The Ruins of Isis

by Marion Zimmer Bradley, Peter Elson (Illustrator)

Legend, 1988. British paperback. In this 1978 novel two scholars explore a planet dominated by a matriarchal society.

Genres: Fantasy, Science Fiction, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Ebooks, Womens, Feminism

298 pages, Mass Market Paperback

First published April 1, 1977

About the author

Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy novels such as The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series, often with a feminist outlook.

Bradley's first published novel-length work was Falcons of Narabedla, first published in the May 1957 issue of Other Worlds. When she was a child, Bradley stated that she enjoyed reading adventure fantasy authors such as Henry Kuttner, Edmond Hamilton, and Leigh Brackett, especially when they wrote about "the glint of strange suns on worlds that never were and never would be." Her first novel and much of her subsequent work show their influence strongly.

Early in her career, writing as Morgan Ives, Miriam Gardner, John Dexter, and Lee Chapman, Marion Zimmer Bradley produced several works outside the speculative fiction genre, including some gay and lesbian pulp fiction novels. For example, I Am a Lesbian was published in 1962. Though relatively tame by today's standards, they were considered pornographic when published, and for a long time she refused to disclose the titles she wrote under these pseudonyms.

Her 1958 story The Planet Savers introduced the planet of Darkover, which became the setting of a popular series by Bradley and other authors. The Darkover milieu may be considered as either fantasy with science fiction overtones or as science fiction with fantasy overtones, as Darkover is a lost earth colony where psi powers developed to an unusual degree. Bradley wrote many Darkover novels by herself, but in her later years collaborated with other authors for publication; her literary collaborators have continued the series since her death.

Bradley took an active role in science-fiction and fantasy fandom, promoting interaction with professional authors and publishers and making several important contributions to the subculture.

For many years, Bradley actively encouraged Darkover fan fiction and reprinted some of it in commercial Darkover anthologies, continuing to encourage submissions from unpublished authors, but this ended after a dispute with a fan over an unpublished Darkover novel of Bradley's that had similarities to some of the fan's stories. As a result, the novel remained unpublished, and Bradley demanded the cessation of all Darkover fan fiction.

Bradley was also the editor of the long-running Sword and Sorceress anthology series, which encouraged submissions of fantasy stories featuring original and non-traditional heroines from young and upcoming authors. Although she particularly encouraged young female authors, she was not averse to including male authors in her anthologies. Mercedes Lackey was just one of many authors who first appeared in the anthologies. She also maintained a large family of writers at her home in Berkeley. Ms Bradley was editing the final Sword and Sorceress manuscript up until the week of her death in September of 1999.

Probably her most famous single novel is The Mists of Avalon. A retelling of the Camelot legend from the point of view of Morgaine and Gwenhwyfar, it grew into a series of books; like the Darkover series, the later novels are written with or by other authors and have continued to appear after Bradley's death.

Her reputation has been posthumously marred by multiple accusations of child sexual abuse by her daughter Moira Greyland, and for allegedly assisting her second husband, convicted child abuser Walter Breen, in sexually abusing multiple unrelated children.

(from Wikipedia)

Reviews

[Jamie Collins · Rating 2 out of 5]

Feminist science fiction from 1978. A husband and wife, respectively an archaeologist and anthropologist, embark upon a scientific mission to study some ruins on a colony ruled by a matriarchal society where men are considered chattel. As a concession to this they plan for the husband to pose as his wife's assistant, but when they arrive he's treated as her "Companion" - essentially, as her boy toy.

The married couple has one of MZB's typical "equal" partnerships where the husband resents and belittles his wife's accomplishments while she makes excuses for his bad behavior. If the husband had not been such an asshole, it would have been interesting to watch the couple deal with the situation. But he spent most of his time either sulking or ranting so I was pretty much rooting for him to be oppressed.

Aside from the feminist drama there are ancient aliens that communicate telepathically with the people on the planet, there are earthquakes and tsunamis, there's an orgy on the beach, and finally an uprising among the enslaved men. The book ends with the revelation that men and women should really try to get along together, and also, rather strangely, that the wife should accept her husband for the asshole that he is rather than try to change him.

