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Chanur #1-3
The Chanur Saga
Here, for the first time in one volume, is C.J. Cherryh's classic adventure of interstellar politics, a spacefaring fugitive, and first contact with a strange race known as "humans."
The pride of Chanur previously published by DAW in 1982 ;
Chanur's venture previously published in 1985 ;
The Kif strike back previously published in 1986.
Includes a preview of Chanur's homecoming.
The pride of Chanur previously published by DAW in 1982 ;
Chanur's venture previously published in 1985 ;
The Kif strike back previously published in 1986.
Includes a preview of Chanur's homecoming.
704 pages, Paperback
First published May 1, 2000
30 people are currently reading
605 people want to read
About the author
C.J. Cherryh
293 books3,570 followersCurrently resident in Spokane, Washington, C.J. Cherryh has won four Hugos and is one of the best-selling and most critically acclaimed authors in the science fiction and fantasy field. She is the author of more than forty novels. Her hobbies include travel, photography, reef culture, Mariners baseball, and, a late passion, figure skating: she intends to compete in the adult USFSA track. She began with the modest ambition to learn to skate backwards and now is working on jumps. She sketches, occasionally, cooks fairly well, and hates house work; she loves the outdoors, animals wild and tame, is a hobbyist geologist, adores dinosaurs, and has academic specialties in Roman constitutional law and bronze age Greek ethnography. She has written science fiction since she was ten, spent ten years of her life teaching Latin and Ancient History on the high school level, before retiring to full time writing, and now does not have enough hours in the day to pursue all her interests. Her studies include planetary geology, weather systems, and natural and man-made catastrophes, civilizations, and cosmology…in fact, there's very little that doesn't interest her. A loom is gathering dust and needs rethreading, a wooden ship model awaits construction, and the cats demand their own time much more urgently. She works constantly, researches mostly on the internet, and has books stacked up and waiting to be written.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 56 reviews
March 4, 2016
A perfectly acceptable, if overly complicated, space opera series. Here's the problem: there isn't enough depth to warrant how confusing the plot is. There seems no reason for the confusion - the author simply fails to tell us things when it would be most useful for us to know them. Instead, she tells those things much later, if at all, and by then, we're already confused about other things. This isn't like Cherryh's classic Downbelow Station, where the complexity of plot was warranted by the complexity of the themes. Here, it just seems superfluous, even pretentious. This is really just a fairly straightforward action adventure about a bunch of cat Wookies and a human, and while it is entertaining, and worth reading, the reader is likely to feel desperate for some clarity.
There are some interesting things going on here. Telling the story from the alien point of view is a nice change of pace (though I think everyone drooling over how good Cherryh is at inventing alien cultures is somewhat over-the-top. These cat Wookies are more or less human, with just a smidgen of lion-like values and behaviors.) Even more interesting is the feminist angle she sneaks in. These cat Wookies treat men exactly as women have traditionally been treated, and they assume their males to be all those things women have often been assumed to be: overly emotional, unreliable, and useful merely for sitting around all day and being beautiful. Hey - just like male lions! Get it?
These two noteworthy choices are what lift this above the majority of space opera dredge out there. And you know, the pace is quick, the characters are charming, the action is tense. You're likely to be pulled along, even if you never have a firm hold on precisely what's going on. I recommend it if you're an avid Cherryh fan, or if the idea of an exciting, albeit confusing, Star Wars adventure seems appealing to you.
There are some interesting things going on here. Telling the story from the alien point of view is a nice change of pace (though I think everyone drooling over how good Cherryh is at inventing alien cultures is somewhat over-the-top. These cat Wookies are more or less human, with just a smidgen of lion-like values and behaviors.) Even more interesting is the feminist angle she sneaks in. These cat Wookies treat men exactly as women have traditionally been treated, and they assume their males to be all those things women have often been assumed to be: overly emotional, unreliable, and useful merely for sitting around all day and being beautiful. Hey - just like male lions! Get it?
These two noteworthy choices are what lift this above the majority of space opera dredge out there. And you know, the pace is quick, the characters are charming, the action is tense. You're likely to be pulled along, even if you never have a firm hold on precisely what's going on. I recommend it if you're an avid Cherryh fan, or if the idea of an exciting, albeit confusing, Star Wars adventure seems appealing to you.
February 16, 2011
In my view, the first four volumes of the Chanur’s Saga (“Pride” to “Homecoming”) are one single big book (although one can read “The Pride of Chanur” as stand alone).
The most challenging book I have ever read.
One of the most feminist books as well. At some places it’s almost outrageous!
The book is told totally by alien point of view. There is only one human mucking about, and the characters have to do some wild guesswork on his motives most of the time. As alien species is described the hani have very different (from humans) etymology, social behavior, body-language and face-expressions. Cherryh has done some master work here – one just have to admire her thoroughness. Not one human reaction slipped trough into a hani for about 1500 pages!
Astrophysics in the books on very high level, I really enjoyed it – very graphic, very detailed. Especially entertaining I found the manner of ship’s behavior in close-to-speed-of-light conditions compared and related to still objects and normal velocity objects.
Seven alien species – for four of them, very fine detail description work, down to economic relations, social structure, politics, history, evolution, and genetically-driven behavior. Especially like the politics and the close relation to economic interests.
Refined character build, very good physiological motivation behind the actions of the main characters.
All in all – my favorite of Cherryh’s work.
