Bujold, Lois McMaster Books

The Sharing Knife, Volume Four: Horizon (The Sharing Knife)

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Editorial Review:

In a world where malices—remnants of ancient magic—can erupt with life-destroying power, only soldier-sorcerer Lakewalkers have mastered the ability to kill them. But Lakewalkers keep their uncanny secrets—and themselves—from the farmers they protect, so when patroller Dag Redwing Hickory rescued farmer girl Fawn Bluefield, neither expected to fall in love, join their lives in marriage, or defy both their kin to seek new solutions to the perilous split between their peoples.

As Dag's maker abilities have grown, so has his concern about who—or what—he is becoming. At the end of a great river journey, Dag is offered an apprenticeship to a master groundsetter in a southern Lakewalker camp. But as his understanding of his powers deepens, so does his frustration with the camp's rigid mores with respect to farmers. At last, he and Fawn decide to travel a very different road—and find that along it, their disparate but hopeful company increases.

Fawn and Dag see that their world is changing, and the traditional Lakewalker practices cannot hold every malice at bay forever. Yet for all the customs that the couple has challenged thus far, they will soon be confronted by a crisis exceeding their worst imaginings, one that threatens their Lakewalker and farmer followers alike. Now the pair must answer in earnest the question they've grappled with since they killed their first malice together: When the old traditions fail disastrously, can their untried new ways stand against their world's deadliest foe?

Passage (The Sharing Knife, Book 3)

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 32 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Acclaimed science fiction and fantasy writer Lois McMaster Bujold—five-time winner of the Hugo Award—brings us the third installment in her New York Times bestselling romantic fantasy

The Sharing Knife, Volume Three: Passage

Young Fawn Bluefield and soldier-sorcerer Dag Redwing Hickory have survived magical dangers and found, in each other, love and loyalty. But even their strength and passion cannot overcome the bigotry of their own kin, and so, leaving behind all they have known, the couple sets off to find fresh solutions to the perilous split between their peoples.

But they will not journey alone. Along the way they acquire comrades, starting with Fawn's irrepressible brother Whit, whose future on the Bluefield family farm seems as hopeless as Fawn's once did. Planning to seek passage on a riverboat heading to the sea, Dag and Fawn find themselves allied with a young flatboat captain searching for her father and fiancé, who mysteriously vanished on the river nearly a year earlier. They travel downstream, hoping to find word of the missing men, and inadvertently pick up more followers: a pair of novice Lakewalker patrollers running away from an honest mistake with catastrophic consequences; a shrewd backwoods hunter stranded in a wreck of boats and hopes; and a farmer boy Dag unintentionally beguiles, leaving Dag with more questions than answers about his growing magery.

As the ill-assorted crew is tested and tempered on its journey to where great rivers join, Fawn and Dag will discover surprising new abilities both Lakewalker and farmer, a growing understanding of the bonds between themselves and their kinfolk, and a new world of hazards both human and uncanny.

Cordelia's Honor

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 70 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

great book 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This is the beginning of the vorkosigan books, and it is great. I think it is the best book of the group.

Cordella's Honor 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

If there was any book to bring a non science fiction reader into genre this is the book that will catch you.

Reprint of "Shards of Honor" & "Barrayar " 1 out of 5 stars.
0 of 9 people found this review helpful.

This is a reprint of two books I have read. I will probabaly return it.

As always, a terrific read 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Previously published as two separate novels, so not new.

Have just re-read them, and am very pleased to report they are as terrific as I remember them.

Excellent Space Opera 5 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

This was the first book in the Vorkosigan series that I read (I know that it's a compendium) and it got me hooked. The plotting is fun, the characterizations are excellent. You should read it.

Editorial Review:

A Hugo Award Winner. In the war between her planet and Barrayar, Captain Cordelia Naismith was forced into a separate peace with her opponent, Lord Aral Vorkosigan. But when enemies become more than friends -- they win!

Young Miles

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 23 Average rating: 4.0 of 5

MIles Comes of Age 5 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

Several years ago, Baen Books began releasing Lois McMaster Bujold's tales of Miles Vorkosigan in omnibus form, each volume containing several adventures arranged in story chronology order. Young Miles contains three tales, the novel The Warrior's Apprentice, the novella "The Mountains of Mourning", and another novel, The Vor Game. Chronologically these stories occur after Barrayar and before Cetaganda.

In The Warrior's Apprentice, Miles fails to meet the physical requirements to be accepted into the Barrayaran Military Academy. Through a series of screwball comedy-like events, where one damn thing just snowballs into another, in short order he attracts a cadre of misfits and former losers, dedicated personally to himself, and eventually creates and leads the Free Dendarii Mercenaries under the assumed identity of "Admiral Naismith". This is Bujold's first exploration of the idea that, like T.E. Lawrence (on whose personality he's partly based), Miles is an "enabler", drawing to himself people who perform under his influence better than they might have otherwise.

