The Ginger Star - Leigh Brackett

Novel

Number of words : 55000
Percent of complex words : 6.7
Average syllables per word : 1.4
Average words per sentence : 11.0


READABILITY INDICES

Fog : 7.1
Flesch : 77.8
Flesch-Kincaid : 5.1



PEOPLE

Eric John Stark

N'Chaka, wild man of Mercury. The Dark Man of prophecy.

Simon Ashton

Stark's mentor and father figure. Missing in the field.

Gelmar

Chief Wandsman of Skeg.

Baya

A Farer woman working for Gelmar.

Gerrith

Wise woman of Irnan, and prophet. The Sun Woman.

Yarrod

An Irnanese leader who helps Stark.

Breca

A warrior in Yarrow's fake Pod. Halk's shieldmate.

Halk

An apostate Wandsman, now with Yarrow, a warrior. Breca's shieldmate.

Mordach

Chief Wandsman of Irnan.

Jerann

Irnan Council chief.

Kazimni

An Irnan military leader.

Old One

Elder of Stark's boyhood tribe on Mercury.

Atril

One of Yarrow's men. Wake's brother.

Wake

One of Yarrow's men. Atril's brother.

Amnir

A Komrey trader.

Hargoth

Priest-king of the Towers.

Kintoth

Towers fighting captain.

Slee

An Outdweller woman.

Slaifed

An Outdweller guide.

Ironmaster

Leader in the Iron House.

Vasth

A Wandsman.

Kell a Marg

A leader of the Children of Skaith-Our-Mother. The Skaith-Daughter.

Fenn

One of the Children of Skaith-Our-Mother.

Ferdic

One of the Children of Skaith-Our-Mother.

Flay

The old head Northhound.

Gerd

A young Northhound.

Ferdias

One of the Lords Protector.


PLACES

Pax

The chief habitable planet of Vega.

Pax

The major city of the chief habitable planet of Vega.

Twilight Belt

Habitable zone on Mercury.

Skaith

A newly discovered world in the Orion Spur.

Skeg

The spaceport on Skaith.

Fertile Belt

Most of the Skaith population live past here.

The Barrens

Area of Skaith.

Worldheart

Where lies the Citadel of the Lords Protector.

Irnan

A city-state of Skaith in the temperate zone.

Izvand

A city in the Barrens.

Lamp of the North

Moon of Skaith.

Komrey

City-state of Skaith.

Thyra

A Skaith city near the Witchfires.

Bleak Mountains

A large range.

Witchfires

Mountain range near Thyra.

Iron House

Thyran dwelling of authority.

House of the Mother

Children of Skaith-Our-Mother dwelling.

Tlavia

Queen City of the High North before the Wandering.

Plain of Worldheart

Where the Northhounds prowl.


CONCEPTS

Galactic Union

A democratic federation of star-worlds flung across half the Milky Way.

Galactic Arbitrary Time

A standard reference for use on multiple planets.

Three Ladies

A constellation viewed from Skaith.

Great Migrations

People moving because of the changing conditions on Skaith.

Pod

A collection of people so thoroughly sensitized by a species of group therapy that they no longer existed as individuals but only as interdependent parts of a
single organism.

Total Fulfillment

Endgame desire of Pods.

Pod-Master

Trainer of Pods.

Darkness, and his lady Cold, and their daughter Hunger

Tower deities.

Winter Dreaming

Towers ritual.

Dark Goddess

Deity worshipped by the Outdwellers.

Great Wandering

When more of Skaith was nomadic.



ORGANISATIONS

Ministry of Planetary Affairs

Simon Ashton's employer on Pax.

Mercury Metals and Mining

Stark's parents worked here when they were killed.

Galactic Center

Based at Pax.

Lords Protector

Skaith Rulers.

Wild Bands

Groups of bandits.

Diviners

Children of Skaith-Our-Mother priests.

Earth Police Control

Ashton's old employer when he found Stark as a boy.



RACES

Harsenyi

Nomads.

Outdwellers

Iron-clawed beastly band near Thyra.

People of the Towers

The Thyrans say they're great magicians. The Gray Maggots.

Farers

Wanderers and hedonists.

Children of the Sea-Our-Mother

Ocean dwellers that find people tasty. A genetic hybrid experiment that is reverting.

Little Sisters of the Sun

Desert altered humans.

Children of Skaith-Our-Mother

White furred people, genetically modified.

Wandsmen

The ruling class of Skaith.

People of the Barrens

Those who live in the interior.

Irnan

One of the migrating peoples. Have applied to emigrate off the dying planet via the Galactic Union.


ANIMALS


Rock-lizard

Large reptile.

Northhounds

Large intelligent telepathic canines.

Snow-dragon

Really large winged reptile.


PLANTS

Love-weed

A plant used as an euphoric drug.


TECHNOLOGY

The Robe and Crown of Fate

Worn by Gerrith, a veil and diadem.

Water of Vision

An Irnan tool of foresight.

Holy Breath of the Goddess

Freezing death weapon.

The Eye of the Mother

A large crystal and telepathic device.


FOOD

Khamm

An Irnan booze, like sweet white lightning.


MEDIA

The Long Wandering, The Destruction of the Red Hunters, The Coming of Strayer

Thyran ballads.

The Hymn of Deliverance

Ritual song of the Towers.




Eric John Stark discovers that his mentor Simon Ashton has gone missing while ona field assignment for his his employers in the Galactic Union.

His investigations take him to the newly discovered and primitive planet Skaith, an exotic place currently rife with conflict, because the sun is dying, making life harder and harder all the time.

Here, a minority class in the Wandsmen rule the rest of the planet, but rebellion is in the offing, as people in the inner areas want to migrate and take the past offer of being shipped off a planet that is no longer livable. Conservative feudal rulers dont like their labor base just leaving, of course.

Further, there is a prophecy that matches Stark's arrival, that of the Dark Man. This religious symbolism is an aid to the cause and morale of the rebels. The hereditary prophetess Gerrith becomes an ally through all the treachery and betrayal and violence, including parts of the the civil war, that Stark has to endure to find his mentor at the Citadel of the Lords Protector, on the plain of Worldheart where the telepathic Northhounds roam.


4 out of 5