[Natalie Gibson · Rating 4 out of 5]

Strange. It was written in 1978 so it's hard to judge. I enjoyed it because I like Marion Zimmer Bradley but so much of it got on my nerves.
Two scientist go to a matriarchal world no outsider has previously been allowed to visit. They are to study the ruins there and because the leaders of Isis think that only women are capable of higher learning they assume the wife is the scholar and the husband is a companion (there only for her sexual needs). There is some paranormal/religious type stuff in the ruins and the couple end up taking opposite sides of a political situation neither quite understand.
The book had some bits that may have been truly shocking in the 70's but seemed too outdated and common to have the effect the author was going for. The ending was too easy and I saw little to no growth in any main character.
I am happy I found it in my secondhand bookstore and it was a lovely stroll. It will look great on my paperback book shelves but I won't reread.

[Daniele · Rating 4 out of 5]

🌜 Recensione su Psicologorroico 🌛

Per fortuna non ho letto le pessime recensioni di questo romanzo prima di iniziare a leggerlo! In realtà si tratta di un esperimento interessante di fantascienza antropologica che mi ha ricordato molto Ursula K. Le Guin (la Bradley tuttavia non ha la sua sottigliezza). L'incipit è un lavoro universitario svolto da due ricercatori su un pianeta elusivo e schivo, Isis, dominato da un matriarcato; gli uomini sono schiavizzati e non ritenuti intelligenti come le donne. Non ho capito chi si è lamentato del "messaggio" di questo romanzo: per me non c'è nessun messaggio, è una semplice invenzione dell'autrice! Come primo approccio alla Bradley posso ritenermi soddisfatto.

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[Chris Presta-Valachovic · Rating 1 out of 5]

The short review: Yuck. Avoid this one.

The long review:

I read this back in the mid-'80s; it was first published in 1978. When I first encountered feminism in college, in 1984, it gave a solid grounding to things I'd been railing against and fighting all thru high school -- I went to conservative Catholic schools (grade school, middle school, and high school), in conservative southwest Ohio.

This book would've been laughed out of all three Catholic-school libraries as backwards, outdated, sexist bullshit.

Even for 1978, the gender stereotypes are extremely outdated, belittling to both women and men, and laughably over-the-top. Both sides are cardboard strawmen, and exceedingly boring ones. Worse, Bradley went out of her way to make our two protagonists -- every character in the book, in fact -- the worst examples of human beings, ever. Reading this through the lens of what we now know about Bradley & how she abused & terrorized not only her own children, but also aided & abetted her husband Walter Breen in molesting other kids at SF/F conventions, this book sinks straight through "disgusting" and dives headlong into "pond scum". (Google "Breendoggle" and weep -- southern Cal fandom in the '70s swept it under the rug so Bradley would continue attending their cons. And yes, I can back all this up: the court records are public and posted).


So we have Cendri & Dal Malloq, two so-called Scholars from "University", in the galactic federation called "Unity". Evidently there's only one University here, and it's a planet. Whatever. Dal originally comes from an extremely misogynistic planet called "Pioneer" -- let's just say Pioneer would think both Christian & Islamic fundamentalists are dangerously liberal. With a bit of subterfuge after a renowned University master-scholar falls ill, Cendri and Dal are invited to the planet of Isis in the scholar's place in order to study ancient ruins ...ah, hell, who cares? The book certainly doesn't.

Isis is "matriarchal" to the same extreme that Pioneer is patriarchal. Men are considered good as sex-toys and pets, and anything beyond that is just too much for their poor widdle testosterone-drenched brains. Oh, and it's really obvious that Dal considers the inverse true: women shouldn't be worrying their pretty widdle heads over anything the men don't want them to, with Cendri being a wet piece of tissue in the middle.

Yyyyyeah. You can see the train wreck coming.

To be fair, I can see what Bradley was trying to do. In the '70s, there were extremely radical feminists who wanted to ditch the male half of the species completely & return to what they thought of as the good 'ol days of the matriarchy. Bradley was very vocal in her despising of those folks -- yeah, go fig -- so the obvious tactic in "Isis" is to exaggerate both sides to ridiculousness and let 'em free-fall into oblivion...

...which doesn't work because every single character is nothing but crude, one-note, abhorrent cardboard cut-outs. Even before the first chapter is done, even without all the real-life subtext, you'll find yourself screaming the Eight Deadly Words: I DON'T CARE WHAT HAPPENS TO THESE PEOPLE.

Boring, boring, boring.

[Ruud Van der vliet · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book was a weird read. As a gay man i was not put off by the feminism in the book. I read more of Marion and loved everything. Still don't know what to think off the book. It took me to another world, which i like. Maybe too simple here and there.

