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4.2 out of 5
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Sariandan
1.0 out of 5 stars Impossible to read the first one or two paragraph of every chapter.
Reviewed in the United States on June 6, 2018
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This is one I read when it was first releases, way back when.... Looking for some more Kindle books, I found this and decided to reread the series.

In Kindle format, the shadowrun logo is overlayed on the first one or two paragraphs of every chapter, making it impossible to read. You can eventually figure out which words you’re missing, but the effort involved just ruins the flow of the story.
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1.0 out of 5 stars Impossible to read the first one or two paragraph of every chapter.
By Sariandan on June 6, 2018
This is one I read when it was first releases, way back when.... Looking for some more Kindle books, I found this and decided to reread the series.

In Kindle format, the shadowrun logo is overlayed on the first one or two paragraphs of every chapter, making it impossible to read. You can eventually figure out which words you’re missing, but the effort involved just ruins the flow of the story.
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Jeffrey Webb
5.0 out of 5 stars Man meets Magic and Machine - This is the novel that started Shadowrun.
Reviewed in the United States on December 13, 2016
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Never Deal with a Dragon is the first installation in the Secrets of Power trilogy by Robert Charette. This trilogy, along with the Into the Shadows anthology and 2XS by the late, great Nigel Findley are just what someone new to Shadowrun needs to introduce them to the amazing Sixth World. Game tie-in novels can be hit-or-miss, but I've yet to read any of Charette's work that were not a hit. His Battletech novels are likewise exceptionally good. The story of Sam Verner as he finds his place in the shadows of Seattle gives us a great POV character with which to introduce the things about the Shadowrun milieu that differ from the real world. His allies and enemies are archetypes of the genre, and each contributes to the feel that is something like Bladerunner meets Thunderheart meets The Dresden Files. Now, this is a product of the late 80s and you will see quite a few themes deriving therefrom. That said, the Secrets of Power trilogy should be treated as a well-written primer on jumping into the shadows of the 2050s, where it all began.
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J. Delzer
5.0 out of 5 stars Fantasy, technology, and the real world meshed with elves.
Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2019
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If you're a fan of the SNES game like I am, you'll find lots of parallels in the world of Shadowrun where fantasy creatures have returned to the earth in a futuristic interpretation of a world pioneered by information and facts rather than money and power. In 1993, the matrix wasn't about keeping people entertained while they were used for energy for machines, but a technological network where people could come and go in a metaphysical world to search for information useful in the real world.

Sam Verner may not be as slick as Jake Armitage, but while I'm still reading the book, I like the adventure and am considering reading other stories in the series.
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Kindle Customer
4.0 out of 5 stars A good starter point for people new to Shadowrun
Reviewed in the United States on November 16, 2016
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I read this series when it first came out. It's well written, interesting and most importantly is lore friendly and gives a good background for any Shadowrun game you might be running. If you're new to the Shadowrun tabletop world, it gives you a lot of insight into corporate culture, gives you a fairly good idea how to GM Matrix and spirit world encounters in the Awakened world. It made me nostalgic for the Stuffer Shak run.

Now that I have the technicals out of the way...*potential spoilers*

Is it me or is Sam just whiney? My gods man! If I found out I was a shaman I certainly wouldn't be whining about it, I'd be conjuring air elementals to mess up peoples hair in the arcology mall or scatter paperwork from my bosses desk, not bitching and moaning about how I couldn't jack into the Matrix.
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Luke
5.0 out of 5 stars Learn to run the shadows!
Reviewed in the United States on October 9, 2016
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I've always liked the setting of Shadowrun, a unique blending of cyberpunk and magical fantasy that works surprisingly well together. The Sixth World setting is filled out in depth and is a great set-up for interesting stories. Never Deal With A Dragon is a great example and starting point for getting into the setting. The main character Sam is a stranger to 'running the shadows' so he's an excellent guide for the reader as he himself comes to learn how things in the world really work. Other characters like Dodger and Ghost Maker are also really interesting and I look forward to the two sequels involving these characters!

Give it a read, chummers!
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Sincereagape
4.0 out of 5 stars They Don't Write Books Like This...
Reviewed in the United States on October 19, 2008
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Anymore. Never Deal with a Dragon is the most in depth Shadowrun novel ever published (to date). Breaking away from the Robert Frost form of script which involves writing with as few words as possible, Never Deal with a Dragon introduced the world of Shadowrun to fans and brought us a view point of the 6th World outside of the RPG source books. In terms of writing, this book reminds me of "The Count of Monte Cristo" or the "Unabridged Princess Bride" as each of these books uses a lot of descriptive narrative to explain the story and background. There are pages in this book which are dedicated to the psychological breakdown and thinking of characters. There are also pages in this novel used to depict a setting in the seedy world of Shadowrun.

As for the novel itself. The book consists of about 50 chapters which are divided into three parts of the story. Each section of a book is it's own separate story that eventually all ties together in the end. There is a good balance between characterization, setting, plot, and action in the novel. The book also dwells into the various forms of character classes that a person can create in the world of Shadowrun. Riggers, deckers, mages, and street samurai's are all painted in the novel and done quiet well. There is a chapter dedicated to how rigging works, and multiple chapters on magic and decking. One of the strongest aspects of the book is the dialogue. From Dodger's old English narrative, to Sam Verner's consistent pessimism, to seductive Sally Tsung, to the brash Orc Kham, sadistic Alice Crenshaw, and the stoic Ghost Who Walks. Each character is given their own existence, their own voice, and that is certainly one of Charrette's strengths as a writer. What overshadows this is the personality of the main character Sam Verner, who is not very likable.

