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The Conquerors Saga #2
Наследството на завоевателите
Зхиррзхианците са спечелили временно надмощие във войната си срещу хората. Но интриги в техния лагер отслабват силите им. А времето е крайно ограничено. Военните сили на зхиррзхианците са много разпръснати и срещат упорита съпротива. Зхиррзхианците са успели да завладеят и самата смърт, но дори тази сила не може да се сравнява с унищожителната мощ на армадите на хората-завоеватели. Расата им е изправена пред двойна заплаха — да бъде унищожена от човешката технология… или да унищожи сама себе си.
272 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1995
45 people are currently reading
748 people want to read
About the author
Timothy Zahn
481 books8,513 followersTimothy Zahn attended Michigan State University, earning a Bachelor of Science degree in physics in 1973. He then moved to the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and achieved an M.S. degree in physics in 1975. While he was pursuing a doctorate in physics, his adviser became ill and died. Zahn never completed the doctorate. In 1975 he had begun writing science fiction as a hobby, and he became a professional writer. He and his wife Anna live in Bandon, Oregon. They have a son, Corwin Zahn.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 71 reviews
August 19, 2024
За тази втора част от сагата, Тимъти Зан е избрал рядко срещана гледна точка - тази на извънземните, които са в жесток военен конфликт с хората. Според мен се е справил доволно добре!
Малко по-мудно ми вървеше, но историята се развива достатъчно интересно и успя да задържи вниманието ми.
Все пак, оценката ми е по-ниска.
Да видим, как ще се развие ситуацията в последната книга от трилогията.
Малко по-мудно ми вървеше, но историята се развива достатъчно интересно и успя да задържи вниманието ми.
Все пак, оценката ми е по-ниска.
Да видим, как ще се развие ситуацията в последната книга от трилогията.
April 14, 2011
With this book Timothy Zahn accomplishes several things few authors are capable of. 1) He write a book from the point of view of an alien living on an alien world without any character to act as a audiance representative that learns about the world and culture along with us. 2) He makes an extremely alien culture and government seem mundane. Aliens have to do paperwork too.
3) He advances the story of the series without relying on the characters of the first book in a way that feels mostly natural, and isn't marred by our desire to get back to the characters of the first book.
I am really really impressed by this book, and while I enjoyed reading it less than the first one, it made my enjoyment of the finale so many times greater.
Stories that show conflict from both sides, and both points of view are almost always stronger than stories with a more one sided focus, and with this book Zahn shows that he is not only willing to offer a token effort to show opposing points of view, he wants to offer equal time.
You should read it if you read "Conqueror Pride".
3) He advances the story of the series without relying on the characters of the first book in a way that feels mostly natural, and isn't marred by our desire to get back to the characters of the first book.
I am really really impressed by this book, and while I enjoyed reading it less than the first one, it made my enjoyment of the finale so many times greater.
Stories that show conflict from both sides, and both points of view are almost always stronger than stories with a more one sided focus, and with this book Zahn shows that he is not only willing to offer a token effort to show opposing points of view, he wants to offer equal time.
You should read it if you read "Conqueror Pride".
December 27, 2017
Rating: 5
Mini review:
Conqueror's Heritage is the 2nd book in The Conquerors Saga. This book tells the story from the perspective of Zhirrzh people, mostly Thrr-gilag, while learning the truth behind who really started the war.
I dare to say that this book was way better than the 1st one. Easier to read and more interesting. Also funnier and surprising. I really enjoyed reading this book from the perspective of Zhirrzhs. Differences between characters were really entertaining. I could easily decide if I liked one person and disliked another one - this is definitely a plus for me.
I also really liked the whole idea of fsss being thoroughly explained. Elders system also made really good impression on me.
Mini review:
Conqueror's Heritage is the 2nd book in The Conquerors Saga. This book tells the story from the perspective of Zhirrzh people, mostly Thrr-gilag, while learning the truth behind who really started the war.
I dare to say that this book was way better than the 1st one. Easier to read and more interesting. Also funnier and surprising. I really enjoyed reading this book from the perspective of Zhirrzhs. Differences between characters were really entertaining. I could easily decide if I liked one person and disliked another one - this is definitely a plus for me.
I also really liked the whole idea of fsss being thoroughly explained. Elders system also made really good impression on me.
June 2, 2025
This is the second book in Timothy Zahn’s Conquerors trilogy. It is told exclusively from the perspective of the alien species Zhirrzh, the Conquerors of the first book. They in fact call the humans “Conquerors”, and they believe that in the first encounter between humans and Zhirrzh, the humans fired the first shots on the Zhirrzh expeditionary force, thereby starting the war, contrary to what we saw in the first book. This contradiction is resolved in the first few chapters of this book, and it turns out that both parties are right from their respective point of view.
The main theme in this novel is the relationship of the Zhirrzh to their Elders. At a young age, a specific organ is removed from a Zhirrzh’s body, the “fss” organ. It is stored at a special place, and when the Zhirrzh die, their conciousness returns to this organ. They retain all memories right up until their death, they can see and hear and talk, they are visible as ghosts and they can move this ghostly appearance in a certain radius around the organ. They are now Elders.
