. .THE DRAGONS: How they developed from little fire-lizards into the huge telepathic creatures that carry human riders and fight ThreadTHE PEOPLE: How they live, the clothes they wear, the food they eatTHE PLACES: What to see and do in individual Holds and WeyrsTHREAD: Its appearance and behavior, the threat it poses, and ways to combat itUPDATED TO INCLUDE THE RENEGADES OF PERN, ALL THE WEYRS OF PERN, THE CHRONICLES OF PERN: FIRST FALL, AND THE DOLPHINS OF PERN

    But those kings, queens, and heroes are long gone, and there is nothing enchanted about the antique sword that hangs above Paxon’s fireplace. Running his family’s modest shipping business, Paxon leads a quiet life—until extraordinary circumstances overturn his simple world . . . and rewrite his destiny.When his brash young sister is abducted by a menacing stranger, Paxon races to her rescue with the only weapon he can find. And in a harrowing duel, he is stunned to discover powerful magic unleashed within him—and within his ancestors’ ancient blade. But his formidable new ability is dangerous in untrained hands, and Paxon must master it quickly because his nearly fatal clash with the dark sorcerer Arcannen won’t be his last. Leaving behind home and hearth, he journeys to the keep of the fabled Druid order to learn the secrets of magic and earn the right to become their sworn protector.But treachery is afoot deep in the Druids’ ranks. And the blackest of sorcery is twisting a helpless innocent into a murderous agent of evil. To halt an insidious plot that threatens not only the Druid order but all the Four Lands, Paxon Leah must summon the profound magic in his blood and the legendary mettle of his elders in the battle fate has chosen him to fight.

    It is a lonely job, and a thankless one for the most part. Until something goes wrong. Until a ship is in distress. In the 23rd century, this job has moved into outer space. A network of beacons allows ships to travel across the Milky Way at many times the speed of light. These beacons are built to be robust. They never break down. They never fail. At least, they aren't supposed to.

    Now, in Stronghold, the first novel of Melanie’s new Dragon Star trilogy, there is a devastating new challenge to the power of both the High Prince Rohan and Andry, Lord of the Sunrunners at Goddess Keep, as a mysterious and seemingly unstoppable invasion force swarms across their lands. For Andry it signals the start of a nightmare made real, the horrifying fulfillment of his long ago visions of his homeland in flames, and he will draw upon even the forbidden sorcerer’s magic in an attempt to destroy this enemy which is bent on the extermination of all Sunrunners. Rohan and his son Pol will also fight the enemy with every weapon at their command—from their valiant warriors, to conjurations with sun, moons, and stars, to the terrifying presence of the dragons, to the unforgiving wrath of the Desert itself. Yet soon they begin to fear that this invasion may prove not only the end of their dream of an unbreakable peace but the beginning of the end of their entire world….

    Recognizing his talent, the Zero Gravity Fighting Association assigns Risha, an ambitious and beautiful Martian colonist, to be his brandhelm––a personal marketing strategist. It isn’t long before she’s made Carr into a popular celebrity and stolen his heart along the way.As his fame grows, Carr becomes an inspirational hero on Earth, a once-great planet that’s fallen into the shadow of its more prosperous colonies. But when Carr discovers a far-reaching criminal scheme, he becomes the keeper of a devastating secret. Not only will his choices place everything he cares about in jeopardy, but they may also spill the violence from the sports arena into the solar system.

    And expected. And still expected, despite endless proof that young Dennison Crestmar has no talent whatsoever for war. But the life Dennison is forced to live will have its surprising lessons to impart.

    Seeking his fortune, he stumbles into a centuries-old feud when he travels to Mitherhome, the city of the water mages. He accepts a servant's position in the household of the sole stone mage permitted within the city walls, and there his untapped magical talents and his fascination with his master's abilities are a predictably dangerous combination. Soon, without meaning to, he complicates and endangers the lives of everyone he has come to know and care about, for when it comes to magic, there are rules and laws, and the untrained mage-to-be must be careful not to tap into deep forces and ancient enmities. Otherwise, other people might end up paying the price for his mistakes.

    A widower of high intelligence, he presides over an empire called Acacia, after the idyllic island from which he rules. He dotes on his four children and hides from them the dark realities of traffic in drugs and human lives on which their prosperity depends. He hopes that he might change this, but powerful forces stand in his way. And then a deadly assassin sent from a race called the Mein, exiled long ago to an ice-locked stronghold in the frozen north, strikes at Leodan in the heart of Acacia while they unleash surprise attacks across the empire. On his deathbed, Leodan puts into play a plan to allow his children to escape, each to their separate destiny. And so his children begin a quest to avenge their father's death and restore the Acacian empire — this time on the basis of universal freedom.

