The Deep Beyond

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This omnibus volume combines two Alliance-Union novels: Hugo Award nominee Cuckoo’s Egg and Locus Best Novel Award nominee Serpent’s Reach.

In Cuckoo’s Egg:  They named him Thorn. They told him he was of their people, although he was ugly in their eyes, strange, sleek-skinned instead of furred, clawless, different. Yet he was of their power class: judge-warriors, the elite, the defenders. Thorn knew his difference was important—but not important enough to prevent murderous conspiracies against him, his protector, his caste, and perhaps against the peace of the world. But when Thorn finally learned what his true role in life was to be, that on him might hang the future of two worlds, then he had to stand alone to justify his very existence.

In Serpent’s Reach:  Raen a Sul Meth-maren was very young when the machinations of her distant kin erupted into a bloodbath. Years passed and Raen bided her time. Then, on a voyage to the outermost planet of the Reach, Raen encountered Betas with an intriguing tale to tell, an Azi unlike any other, and a Blue Warrior who remembered her contribution to the Hive mind. And she knew her time had come….Praise for The Deep Beyond:

“A study in alienation and adaptation.” —Publishers Weekly

“Cherryh has the uncanny ability to yank readers into an alien culture and to keep them there. A book to be treasured (cover and all) by advanced readers who can catch all the nuances cleverly incorporated into the remarkable tale. Let us hope for a sequel.” —Kliatt

“Cherryh gives us here a finely imagined first contact whose like I cannot recall. I do keep raving about Cherryh, and this time is no exception. Cuckoo’s Egg is excellent, and execution is only part of the reason. Cherryh is consistently original…. she strikes me as doing more to shape the future of SF than any other writer now living. She, almost alone, is inventing new kinds of stories.” —Analog
 
“Cherryh’s customary strengths are all here—brisk pacing, above-average characterization of both human sexes and also of nonhumans, and genuinely brilliant worldbuilding.” —Booklist

“A fascinating alien civilization.” —Locus C. J. Cherryh planned to write since the age of ten. When she was older, she learned to use a typewriter while triple-majoring in Classics, Latin, and Greek. With more than seventy books to her credit, and the winner of three Hugo Awards, she is one of the most prolific and highly respected authors in the science fiction field. Cherryh was recently named a Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master by the Science Fiction Writers of America. She lives in Washington state. She can be found at cherryh.com.US

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