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Shards of Honor (2) (Vorkosigan Saga) Paperback – November 3, 2015
When Cordelia Naismith and her survey crew are attacked by a renegade group from Barrayar, she is taken prisoner by Aral Vorkosigan, commander of the Barrayan ship that has been taken over by an ambitious and ruthless crew member. Aral and Cordelia survive countless mishaps while their mutual admiration and even stronger feelings emerge.
About Shards of Honor:
“All in all, Shards is a worthy effort, and worth reading for any fan of SF romance.”—Analog
About Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan Saga:
“Bujold mixes quirky humor with action [and] superb character development…[E]normously satisfying.”—Publishers Weekly.
“One of sf’s outstanding talents . . . an outstanding series.”—Booklist
“. . . an intelligent, well-crafted and thoroughly satisfying blend of adventure, sociopolitical commentary, scientific experiments, and occasional perils . . . with that extra spicing of romance. . . .”—Locus
The Vorkosigan Series in Story-based Chronological Order
Falling Free
Shards of Honor
Barrayar
The Warrior's Apprentice
The Vor Game
Cetaganda
Ethan of Athos
Borders of Infinity
Brothers in Arms
Mirror Dance
Memory
Komarr
A Civil Campaign
Diplomatic Immunity
Captain Vorpatril's Alliance
CryoBurn
Omnibus Editions
MILES, MYSTERY & MAYHEM
contains Cetaganda, Ethan of Athos
YOUNG MILES
contains The Warrior's Apprentice + stories
CORDELIA’S HONOR
contains Shards of Honor, Barayarr
MILES, MUTANTS & MICROBES
contains Falling Free, Diplomatic Immunity
MILES IN LOVE
contains Komarr, A Civil Campaign
MILES ERRANT
contains Brothers in Arms, Mirror Dance
- Print length240 pages
- LanguageEnglish
- PublisherBaen
- Publication dateNovember 3, 2015
- Dimensions6.13 x 0.7 x 9.25 inches
- ISBN-101476781109
- ISBN-13978-1476781105
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About the Author
Product details
- Publisher : Baen; Reprint edition (November 3, 2015)
- Language : English
- Paperback : 240 pages
- ISBN-10 : 1476781109
- ISBN-13 : 978-1476781105
- Item Weight : 1 pounds
- Dimensions : 6.13 x 0.7 x 9.25 inches
- Best Sellers Rank: #329,563 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4,971 in Space Operas
- #7,941 in Science Fiction Adventures
- #19,712 in American Literature (Books)
- Customer Reviews:
About the author
A science fiction legend, Lois McMaster Bujold is one of the most highly regarded speculative fiction writers of all time. She has won three Nebula Awards and six Hugo Awards, four for best novel, which matches Robert A. Heinlein's record. Bujold's Miles Vorkosigan saga is a massively popular science fiction mainstay. The mother of two, Ms. Bujold lives in Minneapolis.
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SETTING: Barrayar is a warrior-like race that came out of an age of isolation into the galactic age. They have an Emperor and then a layer of Counts who make up the aristocracy of Barrayar. Each Count is responsible for a District of people, put together, these Districts comprise the entire planet. They cling to their traditions and their aristocratic rules and values.
In contrast, Beta Colony is a highly technical and evolved world, where everything is egalitarian. Sexual mores are very much looser, including the three sexes, males, female and hermaphrodite. They do a lot of medical research and breakthroughs on Beta Colony, and everything is publicized to the people, there are no homeless, just a middle class and higher, you can always get food, and you can always get therapy.
PLOT: The plot of this book is so twisted, it's curlier than the hair of a poodle. All of the books that I've read in the Vorogosigan series are that way. Not only is their plotting internally in both Barrayar but at Beta Colony too. The politics is rampant at the Imperial level, as well as through the military on Beta Colony. Both Beta Colony and Barrayar get mixed up in a war on opposite sides, which gives Cordelia her second opportunity to be a prisoner to Aral. By that time, the attraction was mutually exclusive. The time they spend together cements their bond,and they help each other to do what they need to do to get free of the situation they find themselves in. Later on, will Cordeilia make her escape to Aral, and will they have their happily ever after? Can a free Betan live on Barrayar? Will she fit in? Will she go crazy? Could Aral go to Beta after his war record?
CHARACTERIZATION: This is some of the best characterization that I've ever seen. These characters are so rich, they are like a souffle, just layers and layers of details all piled together to make a whole person. It is amazing that anyone can be this detailed with their characters and make them feel so human. Bujold is a genius in this area. Each character in the book is so unique, and so complete by themselves, even the secondary characters are complete in their own right. It's like she can't put a character on the page, unless it is a complete entity unto itself. Maybe those are just the rules she operates by. It works for me, because it makes for a rich work of fiction. She's turned Space Opera into an artform.
PACING: The pacing in these books is not quite breakneck, but it's close. You have to pay attention to details to make sure you know what's going on. Both Cordelia and Aral are brilliant strategists and tacticians so you have to keep up with their thinking. Especially when they leave out the details of what they are thinking and simply opt for action instead. They make one hell of a couple. When they are acting independently, knowing that it will help the other with their plans, kind of like a gift, it is always interesting. The action is always quick. There are no slow parts to this book. Not even the ending is slow. Just hold on for the ride and enjoy it. And believe me, you will enjoy all of the Vorogosigan books.
