The Ruins of Isis — Marion Zimmer Bradley

DOMINATION OR DESTINY

The women of Isis held fast to a near-extinct culture of matriarchal rule. Deep within their sacred ruins dwelled the Builders, an ancient spirit -- a spirit that spoke only to women. Cherished and worshiped, their soft, warming voices belonged to the ruins of a race which seeded the entire Galaxy.

Now from the Planet Pioneer, Scholar Cendri and her husband, Master Scholar Dal, have come. Scientists . . . lovers .. . man and wife .. .

Through them Isis itself, steeped in beliefs of bondage and supremacy, will be tried before its sacred forebears, in the sanctity of their ruins -- while cataclysmic forces gather to proclaim it a new world -- or no world at all.