The Renegades of Pern (Dragonriders of Pern Series)

I love Anne Mccaffrey. I am having to replace all of my digital library because Sony no longer supports ereaders. So I have lost all of my Anne Mccaffrey books, not to mention many others. It's frustrating to have to spend the money again, but she is so worth it! Wish I would have gone with kindle way back then!

The Renegades of Pern is a bridge between The White Dragon and All the Weyrs of Pern. We need to read it if we are to follow the plot and understand what is happening. It is here where they discover AIVAS, here where we find out about Aramina, here where Master Robinton recuperates in the southern continent from his heart attack. I had to read it several times, however, in order to follow the action. I got the feeling that it was simply several plot ideas that never developed into full-blown books and were thus thrown together to form a book as all of them could have been added to other books rather than being pieced together as they were. I felt that she introduced characters that she then either didn't like or didn't know what to do with and so got rid of them quickly, although she didn't want to completely abandon the work she had done in creating them.

One problem with her Pern books is that they are not well edited and so she sometimes contradicts herself. For example, Early in the series, she states queens cannot eat firestone, they vomit it up, and are genetically created to do so. Later she states they CAN eat firestone but will be sterile if they do so. Lytol at first rides a green, but then his dragon suddenly becomes a brown and remains so for the rest of the series. Jaxom is referred to by Lessa as the last of the Ruathan bloodline, but he is NOT of the blood, and both Lessa and her female cousin and her children have escaped Fax's massacre. Ruth is constantly referred to as 'he' but is in reality a hermaphrodite, as 'he' is all the colors, meaning 'he' is both male and female, including a queen.
In The Renegades of Pern, the dragonriders band together to help the northern lords capture Thella, who has run away rather than be married off against her wishes and who has become a robber who has been robbing them, yet the same people loudly declaim the aid requested by Toric, who is being robbed by Denol and by Jayge when Thella threatens HIS family.. Suddenly the dragonriders can't put enough space between themselves and the people asking their help.
I like the Pern series, I like following the trials and tribulations of its people, yet, at the same time, I find that I don't quite like its people. Robinton is a high functioning alcoholic. I got tired of reading his requests for "more wine, please". Commenters elsewhere have noted that Pern is a man's world. Women are put in their place in ways sometimes so subtle that I had not noticed until other readers brought it to my attention. For example, only men are given the honorific contraction. No female dragon rider is thus honored. That is never explained and it passed right by me. Likewise, Jaxom is not given the honorific, which is actually a subtle insult to him, as it places him with the women, not the men. Men can do virtually anything they want on Pern, but women are kept in very strict gender roles. Strong women end up crazy, ugly and dead, like Thella, and Kylara or 'tamed' like Lessa or ridiculed, like Mirrim. Men, however, are always referred to with respect. It is interesting to see how the setlers went from being equals, male and female, to being so.gender imbalanced and feudal. I would have liked to see if they rose beyond their feudal mentality.
Too bad McCaffrey didn't give permission for someone other than her son to continue the series. Instead of going forward, after McCaffrey's death, her son chose to go back, and I myself was not interested in those books he wrote. I want to know what happens next. The only thing I am interested in from the past is to learn why they started clipping the watchwhers' wings and chaining them, instead of letting them fly. That was a bit of cruelty that was never explained.

I never put spoilers in my reviews.
Anne McCaffrey is one of the very best Storytellers of all time. She combines exquisite world building, knowledge of what makes people tick, awesome imagination, great dialogue, knowledge of music and such talent to create one of the most recognizable pretend worlds in science fantasy, maybe all fiction, today.
You read and believe. She captures your heart and imagination and you care about the finely drawn characters and the fate of their world which is masterfully drawn with words that simply dance.
Any of her books, which are wide ranging in diverse, multiple universes, is well worth your time. Thus is one of the few authors I've re-read.
Put up your feet and prepare for magic.

I have only read the hardback version of this book so I can't comment on the Kindle version. Of all of the Pern books written by Anne Mccaffery alone I like this the least. To me there is a lot violence and nasty things happening that just did not appeal to me. I have slogged through this book a couple of times, though I have re-read the rest of the series at least once a year. This book introduces characters and events that are important to subsequent books, but I am not comfortable reading it often.

This, the tenth novel in the popular series that about the people and dragons of Pern, takes place approximately concurrently with THE WHITE DRAGON and is largely centered on Jayge Lilcamp, a member of a family of traders who traveled across Pern bringing much needed goods. Jayge finds his life and that of the rest of Pern turned upside down when Thread, that horrendous menace that periodically attacked the planet returned. Many had believed that Thread would never again fall from Pern's skies, scoffing at those who insisted that all too soon they would once again have to deal with this age old enemy, when once again all of Pern would owe their existence to the brave dragons and riders.

