BOOK REVIEW: Dragonquest by Anne McCaffrey

 

This is the sequel to Dragonflight, which had our heroine, Lessa, discovered and made the human companion of a female dragon named Ramoth. In this follow up, it is seven Turns (the term for years on the planet Pern) after the events in the previous book. Lessa has settled into her function as Weyrwoman of Benden Weyr and weyrmate to her partner, F’lar. Unfortunately, Pern is a little less settled. An unusual conjunction of planets has sent more lethal Thread down on Pern than anyone can remember, including the Oldtimers, the name of the dragonriders that Lessa brought forward in time to help fight the menace in the last novel. The Oldtimers themselves are a source of contention, so set in their old traditions that they try to block F’lar’s innovations to combat the constant danger dropping from the skies at any opportunity. Add to this an unlikely romance between F’nor, F’lar’s brother, and a young queen dragonrider named Brekke, and the discovery of some ancient technology that allows men to hope that it might be possible to eradicate Thread at its source. All this makes this for a novel with many twists and turns, and not a few surprises, demonstrating why McCaffrey’s work is a world that will live forever.