Product Description

When Masterharper Zist takes over as Harper for Natalon's coal-mining camp, he takes with him his apprentice, the orphaned, mute Pellar, and Pellar's fire-lizard Chitter. Pellar has become a gifted tracker and Zist gives him his own mission - to find out if the recent thefts of coal are the work of the Shunned, criminals condemned to a life of wandering and hardship. Halla is one of the children of the Shunned. Though innocent of their parents' crimes, these children have inherited their cruel punishment. With no shelter when the lethal Thread falls again they will have no protection against it. Life is even tougher for Halla, all her family are dead and she must fend for herself. Yet Halla is kind and gentle, devoted to helping those more helpless than she, unlike Tenim, a fellow child of the Shunned. Tenim is in league with Tarik, a crooked miner from Camp Natalon, who helps him steal coal in exchange for a cut of the profit. But Tenim soon realizes there is a lot more to be made from firestone, the volatile mineral that enables the dragons of Pern to burn Thread out of the sky. Tenim doesn't care what he has to do, or whom he has to kill, in order to corner the market. Cristov is Tarik's son. Dishonored by his father's greed and treachery, he decides he must make amends somehow...even if it means risking his life by mining the volatile firestone, which blows up at contact with the slightest drop of moisture. When the last remaining firestone mine explodes in flames, a desperate race begins to find a new deposit of the deadly but essential mineral, for without it there can be no defence against Thread. But Tenim has a murderous plan to turn the tragedy to his own advantage, and only Pellar, Halla and Cristov can stop him - and ensure that there will be a future for all on the world of the Dragonriders.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #64858 in Books
• Published on: 2007-11-05
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 528 pages

From the Back Cover
The Shunned are criminals condemned to a life of wandering and hardship. Their children share their punishment. Tenim is a child of the Shunned and has been stealing coal from Camp Natalon, aided by a dishonest miner, Tarik. Tenim soon realizes he can make more money by stealing firestone, the volatile mineral that enables the dragons of Pern to burn Thread out of the sky. Tenim doesn't care what he has to do, or who he has to kill, in order to corner the market.

When the last known firestone mine explodes in flames, a desperate race begins to find a new deposit of the deadly but essential mineral, for without it there can be no defence against Thread. But Tenim has a murderous plan to turn the tragedy to his own advantage, and only the tracker Pellar, Halla - another child of the Shunned - and Tarik's son Cristov, determined to make amends for his father's greed, can stop him and ensure that there will be a future for all of Pern.

About the Author
Anne McCaffrey was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College, majoring in Slavonic Languages and Literatures. A prolific bestselling author, she is best known for her handling of broad themes and the worlds of her imagination, particularly in her tales of the Talents and the novels about the Dragonriders of Pern. Anne McCaffrey lives in a house of her own design, Dragonhold-Underhill, in County Wicklow, Ireland. Visit the author's website at www.annemccaffrey.net Todd McCaffrey, Anne's son, is a computer engineer living in Los Angeles. The approved heir to Pern, his first solo Dragonriders of Pern novel, Dragonsblood, will be published by Bantam Press in 2005. Visit his website on www.toddmccaffrey.org

Customer Reviews

Another worthy addition
Dragon's Fire is the second collaboration between Anne and Todd - and once again they have produced an engaging and entertaining story. like the previous few novels, Dragon's Fire is a Third Pass story - which is set before the events of Dragonsblood, and is nicely woven around the story of Dragons Kin - starting slightly before that novel, paralleling it in places and continuing on after it.

One of the joys of this book for me is that the primary character is disabled (he cannot talk), and yet he finds a way to work well within the Harper Craft Hall, a craft dedicated to communication of various sorts! Pellar is a well rounded character in this novel, and is given both a chance to grow and change through tragedy, adversity and through shear adventure. He is one of the more interesting characters created by "team McCaffrey" - and one I hope we hear more about in the future. His journey through Dragon's Fire is both touching, and compelling - and well thought out.

The same can be said of the main villain of the story - Tenim who is truly evil, which is a rarity on Pern. Someone who places no value on the life of others - unless they can be of benefit to him. He is willing to risk Pern's safety for his own selfish ends. One of the nice touches about this character is that he seems to have picked up falconry and has a trained bird-of-prey (something that must be a descendant of the birds brought by the original colonists). His shear cold bloodedness is quite chilling. The contrast between him and Pellar makes for interesting reading - especially in the scenes where they are together.

There are plenty of interesting secondary characters as well, from the selfless Halla, to the tragic and misguided Tarik and his son Cristov (both of whom were introduced in Dragon's Kin). Again, Kindan makes the odd appearance in this book, with more being added to his robust character and background.

The way this story is woven around the events of Dragon's Kin is both clever, and intriguing and smacks of plans well laid - which I have no complaint about. The hunt for a new source of firestone, and the reason it is so different from the firestone fans of the Ninth Pass book are familiar with are nicely thought out, and fit very well with what has already been established in the series.

Dragon's Fire is an entertaining story - and one that I read over a few days. The pace and feel of this novel are markedly different from Dragon's Kin, yet still show the McCaffrey style through out. Again, this is a clever story and one that is a very worthy addition to the continuing Pern saga - make sure you have a box of tissues handy when reading it though - you will need them!

Anne and Son's latest effort
Anyone whose ever thought about buying a fantasy novel must have encountered Anne's Pern series in their time. However as the series has moved into the 21st Century the reins are being handed over to her son, Todd. Here the two collaborate for the second time and the clear distinctions between the old and new blend to bring it to a new generation as well as making the series apply to the "older fan".

Always prolific the writing keeps you glued and is perhaps a little too clinical in the end. Readers will of course enjoy the book with fans devouring it in short time indeed. However I do wonder for how much longer the series can continue and how new ideas will continue to be generated. In a modern world with many new authors tackling Dragon fiction, she remains the author to match or to cross with Dragon Fire battle. Few will draw with her and fewer still will manage to withdraw with anything other than a singed record. Anne's work will remain up there for a good few years more and is still the author to judge this particular subsection genre by, however as a matter of personal preference its not her best, although it is still a gripping novel better than a number of others.

Lacks Anne's earlier sparkle
As with Todd's solo book "Dragon's Blood", this story lacks the depth of character and atmosphere that is so appealing in Anne's earlier books in the Pern saga. If the cover didn't say otherwise, I'd swear that Todd wrote it and Anne's name is there to help sell copies. Oh dear. Very disappointing.