The novel shows us how Zhirrzh society is shaped by the existence of the Elders: the Elders give advice on current affairs (often unbidden), they perform duties such as watch duties or the passing of messages (even over interstellar distances), they are mostly treated with respect, and Zhirrzh society expends some effort in protecting the places where the “fss” organs are stored.
The narrative is mainly told from the eyes of two Zhirrzh brothers. Thrr-gilag, a scientist, was the chief interrogator of the human prisoner Pheylan Cavanagh, and Thrr-mezaz, a soldier, is the commander of the Zhirrzh occupation forces on the human world Dorcas. Both get into political trouble for different reasons, and both are in danger of losing their respective positions.
I liked the main idea of showing us a society shaped by the interaction with their Elders, although there is no scientific explanation given for the existence and the properties of these Elders. Also, apart from the Elders, the Zhirrzh society seems rather mundane and human-like in its workings - but this may be explained by the author “translating” a much more alien society into human terms.
Some of the narrative strands I found interesting, such as the Elder’s Prr’t-zevisti, whose “fss” organ falls into human hands - which gives him the opportunity to observe them rather closely, while they do not know what they have there. Others I found less interesting, such as Thrr-pifix-a’s, who does not want to become an Elder and therefore attempts to steal her own “fss” organ. But whether you like them or not, the characterization of these alien people is always precise and well-written.
The war between the humans and Zhirrzh is not developed much further in this second book of the trilogy. I found the Mrachani situation quite interesting (as in the first book), although it is only a minor plot point so far, and I hope it will play a more major role in the concluding volume, which I am now quite looking forward to reading.
In conclusion: I give this book four stars. I liked the main “Elders” idea and its development, I liked the way the story is told exclusively from Zhirrzh eyes, the pleasant writing style and precise characterization and the mostly interesting plot lines. The fifth star is missing because of some dull moments in the middle of the book, which slowed my reading down a bit.
The main theme in this novel is the relationship of the Zhirrzh to their Elders. At a young age, a specific organ is removed from a Zhirrzh’s body, the “fss” organ. It is stored at a special place, and when the Zhirrzh die, their conciousness returns to this organ. They retain all memories right up until their death, they can see and hear and talk, they are visible as ghosts and they can move this ghostly appearance in a certain radius around the organ. They are now Elders.
The novel shows us how Zhirrzh society is shaped by the existence of the Elders: the Elders give advice on current affairs (often unbidden), they perform duties such as watch duties or the passing of messages (even over interstellar distances), they are mostly treated with respect, and Zhirrzh society expends some effort in protecting the places where the “fss” organs are stored.
The narrative is mainly told from the eyes of two Zhirrzh brothers. Thrr-gilag, a scientist, was the chief interrogator of the human prisoner Pheylan Cavanagh, and Thrr-mezaz, a soldier, is the commander of the Zhirrzh occupation forces on the human world Dorcas. Both get into political trouble for different reasons, and both are in danger of losing their respective positions.
I liked the main idea of showing us a society shaped by the interaction with their Elders, although there is no scientific explanation given for the existence and the properties of these Elders. Also, apart from the Elders, the Zhirrzh society seems rather mundane and human-like in its workings - but this may be explained by the author “translating” a much more alien society into human terms.
Some of the narrative strands I found interesting, such as the Elder’s Prr’t-zevisti, whose “fss” organ falls into human hands - which gives him the opportunity to observe them rather closely, while they do not know what they have there. Others I found less interesting, such as Thrr-pifix-a’s, who does not want to become an Elder and therefore attempts to steal her own “fss” organ. But whether you like them or not, the characterization of these alien people is always precise and well-written.
The war between the humans and Zhirrzh is not developed much further in this second book of the trilogy. I found the Mrachani situation quite interesting (as in the first book), although it is only a minor plot point so far, and I hope it will play a more major role in the concluding volume, which I am now quite looking forward to reading.
In conclusion: I give this book four stars. I liked the main “Elders” idea and its development, I liked the way the story is told exclusively from Zhirrzh eyes, the pleasant writing style and precise characterization and the mostly interesting plot lines. The fifth star is missing because of some dull moments in the middle of the book, which slowed my reading down a bit.
August 31, 2015
(Update July 2013: The Conqueror's series is one of the most impressive stories I have ever read (I've graded ~2000). Although not all the books earned an A grade on first read because of the complexity, the overall series is a strong grade A. I suspect each story will earn a grade A on second read. The story includes more characters, situations, interactions, species, and concepts than most authors deal with in a lifetime. Yet the author manages to keep it all straight for the reader, an impressive major accomplishment. In all this there are only two major villains, both politicians - very interesting. This definitely deserves a second read.)
2013 grade B. This is a technically difficult read.
It is entirely told from the alien's point of view. All their names are hard to pronounce, multi-syllable, and in the format last-first - which means you do not know who is talking until the second or third syllable.
When English dialog is present it is missing words and parts of words that the aliens cannot translate. The substituted word is "something" every time. At least the aliens should be able to recognize different sounds. The result is often gibberish to the reader. I found it made no difference whether I understood or not and since it slowed me down, I started skipping them. It didn't make any difference in my understanding of the content.
