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A review by acousticbanana
Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold
3.0
I have to say - this is the least interesting Vorkosigan book ever. I gave it three stars after I read it, but only because of my fondness for the characters, I think. I love Cordelia and I want her to be happy, and I loved when Miles showed up (and wanted more of him). I enjoy Bujold's style and humor, and it was nice to see those characters again. But still... The plot is weak and lacks any real conflict; the only surprise was the principle premise of the relationship between Aral, Oliver Jole, and Cordelia, which I had heard about ahead of time anyway (and don’t object to; Cordelia’s an open-minded Betan, sure, she’d accept an additional partner, I buy it). And I found Jole’s character kind of boring, honestly.
The thing is, the part of the story that would have actually interested me is the development of the relationship between Jole and Aral Vorkosigan—a younger aide developing a romantic relationship with a superior and a polyamorous arrangement with his wife? How did this develop? Lots of potential interest there! Unfortunately, we’re only told about this, never shown it. It’s an odd elision of something that could have been interesting, in favor of a much less interesting heterosexual pairing.
I find it unbelievable that so many characters want SO many children. Would Cordelia really want SIX additional children? I know she has a long Betan lifespan and can hire help and everything, but being a single parent to six daughters seems like a lot to take on for a woman who’s already raised a child and lived through all kinds of interesting times. And then Jole deciding to have children too, and Miles already having six — maybe it’s just because even if I was fabulously wealthy, could hire lots of help, had a great partner, and didn’t have to go through childbearing, I’d still personally stick with two or three kids, but I find it hard to believe.
When you combine the lots-of-kids things with the fact that none of the bisexual characters end up with someone of the same sex... it makes for a very heteronormative picture.
The thing is, the part of the story that would have actually interested me is the development of the relationship between Jole and Aral Vorkosigan—a younger aide developing a romantic relationship with a superior and a polyamorous arrangement with his wife? How did this develop? Lots of potential interest there! Unfortunately, we’re only told about this, never shown it. It’s an odd elision of something that could have been interesting, in favor of a much less interesting heterosexual pairing.
I find it unbelievable that so many characters want SO many children. Would Cordelia really want SIX additional children? I know she has a long Betan lifespan and can hire help and everything, but being a single parent to six daughters seems like a lot to take on for a woman who’s already raised a child and lived through all kinds of interesting times. And then Jole deciding to have children too, and Miles already having six — maybe it’s just because even if I was fabulously wealthy, could hire lots of help, had a great partner, and didn’t have to go through childbearing, I’d still personally stick with two or three kids, but I find it hard to believe.
When you combine the lots-of-kids things with the fact that none of the bisexual characters end up with someone of the same sex... it makes for a very heteronormative picture.