Ordeal in Otherwhere

By now it's a well known story that Andre Norton's publisher had been resistant to this story because they did not think her fans would want to read a book with a female as a viewpoint character. The enthusiastic reaction proved them wrong and helped to open the world of science fiction to a legion of women, among them many current science fiction authors. Charis begins her story on a planet where a group of narrow relgious conservatives have taken over. She was fleeing from the settlement when a space ship planets. However, the way off the planet the ship offers is as contract labor, a hair away from outright slavery. Desperate, Charis agrees. She is taken to the planet of Warlock as part of a trading post, a small experiment to see if Terrans and Wyverns, as the natives of Warlock are called, can peacefully trade.However, there is more going on than a trading mission. Charis finds herself caught up in a struggle between hijackers and the native rulers. She also meets up with Shan Lantree, the Planet Survey Cadet assigned to the small Embassy Post as well as Shan's nonhuman wolverine companion, and a small lovable native animal called a curl cat.This is vintage Norton and well worth reading.

I loved this book, and after 30 years, I still pull it off the shelf and read it. Ms Norton was one of the first woman writers of Sci-fi/fantasy. Best known for her "witch world" fantasy series, Norton has also given us many fine sci-fi novels.Ordeal In Otherwhere would be considered one of the best of her action sci-fi. Norton has re-occuring themes that involve a youth, estranged and powerless, confronted with seemingly overwhelming odds. Throw in a weave of mind-magic, aliens, great odds and a dash of animal companions, and you have a classic Norton novel. One of the first books I read that had a female hero!