Mother of Eden

This sequel to Dark Eden (2014) continues the story of a civilization started by astronauts from Earth who were stranded on a distant planet. Generations later, the population has grown and split into several distinct communities. Starlight Brooking lives in Knee Tree Grounds, a place without social strata, where responsibility and power are shared equally. On a trip to the shrine honoring her earthly progenitors, she meets Greenstone Johnson, soon to be ruler of the community of New Earth. Starlight seizes the opportunity to live in a new place and agrees to become his Housewoman, ruling with him as Mother of Eden. Starlight is disturbed by New Earth's rigid hierarchical society, held in place by strict adherence to the Earth-based ideals of their ancestors, supposedly contained in documents wholly controlled by the Teachers. Jealous of the power Starlight now holds and convinced of their intellectual superiority, New Earth's Teachers set out to correct her ideas about equality and bring her beliefs in line with theirs. Instead, the heroine convinces Greenstone that the best way to rule is to shift power downward into the hands of the lower classes. The ensuing struggle for control becomes brutal, leaving Starlight fighting for her life as well as her ideals. The detailed world-building and strong characters beautifully illustrate the usefulness of myths as a tool for keeping power in the hands of a few.