Destiny's Forge

Man-Kzin Wars #11.5

by Paul Chafe, Larry Niven (Creator)

For fifty thousand years the Kzinti Patriarchy thrived on battle fought for conquest. Against all odds the humans stopped them, and for five wars kept on stopping them. With its violent expansion checked internal strains have built up within the Patriarchy, and now they threaten to tear it apart. When the ambitious Kchula-Tzaatz makes a bid for ultimate power the established order comes tumbling down, and the flames of war burn hot in Destiny's Forge. Hammered on that Forge are; Major Quacy Tskombe, battle hardened warrior turned diplomat. His life is duty, his mission takes him to the Citadel of the Patriarch in a last ditch effort to avert war. When it all falls apart he's forced to choose between love and loyalty, with the fate of humanity hanging in the balance. Captain Ayla Cherenkova, starship commander. As talented as she is beautiful, her hatred of the Kzinti has driven her to the top. Her space combat genius is unmatched, but when she's trapped alone in the jungles of Kzinhome her survival will depend on a whole new skillset. Pouncer, First-Son-of-Meerz-Rritt, heir apparent to the galaxy's most powerful empire. He's reduced to a nameless fugitive with the collapse of his father's dynasty. Survival demands escape, but honor demands vengeance, and the price of his Name will be paid in the blood of worlds. Paul Chafe presents a masterpiece in the grand tradition of epic science fiction. No fan of Larry Niven's best-selling Known Space series can miss Destiny's Forge.

Genres: Science Fiction, Fiction, Aliens, Ebooks, Science Fiction Fantasy

672 pages, Hardcover

First published July 1, 2006

Reviews

[Little Timmy · Rating 4 out of 5]

this is my favorite book/story in the Man-Kzin War series. Great in depth look at the culture and mindset of the Kzin species. Well written action and story flow. Very recommended

[Adam Meek · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of the better Man-Kzin Wars tales, this is right up there with Donald Kingsbury's "The Heroic Myth of Lt. Nora Argamentine" from Man-Kzin Wars VI. It shows us a lot of Kzinhome and Earth's "gray zones"-- home of fugitives and unregistered persons. We've seen Earth before, but almost always from the perspective of rich playboys like Louis Wu or ARM bureaucrats like Gil Hamilton. Plus, it has dolphins.

A must read for any Man-Kzin Wars fan.

[Ray Duncan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Certainly the best Man-Kzin war book in the post-Niven era.

[Lone Wolf · Rating 5 out of 5]

‘Destiny’s Forge’ is a highly entertaining tale of the kzin, cat-like aliens created by Larry Niven. You do need to have some familiarity with Niven’s ‘Known Space’ universe to appreciate this book fully, as it’s taken for granted that the reader will know certain things – who the kzin are and their history of warfare with humans, for example.

Unlike most kzin stories, which present them solely as enemies of mankind, this book takes you deep inside their culture and gives you a fascinating insight into their point of view. Our hero is Pouncer, heir to the throne, who must aid and protect a human delegation to his planet during the tumultuous events of a civil war. We see these events both through Pouncer’s eyes and through the eyes of the humans, revealing both how different and how similar the two species are.

If you’re a fan of the kzin, this is a must-read. I couldn’t put it down!

[Austin · Rating 5 out of 5]

Hard-SF of the highest order. Almost everything about this book is perfect. The characters, the setting, the action, the pacing, even the length is justified. Just an all around fantastic book. I'd recommend at least reading Ringworld and its sequel first for some background info but otherwise you can go into this blind and enjoy it standalone (as I did). Has some similarities to DUNE but not enough to detract from the story. Highly recommended for fans of Larry Niven or anyone who likes Epic Science Fiction in general.

[Daniel Pitterman · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have been rereading this series all year. Finally got to the point where I had stopped decades ago. I have been enjoying some and some have not been so great. It was with great trepidation that I started a nearly 1000 page novel in the series. What an amazing surprise! Probably the best of the whole series. Took me a little while to get hooked but once I did, I could not put it down. A truly epic novel that brings a whole new depth to this series! For those who have not read the other books, you don’t need to. Pick this up. Dive in and savor it!

[Preston Dannelley · Rating 5 out of 5]

Peace through understanding

Many years ago I read every book on Man-Kzin Wars I could get my hands on. Imagine my surprise and delight when I found this! I am now going back through the complete collection, because I believe there are more that I have missed and I yearn to reaquaint myself with the total genre. If you loved the early Niven,I think you will vastly enjoy his later work.

[Arthur Buswell · Rating 3 out of 5]

It was readable, and I somewhat enjoyed reading it. The problem is that, to a large extent, I already have. Changing Paul Atreides into a Kzin, Fremen into jungle-dwelling kzin, Bene Gesserit into Kzinti telepaths, the Bene Gesserit plan into the Long War, sand worms into tuskvors, etc., doesn’t generate an especially original story. Furthermore, in terms of plot complexity and interest, this version, while not actually bad, is somewhat dumbed down from Dune.

[CSH · Rating 4 out of 5]

A Worthy Read

It shows far more detail than a normal Man-Kzin War story, and was intriguing. I was able to anticipate a couple twists, but that did not essen my enjoyment. Overall, I had a hard time putting it down.

[Eric Johnson]

Nivens Known Universe is the BEST

Almost Any story that starts in the Known Universe has been worth the read-- never been disappointed with a KU story -- whether done by Niven or by another writer- it's just the BEST

[Stephen]

The length was intimidating, just under a thousand pages but worth it. Chafe has the military training and enough science smarts to pull it all together (I'm sure Larry was involved in a few pre-reads). There are elements of the Greek tragedies such as Jason and the Argonauts, Orpheus and Eurydice in the book. Once the human female arrives on Kzanol and escapes the story really and truly picks up. The first, say 10% of the book is hard to get in to as it is mostly from a Kzin POV but after that it's fun reading.

[Robu-sensei · Rating 3 out of 5]

Destiny's Forge is the first book in the "Man-Kzin Wars" saga to meet the standards set by the original Man-Kzin Wars. The story fits seamlessly into Larry Niven's "Known Space" universe, and the clear, imaginative writing evokes Niven's own. A tale that kept me reading voraciously through 930+ pages (in the paperback edition).

[Charl · Rating 5 out of 5]

Spaceships and interplanetary combat leavened with sword-and-armor dueling. An excellent "deposed crown prince trying to regain his throne" story mixed with an all-out war of extermination between Terrans and Kzinti.

Very good, and kept me reading eagerly right up to the end.

[Tim Poston · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is the well worn story of the exiled prince gathering mana and followers in the wilderness and returning to recapture the throne, but the prince is a kzin and two of his followers are human, and it's very well told. Hard to put down.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Epic novel of the inner workings of the Kzin patriarchy just before and during the final Man-Kzin War. Keeps a lot of Larry Niven's tone throughout.

[Larry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Man-Kzin war series has been consistently good.

[Ch J Loveall · Rating 4 out of 5]

page count differs due to edition

[Ashley Zander · Rating 5 out of 5]

Could not put it down

[Les]

Awesome Man-Kzin Wars novel in Larry Niven's Known Space universe. 963 pages of great hard science fiction.

[Brett]

Science Fiction