The Cherryh book had the same problems that the 3 Freidman books had, namely that:
- the author primarily based them on the then-current Superman comics rather than the show, and
- Lois and Clark hardly ever operated as a team -- rarely met in some of them
This obviously makes them unsatisfactory to FoLCs who prefer the show's version of the Superman mythos to that of the comics. Cherryh and Freidman did make token gestures towards the series continuity -- Cherryh rather more than Freidman -- but they both missed the fundamental basis on which the show operated, and which, IMO, is one reason why it was and is so much better than the comics. That basis is that Superman is more than just a "strange visitor from another planet" or even Clark Kent of Smallville, Kansas in a spandex suit that his mother made for him; Superman would not be what he is, or even exist, were it not for the combination of his Kryptonian physiology, his Kansas upbringing and the support and encouragement (and even a certain amount of abuse and baiting) that he receives from Lois Lane.
As the show put it, "This thing between us -- it's stronger than me alone." And it is -- and without that, without Lois and Clark being the team that they are in the series continuity by the time that the books are written, the stories fall flat. They are comics stories without the artwork, and the prose is simply not good enough (and whose would, or could, be?) to cover that lack. And, of course, to a FoLC, the comics aren't necessarily of that much interest anyway because of that fundamental lack.
Phil