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mdpenguin's review against another edition
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
I loved this series when I was a kid and thought it would be fun to pick it up again now. I remember thinking that the world was really fun, the idea that real science got corrupted over time was nifty, the characters were relatable, and that McCaffrey's writing was good. The first two of these still holds true after revisiting this volume, but I'm pretty disappointed in the characters and the writing style.
As far as the characters go, Lessa isn't bad. Sometimes she can seem a little thick in the beginning, but she's a good, brave heroic figure who believably moves the plot forward. F'lar, though, is pretty awful. For the most part he's just obnoxious and I don't really understand why he's supposed to inspire loyalty. He vacillated between being a reactionary and a revolutionary. His relationship with Lessa is positively abusive: aside from the fact that he seems completely unwilling to give her any of the information she would need to succeed even where he wants her to, he physically shakes her when he's upset with her (which is half the time) and his sexual relationship with her is centered around him raping her and not understanding why she doesn't accept his affections. I actually remembered that part when I read his thoughts on it and remember that even when I was a kid I thought it was disturbing. Probably his only redeeming feature is that he willingly defers to other men who have more expertise than he does and does listen to other people's concerns (though generally not Lessa's).
I'm trying to figure out why I thought that the writing was good when I was a kid. That's not something that I cared about as much then as I do now, but I do remember specifically liking the writing in this series. It's possible that I thought that the little snippets of ballads that act like dingbats between sections of the story were neat or something. Now I find the writing rather dry, with an affected style of dialogue that comes across as forced and a rather haphazard approach to descriptiveness. It's not terrible, but it's not good. It is good enough to get the story and the ideas behind it across without getting in the way, though.
I first read this series – or at least a big chunk of it – when I was in lower and middle school. I picked them up after my brother left them lying around and occasionally got one from the library and don't think that I read any two of them in order unless they were published together. That being the case, it's very possible that my opinion of this particular volume back then was colored by what I already knew of the series and it's possible that I enjoyed it more for the way that it provided back-story for the world that I was already engaged with. I think that I'll at least read the next book and see if my opinion changes: my fonder memories are of the Harper Hall series and one or two of the later books, so I'll probably read at least to the start of those.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence
Minor: Rape
cinda_lu's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
3.5
I enjoyed the creative world building and plot line. I also liked Lessa. I liked that she was clever, strong-willed, and inquisitive. I did not like F'lar at first, he was insensitive, arrogant, and slightly misogynistic. However, he did improve throught the book and eventually grew on me.
The one one glaring issue I had with this book wasthe unaddressed rape of Lessa by F'lar during the Dragon mating flight. She was given no warning about what might happen during this time and was mostly unaware of what was happening to her body because her mind was "riding with Ramoth". This unwitting and non-consenual sex was basically rape. And F'lar even admitted as much in the book yet never addressed what happened or apologized. He was supposedly unhappy with how things had gone, but only because she wasn't respond to him the way he wanted.
The writing itself had an undercurrent of patriarchy which was also unpleasant. But I found Lessa to be an admirable protagonist despite that.
The one one glaring issue I had with this book was
The writing itself had an undercurrent of patriarchy which was also unpleasant. But I found Lessa to be an admirable protagonist despite that.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Misogyny and Sexism
Minor: Rape
yourbookishbff's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
hopeful
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
I have no way to rate this book. It is deeply nostalgic for me - a series I read initially in middle school and inspired my childhood love for sci-fi and fantasy - and also very much of its time. McCaffrey is the mother of modern-day fantasy romance dragon lore and should get credit for it! It was fascinating to reread and see where she is pushing the boundaries for female characters - and where even these moments still fall short for a modern reader. New readers should check content warnings before going in, and expect vintage 60s sci-fi dragons with a touch of bodice-ripper.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Fatphobia, Misogyny, and Classism
Moderate: Fire/Fire injury and Injury/Injury detail
Minor: Rape and Sexual content
Sexual encounters between the main characters are largely described as "dragon-roused" and nonconsensual. The male main character explicitly describes their sex as rape at one point in the narrative, suggesting she was not "warming up" to him. It is important to note that all sex scenes are implied and entirely closed door so there is NO graphic sexual assault on page (I wouldn't even call this fade-to-black, there is no explicit sex or intimacy beyond kissing on page). The alpha male and tempestuous/feisty female locked together by convenience who must grow to like each other is the foundation for the bodice rippers that would come in following decades and will feel familiar to readers of old-school romance. And a note on fatphobia: consistent with other books of this time period, fat characters are consistently described as either villainous or lazy/slovenly/etc. And there is a LOT of emphasis on the female main character being thin/small.exactimondo's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
Some parts of this book were great but also the amount of women the protagonist disliked was a bit iffy to put it mildly. Also some parts felt overcomplicated and the whole system was very gendered. And let's just not mention the "romance"...
