In 1996, Lois McMaster Bujold published yet another entry into the Vorkosigan Saga. This time, as Miles turns 30, 30 hits back in the most unexpected way. Synopsis: Dying is easy. Coming back to life is hard. At least that's what Miles Vorkosigan thinks and he should know, having done both once already. That was when he last visited the planet of Jackson's Whole, while rescuing his brother. Thanks to quick thinking on that part of his staff, and incredible artistry on the part of the specialist who revived him, his first death won't be his last. But his next one might be, a realization he finds profoundly unsettling. Even after he returns to military duty, his late death seems to be having a greater effect than he's willing to admit. Unfortunately, his weakness reveals itself to the world at just the wrong time and in just the wrong way, and Miles is summoned home to face Barrayaran security chief Simon Illyan. But when things begin to go subtly wrong in Imperial Security itself, "Who shall guard the guardians?" becomes a more-than-rhetorical question, with a potentially lethal answer. Things look bad, but they are far worse than Miles imagines, as he discovers his worst nightmares about Simon Illyan don't compare to Illyan's worst nightmares--or are they memories?
Ever since Miles returned from the dead, he's been having weird seizures where he blacks out and doesn't recall what happened. This costs him the mission to rescue courier officer Lt. Vorberg. Vorberg's legs were blown off as a result. Elli Quinn tells Miles that he kneecapped Vorberg during the seizure; Elli figures out that this isn't the first time this has happened since Miles' cryo-revival one year ago, and she verbally rips into him. During refit, Elena and Baz tell Miles they want to resign; Miles is shocked and dismayed, but lets them go, and promotes Captain Elli Quinn to Commodore. Miles goes to tell Elli, but a note from Simon ends up recalling Miles to Barrayar; Sergeant Taura acts as escort. Once back at Barrayar, Duv Galeni visits Miles and tells Miles about his girlfriend Dr. Laisa Toscane. During a State Dinner hosted by Gregor, Miles watches as, despite Duv's shock, Laisa and Gregor talk about the concerns that Komarr Shippers' Syndicate has. Days later, and in ImpSec, Simon lays into Miles for his stupidity in neglecting to mention these seizures; during this, Miles has another seizure and rips off his ImpSec Eyes and throws them at Simon, saying that he resigns--Simon's horrified by this and hopes that he never has to go through something like this again. (This also ruins Simon's plans to have Miles take over ImpSec, something Gregor is also displeased about, though not as angry as he is at Miles' lies.)
Miles hears from Ivan and Duv that General Haroche thought Simon beat up Miles and ripped off the "eyes"; he tells them why he was fired from ImpSec. Miles, in a bit of horror at having to learn how to run the Vorkosigan House and staff it, hires Corproal Kosti's brother, Martin, as a driver, then Kosti's mother as the cook. Alys Vorpatil visits Miles and tells him that Gregor is hosting a lunch and wants Miles there beforehand to talk. After their talk--which is a calmer version of what Simon said to Miles--Gregor asks Miles to stay for the lunch and observe; Laisa is at the lunch, as well. Alys admits her surprise to Miles about Laisa becoming the first Komarran Empress if Gregor is serious in courting her. After a couple of weeks in isolation in the mountains, Galeni calls Miles to complain about Gregor and Laisa's marriage announcement. A day or so later, Galeni drops by the Vorkosigan House and apologizes to Miles and lets him know about Simon being unable to remember simple things and acting extremely out of character. Miles doesn't think much of it until Simon calls a few days later about the Dagoola Mission and Miles informs Simon that he (Miles) was fired by Simon over a month ago; Simon asks Miles if he's lost his mind, then Simon freezes, then hangs up; Miles is terrified. Miles informs General Haroche; Haroche arrests Simon the following day after Simon breaks down int he ImpSec HQ.
