The first book in C.J.Cherryh’s eponymous series, Foreigner begins an epic tale of the survivors of a lost spacecraft who crash-land on a planet inhabited by a hostile, sentient alien race. From its beginnings as a human-alien story of first contact, the Foreigner series has become a true science fiction odyssey, following a civilization from the age of steam through early space flight to confrontations with other alien species in distant sectors of space. It is the masterwork of a truly remarkable author.
My Take
I read some of her work back in the mists of time. At least one of the Chanur books, I think. I remember cat aliens. And probably at least some of The Faded Sun trilogy. I remember the term mri. Anyway, the Foreigner series is supposed to be her masterwork. I don’t think I’ve read this one. I don’t remember the plot. There isn’t a ton of tech here, it’s mostly politics, and those are very complex. Most of the characters are atevi, an alien — though vaguely humanoid — race. They are interesting. Bren, the one human character, I found frustrating and prone to dithering. Although when pushed to act, he does so decisively. We can only see the world through Bren’s eyes, and Bren doesn’t know what the hell is going on most of the time, so we feel his frustration. Having been a foreigner, I related to this book.
This book was long on world building. Culture building might be a better description. I intend to continue the series and expect my interest to deepen as I get to know this world better. Right now I need to snack on something a little lighter.