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caedocyon's review
5.0
Reread for the nth time. The plot is a glorious tangled mess and it all comes together beautifully. If you are into mistaken identity and comedies of errors, this is gold. Also a good precursor to Memory because we start to see how Miles' conflicting identities are affecting him.
The cover is absurd and kitschy, as are most of the covers for this series, and now I'm thinking about how I would design it.
The cover is absurd and kitschy, as are most of the covers for this series, and now I'm thinking about how I would design it.
readerreborn's review
5.0
With every book I read, the Vorkosigan Saga climbs my list of favorite series. I love how over the top and crazy the books are at surface level, yet they are also so personal. Like this one FEELS like a sprawling military sci fi epic, and yet if you actually look at what's happening, it's mostly bottle scenes between two sprawling epics. I don't think that makes sense, unless you've already read it, in which case this review is pointless since you already know how good this book is. Bujold is a master of plot and character. She can get across in one sentence what it might take other big names authors two paragraphs to accomplish. Phenomenal!
megmcardle's review
4.0
Another great entry in a great series. In this book, the dual identity of Miles Vorkosigan and Admiral Naismith becomes complicated by the introduction of Miles' cloned "brother" Mark.
thegreekie's review
4.0
Plot (Story / Pacing / Ending): 4/5
Characters (Characters / Development): 4/5
Writing (Prose / Dialogue / Style): 4/5
Other (Enjoyment / Read Pace / Worldbuilding / Etc): 5/5
Characters (Characters / Development): 4/5
Writing (Prose / Dialogue / Style): 4/5
Other (Enjoyment / Read Pace / Worldbuilding / Etc): 5/5
lectriza's review
3.0
If you just cut out the whole Ellie romance aspect, it was pretty good although it suffered from a slow start.
slimikin's review against another edition
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mjfmjfmjf's review
4.0
A pleasant re-read. Though it took me a long time to get into the flow of this book. This definitely follows from Borders of Infinity, though I'm thinking it would have still worked okay with having read that. It's kind of weird for Miles to be on Earth. A bit quippy but not in an overwhelming way. Basically another madcap Miles adventure around a mystery. No space battles in this one and most of the supporting cast is absent. But we see Mark for the first time in this one.
wetdryvac's review
4.0
My estimation of this entire series has gone up now that I'm not reading it from behind a wall for brain-fog. This one's excellent indeed.
kellylynnthomas's review against another edition
4.0
Originally read this in book format when I was in middle school, probably around 1999 or 2000-ish. This time around I listened to the audio book, in keeping with my re-read of the entire Vorkosigan saga from start to finish in audio format.
In this one, Miles meets a clone of himself. And at first, I thought, "Oh my Goddess, this is ridiculous." But I was still enjoying the book so much, I had to look deeper. It's actually not ridiculous at all. Bujould sets up the clone and the plot surrounding the clone perfectly, and Miles's reaction to the clone is great. And then you have the clone (his name winds up become Mark) himself, who does not behave how you want him to, but how he should and would given the circumstances he's in. Once again, Bujold proves her mastery of character. (And there's plenty of action in which the characters can try themselves -- it's no fun if they're sitting around a table chatting, now is it?)
In this one, Miles meets a clone of himself. And at first, I thought, "Oh my Goddess, this is ridiculous." But I was still enjoying the book so much, I had to look deeper. It's actually not ridiculous at all. Bujould sets up the clone and the plot surrounding the clone perfectly, and Miles's reaction to the clone is great. And then you have the clone (his name winds up become Mark) himself, who does not behave how you want him to, but how he should and would given the circumstances he's in. Once again, Bujold proves her mastery of character. (And there's plenty of action in which the characters can try themselves -- it's no fun if they're sitting around a table chatting, now is it?)