Year-long Group Read: The Vorkosigan Saga by Lois McMaster Bujold

                

Important notice: This thread is continued in the 2016 Category Challenge group.
http://www.librarything.com/topic/206634

This is the thread for the year-long Vorkosigan group read. The Vorkosigan Saga is a series of science-fiction novels, novellas and short stories by Lois McMaster Bujold.

I can rave about this series myself, but Jo Walton says it so much better.

The number of books in this series may seem daunting, but you don't have to start at the beginning and work through the books in strict order. See Bujold's own recommendations regarding reading order.

Whether you are a long-time Bujold fan who's read everything she's written or trying her work for the first time, please join us for this 2014 group read!

Related Links:

The list of books in publication order

The list of books in chronological order

Wiki page for this group read

Cordelia's Honor group read

Young Miles group read

Miles, Mutants and Microbes group read

Miles, Mystery and Mayhem group read

Miles Errant group read

I hope it's not too early to add this thread, but planning what we're going to read seems almost as much fun as doing the reading itself!

So ... let's discuss! Which Vorkosigan books (if any) have you read so far? Which do you plan to read or re-read? What order have you used or will be using?

For myself, I've read these: Komarr, A Civil Campaign, Winterfair Gifts, Diplomatic Immunity and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance. For the first part of 2014, I plan to purchase and read the Young Miles collection at Baen E-books (a deal at $5 USD), which includes A Warrior's Apprentice, The Vor Game and the novella The Mountains of Mourning. After that, I'm not sure what I'll read next. I'll see how I feel at that time.

I was also wondering if participants want to (optionally) keep track of their Vorkosigan reading somehow. We could have a Wiki page for the 2014 Vorkosigan reads. Alternatively, we can each use one post in this thread to list and edit our reads throughout the year, and I can list everybody's post numbers in the first post so that we can find them easily.

Here is a copy of the post with recommendations on the order to read that Joe (jnwelch) made for me on his 75 thread. Joe is awesome!

Joe's (jnwelch) recommendation

Cordelia Naismith

Shards of Honor (1986)
Barrayar (1991)—Hugo Award winner, Locus Award winner, 1992, Nebula Award nominee, 1991
(Cordelia's Honor (1996)—Combined edition of Shards of Honor and Barrayar with an afterword by the author).

Miles Vorkosigan

The Warrior's Apprentice (1986)
Borders of Infinity (1989)
Brothers in Arms (1989)
The Vor Game (1990)
Mirror Dance (1994)
Cetaganda (1995)
Memory (1996)
Komarr (1998)
A Civil Campaign (1999)
Diplomatic Immunity (2002)
Winterfair Gifts (2008) (novella)
Cryoburn (2010)
Captain Vorpatril's Alliance (2012)

Other

Ethan of Athos (1986)
Falling Free (1988)

Reading the series in this order would work out well. As I mentioned, I read Warrior's Apprentice first, and then went back to Shards of Honor and Barrayar. I liked that because it was an immediate intro to Miles and let me know I'd want to read the rest. I'm sure that's why the bookseller recommended I start with that.

But Shards and Barrayar lead up to Warrior's Apprentice, and Cordelia is a wonderful character (just wait!) A lot of people, and the author, would recommend you read them first.

You could read the two "Other" ones (Ethan of Athos and Falling Free) anywhere in there, after you're a ways into the series, as far as I'm concerned. They're set in the same universe, and feature non-Vorkosigan characters.

Some folks would have you start with Falling Free, as it is first in time.

Some folks also mention Dreamweaver's Dilemma, a collection of short stories, most non-Vorkosigan. I haven't read it. I think the one Vorkosigan story in it is Mountains of Mourning (great story), which also is in Borders of Infinity, up above.

So that is Joe's recommendation :)

I liked the way the Sandman Group Read was set up this year. Would it be too much work to set this one up in a similar fashion?

I'll go with whatever works for you because this is one huge undertaking and you are amazing for doing this.

I am very excited about this group read. I read Shards of Honor this year and fell in love with Cordelia. I plan to carry on in the order that Joe and Roberta have outlined above. Hope to read at least one book per month next year.

