Lois McMaster Bujold

The Vor Game by Lois McMaster Bujold serves as the six book in the wonderful Vorkosigan Saga, the space opera/military/political thriller sci-fi saga that Bujold is known for. As mentioned it is sixth full-length novel in publication order, and is the sixth story, including novellas, in the internal chronology of the series. It was included in the 1997 omnibus Young Miles. It won the Hugo Award for best Novel in 1991.

In The Vor Game, we see our favorite protagonist, Miles Vorkosigan graduate from the Academy, where he then joins a mutiny, is placed under house arrest, goes on a secret mission, reconnects with his loyal Dendarii Mercenaries, rescues his Emperor, and thwarts an interstellar war. You know - Miles being a typical badass.

The first several chapters of The Vor Game (chapter 1 through part of chapter 6) were originally published in a slightly different form as a novella entitled "The Weatherman" in the February 1990 issue of Analog magazine.The story covers Miles's assignment to Kyril Island through his arrest and the beginning of his detention at ImpSec. This part I found to be a bit slow. But, once Miles is placed under house arrest - things really pick up.Miles gets in way over his head, makes a bunch of seat-of-the-pants decisions, manages to be a little smarter than everyone else, and pulls out an elegant solution in the end to rescue Emperor Gregor and repel a surprise attack by a Cetagandan invasion fleet.

The Vor Game delivers a typical Miles Vorkosigian story. The story is good, fast-moving political intrigue and maneuvering, with satisfying complexity and lots of fun characters.

I’m excited to ready the next book in the series.
… (mais)

The Warrior's Apprentice by Lois McMaster Bujold, is a surprisingly deep coming of age story that at its core is about a boy becoming a man. Now I know what you're thinking and no this isn't a story about the sexual awakening of our protagonist, young Miles but rather it is story about Miles growing into the type of person he'll become in later stories - a confident leader who learns from his mistakes.

The Warrior's Apprentice is part of the beloved Vorkosigan Saga. It was the second book published in the series, and is the fifth story, including novellas, in the internal chronology of the series. The Warrior's Apprentice was first published by Baen Books in 1986, and was included in the 1997 omnibus Young Miles.

Bujold's first novel featuring an adult Miles Vorkosigan — the birth-defect stricken child of Count Aral Vorkosigan and Cordelia Naismith (which you can read about in Barrayar)— is a rousing space opera adventure. Miles is Vor—that is, he is a Lord, of the military variety. The story begins as Miles, at 17, fails to qualify for his officer's candidacy in the Barrayaran Imperial Military Service due to his brittle bones and stunted growth. Miles' father, to assuage the young man's humiliation and feelings of failure (in Barrayar's miliaristic culture, such humiliation is strong), suggests Miles take an extended vacation on his mother's homeworld of Beta Colony. And that's just what Miles does, with his loyal retainer Bothari (the political system in this series is influenced by feudalism), and Bothari's adopted daughter Elena, in tow.

But Miles isn't content to sit idly by. Determined to prove himself (to himself, as well as to his father), Miles launches a hare-brained scheme that involves purchasing a ship with credit he doesn't have and going into business for himself in shipping. Or rather, smuggling a la Han Solo. The first commission Miles takes involves supplying one side of a fierce war brewing on the remote colony world of Tau Verde IV. With a skeleton crew consisting of his companions and a handful of hired hands — one of whom is even a deserter from the Barrayaran military — Miles very quickly finds himself in over his head. Forced by circumstance to become a bullshit artist par excellence, Miles concocts an imaginary mercenary force, the Dendarii Free Mercenaries, of which he is the leader, and before long finds himself a major player in a planetary conflict. Things quickly escalate and lives are stake. And meanwhile there is a plot afoot to unseat Miles’ father, Miles himself, and all other successors on Barrayar. You see Miles in fact stands in violation of an obscure yet sacred Barrayaran Imperial edict that prohibits any imperial vassal from raising a military force exceeding a limited and fixed number of personal armsmen. His father's enemies have taken advantage of the situation, sown suspicion with the young and inexperienced Barrayaran Emperor, and officially charged Miles in the ruling political council on Barrayar. Can Miles survive the warfare and the political fallout of his actions?