Needless to say, ImpSec goes dark. Haroche refuses to let Miles see Simon, so Miles goes and complains to Gregor. Miles continues to complain over the next few days, even with no evidence as to what caused Simon's breakdown--except that it might have something to do with Simon's memory chip. Alys is angered that neither Miles, Gregor, nor Ivan informed her of Simon's condition. THe wounded Vorberg from earlier comes calling at the Vorkosigan House and informs Miles that Simon is asking to see him. After being threatened by Haroche, Miles decides enough's enough and "becomes the Vor lord with intent" as Gregor puts it. Miles visits Gregor and demands an Imperial Auditor be attached to him so he can investigate Simon's illness, but Gregor points out that Miles would constantly be back at the palace demanding more Auditors to overwrite the others and instead appoints Miles as the Ninth Imperial Auditor. Miles requests Ivan as his assistant; Ivan remarks that he always thought Miles needed a choke-chain. Miles, with Ivan, goes to Haroche who finally admits Miles to the hospital; Haroche updates Miles on Simon's condition--but it's clear that Haroche doesn't want Miles there at all. Miles talks to Simon, who relapses through various stages of his life, and states that the chip is melting in his head.
Miles, with orders from Gregor, orders that the chip be removed. Miles has Haroche apologize to Lady Alys; she says she can get ready to see Simon in 15 minutes. Miles and Dr. Ruibal note that Simon's blood pressure dropped when Alys entered the room. The surgery goes through, Simon is fine, and Alys declares that she wants Simon. While the scientists study what caused the meltdown, Miles takes Simon to Vorkosigan House and later fishing. During all this, Miles' doctor has found a way to control the seizures, while Simon goes on a "date" with Alys. During this--cos I'm skipping through the repetitive date scenes, naval gazing, and back and forth "what if it's this"--Miles finds fake evidence of himself visiting the evidence room 12 weeks ago; Miles, slightly confused, asks Ivan to take a good look at it. Ivan finds the mystery infection--a Komarran bioengineered apoptotic prokaryote, it attacks and eats neurochip proteins--in Weapons Room 4 of ImpSec. Miles is slightly insulted that he was chosen to be the scapegoat. At a party, Miles figures out that Alys and Simon are sleeping together and thinks that he'll let Ivan figure it out for himself; Galeni and Delia are also dating. Galeni is arrested at said party for treason by order of General Haroche. Haroche, Miles realizes, is pulling at straws to have Galeni arrested, but without evidence, Miles can't counter Haroche.
Dr. Weddell tells Miles how the prokaryote got loose--it was released into the air. Haroche tries to subtly bribe Miles with his old command; later, Miles muses on it and realizes that Haroche not only tried to bribe him, but also poisoned Illyan with the prokaryote, and goes to check the air filters at ImpSec, specifically Simon's, Galeni's, and Haroche's old rooms. Miles, with Simon, General Allegre, Ivan, and Delia, goes to ImpSec--Miles leaves Delia with Galeni. Dr. Weddell checks and confirms that Galeni's air filter is clear of the virus, and so is Simon's. Miles leads everyone to Haroche's old office and find Haroche in the process of trying to clear his filter. Miles appoints Allegre as acting chief of ImpSec and orders him to arrest Haroche for the capital charge of treason. Galeni is freed and made the head of Komarran affairs, Miles writes up one hell of a detailed report, and Haroche tells all to Gregor, Ivan, Miles, and Simon and then gets court-martialed. It should be noted that "Gregor had grown so neutral as to seem almost gray"--Miles notes that that's what rage looks like on the Emperor. Ivan has a full blown panic attack when he learns that his mother and Simon are dating and rants to Miles; Miles points out that if she's too preoccupied with her own love life, then maybe she'll leave Ivan's alone. Ivan drops the subject. Miles brings Gregor the full report, including the footnotes and Gregor sends it next door. Auditors Vorhovis, Vorkalloner, and Vorgustafson agree with Gregor that Miles will do as the Eighth Imperial Auditor, and this Miles accepts and is made so. Dr. Chenko installs the controlled-seizure device into Miles' brain, complete with a remote control. During the formal announcement of Gregor and Laisa's engagement, Count Aral Vorkosigan offers his congratulations to Miles for earning a captaincy and the rank of Imperial Auditor. Miles hands complete control of the Dendarii Mercenary Fleet over to newly promoted Admiral Elli Quinn, who tries to get Miles to be Admiral Naismith while he tries to get her to be his Lady Vorkosigan; both realize that it won't work and they depart.
