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Dragon Harper: 01 (Dragons of Pern)
 
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Dragon Harper: 01 (Dragons of Pern) [Special Limited Edition] (Hardcover)

by Anne McCaffrey (Author), Todd McCaffrey (Author)
2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)

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Product details

  • Hardcover: 320 pages
  • Publisher: Harpers press; limited hardback edition (1 Jan 2008)
  • Language English
  • ISBN-10: 0593055284
  • ISBN-13: 978-0593055281
  • Product Dimensions: 23.4 x 15.6 x 3.2 cm
  • Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.co.uk Sales Rank: 241,462 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

    Popular in this category:

    #75 in  Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Authors, A-Z > M > McCaffrey, Anne

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Product Description

Product Description

Kindan is an apprentice harper at the Harper Hall but he is finding the lessons very difficult and although he has his friends, Nonala, Kelsa and Verilan, he also has enemies, such as the bully Vaxoram. Things begin to improve for Kindan when he beats Vaxoram in a duel and Vaxoram becomes first his servant and then gradually his trusted friend. Then Kindan impresses a fire-lizard and becomes the proud owner of the magnicent Valla. At the hatching, he meets Koriana, daughter of Lord Holder Bemin of Fort Hold. She also impresses and she and Kindan fall in love, but her parents disapprove and she has to return to Fort Hold. Then a plague begins to spread across Pern, killing nearly everyone infected. Kindan and his friends search the harper records to see if they can find a cure, but all they can find is mention of a similar plague over a hundred Turns past. As the plague gets worse Kindan and Vaxoram are sent to Fort Hold to help tend the sick. Kindan will be reunited with Koriana, but will she be free of the plague, and will he be able to find a cure before more people die?


From the Back Cover

All Kindan ever wanted to do was become a Harper, singing, playing, and teaching the ballads of Pern, and he is thrilled when he becomes an Apprentice at the Harper Hall. But then he is offered the chance to attend a hatching and succeeds in Impressing the magnificent bronze fire-lizard, Valla

There he meets Koriana, daughter of Lord Holder Bemin of Fort Hold. She also Impresses, in her case a gold fire-lizard, and there is an instant attraction between her and Kindan. Unfortunately an apprentice Harper is not considered a suitable consort for a Fort Holder's daughter and they are quickly separated, leaving Kindan to wonder about his future - would it be possible for him to have more than just the life of a Harper?

But suddenly everything starts to go wrong for Kindan and he is accused of starting a fire which destroys ancient and extremely precious Records. Kindan is banished to Fort Hold in shame and dishonour. However, his own worries pale into insignificance when a terrible plague starts to spread across Pern, killing nearly everyone infected. As it reaches Fort Hold, Kindan and the rest of Pern's inhabitants know their very survival is in doubt.