Thanks, Roberta and Judy!

I would be happy to set up a separate group for the Vorkosigan group read, but I was concerned about a couple of things. First, I wasn't sure how many participants we'd get. I'm inclined to think that Vorkosigan is less popular than Sandman, but I might be wrong. Also, because there are so many more books, novellas and short stories, and because not everyone will be reading them in order, I worry that we'll end up with threads with only a few comments in each. Having this single thread means that we'll have a mostly unstructured free-for-all, but I can't say whether that would be considered a good or bad thing. :)

Shall we see what everyone else thinks? If there's a wish for a separate group, I don't mind setting that up.

Thanks too to Joe for the recommendations!

Thanks for posting all the relevant information above. Very helpful!

I'm going to try out this series and start with Cordelia's Honor. I'll take it with me on my Christmas/New Years/summer holiday and see if I start it :)

You guys are really making me want to join this year-long read! I really liked both Shards of Honor and Barrayar but haven't continued with the series yet. I probably will read at least the Young Miles omnibus in 2014, since I do have a sci-fi category...so even though I won't be a full-on participant, I'll be stopping by! :)

I have read the first two books - Shards of Honor and Barrayar, and loved both of them. I was so excited to learn about this year long group read - how fun! And there was a big discussion on my thread last year about what order to read the books in. I opted for Joe's recommendation which Roberta has posted above, so now I am ready for The Warrior's Apprentice. Thanks so much for setting up this thread!

>7 kiwiflowa:: Glad to hear you'll be trying out the series. I hope you'll like it as much as I do!

>8 christina_reads:: You don't have to commit to reading through the entire year to participate! Even if you just read one or two books, you should definitely stop by this thread. Since I also plan to read the Young Miles omnibus, I'd love to hear your thoughts on it.

>9 Crazymamie:: Thanks, and I'm glad you're joining us!

Thanks Paulina for setting this thread up :)

This is terribly tempting to join! I'll have to see how my reading year is shaping up before I commit to anything. I'm already in two book groups, and am planning on doing Mark's American Author Challenge in the 75 group, so I'm not sure how adding a fourth long-term commitment would work for reading fun. But then again, so many of my friends here love these books, so it maybe wouldn't feel like homework? Argh, tough decision!

#182 You don't have to read the whole series just give it a start and there you are. You're in. ;-)

I'm going to try and do this, I've been hearing so many good things about the Vorkosigan Saga. I've never done a group read before, though – how does this work?

>11 PiyushC:: You're welcome. Glad to have you join us, PiyushC!

>12 LauraBrook:: As luvamystery65 says, you don't have to commit to the whole year. Why don't you try one Vorkosigan book and see what you think? Of course, I got hooked onto the series after reading my first. :)

>14 kgodey:: I don't think there are hard-and-fast rules for how group reads work. It really depends on the book, and how the participants want to run the group read. Given that we are not a big group of people (though we seem to be very enthusiastic!) and we are a mix of new-to-Vorkosigan readers and dedicated Bujold fans, I think it'll be best to keep things informal. We'll just post here on this thread to discuss the Vorkosigan books we're currently reading, hopefully avoiding too many spoilers. (Maybe it'll be enough to add a big "SPOILER ALERT" warning at the beginning of your message.) I've not planned any specific scheduled reads or created any related groups or Wiki pages, but if there is a desire for such things, I would be happy to do what I can.

15: Thanks Paulina! I'm going to try and read the series in the suggested reading order above, so I just need to get myself a copy of Shards of Honor before January.

>16 kgodey:: That sounds great! Originally, I was going to start with The Warrior's Apprentice. I'd finished some of the later Vorkosigan books but had not read the first ones in the series. However, I just remembered that I have a copy of Shards of Honor on my e-reader. I had bought it as part of the Humble e-book Bundle 2. So maybe I will follow the suggested reading order too.

17: I just ordered a used copy of Cordelia's Honor on Amazon, so I'm good for the first two books! I love their one-cent books.

I missed the Humble e-book Bundle 2, I didn't realise there had been a second one.