The most challenging book I have ever read.
One of the most feminist books as well. At some places it’s almost outrageous!
The book is told totally by alien point of view. There is only one human mucking about, and the characters have to do some wild guesswork on his motives most of the time. As alien species is described the hani have very different (from humans) etymology, social behavior, body-language and face-expressions. Cherryh has done some master work here – one just have to admire her thoroughness. Not one human reaction slipped trough into a hani for about 1500 pages!
Astrophysics in the books on very high level, I really enjoyed it – very graphic, very detailed. Especially entertaining I found the manner of ship’s behavior in close-to-speed-of-light conditions compared and related to still objects and normal velocity objects.
Seven alien species – for four of them, very fine detail description work, down to economic relations, social structure, politics, history, evolution, and genetically-driven behavior. Especially like the politics and the close relation to economic interests.
Refined character build, very good physiological motivation behind the actions of the main characters.
All in all – my favorite of Cherryh’s work.
September 17, 2022
None of the dealbreaker problems of the other two Cherryh books reviewed, but also few of the strengths, and less clarity. After an intriguing first act it’s downhill into messy writing. Perhaps a good argument against prolific novel production. This is in regard to book one.
Will continue the search for a Cherryh book that resolves all of the above, and can be broadly recommended.
Will continue the search for a Cherryh book that resolves all of the above, and can be broadly recommended.
March 7, 2011
Cherryh writes the best aliens. Ah, just perfect space opera. It reminds me of Bujold's Miles series, not at all because of plot or anything except that it's an easy read yet very well-written, and comes alive. Smart and entertaining at the same time.
April 28, 2019
I love all of my alien-lions equally
April 24, 2015
This is a first contact story told from an alien point of view: various species have worked out tentative political and trade agreements despite their fundamental differences, but the arrival of humans in the sector threatens to unbalance those agreements. And beyond those practical concerns, there's the problem that people don't always do what's practical, even by the standards of different species--ambition, paranoia, and even empathy can make people on all sides decide "To hell with what's practical, screw the odds, I've got another idea."
No one does truly alien aliens better than CJ Cherryh. We've got upwards of seven species here, from aliens based on lions to ones with multi-part brains and lattices of speech, all struggling to understand each other and work together. If you like chewy, anthropological fiction, heavy on the worldbuilding, you'll enjoy this. I also like books where humans (and males) are not the default, they're the other, the minority trying to scrape by, and Cherryh delivers that in spades.
However, this book was also written during a period where Cherryh's plots tended to consist of, "Start running in chapter 1, without knowing why, to artificially ramp up tension. Use that run to explore the worldbuilding and give some clues as to what's going on. Get the crucial infodump in the second to last chapter, and explain the confusing climax in the next book, just before we start running again." In this case, Pride is the only part that is complete in itself; the other two books are cliffhangers, and there's a lot that's either confusing or unresolved at the end here. The plot does finally resolve in book 4, which is not part of this collection, but I'm hoping that this series will be rereleased with all four parts in one volume soon.
No one does truly alien aliens better than CJ Cherryh. We've got upwards of seven species here, from aliens based on lions to ones with multi-part brains and lattices of speech, all struggling to understand each other and work together. If you like chewy, anthropological fiction, heavy on the worldbuilding, you'll enjoy this. I also like books where humans (and males) are not the default, they're the other, the minority trying to scrape by, and Cherryh delivers that in spades.
However, this book was also written during a period where Cherryh's plots tended to consist of, "Start running in chapter 1, without knowing why, to artificially ramp up tension. Use that run to explore the worldbuilding and give some clues as to what's going on. Get the crucial infodump in the second to last chapter, and explain the confusing climax in the next book, just before we start running again." In this case, Pride is the only part that is complete in itself; the other two books are cliffhangers, and there's a lot that's either confusing or unresolved at the end here. The plot does finally resolve in book 4, which is not part of this collection, but I'm hoping that this series will be rereleased with all four parts in one volume soon.
May 11, 2012
[Review and rating for 'The Kif Strike Back']
It's been YEARS since I read the first two books in this omnibus, and I was a bit worried about how well I'd slide back in to this universe. Well, I needn't have worried - I picked it back up as if I'd barely left it, and it was a real pleasure to read. If any word comes to mind for Cherryh's work, it's 'intelligent'; no-one else constructs alien cultures and handles culture clash like she does (we spend no time in the head of the one human in the book, instead only perceiving him through the eyes of the alien characters - so much so that he is the one who feels alien). What I'd also forgotten was how damned exciting her work can be as well - I was on the edge of my seat through some parts of this book, which basically ends on a cliffhanger. Now I absolutely have to lay hands on the next volume, and soon. (And last but not least, it's cat people! With guns and piratical swagger and complex internal politics! How could I not love it?)
It's been YEARS since I read the first two books in this omnibus, and I was a bit worried about how well I'd slide back in to this universe. Well, I needn't have worried - I picked it back up as if I'd barely left it, and it was a real pleasure to read. If any word comes to mind for Cherryh's work, it's 'intelligent'; no-one else constructs alien cultures and handles culture clash like she does (we spend no time in the head of the one human in the book, instead only perceiving him through the eyes of the alien characters - so much so that he is the one who feels alien). What I'd also forgotten was how damned exciting her work can be as well - I was on the edge of my seat through some parts of this book, which basically ends on a cliffhanger. Now I absolutely have to lay hands on the next volume, and soon. (And last but not least, it's cat people! With guns and piratical swagger and complex internal politics! How could I not love it?)