[G. Lawrence · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very interesting book. Raised many questions. Everyone aside from the Scholar Dame appears to suffer from sexism. An interesting mirror to hold up to our own culture. Felt the end was not as strong as the beginning, but definitely an interesting read.

[Daniel · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't know what possessed me to pick up this book. While it wasn't good it was interesting. The world of Isis is interesting to explore, though I wish it was executed without such a heavy hand. We could have seen more of their culture and how it functions. I wanted to understand the woman-by-courtesy concept initially but MZB's description was so off putting I ended up putting the book down for several days and even questioned if I'd pick it back up.

I regularly found myself flipping back to the copywrite just to check the year. This doesn't read like it comes from the late 70's. Maybe I'm wrong. To anyone with a brain the gender politics in this society, and between Cendri and Dal, don't hold water. At least as they're presented.

Also for some reason masculine pronouns are sexualized and only used in sexual situations so males are all referred to as 'it' in public company. This is also interesting because women-by-courtesy dont seem to be allowed feminine pronouns continuing to be referred to as 'it' instead of she/her. They do seem to fill some kind of semi-religious social role as clairvoyants. At least the one we meet does.

I thought this planet was going to break the main character's marriage and I kinda wish it did. They're obviously not good for each other. Cendri also seems to have a great lack of respect for the natives. Over the years they'd declined anthropologists and have made it extremely clear that they don't want to be studied. Well Cendri's an anthropologist and here under false pretenses, she's already violated their trust once why not some more?

I feel like I have more points but we'll see if they're pressing for me write in later. I feel like at some point I will revisit Isis but right now it was a bit too much of a culture shock. And just toxic.

Feb 2025: I didn't reread the book but something that has stuck with me nearly a year later was when they got on the shuttle down to Isis. They don't have a seat with a seatbelt for Dal. The pilot is just so cavalier about it too, "Oh just wedge him in somewhere, men don't feel pain." That says so much about human perception and our ability to "other" someone.

' "In that case, the Scholar Dame must arrange for a temporary marking of some sort. It can be marked-" she very faintly emphasized it-"with an earclamp or collar tag, but the most effective method is for a subcutaneous electronic implant in one testicle. This is an excellent training and disciplinary device for a male not accustomed to civilized restraints, as it can be located and controlled at any moment." ' Yikes. Nope.

' "If the Scholar Dame is worried about her Companion-you can put it in the seat over there, and wedge it in with blankets. But I wouldn't worry. A few bumps and bruises don't hurt them, you know; They really don't feel things the way that we do. That is a scientifically established fact, Scholar dame, and we have quite careful humane regulations to avoid accidental harm to males." '

' She noted one or two men with elaborately curled and coiffed hair, but some of the women too wore this kind of hair-dress. There seemed to be no specific dress difference between males and females. '

' "I gather men here are treated pretty much like dogs. Even five hundred years ago in Pioneer, we never branded our women, or made them wear property tags!" He chuckled as he fingered the numbered tag around his neck. "But I supposed a world of women would have to go to extremes." '

' "I only know that the colony on Labrys was destroyed," she said. "The official story is that an overanxious administration miscalculated the speed within which their Sun was to go Nova, and resettled them on a world with an unstable orbit. There are not many records; most of those which remain call it a colossal bureaucratic blunder, for which the Unity paid a heavy indemnity. But indemnities, of course, cannot wipe out the loss of life, and it would not be at all surprising if some people called it a plot against the Matriarchate." "

' "I should also mention our household Inquirer, Maret-" she indicated a grossly fat, fair-haired person at a nearby table, who was rocking a small sleepy child in an ample lap. "Maret is a woman-by courtesy; it was born Mar, my faster-sister's eldest male child, but many years ago it was given the privilege of wearing woman's garments-") Cendri wondered how anyone ever told the difference, since all garments appeared unisex, but maybe the differences were to subtle for an outsider to see) "-and of performing sacrifices at the shrines of the Goddess, to be called Maret, and to live here among us as a sister." ' I want to understand more. Where do women-by-courtesy stand in the society? Do they have special functions?