Woohoo, I just got the Young Miles omnibus from a Secret Santa! It contains The Warrior's Apprentice, The Mountains of Mourning, and The Vor Game. So it looks like I'm definitely in for those books, at least. :)

In order to read as many varied books as I would like to next year, I have decided that I will read a Vorkosigan saga every other month next year, and since I read Shards of Honor last year, I will start in January with Barrayar.

I'll be starting with Barrayar as well.

Well, I don't know if I've read *everything* Bujold's written, but I've tried! I've certainly read all the Miles Vorkosigan books. I can't promise to offer a lot to this discussion, besides an occasional idiosyncratic opinion, but I am looking forward to reading other folk's comments on these stories.

Oh, I loved Barrayar! I'll be starting with The Warrior's Apprentice.

I've never read anything by Bujold, but would like to give it a try. I can't say how many of the books I might read, since I have loads of other books awaiting their turn and I don't know if I'll like it. Then again, I might get hooked and read all the books.
For now the plan is to simply start with Shards of Honor and Barrayar in January, and then to see how far I'll get...

>18 kgodey:: The second Humble Bundle set was excellent. I bought it even though I'd read 3 of the books already, and then I bought two more sets for my daughter and friend. It included Spin, one of my all-time favourite SF books. I do hope there will be more Humble ebook bundles!

>19 christina_reads:: What an awesome Secret Santa gift!

It sounds like lots of people are planning to read or re-read from the first books of the series, so we should get good discussion in January! It's great that we have a mix of Vorkosigan newbies and veterans.

I have several of these so I might join in.

I'm happy to join in with what will be, for me, mostly a re-read of the Vorkosigan saga. Is the consensus that we read books in whatever order, whenever? Sorry - just skimming through on an LT catch-up spree. :0)

>27 humouress:: I don't think we have enough people to support a separate group. However, it could get messy in this thread, if people are reading different books in different orders.

How do you all feel about starting separate threads for specific read-a-longs? To keep the number of threads reasonable, we can set them up to cover natural groupings.

For the first quarter of 2014, we could have two threads going, one for the "Cordelia's Honor" set (Shards of Honor and Barrayar) and another for the "Young Miles" set (Warrior's Apprentice, The Vor Game and the short story "Mountains of Mourning"). It seems that many people are planning to start with these books.

We can see how that goes, and then open other threads as needed. All other Vorkosigan discussion can, of course, reside in this thread.

By the way, if we do decide to have spin-off threads/read-a-longs, I would be happy to have some volunteers to host them (though I don't mind doing so myself if there are no takers)!

What do you all think? Any other suggestions on how we should organize this group read?

I think you are right that it could get long and messy if we stick to one thread. The Cordelia's Honor and Young Miles threads sound perfect.

If others are further along and want to host threads that would be great. You could post the links for the various threads up top.

I'm excited so many are participating! Thanks again for hosting this.

What Roberta said! Your idea sounds like an excellent one!

Sounds good to me!

Thanks for the responses! Anyone interested in starting/hosting the "Young Miles" thread or "Cordelia's Honor" thread? I'll do that myself if no one wants to volunteer, but I thought it would be nice to share the fun. :)

Also, as Roberta said, if any of you are planning to start with other books in the series, feel free to create threads for those. The omnibus editions (e.g. Miles in Love, Miles, Mystery and Mayhem) make good groupings of books/novellas for the threads, in my opinion.

>28 mathgirl40: That sounds like a good plan to start with.

I have read Cordelia's Honor a few years ago but then didn't carry on. So I will be starting with Young Miles, which I already have sitting on my shelf.

I'm in for sure!

I think I will start with Cordelia's Honour series as well.

I don't think I'll be joining in - I reread a chunk of Miles just recently - but I'm delighted to see this group. And if I decide to read Cordelia again (it's been a while) next year, I'll remember to stop by.

