Nerilka's Story (1986) is the 8th book written in the Dragonriders of Pern series – a novella. In chronological order it is one of the 2 books set during the sixth pass, about 1550 years after landing. The story is set during the same time period as Moreta: Dragonlady of Pern.

It was in Moreta's time – a time of legend, of heroic valor, of terrible Threadfall and the Great Plague that devastated both Holders and Dragonfolk. For Lady Nerilka of Fort Hold, the tragedy was twofold, for with the death of her mother and her sister, her father's mistress took possession of the Hold. Angry and betrayed, Nerilka decided to escape and, as Pern seethed in turmoil, she began her perilous journey to Ruatha, Lord Alessan and an unknown destiny.

Review

“This slight addition to McCaffrey's dragon novels is about a minor character mentioned in Moretta, Dragonlady of Pern (Ballantine, 1983). Nerilka, the plain and ignored oldest daughter of Lord Tolocamp, is appalled when her father abandons her mother and sisters to the plague spreading from Ruatha Hold, then refuses aid to anyone else on the rest of Pern. Nerilka first sends medicines secretly, then sets off (in disguise) for Ruatha, a place she had long wished to visit but had always been prevented from going. There she finds acceptance both for her healing skills and for herself, and she falls in love with the seemingly unattainable Alessan, Lord of Ruatha. This illustrated novella, about the size of a paperback, is not the best of McCaffrey, but it does have an interesting heroine and will satisfy McCaffrey's legions of fans who want to know why Alessan married so shortly after the death of his beloved Moretta.” School Library Journal

Author Biography

Anne McCaffrey was one of the world's leading science-fiction writers, and won both the Hugo and Nebula awards as well as the Margaret A. Edwards' Lifetime Achievement Literary Award. Born and raised in the US, although of Irish extraction, she spent the last years of her life in Ireland, in the heart of the Wicklow Mountains. She died in 2011 at the age of eighty-five. She is the creator of the Dragons of Pern series.