First, a little history about the Man-Kzin relationships
Kzinti are different from humans in many ways, having evolved for a hunting cat. They began their space faring ways when they stole their current technology and began to conquer the galaxy.
Most of the females have been bred to be submissive and subservient to the males and can speak only a few dozen words. Males are larger then humans, standing seven to eight feet tall and weighing around five hundred pounds.
The Kzinti are bipeds, in that they walk on two legs but they have large cat-like ears, large claws and fangs. You don't want to scratch this kitty.
Stunted Kzinti are telepathic and are not allowed to breed.
Mankind had reached a golden point in history. We had no war, little crime and there was no want or without. We had even rewritten our history to do away with war and violence. When the Kzin first detected a human star ship, they found the humans had no weapons so they attempted to take the ship with no damage, but by using a ray weapon to more or less cook them.
But, being the resourceful creatures that we are, one of our people used the drive as a weapon and destroyed the Kzin ship. You give us two cans and a few rocks and we will make a weapon.
All of which demonstrated a basic truth of the galaxy, humans are a pain in the rear. We over breed like rabbits, have a tendency to ruin our environment, tick off our neighbours and keep making war amongst ourselves.
And then we went into space; that changed things. Now instead of fighting each other, we get a whole new bunch of beings (people?) to anger, upset, insult and generally prove that mankind is a bunch of plant eating, monkey cousins with no honor and we are about the most individually weak of all the species.
And we still kick A$$ when it comes to war.
For over fifty thousand years the Kzinti race lived for battle and conquest. They had conquered and enslaved most of the worlds and beings around them and had never met a creature they could not best in war.
Until Man showed up and taught them the meaning of humility. Stopped them cold against all the odds and for half a decade kept them stopped from expanding. The Kzinti still thought of man as honor less herbivores but now they were a little more cautious when rattling the cage.
Now, with its violent space expansion halted internal rivalries have formed within the ruling branches of the Kzinti Patriarchy and threaten civil war. The only way to defeat the leader of the rebellion, Kchula-Tzaatz lies in Pouncer, First-Son-of-Meerz-Rritt, and heir apparent to the galaxy's strongest empire. Now reduced to a nameless fugitive after the defeat of his pride and of his father's dynasty, he is faced with few options. While his survival requires escape, his honor demands vengeance. But vengeance requires allies.
And that is what Destiny's Forge is all about. Honor, vengeance and allies; Pouncer finds his help and allies in the unlikeliest of places, in two humans who have been trapped in the middle of the upsets.
Major Quacy Tskombe experienced combat veteran turned diplomat. His latest mission takes him to the capital of the Empire, Citadel of the Patriarch in an effort to stop the hostilities. He might not like his job, but his like is about duty.
He finds that the decision that holds mankind's future lies with him and he has to make a choice that he hoped he would never have to face.
Then there is Captain Ayla Cherenkova, starship commander. Good looking, able, exceptional commander but she hates the Kzinti more then can be described. That hatred has driven her rise to the levels she has attained and she hopes will help her in her future. But, when she is lost in the jungles of Kzinti, she has to learn a new set of rules.
Yeah, I love being human; cause I know that we are going to prove difficult to conquer when the evil aliens do arrive to reek havoc amongst us. We have always demonstrated that. Against Martians, Romulans, the Puppet Masters, and now the Kzinti mankind is just too dang stubborn to surrender.
And that is what I love about stories like this, these epic sagas and almost generational plots that can be expanded on by other writers when the original creator has moved past them for whatever reason.
I just wish someone would try it with Lazarus Long.
Anyway, Destiny's Forge caught me off guard. I expected another in the line of 'adequate' Man-Kzin stories and here I get a definite keeper.
The characters were well developed, the story line quick moving and certainly never dull. It is apparent that Mr. Chafe likes the Man-Kzin War stories of Larry Niven and is willing to follow their lead without trying to "improve" on them, instead simply writing his own vision of what would happen had they continued.
Chafe gives us a wonderful piece in the truest form of Science Fiction epic and will win both regular readers of the Known Space series as well as new-comers to the series.