Personally, Miles drives me nuts. I kept stalling on reading him - I'd get up to Mirror Dance or so and stop dead. I ended up reading him backward - Diplomatic Immunity (the last one, at that point) has the Quaddies, who I loved from Falling Free, so I had to read that...and then I had to see how Miles got there, so I read A Civil Campaign...and then I had to see how he met Kat so I read Komarr... I ended up reading the entire series backward. Weird, but interesting. And I've been keeping up since.

I have an absolutely favorite scene from Warrior's Apprentice (I think - a very early Miles, anyway). I won't mention it yet - not a spoiler exactly, but spoilerish. It encapsulates Miles for me, though - both why I love him and why he drives me nuts. I'll stop by in January or February and point it out in the appropriate thread(s).

I'm a dedicated Bujold fan, have all her books, several signed by her when she was here on book tours, and love any excuse whatsoever to reread her. So I will join you all. And if you get busy, Paulina, and need someone to take up the slack, let me know.

It's great to see more people joining in! Welcome!

>36 jjmcgaffey:: Please do stop by, even if you're not actively rereading along with us. We'd love to hear your thoughts. I'm glad to hear it's "OK" to read the series backward. I started with Komarr and read sequentially from there but will now go back and fill in the gaps.

>37 ronincats:: Thanks very much for your offer, ronincats. It's nice to know there's someone to step in if real life gets in the way. For the moment, if anyone wants to host any of the spin-off threads for groupings of books, feel free to do so.

By the way, "hosting" a thread is as little or as much work as you want to make it. You can just start a thread and let people discuss at will, or you can provide an introduction with links, or you can post discussion questions as the group read proceeds. If there are no takers, I'll start the Young Miles and Cordelia's Honor threads in a week or so, but I probably won't have much time at the moment to do more than just open the threads. :)

Paulina - I am starting out with Shards of Honor and I haven't read a one of this series but I know the undertaking you took in starting this year long read. I will host the Cordelia's Honor thread for you. I'll get it started this weekend but I don't plan to start reading/listening to the books until January. I hope to get some tour guides to pop in and give us their expert opinion.

Thanks again for doing this.

>39 luvamystery65:: Thanks very much, Roberta!!

What a wonderful idea. This looks like a great way to finish reading the Miles books I've been gradually accumulating over the years.

Up till now I've been pretty much reading in the books more or less in chronological order. I've read Cordelia's Honor (still my favourite books of the series - sorry I just find Cordelia a more compelling character than Miles! :)), The Warrior's Apprentice and The Vor Game as well as Falling Free. Looking forward to reading more in the series and discussing them here.

Glad to have you with us, iftyzaidi! I'm happy to hear that Cordelia is a compelling character, as I plan to read Shards of Honor in January.

Would it be helpful for us to have a Wiki page to keep track of our Vorkosigan reads? I have in mind a page like the ones used for the CATs (such as this one). Of course, the use of this page would be entirely optional.

If you had answered yes to the previous question, then please vote in this poll as well.

Should the page be organized by book or by username? In the first case, the subheadings would be the names of books or collections, and we'd list our usernames underneath. In the second case, the subheadings would be usernames, and we'd each put our list of books underneath.

Your wish is my command! :)

Wiki page is here, and I've added a link to the first message of this thread.

I've not planned out my 2014 reads yet, so I added just one entry for myself, as an example. Please go ahead and add your planned reading. When you've finished a book, you can edit the status to say "completed".

It would be very cool if we, collectively as a group, can have an entry for every single book/novella by the end of 2014!

I'm tempted. I've just had a look at this series and, as a lover of sci-fi, I am very tempted to join in! :)

#46 lilywren please join in. You are not obligated to read the whole series just pop in where you please.

Luvamystery65 - I've decided and have just ordered 'Shards of Honor' I look forward to reading and joining in :-)

Woo hoo! I've added my name to the wiki; looking forward to it.

I like the new thread-topper. You know, if I remember, I might add my covers to the thread, as I read the books. Most of them seem different; might be interesting to compare.

I would volunteer to host a thread, but I'm really not organised enough, and I might leave everyone high and dry. I'll see how my reading is going next year.

