One of the Darkover series, this book is structured into three sections which each focus on a different woman. In the first part, Lady Rohana Ardais, a member of the ruling caste, has employed a group of women, called Free Amazons, to rescue a kinswoman of hers (not a sister as I see some reviews have called her) called Melora. Years before, Melora was kidnapped by a bandit of the Dry Towns, a part of Darkover where women are chained and treated as slaves. Melora and Rohana were brought up together in a Tower, a place on Darkover where those with psychic powers were trained, and were once close, and Melora has made a telepathic appeal to Rohana for help because her daughter Jaelle is old enough to be chained, and she herself is pregnant again by her abductor, probably with his son.

Women on Darkover are indoctrinated to accept men as protectors and masters, though not usually as brutally as in the Dry Towns, so Rohana has to defy her husband to hire the Amazons, women who have renounced men's protection, taken a long oath (which is printed at the front of the book), and who are organised into a system of Guild Houses. Her kinsmen won't send anyone else to try to free Melora following the gruesome death by torture of a foster-brother, Rohana's own half-brother.

In part 1, we learn of the personalities of some of the Amazons and Rohana herself, and how her exposure to living among them makes her start to question the certainties of her life which she previously took for granted. When she finally returns to her husband to face his censure, it is as a conscious choice to accept the downsides of her life as well as the positive aspects. She wants to foster Jaelle, but the little girl bonds with the Amazon leader, Kindra, on their long journey to escape, and becomes her foster-child.

There is a twelve year gap between parts 1 and 2 of the story. Part 2 is the story of a Terran woman who was born and brought up on Darkover apart from three years spent in her teens on another planet where she was trained to work in the Intelligence service. Magda is now facing frustration and a growing sense of not belonging in either world: she has been socialised as a 'normal' Darkovan woman who relies on men's protection, which clashes with her training as an intelligence operative to defend herself capably. As a woman agent, there are places she cannot go because of Darkovan attitudes, and although even her ex-husband Peter admits she is far more capable than he, and should lead the Communications section within which Intelligence operates, a buffoon with no sympathy or understanding of the culture is in charge, and she is largely relegated to writing this man's speeches and interpreting to make sure he doesn't offend the natives. Then Peter goes missing on a mission, and Lady Rohana informs them he has been abducted by a bandit who believes he is her own son because of a great resemblance between them. If Peter is discovered to be a Terran, he will be murdered, and he will be executed in any case at midwinter, if a ransom is not forthcoming. Magda takes up the mission and on Rohana's advice, disguises herself as a free Amazon as only such women can travel alone, but gets into difficulties enroute and ends up having to swear the oath to Jaelle - now a free Amazon herself - when her disguise is seen through. Magda finds herself increasingly torn: as a Darkovan, her oath is binding, but to her Terran identity and colleagues, one given under duress is meaningless. If she honours it, she will have to submit to Guild authority and be trained for six months in a Guild House, regardless of her service to the Terran Empire.

In part 3, Magda, Jaelle and the rescued Peter end up spending time at Rohana's house during the severe Darkovan winter. The issues in this part of the story are the continuing tension between Magda's two sided identity, the conflict between Jaelle's attraction to Peter and her sworn oath (she can be involved with a man and even have a child, but only if it is solely for herself, not to benefit or serve him), and the pros and cons of Lady Rohana's ongoing subordination to her husband, while practically running the place and organising everything not to upset him, because there turns out to be a medical reason for her solicitude. Also, perhaps because of being raised on Darkover, Peter has some unreconstructed patriarchal attitudes which begin to show in his relationship with Jaelle although she is too besotted to take any notice of Magda's veiled warnings about him.

This was quite a good adventure story with an ongoing psychological study of the differing roles and tensions between women and men and also between groups of women, plus women's internal battles to fit into a world that is not ideal, either the Terran based one or the native Darkovan one. One note seemed odd - why would a culture cut off from Earth for millennia name an organisation of women who want to live independently as 'Amazons', a name that would surely mean nothing to them. I've since discovered from starting the sequel that the author apparently revised this later to be a Terran mistranslation of a name that should more properly be 'Renunciates' as the women renounce men's protection in exchange for their independent living and mutual support. ( )

Books written early in the series were the best. Finished all the anthologies and filler books and now back on track with the novels. This was one of the first Darkover books I ever read over 40 years ago and I have read it many times since and it is still a very good read. ( )

Re-read, first time in a decade or more.

The writing is not great but the story is strong. It's hard for me to tell if the story is good because I've internalized it through constant re-reading throughout my late adolescence, or if the story actually does transcend the pedestrian writing. Either way, I enjoyed re-visiting the place. ( )

This blend of fantasy and science fiction was recommended to me by a friend in 10th grade. A male friend I might add. Marion Zimmer Bradley had strong female characters, but in Darkover she also had a swashbuckling appeal that crossed genders. He recommended I start with this Darkover novel, despite that it's not the first chronologically for a couple of reasons. First, MZB always wrote the Darkover novels as standalones. They all have the same backdrop, on the planet of Darkover, but although some novels are more closely connected, you can start anywhere. Second, he thought this was a crackling good tale to begin with and I'd agree. This is still a good entry into Darkover which was written from 1958 to 1989. (There were some collaborations afterwards, but I don't think they're her best.) Moreover, in her early written Darkover novels she was still learning her craft, and I think it shows. So there's a sweet spot between 1974 and 1984 where I believe the best of her series was written, and this is right in the middle. And I do love her "Renunciates" aka "Free Amazons." Especially for a young girl pre-Buffy with few kick-ass heroines this really was wonderful to read. Indeed, I far prefer MZB's Darkover novels to any of the Avalon books. ( )