Emergence is the 19th book in the Foreigner series by master SF/fantasy author C. J. Cherryh. Published 2 Jan, 2018 by DAW books it's 336 pages and available in ebook, hard- and soft-cover, and audiobook formats.

There are a huge number of fandoms in the speculative fiction genre. Think about meeting someone who is really into Star Trek or Babylon 5 or even Game of Thrones (the book fans, not necessarily fans of the TV show). Sometimes it's hard to decipher exactly what they're talking about, but their enthusiasm is obvious. This series is grand space opera and is sort of like an episode of a long running series. For fans of Foreigner, it's an eagerly anticipated addition to a much loved universe. As such, for readers new to this author, there's a learning curve involved. The effort to do a little background research or keep a handy guide available is well rewarded because this is a worthwhile, engaging, and immersive book (and series).

There are a lot of really good reviewer précises of this book, so I'll just add that this entry does move the narrative along in a lot of ways and it was great to see the development of the characters, especially Cajeiri.

This series is huge and overarching and complex. There's a rich abundance of detail along with a great deal of subtlety and wry political commentary. It's a very cultured book (and by that I mean refined and structured and not raw or strident).

I really enjoyed this book (and the series) and recommend it highly to readers who are prepared to put in the effort.

Four stars.

I'm honestly not sure if this review will be a fair portrayal of the novel as I haven't read the previous books in the series. When I requested this novel from Netgalley I didn't realize it was #19 in a series. I'll try my best with this review however.

This novel is deeply political with a lot of maneuvering and scheming occurring. There isn't a lot of action and what action there is seems to occur off screen. I'm not going to comment on the characters or alien species as I don't have enough backstory on them to make an accurate comment. I did find the pacing in this novel quite slow though.

Thanks to Netgalley for this ARC.

Emergence by C.J. Cherryh
My rating: 5 of 5 stars

We're back in the politics, or rather, we never left. That's not a bad thing in this series because the Atevi and the humans are just ripe with the social craziness. To think we (as in Atevi and Humans) are held up as a standard of getting along and making rational decisions and compromises is just too funny.

What I think is best about this book, in particular, is how Cajeiri and his mother finally bond in a trial-by-fire way. It really picks up big time from the previous novel's events, but more than that, I'm getting a great sense of major alliances finally pulling together in a really big way.

It helps that we get a lot of great action and suspense, but it's Cajeiri who shines here. He's really growing up. Big time. :) Adult responsibility and everything. Great-Uncle is turning him into a man. Um. Alien. Whatever. :)

Mospheira is another thing. The island of humanity is kinda crazy right now thanks to a certain documentary depicting the living conditions on the space station and when that and the refugee issue really comes to a head, it really boils over. Reunioners and ancient hate is a big deal. As always, Cherryh knows how to make great world-building like a perfect mirror for us.

And also, as always, Cherryh knows how to turn communication and politics into a really fun and fast popcorn fiction. That's even when the actual tale is intellectual, thoughtful, and measured. I don't know how she does it. Or perhaps I do.

It's the characters. Beautiful and exciting characters can turn ANYTHING into something grand.

Thanks to Netgalley for the ARC!

CJ Cherryh continues his Foreigner series as Bren Cameron, the representative of the atevi's political leader Tabini-aiji, works to integrate ship born humans into the human island on his world. Political unrest among the atevi and the human Mospheirans destabilizes both communities. Cajeiri, the atevi heir to the aigi, struggles to help his uncle secure the succession to his uncle's lordship while Bren prepares the way for 4 human children to descend safely to Mospheira to discover life as a human with land bound humans. Intrigues and human interest twists and turns abound. As always an excellent science fiction tale with lots of alien and human interest.