December 18, 2023
This book was a set of the first 3 novels in this series. This is a gripping story of non-human interactions and politics. Ms Cherryh is a real master (Mistress?) of developing non-human civilizations. These novels follow the events that take place on a Hani trader ship. The Hani are, as best I can guess from reading, a race of feline appearing intelligent humanoids. They and six or more other civilizations make up a trading compact which keeps things for the most part, civil. One of the more aggressive races, the Kif, capture a human ship and try to interrogate the crew. One crew member somehow manages to escape and sneak onto the Hani trader ship, because he heard them laughing when in port and decided they couldn't be all that bad..
The tale goes on as the Kif leader tries several means to get the human back from Pyanfar, the captain of the Hani ship, the "Pride of Chanur'. There is a LOT going on in these three novels. In the end, a human ship docks at one of the trade space stations, and Tully, the human, has a chance to return to Earth.
Besides the fact that the stories are gripping, filled with intrigue, political maneuvering, and double-crossing, is the way Ms. Cherryh deals with presenting the differences in the many non-human species that are part of these novels. She takes into consideration each trying to grasp enough of the other's language to be able to speak in a sometimes confusing pidgin. She hi-lights how responses differ because of vastly different cultures and how they attempt to try to understand these inbred cultural differences. This is done, completely from the view point of the captain of the "Pride", rather than from that of the human, Tully. As a matter of fact, the human cultural differences are one that the captain also needs to deal with.
But even beyond this, Ms. Cherryh continues to develop the differences, including smells, eating habits, difference in eyesight spectrum and more. All this together creates a tapestry of many different races and make one feel like they are living in that universe.
The only issue I note with these novels is related to the fact they were written in the 80's to early 90's. Obviously, the technology of those times are far behind those current, but even so, the author envisions much of the technology needed for a space faring race.
A fantastic set of novels which I highly recommend. I am already into the last two novels of this series.
The tale goes on as the Kif leader tries several means to get the human back from Pyanfar, the captain of the Hani ship, the "Pride of Chanur'. There is a LOT going on in these three novels. In the end, a human ship docks at one of the trade space stations, and Tully, the human, has a chance to return to Earth.
Besides the fact that the stories are gripping, filled with intrigue, political maneuvering, and double-crossing, is the way Ms. Cherryh deals with presenting the differences in the many non-human species that are part of these novels. She takes into consideration each trying to grasp enough of the other's language to be able to speak in a sometimes confusing pidgin. She hi-lights how responses differ because of vastly different cultures and how they attempt to try to understand these inbred cultural differences. This is done, completely from the view point of the captain of the "Pride", rather than from that of the human, Tully. As a matter of fact, the human cultural differences are one that the captain also needs to deal with.
But even beyond this, Ms. Cherryh continues to develop the differences, including smells, eating habits, difference in eyesight spectrum and more. All this together creates a tapestry of many different races and make one feel like they are living in that universe.
The only issue I note with these novels is related to the fact they were written in the 80's to early 90's. Obviously, the technology of those times are far behind those current, but even so, the author envisions much of the technology needed for a space faring race.
A fantastic set of novels which I highly recommend. I am already into the last two novels of this series.
June 26, 2016
Possibly one of the best sci-fi sagas out there.
But first: according to CJ Cherryh (via her website), The Pride Of Chanur was the original, and standalone. Venture, Kif, and Homecoming are three parts to one novel (thank you, paperback publishers). Legacy is standalone and slightly separate, set in the same universe, but from a different point-of-view.
That said: Cherryh is the mistress of first/third person POV, making you feel like you are the one doing the thinking while reading her stuff. She writes like we think, in a bit of a shorthand that we all develop and sometimes share; and she takes it further by basing that process in an alien mind, making you feel like that alien would feel, to the point where the lone human in the story is the alien.
And can you imagine what poor Tully has gone thru, as the strangest stranger in a strange land, with a serious case of Stockholm Syndrome??
Cherryh excels at humanizing the alien, at making the psychology of the alien accessible and believable, at making us sympathetic with the alien; and, making us understand that the new aliens (humans) can't be trusted (which the reader will understand and acknowledge if they've read her other works--40,000 In Gehenna is a good example).
The Chanur series starts just like any other day in anyone else's life: just normal activity, the drudgery of the daily grind, which then explodes into the extraordinary, thanks to that one event that you (or, in this case, Pyanfar) keep regretting later because you let your sympathy override your good sense--and who of us has never done that before??
To those who've complained about the denseness of these stories: go read her Fortress series, or the Rusalka series, or the Dreamstone series: those will positively drown you, even tho they're excellent in their own right, they are BIG and DENSE, and require careful reading.
For the rest: just read this. If you feel confused afterward, read them again, they read as well the seventh time as the did the first.
But first: according to CJ Cherryh (via her website), The Pride Of Chanur was the original, and standalone. Venture, Kif, and Homecoming are three parts to one novel (thank you, paperback publishers). Legacy is standalone and slightly separate, set in the same universe, but from a different point-of-view.
That said: Cherryh is the mistress of first/third person POV, making you feel like you are the one doing the thinking while reading her stuff. She writes like we think, in a bit of a shorthand that we all develop and sometimes share; and she takes it further by basing that process in an alien mind, making you feel like that alien would feel, to the point where the lone human in the story is the alien.
