The Green Pearl
core novel 1985 Lyonesse
Record
| First published | 1985 |
|---|---|
| Original language |  EN |
| Work type | novel |
| Canon status | core |
| Reader rating | 4.17 (3,161 ratings, collected 2026-09-14) |
| Page count | 406 |
| First-edition ISBN | 9780425087466 |
| Internal chronology | 2 |
Synopsis
The Green Pearl, the second novel in Jack Vance's Lyonesse trilogy, opens when a fisherman finds a mysterious green pearl inside a flounder, an object that becomes entangled in the conflicts unfolding across the Elder Isles' rival kingdoms. King Casmir of Lyonesse continues to scheme against neighboring territories, including plots to destabilize South Ulfland, while pursuing a prophecy concerning his daughter and searching for his grandson Dhrun. Aillas, now established as a ruler in his own right, navigates ongoing conflicts and political maneuvering, including capturing the noblewoman Lady Tatzel, with whom he develops an uneasy, evolving relationship, while the magicians Shimrod and Murgen work against darker forces including Casmir's ally Tamurello. Elsewhere, the young Glyneth is drawn into an alternate dimension and forms a bond with her rescuer, Kul, as the pursuit of the green pearl itself becomes one strand connecting these separate struggles across the Isles.
Where it sits
- Universe: Lyonesse
- Series: Lyonesse core; position 2 of 3 in the series' recorded order
- Author: Jack Vance
Awards (verified)
- Locus Award (Best Fantasy Novel), 1986: finalist; 5th place, no-cutoff convention.
Notes
- From the series record (Lyonesse): Core Canon = all 3 novels of the completed trilogy (Berkley, 1983; Underwood-Miller, 1985 and 1989). Confirmed a separate, unrelated universe from Vance's The Dying Earth, already in this canon -- different world, different continuity; both records are cross-referenced as being by the same author.
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 Lyonesse: position 2 of 3: previous Suldrun's Garden (1983) · next Madouc (1989)
Sources
← Lyonesse dossier · All universes
Part of the Library. Fields without an identified source are omitted, never guessed.