The author also digresses off the main story line to explain the alien culture. Not only was much of this boring, it was also unnecessary. Maybe that's because I have read about 3000 novels but I started speed reading through these and had no problem understanding the content.
Book two in a series of three. The story basically ends on a cliff hanger, although not a major one. Never the less, I advise not reading it or book one until you have the last book in hand because in book three you have to keep track of all the characters from book one and two.
Given those difficulties, I still liked it.
.
2013 grade B. This is a technically difficult read.
It is entirely told from the alien's point of view. All their names are hard to pronounce, multi-syllable, and in the format last-first - which means you do not know who is talking until the second or third syllable.
When English dialog is present it is missing words and parts of words that the aliens cannot translate. The substituted word is "something" every time. At least the aliens should be able to recognize different sounds. The result is often gibberish to the reader. I found it made no difference whether I understood or not and since it slowed me down, I started skipping them. It didn't make any difference in my understanding of the content.
The author also digresses off the main story line to explain the alien culture. Not only was much of this boring, it was also unnecessary. Maybe that's because I have read about 3000 novels but I started speed reading through these and had no problem understanding the content.
Book two in a series of three. The story basically ends on a cliff hanger, although not a major one. Never the less, I advise not reading it or book one until you have the last book in hand because in book three you have to keep track of all the characters from book one and two.
Given those difficulties, I still liked it.
.
February 1, 2015
I'm so glad that I'm done with this blessed book! I dragged my way through it and to be honest, really ended up super speed- read my way through the last 100 pages. This genre is really not my thing and now I can say it with certainty having just read a decently rated book in the science fiction/ fantasy/ space setting genre. I hate completely made up worlds, people, language, religion, etc,,,, I thnk it's because I don't have anywhere to put the ideas n my head because they are obviously so foreign to me. My brain just can't deal with it and it is extremely frustrating to me! I can't even give a decent summary because I just didn't get it. This may be a really great book for science fiction fans but for me it was a complete dud! 1 star!
June 9, 2020
Science Fiction can be a hard genre to read. It can be especially hard if there are a lot of alien names and words used. But what if the entire book is from the aliens point of view, on alien planets, with minimal references to the Humans from the first book? Well, Timothy Zahn set out to do that.
And it works!
The first thing I'll say about this book is that it is ambitious. It takes a drastic turn from the first book in the series and brings you to all new places and settings and characters, and expects you to remember what happened before as little tidbits of the previous book slip into this one. I would never expect to like let alone be able to read such a book, but it was surprisingly entertaining.
Another thing that was interesting was the naming convention. All the Zhirrzh names are hyphenated, with the family name first(our last name) and their individual name last(our first name). This was a difficult concept to understand, but I eventually was able to not only understand it, but root and love the characters in the book.
Another thing that Zahn does really well is write families. I believe this is one of the reasons that his original Star Wars novels were so successful. In the first book of this series, he focused on the Cavanagh family, while this book focuses on the "Thrr" family. I found "Thrr-Gilag" to be very compelling and interesting and found "Thrr-Mezaz" to be also very well written and interesting.
I also found the culture of the Zhirrzh to be interesting and unique. The whole "Elder" concept was fun and different and provided an element of Fantasy into the mix that I enjoyed. The concept of the Pyramid's was a little confusing, but I eventually understood it by the end of the book.
The politics of this book are also interesting. I would never expect the main part of a book about aliens, featuring alien politics to be the most interesting part of the book. In regards to the Overclan Prime, I went from loving him to hating him to not being sure by the end. He was complex and kept me as a reader on my toes. I think I know his motives, but I'm not entirely sure. Also, Cvv-Panav was an effective "villain"("Foil" might be a better word though) and was really intimidating.
The entire plotline with Prr't-Zevisti was uninteresting to me(and that was the section featuring the only Humans in the book!) largely because almost every other human word was "something", since it was from the alien's point of view and they don't understand everything yet. However, the reveal at the end of the book with his character was both shocking and expected, it was just surprising enough to catch me off guard, but didn't seem implausable, and it makes me view the whole story in a whole new way.
On a small note, I really liked the character of Klnn-Vavgi, particularly when he was extremely loyal to Thrr-Mezaz. He could have easily worked behind his back to mutiny, but he was respectful and loyal to his superior and that was refreshing compared to many other books/stories that we get today.
Overall, I really, really liked this book. It was so different and fun and I expected it to be difficult and it really wasn't. I think I enjoyed the first book a little more because of the character work with the Cavanaghs, but this book is more important for the reasons mentioned above. I'll give it the same rating of 8.5 out of 10! Well done Zahn. I can't wait to read the conclusion!
And it works!
The first thing I'll say about this book is that it is ambitious. It takes a drastic turn from the first book in the series and brings you to all new places and settings and characters, and expects you to remember what happened before as little tidbits of the previous book slip into this one. I would never expect to like let alone be able to read such a book, but it was surprisingly entertaining.
Another thing that was interesting was the naming convention. All the Zhirrzh names are hyphenated, with the family name first(our last name) and their individual name last(our first name). This was a difficult concept to understand, but I eventually was able to not only understand it, but root and love the characters in the book.
