Their travels are a good balance of action (violence) and cleverness (trickery). Lady Arin and her followers use their wits, as well as their swords, to defeat their enemies. The result is a book with more substance than the usual “hack and slash” scenario. Reading the group dialog on "how to" solve each line of the riddle-prophecy is a little voyeuristic, but the characters develop, sometimes with humorous results. This quest has a lively supporting cast of cryptic mages, know-it-all Elves, a kinky Queen and lonely Dragon with a taste for troll-eye bonbons.
I read the Dragonstone during my 1999 winter vacation. I stoked the woodstove and camped out on the couch until I was done. Dragonstone sets the stage for Dragondoom, which was written earlier, but Dragonstone doesn’t achieve the same level of high adventure and character empathy. You should read this book for the fun, the mileage and the opportunity to meet Black Kalgalath.
The dire need to solve a riddle-prophecy initiates a quest, turned scavenger hunt, across a land very similar to Middle Earth. The characters range from the annoyingly peevish Alos the Pilot, who is actually searching for his next pot of ale, to the subtlely perspicacious Aiko the War Maiden, who finds the hidden meanings in the most obscure riddles. Lady Arin the Elf leads the quest, aided by Egil-One Eye and Buel, the warriors; as well as, Delon the Bard and Ferais the Master Thief. I think I did some D & D time with a war band like this one.