Fans of Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonriders of Pern series will be thrilled to see a new offering in the fantasy/dragon books. Anne’s daughter Gigi does a solid job keeping the spirit of the wears, holds and craft halls alive and after a slow start, I enjoyed Piemur’s story of searching for his place in either Harper Hall or on the Southern Continent. It was great to read more about popular characters Robinson, Jaxom, Lessa, Menolly, and more. Unfortunately, without reading at least a few of Anne’s Pern books, it is unlikely that new readers will really understand the importance of impressing a dragon or fighting Thread. And Gigi’s book does not have the time to explain the unique social structure in a wear; she can only brush the edges of a queen rising to mate and the connection of that event to the establishment of weyrleader, or fully convey the depth of the relationship between dragon or rider. It is my hope that this book intrigues a new generation of Pern readers and that they go back and further their appreciation of a great fantasy series. And hopefully they start with Dragonflight, Dragonquest and The White Dragon. Recommended for 7th grade and up. Content note: This book is free of language and sexual content, however, in Anne’s Pern, marriage is non-existent even though there are partnerships and the green Dragonriders are homosexual. No explicit sex in any book that I can remember...and I read them all with my personal children!

Thank you to NetGalley and Random House Publishing Group - Ballantine - Del Rey for a digital galley of this novel.

I am proof that it can be done...….I have never read any of the Dragonriders of Pern novels, started with this book written by Anne McCaffrey's daughter Gigi and survived. Not just survived, but actually thrived and understood what was happening. If you are like me, in the evidently small group of fantasy novel readers who have never dipped their toe into a Pern book, take heart and start reading this one. Yes, there is a huge amount of backstory material but I prefer to look on that as an opportunity to read more about this interesting world instead of treating it as an impediment to enjoying this specific book.

I cannot compare the writing skills or fantasy world development skills of Gigi McCaffrey to Anne McCaffrey so I will dispense with that problem altogether. I definitely enjoyed the story of Piemur as he tries to find his place in this society since his voice has broken leaving him without the wonderful singing talent he had. Now Piemur is seeking his place by filling in time exploring and mapping the lands of Southern Weyr. At seventeen Turns and unable to continue his apprenticeship as a Harper he has no idea in what direction his future may go. This book has a Prologue which effectively encapsulates the main points of the world of Pern along with valuable information about the connections between dragons and humans as well as Thread and what dangers it poses. This was a very helpful section.

I enjoyed this book quite a lot. I would have liked to read more about the interactions between dragonriders and their dragons but with a main character not a dragonrider himself, that wasn't a focus of this book. I would quite like to read another book in this series written by Gigi McCaffrey because she has heightened my interest in the whole Pern subject.

Another story set in the Pern world. This was an enjoyable read and look forward to more. We revisit Piemur during his time with the Oldtimers and get further background on the stolen queen's egg.

I received an eARC from the publisher via NetGalley for an honest review. - Liked the story and hope we get more Pern books.

This was a wonderful addition to the Pern canon. I admit that part of it is pure nostalgia because no one can write Pern as well as Lady Anne herself, not even her daughter. The Ninth Pass is my favorite, mostly because that is what Lady Anne wrote mostly, and what she wrote first, and what most readers were introduced to when first encountering Pern. It’s the “right” time to be in. It felt good to come home to the Ninth Pass.

I also loved seeing Piemur grow from a lost, and let’s face it, kind of whiny kid to a young man full of purpose and drive. There was a lot to be said of his path in this story. It is not just a traditional bildungsroman, which would have been boring, indeed. He learned to lean on his friends and family, to trust himself, and when in doubt, always listen to your mother. I loved the bits of wisdom Ama doled out – it felt like those might have been things Lady Anne said to Ms Gigi and Todd as they grew up. It was like a little bit of Anne coming back to talk to her readers, and whether it is true or not, it was delightful.