Jayge found his very way of life changed, not so much by the Thread itself but by humans he had been brought into contact with, one a young woman who had the unique talent of hearing dragons, all dragons, speak to each other telepathically and another embittered young woman who was determined to control this talent. As major events of Pernese society take place around them these three battle for their own places in their world.

The author, Anne McCaffrey, places a request in each of her Pern stories that the reader read the stories in order for maximum enjoyment. Readers new to this series would absolutely not want to begin with this one, the story is quite dependent on earlier events. Those who have read the first four or five novels could follow and enjoy the story but the more familiar the reader is with the series the more they will enjoy this story. This novel takes place and refers to many of the same events as THE WHITE DRAGON, and the Harper Trilogy (DRAGONSONG, DRAGONSINGER and DRAGONDRUMS), relating the events from a slightly different point of view. ALL THE WEYRS OF PERN begins shortly after the end of this novel.

As with all the Pern novels this one is a fascinating depiction of a complex society that has adapted itself to the extraordinary conditions that have beset it. Once again McCaffery has taken characters that have dominated earlier novels, placed them into secondary roles and shifted focus to other characters who either had been mentioned in passing earlier or are new to this story. It is interesting to see how the various events or characters common to more than one novel are viewed differently by various individuals. The different storylines of this novel are all quite satisfactorily tied up but the ending involves such a surprising twist that the reader will probably want to immediately pick up the next novel in the series, ALL THE WEYRS OF PERN.

As long as the people of Pern could remember, dragons had fought Thread and kept people alive. Everyone lived in strong stone fortresses or caves because Thread wouldn't eat through stone. However, it had been hundreds of years since Thread had fallen on Pern and there were many who did not like to live behind stone walls, beholden to the Lord of the area and forced into careers that they did not want. Some, like Jayge Lilcamp's clan were traders. They traversed the length and breadth of Pern, bartering and taking messages to other holds. They were always welcome at holds, especially ones that were out of the way. However, when they ignored the warning that Thread was once again falling on Pern, his trader caravan was decimated. Instead of being independent, they were now forced to accept whatever charity they could from the last hold the visited. Jayge couldn't bear it and set out on his own.
Thella, sister of Telgar Hold's Lord, was bitter that she had not even been given the chance to become a Lady Holder. She knew that she could do a better job than her brother. Since she was passed by, she found her own hold and gathered together as many Holdless men as she could. Then she set about robbing and plotting her revenge. The only thing that was holding her back was the dragonriders because she could not risk being seen and tracked adragonback. She found the solution to her problem in Aramina (seen in The Girl Who Heard Dragons short story), who could hear all dragons. But Aramina escaped from her and was safely ensconced at Benden Hold. However, Thella was not about to give up so easily...
The Renegades of Pern is, like Nerilka's story, a retelling of familiar events from unfamiliar points of view. I highly recommend reading Dragonquest, The White Dragon, and The Girl Who Heard Dragons before reading this one because it will make a lot more sense than reading this one first. It was interesting because all of the other books in the Pern series have been about someone who has a definite place in life on Pern: holder, dragonrider, harper, etc., but Jayge did not. He could do a little bit of everything and was very resourceful. I enjoyed hearing how Aramina made out in the end, even though I was very surprised at what ended up happening. Although Jayge, Aramina, and Thella were what I would call the "main" characters, there was also quite a bit about Piemur and Toric, Holder of the Southern Continent, and the explorations and events taking place in at Southern, which was interesting. My main complaint with the book was the huge number of multiple viewpoints. It really made the book choppy and I know that I really wanted to find out what happened to a certain character and then was suddenly switched to someone else, which is kind of frustrating. Still, The Renegades of Pern is very informative and it was interesting to see things from a very different point of view. Recommended for readers of the Pern series - if you are new to the series, this is NOT the book to start with!

This book has a full fledged female villain: Lady Thella
and her band of thieves. As Thred falls for the first time
in this era the displaced people have gathered around
a leader and begun to steal to stay alive.
Most of the last half of the book deals with the southern continent
which has the imaginative name : 'Southern'.
We get a parallel to the adventures of Piemur
and at last Archaeology of the first settlement
of the planet with a computer still active.
The result leaves things open for another sequel
to follow?
As I have read several in this sequence I think this
effort doesn't have the spirit of some of the original
work, but continues the development of the Pern
culture from another point of view.

