A Terran technician, on the planet of Darkover is involved in the intense levels of mysticism that the planet and its deities demand of the inhabitants. the final results lead to the reclamation of a mountain estate by its rightful owners. I'm not a heavy Bradley fan. ( )

Noted during my 1980's attempt to read every book in my small town library.

This is an enjoyable novel, but not one of the more memorable in the series, and definitely not the one I'd recommend as an entry into the series. Darkover is a "lost colony" of Earth that falls into a medieval society ruled by a psychic aristocracy and is later rediscovered by a star-spanning advanced human federation after centuries, giving the series a feel of both science fiction and fantasy. Most books in the series examine this culture clash and this book is no exception as a member of the Terran spaceforce, Dan Barron, gets involved with the comyn, the planetary aristocracy.

The series was written out of chronological order, and Bradley wrote them so they could each stand alone. And this particular book has few connections to other books, many of which do have recurring characters. This was the fifth book published, and I think Bradley came into her own as a writer later, and the best Darkover books were in my opinion written from 1974 to 1984, before her stroke. So I'd start perhaps with The Shattered Chain, which is where the friend who introduced me to this series told me to start, or The Spell Sword and it's immediate sequel Forbidden Tower or Heritage of Hastur. Once you're hooked on the series, yes you'll want to read this one, it's a fun yarn, but not one of the essentials. ( )

Un de ces romans qui se lit assez efficacement par lui-même, mais dont malheureusement il est impossible de comprendre toutes les ramifications sans avoir lu le reste de la série, ce qui n'est pas nécessairement facile à faire. ( )

Brynat le Balafré avait gagné. L'imprenable château de Storn était à lui. Dans la forteresse conquise, un prêtre félon avait béni son insolente union avec la pauvre Allira, héritière de la dynastie déchue. Dorénavant, il était le Maître.
Mais, dans sa tour, l'ancien Seigneur restait invulnérable. Ce faible aveugle avait abandonné son domaine, livré ses soeurs au bandit ; isolé dans sa transe, endormi dans des royaumes inconnaissables, il n'avait pourtant pas baissé sa garde et la magie continuait de le protéger. Pour Brynat, il y avait là des pouvoirs à conquérir – ou, à défaut, une vengeance à redouter. Tous les vaincus, jour après jour, attendaient l'appel de Storn en bouillant d'une rage impuissante.
A l'Astroport, Dan Barron avait des visions. Il parlait d'une femme brûlant dans les flammes. Une reine à genoux et souriante, entravée par des chaînes d'or, perdue dans une extase surhumaine. Et le Terrien portait dans sa tête, imprimée comme au fer rouge, cette image qui, à son insu, était celle de son destin.