7/10
A very unfinished story—yes, I know, it’s part of a series, but it comes to a very abrupt end and nothing was resolved, so it’s hard to judge as a novel on its own. Cherryh does her usual thorough job of closely following a small number of main characters, focusing mostly on Captain Pyanfar Chanur. The focus is almost claustrophobic. At the same time, there are many layers of intrigue for Pyanfar to sort through with relentless pressure and threats all around. ( )

Pulp. Just like the comics used to make.

Even more so than the first Chanur novel, this book is breathless and sometimes brainless. Clearly written in a hurry with little of the care and nuance that marks Cherryh's best works, the first two-thirds of "CV" is a helter-skelter of running around with little assessment of 'sitrep' by the various frustrated and frustrating cast of characters. The last act draws tighter and actually becomes engaging, maybe because the mahendo'sat character Jik arrives on stage just then both tired and calm, spreading that vibe around.

And my biggest complaint from the first book holds doubly valid here: why o why is Pyanfar, the main hani character, not more actively trying to ask the human Tully just _what the hell he's there for._ ( )

This is my second read and I was hoping I'd enjoy it more this time. Unfortunately, no. It's not bad, but it lacks the sophistication and humor and therefore the bulk of the fun of her later works. It may be cool to see how much she improves over the years, or just treat this as a lesser novel with an alien-rich area of space. Above all, it's a merchantman kind of novel. Trade, cultural weirdness, and much enmity with certain species always getting in the way.

Of course, humans are the odd ones out.

And they're back! Or one is, and he's come bearing trade treaty! Enter greed, guilt, and more chase. :)

I think Cherryh is being a bit sly with the text, rewarding careful readers and turning everyone else (myself included) into chumps, however. She's not reinforcing big events with repetition, just slipping them in. :) It's great for her later series because she's got that skill down pat, but here? It tends to confuse or just reward later re-readers. Some re-readers. Me? I kinda wish I like the feel of this series more, but I don't.

I have started enjoying the deeper cultural aspects and oddities of all the aliens, however. The world-building is fun even if you can't hang a whole hat on it.

All in all, though, it reads with much action and adventure, which is kinda funny for aliens wrangling to get off space stations with their cargo intact and setting up back-door deals and alliances. But it's still fun for all that. :) ( )

(Review of all four books on Chanur's Homecoming) ( )

“Chanur’s Venture” by CJ Cherryh. This is a re-read of the book for me. In this story the Mahendo’sat machinations involves the Chanur space ship to become a courier for Tully and documents that could break open the Compact that allows so many races to trade. Stsho and Tc’a politics are involved as are Humanity’s actions in firing on Knnn ships. The story has action upon the docks of space stations and ends with a rescue mission in motion. This is very excellent space opera. ( )

I reviewed this novel, the second in the Chanur series, on SF Mistressworks: https://sfmistressworks.wordpress.com/2015/01/13/chanurs-venture-cj-cherryh/ ( )

Its been a long time since I read a book in a day. This is fun, action packed, has interesting characters, even more interesting aliens. Its not perfect, for example Tully, the human in this book - is written as a bit slow (due to language barrier and other cultural cues) but is explained to be more intelligent than he really is - I wish there was a bit more to Tully. Maybe in the next book?

The Hani are very interesting - They remind me a lot of African Lions. I cannot wait to read more about the methane breathers species, especially the Knnn. I think the Kif are a bit one dimensional, but maybe not.

The series is not as complicated as Downbelow Station, which for me, is good. I get lost in complicated story lines with many characters.

This is science fiction at its best - full of space ships, interesting aliens, and great characters. Highly recommended. ( )

I just re-read this book, again, but can't say how many times I've read it before. Upon this umpteenth read I will affirm it's still a good, intense story of aliens and alien worlds, filled with believable characters and intriguing technical details. Recommended! ( )

This is largely a bridge book, taking us from the completed story line in Pride into the adventures that will occur in the next two volumes. This makes it a bit weaker than the others in the series because much of it is recap and setting up for another episode. However, it's very short and written with Cherryh's usual style, so it's still enjoyable to read. ( )

This one stops in mid-story; be sure to have The Kif Strike Back handy or you'll be dissatisfied by the abrupt ending. (And you'll want to continue with Chanur's Homecoming after completing Kif.) It looks for all the world like Cherryh wrote a longer novel and arbitrarily chopped it in thirds.

Tully's in this book, on an explicitly diplomatic mission, but really he's just a pale character here. This is a disappointment after she'd made him visibly human through alien eyes so successfully in The Pride of Chanur. Presumably she fleshes him out again in the return bout.

Beyond that annoyance, the book again displays Cherryh's remarkable ability to create aliens, and alien cultures. She gives each of several races enough ink to show us vividly how the cultures function, at least in public (that's a real issue here, as each race has cultural issues in the background that the others seem unable to comprehend, or make allowances for).

The last few pages are explicitly about those cultures, by the way, as Cherryh includes an appendix of little essays about the various races in this book's universe. You really might want to read that first, especially if you've already read Pride.

This review has also been published on a dabbler's journal. ( )

The four Chanur universe books are my favorite books in the entire universe. Bar none. Cherryh slyly takes on sex, gender, culture, first contact, money, and power, among other issues, all in a rollicking good adventure story. ( )

The continuing adventures of the cat-like crew of the Chanur's Pride. They rescued a human, and that has earned them the distrust or enmity of most of the rest of the civilized races. The crew spends much of their time trying to figure out where to go, who can help, and getting into some fights. Good action, some politics, and a very realistic universe. Cherryh always does a good job portraying alien cultures, without getting too strange. ( )

Tully, the human, shows up again unexpectedly. Pyanfar Chanur and her crew are sent jumping across the Compact without knowing what's really going on. The Mahendo'sat seem to know something, but aren't telling. ( )

Signed by author

NIL

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