American writer C. J. Cherryh career began with publication of her first books in 1976, Gate of Ivrel and Brothers of Earth. She has been a prolific science fiction and fantasy author since then, publishing over 80 novels, short-story compilations, with continuing production as her blog attests. Cherryh has received the Hugo and Locus Awards for some of her novels. Her novels are divided into various spheres, focusing mostly around the Alliance–Union universe, the Foreigner series and her fantasy novels.

The Alliance–Union universe

The Alliance–Union universe is a science fiction future history series, in which the development of political entities and cultures occurs over a long time period. Major characters in one work may be referenced or appear briefly in another.

The Hinder Stars

The novels take place before the beginning of the Company Wars

The Company Wars

According to the author, the novels in this universe, except Heavy Time and Hellburner (which were subsequently re-published in one volume as Devil to the Belt), can be read in any order. Those two books are chronologically the earliest in the series.

The Chanur novels

Unionside

The Age of Exploration

These novels share a common theme, but are unrelated to each other and can be read in any order.

The Mri Wars

These novels take place about 400 years after the Company wars

The Era of Rapprochement

The Hanan Rebellion

Merovingen Nights

The Merovin stories take place about 1000 years after the Company Wars

The Morgaine Cycle

The Foreigner series

Other science fiction

Finisterre universe

Gene Wars

Miscellaneous

Fantasy works

The Fortress series

Ealdwood

The Russian stories

Heroes in Hell

Miscellaneous fantasy

Collections

Omnibuses

Short fiction

Anthologies

Other works

As editor

The Merovingen Nights shared-world anthologies are set on the world of Merovin in Cherryh's Alliance–Union universe. They are collections of interrelated short stories written by Cherryh and others. Cherryh's novel Angel with the Sword precedes book #1 in this series.

As translator

From French to English:

Other credits

Cherryh did not write the three novels in the Sword of Knowledge series, but received co-author's credit because she penned a foreword to each. The publisher removed Cherryh's introductions from most or all editions of these works.

Scholarship

Works about C. J. Cherryh written by others.