Warrior's is an immensely fun book, a coming-of-age tale, a comedy, a tragedy, and a military SF novel all rolled into one. A word about the "tragedy" part of the equation. Shortly into this novel, my favorite character in the series thus far dies. I've been told (by the lady who turned me on to Bujold, and has messiah-like done the same to as many others as she can) that one woman simply quit reading at this point, just refused to continue either the book or the series, she was so pissed-off this character was killed. I can understand that. I was if not angered at least shocked and saddened to see this character go. But with 20/20 hindsight I can see why it happened. There's simply no way Warrior's, or most of the subsequent events in Miles' life that Bujold wanted to occur could have happened with this character around. So Bujold achieved a wrenching death scene AND cleared out the problem this character presented all in one fell swoop.

"The Mountains of Mourning" was originally published as one-third of the Borders of Infinity collection. Miles is forced by his duties as Lord Vorkosigan to play detective, to investigate and solve a murder. I have to admit, at least to me, the mystery wasn't much of a mystery, I had the killer pegged from their first appearance; and I think my solution to their eventual punishment would have been much more "an eye for an eye" than Miles'.

The Vor Game is the longest and most complex story in the book. The first thing you need to know about The Vor Game, it won the Hugo award for Best SF Novel of 1991. I'm not sure I would have voted for that, myself. Structurally the book is divided into two parts quite different in tone. The first tells the story of Miles' initial assignment as a Barrayaran officer, and, with the discovery of a dead body and a packet of unknown contents, as Bujold puts it in her Afterword, "tried very hard to turn into a military murder mystery." In the first draft, the packet contained money. Bujold's test readers were jumping up and down, waiting to find out what happened next - and couldn't understand her insistence that NOTHING was supposed to happen next, the dead body and packet weren't really important (!). Finally, she changed the contents of the packet to something totally non-mysterious and moved on with the tale. I was, frankly, at this point in the story settling in for a thoroughly enjoyable murder mystery myself, and, like the test readers couldn't understand why it never materialized. So there that dead body and packet sit in the middle of the first section of The Vor Game, about as useful as a vermiform appendix. This fascinating set-up should either have been allowed to run its own course or removed entirely.

The main problem I have with The Vor Game is that, in its second part, the event precipitating Miles' adventures is that, out of all of explored space, he just happens to find himself thrown into the same cell on a space station jail (in a completely different star system than Barrayar) as his childhood friend, the runaway Emperor of Barrayar! This is a coincidence of such staggering proportions, the book should have been called Deus Ex Machina, a plot twist so hamfisted all I could do was shake my head and think, "You have GOT to be kidding me." But there it is. And this book won a Best Novel Hugo!

Most of the rest of The Vor Game is set-up; it's not until the last 70 pages that at long last we get to see what we're really after, Miles back in the saddle as Admiral Naismith. At which point the book begins to absolutely ROCK, as Miles juggles 50 plates in the air at once, with the fate of star systems balanced in his hands. The second part of The Vor Game is much more fast-paced, lighter and more amusing than the first. NAISMITH LIVES! Eventually.

Editorial Review:

Being a Vor lord on the war-torn planet Barrayar wasn't easy. Being an officer in Barrayar's military wasn't easy. And being the leader of a force of spaceborne mercenaries while maintaining a secret identity wasn't easy--in fact it should have been impossible, to say nothing of being a capital offense on Barrayar. Not that impossibility or great danger ever noticeably slowed down young miles Vorkosigan--or his adventurous alter ego, Admiral Naismith.

Legacy (The Sharing Knife, Book 2)

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 6 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

The Need for Sharing 4 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

A seamless continuation of the first volume of The Sharing Knife, Book 2 [Legacy] focuses on the rejection of Fawn by her new in-laws. The rejection foregrounds the cultural divisions between the Lakewalkers, with their special abilities, and the Farmers, meaning the rest of humanity. Bridging the chasm between the two cultures develops as the goal for the remaining volumes in the series. Bujold's proficiency with an abundance of characters, settings, and narrative coils in this saga bodes well for its further development.

Editorial Review:

Ill-chance brought young Fawn Bluefield together with Dag Redwing Hickory, the seasoned soldier-sorcerer, but it was love and loyalty that joined their fates. While their unorthodox marriage has been grudgingly accepted by the clever farm girl's people, Dag's Lakewalker kin are less tolerant, greeting their union with derision, suspicion, and prejudice.

