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Product Description
When the Cetagandan empress dies, Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan are sent to Cetaganda for her funeral as diplomatic representatives of Barrayar. Upon arrival, the two men are inexplicably attacked by a servant of the late empress. When the same servant turns up dead the next day, Miles and Ivan find themselves in the middle of a mystery. Miles tries to play detective in a strange, complicated, and deceptively alien culture, while lascivious Ivan manages to get himself involved with several noble females at the same time, a diplomatic no-no of the first order. As the plot thickens, it becomes clear that it's up to Miles to save the empire. With her usual skill, Bujold addresses timeless issues of human identity through the personal dramas of her characters.
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"Now is it, 'Diplomacy is the art of war pursued by other men,'" asked Ivan, "or was it the other way around? Read the first page
Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
"Now is it, 'Diplomacy is the art of war pursued by other men,'" asked Ivan, "or was it the other way around? Read the first page
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Front Cover | Copyright | Excerpt | Back Cover
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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful
Format:Mass Market Paperback
This is another installment in the continuing adventures of Miles Vorkosigan. If you haven't read any of the Vorkosigan stories before, this might not be the one to start with... it assumes some knowledge of the characters and their world, and it's also rather lightweight compared to the other books in the series. You might want to check out "Borders of Infinity" or "The Warrior's Apprentice" first. Still, this is a pretty good book (even lightweight Bujold is well worth reading), with an intriguingly offbeat take on genetic engineering. The Cetagandans are a culture dominated by one of the oldest SF canards of all, a genetically-engineered master race. The novel twist here is that the haut-lords are not your ordinary genetic supermen (super-strong, super-smart, etc.). They have designed themselves to be *aesthetically* superior... intelligent, yes, but more importantly, beautiful, charismatic, and with a superhuman sense of aesthetic appreciation. They rule (quite effectively) by manipulation and charisma rather than force. The interesting result is a warlike culture ruled by, well, movie stars. The book is somewhat flawed by a rather clunky murder mystery, but the Cetagandan culture is interesting, and there are some extremely funny bits. Any fan of Miles Vorkosigan will want this one to round out the collection.
Format:Mass Market Paperback
The plot (without giving away spoilers): the Dowager Empress of Cetaganda has died, and Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan are despatched to attend the funereal ceremonies - as representatives of the Cetagandans heriditary enemies, the Barrayarans. Immediately upon arrival they are handed a mysterious artefact by someone who is murdered, soon after - and trouble ensues. Not just ordinary trouble (which seems to accompany Miles wherever he goes) but interplanetary trouble... multiple and dangerous cross-currents, plots and unexpected, um... relationships abound. The Barrayaran Ambassador gets more than normally exasparated with his two young trainee diplomats!
My opinion: hugely enjoyable, and superior to most other SF or space opera that I know - in that it is smart, complicated and fallking into place(s) in a *very* satisfactory way, exasparating, tense, moving. Very well-plotted, with delicious writing and fully-fledged 3-D people inhabiting a convincing, and fascinating, universe. Bujold has a knack of springing shock surprises on you (and her protagonists) that leave you reeling, mentally, and soon thereafter nodding your head at the convoluted logic of it all. Terrific stuff, and hugely enjoyable, in the way of Modesty Blaise, say, with a dash of Vance, Heinlein and Leiber.
Anybody who doesn't know the Vorkosigan series should start at the beginning ('Shards of honor') and work their way through; anybody who knows Miles will find him in full flight and top form.
My opinion: hugely enjoyable, and superior to most other SF or space opera that I know - in that it is smart, complicated and fallking into place(s) in a *very* satisfactory way, exasparating, tense, moving. Very well-plotted, with delicious writing and fully-fledged 3-D people inhabiting a convincing, and fascinating, universe. Bujold has a knack of springing shock surprises on you (and her protagonists) that leave you reeling, mentally, and soon thereafter nodding your head at the convoluted logic of it all. Terrific stuff, and hugely enjoyable, in the way of Modesty Blaise, say, with a dash of Vance, Heinlein and Leiber.
Anybody who doesn't know the Vorkosigan series should start at the beginning ('Shards of honor') and work their way through; anybody who knows Miles will find him in full flight and top form.
Format:Mass Market Paperback
Miles tries his hand at another bit of detective work again in this one. He's on a diplomatic mission to Cetaganda with his 'a bit thick but handsome' cousin. He's not even off the shuttle before he's knee deep in intrigue, and murder, dodging potentially fatal traps as he goes. Spending time in Miles head is always enjoyable and fun. I also enjoyed trying to imagine how beautiful the Cetagandan Haut women were. Probably similar to trying to imagine what Galadriel looked like - an enjoyable exercise but ultimately a futile one.
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