Shards of Honor

First, this is in most respects the beginning (in internal chronology) of a wonderful SF series, the Vorkosigan Saga. Each book can be read in isolation but adds to the depth and richness of the series as a whole.

Second, the reader is introduced to Cordelia Naismith and Aral Vorkosigan, two strong and unique characters who meet under daunting circumstances that become even more challenging. The title aptly (if cryptically) describes the crisis with which Aral must cope, with a competence that conceals its almost unbearable effect on him.

Speaking of competence, it’s remarkable how Bujold conveys so much of… show more.

I fell in love with this long series about Miles Vorkosigan, physically disabled but mentally brilliant.

This book begins before Miles was born, introducing the reader to Cordelia, Miles’ wonderful mother. She’s the POV here as her unarmed craft stumbles into the middle of a space war wherein she’s taken prisoner. She meets a Barrayaran commander with whom she slowly forms a relationship, then using her wits, she shows what a hero really is.

Humor, pathos, action, bigger-than-life characters, great space opera were absolute draws for me.

One of the complaints levied—and not entirely unfairly—against science fiction is a lack of emphasis on character. Not so here. Lois Bujold sets is the absolute gold standard character writer in science fiction, for my money, and one of the best character writers I’ve encountered in my life, period. Her Vorkosigan series (which begins with the novel Shards of Honor, published 1986), follows two generations of the Vorkosigan family, a powerful noble family in the interplanetary Barrayaran Empire, as it struggles to reconcile the planet’s essentially medieval society with the more classically liberal galactic community. The first phase of the… show more.

The Vorkosigan Saga is one of my favorite science fiction series of all time, not just because of Bujold’s wonderful insights into human nature, but because of all of the exciting intrigue and twists and turns. Most people’s favorite part about these books is the charisma, charm, and intelligence of Miles Vorkosigan, the series’ primary antagonist, but I actually think that Shards of Honor is the best place to start. It introduces Miles’s parents and shows how the unlikely couple got together, with a great deal of adventure thrown into the mix.