I am sure it was groundbreaking in its time but now to me is past its time.
I am sure it was groundbreaking in its time but now to me is past its time.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape
onthesamepage's review against another edition
adventurous
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
For everyone who read Fourth Wing and thought that the part where dragons mating leading to their human partners mating was interesting—let me introduce you to the OG.
I read this a long, long time ago, and I remembered parts of it being problematic, but I was curious to see how I'd feel about it now. And you know what, the problematic parts were still problematic. But the story and the world are just as interesting as they were when I read them the first time.
Instead of the conflict in this story being people at war with each other, the people are at war with their environment. That doesn't mean that there's no politics or in-fighting, because all of that exists, but it lends a different dynamic to it when one of the parties is in charge of protecting the entire planet. At the beginning of the book, the dragonriders have lost credibility in Pern, because the threat that they exist to fight hasn't been seen for 400 years. This leads to the different towns abandoning the agreements that have always been in place to support the Weyrs. Lessa is thrown into this chaos when F'lar decides she would make a good Weyrwoman. Through her, we slowly begin to piece together how the world functions, and to unravel all the mysteries we've been introduced to.
The strength of this book is really in the story it's telling, and not so much the characters or relationships. Yes, the bond between dragons and humans is cool, and it does get explored quite a bit, but I spent far more time being intrigued by the world and the Threads than the humans. There also isn't a romance to root for, even though one does develop between Lessa and F'lar eventually. Their relationship starts off extremely contentious, however, and it makes it hard to root for them as a couple, or for F'lar as a love interest specifically. There are multiple instances where he talks down to Lessa, shakes her, slaps sense into her, berates her, not to mention the implication of nonconsensual sex (fully off-page, but it is mentioned). And maybe it's a product of the time it was written in, but that doesn't make it more fun to read. Lessa is far from a doormat, though, and she gives as good as she gets at least 50% of the time. It also helps that she's the undisputed hero of this book, and her grit and determination makes it easy to root for her.
I read this a long, long time ago, and I remembered parts of it being problematic, but I was curious to see how I'd feel about it now. And you know what, the problematic parts were still problematic. But the story and the world are just as interesting as they were when I read them the first time.
Instead of the conflict in this story being people at war with each other, the people are at war with their environment. That doesn't mean that there's no politics or in-fighting, because all of that exists, but it lends a different dynamic to it when one of the parties is in charge of protecting the entire planet. At the beginning of the book, the dragonriders have lost credibility in Pern, because the threat that they exist to fight hasn't been seen for 400 years. This leads to the different towns abandoning the agreements that have always been in place to support the Weyrs. Lessa is thrown into this chaos when F'lar decides she would make a good Weyrwoman. Through her, we slowly begin to piece together how the world functions, and to unravel all the mysteries we've been introduced to.
The strength of this book is really in the story it's telling, and not so much the characters or relationships. Yes, the bond between dragons and humans is cool, and it does get explored quite a bit, but I spent far more time being intrigued by the world and the Threads than the humans. There also isn't a romance to root for, even though one does develop between Lessa and F'lar eventually. Their relationship starts off extremely contentious, however, and it makes it hard to root for them as a couple, or for F'lar as a love interest specifically. There are multiple instances where he talks down to Lessa, shakes her, slaps sense into her, berates her, not to mention the implication of nonconsensual sex (fully off-page, but it is mentioned). And maybe it's a product of the time it was written in, but that doesn't make it more fun to read. Lessa is far from a doormat, though, and she gives as good as she gets at least 50% of the time. It also helps that she's the undisputed hero of this book, and her grit and determination makes it easy to root for her.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Misogyny and Physical abuse
Moderate: Animal cruelty
Minor: Fatphobia and Rape
inbigtreble's review against another edition
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
Another reviewer pinpointed exactly what I love about older fantasy and sci-fi: they don't take ages to get to the point. This book takes place over the course of years and packs multiple signifigant plotlines and tons of worldbuilding into 300 pages. There's no handholding; for the most part you are left to figure out what's happening. This book has all the things I like about that writing style. Unfortunately it also has some outdated ideas about the world, including what I found to be a particularly uncomfortable dynamic between the leads. Overall, though, despite their flaws, the characters felt real and well-realized within the world as described. Can't wait to read more.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Child death and Misogyny
Moderate: Rape and Sexual assault
sarahgraace's review against another edition
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
1.0
Ummm okay I have some thoughts. While I understand that this book was written 56 years ago and reflects ideas of the time… there are some elements of misogyny in the story that I couldn’t really see past. The book got off to a really strong start with nicely paced writing and interesting characters. But as soon as Lessa was taken away from Ruatha to the Weyr, the plot/characters/writing became so lacklustre. We get a bunch of mediocre dialogue, the characters are whiny, and not a lot happens. And then of course, there’s the rape and abuse which is portrayed in such a way that it’s supposed to be romantic? But it was not, and in addition to that, I found the way Lessa responded to the abuse by F’lar was very inconsistent with her characterization in the initial part of the book. I also found that I didn’t care about what happened to any of these characters so the tension/resolution of the plot was not interesting to me. I wasn’t expecting this to be sci-fi, and though I do appreciate the really unique concept and worldbuilding, the way this was written just couldn’t hold my interest. I will not be continuing this series as there’s plenty of better sci fi and fantasy out there that doesn’t make excuses for rape and abuse.