Another thing that Zahn does really well is write families. I believe this is one of the reasons that his original Star Wars novels were so successful. In the first book of this series, he focused on the Cavanagh family, while this book focuses on the "Thrr" family. I found "Thrr-Gilag" to be very compelling and interesting and found "Thrr-Mezaz" to be also very well written and interesting.
I also found the culture of the Zhirrzh to be interesting and unique. The whole "Elder" concept was fun and different and provided an element of Fantasy into the mix that I enjoyed. The concept of the Pyramid's was a little confusing, but I eventually understood it by the end of the book.
The politics of this book are also interesting. I would never expect the main part of a book about aliens, featuring alien politics to be the most interesting part of the book. In regards to the Overclan Prime, I went from loving him to hating him to not being sure by the end. He was complex and kept me as a reader on my toes. I think I know his motives, but I'm not entirely sure. Also, Cvv-Panav was an effective "villain"("Foil" might be a better word though) and was really intimidating.
The entire plotline with Prr't-Zevisti was uninteresting to me(and that was the section featuring the only Humans in the book!) largely because almost every other human word was "something", since it was from the alien's point of view and they don't understand everything yet. However, the reveal at the end of the book with his character was both shocking and expected, it was just surprising enough to catch me off guard, but didn't seem implausable, and it makes me view the whole story in a whole new way.
On a small note, I really liked the character of Klnn-Vavgi, particularly when he was extremely loyal to Thrr-Mezaz. He could have easily worked behind his back to mutiny, but he was respectful and loyal to his superior and that was refreshing compared to many other books/stories that we get today.
Overall, I really, really liked this book. It was so different and fun and I expected it to be difficult and it really wasn't. I think I enjoyed the first book a little more because of the character work with the Cavanaghs, but this book is more important for the reasons mentioned above. I'll give it the same rating of 8.5 out of 10! Well done Zahn. I can't wait to read the conclusion!
December 9, 2025
i love my funky lizard guys
May 13, 2023
The change in POV was refreshing. Something new, building alien culture and worlds. However, the names are a real hurdle for me personally. They have way too many consonants for me to remember who's who without really thinking about it constantly. I was so relieved when that realization at the end finally happened, though. I've been waiting for that since whenever it first came up in the first book! Time to turn around the Titanic in the next book, I guess?
October 6, 2010
Don't you hate the second book of a three (or more) part series? Zahn wrote an excellent story, but it didn't go anywhere. I suspect that all the major plot points were at least hinted at in Conquerors' Prideand everything will be resolved in Conquerors' Legacy.
Don't waste your time on this book unless you happen to like the way Zahn writes, which I do . . . but not that much.
Don't waste your time on this book unless you happen to like the way Zahn writes, which I do . . . but not that much.
January 2, 2011
While not as engaging as the first book of this trilogy, still was sufficiently interesting.
The book picks up at the end of the previous, but with a unique twist, being told from the alien's point of view. The twist of the trilogy is relatively apparent, but the intent is for the reader to know and build tension as the information is not readily apparent to the majority of the characters.
It is a good read for the space opera genre. Probably nothing that will blow you away, but a good well written building of an alien culture and politics.
Looking forward to the next book to see how it all wraps up.
The book picks up at the end of the previous, but with a unique twist, being told from the alien's point of view. The twist of the trilogy is relatively apparent, but the intent is for the reader to know and build tension as the information is not readily apparent to the majority of the characters.
It is a good read for the space opera genre. Probably nothing that will blow you away, but a good well written building of an alien culture and politics.
Looking forward to the next book to see how it all wraps up.
January 1, 2018
I'm not usually much for reading military SF ("war porn", to some folk), but I DO like to read science fiction told from the perspective of a non-human species. So I skipped the first book in this series (which covers many of the same events from the human perspective) and went right for this one, told from the point of view of the alien Zhirr. The best way to describe this book is "immersive": You hit the ground running, with little background explanation of how their alien biology or society work. And there's no glossary or list of characters to help you out, so you better just keep up!
August 22, 2025
Neste segundo volume da trilogia, Zahn faz algo de inesperado, pouco habitual no género space opera: muda por completo a perspetiva da história. Todo o livro mostra a visão dos alienígenas, o que dá espaço para aprofundar o espaço ficcional destes livros. Não é muito habitual, nestas space opera militaristas, dedicar todo um livro da série ao outro lado do conflito. Neste Conqueror's Heritage, é o inimigo que conta a sua história.
Zahn explora muito bem esta visão de uma civilização alienígena. Mostra-a como uma união algo ritualista de clãs, com uma textura social e complexidade política profunda. Os personagens alienígenas não são elementos decorativos, e damos por nós a sentir empatia para com estes personagens (até porque, sendo uma space opera, é de esperar que não tenham percursos fáceis, cheios de peripécias, percalços e conspirações). A sociedade é defensiva, e tem um padrão - entrou sempre em conflito com outras civilizações interplanetárias com as quais se cruzou, a partir de primeiros contactos em que se consideraram atacados. Com os terrestres não será diferente, e evidenciam um horror tremendo face a ataques constantes quando se deparam com eles.
