Starting a reread of this series in chronological rather than publication order. Actually, I haven't read the series even in publication order, I got what the library had at any given point in time, and that was 30 years ago. So this is a treat, and one long delayed. :) really enjoyed this, after the first 25% which dragged a bit for me. I feel like it sets the stage well for the rest of what's going to happen in the generations to come.