A review by chirson
Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen by Lois McMaster Bujold

5.0

(an improper review to follow, for now: all the hearts)

So, assorted thoughts:

(There are no perfect books, but there are books that are perfect for you. I don't think this book was perfect for me, but it was close in many respects, and it made me cry a lot, and gave me a migraine. And I probably would have paid a lot more for therapy to accomplish that than I did for the ebook. The fifth star is for the book hangover.)

1) I am sure this book will/has hit all the wrong buttons for many readers. I honestly don't think it's intended to be or needs to be read as representative of specific real life identities, especially considering how depressingly retro its future is. What it did hit right, for me, was

Spoiler

the alienation and pain associated with being in the closet. The fact that Aral Vorkosigan died without telling his older son about his bisexuality, and both his sons about the poly-ish relationship he was in, was heart-wrenching for me. And yet, terribly believable and realistic, especially considering how Miles can be (remember that time he walked in on Simon and Alys and it took him like 24 hours to process that they were definitely interrupted). It hit terribly close to home, too.

2) Speaking of pain and grief:

Spoiler

I don't know if I've ever read a character more blatantly and to a T fitting all my fictional types and kinks than Aral Vorkosigan. And reading a book about other characters grieving for him so palpably felt cathartic but also terribly painful. In general, I think I need to stick to less grief-filled novels for a while now.

3) I found Cordelia's and Jole's friendlessness to be terrifying.

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And also believably the result of the secrecy. It is difficult to be friends with someone you're keeping the biggest parts of your life from.

4) Miles was more grown-up and less awful this time, but I still feel so bad for Ekaterin for being married to him.

Spoiler

(Would it really hurt so much to treat his mother as a full human? I've said it before and I'll say it again: this is what comes from letting women-are-things-Bothari help raise him.)

5) Speaking of which, how telling is it that throughout Miles books we see very limited progress on women's rights on Barrayar but skip to Cordelia's and Jole's POV and it turns out stuff has been going on that he just didn't quite bother to think about?

6) I find it very interesting that Cordelia thinks less about spirituality / religion / God than either Miles in some recent novels or her character in her own previous novels. Perhaps it's too painful, either as hope or lack thereof.

7) Various lessons from this book:

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Sergyar birthdays are the best birthdays, there's either threesomes or swarms of vampire balloons. That time Miles first saw Jole, and thought Jole was very handsome, his parents would have been like: you don't know the half of it. Simon Illyan really did deserve to have the chip taken out and his job was THE WORST. Mark gets his mom better gifts than Miles (construction companies versus baby pictures). Miles is a terrible role model for his poor firstborn. Alexander is going to have a very interesting A-HA moment about his grandfather at some point. Barrayar really is the worst and thank goodness for Cordelia not going back. If you want to get asylum, plumbing is a better choice than artistry, career-wise. You should pay attention to your parents/family. Cordelia is still bitter about Steady Freddie. It's funny how life in the ff fandom clearly influenced Bujold's writing in this one.

8) I'd read a sequel set 20 years in the future where

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the six Kosigan girls and their three brothers finally abolish Barrayaran autocracy and institute equal rights for all, sort of like Beta but with less brainwashing and without the forcible control of reproduction.