>48 lilywren:: So happy you gave into temptation, lilywren! :)

>49 humouress:: Thanks, humouress. There are some really interesting covers for these books. Have you seen the Korean ones? Bujold posted about these on her blog. Here's the one for The Warrior's Apprentice:


There's no pressure to host a thread, but I should point out that it's not meant to be a year-long commitment if that's scaring anyone off. I figured that people interested in a particular book (or book grouping) might start the thread going, and then as they finish and move onto their next books, other readers will take over the discussion.

At the moment, luvamystery has offered to start the Cordelia's Honor thread. If any of the people who are planning to read The Warrior's Apprentice in January want to start the Young Miles thread, that would be great.

Since I read Shards of Honor last year and will be starting with Barrayar before moving on to The Warrior's Apprentice, I can set up a thread for Barrayar. Or are we going to keep Shards of Honor and Barrayar together on a Cordelia's Honor thread?

I was thinking of keeping Barrayar and Shards of Honor together in the Cordelia's Honor thread, just so we don't have too many spin-off threads. I figured that most people who read Shards of Honor will probably continue with Barrayar. (But thanks for the offer of hosting the thread all the same!)

Could someone put which novels & short stories are in each of the omnibus editions on the Wiki page? Thanks!

@ 53 -- Leslie, done and done. :)

Edited to add: In the course of my diligent research (a.k.a. Wikipedia), I learned that there is both a novella called "Borders of Infinity" and an omnibus called Borders of Infinity...the latter includes the novellas "Mountains of Mourning" (elsewhere anthologized in Young Miles), "Labyrinth" (elsewhere anthologized in Miles, Mystery, and Mayhem and Miles, Mutants and Microbes), and "Borders of Infinity" (elsewhere anthologized in Miles Errant).

As far as I can tell, if you're interested in omnibus editions, these are the ones you should get:

Cordelia's Honor (contains Shards of Honor and Barrayar)
Young Miles (contains The Warrior's Apprentice, The Mountains of Mourning, and The Vor Game)
Miles, Mystery, and Mayhem (contains Ethan of Athos, Cetaganda, and Labyrinth)
Miles, Mutants, and Microbes (contains Falling Free, Labyrinth, and Diplomatic Immunity)
Miles Errant (contains The Borders of Infinity, Brothers in Arms, and Mirror Dance)
Miles in Love (contains Komarr, A Civil Campaign, and Winterfair Gifts)

As you can see, you'll get "Labyrinth" twice, but none of the other stories/novels are duplicated.

Thanks for adding the omnibus information, Christina!

And you can access The Borders of Infinity including The Mountains of Mourning, Labyrinth, and The Borders of Infinity within the frame story, here:

http://library.worldtracker.org/English%20Literature/B/Bujold,%20Lois%20McMaster...

Thanks Christina :)

And I believe that you need to get Memory separately. It fits between Miles Errant and Miles in Love, but didn't get into either, much to Bujold's disgust...(as I recall from a post somewhere - on her site or someone talking about her). Cryoburn and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance are also not anthologized, but will presumably get into the next one.

Oh my goodness, I just read all of these books last year. Now I have to decide if I can be tempted in to reading them again...

for completists, Mountains of Mourning and Labyrinth can be found also in their initial publication in the May and August 1989 issues of Analog magazine.

#54 Thanks Christina, that was really helpful. I believe I will start with Cordelia's Honor in January, and work my way down from there.

I L-O-V-E the Vorkosigan series! My hubbie got me hooked. and of course LMB has been a guest at CONvergence so we have met her.

I went back to school this summer, so have been reading lots of interesting and yet, not so fun books, so this is a good reason to read a fun book once a month!

DS
(Bruce's evil twin :-))

SHAMELESS PLUG: sci-fi fans might be interested in the Culture group read I'm running over on the 75 books challenge group: http://www.librarything.com/topic/162776

I'd been away from LT for a few days. It's nice to come back and see more members joining us for the group read!

>59 Tafadhali:: Tafadhali, even if you don't want to reread the books, I hope you'll drop in to give your thoughts on them as we discuss them.

>62 bruce_krafft:: Lucky you, DS, for having met Bujold! I'd love to meet her one day.

