Komarr

This isn't the first book. Have you read the first book? If not, you should immediately drop everything and order it. Now. Immediately. Right away. Read the whole series. Ok, ok. Here's the series: Shards of HonorBarayar (these two books are also combined into "Cordelia's Honor")The Warrior's ApprenticeShort Story: The Mountains of Mourning (all short stories are contained in "Borders of Infinity")The Vor GameCetagandaEthan of AthosShort Story: LabyrinthShort Story: The Borders of InfinityBrothers in ArmsThe Borders of InfinityMirror DanceMemoryKomarrA Civil CampaignDiplomatic ImmunityNow, go start at the begining and read them all the way through to the end.

To my surprise Komarr is, to my point of view, the best Vorkosigan's novel. It is the first time that Miles appear to be human. The lack of action is a large contribution to this. I would like to say that my great regret about the other books was the difficulty to consider the situations described as real possibilities. The large place of the "Deus ex machina" was a disturbance. The greatest part played by psychology is also an improvement (perhaps due to the new serenity of the character). Therefore it is a delight to spend time with this novel. Congratulations.

One thing Lois McMaster Bujold never does is keep doing quite the same thing each time. Miles' predicament in this novel reminds me of a scene in Farley Mowat's "Dog Who Wouldn't Be" where the dog is trying to sit on five wounded ducks at once. He has four paws and five ducks... Here, Miles has to solve a mystery, discover true love for the first time in his life, learn a new profession and a couple of other things that I'll let you find out by reading the book. At the same time, we get a fascinating glimpse of what it's like to watch the "Dwarf Tornado" as our favorite hyperactive tries to play whack-a-mole in real time. As always, I had an awful lot of fun reading this book and I absolutely can't wait for the next one, "A Civil Campaign." Incidentally, I've seen some complaints that Miles seems a bit thick-headed as an Imperial Auditor. I don't agree. In the earlier books, Miles was leading the band. Here, he's essentially a cop, and, as somebody once commented, cops are historians. They come along *after* the deeds are done and try to cope with the mess. That's a lot harder than combat. I've read this book three times, and expect to read it a few more.

First things first: I don't think the book would be very meaningful for someone who hasn't read the other books. Start with Shards Of Honor.OK, now that that's out of the way, why do you like these books? If you are a fan of Miles Naismith, mercenary admiral, then you will probably hate this book.But if you are a fan of Miles Vorkosigan, it's another must-read. Miles is growing, trying to figure out how he will live out his life now that he is no longer in the military. He's also trying to figure out just what it is that he has been serving all this time.It is also important to realize that the book is not just about Miles. It is also about Ekaterine. She is not always the strongest or best character she could be, but who doesn't have flaws? If you think of her just as a love interest of Miles, you are missing half the novel.The next book will be even more focused on this sort of thing, more like Jane Austen then David Weber. This is the next step in the development of Miles. But it is definitely not "more of the same".

I read this one before it came out, courtesy of a friend in publishing, and it was wonderful to see an SF novel that, for once, lets its hero grow up. Miles has undergone more than enough physical and psychological trauma to drive a person mad; having him continue to run around swashbuckling after being killed, having most of his organs and bones replaced, etc., would be as ridiculous as having Admiral Nimitz lead a boarding party. As Dorothy Sayers put it when a reader complained that Lord Peter Wimsey no longer had "elfin charm," "Any man of that age who has 'elfin charm' should be euthanized."It's also nice to see a heroine who's an adult woman who attempts to deal with the consequences of her decisions, not a stereotypically beautiful woman-child or a Heinleinian superwoman who only wants to have babies. Dr. Laura's excoriations(she's an exercise physiologist, not a psychologist, BTW) really don't apply. And why should they? Would it be better to have Ekaterin be a Friday clone?Regardless, I look forward to the next book. It's easy to write space opera. God willing, Bujold can take Miles (and herself) to the next level.