''Sky Dragons'' is a

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

novel A novel is a relatively long work of narrative fiction, typically written in prose and published as a book. The present English word for a long work of prose fiction derives from the for "new", "news", or "short story of something new", itsel ...

by the American-Irish author

Anne McCaffrey Anne Inez McCaffrey (1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011) was an American-Irish writer known for the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, ''Weyr Search'', 19 ...

and her son

Todd McCaffrey Todd J. McCaffrey (born 27 April 1956 as Todd Johnson) is an Irish American author of science fiction best known for continuing the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' series in collaboration with his mother Anne McCaffrey. Life Todd Johnson was born 27 Apr ...

in the ''

Dragonriders of Pern ''Dragonriders of Pern'' is a science fantasy series written primarily by American author Anne McCaffrey, who initiated it in 1967. Beginning in 2003, her middle child Todd McCaffrey has written Pern novels, both solo and jointly with Anne. ...

'' series that she initiated in 1967. Published by Del Rey Ballantine and released July 2012, ''Sky Dragons'' is the sequel to ''

Dragon's Time ''Dragon's Time'' is a science fiction novel by the American-Irish author Anne McCaffrey and her son Todd McCaffrey in the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' series that she initiated in 1967. Published by Del Rey Books and released June 2011, ''Dragon's ...

''.

This was the last collaboration between mother and son, which Anne described in a foreword to ''Dragon's Time'' as "helping Todd wrap up this very dramatic part of Pernese history".

Context

Following the disease which killed many of the dragons of

Pern ''Dragonriders of Pern'' is a science fantasy series written primarily by American author Anne McCaffrey, who initiated it in 1967. Beginning in 2003, her middle child Todd McCaffrey has written Pern novels, both solo and jointly with Anne. T ...

in ''

Dragonheart ''Dragonheart'' (stylized as ''DragonHeart'') is a 1996 fantasy adventure film directed by Rob Cohen and written by Charles Edward Pogue based on a story created by him and Patrick Read Johnson. The film stars Dennis Quaid, David Thewlis, Pete P ...

'', there is no longer an adequate defense against the Thread falling in the current (third) Pass of the Red Star. The story continues with ''

Dragongirl ''Dragongirl'' is a science fiction novel by Todd McCaffrey in the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' series that his mother Anne McCaffrey initiated in 1967. Published in 2010, it is the sequel to ''Dragonheart'' and third with Todd as sole author.. Ret ...

'' and ''Dragon's Time'': ''Sky Dragons'' carries on where ''Dragon's Time'' left off.

Summary

Using the dragons' ability to travel ''between'' different times, dragonwoman Xhinna, rider of blue Tazith, and her group of blue and green dragonriders go back in time to some uninhabited islands, hoping to return in sufficient numbers to be able to fight Thread effectively. This weyr is unusual because breeding is normally the preserve of the much larger gold and bronze dragons. Xhinna, the first female weyrleader and the first female rider of a blue dragon, must overcome challenges to her leadership. The new weyr must deal with predators in the unfamiliar surroundings.

Reception

Critical reaction to this novel has been mixed, with Jackie Cassada in ''

Library Journal ''Library Journal'' is an American trade publication for librarians. It was founded in 1876 by Melvil Dewey. It reports news about the library world, emphasizing public libraries, and offers feature articles about aspects of professional prac ...

'' praising "memorable characters and a good balance of individual dramas and large-scale action" while Beth Revers in ''Sacramento Book Review'' finds that the action has crowded out character development in comparison to earlier novels.

Notes

References

External links

{{Pern stories 2012 American novels 2012 fantasy novels 2012 science fiction novels Dragonriders of Pern books Collaborative novels Novels by Anne McCaffrey Novels by Todd McCaffrey Del Rey books