History Literature / Darkover

* Marital Rape LicenseL A weird almost-subversion of it comes up in ''The Forbidden Tower''. Ex-Keeper Callista has been so brainwashed into virginity that she can't physically touch her husband without freaking out. At one point she suggests that he just knock her out and have sex with her because then her reflexes won't go off and kill him for trying. Andrew is horrified at the idea of this, but his brother-in-law is all, "Well, that could work."

* InterspeciesRomance: The origin of the strong psychic powers, and also used in ''The World Wreckers.''

* SpaceElves: The chieri. Borderline SufficientlyAdvancedAliens, and used to be spread throughout the galaxy, but now in retirement.

* LukeIMightBeYourFather: In ''The Forbidden Tower'', it is said that Dezi's father might be one of oh, six guys his mother slept with the night he was conceived. None of them will claim him as his own, which royally pisses him off.

* LovingForce
** It is completely subverted in ''Two To Conquer'', as none of Bard's rape victims fall in love with him, even when in one case he wants her to.

** A weird almost-subversion of it comes up in ''The Forbidden Tower''. Ex-Keeper Callista has been so brainwashed into virginity that she can't physically touch her husband without freaking out. At one point she suggests that he just knock her out and have sex with her because then her reflexes won't go off and kill him for trying. Andrew is horrified at the idea of this, but his brother-in-law is all, "Well, that could work."

* ''The Children of Kings'' (with Deborah J. Ross; forthcoming)

* ''Rediscovery'' (with MercedesLackey)

* DroppedABridgetOnHim: In ''Hawkmistress!'', Romilly [=MacAran=], [[SweetPollyOliver in disguise as a boy]], is an object of lust for one of her companions. Turns out he didn't see though her disguise at all, he was actually gay.

* BusCrash: All the members of the Forbidden Tower, who are protagonists in several books, are killed off-screen in a house fire (probably set by fanatics) in the years between ''City of Sorcery'' and ''The Bloody Sun''.

* CastFromLifespan: [[spoiler: Regis Hastur]] use of [[spoiler: his "living matrix" 'laran' powers (as well as the Sword of Aldones) to defeat the Sharra matrix by banishing it to another plane]] in ''Sharra's Exile'' ends up having this effect on him. His family was well known for its members' longevity (living past 100 was definitely not unusual for the Hasturs), but he [[spoiler: ended up dying before he was even 60 years old]] in ''Traitor's Sun''.

* APlagueOnBothYourHouses: A servant curses the head of the Aldaran household as she dies in ''Stormqueen!''.

* OurElvesAreBetter: The ''chieri'', of the Space Elf variety.

* {{Precursors}}: The ''chieri'' reveal that they are the dying remnants of what was once a galaxy-spanning race of SufficientlyAdvanced aliens.

* TeleportersAndTransporters: During the height of their power, the Towers could send people and objects through the giant artificial matrices from one tower to another instantaneously.

* HalfBreed: Lew and Marius Alton get a lot of grief for having a Terran mother.
* HalfHumanHybrid: The alien native ''[[OurElvesAreDifferent chieri]]'' and the humans are capable of interbreeding. It's implied that the abnormally high incidence of psychic talents on Darkover is due to their ''chieri'' blood. Not to mention the extra fingers, and unusual eye colours (and, in many cases, sterility, or at the very least severe fertility issues).

* VictimFallsForRapist

* WhiteAndGreyMorality: The central conflict is between the good Darkovans and well-meaning, sympathetic Terrans who happen to be opposed to the Darkovan way of life. Individuals range all over the morality scale, but the series prefers nuanced villains to [[CompleteMonster Complete Monsters]].

* AllMythsAreTrue: The creation myth of the house of Hastur is actually true, although the "god" was [[GodGuise actually an alien ''chieri'']]

* MayDecemberRomance: Actually not done on Darkover, or at least marrying someone not of your generation isn't, because they might very well BE your father. Any relationship falling under this trope that eventually happens will be considered quite [[Squick squicky]] by Darkovan standards.

The world of Darkover is a feudal society with all technology being matrix science, or laran, which are PsychicPowers enhanced by [[PowerCrystal crystalline matrices]]. The abilities are said to be the natural talents of humans, enhanced by the matrices and historical selective breeding programs. There are also numerous non-human intelligent species on Darkover.

