The Dirdir
Adam Reith has failed twice to acquire a spaceship. He decides to build a ship from scratch, but this requires vast resources; his only hope is to win valuable sequins away from the terrifying realm of the Carabas, hunting preserve of the Dirdir. Even then, his greatest adversary is the cunning, monstrous Aila Woudiver...
In the afternoon I started in The Dirdir, part 3 of 4 of Tschai by Jack Vance. The ebook I had downloaded has cover art by David Russell.