Pierce expands the dream recounted by Jung into a story by giving it multidimensional characters and an easilyvisualized setting. She draws on myths and fairytales from different traditions for the creatures which inhabit her world; for example, vampires are called icari after the winged character, Icarus, from Greek mythology. The duarough, who lived underground and were closely associated with the earth, comes from Scandinavian myth.

Pierce also uses the familiar pattern of the quest, which is a theme that has long been common to both the oral and written traditions of many cultures. In this pattern, a character must undertake a difficult journey, such as Aeriel's venture across the desert, in search of some end. For Aeriel, the end is the hoof of the Starhorse. Often, there are wise helpers along the way, such as the duarough and the Pendarlon, as well as enchanted implements like...