Humanity of Darkover has become a feudal society with power resting with those families who have laran. Earth technology is all but lost, but matrix science has become nearly as powerful in its place. Dangerous inbreeding occurs as the families try to produce more exotic and powerful types of psychic abilities. Those with the most powerful laran serve in Towers, which power transport, send messages, and make technology for others to use, such as constructed servants and weapons.

Coming at the end of the Ages of Chaos, Darkover has suffered a series of devastating wars using deadly laran weapons. Some of the gifts of laran are already starting to die out due to the effects of the breeding programs. The continent is split into dozens of small kingdoms, most still fighting. The Towers produce weapons of enormous destructive capabilities. This period ended with Varzil the Good created The Compact, which forbade anyone from using a weapon that didn't bring the user within equal risk of death.

Darkover is rediscovered by the Terran Empire, and a space port is established on the planet's surface. Darkover lies along a critical trade route, so pressure is applied for the planet to join the Empire, but Darkover's government, the Comyn, resist. Matrix technology is dying out, as are the men and women who wield laran, due in large part to the breeding programs in the Ages of Chaos. The land is split into seven Domains, each ruled by one of seven major families, and all is ruled over by a king.

* APlagueOnBothYourHouses: a servant curses the head of the Aldaran household as he dies in ''Stormqueen!''

* AlienSky: the Darkovan sun is a large, red star, colloquially known as the Bloody Sun. The night sky has four moons.
* AllMythsAreTrue: The creation myth of the house of Hastur is actually true, although the "god" was [[GodGuise actually an alien Chieri]]

* ArrangedMarriage: constantly

* BrotherSisterIncest: Mikhail of Aldaran insists on his ''preteen daughter'' marrying her 20-year-old half-brother in order to solve his HeirClubForMen[=/=]SuccessionCrisis problem. Yes, he wants them to make a baby. And it's implied that if he wasn't impotent, he'd have been willing to commit ParentalIncest to solve the problem. Even worse, [[BigBrotherAttraction both of the siblings are eventually willing to go through with it]], even the brother who already has a girlfriend.
* BurnTheWitch: after Cleindori demonstrates that VirginPower isn't really a requisite for her job, she and a lot of her family and friends (and the members of the Forbidden Tower) are slaughtered. And yes, in some cases, burned (in their house).

* ClosetKey: Danilo for Regis (in more ways than one; he has the catalyst laran, after all) and vice versa.

* DeathByChildbirth: This happens quite often, as it is to be expected in a society that stagnated at a medieval level. Some examples are Aliciane of Rockraven (when giving birth to Dorilys), Melora Aillard (when giving birth to Valentine), Elaine Montray (when giving birth to Marius).

** It's implied that this might partly be owing to Dyan never really getting over the fact that in their teens, [[spoiler: Kennard Alton]] broke his heart TWICE, first by picking a new best friend and then by [[spoiler: going straight on Dyan.]] Jawdroppingly, Dyan realizes the last-mentioned [[spoiler: while he and Kennard are actually having sex]].
* DisneyVillainDeath: [[spoiler: Jaelle and Aquilara]]

* TheEmpire: The Terran Empire during the Second Age
* EternalEnglish: Played straight with the Terran Empire, subverted on Darkover which speaks two different languages derived from gaelic and Spanish.

* FantasyGunControl: The Darkovan Compact forbids any kind of range weapon. It was developed to deal with the destructiveness of laran weaponry, but it covers guns as well.

* GenderBender: The chieri can alter their sex to match that of their partner.
* GoingNative: Numerous Terrans, including Magda Lorne, Andrew Carr, Jeff Kerwin, and Margaret Alton

* HalfHumanHybrid: The alien native ''[[OurElvesAreDifferent chieri]]'' and the humans are capable of interbreeding. It's implied that the abnormally high incidence of psychic talents on Darkover is due to their ''chieri'' blood. Not to mention the extra fingers.
* HeirClubForMen: constantly.
* HeroesWantRedheads: nearly all those with psychic talent have red hair, which means that the love interests and heroines are almost always redheads.
* IChooseToStay: [[spoiler: Magda and Camilla choose to join the HiddenElfVillage at the end of City of Sorcery.]]
* ItsOkayIfItsYou: Regis Hastur has a thing for Danilo Syrtis, who is very reluctant due to a major case of homophobia (preferring to maintain their current [[HeterosexualLifePartners relationship]] ) until [[spoiler: Regis finally manages to get him into bed, after which he does an abrupt 180 and becomes quite possessive; it's implied that Danilo is ONLY interested in Regis to the exclusion of any other [[SingleTargetSexuality potential relationship.]] ]]

* KissingCousins: almost every single freaking relationship on Darkover that doesn't involve an alien species or a Terran is a case of cousins marrying.

