Book Review: The Vorkosigan Saga: Cordelia's Honor SPOILERS!

Her first novel in the Vorkosigan saga, published that is, Lois McMaster bujold weaves a tale of speculation as to what happens to humans once we've conquered the stars. Synopsis: When Enemies Become More Than Friends--THEY WIN. In her first trial by fire, Cordelia Naismith captained a throwaway ship of the Betan Expeditionary Force on a mission to destroy an enemy armada. Discovering deception within deception, treachery withing treachery, she was forced into a separate peace with her chief opponent, Lord Aral Vorkosigan--he who was called "The Butcher of Komarr"--and would consequently become an outcast on her own planet and the Lady Vorkosigan on his. Sick of combat and betrayal, she was ready to settle down to a quiet life, interrupted only by the occasional ceremonial appearances required of the Lady Vorkosigan. But when the Emperor died, Aral became guardian of the infant heir to the imperial throne of Barrayar--and the target of high-tech assassins in a dynastic civil war that was reminiscent of Earth's Middle Ages, but fought with up-to-the minute biowar technology. Neither Aral nor Cordelia guessed the part that their cell-damaged unborn would play in Barrayar's bloody legacy. Publisher's Note: Cordelia's Honor is comprised of two parts: Shards of Honor and Barrayar. Together, they form a continuous story following the life of Cordelia Vorkosigan nee Naismith from the day she met her then-enemy Lord Aral Vorkosigan through the boyhood of her son Miles.

So the first part (Shards of Honor) starts out with Cordelia Naismith of the Betan Expeditionary Force and Captain Aral Vorkosigan heading through a jungle to reach Vorkosigan's men after the Barrayans attacked Cordelia's scientists. Along their journey, they get to know one another better and fined each others planets beliefs to be odd. Once there, they find that one of Aral's former acquaintances, Lt. Radnov, has staged a coup and ordered Aral's men to kill him on sight. Those that remain loyal to Aral don't and soon retake the General Vorkraft, the ship Aral and his men arrived on. Along the way back, the space crew of the Betan Survey team attempt a rescue on Cordelia, which almost succeeds with her teams help from Radnov, who is desperately trying to retake the ship which Cordelia and Aral manage to stop. Cordelia and her team get away but end up being caught again and Cordelia orders her crew to surrender which they grudgingly do. Vorrutyer drugs and tortures Sgt. Bothari enough and has him attempt to torture Cordelia, but Bothari instead kills Vorrutyer because Cordelia is Aral's woman--it should be noted that all these drugs and torture are what has caused Bothari to be insane; he's received enough of them over his lifetime and Aral has tried to make the problem go away for Bothari. Aral shows up ready to kill Vorrutyer but ends up hiding Cordelia and Bothari in his quarters. They stay there the entire time, even during the battle of Escobar (an event which is never shows because Bujold seems to dislike showing a sci-fi battle or maybe because she prefers to stay in one persons head for the entirety of a novel and that gets old real fast); it is here that Crown Prince Serg, a corrupted man and son of the Emperor of Barrayar, dies--apparently, Serg enjoyed raping women as much as Vorrutyer did. It's apparent that Serg's death, as well as Vorrutyer's, is what the Emperor wanted to happen. Cordelia is transported down to Escobar and after a few weeks, is released to go back to Beta Colony and everyone there thinks she's a hero for killing Vorrutyer despite her claims that she didn't do anything. After punching the president of Beta Colony, nearly drowning her psyche evaluator, and rants, Cordelia hijacks a freighter and heads to Barrayar and finds Aral shit-faced drunk with his father who loathes her. There is a subplot about the uterine replicators housing dozens of Barrayan babies that are eventually shipped off to Barrayar with Bothari claiming one of them as his own for penance of all his rape crimes.

In the second part (Barrayar), the novel continues the story of Cordelia through Cordelia's (and only her) POV. Cordelia is finding out that the life of Lady Vorkosigan isn't what she thought it'd be. After numerous attempts of Aral's life, one of which results in Cordelia and Aral's unborn child becoming accidentally poisoned and has to be birthed using the uterine replicators, the old Emperor dies, demanding that Aral become Regent of Barrayar until his grandson, Gregor, is old enough to take the throne. A coup ensues, led by Vidal Vordarian, attempt to seize the throne. He succeeds, taking the Princess Kareen captive as well. Cordelia takes young Gregor and hides in the countryside while Aral and his followers, including his father, attempt to rest control back. Cordelia, with Bothari, Droushnakovi, and a wounded Koudelka perform a raid to retrieve Lady Alys Vorpatril and make their way closer to the Emperor's Palace. After seeing Koudelka and Alys off safely, Bothari, Droushnakovi and Cordelia enter the palace and retrieve a uterine replicator with Miles inside and get captured by Vordarian's men. Cordelia hands Kareen Gregor's shoe and Kareen attempts to kill Vordarian. She fails and is killed by a guard while Bothari and Droushnakovi get Cordelia and a captured Vordarian to the chambers where he's keeping Miles as a hostage. After admitting he was behind the assassination attempts, Cordelia orders Bothari to kill Vordarian, which Bothari does by taking a sword and beheading Vordarian. Droushnakovi commandeers a groundcar and the four of them head back to base where Aral is glad to see Cordelia alive and unharmed along with Miles. She dumps a bag on the table in front of Aral and his staff and they see it's the head of Vordarian and they all suddenly become half-repulse, half-respectful of Cordelia, including Aral's father. In the end, the war is over and a few years later, Miles, age five, is negotiating with his grandfather for horse lessons.

