[Warewolf]

Hey all,

Just curious as to what books your favorite dragons come from.

Mine would have to be Strabo from Brooks' Magic Kingdom series and the dragons from Rawn's Dragon Prince books. Strabo was prideful and disdained humans, but he always helped when it served his own interests. Plus, he had a sense of honor (IIRC) that would make a samurai proud. Rawn's dragons were just so mysterious and majestic, it was almost impossible not to like them.

[Mithfânion]

I'd love to help you out here but the only dragons I've read about sofar that have stayed with me are the young ones from ASOIAF. MInd you I've still got a lot to read, including Hobb's Liveship books.

But Drogon, Viserion and Rhaegal look to be killers of the finest making.

[kassimir funk]

The Purple Green of hook mountain from Christopher Rowley's Bazil Broketail series.
Chektor's a close second just for being charmingly stupid.

There is not another series out there that imbues so many dragons with so much personality. Christopher Rowley. Christopher Rowley. Christopher Rowley.

(Excuse me as I shamelessly promote my favorite author)

[Thom]

Yes Rowley's dragon are great but my favorite dragon was Smaug in the Hobbit. I loved the dialogue between him and Bilbo.
The dragons from Feist's book (Ryana, Rhuagh) also come to mind when i think great dragons.

[ezchaos]

I like dragons. I wish I could think of my favorite, but I can't. Because they've been so overused, they all kind of blend together. Kind of the same thing that's happened with elves.

[saintjon]

No way, man. Check out the Shadow War trilogy. Best treatment of dragons I've come accross in a long time.

[Warewolf]

saintjon,

Are you referring to the fire drakes? Other than them, and I don't really consider them dragons, I don't recall any dragons in that series. Am I just being forgetful?

[Hobbit]

Dragons..hmm, a staple of Fantasy. I liked Smaug too. McCaffrey's dragons are a little too cute for my liking. Hobb's dragons are good, as you should expect, I guess.

The dragons in the Ursula K LeGuin's Wizard of Earthsea are perhaps the best.

I also really like the note of worldly cynicism in James Stoddard's dragon of the High House and the False House (Jormungand - Wagner reference!)) It is very good too (it lives in the attic of the house, Evenmere!)

Honourable mentions for Barbara Hambly's Dragonsbane/Dragonshadow and Gordon Dickson's 'Dragon and the George' (though the series really tires after a couple of books).

I've heard that Michael Swanwick's dragon in The Iron Dragon's Daughter is good but haven't read it. The dragon there is mechanical!

Hobbit

[Cedric Frost]

At the risk of being scorned, I must confess I rather like the dragon Skye from the dragonlance series. While the series are certainly not as sophisticated in plot as some of the others mentioned, I found the personality and dialogue rather amusing and enjoyable.

For light fantasy about dragons, that particular character I thought was well done.

[saintjon]

I'd say so, Warewolf. Remember that one, Calan Dineer, who Willow hitched a ride on while he dreamt in the prologue of book 1?

They didn't have a major, in your face, role, but I like how they were made to be otherworldly, the pinnacle of creation and all that. Some of Claremont's lines about them are just too sweet. The impossible hugeness of them is pretty cool, too.

Yeah, mostly I like how they represented the embodiment of dreams of creativity. They also made the end of the second book one of my favourite passages to read.