Dragonseye by Anne McCaffrey
Pern (Publishing Order) #14, Pern (Chronological Order) #3
“The First Pass of Thread lasted nearly fifty years, and what scientific information the colonists were able to gather indicated that Thread would be a cyclic problem, occurring every 250 years as the path of the wanderer once again approached Pern.
From the prologue
This is what happened 257 years later.“
Dragonsdawn is the first book of the series, if you read in chronological order, followed by The Chronicles of Pern: First Fall, a collection of short stories. Dragonseye follows as book #3 (chronologically), set after the longer period of 250 years with no Threadfall.
I am not 100% certain, but I think I have not read this one before. I do like the characters and the more serious tone, although the political shenanigans are a bit too drawn out. The stories of the portrait artist and the green rider were especially nice, as well as the storyline with the gay couple. The writing felt noticeably more modern—the book was published nearly 30 years after the first book of the series, which also resulted in stronger female characters. I am happy that I finally read this.
“For two centuries they had waited for this moment: centuries of training and lives lived so that dragons—and riders—would be here, right now, waiting to defend Pern.“
And so the Second Pass commences!
Just as an aside, Anne McCaffrey recommended reading her series in publication order. I tend to agree, as you start with the main storyline that way and the journey of discovery.
Cathy's Reading Bonanza 