All in all, a decent omnibus with a decent set of stories. They're not all bad, but dear me could I use a POV switch every now and then. I wanted to see the battle action in Shards of Honor and a lot more of it in Barrayar but what you get is what you get.

Book Review: The Tir Alainn Trilgoy Book III: The House of Gaian SPOILERS!

In October 2003, Anne Bishop returned to finish off the Tir Alainn Trilogy with one heckuva finale. This 420 page novel covers only a couple of months overall, but it has a lot happening and that is what makes it the most fascinating book in the entire series. Synopsis: It began as a witch-hunt. But the Master Inquisitor's plans to eliminate all traces of female power in the world have expanded to crushing the Sylvalan barons who oppose him--and to destroying the wellspring of magic in the Mother's Hills. Faced with this evil, humans, witches, and the Fae become uneasy allies. But even together, they aren't strong enough to stand against the armies the Inquisitors are gathering. So they look for help from their last possible ally. The House of Gaian. The reclusive witches who rule the Mother's Hills. The witches powerful enough to create a world--or to destroy one... And the witches' long-held creed "Do no harm" is about to give way to a more important one: Survive.

Ashk--the Green Lady of the Forest and Hunter, trains Neall in the ways of a Lord of the Forest. Morag--the Gatherer of Souls--questions whether she should've ended it back in Brightwood and killed the Master Inquisitor when she had the chance. Padrick tells the clan that because of Liam's absence and passionate speech, the vote to ultimately subject all women to become controlled by men has failed and that the Inquisitors have declared war. Gwynith, a friend of Ashk's and a Lady of the Moon, alerts Ashk to the fact that Dianna's power is waning and wants to be there when the next one is chosen. In the Mother's Hills, Selena and her sister Rhyann leave for Brightwood. Breanna, with Falco and Liam, meet Lucian who demands that Falco kidnap one of the witches living in Willowsbrook and take her to Ridgeley so Dianna can recover. Breanna says no with an arrow and tells him to get off her property and she doesn't care who he is. Liam escort Lucian back to the edge of town, an argument breaks out in which Liam says that the Fae are the Mother's spoiled children and demands to know why there aren't any witches at Brightwood. While Ashk and company leave for Willowsbrook, Adolfo finishes his torture and implied rape of a female Fae, trying to create the ultimate nighthunter. Selena arrives in time for the changing of the Moon's power. She dances for the Mother and wins the power from Dianna, who tries to kill Selena--now the Huntress and Lady of the Moon--in anger and hatred. She wounds Dianna and shows the rest what they're now dealing with: the Queen of the Witches, something that the Fae have also forgotten. Gwynith pledges her loyalty to Selena and lets her know that the Hunter is heading for Willowsbrook. Meanwhile, others have started arriving in Willowsbrook to prepare for the fight that has broken out in the north. Adolfo orders Ubel to take ten warships to the north and blockade the ports. In Tir Alainn, Lucian demands that Selena give her power back to his sister or that she force a witch to live at Brightwood; Selena threatens to cut Tir Alainn off from the rest of the living world by taking away the shining roads should any of the Fae try and force a witch to leave if they say no. Ashk senses something wrong with Morag and wants to know what it is and instead of answering, Morag makes her promise to do what needs to be done should she fail. Ashk agrees.