>63 kgodey:: Thanks for bringing this to our attention, kgodey. It's quite tempting as I've been wanting to try Iain Banks, but I'll have to see how many group reads I can handle. I fear I've already signed up for too many .... :)

I'm another big fan of the Vorkosigan series. I'm so glad you organized this, and I'm looking forward to the year-long discussions.

Is it poor manners to join this group just because I want to be part of the year-long Vorkosigan read? I am so excited about this! And it's not that I wouldn't want to be a full part of the category challenge group; it's just that I'm going from very little on-line activity of any sort to happily joining the TBR, ROOT, and 75 Book Challenge groups. I'm looking forward to a great year of reading in 2014...but I'm starting to feel a bit overwhelmed. There are so many threads going on everywhere, and of course the point to being here is to talk to people, to cheer people on, to connect...but I don't know when to stop reading threads. If I read everything, I'll never read an actual book again. Plus, I'm still at the nervous stage of spending ten to fifteen minutes composing everything I post because I would hate to sound impolite.

But I LOVE the entire Vorkosigan series! It would be wonderful to talk about these wonderful books with others! I'll figure out how to properly be a part of one more challenge if your answer is that to be a part of this I need to be a part of the Category Challenge, too. :)

>65 jnwelch:: Glad to have you join us!

>66 Merryann:: Don't feel as if you have to set up a challenge thread in this group in order to participate in this group read. It's fine to just stop in here!

When we had first set up this group read, it was suggested that we set up a separate group, like we did for the Sandman group read. I'd decided against it, because at that time, only a dozen members had said they would do the Vorkosigan read. Now, we've had more members join and I wonder if I should rethink that decision.

The separate Sandman group was convenient, especially for those who were not interested in the category challenge, and I'm glad it had been set up. However, I suspect there would have been more traffic if the threads had been hosted within the category challenge group. For example, people who were not part of the core group might be more inclined to drop in.

What do you all think?I'm on vacation right now and Internet access may be sporadic for the next few days, but I promise to get things set up, if needed, as soon as I'm back home. I'm also fine with someone else setting up groups, threads, etc., if a consensus has been obtained before I get back.

I'm very excited about the group read and have Shards on Honor on my e-reader, ready to go for Jan. 1!

I wouldn't want a separate group, mainly because I want to try to limit the number of groups I'm checking up on, it's just easier for me to have everything in one place.

>66 Merryann: Merryann, please feel free to join just for this groupread; last year I also didn't do a category challenge, but I did join this group to participate in group reads, it really isn't a problem if you don't want to join the actual challenge :)

I voted undecided. You can tip my vote over into what the majority decides.

I don't feel as if I know enough about the way things work yet to vote, but I'll be happy whichever way the vote turns out. Next year I may want to be more active in the category challenge. For 2014, I'm glad I can just be part of the Vorkosigan. Thanks!

>67 mathgirl40:: I'm vacillating between 'No' and 'undecided', but I think I'm leaning towards voting 'No' for setting up a separate group, as I read other people's points.

>68 Britt84:: Oh; is this Category Challenge? I came over from the 75ers - oops.

>66 Merryann:: Merryann, there are so many times I've been reading threads and haven't had time to read books. Now I keep track of threads I've posted in in Talk, and occasionally pop over to the Hot Threads or All Threads page to see if I'm missing anything major. And similarly for composing; there's so much I want to comment on, but now I mostly lurk. It seems to be working; this year I got closer to the magic number of 75 books read for the year than ever.

Since there hasn't been one "Yes" vote in the 24 hours the poll has been open, let's leave things the way they are.

We'll open up separate threads for book groupings, as previously decided. I think Roberta was going to do one for Cordelia's Honor, and anyone else can start one for groupings they're planning to read. Otherwise, I'll start them when I get back from vacation, in a few days.

Happy New Year to all! I started the new year right, but reading the first chapter of Shards of Honor just past midnight before going to sleep. I hope I'll find some time to do more Vorkosigan reading today.