The book played on themes of honor and trust throughout, which is directly related to the titular dragon’s code. The code that has to be upheld for Pern’s way of life to work has been violated on both sides – Oldtimer and modern riders alike have acted wrongly. The trust the crafters and holders place in the dragons has been broken. The honor of the dragonfolk has been bent, if not broken as well, and all must learn to work together to repair the code.

At first, there was a little too much telling and not showing, especially for readers already intimately familiar with Pern. It took a little while, but Ms. Gigi did eventually hit her stride and the pacing got much better. Some things are a little inaccurate based on her mother’s previous books. For example, Silvina is the Harper Hall’s headwoman, not Fort’s. The Hall and Fort are separate, though adjacent, so each would have their own headwoman. Totally minor, though, and not anything that took away from the overall story.

Overall, I HIGHLY recommend this book – I already preordered the hardcopy for my own collection – and was absolutely beside myself to see a new Pern book on the market. I devoutly hope there will be more Pern books, and soon, from Ms Gigi. I was fine when Todd was writing Pern books, because any Pern book is better than none. But I didn’t care for his nearly as well as I did for this one. I thought Ms Gigi’s was better written, and I admit that I prefer those that are set in the Ninth Pass.

Dear Ms Gigi – PLEASE write more Pern books! I loved this and miss the people of the Ninth Pass terribly. They are real people, you know, and we need to visit our friends. I can’t wait to see what Piemur’s new career has in store for him! Love, Me.

Yay! So glad that the family of this great author has decided to add to this wonderful fictional world, not only that but the story really was good to!!!!

I received this book from Netgalley in return for an honest review. Gigi McCaffrey has done a wonderful job in returning us to Pern and the land of dragons and Thread and holders and craftsmen She has written a book that fits perfectly with those of her late mother, Anne McCaffrey. This is the tale of Piemur, the former child singing prodigy, and his transition to adulthood. When Piemur's voice broke as he entered puberty, he thought his world ended and he had no value. Since then, he's been doing mapping of the Southern Continent, along with some spying for the Master Harper, Robinton. The Oldtimers, brought forward 400 years (or Turns) to fight the dreaded Threadfall, are unhappy and out of synch with the modern day. This precipitates a series of events that almost culminate in tragedy. Piemur, with the help of mentors and friends like Sebell and Menolly and N'ton, uncovers plots against the fabric that holds Pern's society together and manage to resolve them. I don't want to give away any spoilers so that's all I'll write about the plot. The book is well-written and great for those who read the original series. I think you can read this book as a stand-alone as Ms. McCaffrey does provide the historical context and background. Since I've read all the books, this is like returning to an old friend that I've not met in a long time. I hope she writes more about Pern. I think her Mum would be proud of this addition.

The world of Pern has found a new voice with Gigi McCaffrey telling the tale of Piemur and the challenges faced in this time of Thread. As a first novel, this is a commendable effort though not all may agree. Long time readers of this series will either love and appreciate it or rush off and grumble with the Oldtimers about how similar yet wrong everything is. It is important to remember that while this is a McCaffrey writing, these aren't the words by the Grandmaster herself. Yes, they are set in her world she created. Yes, they are written by her daughter. No, they will not (and I believe should not) be exactly the Pern we knew as by the pen of Anne McCaffrey. This is the same world, with a new voice to tell its tales. I know I enjoyed this first story and I look forward to reading more of Gigi's writing and seeing Pern continue to grow and evolve.

This was the very essence of a McCaffrey Pern book. It had great storytelling in it, while still holding true to the world of Pern. I never felt that Gigi McCaffrey lost her voice during the novel, but merged it seamlessly with that of Ann McCaffrey.. I was thoroughly thrilled by this book, I enjoyed the main characters journey of self discovery and learning that life is full of difficult decisions but also of great joy. It was a very fast paced read, that left me turning the pages as fast as I could.
I would say one downside was if you did not pay special attention some chapters were very confusing on what time period or area the characters were based.

Dragon's Code is a delightful romp through one of the most magnificent worlds in literature. I loved connecting with Piemur again and watching him grow from an unsure boy into a confident man. Gigi has honored her mother with this foray into Pern.

