Dark Companion

by Andre Norton, Bob Eggleton (Illustrator)

In a future where humanity has scattered itself across the stars and Earth itself is now a dimly-remembered place of legend, two worlds of near-supernatural strangeness challenge two naive but courageous heros. The planet Beltane had been unscathed by the all-encompassing war of the four Sectors when Vere Collis and his friends, exploring caves underground, were trapped by powerful explosions on the surface. Their leader was killed, but the group wandered for days underground to find a way to the surface. They emerged to find that they were the last human survivors on Beltane. Only strange and deadly mutant creatures now roamed the surface. Elsewhere in the galaxy, Kilda's home planet had no place for her, so she took employment as a teacher and governess to two young children on the planet named Dylan. But she soon found that one of her charges has an invisible "dread companion"-and soon Kilda knows that the companion is not imaginary at all, as it leads her charges into an other-dimensional world resembling the legends of Faerie. Though the other world has unknown dangers on every hand, Kilda follows the children across the spatial barrier, knowing that she is their only hope. Two complete novels of two very different heroes battling alien and unknown evil, and fighting to protect the helpless in worlds that are wondrous, terrifying, and utterly alien. Publisher's Dark Companion has previously appeared separately as Dark Piper and Dread Companion. This is the first combined publication of the complete book.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fantasy, Science Fiction Fantasy, Fiction

416 pages, Hardcover

First published April 1, 2004

About the author

Andre Norton, born Alice Mary Norton, was a pioneering American author of science fiction and fantasy, widely regarded as the Grande Dame of those genres. She also wrote historical and contemporary fiction, publishing under the pen names Andre Alice Norton, Andrew North, and Allen Weston. She launched her career in 1934 with The Prince Commands, adopting the name “Andre” to appeal to a male readership. After working for the Cleveland Library System and the Library of Congress, she began publishing science fiction under “Andrew North” and fantasy under her own name. She became a full-time writer in 1958 and was known for her prolific output, including Star Man’s Son, 2250 A.D. and Witch World, the latter spawning a long-running series and shared universe. Norton was a founding member of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America and authored Quag Keep, the first novel based on the Dungeons & Dragons game. She influenced generations of writers, including Lois McMaster Bujold and Mercedes Lackey. Among her many honors were being the first woman named Gandalf Grand Master of Fantasy and SFWA Grand Master. In her later years, she established the High Hallack Library to support research in genre fiction. Her legacy continues with the Andre Norton Award for young adult science fiction and fantasy.

Reviews

[Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's not clear to me how part one and two fit together.

[Chuck · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is two novels
— Dark Piper - ****
— Dread Companion - **
Not closely tied, but both are set at the end of the war as humanity is pulling inward and abandoning outward systems.

[Casey · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ah, Andre!

Andre Norton has been a favorite of mine since my teens. Now that I'm in my 70's, I find that my love of her writing hasn't faded at all.

[Taldragon · Rating 3 out of 5]

two separate stories packaged in one book.

in the first, a group of young people are trapped in some caves after explosions on the planet's surface. they emerge, to a world devoid of humanity...but can they survive?

the second has Kilda taking a teaching position to two kids, one of whom has a mysterious companion. when the companion leads the kids into an other-dimensional world, Kilda is their only hope!

decent yarns, but nothing spectacular - the books were published separately in the late 60s, and are showing their age slightly - more young-adult than i usually read.

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dark Companion (Paperback)
by Andre Norton
Andre Norton, was one of the most prolific authors, although she wrote under a man's name she was a primer author in fantasy and fiction. Dark Companion, is an odd story, with magic and fantasy

[colleen · Rating 3 out of 5]

read 05.xx.05
Two books in one. Combined edition of Dark Piper and Dread Companion

[Doris · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is actually two books sold as one - Dark Piper and Dread Companion
I review each of those separately, but overall feel the stories are pretty good, even if they are very old.

[Lynn Calvin]

baen ebook

[Teresa Carrigan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Dark Piper was one of my favorite books as a teen. Rereading it decades later find it readable but not nearly as good as my memory. The second book in this set is Dread Companion, which I don't recall reading before. I read enough of that one to show it is definitely too close to the horror genre for my tastes.

3.5 stars for Dark Piper. I do not want to read Dread Companion.