I had read this trilogy, but so long ago that I'd forgotten nearly all of it.

Luke Perry (this was written in the 1970s, so no intended reference to the 1990s actor) is a serious young man, the son of a warrior Captain of Winchester. After the Disaster, people repudiated machinery. Cities of the former England have separated. They are ruled by martial Princes whose armies fight ritualised battles with each other. Luke's father, a commoner, becomes Prince after a series of intrigues by the Seers, mysterious black-robed figures who commune with the Spirits. The Seers have selected Luke to be the Prince of Princes, destined to rule all the cities. Thus begins a bloody round of inter-city intrigues. The book has a high body count of Luke's relatives. Luke is grim, prideful and relentless. He's a prosaic narrator, and the atmosphere of cold and brutal intrigue hangs over the book. It is written sparsely but well.

Although the theme is post-apocalyptic it is more like a medieval fantasy in tone, with some differences. There are no fantastical elements, except for hints that certain animals have developed intelligence. Mutants (polymufs) abound. Animal polymufs are destroyed; humans are allowed to live as servants in a stratified warrior society. In the second book, 'Beyond the Burning Lands' Luke ventures to the land of the 'Wilsh' across a burning volcanic desert. There he finds a society very different to his own.

This is a book which has no real heroes, though Luke's journey is like a grim and dark version of the Hero's Journey. It's gloomy -- maybe a bit too much for a young adults tome -- but not despairing. I remembered and still find the final line of the book a bit over-dramatic, a bit emo-teen. The trilogy is well-constructed. ( )