ver since the original colonists arrived on Pern, deadly Thread has fallen from the sky, destroying everything it touches. To eliminate the Thread, fire-breathing dragons have fought an aerial war to burn it out of the sky before it lands. More recently, though, the dragons and their riders have implemented a permanent solution to the Thread problem by diverting the asteroid whose orbit brings the deadly material to their homeworld. In just a few decades, the Thread will never fall again.
With the ordering force for its society gone, Pern is in a state of change. Inventors are using old colony records to develop new technologies, revolutionizing the fields of medicine, astronomy and book printing. The dragonriders are learning new skills that will enable them to make their way in a Threadless society. The greatest challenge, though, comes in changing the outlook of the Pern people. The last Thread is falling, but many of them don't believe that this is true. Still others will do
anything in their power to bring progress to a screeching halt.
Inside this whirlwind of transition, the young wing-leader F'lessan and his dragon, Golanth, find themselves edging into a romantic relationship with a green dragon and her rider, the shy and cautious Tai. The young couple are remarkably well-suited to each other, but interfering friends, the activities of anti-technology terrorists and a host of dragonrider responsibilities all contrive to keep them apart. It is only when a disaster of unimaginable scope strikes that the two are able to work together. But even as they save lives and fall in love, a question remains--how much of Pern will remain for them to savor?
Dynamic changes to a familiar world
Throughout the long history of Pern, Anne McCaffrey has been extremely careful to keep her setting from becoming stagnant. In The Skies of Pern, she continues her upheaval of the central purpose of the dragons and the people who love them. This gives the reader as much opportunity as her characters to question that purpose, not to mention the massive resources the people of Pern expend on their dragons. The continuing evolution of this world is carefully handled and always fascinating.
Though nothing has been altered beyond recognition, matters on the world of the dragonriders are certainly not business as usual.
As high technology continues to emerge in this essentially medieval society, its effects ripple outward in interesting ways. As in our world, innovations are concentrated in the hands of the wealthy--guilds from the Dragon Weyrs to the Healers and Harpers all acquire the specific high-tech tools they require to improve their delivery of services. The effect, though, is often invisible to the secondary beneficiaries of inventions. Healers' patients are terrified of new surgical practices which can save their lives, and printing presses come under violent attack merely for spreading information efficiently. When disaster strikes, the very technologies which have been used to save lives are blamed for the trouble. This puts the dragonriders in a pleasingly realistic no-win situation. They are constantly being asked to deliver the impossible. When they do, the bar for success is raised.
The Skies of Pern is sure to please fans of McCaffrey's other novels, as well as SF fans who do not mind mixing the trappings of a high fantasy style with SF content. Science undeniably lies at the core of this series--astronomy, physics, genetically engineered creatures and artificial intelligences are inextricably bound to the tale. Multifaceted as the eyes of their dragons, these novels offer romance, adventure, medieval pageantry, intrigue, solid astrophysics and a satisfyingly complex society. In The Skies of Pern, McCaffrey serves up a buffet which can satisfy virtually anyone who steps up to its table.
