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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
Miles graduates from the Imperial Military Academy and get planet duty as Chief Meteorology Officer at Camp Permafrost under a "homicidal psychotic" Base Commander. After preventing a mass torture murder Miles is reassigned to ImpSec and asked to play Admiral Naismith to gather information and possibly reconnect with the Dendarii. Miles' cover is blown and while in jail discovers Gregor. Can Miles rescue Gregor wile the Dendarii have been taken over, Miles' old homicidal psychotic base commander reappears, and Centagenda is on the move.
Still enjoying the books. Content note:
Spoiler
Bel Thorne, the Betan hermaphrodite (see my review of the previous volume), comes up occasionally and a bad guy uses the 'proper' (in-universe) pronouns ("it") and makes an indelicate comment about Bel's anatomy but the character is otherwise treated rather well. I'm . . . As always, the disability politics are complicated; it all makes sense in-universe and it's an interesting way of subverting the military sf tropes, but, I mean, the books are twenty-odd years old.
Typical excellent Miles Vorkosigan book. I would not start the series with this one, but if you are familiar enough with the character, it is a fun read. One of my favorite space opera series.
I can't get enough of the swashbuckling Miles Vorkosigan, no matter which persona he is wearing. Bujold has crafted a character who is cocky, but so endearing. You just have to keep turning the pages to see what mess he's gotten into or how he's going to get out of it.
I really liked the inclusion of Emperor Gregor in this book. Having grown up almost as a brother to Miles, he is a very important character, yet we haven't seem much of him as an adult. The relationship between the two young men transcends their prescribed roles and stations, yet remains bound to those roles just the same. I'm not sure this relationship could be pulled off by just any author. To be honest, I think Ms. Bujold is a bit like Miles in how she approaches her writing, daring and bold, but it works in the end.
The bottom line is that this book, like the others is just solidly entertaining. Yes, there are many socio-cultural subtexts in this series, but they don't over power the pure enjoyment in the story.
I really liked the inclusion of Emperor Gregor in this book. Having grown up almost as a brother to Miles, he is a very important character, yet we haven't seem much of him as an adult. The relationship between the two young men transcends their prescribed roles and stations, yet remains bound to those roles just the same. I'm not sure this relationship could be pulled off by just any author. To be honest, I think Ms. Bujold is a bit like Miles in how she approaches her writing, daring and bold, but it works in the end.
The bottom line is that this book, like the others is just solidly entertaining. Yes, there are many socio-cultural subtexts in this series, but they don't over power the pure enjoyment in the story.
I actually found this book and series after reading a book review by Keith Law (http://meadowparty.com/blog/2018/02/26/barrayar/) that piqued my interest. I was in the mood for something light and this was perfect. Miles Vorkosigan is sort of a sci fi, royal family Fletch character, or a less awful Harry Flashman. There's some sort of dilemma (or several, in this case one is the disappearance of the young emperor), his plans fall apart, and with numerous plot twists he uses considerable intelligence and sometimes questionable ethical standards to fix things.
Eh, more like 3.5
Started off interesting, but my interest slumped towards the end
Started off interesting, but my interest slumped towards the end
adventurous
funny
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Yes
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Complicated
Another solid entry from Bujold, dont think it is as good as Warrior's Apprentice, but its a fun read and continues to develop Miles
3.5 Stars
I didn't like this one as much as the previous volume, but it had its moments and a good ending. I generally like the characters, but I'm not a fan of Bujold's psychopaths, and The Vor Game has two. Also, The Weatherman section, a previous novella, made me remember why I don't read much military SF, especially when it involves cadets. Far too much here involved Miles being trapped in places, and it had less of the military satire of [b:The Warrior's Apprentice|61906|The Warrior's Apprentice (Vorkosigan Saga, #2)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1170597854l/61906._SY75_.jpg|2792]. However, it was nice to see the character advancement, especially of Emperor Gregor.
I didn't like this one as much as the previous volume, but it had its moments and a good ending. I generally like the characters, but I'm not a fan of Bujold's psychopaths, and The Vor Game has two. Also, The Weatherman section, a previous novella, made me remember why I don't read much military SF, especially when it involves cadets. Far too much here involved Miles being trapped in places, and it had less of the military satire of [b:The Warrior's Apprentice|61906|The Warrior's Apprentice (Vorkosigan Saga, #2)|Lois McMaster Bujold|https://i.gr-assets.com/images/S/compressed.photo.goodreads.com/books/1170597854l/61906._SY75_.jpg|2792]. However, it was nice to see the character advancement, especially of Emperor Gregor.