Lyon's Pride (Rowan , Bk. 4) [Hardcover]

Anne McCaffrey (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: February 16, 1994

Rowan, her daughter and son-in-law, Damia and Afra, and their children must use their extraordinary telepathic abilities to battle the alien Hivers in outer space.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

In this sequel to Damia's Children , the psionically Talented children of Damia Gwyn-Raven and Afra Lyon are pushed closer to the forefront of the struggle between the human Nine Star League and their alien Mrdini allies against the blind expansionism of the insect-like Hive culture that threatens both their civilizations. Rojer, like his siblings a T-1 at the most powerful level of Talent, is assigned to provide communication and transport for a squadron following a Hiver vessel. When he refuses a command by the Mrdini Captain Prtglm to launch missiles psionically against an occupied Hiver planet, he barely escapes while Prtglm kills his Mrdni companions, complicating an already delicate situation. A debate sharpens within the human community and with the Mrdini over the fate of the Hive colonies, with some humans and most of the Mrdinis holding out for complete destruction. Another large faction of humanity, which has eschewed war for generations, seeks a less bloodthirsty solution, such as isolation and containment. While McCaffrey's protagonists remain as warm and appealing as ever, her plotting here lacks vigor. Since the scene has been set for further volumes, a more rapid resolution to the Hive dilemma and the introduction of a new challenge might be in order. Science Fiction Book Club main selection; Doubleday Book Club alternate.
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

From School Library Journal

YA-This fourth book in the Raven-Lyon family saga continues the story of Damia's Children (Ace, 1993), the human-Mrdini Alliance, and their ongoing battle against the insectlike Hive creatures. McCaffrey has several story lines going at once. The human-Mrdini ships want to destroy several Hive vessels that escape from imprisonment because when the Hive colonize a planet they eliminate all sentient life. There is conflict over what to do with the captive Hive queen-some want to study her, learn more about her, and hope for peaceful co-existence, while another segment of the alliance thinks she should be killed outright. While the book is readable and well written and the characters are believable, the story is not as tight or as strong as The Rowan (1991) and Damia (1993, both Ace). Nevertheless, libraries that own the previous titles will want to purchase this one.
John Lawson, Fairfax County Public Library, VA
Copyright 1994 Reed Business Information, Inc.

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 272 pages
• Publisher: Putnam Adult; 1st edition (February 16, 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0399139079
• ISBN-13: 978-0399139079
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.3 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.9 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (19 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #238,053 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Anne McCaffrey, the Hugo Award-winning author of the bestselling Dragonriders of Pern® novels, is one of science fiction's most popular authors. With Elizabeth Ann Scarborough she co-authored Changelings and Maelstrom, Books One and Two of The Twins of Petaybee. McCaffrey lives in a house of her own design, Dragonhold-Underhill, in County Wicklow, Ireland.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Average compared to others in this series, but worth reading, September 13, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Lyon's Pride (Mass Market Paperback)

Lyon's Pride was a Pyrrhic Victory: it didn't lack the flair and prestige of Anne McCaffrey that made the Rowan Series famous, but the storyline made too little of a progress with this book.

The previous book in the series, Damia's Children, was a shining star in all of McCaffrey's books, but it lacked one thing: a good ending. Upon the last word of the last page several tales drop away, leaving the reader on multiple cliffhangers and wondering what happens next. Lyon's Pride sews all of those cliffhangers together seamlessly, so perfectly that the two were probably written as one. Lyon's Pride is filled with the realism and unique storyline of the Rowan Series. Its protagonists meet tragedy, danger, exhilaration and even romance head-on, making the book hard to put down.

No book is without its share of flaws, and Lyon's Pride unfortunately has two big ones. The first is that the storyline has made very little progress. Holes in the patchwork before were sewed up here, and even questions all the way from the first book in the series are answered, like just what happened to the baby Cera Gwyn-Raven after her life and mentality were laid on the line. But in sewing up the holes to some of the previous problems Anne also ended some of the stories. Readers expecting the captured queen Hiver to do something in this book will be disappointed, especially since that was one of the tallest pinnacles of the previous book.

And the last flaw? The book ends with another not-so-good ending, making a sequel necessary. The longest running plot here, the dilemna of coping with an alien species bent on purging the galaxy of all life forms, is unfinished in Lyon's Pride. You'll want to read this book to have your questions about Damia's Children answered, but not too much happens here.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Great book!, July 8, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Lyon's Pride (Mass Market Paperback)

Lyon's Pride is great, I've read P.E.R.N. and Acorna, but my favorite of McCaffrey's seris' is the Rowan seris. It is interesting to see a family, born from a orphan, grow to be the largest influence around. THe children face hardships that can occur, and they deal with them. It's a realistic book/seris other than the telempathic-kenetic abilities. I loved Rowan and I have enjoyed the seris through Lyon's Pride. Its is wonderful. I suject anyone read it.

3 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Lyons too Proud......, December 2, 2003

By 

Serene (Marina, CA, United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Lyon's Pride (Mass Market Paperback)

I listened to the audio version of Lyon's Pride, and enjoyed it, with a few caveats. One: there was a distinct lack of plot, and two: very little actually happened. Sure, we got a peek into the perfect world of Damia and her Children, but the plot seemed to meander...And the hive 'menace' was not really much of a menace at all.

Pet peeves: Personally, I found the parents (and grandparents) meddling and matchmaking to be annoying. I also thought the gifts of the t-1's and how they manipulated the emotions of the lesser talented to be manipulative, and downright scary. Who says the t-1's have a right to mess with people's emotions? It was quite intrusive of Zara, to mess with the mind of Kincaid while he was sleeping, even if her intentions were good. Such powers can quickly become abusive and Damia's children seem to have no boundaries, despite their motivations.

Also, I liked the character of Kincaid, but nothing was really resolved with him. We never really found out the details about what happened to him on the deep space mission, and the character seems to be dropped halfway through the book. Other romances seemed flat to me. Roger's romance with his cousin Asia was tepid. Asia was just too timid, and Roger too self confidant. Plus there was the cousin thing...Errr, sorry, Anne, that didn't work for me.

Overall, despite these peeves, I liked Lyon's pride. It just didn't go anywhere; and the assumptions and liberties the 'talented' made towards those with lesser gifts were supercilious and grating.