And can you imagine what poor Tully has gone thru, as the strangest stranger in a strange land, with a serious case of Stockholm Syndrome??
Cherryh excels at humanizing the alien, at making the psychology of the alien accessible and believable, at making us sympathetic with the alien; and, making us understand that the new aliens (humans) can't be trusted (which the reader will understand and acknowledge if they've read her other works--40,000 In Gehenna is a good example).
The Chanur series starts just like any other day in anyone else's life: just normal activity, the drudgery of the daily grind, which then explodes into the extraordinary, thanks to that one event that you (or, in this case, Pyanfar) keep regretting later because you let your sympathy override your good sense--and who of us has never done that before??
To those who've complained about the denseness of these stories: go read her Fortress series, or the Rusalka series, or the Dreamstone series: those will positively drown you, even tho they're excellent in their own right, they are BIG and DENSE, and require careful reading.
For the rest: just read this. If you feel confused afterward, read them again, they read as well the seventh time as the did the first.
May 22, 2009
The writing is brilliant. C.J. Cherryh excels at "the future of mankind in space" and the development of alien cultures. The publication of this omnibus was an error on the part of the publisher though. It includes the standalone, Hugo nominated "The Pride of Chanur" and then 2 of the next 3 Chanur books which Cherryh wrote as a trilogy. Don't buy this without buying either "Chanur's Homecoming" which is the missing book of the trilogy, or "Chanur's Endgame" which another followup omnibus including "Chanur's Homecoming" + "Chanur's Legacy" the 5th and last of the Chanur books.
All 5 of the Chanur books are 5 star stuff. Really excellent. Cherryh can write harder sci-fi such as the Hugo Award winning Cyteen or slightly more adventurous stuff like Chanur - but they all demonstrate why NASA said "her vision of the mankind's future in space challenges us" and named an asteroid for her.
The omnibus is highly recommended, the writing is about as high a recommendation as I can give - right up there with Patrick O'Brian, Dorothy Dunnett and Terry Pratchett - as long as you buy the rest of the story at the same time because you don't want to be left holding this cliffhanger and scramble to find the next book. Because you probably would.
All 5 of the Chanur books are 5 star stuff. Really excellent. Cherryh can write harder sci-fi such as the Hugo Award winning Cyteen or slightly more adventurous stuff like Chanur - but they all demonstrate why NASA said "her vision of the mankind's future in space challenges us" and named an asteroid for her.
The omnibus is highly recommended, the writing is about as high a recommendation as I can give - right up there with Patrick O'Brian, Dorothy Dunnett and Terry Pratchett - as long as you buy the rest of the story at the same time because you don't want to be left holding this cliffhanger and scramble to find the next book. Because you probably would.
May 11, 2017
This was amazing. I loved the universe that was created and its inhabitants. This was everything (to me) that a science fiction novel should have. I was able to immerse myself and only came up for air when I was done. This was one that I thought about when I wasn't reading it. The crew of The Pride have become some favorite characters of mine. It was a bit hard to follow at times, but a second read of those parts made it all clear. Sometimes we read to fast as we are all caught up in the action. I loved the space ports, that there were oxygen breathers and methane breathers. Those methane breathers were bizarre. I loved that space travel was hard. Hard on a body, that time was acknowledged. My only one issue is that the last book was left on a cliff hanger. Now I absolutely have to go and find the last 2 books.
October 12, 2008
I am rereading the Chanur Saga by Cherryh. She's my favorite sci-fi/fantasy writer. I could read her stuff over and over again. Plus, I just got a Kindle (an ebook reader), and I've found the etext series on-line for free. I've uploaded it to my Kindle and now I am enjoying all of my currently reading books at the same time! I love it!
August 2, 2011
This one turned into a DNF. I couldn't get into the political stuff and the dialogue was horrible to follow. I couldn't understand what they were saying half the time. Started out promising, but I just don't have the energy to try and finish the series.
January 13, 2013
I can't believe this was originally published in three volumes -- the pacing was obviously that of a single novel. Great, high tension action and amazing characterization.
Now the trick is to stop thinking in mahen pidgin.
Now the trick is to stop thinking in mahen pidgin.
March 3, 2015
Enjoyed the concept liked the sentient cats. Got confused sometimes as to who was doing what. Felt left hanging at the end. (3 book omnibus) prefer a book to resolve something. Will probably continue but not immediately.
December 14, 2022
I'm working my way through a re-read of this saga. First up: The Pride of Chanur.
The The Pride of Chanur is a first contact chase drama that’s told with breakneck pacing while also unfolding a complex and richly detailed piece of worldbuilding. In turn, the worldbuilding heightens our understanding of the stakes and tensions inherent in the action, and so it too propels the plot along.
Cherryh’s approach to worldbuilding in The Pride of Chanur (and in other books of hers I’ve reviewed like Heavy Time and Hellburner) is to let her fully-formed worlds show themselves to the reader through dialogue and action that primarily serve the plot. Her characters live in the world and work out what is happening based on that lived experience. They don’t discuss or explain things that are obvious to them, so we as readers need to keep on our toes. The characters’ understanding of the events unfolding around them is often limited due to their situation. And we don’t know any more than they do (and usually less). They work things out and we work things out alongside them, gaining our own understanding of their fictional world from their reactions to it.