That being said. The book can be slow and wordy for people who have never played Shadowrun before. There are certain parts of the books which can be monotonous, but other than that I recommend this book to gamers and classify it as one of the better Shadowrun novels written. To disagree with some of the other reviews in the realm of characterization. When compared to other Shadowrun novels, the characters in this novel are actually more thought out.
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Mark
3.0 out of 5 stars Ok, but only for fans of the genre
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 10, 2018
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I read the Shadowrun series when I was around 16 years old and really liked it then. I wanted to read it again now twenty odd years later to see if it was actually trash or not.
In a nutshell, yes it is trash or at least trashy but not as bad as I expected. This is no Philip K Dick. But is well crafted for a highly specialised genre.

My first impressions were not good. The descriptions seem quite lazy. The writing did nothing to draw me in. In particular the main protagonist Sam doesn't really come to life. He is the stereotypical reluctant hero.

The plot as intriguing enough. Though there are some problems with the pacing of the action which are made worse by the fact that some scenes fail to create the suspense they deserve.

But there are some well executed scenes that to me lift the novel slightly above seeming like fanfiction.

If I remember correctly, Never Trust An Elf was better. I would only recommend this to fans of the genre looking for another book to read.
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Boomster
3.0 out of 5 stars Not tooooo bad!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 26, 2017
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Ok but waffles on a bit, needlessly!
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Kindle Customer
2.0 out of 5 stars Good introduction to Shadowrun. Terrible writing.
Reviewed in Australia on January 16, 2021
Verified Purchase
If you're new to Shadowrun this is a great book to start your journey. Most of the major races are covered, most of the major specialisations are covered and the setting is explained. That being said, it's not a good book. There's many characters and many factions. Too many. Most are paper thin and all are driven by whatever the plot requires rather than their own motivations. The novel is a mess. Sub young adult writing at best.
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Ohrenbär
2.0 out of 5 stars Leider langweilig und zäh
Reviewed in Germany on October 16, 2014
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Dieses Buch ist fraglos ein Shadowrun-Klassiker und es zählt bestimmt nicht zu den richtig schlechten Shadowrun-Büchern. Aber es ist auch weit davon entfernt, gut zu sein. Ich musste mich wirklich hindurchquälen und werde wohl auf die restlichen Bücher der "Secrets of Power"-Reihe verzichten. Die Gründe dafür sind Folgende: Alle vier, fünf Seiten gibt es einen Personen- und Szenenwechsel. Sobald man sich also in eine Szene hereingelesen und "orientiert" hat, ist die Szene wieder vorbei und man muss von vorne beginnen und sich erklären lassen, wo man gerade ist, um wen es geht, wieviel Zeit vergangen ist, was los ist. Erst dann kann die Szene richtig mit der Handlung beginnen und Fahr aufnehmen. Das macht die Lektüre wirklich zäh. Und nicht nur zäh, leider auch noch langweilig. Es gibt eine recht große Zahl an Charakteren, aus deren Sicht Szenen erzählt werden. Dabei gibt es nur einen Protagonisten. Den erkennt man daran, dass er der einzige ist, dessen Charakterzeichnung mehr als nur skizzenhaft ausgefallen ist. Die restlichen, ziemlich flachen Charaktere, sorgen für seitenweise Langeweile, weil es einfach uninteressant ist, was sie tun.
Die Geschichte selbst hat mich auch nicht überzeugt. Sie fing eigentlich stark an: Ein Renraku-Angestellter erwacht aus einer OP und erfährt gleich zwei niederschmetternde Neuigkeiten: Er wird in die Arkology nach Seattle versetzt, ohne Angabe von Gründen, während seine Schwester die Wandlung zum Metamenschen durchmacht. Da ihm verboten wird, Kontakt zu ihr aufzunehmen, bröckelt langsam sein Heile-Welt-Bild und er beginnt, mit dem Konzernleben unzufrieden zu sein.
Ab dann wird alles seltsam. Es werden viele Entscheidungen getroffen, von denen man nicht ganz versteht, wieso; so als ob dem Leser entweder wichtige Informationen fehlen würden, oder die Charaktere ziemlich dämlich wären (auf den Protagonisten trifft letzteres sicherlich zu). Irgendwie ließen mich die Wendungen der Geschichte oft ziemlich ratlos zurück, mit dem unbestimmten Gefühl, dass hier etwas nicht stimmt und dass mir ein kleines Bisschen weniger erzählt wurde, als nötig wäre. Außerdem, das suggeriert ja schon der Titel, treten vermehrt Drachen auf und verhalten sich wirklich verbflüffend unspektakulär und wenig beeindruckend. Sparsam mit High-Fantasy-Elementen, wie Drachen welche sind, umzugehen, damit sie den Nimbus des Mysteriösen und Unnahbaren nicht verlieren, ist sicherlich nicht die einzige Möglichkeit, die diese bieten. Aber dann muss man irgendetwas Anderes anbieten, was diese interessant macht und von allen anderen Figuren abhebt. Sonst kann man genausogut auf sie verzichten - sollte das sogar tun, denn mit völlig profanisierten Drachen, die wie beiläufig auftreten, wirkt das alles doch eher... albern.

Fazit: Zu viele Szenenwechsel, zu flache Charaktere, Story irgendwie seltsam, Drachen nicht sehr kunstfertig in Szene gesetzt. Dadurch zäh, unglaubwürdig und langweilig.
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Cliente Amazon
5.0 out of 5 stars Muito legal mesmo! Chummer!
Reviewed in Brazil on August 26, 2018
Verified Purchase
Rápido, intenso e brilhante! Que história! Melhor não fazer acordos com Dragões!
Recomendo pra quem conhece e pra quem não conhece!
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