    The Last Watch, where a handful of soldiers stand between humanity and annihilation.The Divide.It’s the edge of the universe.Now it’s collapsing—and taking everyone and everything with it.The only ones who can stop it are the Sentinels—the recruits, exiles, and court-martialed dregs of the military.At the Divide, Adequin Rake, commanding the Argus, has no resources, no comms—nothing, except for the soldiers that no one wanted.They're humanity's only chance.

    Join Lessa, sole remnant of a noble house, as she comes of age and dares to reclaim her birthright--and battles to save Pern from the deadly silver threadfall that threatens devastation of the planetBook one of three.

    Eighteen-year-old Robert Weekes is a practitioner of empirical philosophy—an arcane, female-dominated branch of science used to summon the wind, shape clouds of smoke, heal the injured, and even fly. Though he dreams of fighting in the Great War as the first male in the elite US Sigilry Corps Rescue and Evacuation Service—a team of flying medics—Robert is resigned to mixing batches of philosophical chemicals and keeping the books for the family business in rural Montana, where his mother, a former soldier and vigilante, aids the locals.When a deadly accident puts his philosophical abilities to the test, Robert rises to the occasion and wins a scholarship to study at Radcliffe College, an all-women’s school. At Radcliffe, Robert hones his skills and strives to win the respect of his classmates, a host of formidable, unruly women. Robert falls hard for Danielle Hardin, a disillusioned young war hero turned political radical. However, Danielle’s activism and Robert’s recklessness attract the attention of the same fanatical anti-philosophical group that Robert’s mother fought years before. With their lives in mounting danger, Robert and Danielle band together with a team of unlikely heroes to fight for Robert’s place among the next generation of empirical philosophers—and for philosophy’s very survival against the men who would destroy it.In the tradition of Lev Grossman and Deborah Harkness, Tom Miller writes with unrivaled imagination, ambition, and humor. The Philosopher’s Flight is both a fantastical reimagining of American history and a beautifully composed coming-of-age tale for anyone who has ever felt like an outsider.

    Jones's Sword of Shadow seriesAs a newborn Ash March was abandoned--left for dead at the foot of a frozen mountain. Found and raised by the Penthero Iss, the mighty Surlord of Spire Vanis, she has always known she is different. Terrible dreams plague her and sometimes in the darkness she hears dread voices from another world. Iss watches her as she grows to womanhood, eager to discover what powers his ward might possess. As his interest quickens, he sends his living blade, Marafice Eye, to guard her night and day.Raif Sevrance, a young man of Clan Blackhail, also knows he is different, with uncanny abilities that distance him from the clan. But when he and his brother survive an ambush that plunges the entire Northern Territories into war, he yet seeks justice for his own . . . even if means he must forsake clan and kin.Ash and Raif must learn to master their powers and accept their joint fate if they are to defeat an ancient prophecy and prevent the release of the pure evil known as the End Lords.

    A young woman accepts a position as nanny to the young daughter of a handsome, wealthy, and mysterious Chinese businessman— only to discover her new employer is really a god and every foul demon in creation is out to destroy him!

    Karen Wynn Fonstad brings out every detail of the world and history of Pern in fascinating graphics and lucent text. Tour the land whose very existence depends on the dragons and their riders! Detailed two-color maps showing every place and feature yet discovered on Pern; Follow F'lar's research as he learns how to predict Threadfall! Charts tracking the fall of Thread, the deadly spores that periodically ravage Pern; See the hatchling grounds where Jaxom impressed the white dragon Ruth! Schematics of the great Weyrs - the homes of the telepathic dragons and their riders; Visit Ruatha Hold where F'lar found Lessa, his future weyrwoman! Plans of the Holds, where most of the people of Pern live and work; And lots more covering all the books in the great series! The Atlas of Pern provides a spellbinding tour of the world where the harassed settlers from Earth fight to ovecome seemingly impossible odds and to carve out a new life for themselves and the future."

    Dragons thrill our dreams and haunt our legends. Now Margaret Weis, coauthor of the New York Times bestselling Dragonlance and Death Gate series, author of the Star of the Guardians series, and one of the world's leading dragonists and dracophiles, gathers the greatest classic dragon stories of our time, written by the winners of every award in the fields of fantasy and science fiction. Book jacket.