Dragon's Code
Anne McCaffrey's Dragonriders of Pern
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4.0 • 93 Ratings
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- $9.99
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- $9.99
Publisher Description
A new hero emerges in a divided world as one of sci-fi’s most beloved series—Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern—relaunches with this original adventure from Anne’s daughter, Gigi McCaffrey.
In honor of the fiftieth anniversary of the Dragonriders of Pern series, Gigi does her mother proud, adding to the family tradition of spinning unputdownable tales that recount the adventures of the brave inhabitants of a distant planet who battle the pitiless adversary known as Thread.
The last time Thread attacked Pern, the world was unprepared for the fight—until the Oldtimers appeared. These courageous dragonriders arrived from the past, traveling four hundred years to help their descendants survive. But the collision of past and present took its toll. While most of the displaced rescuers adapted to their new reality, others could not abide the jarring change and found themselves in soul-crushing exile, where unhappiness and resentment seethed.
Piemur, a journeyman harper, also feels displaced, cast adrift by the loss of his spectacular boyhood voice and uncertain of his future. But when the Masterharper of Pern sees promise in the young man and sends him undercover among the exiled Oldtimers, Piemur senses the looming catastrophe that threatens the balance of power between the Weyrs and Holds of Pern.
When the unthinkable happens, Piemur must rise to the challenge to avert disaster and restore honor to the dragons and dragonriders of Pern. Because now, in a world already beset by Thread, another, more insidious danger looms: For the first time in living memory, dragons may be on the verge of fighting dragons.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
This underdeveloped first novel from the daughter of the late Anne McCaffrey disappointingly drags out the latter's legacy with a halfhearted return to one of the first stories set on the world of Pern, where humans and dragons form telepathic bonds. The near-nonexistent story gets away from the teenage main character, Piemur, forcing him to be passive and reactive as important events from the original series swirl about him, almost as if the author is afraid to do more than peer at established canon; she neither develops it in a new direction nor tells new stories in the classic setting. The clunky dialogue, heavy exposition, and generally novice writing make the lack of substantive plot uncomfortably apparent, and the lazy characterizations mostly involve noble dragonriders looking beautiful and graceful while antagonists are ugly and uncouth. (One character's only notable feature is a speech impediment, which is put on display in a cartoonish, discomfiting way.) Sadly, this volume comes across as an attempt to trade on the McCaffrey name rather than an effort to nurture and extend the much-beloved franchise.
Customer Reviews
Unique and fresh perspective of Pern!
I received a free copy of this book and opted to post a review.
I was over the moon to read a new perspective of the Southern Continent and Piemur's activities after Dragondrums. McCaffrey did an excellent job of reminding those of us who haven't visited Pern in a while of the events leading up to Piemur's assignment on the Southern Continent.
In the past, we've read about the current Weyrleaders' perspective of the Oldtimers. It was slanted to favor the current Weyrleaders and their decisions; however, this book presents a different approach to the schism between the current Weyrleaders and the Oldtimers. It is a slightly more impartial view than before and it's easy to see the fundamental flaws in both parties' logic. We also see another side to some of other "beloved" characters, and how these characters we loved to laud in the past aren't as perfect as they were made out to be.
As great as this unique and fresh point of view is, there are a couple of areas where the book could be improved upon. The author took great pains to make the setting rich and vibrant, but I felt that she "told" more about it than "showed." I also thought that the relationships between the secondary characters and Piemur were understated. Piemur has a pretty extensive history with many of the secondary characters that appear in the book and many of the deep, abiding friendships came across as "casual acquaintances." These friendships played a big part in Piemur's evolution from an impetuous, young boy to a fine young man, and I feel that the author's decision to overlook them will make it difficult for Pern fans to connect with Piemur's story.
Even though I disagree with the author's decisions in a couple of areas, I think McCaffrey did a wonderful job of maintaining the timeline's integrity while providing readers with a different take on Pern society and inner political strife. I was absolutely enchanted by Piemur's story and I will happily read other books Gigi McCaffrey decides to contribute to the series!
Dragons Code
Gigi MacCaffery, you did your mother proud! I’ve been a fan of your mothers since the beginning of Pern. I believe you captured the essence of her storytelling but with your own prospective lacing through this book. I enjoyed it completely. Thank you for telling Piemur’s story, please continue it to its end.
Disappointed
Not worth getting excited about.