Intruder

Intruder by C.J. Cherryh is auspicious thirteen in her Foreigner series.  Forgive the obscure reference, numerology figures greatly in the alien society highlighted in this series which details the difficulty of attributing human mores and behavior to beings who are quite different.  Bren Cameron is virtually the only human that most of the atevi on this world have interacted with.  He has had to learn an incredible breadth of detail to operate smoothly within the ritualized society that exists in a world that lacks a great number of technological advances yet is incredibly complex.  The delicate balance between the territories is constantly in contention and never more fragile than now, when it seems that the bulwark of the Assassins Guild which has heretofore mediated most conflicts in a 'civilized' manner is undergoing its own reorganization which often involves fatal intervention.   Bren is also handicapped by the fact that his size is akin to that of an atevi youngster and most of the food is high in alkaloids that would be fatal to humans.

I was particularly entertained by the antics of young Cajeiri who has had his horizons broadened by tenure in space amongst other humans, supervision by his great-grandmother who is a grande dame in her own right and an extremely canny manipulator, association with Bren and his own curiosity and propensity for exploration.  Despite the fact that he is heir to one of the most powerful beings on the planet, many of Cajeiri's actions are dictated by his youth and frustration with the restrictions placed upon him.  His gradual maturation is reflected in his interactions with his bodyguards but he is still young enough to scheme to obtain a pet, similar to children everywhere.  His defense proposed to the mother that he has little rapport with gives glimmerings of his growth as a diplomat and bodes well for his ability to distill the teachings he is receiving.  My review is under ELF2060 at this link.  As always, a 'yes this was helpful' vote is appreciated.