Outra curiosa característica da civilização é uma espécie de imortalidade virtual biológica. A todos os alienígenas, na sua infância, é-lhes colhido um orgão externo, preservado em bem protegidos locais rituais. Quando o seu corpo físico morre, a consciência dos indivíduos é preservada pelo orgão, o que lhes permite uma existência virtual, manifestando-se como o que consideraríamos espíritos, mantendo-se úteis à sociedade como conselheiros e, primordialmante, como meios de comunicação capazes de interligar distâncias interplanetárias.
Sensivelmente a meio do romance, Zahn dá-nos a pista que justifica a sanha dos alienígenas em combater os terrestres, que consideram seres exterminadores. Quando um dos personagens do livro, um destes seres incórporeos, entra em contacto com dispostivos de rádiocomunicação, contorce-se de dor, e percebemos aí qual é a arma misteriosa que leva os alienígenas a sentirem-se atacados sempre que usada - emissões de rádio. Percebemos aí (e o personagem alienígena também), que as guerras quasi-genocidas que esta civilização trava partem todas de um equívoco. Dado que estes alienígenas são sensíveis a sinais de rádio, e com altas intensidades pode levar à morte dos seus orgãos de quasi-imortalidade virtual, não conseguem compreender que sempre que outros lhes enviam sinais de rádio, é para comunicar e não com intenções violentas.
O livro segue outras linhas narrativas, que tornam mais complexa a sociedade alienígena. A presença de gerações de consciências ancestrais, sempre presentes, a interferir e a exigir ocupação, induz fadiga social. Estes conflitos são aprofundados pela clivagem entre a necessidade de progresso das gerações dos vivos, que consideram inúteis alguns costumes antiquidados, e o conservadorismo dos ancestrais virtuais.
Resta ver como é que este nó será desatado. Duas civilizações em conflito por causa de um equívoco, sem grandes possibilidades de comunicar, e a interferência de outra civilização alienígena, particularmente matreira e astuta, que estando dentro da zona de influência terrestre, procura instrumentalizar a guerra a seu favor.
Zahn explora muito bem esta visão de uma civilização alienígena. Mostra-a como uma união algo ritualista de clãs, com uma textura social e complexidade política profunda. Os personagens alienígenas não são elementos decorativos, e damos por nós a sentir empatia para com estes personagens (até porque, sendo uma space opera, é de esperar que não tenham percursos fáceis, cheios de peripécias, percalços e conspirações). A sociedade é defensiva, e tem um padrão - entrou sempre em conflito com outras civilizações interplanetárias com as quais se cruzou, a partir de primeiros contactos em que se consideraram atacados. Com os terrestres não será diferente, e evidenciam um horror tremendo face a ataques constantes quando se deparam com eles.
Outra curiosa característica da civilização é uma espécie de imortalidade virtual biológica. A todos os alienígenas, na sua infância, é-lhes colhido um orgão externo, preservado em bem protegidos locais rituais. Quando o seu corpo físico morre, a consciência dos indivíduos é preservada pelo orgão, o que lhes permite uma existência virtual, manifestando-se como o que consideraríamos espíritos, mantendo-se úteis à sociedade como conselheiros e, primordialmante, como meios de comunicação capazes de interligar distâncias interplanetárias.
Sensivelmente a meio do romance, Zahn dá-nos a pista que justifica a sanha dos alienígenas em combater os terrestres, que consideram seres exterminadores. Quando um dos personagens do livro, um destes seres incórporeos, entra em contacto com dispostivos de rádiocomunicação, contorce-se de dor, e percebemos aí qual é a arma misteriosa que leva os alienígenas a sentirem-se atacados sempre que usada - emissões de rádio. Percebemos aí (e o personagem alienígena também), que as guerras quasi-genocidas que esta civilização trava partem todas de um equívoco. Dado que estes alienígenas são sensíveis a sinais de rádio, e com altas intensidades pode levar à morte dos seus orgãos de quasi-imortalidade virtual, não conseguem compreender que sempre que outros lhes enviam sinais de rádio, é para comunicar e não com intenções violentas.
O livro segue outras linhas narrativas, que tornam mais complexa a sociedade alienígena. A presença de gerações de consciências ancestrais, sempre presentes, a interferir e a exigir ocupação, induz fadiga social. Estes conflitos são aprofundados pela clivagem entre a necessidade de progresso das gerações dos vivos, que consideram inúteis alguns costumes antiquidados, e o conservadorismo dos ancestrais virtuais.
Resta ver como é que este nó será desatado. Duas civilizações em conflito por causa de um equívoco, sem grandes possibilidades de comunicar, e a interferência de outra civilização alienígena, particularmente matreira e astuta, que estando dentro da zona de influência terrestre, procura instrumentalizar a guerra a seu favor.
November 25, 2018
Thrr-gilag is in trouble. Despite the Conquerors' despicable surprise attack, the Zhirrzh navy was able to fight back, and they even took a prisoner! Thrr-gilag was sent to interrogate the prisoner, figure out where these "humans" come from, and why they attacked without provocation. But before he can get those answers, his prisoner (Pheylan Cavanagh) escaped! Now Thrr-gilag is disgraced, and what fool would let his daughter marry into a disgraced clan? There's only one chance: find a way to prove that Pheylan wasn't lying when he claimed that it wasn't the humans who attacked first.
