The Serrano Legacy

Last updated
The Serrano Legacy
  • Hunting Party
  • Sporting Chance
  • Winning Colors
  • Once a Hero
  • Rules of Engagement
  • Change of Command
  • Against the Odds
Author Elizabeth Moon
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre
Publisher Baen

The Serrano Legacy, also known as Familias Regnant, is a series of military science fiction [1] / space opera [2] books by Elizabeth Moon. The series includes seven books total (a trilogy and two spin-off duologies), published from 1993 to 2000, and portrays a society in the distant future where the Familias Regnant serves as the governing body for an area of the galaxy. The books feature female lead protagonists—daughters and aunts, [4] following the story of an entire family, including unique family dynamics. [2] [5] The books "depict women in the military who have a greater aptitude for command than the military men in their lives". [6] The universe of the books is also ethnically diverse. [4] [7]

Contents

Description

After writing several fantasy novels including those of the Paksenarrion series, Moon began writing science fiction, initially collaborating with Anne McCaffrey, and eventually moving on to The Serrano Legacy. [6] A central theme of the books is that, through technology, wealthy people can live much longer. The consequences of this remain a focus through the series. [6] "Wealth is key to identity within the books", Duncan Lawie notes. [4]

According to Moon, in Locus :

What I'm pushing is to think about something from all sides. Don't answer the first thing that comes out. I don't have the answers; I have lots of questions. In my old SF adventure series The Serrano Legacy, a lot of it had to do with the effects of longevity. What would really happen if you had rejuvenation and people could live very long times? What would it do to the social structure, to economics, to politics? What would it do to the neighbors of the country that had that ability? [8]

Reception and analysis

George Mann considers the work space opera, also noting that Moon's time in the military grant the books "an edge of realism ... that is lacking in much military fiction by authors who have not themselves served in the armed forces". [2] Mann favorably compares the feel of the series to older pulp fiction while noting she covers more serious topics as well. [2]

Of the first three books, Duncan Lawie says the protagonists are "all tough, clever, and interesting and their characters drive the books in an organic way". [4] He calls the characterization "deft" and story a page-turner, though he hoped for more depth. [4]

Of the series in full, Jo Walton says the books "do a lot of things right", praising the adventures, the military aspects, and the background. She later says that the high number of points of view "tends to make the focus diffuse", ultimately concluding that the books are "fun". [7] John Clute wrote that the series "was perhaps a little disappointing, though still entertaining". [1] Maura Heaphy calls it "a stylish and imaginative space opera of the far future". [3]

The protagonist of the first trilogy, Heris Serrano, has also been remarked upon for her middle-age, unlike youthful protagonists of many similar works. [9] In a positive review of the first omnibus, Liz Bourke found the varied depiction of older women "downright refreshing". [5]

Books

The series comprises seven novels, all published by Baen. These books have also been collected into omnibuses. [10]

  1. Hunting Party (July 1993)
  2. Sporting Chance (September 1994)
  3. Winning Colors (August 1995)
  1. Once a Hero (Hardcover ISBN   0-671-87769-0, March 1997)
  2. Rules of Engagement (Hardcover ISBN   0-671-57777-8, December 1998)
  1. Change of Command (Hardcover ISBN   0-671-57840-5, December 1999)
  2. Against the Odds (Hardcover ISBN   0-671-31961-2, December 2000)

Omnibuses

Related Research Articles

An ansible is a category of fictional devices or technology capable of near-instantaneous or faster-than-light communication. It can send and receive messages to and from a corresponding device over any distance or obstacle whatsoever with no delay, even between star systems. As a name for such a device, the word "ansible" first appeared in a 1966 novel by Ursula K. Le Guin. Since that time, the term has been broadly used in the works of numerous science fiction authors, across a variety of settings and continuities. A related term is ultrawave.

<i>Vorkosigan Saga</i> Science fiction book series by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Vorkosigan Saga is a series of science fiction novels and short stories set in a common fictional universe by American author Lois McMaster Bujold. The first of these was published in 1986 and the most recent in May 2018. Works in the series have received numerous awards and nominations, including five Hugo award wins including one for Best Series.

A future history is a fictional history of the future used by authors of science fiction and other speculative fiction to construct a common background for stories. Sometimes the author publishes a timeline of events in the history, while other times the reader can reconstruct the order of the stories from information provided. The term can also be used to describe the subgenre of science fiction that uses this framework.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Elizabeth Moon</span> American science fiction and fantasy writer (born 1945)

Elizabeth Moon is an American science fiction and fantasy writer. Her other writing includes newspaper columns and opinion pieces. Her novel The Speed of Dark won the 2003 Nebula Award. Prior to her writing career, she served in the United States Marine Corps.

<i>The Faded Sun Trilogy</i> Science fiction novel series by C. J. Cherryh

The Faded Sun trilogy is a series of science fiction novels by American writer C.J. Cherryh and set in her Alliance–Union universe. The series comprises the three novels The Faded Sun: Kesrith (1978), The Faded Sun: Shon'jir (1978), and The Faded Sun: Kutath (1979), published by DAW Books. They were republished as an omnibus edition in the UK in 1987 and in the U.S. in 2000.

