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Promise of the Flame (2009)

by Sylvia Engdahl
(#2 in The Hidden Flame)

Three hundred people, isolated forever on a raw new planet in the hope of fulfilling a dream, the dream that their psi powers will become the foundation of a culture that can someday shape the future of humankind. If they don’t starve first. If they don’t lose heart in the face of hardships beyond any they imagined. And if their kids can be reared to believe in the dream and advance both their technology and their psi powers from one generation to the next.

Jesse hasn’t expected to be responsible for the settlement. Peter is the leader, the visionary on whose inspiration they all depend. But Peter has his hands full, not only with maintaining morale but with grueling ordeals of his own. So the job of ensuring the colony’s survival falls on Jesse. And in the end, he must stake his life in a desperate attempt to prevent the loss of all they have gained.

This series, formerly titled the Flame Trilogy, has been split into two series: The Hidden Flame and The RIsing Flame. This novel is the second book in the first series, preceded by Stewards of the Flame. The second series begins with Defender of the Flame, which is a separate story that does not depend on having read the first series. Unlike some of Sylvia Engdahl’s previous novels, these are not Young Adult books and are not appropriate for middle-school readers.