When I first read this book, years ago, I remember being a little disappointed. It wasn't as good as the Dragonflight trilogy or even as good as the Harper Hall trilogy. I'm re-reading the series in chronological order now, and I want to warn people not to listen to the negative reviews!
Yes, it's maybe not quite as enjoyable, it tells stories of the less-pleasant sides of Pern life, but it also tells things that you must hear if you want the whole story. You must read Renegades in order to be properly set up for All the Weyrs of Pern. This is the book that, if nothing else, tells more about the initial excavation of Landing and the discovery of AIVAS, and it introduces Jayge and Aramina of the Paradise River Hold from Dolphins of Pern.
I enjoyed this book more on second reading than I did the first time. The Pern series is five stars. If you enjoy the series, don't skip this four star book based on negative reviews.

What can I say???? I totally enjoyed this book, just as I have loved all the series! This one, more than any other, portrays life outside of the Dragon rider's wheyrs and out over Pern and it's common folk.

Anne McCaffery is a master in writing, a true Bard.
Her stories a full of humanity, wonderful bonds between man/dragon/and earth (Pern)...and so VERY, refreshingly different from the Tolkien-esque fantasies many writers emulate.

Whatever you do, RESIST THE TEMPTATION TO READ THIS BOOK! It should be removed from the McCaffrey lineup by the publisher, it was so bad. A bunch of crappy characters, some of McCaffrey's most inattentive writing (and some of the latter-day Pern books are LAME, let's admit it), and a bunch of British class-warfare themes that the rest of us don't care about. Skip it.

Anne McCaffrey is the quintessential writer of fantasy books pertaining to dragons. These books are always wonderful, well written, and perfectly characterized. All of her series are great but the ones that take place on Pern are the best of all.

I always wondered where the 'bad guys' were on Pern. In that regard, it's quite refreshing to find that there are in fact truly unsavory characters abounding the planet. Lord Fax aside, Thella is the most ruthless, evil character of McCaffrey's tales. Read this to fill in knowledge of Pern and the Dragonriders Series as a change of pace. Like 'All the Weyrs', which this is a prerequisite to reading, this is only another good book. Within the context of the larger whole, a worthwhile read.

I enjoyed this book, yet again another of Anne McCaffrey's great Dragonriders of Pern books. Having read the series in order, I found it hard to jump back into the story after having read stories from another time frame. So, certain storyline aspects were a little fuzzy to me. However, I found that the book was able to update readers on what had already happened in other books, and it was like being in the know on an inside joke when I actually remembered a key point from another book that impacted this book. While I enjoyed the first three books of the series better than this one, I still enjoyed this read. It's a fine addition to the Dragonriders of Pern series.

Hm, its kinda disappointing to see how low others rated this book. This is definetly Annie's best book. It has elements of everything: suspense, character building, and an excellent plot.
Annie starts the book out from many different angles (and while some say its confusing) it is sooooooo awesome to see how everything comes together. The story arouses your emotions (hate for Lady Holdess Thella and love for Armania and Jayge) and keeps you reading
Seriously you WILL NOT regret reading this book as it contains all the elements of what has made the Pern series so lovable.

If you have already read the original 6 pern novels, this acts as a bridge to the dragonsdawn and all the weyrs novels. We revisit some beloved characters and learn about some new key players. If you have not read the original 6, start there or this book will make little sense.

This book gives the reader a different view of Pern than the Weyrs and Halls. It shows how the common, unconnected people live, and their attitude towards, (read fear of) dragons and their riders. The people, for a change, are ordinary people, not the Lords and Ladies of Pern. They are simple people, trying to scratch out a living. The characters are interesting and well-rounded. It is wonderful to see how the disenfranchised try to survive, even under the threat of Threadfall. A must-read for all Anne MacCaffrey lovers.

I was somewhat dissapointed by this book. This is the 2nd one in the Pern Series I read, I had just finished all the Wyers of Pern before. I really enjoyed the large role the dragons got to play in Wyers of Pern, this book lacks it. You don't really get to see into the telepathic relationship the riders have with their dragons. It's exciting, but I really miss the dragons. The wyers are put into a bad light early on, and I was confused about the Leadership of Benden Wyer, when did F'lar and Lessa take over? The book is okay, but she's done better.

The Pern series of books from Anne McCaffery are great. Better if you read them in order, (look online at her website for recommendations). This is futuristic science fiction, but if you liked Aregon, you would probably like this series too

I found this book a complete and total dissapointment. It had very little in the way of original material, mostly just containing a recap of The White Dragon. I was very surprised and dismayed at this fact, and feel it is well below McCaffrey's writing ability

I recomend this book if you are reading the entire Pern series in chronological order. Renegades will seem choppy if you read it alone and most of the secnes will not make sense if read before the other books. Renegades fills in a lot of time gaps that reading the others leave out. I recomend this book to all Pern fans.