#Harper Hall trilogy

[judgeitbyitscover]

Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey

Cover art by Elizabeth Malczynski

Bantam 1977

For centuries, the world of Pern has faced a destructive force known as Thread. But the number of magnificent dragons who have protected this world and the men and women who ride them are dwindling.

As fewer dragons ride the winds and destruction falls from the sky, Menolly has only one to sing, play, and weave the music that comes to her so easily—she wishes to become a Harper. But despite her great talents, her father believes that a young girl is unworthy of such a respected position and forbids her to pursue her dreams. So Menolly runs away, taking shelter in a cave by the sea. Miraculously, she happens upon nine fire lizards that could possibly save her world...and change her life forever.

[godzilla-reads]

“Fifteen-year-old Menolly allies with magnificent dragons in the first book in the Harper Hall trilogy, set within science fiction legend Anne McCaffrey’s beloved and bestselling Dragonriders of Pern series.”

—Dragonsong by Anne McCaffrey

[haaaaaaaaaaaave-you-met-ted]

Dragonsinger Cover Art by Eric Deschamps

[ilwinsgarden]

And yesterday I finished drawing of Menolly and her nine fire-lizards. Or at least I didn't think out anything I could do to make (especially background) look better so I guess I just claim it finished. There's lots of things not right, like with her anatomy, shading (as usual) and mentioned background but I like the feel the drawing gives me, it's what I hoped for so I'm very happy with the result anyway. I'd like to draw more fanart for this book series (Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey), though not sure how much will I actually manage, since unlike other stories and books I don't have a list of scenes and stuff from these books that I'd like to draw. We'll see...

[doberbutts]

So, I know you're a bit fan of fantasy novels, are they're any you're recommend that have a similar vibe as Tamora Pierce's Tortall books?

oof similar? Hard to say honestly, I feel like most good authors within the genre have their own pronounced and distinct style so they're not really "similar" to each other. Sorry that's probably a really pretentious answer but it's the one I've got lol.

You could try Pierce's Emelan series. They are (obviously) quite similar to her Tortall books but have their own style that I also really enjoy.

Something that drew me to Pierce was that she made the effort to write almost exclusively female protagonists in an age where the vast majority of fantasy was all male all the time with women regulated to mostly being healers or prizes won. If they were mentioned at all. This was pretty uncommon when her books first started coming out so if you're looking for books with a similar target demographic, most of the writing is going to feel very different because it'll be way more modern authors. On the other hand if the true writing style is what you're interested in, you're going to find a solid lack of female protags. So it depends what you want out of the book experience.

Books/series I read at the same age, though idk if I would really consider them "similar": Elfquest (comics), Inkheart, The Divide, Artemis Fowl, The Edge Chronicles, Pellinor, specifically the Dragon Singer trilogy from Dragon Riders of Pern, The Sight/Fell, Through Wolf's Eyes (I am currently on a very slow re-read of this series!), Animorphs, and of course Lord of the Rings. I think of all of those, Through Wolf's Eyes and Pellinor would probably be the most similar. I thought the Harper Hall books could also be mentioned HOWEVER in order to actually understand what's going on you really need to read more Pern books and the similarities with Pierce stop once we navigate away from the specifically female main characters.

[fangirlghost-19]

a reference for a future personal library I will most definitely have when I’m older cause not having one is not an option

books I already have (the ones I want in my collection - not including any random ones):

chain of gold

chain of iron

chain of thorns

secrets of blackthorn hall

shadow and bone

six of crows

crooked kingdom

rule of wolves

king of scars

a curse for true love

the little prince

list of book I need to read (mostly from booktube/tumblr):

raven curse thingy-ma-bob

aru shah i think it’s called?

the 5 books before a curse for true love

percy jackson series (cause I can’t escape the fandom)

good omens

the girl from everywhere

lockwood and co

life of pi

powerless by lauren roberts

rain of shadows and endings by melissa k roehrich

manacled by senlinyu

the wolf and the witch by charissa weaks

kenna's dragon by leigh miller

between life and death by jaclyn kot

chasing love by kat t masen

icebreaker by hannah grace

six scorched roses (part of vampires) by carissa broadbent

the last storm by jd linton

what lies beyond the veil by harper woods

love on the brain by ali hazelwood

the spanish love deception by elena aramas

mixed signals by bk borison

it happened one summer by tessa bailey

haunting adeline

shatter me series

where we left off by sapphire hale

lamb to the slaughter by roald dahl

a court of thorns and roses

hunted by the sky

cruel prince

list of books I want to buy (as part of my collection):

the entire tsc

queen of hearts trilogy

the entire grishaverse

a fresh copy of an inspector calls

a fresh copy of pride and prejudice

this post is purely a reminder for me so feel free to ignore <3

(I will also constantly add to this)

incase anyone was curious to see what my future library would look like then here's my mood board so far:

sort of like an old palace library (eg the beauty and the beast library) kinda vibe yk?

