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Sky Dragons  By  cover art

Sky Dragons

By: Anne McCaffrey, Todd McCaffrey
Narrated by: Emily Durante
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Publisher's summary

From the New York Times best-selling mother-and-son team of Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey comes the final installment in the riveting Pern saga that began with Todd’s solo novel, Dragonsblood. Now, with all of Pern imperiled by the aftereffects of a plague that killed scores of dragons and left the planet helpless against the fall of deadly Thread, the only hope for the future lies in the past.

There, on an unexplored island, a group of dragonriders led by Xhinna, a brave young woman who rides the blue dragon Tazith, must battle lethal Merows and voracious tunnel-snakes to build a safe home for themselves and the dragons, whose offspring will one day—if they survive—replenish Pern’s decimated dragon population. But as the first female rider of a blue dragon, and the first female Weyrleader in the history of Pern, Xhinna faces an uphill battle in winning the respect and loyalty of her peers... especially after an unforeseen tragedy leaves the struggling colony reeling from a shattering loss.

Amid the grieving, one girl, Jirana, blessed—or cursed—with the ability to foresee potential futures, will help Xhinna find a way forward. The answer lies in time... or, rather, in timing it: the awesome ability of the dragons to travel through time itself. But that power comes with risks, and by venturing further into the past, Xhinna may be jeopardizing the very future she has sworn to save.

©2012 Anne McCaffrey (P)2012 Brilliance Audio, Inc.

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What listeners say about Sky Dragons

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Not what I expected!!

This book wasn’t for you, but who do you think might enjoy it more?

I don't think anyone who has ever read Anne McCaffrey's books about Dragon Riders would ever enjoy this book. I can't think of anyone I know who would enjoy this book.

What was most disappointing about Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey ’s story?

The most disappointing thing about this book is that it was not about dragon riding or thread or any of the things these books are supposed to be about. It was about a lesbian relationship, envy, and jealously. If I want to listen to a book about these things then I will pick one out. I could not even finish this book because it was so bogged down in other factors.

Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Emily Durante?

Kate Reading

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Disappointment that this book was not about what I thought it would be and anger because it did not tell you what the book was really like.

Any additional comments?

I don't usually pay attention to reviews when I pick out a book but in this case I was really wrong not to. I will read every review from now on unless I know the author and am familiar with the writings.

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11 people found this helpful

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A very epic story

This was the first of the mother-son McCaffrey collaborations I have read or listened to, and it surpassed my expectations. I will admit, I had my heartstrings tugged more than once by the heroics present in the story.
Also, for any McCaffrey fan who likes a bit more female presence among the riders, this story takes the cake. The narrator was excellent, and really brought the story to life. There is also a touching tribute by Todd McCaffrey to his late mother in the beginning. Someday, I will share her legacy with my own children. Truly an amazingly inspiring woman.

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8 people found this helpful

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Absolute WORST Book in the Entire Series!

The utter lack of an intriguing plot line, combined with an overwhelminging gay agenda, was a VERY dissappointing end for this series. Don't waste your time, or your money on this book.

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5 people found this helpful

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Average level story somewhat disappointing

Is there anything you would change about this book?

Theme is very dark and desperate; supposed to be a mystery why no help returns to help those left behind, but instead comes across as disorganized plot writing with very little believable plot twists.

What was the most interesting aspect of this story? The least interesting?

The mix of dragons and riders left behind is the most interesting aspect: leading to the one in charge being a blue ridden by a very inexperienced woman. It is never clear who all is available to 'take over' and the plot twists to allow the blue rider as the most experienced rider to take charge are confusing and overblown. The reasons for her leading the dragons could have been much better engineered. And that is what is least interesting, the plot twists piling one over the other in a "bad day" cascade. Better explanations were needed or better plot ideas.

What does Emily Durante bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

First time I heard this narrator. I was not real impressed by her skill, but I do like her voice. I spent so much time relistening to plot twists trying to understand the progression of events that the narrator got lost in my attention.

Could you see Sky Dragons being made into a movie or a TV series? Who should the stars be?

No way. Probably the poorest of all the dragonrider plots and stories. Do not use this one as an introduction of moviegoers to the Dragonrider/Pern world. The movie would flop.

Any additional comments?

I was patently disappointed in this book. I figured it being the last book Anne had input in would make it quite good, as her input usually does for Todd's work; but I was wrong. I usually like Todd's writing; but he writes more about plot twists, happenings and technical outcomes. Anne also wrote about the feelings of the characters, made them more human than Todd does. His books are OK, but not superlative like Anne's were.

I will continue reading Dragonrider books by Todd. He did real good on the ones about Fiona and Kindan, etc. This book was an unusual disappointment from him.

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3 people found this helpful

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Ugh

I could go in depth, but in short, this whole section of the Pern series was a terrible waste of my audible credits (and I grew up reading the Pern books)

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Sky Dragons: Dragonriders of Pern

I have loved the dragons and their riders from the very first book. This latest book does not disappoint.

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2 people found this helpful

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    4 out of 5 stars
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A Tragic Loss

Would you listen to Sky Dragons again? Why?

By listening to this audio book, I have learned that the woman who inspired me to learn to read (in grade 8) has passed away. I will miss her worlds greatly, but that said, her son Todd has also come into his own as a writer and at least Pern will not be lost forever. I do find Todd a much darker writer. That is not necessarily a bad thing, but sometimes I yearn for the lighter touch of his mother. This book is a series of books I have been enjoying and I found this one quite interesting indeed. Sky Weir! I like it :-) There is a lot of foreshadowing for subsequent books which i can look forward to. The lenth of the book is pleasant and i hope you take the time to listen to this. I would very much help if you listen/read the other books in this series before listening to this one.

Sincerely,

CJ

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sorry could not finish

and the story continued to be lackluster, so much so I had to stop should have left it at Dragons blood but I tried to push through but finally said enough. I could not finish this one. I just don't care, about the story, the characters, and all the plot holes and Ex machina.

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1 person found this helpful

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Loved it

A a a a a a a a a a awesome story . Different from all the other books

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Decent Narrator, horrible book...

Would you try another book from Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey and/or Emily Durante?

I like Emily Durante, she is a competent and entertaining narrator given solid material. Unfortunately this was not solid material. I am done with Todd McCaffrey and grieve at not only the passing of Anne, but of the exceptional stories that this series was justifiably famous and beloved for.

What was most disappointing about Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey ’s story?

I began listening to this book and got about an hour into it before I had to stop. I listened to the whole Harper Hall of Pern trilogy over the last week to scrub it from my mind and reacquaint myself with Anne's earlier genius. I picked this book back up and made it through only another 30 minutes today, and I am done. Anne was never shy about sexuality in the original series, but her collaborations with Todd and his solo efforts read like GLAAD recruiting propaganda. Additionally, the strong female characters of the original stories (Lessa, Menolly, Manora, Silvina, etc.) have been replaced with LGBT caricatures who unintentionally parody earlier strengths, and emasculate every male they come into contact with...

No more please...

What did you like about the performance? What did you dislike?

Emily is a strong performer, but the material renders her performance shallow and cloying...

What reaction did this book spark in you? Anger, sadness, disappointment?

Sadness for the state of the series now that the reins have been passed to Todd. Disappointment that he has caved to politically correct agendas, or that he has pushed his own agenda into this series...

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