* LawOfInverseFertility: Ellemir, who loves children and very much wants her own, finds it very difficult to carry a child to term. Her twin sister Callista, who is not especially interested, has no trouble at all. The result is a bunch of children running around the estate who all call Ellemir "Mama," regardless of their biological parentage. (IIRC, even some children not born to Ellemir, Callista, or either's husband do this. She just mothers any child in range.)

* LukeIMightBeYourFather: Dezi's father might be one of oh, six guys his mother slept with that night. None of them will claim him as his own, which royally pisses him off.
* MandatoryMotherhood: and how. Not only can nobody conceive of such a thing as being wanted, Darkover used to have breeding programs for laran. The Comyn still insists on everyone having as many kids as possible with other Comyn (at a time in the past, it was forbidden for one woman to have more than two children by the same man: a Darkovan woman a little patronizingly explains to an Earthwoman the concept of "genetic pool"). Camilla of ''Darkover Landfall'' and Rohana of the Renunciate trilogy particularly were not thrilled to have lots of kids.

* TheMagocracy: The planet is ruled by a king and seven noble houses, and the heir to those positions must have laran. Subversion: those who actually specialize in the use of laran are supposed to stay in the Towers and out of government.

* MayDecemberRomance: actually not done on Darkover, or at least marrying someone not of your generation isn't, because they might very well BE your father.

* OneSteveLimit: totally averted. The same first names are used ''over and over and over'' for generations. And one book had multiple Davids.
* OrphansPlotTrinket: Jeff Kerwin grows up in the Terran Empire with no idea that the blue stone he's always worn is the matrix of his Keeper mother Cleindori; when he finally comes back to Darkover, the Comyn identify him through the matrix.

* NumberedHomeworld: Cottman IV

** The Renunciates use matronymics, with members identfying themselves as so-and-so daughter of (''n'ha'') mother's name. For example, Kindra n'ha Mhari, Jaelle n'ha Melora, Margali n'ha Ysabet.

* {{Polyamory}}: oddly enough, this seems to crop up in places. Due to breeding issues, it used to be far more acceptable to have children by various men. Particularly notable is the social custom of it being okay for a wife's sister to sleep with her husband should she be unable to do so.

* ReincarnationRomance: it's implied that Mikhail and Marguerida are this, to the point of [[TimeTravel going back in time]] and being mistaken for a thwarted couple named Mikhailangelo and Margarethe.

* SexSlave: The riyachiyas in ''Stormqueen.''

* SuccessionCrisis: constantly

* TwinSwitch: an inherent part of Bard and his dad's plan to bring Paul into their lives is so that they can do this. It gets interesting when [[spoiler: when Bard's gone, Paul gets nabbed and forced to become king of Asturiens and marry Melisandra. Fortunately it turns out that Bard doesn't want Melisendra for himself and neither of them want to be king]].
* TwinTelepathy: With twins, one will have a large portion of laran, and the other little. However, twins are always telepathically linked regardless of how little talent the one has.

** A weird almost-subversion of it comes up in ''The Forbidden Tower.'' Ex-Keeper Callista has been so brainwashed into virginity that she can't physically touch her husband without freaking out. At one point she suggests that he just knock her out and have sex with her because then her reflexes won't go off and kill him for trying. Andrew is horrified at the idea of this, but his brother-in-law is all, "Well, that could work."

* VirginPower: Keepers, the most powerful of laran workers, have to keep their channels free of sexual impulses during heavy laran work or risk serious injury. During the First Age of recontact, this was enforced for women by keeping them virginal or even making them sexless via surgery.

* KissingCousins: almost every single freaking relationship on Darkover that doesn't involve an alien species or a Terran is a case of cousins marrying.

* {{Doppelganger}}: Paul Harrell, to Bard di Asturien

* ActionGirl: Several, notably including Jaelle n'ha Melora, Magda Lorne, Camilla, Vanessa ryn Erin and Romilly [=MacAran=].