Thrr-gilag's mother wants to die. She ain't afraid of no ghost, she just doesn't want to be one. She is, obviously, a woman, which means she's crazy and unreasonable, so no one will listen to her. But Thrr-gilag is a dutiful son, so of course he's going to try and help his mom. While he is helping his fiancee Klnn-dawan-a with her research, he's approached with an offer: His brother Thrr-mezaz is leading the Zhirrzh counterattack on the Conqueror outpost on Dorcas. There's an unexpected opportunity to spy on the humans if Thrr-gilag can sneak a fsss cutting from a missing ghost over to Thrr-mezaz. Even though Prr't-zevisti, the missing ghost, can't communicate with his ghost wife Prr't-casst-a, he's still doing his best for the war effort by spying on Melinda Cavanaugh. Dr. Cavanaugh is busy doing autopsies on dead Zhirrzh and has no idea she's being haunted.
Something that was hinted in the previous book but not fully explained is that when a Zhirrzh's "fsss" organ is "cut" before they die, they become ghosts called "elders". These elders can move back and forth to relay messages. Their telephones are literally ghosts playing telephone. But the fsss cutting is super important: without it, the ghost is stuck or lost.
It was a real head-scratcher to find that the aliens weren't lying, they really did think the humans attacked first! The paradox isn't resolved in this book. There's some hints, but with so much going on it's easy to get distracted. The alien perspective is as bizarre as it is mundane and it is freaking awesome how this entire story is told with almost no input from the human characters in the previous book.
Thrr-gilag's mother wants to die. She ain't afraid of no ghost, she just doesn't want to be one. She is, obviously, a woman, which means she's crazy and unreasonable, so no one will listen to her. But Thrr-gilag is a dutiful son, so of course he's going to try and help his mom. While he is helping his fiancee Klnn-dawan-a with her research, he's approached with an offer: His brother Thrr-mezaz is leading the Zhirrzh counterattack on the Conqueror outpost on Dorcas. There's an unexpected opportunity to spy on the humans if Thrr-gilag can sneak a fsss cutting from a missing ghost over to Thrr-mezaz. Even though Prr't-zevisti, the missing ghost, can't communicate with his ghost wife Prr't-casst-a, he's still doing his best for the war effort by spying on Melinda Cavanaugh. Dr. Cavanaugh is busy doing autopsies on dead Zhirrzh and has no idea she's being haunted.
Something that was hinted in the previous book but not fully explained is that when a Zhirrzh's "fsss" organ is "cut" before they die, they become ghosts called "elders". These elders can move back and forth to relay messages. Their telephones are literally ghosts playing telephone. But the fsss cutting is super important: without it, the ghost is stuck or lost.
It was a real head-scratcher to find that the aliens weren't lying, they really did think the humans attacked first! The paradox isn't resolved in this book. There's some hints, but with so much going on it's easy to get distracted. The alien perspective is as bizarre as it is mundane and it is freaking awesome how this entire story is told with almost no input from the human characters in the previous book.
April 10, 2024
The Zhirrzh occupy the Eighteen Worlds and are skirmishing with the Human-Conquerors, with both sides claiming the other fired the first shot. Clearly one of them is lying. The Zhirrzh are not particularly humanoid and have a sense organ called a fsss, which stores memories and personalities, and has been found to be able to be removed surgically and stored centrally to allow rapid movement of thought. When a Zhirrzh physical body dies (raised to Elderhood) the spirit Zhirrzh are used to communicate over large distances. Within the Zhirrzh there are clan factions fighting for dominance and a Zhirrzh Searcher, Thrr-gilag is starting to suspect that the hierarchy may be lying to or hiding from the Zhirrzh, a terrifying secret. Rumours have surfaced of a terrible Human weapon known as CIRCE, used millennia ago and broken up and hidden piecemeal across human space. Now the humans seem to be retrieving the parts, to Zhirrzh consternation. Through all this Thrr-gilag’s betrothal to a female from a rival clan has caused machinations at the highest level and a plot to discredit his family is in process. It would be a mistake to think this is just a well-written piece of military fiction from Timothy Zahn. It is complex, engaging and examines very human issues through the eyes of an alien species. Although it is the second book of a trilogy it stands alone and is well worth the time spent. A page-turner!
October 12, 2021
Zahn changes the POV of the story entirely to that of the alien race, providing clarity in areas and perspective in others. As usual, Zahn tells a good story, but now that he's given up the big reveal as a set-up for the conclusion of the series, there is one major flaw in the story that already requires oh so much suspension of belief. *SPOILERS* How in the world do the aliens not understand radio frequencies? Even barring the fact that they can't use them themselves for communications, they've used them in their past as weapons and have also encountered (and subjugated) 3 other races before finding humanity. Why would they not set up research stations to observe and develop counters to radio "weapons"? And how does the "misunderstanding" of the use of radio not come to light after the first time it happens? It's not like the Zhirrzh killed everyone they encountered, they conquered them. Xenobiologists and EM spectrum analysts should have figured out that radios have more than one purpose a long time ago. This entire trilogy would have been vastly improved if first contact with the humans was the actual first contact with the Zhirrzh, as well as the first time they encountered radio waves.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 14, 2025
After reading Conquerors' Pride (a phenomenal book), I knew I had to keep going. I went in knowing that this book is written from the aliens' perspectives, and I honestly wasn't sure I was going to like it. My experience with stories told through the eyes of fictional cultures is usually pretty poor. Beliefs, traditions, and rituals in these stories often make little sense, as if the writer just needed something to make the culture different from our own (lookin' at you, Star Trek).
