this is the first book of the darkover series i have read and i found it to be great. i read it in a day or so and true the plot does beg to be enhanced but i found the idea of this strong willed heiress who takes nothing in this male dominated societ intriguing. too many of the other people who read this got hung up on geneology and such things from the other book and simply couldn't enjoy the book. the only thing that troubled me was references to other,earlier books but i know that was to be expected. also people say that the "confrintation" in the middle of the book led to an aimless anticlimax which is completely untrue. you see the heroine struggle to find balance and try not to kill anyone with her "gifts" and the end made me run out for the next book. i admit that this is not a book for hardcore darkover fans but a very good book for someone new to the series.