Description:

From Publishers Weekly

In Cherryh's suspenseful sequel to Hammerfall (2001), Marak's World has been embargoed for a millennium due to the illicit nanotechnology it harbors, yet Marak Trin Tain himself, rendered nearly immortal by that technology, lives on. Marak is focused on rebuilding his planet's biosphere, which was nearly destroyed when the enigmatic alien ondat bombarded it some hundreds of years earlier, wiping out virtually all life not preserved in deep shelters. Meanwhile, in orbit around Marak's World, Concord Station has kept uneasy watch on the reawakening planet for centuries. The station is ruled over jointly but uncomfortably by two human cultures: one centered on Earth and strongly opposed to all forms of genetic manipulation; the other, the Outsider worlds, more willing to accept experimentation. Among the many nicely drawn characters is Procyon Stafford, a Concord technician charged with the important duty of communicating with Marak and recording everything he does. Trouble comes looking for Procyon in the form of Andreas Gide, an overbearing official from Earth who's convinced that someone is trying to use Procyon to transport illicit nanotechnology from the proscribed planet to Concord Station and beyond. Given the elaborate backstory and complex galactic milieu, readers would be well advised to start with Hammerfall FYI:_Cherryh has won four Hugo Awards, three for best novel._
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From Booklist

In this sequel to Hammerfall (2001), the story of an important desert planet that was nearly destroyed by the alien Ondat continues. Marak Trin Tain is the planet's leader and a key figure in maintaining the tentative treaty between human and alien powers. The focus here is on Concord Station, which monitors the tiny planet at the edge of the galaxy and is the fulcrum of the precarious balancing of peace and power between two intergalactic empires. Because of past associations, Procyon, a young watcher monitoring the planet, becomes the object of intense interest for the major powers, Marak, and the leaders of the planet's underground movement, which has its own agenda. Complications arise with the unexpected visit of the Earth ambassador and an attempt on his life that seriously threatens to reopen old wounds and plunge the universe back into devastating war. Although it begins quietly and occasionally slackens pace under the weight of complex political alliances and strategies, this story is not to be underestimated. It carries the reader along as it gathers momentum toward the stunning and unexpected ending that is realized with masterly aplomb. Paula Luedtke
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