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ninjamuse's review against another edition
2.0
In brief: Three years after the death of Cordelia Vorkosigan’s husband (and Oliver Jole’s life partner), the two bereaved begin thinking about love, family, and their future once again. Fifteenth in a series.
Thoughts: I described this book to a few people while I was reading it and the adjective I settled on was “comfortable”. This is a dear series for me, with a lot of nostalgia, and reading this latest installment felt very much like visiting old friends—and not just because a lot of recurring characters and societies and motifs appeared, or because Bujold is, in a way, bringing the series full circle. There’s nothing really difficult about the story here, or the writing. It’s a very gentle comedy with a few SFnal things at its core, and it was great to see realistic healing from grief and a middle-aged romance! Also to have Bujold acknowledge that the reproductive tech threaded through the series could have positive impacts on the lives of queer couples and the post-menopausal.
However, I’m not really sure how I feel about the romance, though I’m feeling better about it after finishing the book than I was in the middle. By the end, Bujold clarified a few points of the current and past relationships that brought things closer to “canonically poly and now they’ve lost a member of their triad” and further from “man falls for his lover’s widow”. Part of me wants to shout “yay poly!” and another points out that Bujold’s track record with queer stuff is … not the greatest and that I’m neither poly, gay, or bi so am not the best person to comment one way or the other. Bujold does confirm a lot more about gay people have historically fit into Barrayaran society, so at least she’s fixing an oversight or two.
This is definitely not the novel to start the series with. There are too many in-jokes, too many references, too much summing up of the series for that. If you’re a Vorkosigan fan already, enough that you’ve read the bulk of the books including Shards of Honour and Barrayar, I’d rec it just to cap the series off—but know it’s not her strongest by a long shot.
Warnings: The sexuality stuff mentioned above. One joke about an intersex character’s potential to confuse The Straights.
6/10
Thoughts: I described this book to a few people while I was reading it and the adjective I settled on was “comfortable”. This is a dear series for me, with a lot of nostalgia, and reading this latest installment felt very much like visiting old friends—and not just because a lot of recurring characters and societies and motifs appeared, or because Bujold is, in a way, bringing the series full circle. There’s nothing really difficult about the story here, or the writing. It’s a very gentle comedy with a few SFnal things at its core, and it was great to see realistic healing from grief and a middle-aged romance! Also to have Bujold acknowledge that the reproductive tech threaded through the series could have positive impacts on the lives of queer couples and the post-menopausal.
However, I’m not really sure how I feel about the romance, though I’m feeling better about it after finishing the book than I was in the middle. By the end, Bujold clarified a few points of the current and past relationships that brought things closer to “canonically poly and now they’ve lost a member of their triad” and further from “man falls for his lover’s widow”. Part of me wants to shout “yay poly!” and another points out that Bujold’s track record with queer stuff is … not the greatest and that I’m neither poly, gay, or bi so am not the best person to comment one way or the other. Bujold does confirm a lot more about gay people have historically fit into Barrayaran society, so at least she’s fixing an oversight or two.
This is definitely not the novel to start the series with. There are too many in-jokes, too many references, too much summing up of the series for that. If you’re a Vorkosigan fan already, enough that you’ve read the bulk of the books including Shards of Honour and Barrayar, I’d rec it just to cap the series off—but know it’s not her strongest by a long shot.
Warnings: The sexuality stuff mentioned above. One joke about an intersex character’s potential to confuse The Straights.
6/10
hteph's review
4.0
This is a good good, no doubt of that, but it feels ... sad. To me it really feels like a goodbye to old friends, which you know you may never see again.
The book really feels much better than the last three Vorkosigan, neither Diplomatic Immunity nor Cryoburn had any real oomph in them and Capt. Vorpatril was oddly unfinished. This book feel more cohesive and well written, with more heart in. Actually, that is what is in it ... heart.
The first chapter hit me like a emotional broadside, and the rest of the book my poor soul was shell shocked.
Vox Day would hate this one I guess...
But in the end, it feels like an epiloge ... or an eulogy of some sorts.
The book really feels much better than the last three Vorkosigan, neither Diplomatic Immunity nor Cryoburn had any real oomph in them and Capt. Vorpatril was oddly unfinished. This book feel more cohesive and well written, with more heart in. Actually, that is what is in it ... heart.
The first chapter hit me like a emotional broadside, and the rest of the book my poor soul was shell shocked.
Vox Day would hate this one I guess...
