What is "hawkmistress!"

Hawkmistress! is a fantasy novel written by Marion Zimmer Bradley as part of the Darkover series and is set at the end of Ages of Chaos, in the period of Darkover's history known as the Hundred Kingdoms. Chapters 35 and 46–50 of Zandru's Forge overlap with the story in Hawkmistress.

In Hawkmistress!, Bradley explores issues regarding the right to self-determination of minors, the place of women in a traditional society, and the conflicts between Darkover's two major religious belief systems. She also continues the theme of Darkover society's developing acceptance of homosexuality, through the character of Orain.