The specter of permanent exile looms above the couple—until a final decision on their lot is diverted by a sudden, viciously magical malice attack on a neighboring hinterland. Sworn to duty, Dag must answer the call, leaving his new bride behind. But what awaits him and his patrol could have serious and unimagined consequences for farmers and Lakewalkers alike, forever altering the lovers, their families, and their world.

Miles Errant (Miles Vorkosigan Adventures)

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 15 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Ok, if you have all the books don't buy this one. 5 out of 5 stars.
7 of 10 people found this review helpful.

However, if you are new to the Vorkosigian saga then buy these compilation books. What makes these books exceptional is that they generaly incude 2 novels and either a short story or a novella. Right now I don't have the book in review with me so I will not write a specific review. Later on, when I do have it in hand I will do so. Instead I will give an overview of the series.
Who is Miles? Well he is at least two people, Miles Vorkosigian, heir to his fathers title and a mutie (he really isn't but if you look at him you would think so). He is also Admiral Naismith, mercenary naval leader of an elite mercenary unit that specializes in covert rescue operations and revolutionary movements. The super books chronical the adventures of Admiral Naismith and his Betan mother. What hasn't been compiled is really a look at Miles whithout a dual personalty.

Lois McMaster Bujold has earned her Hugos and Nebulas the hard way with well written stories, superb characterization, and novel ideas on what makes humans click. Cordelia's Honor is the first super book in the series and details the trials and tribulations of Aral Vorkisogian, the Butcher of Komarran; and his Dear Captian, the fearless daughter of Beta Colony. Actually Cordelia Vorkisogian is the real hero in the first super novel, the first 2 books in the Vorkosigian Chronicles, and she almost lives up to her son's reputation.

Are the Vorkosigian novels worth reading? HELL YEAH!!!! Warning where as most novels take me a day to a little over a day to read, these books demand on average 2 to 2 and a half days, and these are barn burning give up sleep and work page turning novels that you can't put down!

Start with Cordelia's Honor if you insist on reading in chronological order. Start with any book avalable in your favorite bookstore as reading out of turn is not detrimental to your reading enjoyment. Better yet read all of the super books first and then read what is left.

Lois McMaster Bujold is one of the most decorated authors in science fiction, only Robert Heinlein has more nominations. Every time a new book is translated into a new language that country's Hugo people instantly nominate it for their Hugo equivalent award. I expect her to become the acknowledged Mother or Grandmother of SCI-FI, her ownly competition is Anne McCaffrey.

Editorial Review:

Whether he's rescuing prisoners, keeping his enemies from replacing him with a clone, or coming back from his own dysfunctional death, Miles gets the job done. Of course, it may not be "quite" the job his superiors wanted done.

Miles, Mystery & Mayhem

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 20 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Another Omnibus edition representing the best and worst of the series. 3 out of 5 stars.
6 of 6 people found this review helpful.

Miles, Mystery & Mayhem is the third omnibus (collection of works combined into one book) in Bujold's Vorkosigan series. These collections feature events that take place in chronological order but were written in non-chronological order. Many debates have arisen regarding the best way to read Bujold's Vorkorsigan adventures but I agree with the overwhelming popular choice of reading them in the chronological order of events. This collection features Ceteganda, Ethan of Ethos and the novella The Labyrinth.

Ceteganda is an example of Bujold at her best. Miles quickly finds himself in a diplomatic dilemma after landing on Ceteganda for a funeral. Political intrigue and mystery abound as Miles finds himself in the familiar situation of having to use hits wits to manipulate people and discover information in order to save his skin. This is where Bujold shines as she mixes delicious political intrigue with clever and likeable characterization. Miles is smart and witty and I found myself smiling in awe as he unravels mysteries and talks himself out of every situation. On top of that Bujold creates one of the more interesting alien societies in her portrayal of the complex Cetagandans.

"Ethan of Athos" falls in the Vorkorsigan series although Miles doesn't really appear in the story at all. In instead follows the adventures of displaced man from an all male planet, and the feisty Ms. Quinn, Miles's future lover. Therein lies the biggest problem that also plagued Falling Free. A story that takes place in the Vorkosigan series that doesn't include Miles is equivalent to a movie that takes place in Gotham without Batman. While the all male Athos society was an interesting, everything else was mediocre at best Bujold should of replaced with Quinn with Miles in this story.

"Labyrinth" is a fantastic short story that comes out of the gate at a shotgun's pace and never lets up until the end. Again it's Miles overcoming his physical differences and using his amazing understanding of the human psyche to overcome impossible odds. It's worth going to the bookstore and reading this there since many will already have read the other two novels.

