In a period of a little over six months Bren Cameron has been catapulted from a fairly relaxed routine of Paidhi (interpreter), researcher, and intermediary to one in which atevi and human resources are geared toward an accelerated space programme. A space programme that had been little more than an exercise in atevi-human co-operation until the spaceship Phoenix had suddenly appeared and docked at the long ago abandoned space-station high in orbit above the atevi's planet. Ordinarily only one human is allowed onto the atevi mainland. But now there are three. Bren Cameron; Bren's stand-in, Deanna Hanks, who has joined factions opposed to Tabini and his allies; and Jason Graham, the Phoenix's representative, Bren's student and direct responsibility. Bren Cameron now has plenty to occupy his mind: possible assassination, inter-atevi aggression, inter-human aggression, atevi-human aggression, attempted sabotage of the space programme, and keeping his new charge, Jason Graham, from making any, to himself, life threatening faux pas. As well as all this, Bren Cameron wonders why the Phoenix has returned in the first place…
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The review of this Book prepared by Charles Smyth
