Foreigner

by C.J. Cherryh

Book Overview

It had been nearly five centuries since the starship Phoenix had become lost in space and had encountered the world of the atevi. On this world where law was kept by registered assassination, war between the humans and atevi was inevitable. Now, 200 years after that conflict, the sole human allowed into atevi society is marked for an assassin's bullet. . . .

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0886775906
• ISBN13: 9780886775902
• Release Date: February 1994
• Publisher: Daw Books
• Length: 378 Pages
• Weight: 1.50 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.4" x 6.4" x 9.3"

Customer Reviews

Fascinatingly complex... gets better as you read through the series

I happen to really "dig" C.J. Cherryh's writing. Her characters are fully realized and believable and her plots are excellent. You can never call her works predictable or ho-hum. When I first read _Foreigner_, I couldn't get into the novel. I picked it up, read 20-30 pages and put it down again. This happened several times. Eventually I decided to lay in a chunk of reading--only to realize that the farther I got into the novel, the more drawn to it I became. The Foreigner series of books only gets better as it develops. I found the next two novels in the series to be entirely satisfying reads. The plot and characterizations of this series are complex and fully developed--one of it's most engaging qualities. Too many novels seem have flat characters and predictable plotlines which is incredibly disappointing to a smart reader. I recently read _Poison Study_ because of it's cover review. Ack! Talk about tripe. It's great to come across books that engage the reader's intelligence and have you wondering "gee, how would I react in that situation?" I've read all of the Foreigner series to date (8 novels) and they are truly some of my favorites. I rank them up there with Tad Williams great series like the Otherworld novels, Marion Zimmer Bradley's Darkover stuff, and Melanie Rawn's Exile books. If you are looking for an extremely intellegent, psychologically rich series, this is it. And if you like this series, check out Ms. Cherryh's Cyteen books--also a good read.

it's great, no matter what they say

honestly, i couldn't understand why some people don't like this book, until i loaned it to my younger sister and she got bored and never came back after the first chapter. admittedly, she doesn't like science fiction anyways... so i guess it is a bit tougher than some other science-fiction/fantasy books, and yes, it is a bit dry in some places. but what Cherryh writes about the species and the interactions more than makes up for it for readers willing to slog it through. i loved, absolutely loved, all six books in the series. i read all six of them in under half a year, often forsaking games and homework to read them i liked it that much. but, as some people pointed out, not everyone likes it. if you don't know if you think you'd like it, check it out at the library, and give it more than one chapter before you return it. although buying it may make you commit a bit more than a borrowed book, for those who finish it, and the series, it is great fun, and a thouroughly rewarding experience. i highly recommend it.

incredibly satisfying

I've been browsing through the reviews of Cherryh's books and I just have to add my own thoughts. I've been reading her work for a few years. I grab all of her sci-fi and just ingest it whole. I love this writer's ability to inject incredible characterization into thoughful storylines that introduce us to sciences that usually don't get a lot of speculation in this genre. To write a sci-fi novel that focuses on political science, sociology and how it can all tie into biology... well, it's gutsy! I love reading fiction that has something to teach me and makes me look at what is happening on our own world in a different light. I've read all the Foreigner series, and I'm breathless waiting for the next one. Every time I hear that the new one is about to come out, I go back and read the others. I find some new level of understanding every time. I can't imagine what it takes to write a story with this many levels. Sure, it might be overwhelming for someone who wants their action on the surface - with the characters meeting all the challenges so the reader doesn't have to... But for those who want to be intellectually stimulated while getting a healthy dose of intrigue and action, this series is it!

Aliens, Politics, and Angst, Oh My!

This book is the first in the Foreigner Universe series. It is an amazing web of political intrigue, action and a skimming of romance. Cherryh creates an amazing world, upon which live one of the most unique alien races I have encountered in the many years I have been reading science fiction. The characters are very personable, and the imagery is rich and life-like. For a truly excellent read, see this book, and the second in the series, "Invader" (I just finished it today, and I can't wait to get a copy of the third, "Inheritor.").

Culture, Intrigue, Assasination, and Fun.

Foreigner is a book about first contact -- humans and aliens, called the atevi, meeting for the first time -- and problems that occur when the two cultures meet and try to understand each other. C.J. Cherryh builds an alien culture and society that is well-formed, complete and believable; and through her excellent style, immerses the reader into this culture such that one begins to think and act like atevi, and perhaps, daydream about what it would be like living with the atevi oneself. This book is similar to Shogun, which, in effect, was a first contact book itself. The atevi culture, to me, has an essence of the Japanese culture, with a touch of India. Different "biological hard-wiring" between the humans and atevi create complicated misunderstandings of some of the most basic societal concepts. Imagine a culture that cannot fully understand the human words "like", "love", and "friend". The only time the atevi use the word, "like", is to describe a favorite food, such as salads. Now think how often we humans use the word "like" -- yes, we like food, but we also like each other, and there are different levels of like, and there are likenesses between members of a family, and we like inanimate objects, like paintings, and like, we compare things to other things, such as, he talks like a lawyer. The humorous side effects of these misunderstandings are quite fun. In one scene, the main character, Bren Cameron, tries to tell Banichi, a very manly atevi guard, that he is liked and considers him a friend. Poor Banichi is quite insulted because he thinks Bren considers him the equivalent of a salad. Further attempts to understand causes Banichi to perhaps wonder about human sexual preferences. The misunderstandings can have a most serious side effect, too. Humans cannot seem to grasp certain atevi concepts, such as "man'chi" and "associations". Atevi society is based upon a clan-like culture. There are no geographical boundaries between the different clans, but associations that are made between lords. Clan members declare man'chi to their lord, and possibly to family members, or spouse. Cherryh keeps the "nebulous-ity" of man'chi evident so that even the human reader cannot quite ever fully understand the concept. Major and minor associations can be made, causing much political complexity. Add in the concept of legal assassination, practiced and controlled by Guild Assassins, and the book takes off with high action. Human ignorance of atevi associations in the past resulted in a war in which the atevi won, and caused a complete separation of the two races on the planet. A treaty was created such that humans would gradually release their superior technology to the atevi. Only one human is allowed to interface and live among the atevi, the nand paidhi, "honored interpreter". Bren Cameron is the first paidhi in a long line of paidhiin to ever get close to understanding the atevi. He is a brilliant diplomat who takes great pains to