The Skies of Pern - Hardcover

McCaffrey, Anne

Hardcover

ISBN 10: 0593043308 ISBN 13: 9780593043301

Publisher: Bantam Press, 2001

Synopsis

A new age is drawing on Pern, for since the dragons have changed the orbit of the Red Star, the horrors of Threadfall will soon be a thing of the past. But even as the dragon riders are trying to decide what their future role will be, further dangers are beginning to emerge.

About this title

Review:

Anne McCaffrey's Pern series has been running successfully for so long that most of the Dragonriders' original problems have been solved; inThe Skies of Pern, she confronts her standard cast of characters with the consequences of those solutions, consequences that are a whole new set of problems. Now that the Red Star has been pushed to another orbit, there will only be a few more ravenous Threads descending from it for them and their dragons to fight--and what role will that leave for them? They have successfully reclaimed Earth's lost technology--and suddenly everyone with a craft that might be outmoded, or who is phobic about surgery, is on the rampage, sabotaging and smashing and making up rumours. These fundamentalist Abominators are sure that something terrible will happen if the old ways are not gone back to--and sure enough, fire descends, on cue, from the skies... One of the reasons why Anne McCaffrey's tales of a lost colony declined into feudalism and of genetically engineered dragons have always been, ultimately, sf rather than fantasy is that they are about finding solutions to problems, solutions that involve working with what you are given to start off with; The Skies of Pern is all about elegant solutions to credible problems.

Review:

McCaffrey has had such a distinguished career in the fantasy field that her enthusiasts are more than ready to forgive the odd by-the-numbers title. But her Pern and Dragon series clearly brings out the very best in this most resourceful of writers, and this new novel is well up to par. The dragons of Pern have altered the threatening orbit of the Red Star and society is on the brink of a new golden age. As the contribution of the dragons appears to be over, so is the role of their riders. Needless to say, the riders are soon called upon afresh as a new menace called the Abominators attempts to plunge Pern back into a new dark age. Perhaps this isn't the best book for those new to McCaffrey, as she assumes a considerable knowledge of the previous ones in the series. But for those tuned in, all the familiar (and satisfying) fingerprints are here, with the customary set-piece action scenes bursting with colour.

About this edition

• Publisher: Bantam Press
• Publication date: 2001
• ISBN 10: 0593043308
• ISBN 13: 9780593043301
• Binding: Hardcover
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 464