' "I am only a man, And have no part in Paradise; Twice have I tasted bliss, And Twice have I been driven forth; Once when I left my mother's womb, And again when i was driven forth from my mother's house." The golden baritone dropped to a mournful croon, his hands swept the strings with an anguished cadence. "When I am done with life, Will the Goddess take me, perhaps, To her loving breasts?" '

' The original Matriarcate-Cendri remembered-had been founded a few hundred years before, by a group of historians who held a mad theory that the original human stock came from a world with a primitive matriarchal culture, and that decay in human cultures had set in when the worship of a Mother Goddess, a planetary Earth-mother, had been over-thrown and superseded by climatic changes which convinced the primitive society that the worship of sun and rain gods, regulating the weather, was more important than the Goddess cults.
So the Matriarchate is founded, then, in religious fanaticism and it will never be understood except by understanding its religious beginnings... .
The Matriarchate had recruited women from allover the Unity and settled on an planet which they renamed Persephone. For a few generations they had remained part of the Unity, and Cendri had read of a few scientists who had been hired to work there and their research lavishly funded-Persephone had been a rich planet then-to rediscover what the Matriarchate believed, or professed to believe, was the original form of humanity, female in form, without the y-chromosome creating maleness.
Some interesting research had been done, but the parthenogenetic females created by the research had proved to be sterile after the second generation, and the Matriarchs had resigned themeselves to retaining some males in their society as breeding stock." '

' The other was that the Unity had ejected them for being in violation of the First Principal, that all words participating in the Unity should grant equality to all citizens. Persephone had insisted on its right to determine who should be defined as a citizen. '

' "I am not the superstitious ninny Mahala thinks me-Cendri, my child, it was I who piloted the ship which bore us from Persephone to this world!" ' This was super fun to find out.

[Gerben · Rating 4 out of 5]

Bradley imagines a world where fourth wave feminists treat their men the way feminists claim men treat women. The women of Isis see men as incapable of abstract thought due to testosterone poisoning and low mental capacity. Men are legally owned and completely subservient.

Into this setting step a happily married couple from the planet of Unity; Dal, the man, is from Pioneer where the patriarchy still clings to some power. Cendri, the woman is from a planet where men and women are equal in all respects.

Bradly writes an engrossing tale and while she holds that men are equal to women, she doesn't completely release her feminist views. Specifically, the main protagonist, Cendri has every right, even the responsibility, to engage in extramarital sex up to and including a gang bang complete with an underage male. Men are to enthusiastically accept any child a woman adds to their marriage without regard to the sire. If they love their wife that is.

[Bohemian Book Lover · Rating 2 out of 5]

*The fact that this was about a planet whose
*Hegemony is matriarchal in its
*Entirety, where men are

*Reduced to property & sexual playthings, with the presence of mysterious ruins left behind by an
*Unknown, ancient culture, believed to have seeded the galaxy, which communicates with the women, was what
*Intrigued me. The
*Narrative, relatable characters & the
*Storyline's plot twists made it an

*Obvious page-turner. To be
*Frank,

*It was because of these elements, as well as the
*Speculative feminist viewpoint, social commentary & its anthropological aspects which I found
*Interesting that kept me reading throughout all the evident repetitiveness & annoying typos it
*Suffers from in my 1988 Legend edition; otherwise I would've DNFed it.

[Kali · Rating 2 out of 5]

It was amusing for a bit, but just a small bit. The male lead is such an insufferable ninny, I just couldn't bear to read any more of his nonsense. He's precisely the sort of man who SHOULD be collared and subjugated, and he's the only one on the entire planet that doesn't have to fight for the right NOT to be. Goodness.

[DeAnna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Definitely a product of its time. It was interesting to read and see some of the parallels between this universe and Bradley's Darkover universe. I can't say I would highly recommend it, but it did hold my interest all the way through.

[Priyanka]

As a Social Scientist, I enjoyed the lens through which the story was told. The main narrator is an anthropologist, however, I felt that the tension built did not resolve sufficiently by the end of the novel. I do not regret reading this book. I enjoyed immersing myself on Isis/ Cinderella.

[Sam · Rating 2 out of 5]

Unfortunately, too dated to keep me reading.

[Michael Winfield · Rating 5 out of 5]

A lot of fun. Highly recommended.

[Phil · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent story of a matriarchal world and its troubles. Had a better ending than expected.

[James]

Starblaze Editions, 1978. Trade paperback, first edition. Two scholars explore a planet dominated by a matriarchal society.