(i would have more but cant add any more)

[aotopmha]

Once in a while I remember The Dragonriders of Pern series and I am reminded of how it was probably one of my first super strong fandoms and how much I adore that world.

I read the original trilogy and Harper Hall trilogy in particular to shreds.

But I adore its sci-fi elements that somehow don't detract from its fantasy aesthetic. How it blends both is absolutely fantastic in my eyes.

The first book is from 1967, so it is super dated at points, but what's good is like super classic fantasy/sci-fi for me.

[magpiefngrl]

2023 Book Review

Photo Credit (original): Ed Robertson

I read 95 books this year. Here's some of what I enjoyed and what I didn't, in genre or arbitrary categories:

Fave SFF books

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrell (Susanna Clarke)

Spinning Silver (Naomi Novik)

All Systems Red (Martha Wells)

The Library at Mount Char (Scott Hawkins)

Mammoths at the gates (Nghi Vo)

Gideon the Ninth (Tamsyn Muir)

Amberlough (Lara Elena Donnelly)

Fab m/m romances

Seven Summer Nights (Harper Fox)

The Lodestar of Ys (Amy Rae Durreson)

The Scottish Boy (Alex de Campi)

Magician (KL Noone)

Heated Rivalry (Rachel Reid)

Also Role Model and The Long Game (Rachel Reid)

The Secret Lives of Country Gentlemen (KJ Charles)

The older ones

(recently published books can feel very samey after a while. The irony of these being old books but feeling like a breath of fresh air)

Tam Lin (Pamela Dean) (1991)

Swordspoint (Ellen Kushner) (1987)

Wise Children (Angela Carter) (1991)

Chronicle of a Death Foretold (Gabriel Garcia Marquez) (1981)

(more books under the cut)

Best atmosphere

The Likeness (Tana French)

The fun rereads

Scum Villain's Self-Saving System (MXTX_

Grandmaster of Demonic Cultivation (MXTX)

The King of Attolia (Megan Whalen Turner)

Empress of Salt and Fortune (Nghi Vo)

The Ruin of a Rake (Cat Sebastian)

The unexpected delight

(it's a biography, and I never anticipated feeling so engrossed in one of them)

The invention of Angela Carter (Edmund Gordon)

The one that hurts so good

Checkmate (Dorothy Dunnett)

Didn't quite love the books but adored the characters

The Dreamer Trilogy by Maggie Stiefvater (my typical experience of her stories)

The meh

Bardugo's Nikolai duology

Schwab's Darker Shades of Magic

The dreadful and my only DNF

A Taste of Gold and Iron (Alexandra Rowland)

Most bitterly disappointing

The third installment of Hall's billionaire series How to Belong with a Billionaire.

Biggest book hangover

Seven Summer Nights and Heated Rivalry

Best book boyfriend

ILYA ROZANOV

Most bonkers book

The Library at Mount Char (Scott Hawkins)

The "not sure I liked it but it'll definitely stay with me"

Some Desperate Glory (Emily Tesh)

The writing craft book that actually offered a new insight

The Heroine's Journey (Gail Carriger)

Overall, a decent year. My goal of completing series I'd started in the past and hadn't finished meant I subjected myself to some less enjoyable books, but I also read some excellent romances and fantasy novels, and I really enjoyed reading some older books, a practice I plan to continue.

past years

2015 2016 2019 first half of 2020 top 5 books of 2020 2021 2022

[zorasapphires]

it would be so great for someone who has an adoration of the pern series to rewrite or do a retelling of them from a modern feminist lens. I love this series so much, the rich lore and just the creation of so many dragon tropes...they're a great piece of literary history. but they definitely suffer a lot from misogyny - certainly par for the time it was written in (60s and 70s for the original 2 trilogies) but none the less still problematic reads. it simultaneously breaks misogynistic conventions of old fantasy/sci fi while still upholding some bad narratives. all the same...I love them and I think the Harper hall trilogy would have absolutely changed the trajectory of who I am if I'd read them as a kid

[judgeitbyitscover]

Dragondrums by Anne McCaffrey

Cover art by Steve Weston

Corgi 1981

As Menolly uncovers magic and intrigue, mischievous Piemur discovers the rhythm of adventure in the final book in the Harper Hall trilogy, set within science fiction legend Anne McCaffrey’s beloved and bestselling Dragonriders of Pern series.

