Cherryh, C.J.
Voyager In Night
C.J. Cherryh
Daw 1984
PB 221pgs
ISBN# 0-87997-920-8
Set within author Cherryh's popular, "Alliance-Union universe", the crew of the small prospect ship, Lindy, get inadvertently entangled with a huge alien vessel, and subsequently become guinea pigs and pawns in that surreal crew's machinations.
I have read a couple of the author's other books within this universe construct: Downbelow Station, Merchanter's Luck, Rimrunners, and have enjoyed them well enough to not be shy of picking up more. But unlike these others, Voyager In Night, steers away from space-opera and ventures deeply into the psychological realm, exploring the mental torment of a human crew, subjected to the will(s) of an inquisitive alien mind. It reads something like C.J. Cherryh meets P.K. Dick, though maybe the result isn't as purely twisted with desperation and wit as a pure Dick novel.
The story flows well in Cherryh's inimical, direct style. The characters are plausible and their fears and dreams well evoked. Her straight forward, unadorned description of future life is both grim and hopeful. All told a good read!
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