Can Miles use his newfound confidence and biting intellect, to save his father, to save himself, and prove that he is much more than an Academy washout? You'll just have to read to find out.

Miles might not be a traditional brawny hero, but his determination, his self-deprecating sense of humor, and quiet confidence win your heart. Bujold crafts this space opera flawlessly, primarily through her strong characterization. Besides the charmingly wonderful Miles, the characters of Elena (the love of Miles’ life–thus far), and of his bodyguard and friend Bothari are fantastically drawn. I also appreciate that the growth that Miles achieves isn't because he perfectly saves the day. The circumstances Miles finds himself in are ones with real consequences, in which honor and lives are at serious stake. Lives are lost. Facing those consequences will involve a great deal of personal growth under the kind of pressure that has broken better men. By getting himself involved in a planetary war, Miles is forced to grow up as he puts the lives of his friends, his family, and his home in peril.

In short, this a rousing coming of age space adventure that I can't wait to reread.… (mais)

“I was a casualty in Vordarian’s Pretendership before I was born!” - Miles Vorkosigan, Vor Game.

Barrayar, the second book of the Vorkosigan Saga (although the seventh book written in the series), begins almost immediately following the events of Shards of Honor. With Barrayar, Lois McMaster Bujold became the first writer since Orson Scott Card to win the Best Novel Hugo two years running. Though a handful of novels in the Vorkosigan saga separate them in their publication order, Barrayar (as noted) is the direct sequel to Shards of Honor and depicts the birth of Miles against a backdrop of insurrection and civil war.

What's it all about? At the heart of this family drama, this book chronicles the birth of Miles Vorkosigan, the character who this saga will eventually revolve around. So in essence, this is a fast-pace science fiction space opera about motherhood. At the start of the novel, Miles' mother Cordelia Vorkosigan (née Naismith) has given up almost everything of her former life on Beta Colony to be with Aral Vorkosigan. She finds herself on Barrayar, Aral's home planet. She's finding life on Barrayar somewhat hard to adjust to, however; its class and gender stratification, its emphasis on familial lineage and military might, and its lack of technological progress, all make the entire planet seem somewhat backwards to Cordelia's liberal way of thinking (whom I strongly identify with). To make matters worse, Aral, her husband, has been unwillingly thrust into a position of vast political power: regent to the four-year-old emperor. Learning to navigate the currents of Barrayaran politics is challenging enough, but the planet is full of people who will not hesitate to use Cordelia -- and her unborn son, Miles -- as pawns in their plays for power.

Things heat up when a couple of attempts on Vorkosigan's life are made, one of which, a poison gas attack, comes dangerously close to succeeding. Cordelia, heavily pregnant with Vorkosigan's first heir, is caught in the attack, and the antitoxin used to save her life effectively dooms her unborn son. But she refuses to abort the child, having it instead transferred to a Betan-designed "uterine replicator" for gestation. This causes added friction between herself and her father-in-law, for in Barrayar's culture, cripples — which is the best the baby could hope to be even if it survives — are held in shame and disdain. What's worse, Vordarian, a member of the Vor class, looks like he might have sufficient support to make an overt bid for the throne through a coup.

In the end, Vordarian is killed (in the most amazing way), the coup is trampled, and our hero Miles is born, fragile and deformed. Five years later, although he has very brittle bones, he is depicted as very active, rambunctious and intelligent.

The world building is excellent. Imagine a mix of feudal Russia meets elements of Coruscant, Naboo, & Canto Bight from the Star Wars universe and you have Barrayar. But, you read Lois McMaster Bujold for the well developed characters. Cordelia reminds an amazing character. She is smart, practical, has a wicked sense of humor, and is made of stronger stuff than most heroines. Plus she also has flaws. When you read a Bujold novel, you feel like you're reading about real people and that's always enjoyable.

