Name: Ring of Swords
ISBN: 9780312890162

Eleanor Arnason

Searching for a worthy foe to conquer, a warlike alien race encounters humankind, leading to years of skirmishing that might be solved by diplomacy, except that there is a human traitor among the aliens

Ring of Swords

Jason Porterfield

Hell, this one's just perfect. Good characters, a dry sense of humor, a good setting and the sort of anthropological slant that I always appreciate in C.J. Cherryh's work. Arnason might even out-Cherryh Cherryh. She comes close to out-Le Guining Le Guin.