The Saga of the Pliocene Exile is a series of four books, but is also part of a larger body of work by Julian May, all tied to her intergalactic Milieu society. In addition to these books, there are also the two books in the Intervention series, and three in the Galactic Milieu trilogy.

These four books were originally published between 1981 and 1984, and reissued during the early to mid 1990s; in the British edition, the series was titled 'The Saga of the Exiles'. These books focus on the exploits of a group of misfit humans who use a one-way time machine to 'exile' themselves to prehistoric times, and find the planet occupied by an alien race.

A fifth book, titled 'A Pliocene Companion', was later published as a guide and glossary to the four books in this saga. This book does not add in any significant way to the story itself, but is an interesting resource for those who are interested in the world building that was involved in developing these books.

'The Many-Colored Land'

The time frame when this book begins is somewhat after 'Magnificat', the last book in the 'Galactic Milieu' trilogy, has ended. Individuals who have been unable to adapt to life in the XXth century, whether due to the high leves of technology, the mingling of human society with the alien races of the Galactic Milieu, or the overriding emphasis of the society on the development of metapsychic powers and using them for the good of community.
. The book introduces the main characters of the Saga, the time travelers in Group Green, who were all to travel to the Pliocene together:

• Elizabeth, who had recently lost her metapsychic powers as the result of a severe head injury
• Aiken, a charming young man and recalcitrant criminal
• Stein, a hefty ore driller with a painful childhood
• Bryan, an anthropologist who's following a lost lover into Exile
• Felice, a disturbed and violent adolescent who had a special gift with animals
• Richard, a one-time spaceship pilot who had lost his flight privileges due to ethical violations
• Amerie, a nun who is seeking the isolated lifestyle of a religious hermit
• Claude, an older paleogeologist who had recently lost his wife

• Madame Guderian, whose late husband created the time machine, and who was the 'guardian of the gate' during the years when most of the humans in the Pliocene came through
• Sukey, a gentle if sometimes impetuous woman who believes she's coming to find a mythic Hollow Earth
• Mercy, the fey woman pursued by Bryan

• Thagdal, the King
• Nontsuvel, his Queen - collectively, her children are known as 'The Host'
• Nodonn, the oldest child of Thagdal and Nontsuvel, and the presumptive heir to the throne
• Creyn
• Dionket

'The Golden Torc'

'The Nonborn King'

'The Adversary'