Highly enjoyable sci-fi space opera from the point of view of a fiercely intelligent woman, this novel is highly recommended. Bujold is master of writing intriguing space opera and well-developed characters. I can't wait to read The Vor Game next!… (mais)

Holy Sandworms! Now THIS is what I call a proper space opera! Shards of Honor, the first published novel in Lois McMaster Bujold's Vorkosigan Saga is a masterpiece (and I hear it only gets better) albeit a strange one. It introduces the universe in which all the books in the series take place. But it couldn’t be less like a standard first novel in a series. The main character (of the series) isn’t even born and this story is about how his parents met. Major events happen which apparently do cast their shadow a long way, but here they are mostly interesting in the context of Aral and Cordelia, who are minor characters in most of the subsequent books.

Reading this book felt more like reading a regency romance in space than it did a sci-fi book. I don't mean a bodice-ripping (space bodice!) romance, but a realistic, measured and mature romance (aka Jane Austen). There are no sex scenes here, just a character study of two people, each slowly being drawn into the other's orbit despite social (planetary) differences. Despite galactic war! Separated by wormholes, their love bound them together! This book literally read like Jane Austen's attempt at writing a Star Trek episode and I mean this as a HIGH compliment. Shards of Honor is simply an engrossing read.

This is partly because of our protagonist, Cordelia. The book is written in a very tight third person in Cordelia’s point of view, and Cordelia is a wonderful character. She’s empathic and practical and she’s from no-nonsense egalitarian Beta colony. She is the commander of the exploration starship Rene Magritte, when on a newly discovered planet she encounters the aggressive forces of Barrayar.
It is on this planet where she meets her future husband Aral Vorkosigan, the captain of a war cruiser from the imperialist planet of Barrayar. Cordelia's team has been attacked by the Barrayarans, and at first her reaction to Vorkosigan is naturally hostile. Barrayar and Beta are not, after all, in a state of war so far as she knows.

Cordelia soon learns that Vorkosigan is as much a victim as she is. A group of his men have mutinied; the idea was for Vorkosigan to get killed in the attack on the Betans. Vorkosigan, who already has a checkered reputation as a war criminal, has been a vocal opponent of a proposed Barrayaran invasion and annexation of the world of Escobar. His enemies, among whom is the prince, would like him out of the picture.

In the days Cordelia and Vorkosigan spend together finding their way to where they can be rescued, the two form a bond of mutual respect. Cordelia learns Vorkosigan's violent reputation is undeserved; that he is indeed a man of integrity, of honor, who treats even his enemies with respect. Vorkosigan even goes out of his way to help Cordelia care for one of her wounded crewmen, when most enemies would have abandoned or killed him outright. In the ensuing months, as the war between Barrayar and Escobar progresses and Beta is forced to choose sides, Cordelia finds her own sense of honor tested as she realizes that her government at home is every bit as willing to treat her like a pawn as is Vorkosigan's. And the political machinations on Barrayar go even further than she realized; the pretext for the invasion of Escobar hits much closer to home for Vorkosigan, in a way from which his honor may never recover.

Bujold's skills at characterization shine and propel the story as this is a primarily a character-driven story. Most sci-fi is plot-driven so its refreshing to read something so focused on the characters. The romance is handled with care. Bujold makes sure to keep it realistic and unsentimental. There is enough snarky and witty dialogue as well to please the biggest aficionado of Joss Whedon's oeuvre.

Shards of Honor is a fine debut for Bujold and a damn fine space opera. Forget your laser swords and sandworms. Give me the Vorkosigan Saga!

Shards of Honor is followed by the Hugo-winning sequel, Barrayar, which I plan to read soon.

… (mais)