But in the end, it feels like an epiloge ... or an eulogy of some sorts.
alpho's review
1.0
If you like iddy wish fulfillment about post-menopausal women having lots and lots of babies with a hot younger guy, here is your book. Sadly, it's not actually my kink and there is no real plot to engage me with anything else, so I really couldn't care less for this book.
I'm just a little sad. Bujold's always been such an amazing author, enough that I think she could have sold me on Jole's history with Aral if she'd actually tried. I went in wanting to be sold on it, at least, because seriously that is so relevant to my interests. But she decided to indulge herself rather than seriously explore the premise, and so we get a book that is to the Vorkosigan series what Narcissus in Chains was to the Anita Blake series. Sure, there's going to be people who find this is totally their thing and that's fine, but that doesn't make it any more consistent with the rest of the series. And Jesus, if there's two authors I never thought I'd be comparing...
I'm just a little sad. Bujold's always been such an amazing author, enough that I think she could have sold me on Jole's history with Aral if she'd actually tried. I went in wanting to be sold on it, at least, because seriously that is so relevant to my interests. But she decided to indulge herself rather than seriously explore the premise, and so we get a book that is to the Vorkosigan series what Narcissus in Chains was to the Anita Blake series. Sure, there's going to be people who find this is totally their thing and that's fine, but that doesn't make it any more consistent with the rest of the series. And Jesus, if there's two authors I never thought I'd be comparing...
darlenemarshall's review
5.0
Loved the second chance at love theme, can't say more because spoilers!
katrinamiddelburg's review
5.0
Loved it. Cordelia is my favorite Vorkosigan and the emotional complexity of this continuation of her story had me from page 1. Less guns and ships than the other novels....but still, an enormously satisfying read.
klreeher's review
5.0
This was DELIGHTFUL.
I read the eARC.
I kept expecting an overaching action plot to happen, and it, uh, never really did, but the story never suffered for it. :) The story is very much-- what do you do AFTER the action settles down, which is a thing I love in my books. It was also one of my favorite types of sci-fi, which is, let's take changes in science/tech/setting and look at the reverberations in every day life/culture/etc, although that wasn't the biggest focus in the book.
Overall, delightful, and also a really nice cap to a series and characters and a setting that I've loved.
I read the eARC.
I kept expecting an overaching action plot to happen, and it, uh, never really did, but the story never suffered for it. :) The story is very much-- what do you do AFTER the action settles down, which is a thing I love in my books. It was also one of my favorite types of sci-fi, which is, let's take changes in science/tech/setting and look at the reverberations in every day life/culture/etc, although that wasn't the biggest focus in the book.
Overall, delightful, and also a really nice cap to a series and characters and a setting that I've loved.
saoirseak's review
5.0
A very sweet romance starring a 76-year-old widow and a 50-year old bisexual man. In space. Either you're with me or you aren't, from that description, and anything else I have to say will turn spoilery. This is on the lighter/fluffier end of the Bujold spectrum. I listened to it on a bus and had to work hard to stop myself from clapping my hands delightedly more than once.
I would not suggest reading this as your first entry into the series.
I would not suggest reading this as your first entry into the series.
pedanther's review
emotional
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
- Strong character development? Yes
4.5
quorumbutton's review
4.0
Keeping in the style of LMB's later books, GJ&tRQ is much more a philosophical and psychological exploration than a space adventure. I enjoyed it immensely; the deep look into Cordelia and Jole's psyches (and the well-handled polyamorous relationship of my dreams!! sort of), the little references to previous books (seeing what misconceptions/inaccurate info certain characters held about previous events was a DELIGHT), and pretty much all of the actual dilemmas. You can really tell that some of the issues the characters think through/express opinions about are what LMB has thought about (and may believe) personally.
The one complaint I had was the re-occuring 'problem' of the building materials -- I kept expecting it to turn into a Miles-like disaster plot, but it didn't happen? So every time it came up I would be trying to figure out why it was so important. Not sure if LMB did that on purpose or not, but I felt like it distracted me from the main focus of the book. The only reason this is 4 stars instead of 5! (Also, I compare this to all the other books in the series, and I admit I'm biased toward more plot-oriented ones, like Vor Game and Memory.)
The one complaint I had was the re-occuring 'problem' of the building materials -- I kept expecting it to turn into a Miles-like disaster plot, but it didn't happen? So every time it came up I would be trying to figure out why it was so important. Not sure if LMB did that on purpose or not, but I felt like it distracted me from the main focus of the book. The only reason this is 4 stars instead of 5! (Also, I compare this to all the other books in the series, and I admit I'm biased toward more plot-oriented ones, like Vor Game and Memory.)
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