<i>The Deed of Paksenarrion</i> Epic fantasy saga by Elizabeth Moon

The Deed of Paksenarrion, The Legend of Paksenarrion or the Paksworld series is an epic fantasy saga by American author Elizabeth Moon. The Deed of Paksenarrion was originally published in three volumes in 1988 and 1989 and as a single trade edition of that name in 1992 by Baen. The three books included are Sheepfarmer's Daughter, Divided Allegiance, and Oath of Gold. Sheepfarmer's Daughter was awarded the Compton Crook Award by the Baltimore Science Fiction Society for the author's first fantasy novel.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Planet Pirates</span>

Planet Pirates is a science fiction trilogy written by Anne McCaffrey and two co-authors separately, Elizabeth Moon and Jody Lynn Nye. The three novels were published as paperback originals by Baen Books in 1990 and 1991, although the Doubleday Science Fiction Book Club (SFBC) issued hardcover editions of each within several months. Baen published an 890-page omnibus trade paperback edition in 1993 entitled The Planet Pirates.

<i>Giants</i> (series) Group of five science fiction novels by James P. Hogan

The Giants series is a group of five science fiction novels by James P. Hogan, beginning with his first novel Inherit the Stars (1977). The series tells the discovery humans did not originate on Earth, but from an ancient civilization that developed elsewhere in the solar system.

<i>Brothers of Earth</i> 1976 novel by C. J. Cherryh

Brothers of Earth is a 1976 science fiction novel by American writer C. J. Cherryh. It was the second of Cherryh's novels to be published, appearing after Gate of Ivrel, although she had completed and submitted Brothers of Earth first. Donald A. Wollheim, the editor of DAW Books, decided that publishing Gate of Ivrel first would be more commercially desirable, so Brothers of Earth was delayed until the former was released.

<i>The Last Herald-Mage</i> Trilogy of fantasy novels by Mercedes Lackey

The Last Herald-Mage is a trilogy of fantasy novels by American author Mercedes Lackey, published from 1989 to 1990. The story centers around a mage named Vanyel Ashkevron who lives in the fictional kingdom of Valdemar. It was the first high fantasy series with a gay protagonist from a mainstream publisher, and was well-received by critics, many of whom regard it as Lackey's best work.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Steve White (author)</span> American writer

Stephen White is an American science fiction author best known as the co-author of the Starfire series along with David Weber.

These works were written or edited by the American fiction writer Andre Norton. Before 1960 she used the pen name Andrew North several times and, jointly with Grace Allen Hogarth, Allen Weston once.

<i>Empire from the Ashes</i> 2003 omnibus novel collection by David Weber

Empire from the Ashes is an omnibus collection of science fiction novels by American writer David Weber.

This is a list of books by Mercedes Lackey, arranged by collection.

<i>Chicks in Chainmail</i> 1995 anthology of fantasy stories edited by Esther Friesner

Chicks in Chainmail is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Esther Friesner, with a cover by Larry Elmore. It consists of works featuring female protagonists mostly written by female authors. It was first published in paperback by Baen Books in September 1995, with a hardcover edition following from Baen in conjunction with the Science Fiction Book Club in January 1996. It was the first of a number of similarly themed anthologies edited by Friesner.

The Sentinels novels by Van Allen Plexico comprise a sequence of superhero fiction works in prose format with occasional interior illustrations. They are set primarily in the present-day United States. The first novel was published in 2006.

This is a list of works by American science fiction and fantasy author Anne McCaffrey, including some cowritten with others or written by close collaborators.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ad van Tiggelen</span>

Ad van Tiggelen is an author of fantasy novels using the pen name Adrian Stone.

This is the complete list of works by military science fiction and space opera author David Weber.

References

  1. 1 2 3 Clute, John. "SFE: Moon, Elizabeth". sf-encyclopedia.com. Retrieved 2023-08-18.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 Mann, George (2001). The Mammoth Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Little, Brown Book Group. pp. 217–218, 492. ISBN   9781780337043.
  3. 1 2 Heaphy, Maura (2010). 100 Most Popular Science Fiction Authors: Biographical Sketches and Bibliographies. Bloomsbury Academic. p. 300. ISBN   9781591587460.
  4. 1 2 3 4 5 Lawie, Duncan (29 January 2007). "The Serrano Legacy by Elizabeth Moon". Strange Horizons . Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  5. 1 2 Bourke, Liz (Jan 19, 2012). "Horses, Aunts, and Space Battles: Elizabeth Moon's Heris Serrano: Omnibus One". Tor.com . Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  6. 1 2 3 Reid, Robin Anne (2009). Women in Science Fiction and Fantasy. Greenwood Press. p. 229. ISBN   9780313335891.
  7. 1 2 Walton, Jo (Oct 23, 2009). "Aunts in Space: Elizabeth Moon's Serrano series". Tor.com . Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  8. ↑ "Elizabeth Moon: Explorations". Locusmag Archive Page. Locus. March 2004. Retrieved 2023-08-17.
  9. ↑ Mercer, Naomi. "Malkah, [old] age, and Jewish identity in Marge Piercy's He, She and It". Femspec 15, no. 1/2 (2015): 34.
  10. ↑ Ruby, Mary, ed. (2016). Contemporary Authors New Revision Series. Vol. 286. Gale, Cengage Learning. pp. 296–297. ISBN   9781410311696.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.