Liaden Universe - Overview

Overview

The series is set at some unspecified time in the future. There is a reference to the planet named "Terra" not being the first planet to bear that name; however, the familiar names and cultural references in the core books (coupled with a lack of them in the "Crystal" books) suggest that it is "our" earth nonetheless. In the wake of a diaspora from a "decrystallizing" galaxy that was mankind's prior home, the human race is divided into three major sub-races: Terran, Liaden and Yxtrang. (There are also numerous isolated colony planets that have backslid technologically and are held as protectorates until their civilizations regain enough advances to cope with extraplanetary contact.)

The seven-book "Agent of Change" sequence tells of the struggle between Clan Korval, a Liaden Clan of much note, and the mysterious "Department of the Interior".

The eighth novel, Balance of Trade, is set 275 years prior to the end of the "Agent of Change" sequence. It features Jethri Gobelyn, a young Terran trader who is adopted by a Liaden Master Trader to the consternation of virtually everyone.

The ninth novel, Crystal Soldier, published in February 2005, takes place even earlier still: it is the first half of "The Great Migration Duology", and tells the story of Cantra yos'Phelium, who piloted the original exodus to Liad, and her partner M Jela. The sequel, Crystal Dragon, was published in 2006 and takes the story up through the founding of Liad and of Clan Korval.

There is a timeline of the Liaden stories, as of the state of the Universe in 2002, in the Liaden Unibus II.