Personally I love this type of speculative fiction: the sense of vertigo you have as you enter a new world and try to come to grips with how it works. And the reward you get when you read a sentence, put two and two together and realise the implications of what you’ve just read without having to be hit over the head with it.
In Heavy Time and Hellburner, the protagonists are victims of the system they live in so they have to struggle against odds to find agency and whatever redemption they can secure. Interestingly, Chanur struck me as far more dramatic and exciting, perhaps because the protagonist, ship-captain Pyanfar Chanur, has much more agency at the beginning of the novel than those other characters.
Pyanfar runs her own business as a merchant, plying trade between the planets and systems of the Compact, a loose collection of six alien species who rub along peacefully enough because there’s more profit in that than the alternative. A lesser writer might take time to build understanding of the political situation between the species and how they function together on Meetpoint Station, but Cherryh drops us right in the action. An unknown alien runs onto Pyanfar’s ship, starving and half-crazed and bearing signs of abuse, and she gives it shelter, which in turn sparks a series of events that sees her accused of theft by the acquisitive and immoral Kif, and pursued off the station after a firefight on the loading dock.
Her ship, The Pride of Chanur, is a long way from home, and Pyanfar needs to navigate to somewhere that will at least give her a fighting chance to escape her pursuers and – if possible – gain potential allies to help in the fight. But those other alien species may or may not want to help, depending on how safe they themselves feel from the threat of Kif reprisal. And then Pyanfar finds the animal they rescued is an intelligent alien: an outsider from this part of space who calls himself a ‘human’.
Through the action we learn more about Pyanfar and her crew – all of them female Hani (cat-like and bipedal) – and about the Chanur House they belong to, the political infighting between the Hani Houses that is commonplace, and the fact that Pyanfar’s actions out in space may leave her own House open to damaging challenge. We also learn more about the human’s kidnap and torture by the Kif and the status of the other species that form the Compact. All of this plays out against a deadly game of cat and mouse between Pyanfar’s ship and the Kif following her, each move escalating the tension as innocents pay for Pyanfar’s actions and supposed allies become enemies. Nothing is ‘over-explained’. Again and again we draw our own conclusions on actions or statements based on our evolving understanding of Pyanfar’s universe. This is a novel that rewards you close attention.
The resolution is everything you could hope it would be: exciting, fast-paced, high stakes and deeply satisfying. With a hint of more to be resolved in future volumes. Highly recommended.
The The Pride of Chanur is a first contact chase drama that’s told with breakneck pacing while also unfolding a complex and richly detailed piece of worldbuilding. In turn, the worldbuilding heightens our understanding of the stakes and tensions inherent in the action, and so it too propels the plot along.
Cherryh’s approach to worldbuilding in The Pride of Chanur (and in other books of hers I’ve reviewed like Heavy Time and Hellburner) is to let her fully-formed worlds show themselves to the reader through dialogue and action that primarily serve the plot. Her characters live in the world and work out what is happening based on that lived experience. They don’t discuss or explain things that are obvious to them, so we as readers need to keep on our toes. The characters’ understanding of the events unfolding around them is often limited due to their situation. And we don’t know any more than they do (and usually less). They work things out and we work things out alongside them, gaining our own understanding of their fictional world from their reactions to it.
Personally I love this type of speculative fiction: the sense of vertigo you have as you enter a new world and try to come to grips with how it works. And the reward you get when you read a sentence, put two and two together and realise the implications of what you’ve just read without having to be hit over the head with it.
In Heavy Time and Hellburner, the protagonists are victims of the system they live in so they have to struggle against odds to find agency and whatever redemption they can secure. Interestingly, Chanur struck me as far more dramatic and exciting, perhaps because the protagonist, ship-captain Pyanfar Chanur, has much more agency at the beginning of the novel than those other characters.
Pyanfar runs her own business as a merchant, plying trade between the planets and systems of the Compact, a loose collection of six alien species who rub along peacefully enough because there’s more profit in that than the alternative. A lesser writer might take time to build understanding of the political situation between the species and how they function together on Meetpoint Station, but Cherryh drops us right in the action. An unknown alien runs onto Pyanfar’s ship, starving and half-crazed and bearing signs of abuse, and she gives it shelter, which in turn sparks a series of events that sees her accused of theft by the acquisitive and immoral Kif, and pursued off the station after a firefight on the loading dock.
Her ship, The Pride of Chanur, is a long way from home, and Pyanfar needs to navigate to somewhere that will at least give her a fighting chance to escape her pursuers and – if possible – gain potential allies to help in the fight. But those other alien species may or may not want to help, depending on how safe they themselves feel from the threat of Kif reprisal. And then Pyanfar finds the animal they rescued is an intelligent alien: an outsider from this part of space who calls himself a ‘human’.
Through the action we learn more about Pyanfar and her crew – all of them female Hani (cat-like and bipedal) – and about the Chanur House they belong to, the political infighting between the Hani Houses that is commonplace, and the fact that Pyanfar’s actions out in space may leave her own House open to damaging challenge. We also learn more about the human’s kidnap and torture by the Kif and the status of the other species that form the Compact. All of this plays out against a deadly game of cat and mouse between Pyanfar’s ship and the Kif following her, each move escalating the tension as innocents pay for Pyanfar’s actions and supposed allies become enemies. Nothing is ‘over-explained’. Again and again we draw our own conclusions on actions or statements based on our evolving understanding of Pyanfar’s universe. This is a novel that rewards you close attention.