ENDING: The ending to this book was perfect. It wasn't too fast, or too slow. It happened just the way it should have. I can't imagine it happening any other way than the way it did. It was awesome. Some people do get what they want out of life, or at least part of what they want and this book is a perfect example of that.
DIALOGUE: You know the dialogue in the book is good when it doesn't register that you are reading all the "he said" and "she said" stuff and just roll with the conversations like you were really listening to people talking. That's what Bujold can do with her dialogue. It's so good it's amazing. Not one word is out of place in these conversations. Not one word rings untrue. Her dialogue is so natural that it could be you talking to a friend. I don't know how she does it, especially because each individual character has their own voice. Think about that! Not only natural but unique. If I had any awards I'd give her one too. This woman's a gem!
WORLDBUILDING: From the ground up she had to build Barrayar, Beta Colony, the planet being explored, and wee bit of Escobar. That's a lot of worldbuilding for a single book, but Bujold makes it look easy, creating worlds singlehandedly, with completely different flora and fauna, cultures, mores, standards, behavior, dress codes, histories, sciences, sexuality, sexes, politics, architecture, technology, thinking, informational distribution, security practices, intelligence gathering, government, societal norms, etc. This took a lot of thinking and research. My hat's off to you Ms. Bujold, you not only did your homework, you made these places feel real in a way that few people could.
All in all, Ms. Bujold has raised Space Opera from a genre to an artform. I have read half of the Vorogosigan series, and all the books are like this. Literally Amazing Stuff! If you like political thrillers, military thrillers, space operas, intelligence thrillers you are completely missing out. Just because the setting is in the future doesn't mean that the book isn't good. These are some of the most intelligently written and plotted political, military and intelligence thrillers that I've ever read, they just happen in space, that's the only difference. Don't miss out, because you think space opera is for nerds, these books aren't that way. Try Warriors Apprentice first with Miles Vorogosigan, you'll never look back. You'll be hooked. I'd give this six stars if I could. There are very few books like this. They now have e-book versions too.
I tend to favor more complicated, less admirable characters. But I love a good opposites attract romance, and Cordelia's Honor delivers that in spades. The heroine, Cordelia Naismith, is a scientifically minded captain from a very liberal society; her people eat meat grown in vats, never slaughtered on the hoof; they've eliminated poverty; they're constitutional and democratic. By contrast, the hero, Aral Vorkosigan, is a military man from a culture that is warlike, imperial, patriarchic, and violent.
And they fall in love. In wartime. Because despite the fact that both hero and heroine perfectly embody their respective cultures, strong morals and unshakable honor make them more alike than they are different, and unique among their fellows.
The novel balances its sci-fi elements and romance elements pretty well; I'd say it's split evenly between the two genres. So along with the love story comes a truly harrowing political intrigue. There book starts on the eve of a war between Aral's civilization (Barrayar) and another group closely allied to Cordelia's. Aral and Cordelia get to know one another before tensions ratchet up, soon forcing them to opposite sides in the war. But where Barrayar is concerned, there are always wheels within wheels, and Cordelia finds herself with a front-row seat to some truly blood-curdling politicking; as Aral explains:
"The really unforgivable acts are committed by calm men in beautiful green silk rooms, who deal death wholesale, by the shipload, without lust, or anger, or desire, or any redeeming emotion to excuse them but cold fear of some pretended future. But the crimes they hope to prevent in that future are imaginary. The ones they commit in the present -- they are real."
Aral is at the center of it all - and once Cordelia falls in love with him, so is she.
It would be a shame to spoil the details, though, so I won't. I was gobsmacked by two major plot twists, and really loved the way the story unfolded.
Bujold is hardly a lyrical writer, but her landscapes are fully realized and she's full of wise little quips - "From spaceman to caveman in three days...How we imagine our civilization is in ourselves, when it's really in our things," observes Cordelia at one point. She later defines power as "Energy applied to work," and evil as "an infection of the imagination, that spreads from man to man."
I was in the mood for exactly this book when I picked it up, and enjoyed immensely - it managed to be both soothing and exciting at once.
Bujold is a masterful storyteller and this is a master story. There are several quips scattered throughout, which bring smiles to chuckles to laughs out loud. The characters are believable. The good guys are just that, and the bad guys are evil. And, it’s fiction and I love it. Lots of action, no nightmares, so it makes a great bedtime read.
The afterward at the end, seems a bit like a set up for another book, but I’m not sure. It was interesting, and a nice ending. I think people who are, at best, iffy on science fiction will enjoy this book.
Shards of Honor was the book for this month’s read in the book club to which I belong. I can hardly wait until we meet to discuss it. There is a damaged hero in this book that I hope surfaces in the later books.
Top reviews from other countries
Have lost track of how many times I’ve read these books. Bought on kindle for convenience (as it turns out I also have 2 hard copies).