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Customer Reviews

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Average Customer Review
2.8 out of 5 stars (5 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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40 of 42 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars Another fine addition to the saga of Pern, 8 Jan 2008
By Mr. J. R. Hurst "jayru" (UK) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
Dragon Harper is the third collaboration between Anne and Todd, and like the previous novels set in the Third Pass era of Pern's vast history. This story is very much a direct sequel to Dragon's Fire (although the epilogue in Dragon's Fire is in fact set several years into Dragon Harper), and tells the story of Kindan's apprentice years at the Harper Hall and of the flu-type plague that wipes out a large portion of the population.
Like Dragon's Kin and Dragon's Fire, Dragon Harper is set before the events of Dragonsblood and references events mentioned in that book. The focus of the story is on Kindan, and Dragon Harper is very much his story from beginning to end. There are small moments when we see events from another characters point of view - but this novel is very much all about his apprenticeship at Harper Hall, and a terrifying situation that he must live through and deal with.
Since the publication of Dragon's Kin, it's been clear that Kindan would be one of the main characters of the Third Pass books being written by Anne and Todd, and this book doesn't disappoint in that respects. However, where the book does disappoint (and it pains me to say this, as I am very much a fan of the recent Pern novels), is that I got the feel that parts of the story had been cut, and trimmed away, leaving the focus on Kindan, and Kindan alone. Todd and Anne have created several interesting characters for the Third Pass stories, and it is a shame that they were pretty much ignored in this novel. I can only hope that they have plans to expand on characters such as C'tov (formally Cristov), J'trel and M'tal in later stories. And of course it would be nice to see more of Kindan as well, as he continues to shape up into one of the more interesting characters. Vaxoram and Conor are two characters who would have benefited from more time within the story as well. Again, I got the feeling that something more was supposed to happen with them.
Those small gripes aside, Dragon Harper is an engaging novel from beginning to end, telling a story that in part we already know (thanks to Dragonsblood). In that respects it makes it easier to read as we already know the fate of some of the stories characters, but what happens to others is moving, and touching. Kindan is shown to be very human, and thus very flawed. He is an imperfect hero, and as such falls from grace (in a big way) because of his feelings for Koriana. That both of them mishandle there situation, and cause Kindan to be dishonoured is very typical for teenagers. Kindan's handling of Vaxoram is nicely done, and the relationship that builds between them is perhaps the most touching of all, because it is Vaxoram who has the most interesting journey.
Whilst many will see similarities between this tale, and Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern, there aren't really that many. The whys of the plague and how it is delt with are unique to this story. Ultimately this is a disaster because all the characters can do is deal with the situation and try and survive it, which sometimes can be the hardest thing of all.
To my way of thinking this is probably the most rewarding story to have been written by "Team McCaffrey" and shows a great deal of insight and depth to there collaborations. This is defiantly a "box of tissues" read.
Once again, another fine addition to the saga of Pern.
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
1.0 out of 5 stars A real disappointment, 30 Jun 2008
By Katy May (West Yorkshire United Kingdom) - See all my reviews
Some years ago I was a real fan of Anne McCaffrey, reading everything she wrote. However, a lack of time and a feeling that the books were losing their edge meant I moved on to other stuff. However, with time on my hands I decided to read Dragonharper and see what had resulted from the collaboration of Anne and her son.

What can I say? I was so disappointed - the characterisation (even allowing for this being a sequel of sorts) was poor, the story line weak and the writing awful - what was the editor thinking to allow this through? I suppose my main gripe is that this story is supposed to be about a virulent plague which spreads quickly and devastates populations, killing those in their prime while a harper apprentice struggles with his work and feelings. Yet there was no feeling of urgency; no suspense or even any consistency in the plot line. The characters were weak and frankly I had no interest in whether they survived or not. The motives of characters were not explored, rather they were stated (for example, the bully becomes a friend when forced to work as the main character's apprentice - but he seems to do this overnight with no qualms or emotional journey) and outcomes were one liners as if the authors couldn't really be bothered to think about the resolution.

I'm really sad that a once engrossing series has come to this, but most of all I'm really cross that I wasted my time in reading this drivel!
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11 of 14 people found the following review helpful:
3.0 out of 5 stars To much of an institution?, 4 Mar 2008
By Gareth Wilson "drosdelnoch2" - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)      
To be honest, fans of Pern will buy this book in droves regardless of what any reviewer says about it. Following on with the successful series that originated in the 1960's this book is a laid back jaunt through an already comfortable world and to be honest I really want a deeper exploration into some of the unexplained myths that are abound. For example, why do the dragons and humans bond etc? I like to know the ins and outs of things but for me this book feels like its following a standard formula and one that many would argue that if it wasn't broken why fix it? For me an author can become complacent and with rising new authors eager to "Ozzie" a dragon to get their books up there, the McCaffreys are going to have to turn out something special for one of their future releases but then again, as I've said fans will buy no matter what.

If you're looking for an easy read that requires no real thinking and will give you the "chicken soup" feeling then this will work for you. However if your palette wants a bit of spice or something new you'll have to look elsewhere.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

2.0 out of 5 stars Sad
I'm sorry to say that Todd's books simply don't hold a candle to Anne McCaffrey's. I've tried, and didn't manage, to finish the two previous books by Todd McCaffrey in the series,... Read more
Published 15 months ago by M.A.

4.0 out of 5 stars I have to say I liked it!
I've never actually written a review on anything before, but I thought that this book deserved it. I was tempted to just buy it, but I decided to borrow it from the library. Read more
Published 16 months ago by K'ra

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