The resolution is everything you could hope it would be: exciting, fast-paced, high stakes and deeply satisfying. With a hint of more to be resolved in future volumes. Highly recommended.
March 12, 2023
This edition is an omnibus of the first 3 Chanur novels: The Pride of Chanur, Chanur's Venture, The Kif Strike Back. The first time I've read anything by Cherryh. These 3 novels introduce the Hani, the Compact, and other inhabitants who participate in the Compact, including the Kif and the Mahendo'sat. The main character is a Hani, i.e. a lion-like species with some feline behaviors but also behavior unique to its culture and planet. I have to admit, I thoroughly enjoyed a bunch of cats in a spaceship, faced with a male human who has escaped from Kif captivity, and how much the Kif want that human back. The Kif are not very pleasant creatures with leathery snouts, red-rimmed eyes, dark gray skin, tall and thin and dressed in black robes. The human, Tully, is terrified, alone, and in need of sanctuary. The captain of the Hani ship The Pride of Chanur, against her better judgement perhaps, grants him that sanctuary.
It was extremely interesting to be immersed in an alien culture and way of thinking. While the action begins immediately and rarely lets up, it was still a challenge to settle into the minds of the Hani. The work was well worth it, however. I just wish there'd been more of the human, Tully, but his terror kept him relatively inactive. He did work hard to learn the Hani language so he could communicate with Pyanfar and the others, and he comes to trust them by the end of the first book. I wondered if there was humor in these books that I missed, though.
Cherryh does a fabulous job of distinguishing each species, even with the rhythm of the speech of each. Among the Hani, there wasn't as much distinction, except between Hilfy, the youngest, and the others. Pyanfar Chanur, the captain, is the main character and POV character (for most of these books) and Cherryh keeps the viewpoint close in to her mind. This choice did have limitations, but also an advantage of increasing suspense at times.
I'd recommend this series to sci fi readers who enjoy space opera and are looking for something different. Be brave! Seeing the universe through someone else's nonhuman eyes and mind can be fun as well as thought-provoking.
It was extremely interesting to be immersed in an alien culture and way of thinking. While the action begins immediately and rarely lets up, it was still a challenge to settle into the minds of the Hani. The work was well worth it, however. I just wish there'd been more of the human, Tully, but his terror kept him relatively inactive. He did work hard to learn the Hani language so he could communicate with Pyanfar and the others, and he comes to trust them by the end of the first book. I wondered if there was humor in these books that I missed, though.
Cherryh does a fabulous job of distinguishing each species, even with the rhythm of the speech of each. Among the Hani, there wasn't as much distinction, except between Hilfy, the youngest, and the others. Pyanfar Chanur, the captain, is the main character and POV character (for most of these books) and Cherryh keeps the viewpoint close in to her mind. This choice did have limitations, but also an advantage of increasing suspense at times.
I'd recommend this series to sci fi readers who enjoy space opera and are looking for something different. Be brave! Seeing the universe through someone else's nonhuman eyes and mind can be fun as well as thought-provoking.
November 12, 2021
‘The Chanur Saga’ is a science-fiction story set mainly in space, dealing largely with the trading system that has been developed by various alien species. The main characters belong to a species called the hani, who at a space station rescue a member of a never-before-seen species, a human, from their enemies the kif. Naturally, the kif want ‘their’ human back, and the hani are reluctant to hand him over, whilst other races have their own interests in the new species and their potential for trade.
I enjoy sci-fi, particularly explorations of alien cultures, and as a cat-lover was drawn to the feline appearance of the characters on the cover. This seemed like a perfect book for me. However, I found it rather a difficult read. To begin with, there is next to no description of what the alien races actually look like. We are told the hani have fur, beards and mobile ears, but that is about the extent of it, and other species get even less description – little more than ‘pale-skinned’ or ‘snake-like’. Their cultures are equally glossed over, with nearly all the events of the plot taking place on spaceships or space stations rather than planets, and the interactions between species being long-winded conversations written in stilted, hard-to-follow language. It is one thing to suggest that different species have difficulty communicating, another to make their conversations so awkward that the reader has trouble figuring out what they are trying to say. In my opinion, the story suffers from a preoccupation with politics – there is simply too much talk and not enough action.
This book combines the first three books of the ‘Chanur’ series in one volume. It contains ‘The Pride of Chanur’, ‘Chanur’s Venture’ and ‘The Kif Strike Back’. Whilst ‘The Pride of Chanur’ is a stand-alone story, the second two are not – they are the first two parts of an ongoing story which, regrettably, is not concluded in this volume. Had I bought either of these as single books, I would have been irritated to find that they are not complete stories. To find out what happens, you must read further books in the series. Though the story was engaging despite its slow pace, I did not find it interesting enough to warrant the purchase of more books. Unfortunately, this means I am left wondering how the story ends.