[k · Rating 2 out of 5]

Giving this that second star was a stretch, but hey, I managed to finish it and some parts were sort of enjoyable.
Overall, though, the philosophy is hardly feminist - let alone inconsistent, fickle and often juvenile and reductionist (horrendously so, even for its time). Until the end, all points of view pretty much suck and aren't even well fleshed out. Bradley constantly repeats things that need no further elaboration, which got quite annoying - especially when it was lines like "of course men are dogs here!" or "He wouldn't understand a woman - he's a man." No characters here, no depth and certainly no stability in beliefs or emotions were present - many paragraphs were someone (mostly the female protagonist) contradicting themselves or changing from one overblown emotion to a completely different one with no clear intention or believably in a very short time. Add some gross transphobia that needed no mention trying to pass off as some half-assed addition to the lore, a handful of noticeable grammar, spelling and formatting errors and it's even more of a wonder I made it through.

short version: Meh, skip this one.

[Derek · Rating 1 out of 5]

I'm not sure what message to take away from the portrayal of gender politics. Cultures clash when a man from a stereotypically chauvinistic society visits Isis's inverted-chauvinistic society, and his wife (the protagonist) is stuck in the middle.

The two cultures draw opposite conclusions from the difference in the sexes. One sees male competitiveness as an essential strength and therefore men are dominant while the other sees it as a weakness and therefore men must be sheltered and contained. The reader is forced to examine gender roles and their basis as the main characters see their own attitudes being challenged.

Unfortunately the book plays with such extremes that it all comes off as entirely ham-fisted, to the point of wondering if the message here was worth making. Representatives from both cultures come off as extremely bickering and annoying.

[Lisa (Harmonybites) · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two anthropologists, Cendri and her husband Dal, come to study ruins on the planet Isis. Dal is actually the senior scholar, but since Isis is a matriarchy, he poses as Cendri's assistant. I'm a fan of Marion Zimmer Bradley, not of her well-known Mists of Avalon, which I didn't care for, but her science fiction Darkover series. I have 36 of her books on my bookshelves, and though I can't remember reading one I didn't enjoy--she's a strong storyteller--this standalone isn't one of her best. The reviews bear out my memory of the feminist theme being rather overbearing in a way that feels rather dated. (This was published in 1978.) Not the book I'd pick as an introduction to Marion Zimmer Bradley, or even top twenty on my list of her best.

[Miriam · Rating 2 out of 5]

o.k., I love me some MZB, but this one took FOREVER to get through and it wasn't long enough to warrant the time it took... there was a lot of (LOT of) ramblings about the differences between the males and females and societies and constructs and on and on. I wanted to find out what happens in the end, so I kept reading, but it was a hardship. Could have been an interesting story without all the bashing in of the head. It felt like she was having some personal therapy at the readers, and/or... war-of-the-sexing at the expense of storytelling. etc. :)

[Heidi · Rating 3 out of 5]

"A young, married pair of scientists go to the Matriarchal world of Isis, to openly study its mysterious ruins and secretly examine its closed culture. Bradley confronts sexism in an unusual way - be exploring a world where men are oppressed - in order to get past our cultural expectations. While the technique is effective, it tends to overwhelm the plot of the book. She raises more questions than she answers and highlights how complicated feminist issues are."

[Commanderd · Rating 1 out of 5]

This is the first time I've had to struggle to continue with a MZB book but this was dire.

To start with, the characters and setting were introduced with no explanation (and considering this is a sci-fi book, that's not a good thing) and the premise was faulty and just dragged on and on and on...

Normally I like her work and indeed a lot of stuff with feminist overtones but I won't be keeping this one in my library.

[Alice Sabo · Rating 2 out of 5]

This was interesting to read to see the dramatic change in storytelling from 1979. The characters feel totally over the top to me. And there are way too many exclamation points. It's obviously an early novel and an early stab at feminism in space.

[Eva · Rating 2 out of 5]

Weird sci-fi that I've reread, but where the husband just pisses me off. Yes, yes, different societies, yes, yes. Still.

[lisa_emily · Rating 3 out of 5]

My friend convinced me that Zimmer was a really great writer and I should read her- she is a storyteller, but after 9 years, I cannot remember much.

[Rachel H · Rating 2 out of 5]

Interesting in some ways. The budding marriage between the main characters was a little trying. The "Builders" reveal was a little anti-climatic. I could tell this was one of her earlier novels.

[SciFiOne · Rating 5 out of 5]

1980 grade A-
2009 grade A-

[Patrick Bättig · Rating 3 out of 5]

Forscherpaar geht auf Planeten der von Frauen beherrscht wird und Männer als minderwertige Geschöpfe angesehen werden. Dies führt zu Krisen in der Beziehung