While it's always exciting to get more Pern, and I was very interested to see Gigi McCaffrey's take on her mother's universe, I was ultimately disappointed with this novel. I did enjoy the writing, and found it much more approachable than Todd McCaffrey's Pern novels, but the story just didn't Go anywhere. Hopefully Ms. McCaffrey's (the younger) will branch out a bit more from the established story line in her next effort.

Can Piemur prevent a war that pits dragonrider against dragonrider?

What an awesome addition to the world of Pern! Gigi McCaffrey has done her mother proud! Menolly, Piemur, and Jaxom have been my favorite characters in all the Pern books. How wonderful to have a new Pern story starring Piemur with parts for our other favorite characters, although a few, such as Lessa and F’lar, are almost cameos. Dragon’s Code takes up where Piemur’s changing voice left off. He’s now a wandering journeyman mapping the southern continent and spying on the Oldtimers exiled there for Masterharper Robinton.

As usual, although more serious and mature than in the previous books he shares with Menolly, Piemur is in the thick of things. He manages to insert himself where he can hear the plotting of disgruntled Southern dragonriders as they plot a way to get themselves out of a dead-end exile, where their female dragons are too old to fly to mate and they and their dragons are ill from an unknown lung disease. They are depressed, angry, and ready for rebellion, their days of heroically traveling through four hundred years to save Pern a distant regret. They’re ready to do whatever it takes to be in power again, even if it means betraying other dragonriders. It will take all Piemur’s wit to save them, Sebell, and himself from the dangers and enemy plans afoot.

This books stands alone, even though incidents in the story originally occurred in other Pern books and this story explains what was happening behind the scenes that created those incidents, who the perpetrators were, and how everything turned out in the context of Pern as a whole, since the other books were limited by their POV.

If you love dragons, fantasy, or Anne McCaffrey’s Pern, you will love Dragon’s Code. Highly recommended.

I received this book as an Advanced Reader Copy (ARC) through NetGalley. My opinions are my own.

I am sympathetic towards taking up the mantle of a science fiction great, up to an extent. The legacy Anne McCaffrey left behind is immense- one of the first women to write science fiction, she created a rich world that readers have returned to again and again. On a purely personal note, I have many fond memories of reading the books as I went from middle school to high school and then beyond, up until McCaffrey’s death. There are so many tales that could still be told using that framework already established, and unfortunately, Anne McCaffrey’s daughter Gigi fails to live up to that sense of keen teenage nostalgia I hold.

The most glaring issue was one of canon. I believe Gigi wanted to make her mother’s world her own, which is fair. Again, big shoes to fill etc etc. Unfortunately, in doing so, she completely neglects the established canon, something that established fans of the series aren’t going to be happy with. It’s not little changes either- it’s adding extra limbs to horses, it’s changing the titles that are used in dozens of books before. And it’s taking beloved characters and rendering them flat and two-dimensional, so unlike her mother’s creations.

It’s a shame, because the story Gigi wants to tell is one that has a great deal of potential. The Oldtimers have leapt forward from the past to rescue the world of Pern, only to find themselves lacking as strong of a purpose as they thought they would hold. Once regarded as the rescuers, they and their dragons are now fading into a kind of twilight obscurity and they aren’t content to live out their lives that way. Were the story to create entirely new characters, I may have been on board, despite Gigi McCaffrey’s clumsy prose and tendency to tell, and not show details in long-winded paragraphs that stretch on for what seems like pages and pages.

In taking Robinton and Piemur as significant characters, she’s taking perhaps two of the most beloved characters in the series and not doing them any sense of justice. As I said above, they’re flat, lacking everything that made them so memorable before. It almost feels disrespectful to Anne’s memory.

That being said, I’m willing to read another book by Gigi if she’s willing to write her own characters and if the editors are willing to make her stick to the canon. There’s potential there, but extracting the full degree of it may be a difficult process. Time will tell, and I can only hope that Pern still has some tales left in it.

Thank you to NetGalley and to RandomHouse for giving me a copy in exchange for an honest review.