity must hold the attention of the reader. Chima succeeds in this area to a great extent. Warrior Jack and Wizard Seph, carry on with responsibilities well. These two characters are not new to the readers who have read the previous two books of the trilogy. The new character introduced at the later part of the story is the mysterious Dragon Heir. This is a deliberate ploy by the author to keep the readers guessing about the outcome of the event—who will pick up the reigns and champion the power of the Dragonheart stone and finally rule over the Weir guilds. The path to the world of power is however not smooth. Battles and conflicts in abundance follow. Chima successfully creates a tension-filled situation and gives added importance to characters like Madison and Jason. The readers get more information about Elicitors. The covenant contained steps to keep the wizards at bay and when that was stolen a tense situation develops. Trinity must now get ready for the attack. War-effort is a joint exercise, and when that becomes inevitable everyone shows willingness to be on the alert and be ready to carry out the allotted responsibilities. Seph monitors the Weir walls. Jack and Ellen are busy in their ghostly army. The town’s perimeter is secured by Anaweir who is busy laying booby traps, to stall the possible advance of the enemy troops. But Jason Haley has a peculiar problem. He is not the most powerful wizard in Trinity, but his intentions for fighting are clear. He does it for the sake of his friends. He finds a powerful talisman, a giant opal called the Dragonheart buried in a cave; his role suddenly assumes added importance. The stone connects to his soul. But Trinity’s guards are alert. They think that the stone has the potency to save them all and they take it away. Without the support of the stone, Jason is in a position of disadvantage, to prove his mettle and help the people whom he cares for. The author knows that politics is a strange game and the wizard politics is even stranger. Everyone functions with a motivated desire. An individual, if considered advantageous in the game plan, he/she will be immediately identified and the interested party will try to take benefit of that situation. Same is the case with the secret of Maddie. From the time she took the magical blow that was intended to kill Seph, she had been the source of dark powers. She was not affected by that magic, but her friends thought of her as an asset to further their cause. Trinity’s enemies were curious about her powers and its capacity do and undo things. Conclusion: A trilogy is a set of three works that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three separate works of literature. Chima has rendered full justice to this import of trilogy and has given a very interesting book. She has continued with the theme of her earlier two works in the series, and maintained a balanced attitude and a high level of curiosity. The level of detachment as well as involvement achieved by the author in the story is commendable. Situations manifest clearly, grows and attains new dimensions notwithstanding the facts that she has a good number of characters to tackle. The novel deserves an outstanding position on account of the brilliant approach of the author to the story. The mutual interaction over the situation between different characters, reveal in the most natural way, the convictions for which the novel stands for. This is the uniqueness of the novel. Works Cited Chima, Cinda Williams; The Dragon Heir; Hyperion Book CH, August 12, 2008.