On Selkie Island, Jenny--the sister of Mihail--meets with the Lord of the Selkies so she can get firsthand reports of her brother returning with the family safely. Because Selena and Ashk are making the same demands, the rest of the Fae start helping out the humans and witches. Mihail and his family try to flee but Ubel's blockade holds them captive until Mihail starts a fire that blows up a good bit of the Inquisitor ships. He flees with Ubel on his trail. Lucian corners Aiden and uses magic to reveal that Ari's alive and well; in anger, Lucian burns Aiden's hands and runs Bretonwood with Morag hot on his heels, ready to kill Lucian. A foolish Inquisitor attacks Willowsbrook early and dies, but the men under the barons surrender as they refuse to follow them any longer (they did refuse before but were always hanged) when Selena and Gwynith arrive. Liam, Donovan and Varden figure out that Adolfo is a Fae offspring and is seeking revenge, even though Adolfo doesn't know his true parentage. Rhyann meets up with Ashk's group and heals Aiden. During a patrol, Selena and Liam get to know each other and start to become lovers, which is good for Falco and Breanna as they no longer have to endure Liam's remarks over them being lovers. Ubel bears down on Mihail when a bitch of a storm provided by Jenny arrives and shreds the Inquisitor ships to mulch while Sweet Selkie and the other fleeing ships arrive at Selkie Island intact. Ubel, the only survivor, is taken prisoner. Ashk and her party with enough Fae, Sons and Daughters of the House of Gaian, and humans arrive to help defend. Morag finally arrives in Bretonwood, a few minutes after Lucian does and sees him trying to force Ari to leave but Neall and Merle hold him off. Lucian wounds them and Ari, in anger, erects a circle of fire around Lucian. Before it can kill him, Morag rips Lucian's spirit from his body and drags him kicking and screaming to the Shadowed Veil and shoves him through it. Breanna finds her grandmother dead, poisoned by Jean who is jealous of Breanna because all the men talk and pay attention to her but not Jean. Jean runs away and is kidnapped by an Inquisitor who turns her over to Adolfo who turns her into a nighthunter. Ashk teases Selena about changing into her shadow hound form and Liam petting her in his room when Fiona tells them that Jean is missing.

Still in Bretonwood, Morag gets wind of Ubel being held in custody and his outrageous demands. She meets with him and his surviving underlings and rips their souls out of their bodies and leaves them there, ordering the bodies to be left where they fell. Adolfo releases his new nighthunters to slaughter Liam and anyone in Willowsbrook who stands in his way. Morphia puts them to sleep while the defenders attack, but Keely and the dog Idjit are killed. Ashk and Selena blanket the town in fog after the Inquisitors use catapults to try and bomb them out. Morphia tells Ashk that something evil will come out in the fog. Adolfo holds Rory as captive and is about to perform the nighthunter spell on him when Morag interrupts the whole thing. As a result, the spell backlashes onto Morag and Adolfo, turning them both into nighthunters at a fast pace. Breanna warns Ashk and Selena what Morag has become and also learn that the fighting has stopped everywhere, but Adolfo and his Inquisitors are still set on killing everyone at Willowsbrook and are marching there. The battle is on and Morag comes charging out, intent on killing. The Huntress and the Hunter demand that Adolfo show himself. He does and they send him to a special kind of hell, one that he created to inspire the men to join him. He becomes a nighthunter entirely and sets out eating and killing his Inquisitors. Ashk finds Morag who says she just wants to go home. Ashk kills her, much to Morphia's anger and shouting, and the nighthunter persona is lifted away and Ashk tells Morag not to stay away too long. As a spirit, Morag leads the dead to the Shadowed Veil. Morphia leaves the following day, unable to look at Ashk. Ashk hears that Ari's given birth to a healthy boy and the Crones arrive and redraw the boundaries of everyone, including the Fae's beliefs. Everyone parts ways with Falco staying with Breanna so she won't be alone; Selena also staying with Breanna so she doesn't intrude into Liam's home when his mother and youngest sister are also living there, but that doesn't mean they won't court; and Ashk points out to Aiden and Lyrra that when Ari has a baby daughter and looks into her eyes, she'll see Morag looking back. In the end, Aiden and Lyrra move to a small village where they're known for their dancing horse.

All in all, one hell of a fast paced novel that leaves plenty of room for character development and wraps up all the loose threads. Anne Bishop has mastered the fantasy world well that anyone picking up any of her books would instantly recognize it as a masterful piece of fantasy.

Book Review: Tir Alainn Trilogy Book One: Pillars of the World SPOILERS!

Published in October 2001, during the midst of her Black Jewels series, Anne Bishop began another story about witches and fantasy, but this time, set in a different world and place than her bestselling series. Synopsis: The trees whisper of danger... The youngest in a long line of witches, Ari senses that things are changing--changing for the worse. For generations, her kin have tended the Old Places, keeping the land safe and fertile. But with the Summer Moon, the mood of her neighbors has soured. And Ari is no longer safe. The Fae have long ignored what occurs in the mortal world, passing through on their shadowy roads only long enough to amuse themselves. But the roads are slowly disappearing, leaving the Fae Clans isolated and alone. Where harmony between the spiritual and the natural has always reigned, a dissonant chord now rings in the ears of both Fae and mortal. And when murmurs of a witch-hunt hum through the town, some begin to wonder if the different omens are notes in the same tune. And all they have to guide them is a passing reference to something called the Pillars of the World....