All in all, a very good, decently paced novel. I highly recommend this to any fan of the Vorkosigan saga. Now, onto Komarr and Star Wars: Kenobi.
Ever since Miles returned from the dead, he's been having weird seizures where he blacks out and doesn't recall what happened. This costs him the mission to rescue courier officer Lt. Vorberg. Vorberg's legs were blown off as a result. Elli Quinn tells Miles that he kneecapped Vorberg during the seizure; Elli figures out that this isn't the first time this has happened since Miles' cryo-revival one year ago, and she verbally rips into him. During refit, Elena and Baz tell Miles they want to resign; Miles is shocked and dismayed, but lets them go, and promotes Captain Elli Quinn to Commodore. Miles goes to tell Elli, but a note from Simon ends up recalling Miles to Barrayar; Sergeant Taura acts as escort. Once back at Barrayar, Duv Galeni visits Miles and tells Miles about his girlfriend Dr. Laisa Toscane. During a State Dinner hosted by Gregor, Miles watches as, despite Duv's shock, Laisa and Gregor talk about the concerns that Komarr Shippers' Syndicate has. Days later, and in ImpSec, Simon lays into Miles for his stupidity in neglecting to mention these seizures; during this, Miles has another seizure and rips off his ImpSec Eyes and throws them at Simon, saying that he resigns--Simon's horrified by this and hopes that he never has to go through something like this again. (This also ruins Simon's plans to have Miles take over ImpSec, something Gregor is also displeased about, though not as angry as he is at Miles' lies.)
Miles hears from Ivan and Duv that General Haroche thought Simon beat up Miles and ripped off the "eyes"; he tells them why he was fired from ImpSec. Miles, in a bit of horror at having to learn how to run the Vorkosigan House and staff it, hires Corproal Kosti's brother, Martin, as a driver, then Kosti's mother as the cook. Alys Vorpatil visits Miles and tells him that Gregor is hosting a lunch and wants Miles there beforehand to talk. After their talk--which is a calmer version of what Simon said to Miles--Gregor asks Miles to stay for the lunch and observe; Laisa is at the lunch, as well. Alys admits her surprise to Miles about Laisa becoming the first Komarran Empress if Gregor is serious in courting her. After a couple of weeks in isolation in the mountains, Galeni calls Miles to complain about Gregor and Laisa's marriage announcement. A day or so later, Galeni drops by the Vorkosigan House and apologizes to Miles and lets him know about Simon being unable to remember simple things and acting extremely out of character. Miles doesn't think much of it until Simon calls a few days later about the Dagoola Mission and Miles informs Simon that he (Miles) was fired by Simon over a month ago; Simon asks Miles if he's lost his mind, then Simon freezes, then hangs up; Miles is terrified. Miles informs General Haroche; Haroche arrests Simon the following day after Simon breaks down int he ImpSec HQ.
Needless to say, ImpSec goes dark. Haroche refuses to let Miles see Simon, so Miles goes and complains to Gregor. Miles continues to complain over the next few days, even with no evidence as to what caused Simon's breakdown--except that it might have something to do with Simon's memory chip. Alys is angered that neither Miles, Gregor, nor Ivan informed her of Simon's condition. THe wounded Vorberg from earlier comes calling at the Vorkosigan House and informs Miles that Simon is asking to see him. After being threatened by Haroche, Miles decides enough's enough and "becomes the Vor lord with intent" as Gregor puts it. Miles visits Gregor and demands an Imperial Auditor be attached to him so he can investigate Simon's illness, but Gregor points out that Miles would constantly be back at the palace demanding more Auditors to overwrite the others and instead appoints Miles as the Ninth Imperial Auditor. Miles requests Ivan as his assistant; Ivan remarks that he always thought Miles needed a choke-chain. Miles, with Ivan, goes to Haroche who finally admits Miles to the hospital; Haroche updates Miles on Simon's condition--but it's clear that Haroche doesn't want Miles there at all. Miles talks to Simon, who relapses through various stages of his life, and states that the chip is melting in his head.