Mischievous Piemur is used to getting away with a lot. He has one of the most impressive voices at Harper Hall and, in the world of Pern, there are few things more important than the ability to sing and write songs. But when his voice begins to change, Piemur loses all confidence and questions everything he thought he knew about himself.

No longer capable of singing, Piemur is sent on various errands by Masterharper Robinton, including the task of learning the complicated beats of the messenger drums. Piemur has no clue of the grand adventures that await him, and he’ll need to find the courage within himself to survive.

[godzilla-reads]

Trying to decided on a THIRD dragon book to read and I’m leaning heavily towards DRAGONSINGER by Anne McCaffrey.

[haaaaaaaaaaaave-you-met-ted]

DragonDrums Cover Art by Eric Deschamps

[book--brackets]

I'd like to submit The Harper Hall of Pern trilogy by Ann McCaffrey and Spellfall by Katherine Roberts. Thanks!

Added both, and Spellfall is under the series name, Earthaven

[emblazonet]

Dragondrums

I don't really know how this is supposed to be the third in a trilogy - I understand it was marketed as the Harper Hall trilogy, but Dragonsong and Dragonsinger are a clearly linked duology that might as well be one book, and then Dragondrums is book with a different protagonist that nudges itself back into the political complexities of Pern.

I did really enjoy it, for all it was structurally all over the place. It started more like a YA coming of age like Menolly's story, but it didn't end that way.

I was pretty neutral on Piemur overall, but I did enjoy his adventures. Some of the bullying scenarios reminded me of Kel's struggles in the Protector of the Small quartet by Tamora Pierce. I'm glad that part didn't get dragged out too long, though... as I was saying in my Dragonsinger review, I'm just not super interested in school stories at this point.

I think I expected Piemur to do more drumming overall, but the second half of the book was more adventure shenanigans. They were certainly amusing and I enjoyed myself. But as the focus and POV went to adults, I definitely found myself caring a lot less about Piemur and his survival story, and a lot more about what the adults were getting up to.

Overall, these three books were easy, enjoyable reads with a lot to recommend them and nothing I can complain too much about. I've really enjoyed spending time with characters who are not dragonriders, it rounds out Pern. Although, I will say, I am interested in getting back to dragons too! But fire lizards are just as wonderful.

8/10

[starlit-hopes-and-dreams]

10. The worst book you have ever read?

11. The best book you have ever read?

16. The book that made you fall in love with reading?

-verkja

(Edited for your reading comfort!)

@verkja, I also love you for the editing :D Thanks for the ask! From this ask game.

10. The worst book you have ever read?

Ooooh boy. I read a truly awful dark romance that was circulating booktok (yeah, yeah, i deserved it lol) called Den of Vipers by K.A. Knight. I regret reading the whole thing, I really do.

But what I regret even more was reading FIVE books in a series I hated because I owned them all in pb and I started it and by god I was going to finish it. That was The Monarchies of God series by Paul Kearney. It might not even have been bad, but I was bored out of my mind, so might as well have been. 😅

11. The best book you have ever read?

Fuck this question² lol

Okay, going with some of the best written (in my poor, i haven't even read some of these in a while, opinion lol)

Also, you get series, and multiple ones at that. Sue me :p

The Inheritance Trilogy by N.K. Jemison

Truly a brilliant writer, I have no trouble saying she's a masterclass author.

The Sevenwaters Trilogy by Juliet Marillier

Her writing is just so beautiful, and these books are heartbreaking.

Kushiel's Dart (and all the subsequent books) by Jacqueline Carey

Political intrigue out the wazoo. Great books.

The Stormlight Archive by Brandon Sanderson

Do I even need to say anything? This man comes up with the most brilliant, inventive, and stunning magic, not to mention his worlds, and the interconnected universe, and... just wow.

16. The book that made you fall in love with reading?

I might be too old for this question; not sure I remember that far back lol. I was getting in trouble in the first grade for reading too much.

I had a subscription to the Babysitter's club books. There was the Boxcar Children as well. And Animorphs. But I'm sure there was something even earlier than that. Surely I didn't teethe on chapter books?? 😅

But Anne McCaffrey hooked me on fantasy with the Harper Hall Trilogy in her Dragonrider's of Pern series. Which is funny considering she is mostly on the sci-fi end of the range, and I generally won't touch sci-fi lol.