Rider at the Gate

On the surface, it is a paradise of fertile farmland and towering, ore-rich mountains - but its pleasures lie beyond humanity's reach. For here all animals, from tiny wally-boos and willy-wisps to fierce predatory goblin cats, survive by telepathy, projecting images that drive humans mad. Grouped in cramped walled towns, most humans can only hide. Only the Riders, the handful chosen by the native Nighthorses, have any kind of protection. Attracted by the complexity of human thought, the most powerful Nighthorses enter the dreams of individuals, choosing their Riders, bonding them into a telepathic community. While townsfolk cower behind a religion based on fear and ignorance, Riders and their Nighthorses shield the infrastructure of human settlements, challenging the Wild. But Nighthorses are alien, not wise, and human emotions can be destructive, requiring stern discipline. Young Danny Fisher and his high-strung, obstinate horse Cloud are still learning control when Danny's hometown explodes with violence. A Rider and her mare are killed and the anguished emotions of the girl's lover, Guil Stuart, spread like a contagion to the horses. Chaos erupts and Guil is forced from the town at gunpoint. Wounded, without supplies or weapons, Guil and his sardonic, bacon-loving stallion, Burn, ride into howling winter blizzards, seeking the killer. Danny and the girl's furtive kinsmen search for Guil, unaware of the dark enemy who tracks them.