Well, despite my hesitance, I was hooked pretty quickly. Zahn crafted a very interesting alien culture and society that is quite alien, but also logical. Strange customs and rituals are part of this culture for very good reasons which are slowly revealed throughout the book. I also thought the concept of Elders and Eldership to be very interesting.
The story itself was also very good. There's one reveal at the end that I saw coming from book 1, but I don't think it was meant to be a reveal to the reader, more of a reveal to the characters.
Another reason for Zahn to be my favorite sci-fi author. Well done sir! Now I'm off to hunt down a copy of Conquerors' Legacy.
Well, despite my hesitance, I was hooked pretty quickly. Zahn crafted a very interesting alien culture and society that is quite alien, but also logical. Strange customs and rituals are part of this culture for very good reasons which are slowly revealed throughout the book. I also thought the concept of Elders and Eldership to be very interesting.
The story itself was also very good. There's one reveal at the end that I saw coming from book 1, but I don't think it was meant to be a reveal to the reader, more of a reveal to the characters.
Another reason for Zahn to be my favorite sci-fi author. Well done sir! Now I'm off to hunt down a copy of Conquerors' Legacy.
August 2, 2025
Lu en anglais
Tome deux d'une trilogie
La guerre est déclarée entre le Commonwealth et les extraterrestres Zhirrzh. Mais les Zhirrzh, qui étaient confiants au début du conflit, ont maintenant peur, car ils ont eu vent de l'arme ultime du Commonwealth, et ils lancent de multiples attaques pour empêcher que l'arme puisse être assemblée. D'un autre côté, les Zhirrzh profitent de moyens de communication instantanée à cause d'une particularité de leur biologie.
Un roman de transition qui présente les Zhirrzh, leur mode de gouvernement en différents clans, leur immortalité relative et quelques secrets qui pourraient changer l'issue de la guerre.
Disons que le rythme de la série a changé et que l'on est passé à un niveau plus informatif que d'action, centré surtout sur le mode de vie des Zhirrzh.
J'ai tout de même assez aimé, car le roman reste divertissant, mais j'espère une montée de niveau avec le roman final de la série.
Tome deux d'une trilogie
La guerre est déclarée entre le Commonwealth et les extraterrestres Zhirrzh. Mais les Zhirrzh, qui étaient confiants au début du conflit, ont maintenant peur, car ils ont eu vent de l'arme ultime du Commonwealth, et ils lancent de multiples attaques pour empêcher que l'arme puisse être assemblée. D'un autre côté, les Zhirrzh profitent de moyens de communication instantanée à cause d'une particularité de leur biologie.
Un roman de transition qui présente les Zhirrzh, leur mode de gouvernement en différents clans, leur immortalité relative et quelques secrets qui pourraient changer l'issue de la guerre.
Disons que le rythme de la série a changé et que l'on est passé à un niveau plus informatif que d'action, centré surtout sur le mode de vie des Zhirrzh.
J'ai tout de même assez aimé, car le roman reste divertissant, mais j'espère une montée de niveau avec le roman final de la série.
October 3, 2022
This was a fascinating read, told entirely from the perspective of an alien civilizatin, the Zhirrzh. This book has a very deliberate pace compared to Conquerors' Pride. The story takes place right after the end of the previous book, and follows the specialist in alien cultures Thrr-Gilag and his family as they do their jobs in the middle of the war with human kind. Zhirrzh culture is both so alien and so recognizable - under threat of total annihilation, there is an awful lot of petty squabbling.
I really enjoyed this slower entry with fantastic world building and solid character development - even if the characters were not human (and some didn't even have a corporeal form).
I really enjoyed this slower entry with fantastic world building and solid character development - even if the characters were not human (and some didn't even have a corporeal form).
February 24, 2025
Military and political science fiction. The first book laid the groundwork for interstellar war between the Commonwealth (led by humans) and aliens of unknown origin. This middle book in the series is told entirely from the perspective of the Zhirrzh, those unknown aliens. Including using "alien" terms for time and distance. In fact after a while, the alienness of it all goes away, and everything starts to seem very familiar. The same feelings and emotions that humans have. The same political shenanigans. Zahn keeps this up for the whole book. All the multiple POVs are from an alien standpoint (with the occasional human making a brief appearance). What's even more impressive is that the author significantly progresses the plot and leaves you at the end wanting to immediately read the third book to see how it all turns out.
