The Kif Strike Back

Chanur, Book 3

By: C. J. Cherryh

Narrated by: Dina Pearlman

Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins

Publisher's Summary

When the kif seize Hilfy and Tully, Pyanfar and her shipmates enter into a simple rescue attempt. It soon becomes a deadly game of interstellar politics.

©1986 C.J. Cherryh (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

Critic Reviews

"Compellingly written, with distinctive characters and well-realized races and cultures." (Fantasy Review)

"A rousing good tale and... the most believable alien characters to come down the SF pike in a long time. Highly recommended." (Kliatt)

Jury is still out

Sequel to "Chanur's Venture." It continues where that book leaves off. Unfortunately, like that book, this one doesn't end properly. The ending here is slightly more reasonable than what the publisher did with "Chanur's Venture".

A whirl of worlds.

This series is in many ways Cherryh's most accessible one. She takes on one species after another and makes them real as a dime. And comprehensible by their own lights. Without ever making them into humans with fur or feathers. It's a wonderful space opera, which I normally hate. But here, when the alliens are so alien and yet, somehow people you know, how can you resist?
Some whiny bits in the dialog. Listen to it and see what you think. It didn't ruin my enjoyment of the books.But you might feel differently.

Wonderful!!!

I've always loved this series. Narrated beautifully, added tremendously to my enjoyment. Excellent! Superb!

Middle of a three-part story.

The middle part of a series is always a slog (think Two Towers), but this does a good job keeping you informed and invested as the clock counts down. Story's fine (glad Kim's finally finding a place with the ship as cook/lawyer/bruiser), but Dina does an excellent job making the Kif (both in their language and without) seem alien yet understandable.

Chanur Saga Continues

Dang, this is not your father's SciFi. CJ at her best. It gripped me at the start and I couldn't stop listening.

I like being inside Pyanfars head as she puts together the pieces of the complicated motivations of her "partners". I think that the tech that C.J. dreamed up in 1986 for future space faring species is a touch dated, but who could see what we have, even today, let alone 300 - 400 years in the future. That one gripe aside, this is not a tech sci-fi. It's a future history involving multiple space faring civilizations. Each one with their own territory. I love the way C.J. weaves the delicate web of alliances, and oppositions.

Her stories always seem very realistic to me in the way that powers and parties play with and against each other. I can see things in the future working out just the way she described them.

hard to follow

I really lost the thread on this one. I don't know where the plot is going. It seems like everybody suspects everybody but mainly it's just a lot of arguing and pigeon English that leaves you wondering what the heck they said. So it's a filler book. I hope the next one makes more sense because I love the promise of the series.

Classic!

a strong addition to the series with interesting new alien characters left me wondering when that kik would get to eat finally!

Can you pronounce this?

I recently listened to The Kif Strike Back written by C. J. Cherryh and narrated by Dina Pearlman.

This is the second book in the Chanur's Venture trilogy. It's nearly impossible to review a book in series like this without having a few spoilers. With that in mind, if you want to avoid spoilers stop reading now.

Things aren't going well for Pyanfar. You would think being a Hani captain (A humanoid cat like race) would matter for something. It's bad enough she has to put up with, the gods be damned, Vigilance, but the other unwelcome bedfellow is the Mehendo'sat. 

One does what one must when it comes to clan and crew though. She's on a mission to rescue Hilfy, Pyanfar's niece, and the human Tully from the Kif (dangerous double jawed humanoid aliens) Sikkukuk. He offered them to her if she would but follow him to the station Mkks. Gods rot it, one does what they have to for family, even walk to traps, or so they say. 

Dina Pearlman does an amazing job with the narration. Some of the names are hard to pronounce or extremely similar sounding, however, she delivers each well. Her stellar diction combined with her emotional delivery make this an amazing bit of narration. 

Conclusion: The second book in the series, while still bursting with action, is primarily a book of political intrigue. It becomes very multidimensional when you have to think cross-culturally in the context of multiple cultures. For those who enjoy Sci-Fi with political intrigue, I think this book is a fitting Kifish challenge. 

it is an exciting book.

This is the third book in a series and had me on the edge of my seat. Now on to the next book in this series.....

Another great story

Another great story about the Pride's crew. It seems to stand out from the previous titles as well in length and quality.

Part 3 of 5

A good reading overall, but with a handful of jarring mispronounciations, of an excellent story.

A great continuation of venture

This book is pretty much chanur’s venture part 2 and carries over nicely I feel, a bit of action and lots of politics all of which is kinda interesting.

The only real bugbear I have with the series so far is that the characters never seem to breathe at all, we get a bit of development here and there in passing statements but never really any time to see these characters outside of their mad scramble.

Hilfi easily had the biggest development here and it’s great to see.

Dina as always is very easy to listen to, quite good at her voices and accents I just wish in the latter act she did some more anguished voices for the injured characters, it kinda took me out of it to hear (you’ll know if you’ve listened) in her normal voice despite the fact it was heavily implied she was nearly dying