Miles, with orders from Gregor, orders that the chip be removed. Miles has Haroche apologize to Lady Alys; she says she can get ready to see Simon in 15 minutes. Miles and Dr. Ruibal note that Simon's blood pressure dropped when Alys entered the room. The surgery goes through, Simon is fine, and Alys declares that she wants Simon. While the scientists study what caused the meltdown, Miles takes Simon to Vorkosigan House and later fishing. During all this, Miles' doctor has found a way to control the seizures, while Simon goes on a "date" with Alys. During this--cos I'm skipping through the repetitive date scenes, naval gazing, and back and forth "what if it's this"--Miles finds fake evidence of himself visiting the evidence room 12 weeks ago; Miles, slightly confused, asks Ivan to take a good look at it. Ivan finds the mystery infection--a Komarran bioengineered apoptotic prokaryote, it attacks and eats neurochip proteins--in Weapons Room 4 of ImpSec. Miles is slightly insulted that he was chosen to be the scapegoat. At a party, Miles figures out that Alys and Simon are sleeping together and thinks that he'll let Ivan figure it out for himself; Galeni and Delia are also dating. Galeni is arrested at said party for treason by order of General Haroche. Haroche, Miles realizes, is pulling at straws to have Galeni arrested, but without evidence, Miles can't counter Haroche.
Dr. Weddell tells Miles how the prokaryote got loose--it was released into the air. Haroche tries to subtly bribe Miles with his old command; later, Miles muses on it and realizes that Haroche not only tried to bribe him, but also poisoned Illyan with the prokaryote, and goes to check the air filters at ImpSec, specifically Simon's, Galeni's, and Haroche's old rooms. Miles, with Simon, General Allegre, Ivan, and Delia, goes to ImpSec--Miles leaves Delia with Galeni. Dr. Weddell checks and confirms that Galeni's air filter is clear of the virus, and so is Simon's. Miles leads everyone to Haroche's old office and find Haroche in the process of trying to clear his filter. Miles appoints Allegre as acting chief of ImpSec and orders him to arrest Haroche for the capital charge of treason. Galeni is freed and made the head of Komarran affairs, Miles writes up one hell of a detailed report, and Haroche tells all to Gregor, Ivan, Miles, and Simon and then gets court-martialed. It should be noted that "Gregor had grown so neutral as to seem almost gray"--Miles notes that that's what rage looks like on the Emperor. Ivan has a full blown panic attack when he learns that his mother and Simon are dating and rants to Miles; Miles points out that if she's too preoccupied with her own love life, then maybe she'll leave Ivan's alone. Ivan drops the subject. Miles brings Gregor the full report, including the footnotes and Gregor sends it next door. Auditors Vorhovis, Vorkalloner, and Vorgustafson agree with Gregor that Miles will do as the Eighth Imperial Auditor, and this Miles accepts and is made so. Dr. Chenko installs the controlled-seizure device into Miles' brain, complete with a remote control. During the formal announcement of Gregor and Laisa's engagement, Count Aral Vorkosigan offers his congratulations to Miles for earning a captaincy and the rank of Imperial Auditor. Miles hands complete control of the Dendarii Mercenary Fleet over to newly promoted Admiral Elli Quinn, who tries to get Miles to be Admiral Naismith while he tries to get her to be his Lady Vorkosigan; both realize that it won't work and they depart.
All in all, a very good, decently paced novel. I highly recommend this to any fan of the Vorkosigan saga. Now, onto Komarr and Star Wars: Kenobi.
