Cuckoo's Egg is a novel by science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh, set in her Alliance-Union universe. The book was published by DAW Books in 1985, and there was also a limited hardcover printing by Phantasia Press in the same year. The book was nominated for the Hugo Award and longlisted the Locus Award for Best Novel. It was later reprinted along with Cherryh's novel Serpent's Reach in the 2005 omnibus volume The Deep Beyond.
The book introduces the alien Shonunin race, and the plot of the novel concerns a male Shonun raising a human boy.
They named him Thorn. They told him he was of their people, although he was so different. 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 fighters, the defenders. (Amazon.com description)
Thorn knew that his difference was somehow very important -- but not important enough to prevent murderous conspiracies against him, against his protector, against his caste, and perhaps against the peace of the world. But when the crunch came, 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.
Cuckoo's Egg is a novel by science fiction and fantasy author C. J. Cherryh, set in her Alliance-Union universe. The book was published by DAW Books in 1985, and there was also a limited hardcover printing by Phantasia Press in the same year. The book was nominated for the Hugo Award and longlisted the Locus Award for Best Novel. It was later reprinted along with Cherryh's novel Serpent's Reach in the 2005 omnibus volume The Deep Beyond.
The book introduces the alien Shonunin race, and the plot of the novel concerns a male Shonun raising a human boy.
They named him Thorn. They told him he was of their people, although he was so different. 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 fighters, the defenders. (Amazon.com description)
Thorn knew that his difference was somehow very important -- but not important enough to prevent murderous conspiracies against him, against his protector, against his caste, and perhaps against the peace of the world. But when the crunch came, 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.
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Find Cuckoo's Egg C. J. Cherryh in PDF, EPUB, ebook, audiobook, print, or library editions.
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Age of Exploration
Age of Exploration
6 books in catalog
Spanning dozens of novels in expansive science fiction and fantasy settings, the Hugo Award-winning Alliance-Union universe stands among the most detailed depictions of human expansion, interstellar conflict, and station politics in speculative literature. Author C. J. Cherryh established this intricate future history through acclaimed novels such as Downbelow Station and Cyteen, creating immersive narratives that examine the psychological, social, and economic consequences of space colonization. Her fiction frequently explores contact between deeply distinct species, complex political maneuvering, and the cultural friction that emerges across vast technological frontiers.
Born Carolyn Janice Cherry on September 1, 1942, in St. Louis, Missouri, she pursued an academic foundation in classical studies before transitioning to full-time novel writing. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Latin from the University of Oklahoma in 1964 and a Master of Arts in Classics from Johns Hopkins University in 1965. After working as a high school teacher, she adopted the pen name C. J. Cherryh and began publishing speculative fiction in the mid-1970s. Her background in ancient languages, archaeology, history, and psychology heavily informs her work, supported by practical personal research in fencing, archery, horseback riding, firearms, falconry, and international travel. In addition to her solitary writing, she co-founded Closed Circle, a publisher of DRM-free electronic books alongside authors Jane S. Fancher and Lynn Abbey.
Cherryh is widely recognized for her meticulous approach to worldbuilding and intense third-person limited perspective. Rather than relying on omniscient exposition, her narratives filter complex interstellar politics, alien linguistics, and unfamiliar social structures directly through the immediate sensory and intellectual experiences of her protagonists. Her works frequently examine alien cultures without reducing non-human species to human analogies, highlighting the authentic difficulty of communication and trust across fundamental biological and psychological divides. Recurring thematic elements across her science fiction and fantasy include institutional power struggles, military maneuvering, survival under extreme pressure, and the personal cost of political duty.
6 books in catalog
Spanning dozens of novels in expansive science fiction and fantasy settings, the Hugo Award-winning Alliance-Union universe stands among the most detailed depictions of human expansion, interstellar conflict, and station politics in speculative literature. Author C. J. Cherryh established this intricate future history through acclaimed novels such as Downbelow Station and Cyteen, creating immersive narratives that examine the psychological, social, and economic consequences of space colonization. Her fiction frequently explores contact between deeply distinct species, complex political maneuvering, and the cultural friction that emerges across vast technological frontiers.
Born Carolyn Janice Cherry on September 1, 1942, in St. Louis, Missouri, she pursued an academic foundation in classical studies before transitioning to full-time novel writing. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in Latin from the University of Oklahoma in 1964 and a Master of Arts in Classics from Johns Hopkins University in 1965. After working as a high school teacher, she adopted the pen name C. J. Cherryh and began publishing speculative fiction in the mid-1970s. Her background in ancient languages, archaeology, history, and psychology heavily informs her work, supported by practical personal research in fencing, archery, horseback riding, firearms, falconry, and international travel. In addition to her solitary writing, she co-founded Closed Circle, a publisher of DRM-free electronic books alongside authors Jane S. Fancher and Lynn Abbey.
Cherryh is widely recognized for her meticulous approach to worldbuilding and intense third-person limited perspective. Rather than relying on omniscient exposition, her narratives filter complex interstellar politics, alien linguistics, and unfamiliar social structures directly through the immediate sensory and intellectual experiences of her protagonists. Her works frequently examine alien cultures without reducing non-human species to human analogies, highlighting the authentic difficulty of communication and trust across fundamental biological and psychological divides. Recurring thematic elements across her science fiction and fantasy include institutional power struggles, military maneuvering, survival under extreme pressure, and the personal cost of political duty.