The novel opens with Dianna, the Fae Lady of the Moon and Huntress, observing with Lyrra, the Muse, and Aiden, the Bard, that the shining roads from Tir Alainn are disappearing. They note that the disappearances have something to do with the wiccanfae (what the Fae believe to be evil people and witches) dying or leaving the Old Places and something called the Pillar of the World. In the eastern part of Sylvalan, the Master Inquisitor, Adolfo, sees to the death of a witch, something that gives him great pleasure. As he puts it, he's cleansing the land and men of the evil influences of women and has devised ways to make them "obedient" (read: subservient). In the human village of Ridgeley, Ari is cajoled into buying a magicked candy that'll bring whatever desires she wants. She hopes for a man who is strong, kind, and who can accept her for herself. Dianna notes that her brother, Lucian, the Fae Lord of Fire and Lightbringer, is restless as are most of the other Fae men. Morag, Death's Mistress and the Gatherer, notices all the spirits of the dead witches and resolves to find answers. Ari, walking home, comes across a lone black horse (Lucian in disguise) and gives him the magicked candy. He follows her home. Neall, a friend of Ari's, notices his cousin Royce demanding that Ari part her legs for him. Neall does nothing as the Huntress rides by and scares Royce off. Dianna sees how happier Lucian is and urges him to get to know Ari better so they can find out just why the shining roads disappear when a witch dies. Over the next several weeks/months (the novel's not that clear) Dianna, Lyrra, Aiden and Lucian come to view her as a friend; Lucian thinks of her as a lover, nothing more. Adolfo meets with the head of Royce's family and forms a plan to capture and torture Ari into confessing how evil she is so he can justify executing her. Morag talks to Ahern, the Lord of the Horses, and they try and stop Adolfo. Meanwhile, Dianna, Lyrra, Aiden, Lucian and Falco--the Lord of the Hawks--learn from Ari just how powerful the witches are and that they are the Pillars of the World. Ari asks Lucian if he can give her what her heart wants instead of trinkets; he can't and she decides that Neall can offer everything Lucian can't/won't. Adolfo takes some of his Inquisitors and decides the time is right. During the fight, Adolfo captures Ari and Neall, with the help of Ahern and Morag, gets her out of Brightwood but at the cost of Ahern's life. Morag tells Lucian and the others that "she's gone." Lucian and Dianna are pissed but agree that Dianna will take care of Ari's place to maintain the shining road. In anger, they banish Morag from all the Fae Clans, something that the Fae in the west have no intention of listening to because Lucian and Dianna are whining like children who've gotten their noses bloodied in far too long. Lyrra leaves Dianna to take care of the Old Place since Dianna took until the next Spring to return from Tir Alainn. In the end, Morag travels to the western city of Brenton and meets Ari and Neall who offer her a place in their clan. Morag accepts.

A well written fantasy novel, and, as SF Site said "Anne Bishop's novels are genuine gems of fantasy much to be prized." Her novels get better with each reading. It's such a shame that the Tir Alainn trilogy was only three novels. It seems like it has more to tell.

Book Review: Halo: The Cole Protocol SPOILERS

The novel Halo: The Cole Protocol by Tobias S. Buckell continues the fight between the humans and the multi-species Covenant.

In the first, desperate days of the Human-Covenant War, the UNSC has enacted the Cole Protocol to safeguard Earth and its inner colonies from discovery by a merciless alien foe. Many are called upon to rid the universe of lingering navigation data that would reveal the location of Earth. Among them is Navy Lieutenant Jacob Keyes. Thrust back into action after being sidelined, Keyes is saddled with a top secret mission by ONI. One that will take him deep behind enemy lines, to a corner of the universe where nothing is as it seems.

Out beyond the Outer Colonies lies the planet Hesiod, a gas giant surrounded by a vast asteroid belt. As the Covenant continues to glass the human-occupied planets near Hesiod, many of the survivors, helped by a stonghold of human Insurrectionists, are fleeing to the asteroid belt for refuge. They have transformed the tumbling satellites into a tenuous, yet ingenious, settlement known as the Rubble--and have come face-to-face with a Covenant settlement of Kig-Yar. . . yet somehow survived.

News of this unlikely threat has spread to the warring sides. Luckily for the UNSC, this uneasy alliance is in the path of the Spartan Gray Team, a three-man renegade squad whose simple task is to wreak havoc from behind enemy lines in any way they see fit. But the Prophets have also sent their best, an ambitious and ruthless Elite, whose quest for nobility and rank is matched only by his brutality. . . and who will do anything to secure his Ascendancy and walk the Path.

All in all, a good read on a nice spring day. Tobias has demonstrated an ability to clearly define the action and set the stage for further war stories.