Author Jo Clayton’s sensational space opera saga continues in this fourth magnificent excursion to the universe of the Diadem as her incomparable heroine lands in the center of a devastating conflict between an insidious planet-devouring corporate entity and native forest folk and city dwellers who are facing extinction.

The planet Maeve is the next stop on the intergalactic journey of the star voyager Aleytys as she searches the universe for her son, others of her advanced human race, and the mother who abandoned her in a dismal barbarian world. Permanently enhanced and cursed by the Diadem, the stolen technology of a vengeful alien society, she is determined to find her way back to Jaydugar, where she was raised and where she hopes to reclaim her kidnapped child. But securing transport will be difficult in this world steeped in political turmoil, as the destructive machinery of a heartless and powerful Company strips the planet bare of its natural riches.

The Diadem-induced personalities who share Aleytys’s mind also experience her outrage over the greed of an insidious corporate monster that would heartlessly displace an entire forest-dwelling native population. Compelled by conscience and a hunger for justice, Aleytys will do everything in her substantial power to help the citizens of Maeve fight back. But the secret plans of the Company go far beyond the despoiling of the woodlands, and neither guerilla warfare nor the remarkable abilities Aleytys brings to the battle may be sufficient to turn back the terrible tide of destruction that threatens the future of a planet and every creature inhabiting it.

The many fans of Andre Norton, Marion Zimmer Bradley, C. J. Cherryh, and other master world-builders known for their adept blending of science fiction and fantasy tropes will thrill to the fourth unforgettable installment in a much-beloved science fantasy saga that grows deeper and richer with each succeeding volume. Clayton’s Maeve enchants and enthralls, while brilliantly expanding an already breathtaking universe.