I enjoy sci-fi, particularly explorations of alien cultures, and as a cat-lover was drawn to the feline appearance of the characters on the cover. This seemed like a perfect book for me. However, I found it rather a difficult read. To begin with, there is next to no description of what the alien races actually look like. We are told the hani have fur, beards and mobile ears, but that is about the extent of it, and other species get even less description – little more than ‘pale-skinned’ or ‘snake-like’. Their cultures are equally glossed over, with nearly all the events of the plot taking place on spaceships or space stations rather than planets, and the interactions between species being long-winded conversations written in stilted, hard-to-follow language. It is one thing to suggest that different species have difficulty communicating, another to make their conversations so awkward that the reader has trouble figuring out what they are trying to say. In my opinion, the story suffers from a preoccupation with politics – there is simply too much talk and not enough action.
This book combines the first three books of the ‘Chanur’ series in one volume. It contains ‘The Pride of Chanur’, ‘Chanur’s Venture’ and ‘The Kif Strike Back’. Whilst ‘The Pride of Chanur’ is a stand-alone story, the second two are not – they are the first two parts of an ongoing story which, regrettably, is not concluded in this volume. Had I bought either of these as single books, I would have been irritated to find that they are not complete stories. To find out what happens, you must read further books in the series. Though the story was engaging despite its slow pace, I did not find it interesting enough to warrant the purchase of more books. Unfortunately, this means I am left wondering how the story ends.
August 24, 2020
Cherryh's books are invariably riddled with Authority Being Obtuse, sometimes for pages and pages and pages, and Chanur definitely has that, but I'm happy to skim over that part for the payoff, which is: badass female cat aliens.
My pros:
-badass female cat aliens--the main character is one, which is nice not only because I liked her (which I did) but because Now The Humans Are The Aliens
-a genuinely cool sequence of alien species having to learn out how to talk to each other
-straight id: a human male is defenseless and vulnerable and squishy in comparison to lady aliens. For me, this is the series' biggest selling point, and it's most powerful at the beginning
-a really interesting cast of alien species and politics
My cons:
-I would've liked more development of the personal relationships among the characters
-Authority Being Obtuse - the politics could've been much more interesting if they were less frustrating
Overall, probably 3.5 stars rounded up. Cherryh's books consistently wrap an emotionally-appealing premise in many layers of stuff I'm less interested in, sometimes strangling the appeal in the process, but this one is still a fun read.
My pros:
-badass female cat aliens--the main character is one, which is nice not only because I liked her (which I did) but because Now The Humans Are The Aliens
-a genuinely cool sequence of alien species having to learn out how to talk to each other
-straight id: a human male is defenseless and vulnerable and squishy in comparison to lady aliens. For me, this is the series' biggest selling point, and it's most powerful at the beginning
-a really interesting cast of alien species and politics
My cons:
-I would've liked more development of the personal relationships among the characters
-Authority Being Obtuse - the politics could've been much more interesting if they were less frustrating
Overall, probably 3.5 stars rounded up. Cherryh's books consistently wrap an emotionally-appealing premise in many layers of stuff I'm less interested in, sometimes strangling the appeal in the process, but this one is still a fun read.
March 10, 2024
Pyanfar Chanur, rymdskeppskapten och rymdlejoninna, hittar en konstig hårlös varelse som gömt sig på hennes skepp, på flykt från läbbiga rymdpirater. Spoiler: det är en människa hon hittat! Hon dras in i intriger och äventyr!
Jättebra utomjordingar överlag i denna. Världen är verkligen 10/10. Lejonvarelserna Hani har könsroller, familjerelationer och samhällen som är extremt lejoniga och just därför väldigt främmande och icke-mänskliga.
Min favorit: De mystiska Knnn som ser ut som hårtrassel med spindelben och kommunicerar med obegripliga sånger. De har avancerad teknologi men "byteshandlar" bara genom att slänga ut grejer ur sina skepp och sedan snabbt rafsa åt sig lite vad de vill utan att fråga om lov och försvinna in i sina skepp.
Obs! Oväntat realistiska rymdskepp. Typ... hard sci-fi?Väldigt invecklade hemliga intriger och allianser efter ett tag. Lite svårt att hänga med i svängarna ibland. Slutar på en cliffhanger.
Jättebra utomjordingar överlag i denna. Världen är verkligen 10/10. Lejonvarelserna Hani har könsroller, familjerelationer och samhällen som är extremt lejoniga och just därför väldigt främmande och icke-mänskliga.
Min favorit: De mystiska Knnn som ser ut som hårtrassel med spindelben och kommunicerar med obegripliga sånger. De har avancerad teknologi men "byteshandlar" bara genom att slänga ut grejer ur sina skepp och sedan snabbt rafsa åt sig lite vad de vill utan att fråga om lov och försvinna in i sina skepp.
Obs! Oväntat realistiska rymdskepp. Typ... hard sci-fi?Väldigt invecklade hemliga intriger och allianser efter ett tag. Lite svårt att hänga med i svängarna ibland. Slutar på en cliffhanger.
September 14, 2019
After reading another series by this author, I found this one very similar. A main character (not the human this time, which is fun) who is capable and with good intentions, but constantly in danger and over her head. There's a lot of inner monologue and the pace seems slow even though a lot is happening. I was happy to find this 3 in 1 volume thinking I could read right through any cliff-hanger endings, but the first book actually wraps up rather well. Not so the second and third, so I am stuck looking for volume 4 in this series. My suggestion would be to read the first book (Pride of Chanur) as a stand alone story; it was the best and ends satisfactorily.
May 30, 2021
I picked the first of this three book series up some time ago and liked it. It was more well-done space battles, (cool) and some very well done space-station gunfights (cool).
