Tea with the Black Dragon
core novel 1983 Tea with the Black Dragon
Record
| First published | 1983 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 3.95 (5,381 ratings, collected 2026-09-05) |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780553232059 |
| Internal chronology | 1 |
Synopsis
Martha Macnamara travels to San Francisco after receiving a cryptic, worrying message from her daughter Elizabeth, only to arrive and discover that Elizabeth has vanished without explanation. Seeking help navigating the city and the mystery, Martha meets Mayland Long, a distinguished, courtly, and wealthy gentleman of apparent Chinese descent who is fluent in both human languages and the languages of computers, and whose calm manner conceals a far stranger nature than Martha initially suspects. As the two join forces to search for Elizabeth, their investigation draws them into a world of hidden dangers and old secrets, while an unlikely bond forms between the earnest, practical Martha and the enigmatic, ancient Mayland Long.
Where it sits
- Universe: Tea with the Black Dragon
- Series: Tea with the Black Dragon core; position 1 of 2 in the series' recorded order
- Author: R. A. MacAvoy
Awards (verified)
- Locus Award (Best First Novel), 1984: won
- Nebula Award (Best Novel), 1983: nominated
- Hugo Award (Best Novel), 1984: nominated
Notes
- From the series record (Tea with the Black Dragon): A completed two-book contemporary-fantasy sequence: a grieving mother investigating her missing daughter's computer-fraud entanglement is aided by a courtly stranger who is, unbeknownst to her, an ancient dragon in human form; the sequel follows the same pair investigating a fraudulent psychic. MacAvoy's debut won the 1984 Locus Award for Best First Novel and was a finalist for the 1983 Nebula Award and 1984 Hugo Award for Best Novel; MacAvoy herself won the 1984 John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer.
Neighbouring works
Publication order and internal chronology are tracked as two separate orderings, but they resolve to the exact same sequence for this book, so one combined line is shown instead of two identical ones.
- Reading order, within the series Tea with the Black Dragon: position 1 of 2: next Twisting the Rope (1986)
Sources
← Tea with the Black Dragon dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.