Finally, I've seen a lot of negative reviews about people complaining how this collection is just reprints of older books. It upsets me that Amazon allows these idiots to post these negative reviews which are solely the results of losers whining because they bought something without even reading the back of the cover.

Bottom Line: Another must read in the fantastic world of Vorkosigan. Skipping Ethan of Athos wouldn't be unforgivable by any means.

Editorial Review:

Award-winning novelist Lois McMaster Bujold serves up three previously published Miles Vorkosigan stories--"Cetaganda, " "Ethan of Athos, " and the novella Labyrinth--in this adventurous and lively collection. In the three stories, the 20-something Barrayan lieutenant gets caught in a devious web of Cetagandan politics, investigates a peculiar obstetrician from a planet forbidden to women, and falls for a mysterious alien woman with fangs.

Memory (Miles Vorkosigan Adventures)

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 67 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Not Free SF Reader 4 out of 5 stars.
0 of 0 people found this review helpful.

Having been dead is bad, it can seriously crimp your stylin's.


Especially when the boss finds out. The head of Imperial Security finds out Miles is really not a well bloke, and gives him the boot from his current assignment.

This is seen as an opportunity for some that don't like the current boss to try and get rid of him.

The first bit backfires on those that have targeted the head of Security as Miles finds an old law that lets the Emperor appoint a troubleshooter who can basically order whoever th ehell he likes around. He gets a surprise when said Emperor makes it him. This sort of troublemaking certainly suits him as he does the business.

Editorial Review:

Miles turns 30, and--though he isn't slowing down just yet--he is starting to lose interest in the game of Wall: the one where he tries to climb the wall, fails, gets up, and tries again. Having finally reached a point in his life where he can look back and realize that he has managed to prove his courage and competence, he can move on to bigger and better things.

Depending on how you count it, this is the eighth, ninth, tenth, or eleventh book in a series--not all are about Miles or even his extended family. A good place to start is with the first Vorkosigan story, Shards of Honor.

Miles, Mutants and Microbes

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 5 Average rating: 3.5 of 5

Editorial Review:

Two complete novels and a short novel in one large volume:

Falling Free—The Nebula Award-winning novel. Leo Graf was just your typical efficient engineer: mind your own business and do the job. But all that changed on his assignment to the Cay Habitat, where children had been bio-engineered to have four arms (and no legs) to function in zero gravity. Now that they’re no longer needed, a heartless mega corporation is getting rid of them before they eat into the profit margin. Leo Graf adopted 1000 quaddies—now he had to teach them to be free.

“Labyrinth”—When Miles Vorkosigan is captured while on a secret mission to a lawless world, his only hope of escape is an unlikely pair of allies: a quaddie and a teenage werewolf.

Diplomatic Immunity— Miles Vorkosigan and his wife were heading home for the births of their first children, but a major diplomatic disaster is looming at Graf Station, colonized by the descendants of the original quaddies, and duty calls. Unfortunately, diplomatic immunity doesn’t carry over to immunity from a very nasty biological weapon. The downside of being a troubleshooter comes when trouble starts shooting back. . . .

Paladin of Souls

Lois McMaster Bujold

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Customer Reviews:
Total reviews: 78 Average rating: 4.5 of 5

Unexpected supporting character takes the lead 5 out of 5 stars.
1 of 1 people found this review helpful.

The main character of Paladin of Souls is unexpected. She's a middle-aged widow whose daughter is the Queen of Chalion. She's spent a good half her life in madness. She's carries a shameful secret from her past around with her. She was a minor character in the Curse of Chalion, but now we get to watch her rebirth after the madness has been lifted. Her development, slowly gaining confidence and insight into who she is at this life stage, is wonderful to watch.

One problem with Curse had been plot pacing. That problem is not present here. Ista grows fed up with the smothering atmosphere of her home and hits the road right away. All I can think here are cliches: non-stop action, the action doesn't stop, Bujold keeps the action coming, etc, etc. It doesn't make any sense at first, but at least it isn't boring, and as the story progresses all the seemingly random events start to fit together.

The only negative criticism I could come up with for this book had to do with the prose. Bujold had a habit of using negatives in a way that she must think sounds poetic or high-born, but got annoying with over-use. For example, saying "not a little" to mean "a lot." This is a minor complaint in a book that I otherwise thought deserved all the awards and praise it's gotten.

One could read Paladin without reading Curse first, although I don't recommend it - that could spoil your enjoyment of Curse

Editorial Review:

Follow Lois McMaster Bujold, one of the most honored authors in the field of fantasy and science fiction, to a land threatened by treacherous war and beset by demons -- as a royal dowager, released from the curse of madness and manipulated by an untrustworthy god, is plunged into a desperate struggle to preserve the endangered souls of a realm.