Unfortunately, it also quickly became so politically convoluted that I couldn't figure out what the fuck was going on. And then there's the not-very well rendered home planet structure stuff. Eh, I'm glad I got to read some more, but I'd much rather just read shorter novels from Cherryh with all the boring stuff edited out.
Unfortunately, it also quickly became so politically convoluted that I couldn't figure out what the fuck was going on. And then there's the not-very well rendered home planet structure stuff. Eh, I'm glad I got to read some more, but I'd much rather just read shorter novels from Cherryh with all the boring stuff edited out.
September 5, 2022
I have re-read this series probably fifty times in the last twenty years, and it hasn't gotten old yet. Sometimes you just want to immerse yourself in an alien POV and enjoy some good ol sci-fi politics, xenopsychology, and a bit of action. Cherry's aliens are second to none, her writing is crisp and readable, and the worldbuilding puts other contemporaries to shame. If you haven't read any of her works before and found yourself intimidated by her massive Foreigner series, this is where to start! Go! Read!
October 10, 2022
Mmmmmph. The back of the book doesn't lie: It's the rare Science Fiction novel that manages to make humanity seem like the alien weirdos......Cherryh really needs to give the pidgin talk a fucking rest, though - all the complex political finagling is tough enough to figure without all the You Go Your Ship Now Me Friend You Friend stuff. For reals.
October 21, 2016
Horrible. Horrible writing. Horrible dialogue that you cant understand. Even the descriptions and action are in half sentences. On top of all that, the writer spends time on under developed plot lines that you don't care about. I'm offended that this book has a high rating and that I got suckered into owning it. I'm going to use the pages from this book to light the briquettes on fire for the barbecue tomorrow...
January 19, 2022
Didn't get very far through the first book in this collection. I was having a hard time following along as the writing style just didn't flow easily for me. Nothing really wrong with the story I just was not enjoying reading it. Probably my own fault.
September 18, 2019
Some new ideas, with several alien cultures interactions when humans first contact them. But too stretched out and conflict filled to be great
July 15, 2021
Cats! In space!
February 27, 2017
Enjoyable, but as with many of her books the endings herein are confusing and don't really feel like endings...not much actually gets resolved. A quick read, though, with interesting alien civilizations that are well thought-out.
June 11, 2015
Cherryh continues to be one of my absolute favorite authors for alien psychology. I was introduced to her with the Foreigner series and fell in love them despite the wordiness and sometimes overly-Byzantine politics. In the "Chanur" books, Cherryh has created seven or so alien races, and by some minor miracle they're all distinctive and interesting, although the methane breathers are so alien to the POV characters that they're a little harder to grasp. Since the POV character is a hani, we get the deepest look into hani culture, which has a lot of interesting class and gender structures. As impressive to me as the creation of these races is the creation of tension within the races--although there are certainly species-wide characteristics, as the saga continues, we see conflict within almost all of them, like the cultural gap between "downworld" and spacer hani. This isn't something I see enough of in sci-fi even though humans are certainly capable of a wide range of cultures and conflicts!
All that said, I wanted to love these books as much as I love the "Foreigner" books, but I didn't quite get there. None of the races individually intrigued me as much as the atevi do (I can go off on atevi theorizing for hours), although I will happily admit that as a whole they make for an incredibly complex Compact. Adding humanity to that mix presents so many interesting possibilities. Tully makes for a fascinating Outsider, and I'd definitely be interested to see how the Compact evolves with human involvement. I'd also love to read more about the methane breathers (if indeed any oxygen breather could understand it!).
The saga is simultaneously tense--our valiant crew is always teetering on the edge of some terrible disaster--and dense with intra- and inter-species politics and sometimes outright violence. It makes for a frankly exhausting read at times. This is one of very few instances where I might have liked to have pulled back just a bit from the POV character's head. Her mind goes instantly into analyzing the minutiae of cultures and histories I don't know anything about, and the characters often speak at Cherry's oblique, politicking best. I recognize some of this from the Foreigner series, but with those books we get some down time to absorb bits of history and culture between panicked interludes.
There was a lot to appreciate this book but I didn't quite fall in love with it. Still, highly recommended for sci-fi fans of sprawling universes and sharp politics.
All that said, I wanted to love these books as much as I love the "Foreigner" books, but I didn't quite get there. None of the races individually intrigued me as much as the atevi do (I can go off on atevi theorizing for hours), although I will happily admit that as a whole they make for an incredibly complex Compact. Adding humanity to that mix presents so many interesting possibilities. Tully makes for a fascinating Outsider, and I'd definitely be interested to see how the Compact evolves with human involvement. I'd also love to read more about the methane breathers (if indeed any oxygen breather could understand it!).
The saga is simultaneously tense--our valiant crew is always teetering on the edge of some terrible disaster--and dense with intra- and inter-species politics and sometimes outright violence. It makes for a frankly exhausting read at times. This is one of very few instances where I might have liked to have pulled back just a bit from the POV character's head. Her mind goes instantly into analyzing the minutiae of cultures and histories I don't know anything about, and the characters often speak at Cherry's oblique, politicking best. I recognize some of this from the Foreigner series, but with those books we get some down time to absorb bits of history and culture between panicked interludes.
There was a lot to appreciate this book but I didn't quite fall in love with it. Still, highly recommended for sci-fi fans of sprawling universes and sharp politics.
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