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The Renegades of Pern

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Overview

As long as the people of Pern could remember, the Holds had protected them from Thread, the deadly silver strands that fell from the sky and ravaged the land. In exchange for sanctuary in the huge stone fortresses, the people tithed to their Lord Holders, who in turn supported the Weyrs, whose dragons were Pern's greatest weapon against Thread. But not everyone on Pern was part of that system of mutual care and protection, particularly those who had been rendered holdless as punishment for wrongdoing. And there were some, like Jayge's trader clan, who simply preferred the freedom of the roads to the security of a hold. Others, like Aramina's family, had lost their holds through injustice and cruelty. For all the holdless, life was a constant struggle for survival. Then, from the ranks of the criminals and the disaffected, rose a band of renegades, led by the Lady Thella. No one was safe from Thella's depredations, and now her quarry was Aramina, reputed to have a telepathic link with dragons.

Editorial Reviews

While recent tales of Pern have dealt with early eras on that turbulent planet, this one begins during the time of Dragonquest and continues beyond the closing of The White Dragon , focusing on some of the commoners, and how they cope with the return of the life-consuming Thread. A number of lives intertwine, such as that of the trader boy Jayge Lilcamp, whose family is almost destroyed when his father refuses to believe the first Thread warning. Jayge runs afoul of Thella, sister of the Telgar Hold lord but a malcontent and leader of renegades, when she tries to kidnap the refugee girl Aramina, who can hear all dragons. Meanwhile, in the South, the young harper Piemur finds his destiny, and Toric, the first Holder there, schemes for supremacy. McCaffrey paints her colorful world on a still larger canvas, maintaining the complex plots and strong characterization that permeate her work. Timed to coincide with the publication of this book is an illustrated nonfiction companion book, The Drag on lover's Guide to Pern by Jody Lynn Nye with McCaffrey. The large-format volume gathers together much known and some new information about Pern and its history. Major ad/promo; author tour . ( Nov. ) -- PUBLISHERS WEEKLY.

Author Information

Bio of Anne McCaffrey

Anne McCaffrey, the Hugo Award--winning author of the bestselling Dragonriders of Pern novels, is one of science fiction's most popular authors. She lives in a house of her own design, Dragonhold-Underhill, in County Wicklow, Ireland.

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Additional Info

Imprint

Random House

Filesize

826.24 KB

Number of Pages

352

eBook ISBN

9780345454041

Excerpt from: The Renegades of Pern by Anne McCaffrey

In the Northwestern province of High Reaches, an ambitious man has just begun a campaign of territorial acquisition that will make him the single most powerful Lord Holder on all of Pern. His name is Fax -- and he will become legend.

Meanwhile, in the hills of Lemos Hold, in the eastern mountains of Pern...

"He's here again," the woman said, peering out the dust-grimed window slit when she heard the clatter of hooves on the cobbles in front of the cothold. "I tol' ya he'd come back. You're for it now." There was a certain note of sly anticipation in her voice.

The slovenly man at the table glanced contemptuously in her direction. His belly was full, though he had grumbled with every mouthful that porridge was no dish to serve a grown man, and he had just decided to do a little fishing.

The metal door of the hold was vigorously pushed in, and before the cotholder could get to his feet, the room was full of determined men, shortswords prominently at their belts. Uttering little shrieks of dismay, the woman flattened herself in the corner of the inner wall, oblivious to the clatter of pans and cups that spilled from the hanging cabinet.

"Felleck, you're out!" Lord Gedenase said in a cold, harsh voice. He stood, fists on his belt, his dark leather riding cloak fanned by his arms, making him appear much larger than life.

"Out? Out, Lord Gedenase?" Felleck stammered, staggering to his feet. "I was just going out, Lord, to fish for our evening meal--" His voice changed to a plaintive whine. "For we've naught to eat but boiled grains."

"Your hunger no longer concerns me," Lord Gedenase replied, swiveling to examine the filthy room with its rickety furnishings. His nostrils flared briefly in disgust at the musty smell of accumulated damp and dirt. "Four times you have failed to tithe, despite generous help from my steward to replace your moldy seed grain, your broken, misused tools, and even a draft animal when yours developed foot rot. Now, out! Gather your belongings and get out!"

Felleck was stunned. "Out?"

"Out?" the woman's voice quavered.

"Out!" Lord Gedenase stepped aside and gestured sternly toward the door. "You have exactly one half hour in which to gather your possessions" -- the Lord Holder's eyebrows twitched with scorn as he glanced about the sordid dwelling -- "and leave!"

"But -- but -- where will we go?" the woman cried despairingly, but she was already gathering up pots and pans.