The natives of Darkover were hu­man, but hostile to the Earth colo­nists who had come to their planet. Larry Montray, however, was able to become friendly with the Altons, an important clan, and was one of the few Terrans ever to observe Darkovan life and customs at first hand.

But Larry was to get much more than he bargained for—he found himself in the middle of a feud older than memory; a feud fought by unknown beings, deadly beasts and alien in­telligences... and his actions were to determine the fate of every Terran on the planet of the blood-red sun.