Man Kzin Wars VIII

All good stories, fast moving, with the true feel of Niven's "Known Space". Hal Colebatch, with stories in this and the preceding volume, is a bright new star in SF. His "Telepath's Dance" with its introduction of the Telepaths' War, marks a seminal development in the whole series. There is a lot of subtle humor as well as action. SF as it should be: hard science but an insight into the human condition that has a touch of poetry about it. The Kzin are neither too Alien to be convincing nor too human to be interesting, and the Man-Kzin interface is full of quirks and suspence.

Man-Kzin Wars VII was great, but this is the best so far! Fast moving action, good science. "Telepath's Dance", the longest story, is a classic retelling of "Beauty and the Beast", the Ripley-Alien situation but far stronger. Hints of a rebellion by Telepaths and a remnant of intelligent Kzinretts. Elderly Kzin Admiral almost understands the human secret but just misses the point about them. Good characterisation, laser-battles in space, hints of a developing Man-Kzin empathy. Who could ask for more? All the authors are good and all credit to Larry Niven's masterly control of the series.

I've been reading Larry Niven since I was a kid, and I still love his stories. Although many tales are now written by other authors, the universe he created is the focus of the stories, and these tales are true to that universe. This most recent collection is a prequel to the earlier books in the series. A human race, brainwashed by political correctness, finds itself defenseless and must "revert" to its older, more primitive ways of thinking in order to save itself. Very entertaining stories.

All the Man-Kzin Wars stories are great, and No. VIII, "Choosing Names", is among the best. The longest story, "Telepath's Dance", is a gripping, knife-edged tale about a persecuted Telepath in a Kzin battleship and this human prisoners. Empathy gradually grows between him and Selina Guthlac, the last surviving human in the "live-meat storage" and they plan to escape together. Humans that are real human, aliens that are really alien, and space-battles with lasers, violent action plus a delicate human-Kzin interface. The old Kzin admiral a fine portrait of one who nearly understands and meets an ironic fate. New light on Kzin telepath society. Keep these stories coming!