September 29, 2023
The Space Opera saga continues, but this time it’s from the alien’s perspective. The narrative is a bit confusing at first, as the author uses alien names and terminology, however you soon get used to it. Problem is, you realize that the “alien” phraseology is a little too human. I started actually saying, “wait a hunbeat!” in real life. Maybe it’s setting up for the third book, where the human characters find that these “strange” aliens are not so strange at all. I guess I’ll have to wait and see. Tge book does commit the cardinal sin, where a few plot points are cleared up, but most threads are open, and you don’t have a sense of any conclusion. I really hate that in a novel, I feel a little bit cheated. Still, I enjoyed this enough to read further.
March 11, 2018
The middle volume of this trilogy takes the unusual step of more or less abandoning the characters of the first volume, to instead look at this human-alien war entirely from the alien side. It's a deep dive into an alien culture that carries the plot forward only a little (although the big twist that's been fairly easy to spot coming since about page 20 of the first volume finally lands in the last pages of this one), while introducing many a complication in a way that makes me wonder how Zahn will manage to tie it all together in the final volume. The answer, of course, is that he's Zahn. It's what he does.
December 23, 2019
I will say this. It's bold to start a big space opera series and immediately change viewpoints *completely* from one side to the other for the second book. First book? Pretty standard human viewpoints. This book? The enemy from the first book is the entirety of the viewpoint. Not a single human character to be found. Which I'm torn on because it was nice to get an alternate look at events, but now going into the third book I expect that I'm going to be a bit lost for a while as to who is who with any human characters who return and what they did a full book ago. Even if they'd had a handful of small interludes with them, I think I would be happier with it.
September 21, 2022
Une très bonne trilogie écrite par Timothy Zahn que j'ai lu au milieu des années 1990 pour laquelle j'en ai encore un souvenir impérissable.
Aujourd'hui cette trilogie est quasi introuvable en France.
Ici il s'agit du deuxième roman de cette trilogie paru aux éditions Pocket, dans la collection Rendez-vous ailleurs paru en mai 1997.
Ce roman a été traduit par E.C.L. Meistermann.
Il contient 24 chapitres et 314 pages.
ISBN 2-266-07604-3
voici le lien Amazon.fr pour toutes les références et image de couverture :
https://www.amazon.fr/Sang-du-conqu%C...
Aujourd'hui cette trilogie est quasi introuvable en France.
Ici il s'agit du deuxième roman de cette trilogie paru aux éditions Pocket, dans la collection Rendez-vous ailleurs paru en mai 1997.
Ce roman a été traduit par E.C.L. Meistermann.
Il contient 24 chapitres et 314 pages.
ISBN 2-266-07604-3
voici le lien Amazon.fr pour toutes les références et image de couverture :
https://www.amazon.fr/Sang-du-conqu%C...
January 27, 2025
So far really liking the series, it's presented interestingly as this book is from the opposite perspective (first book is Human perspective, this one from the Alien perspective). The story moves well, it's a little disorienting as the alien race in this book uses a different system for distance and time, but after a bit you get to understand more of what they're talking about. It's kind of a bit of a trial to NOT know what the Human side is thinking since it's not from their perspective yet you really want to know how they're progressing. Looking forward to the final installment in the series.
December 21, 2025
What Zahn did with this book was truly incredible. in book 1 He tells the story of an alien invasion(the conquerors) a race the humans know next to nothing about, and very little is explained in the first book.
Here though he leaves the characters and plot points from book 1 and instead tells the story entirely from these alien conquerors point of view, introduces entirely new characters, plot points, an entire alien civilization. then he makes that somehow readable and so interesting that I might have cared just as much for these alien conquerors as the humans, maybe even more by the end of the book
Here though he leaves the characters and plot points from book 1 and instead tells the story entirely from these alien conquerors point of view, introduces entirely new characters, plot points, an entire alien civilization. then he makes that somehow readable and so interesting that I might have cared just as much for these alien conquerors as the humans, maybe even more by the end of the book
July 23, 2022
While the first book is told entirely from the perspective of the humans, this second book in the trilogy is told entirely from the perspective of the aliens, the Zhirrzh I loved being immersed in their world, their culture, and their language. These are all presented in a mysterious way that is uniquely different from other science fiction worlds. Suspense builds as we try to figure out, along with the Zhirrzh, what is going on with the humans. On to book 3!
December 2, 2025
A great continuation of the trilogy. Zahn pulls a great switcheroo by flipping the narrative and placing us in the shoes of the alien ‘conquerors’.
The writing and the plot is textbook Zahn so if you enjoy his other works you should enjoy this instalment. Greatly looking forward to the final book and seeing a resolution to the stakes that Zahn has set-up.
The writing and the plot is textbook Zahn so if you enjoy his other works you should enjoy this instalment. Greatly looking forward to the final book and seeing a resolution to the stakes that Zahn has set-up.
May 29, 2019
I love the change in viewpoint from the humans in book 1 to the aliens in book 2. Seeing the turmoil on both sides of a war is more than an empathy play, it is a brilliant set up for what I'm sure will be an incredible finale!
March 19, 2024
The author did a marvelous job of bringing the alien race the Zhirrzh to life. As difficult as their names were to pronounce and keep straight by the last chapters I was really aligned with the brothers Thrr-gilag & Thrr-mezaz. I really hope they can stop the war.
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