What do You think about Dragonseye (2002)?
"The main plot of this Pern novel, set just prior to the Second Pass of thread, is about a despotic Lord Holder who refuses to believe the danger is real. Unfortunately, the villain is a little too villainous - he's really a caricature, with no redeeming qualities, making you wonder why his subjects aren't willing to rebel more. Though seeing him brought down is still quite satisfying.[return][return]However, the secondary plotline about preparations for Thread is pretty interesting. The second pass is coinciding with the breakdown of the last of Pern's advanced technology - they have a few computers, but all are on their last legs. Several characters are busy reinventing substitutes such as the abacus and the fountain pen. Not to mention revamping their entire educational system to ensure that all have the necessary survival skills, at the possible expense of the knowledge of life elsewhere. The characters involved in this plot - mostly educators and musicians - are much more well-rounded, with both strengths and weaknesses. And some of their solutions are very creative - I think it's worth reading for that aspect alone."
—Deb
•tMuch like the other Pern books I’ve read so far, this book was a page turner. I have noticed that in this book as well as the others A.M. has focused a lot on the Pernese politics and the events leading up to the fall of Thread. She does it in a way that remains interesting throughout. If I had one gripe it would be that sometimes she seems to throw storylines in just for their political effect. Like she talks about a homosexual couple of dragonriders. Now, the riders themselves were good characters, it’s just that their storyline seemed a little forced. I always worry that authors feel like they need to make a political statement the later they get into their career. I hope that she just concentrates on the story
—Tamcamry
It is two-hundred years since the first Thread fell on Pern. Old Earth technology is failing or has already failed. Old attitudes are going away except for some die-hard traditionalists. This story follows a number of people who are getting ready for Thread to fall.We get the story of a young woman named Debera who was Searched but whose father didn't tell her that she had a chance to Impress a dragon because he had made other more advantageous (to him) plans for her future. When she finds the letter, she runs away from home followed by her father, the man he made the deal with, and her potential mate. She gets to the hatching ground in time to Impress the green Dragon Morath.We get the story of an artist whose first commission is to paints miniatures of the young children of the Lord Holder of Bitra. Iantine learns just how badly a Hold can be run as he meets Lord Holder Chalkin who doesn't believe that Thread is really going to fall.We see that various Lord Holders and Weyr Leaders as they meet to decide what to do about Lord Chalkin and get to know the personalities of the first group to fight Thread without old Earth technology but with dragons.We meet the teachers who are tasked with finding a way to continue teaching their necessary curriculum now that the final computers have died. We see the development of the Teaching Songs and Ballads.This was an excellent story that sets up the Pern that readers see in the books that take place in times long past this second Thread fall. The characters were engaging and the plot was fast moving.
—Kathy Martin