Content Warnings
Minor: Rape
uranaishi's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
Content Warnings
Moderate: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Misogyny, Panic attacks/disorders, Physical abuse, Sexism, Sexual content, Sexual violence, Toxic relationship, Violence, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, and Alcohol
Minor: Body horror, Body shaming, Child abuse, Child death, Confinement, Infidelity, Rape, Blood, Grief, Fire/Fire injury, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism
wishbea's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Heir to Ruatha, Lessa, wants her kingdom back from invader Fax. Dragonman F'lar wants a woman to bond with a female dragon because they need more dragons and dragonmen. The two are initially very compelling characters, Lessa is focused entirely on revenge and is smart enough to have kept herself hidden at Ruatha for 10 years, F'lar is evidently a good leader and extremely calculating.
The early chapters did an excellent job teaching me about the politics and world itself. But the more I saw of F'lar and Lessa the more I disliked them, I was initially rooting for them to learn to trust each other but F'lar loses all his charisma as he is clearly abusing Lessa to the point where she appears to have a panic attack about returning to him.
Lessa seems like she might've been considered a strong female character at the time of release, but she, like all of the characters including F'lar, ends up being reduced to being a purely arrogant character. The sexism she has to deal with is dreadful and there are only 3 other female characters in this book I could name, so Lessa gets points for rebelling against her treatment.
The dragons are great and the threat of the "Threads" and the main problem of the Weyr seemed like it wouldn't be solved within the very first book..However, it is! In the space of 30 pages Lessa solves the incredibly complex problem with absolutely no issues convincing anyone! She convinced 1800 dragonmen and their dragons to abandon their lives 400 years in the past and come to the future with her and they happily do this because "they are bored". She and all the other characters seem to be entirely unaware that this means she herself has caused the very issue she was trying to solve. The plot becomes laughably bad towards the end, so much so I can hardly believe I was enjoying this book at the beginning.
On top of that, since the main hook and problem of this book has been solved I don't see any reason to read the following book. Surely now they've increased their forces 9x they can defeat the threads. "Threads" aren't a very interesting villain and I really don't care about how they are defeated enough to try reading the next book. I was extremely surprised the storyline with Fax didn't last longer because he was a much more interesting antagonist.
The early chapters did an excellent job teaching me about the politics and world itself. But the more I saw of F'lar and Lessa the more I disliked them, I was initially rooting for them to learn to trust each other but F'lar loses all his charisma as he is clearly abusing Lessa to the point where she appears to have a panic attack about returning to him.
Lessa seems like she might've been considered a strong female character at the time of release, but she, like all of the characters including F'lar, ends up being reduced to being a purely arrogant character. The sexism she has to deal with is dreadful and there are only 3 other female characters in this book I could name, so Lessa gets points for rebelling against her treatment.
The dragons are great and the threat of the "Threads" and the main problem of the Weyr seemed like it wouldn't be solved within the very first book..However, it is! In the space of 30 pages Lessa solves the incredibly complex problem with absolutely no issues convincing anyone!
On top of that, since the main hook and problem of this book has been solved I don't see any reason to read the following book. Surely now
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Physical abuse, Rape, Sexism, and Toxic relationship
Moderate: Confinement, Mental illness, and Pregnancy