I started up the Cordelia's Honor thread last week. Join in if you are reading or have read Shards of Honor or Barrayar.

http://www.librarything.com/topic/162708

Thank you, Roberta, for starting the new thread! Sorry I missed seeing it last week.

I just came back from vacation and will try to catch up with my favourite LT threads this weekend. I'll start the thread for Young Miles shortly.

I've started the Young Miles thread here:

http://www.librarything.com/topic/163792

I've also added this link, as well as the one for the Cordelia's Honor group read, to the first message in this thread.

I'm not a science fiction reader, and had my doubts about trying this series. I checked Shards of Honors out of the library, didn't think I would like it, BUT oh my, I finished it pretty quickly. I'm now half way through Barrayar. Hope the rest are as good.

>76 OldDan:: Welcome to the group! I've only read the later books, and they are excellent, so I think you'll continue to enjoy the series.

I've signed up on the Cordelia's Honour thread.

Finally got Shards of Honor from work, will hopefully get a start in the next couple of days!

I hope there is room for one more for this year-long group read? I have been meaning to read The Vorkosigan Saga for a few years now and 2014 seems like a fine time to take the plunge.

I have read Falling Free and Shards of Honor, but the details of both are a little fuzzy. It is probably best to start with a re-read of Shards of Honor followed by Barrayar for this month.

>78 humouress:, 79: I just finished Shards of Honor today and will be posting my thoughts on it in the Cordelia's Honor thread shortly. I'll be interested in hearing what you both think of it.

>80 JechtShot:: We welcome more members to this group read! Glad to have you along, JechtShot.

I thought I'd add a quick reminder about our Wiki page, where you can keep track of your Vorkosigan reads this year:
http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/2014_Group_Read:The_Vorkosigan_Saga

This link is also available in the first post of this thread.

Wow. This is a good challenge. I plowed into the series at the end of last year and got through Brothers in Arms before my momentum gave out. Now I need a little break. I'm trying to do chronological but am skipping the non-Vorkosigan books (Falling Free and Ethan of Athos) for now. I figure I can always go back and read them later if I want. I have been enjoying the series so far. I find that most of the Miles books start slow but end fast.

One tip, the three novellas (Mountains of Mourning, Labyrinth, and Borders of Infinity) are combined in a framing story in the novel Borders of Infinity. The novellas all take place before Brothers in Arms but the framing story takes place after it. I was worried about missing something in the framing story but found that the framing story added very little to the series. I would recommend reading the novellas as they are listed in chronological order and to not bother with the framing story.

I am excited for the next phase of the series. Judging by LT ratings, the four books from Mirror Dance to A Civil Campaign are the most popular.

Hello everyone! I'm not a member of the group, but kgodey linked me to this thread when I mentioned I would be reading Falling Free for a personal challenge I set myself this year. I probably won't be able to read the entire series as I'm almost certain my local library will not have them all, but I'll certainly post here when I do read from the series this year.

Hi Stephen, and welcome.

Stayed up far too late last night to finish Cordelia's Honor.

It does speed up toward the end, doesn't it? I'm not reading it, I'm not. Got too many other things to read. But every time I come to this thread or the dedicated thread, my favorite scenes shoot through my head...

#87: Resistance is futile! You will be assimilated.

So, of all the Vorkosigan books I ordered, I just received Falling Free. Since it seems fairly standalone, I think I'm going to read it. Where is that going to be discussed?

#88 I read Falling Free just last year, you are right in it being standalonish, I don't think a thread has been created for the Omnibus edition, this little novella belongs to.

Well, I can start it – should I start one for just Falling Free or Miles, Mutants and Microbes? The only issue I have with the omnibus thread is that the story Labyrinth is in two omnibuses, and I think there should be only one place to discuss it.

#90 Agreed, but it might be an overkill to create a thread only for Falling Free; lets tackle Labyrinth when we get that far in the series.

>90 kgodey:: Starting a thread for Miles, Mutants and Microbes sounds like a good idea. Thanks for offering to do it, kgodey. I'll add a link to the first post once you've created it.

As for Labyrinth ... wherever it gets discussed first can be declared the "official" location for it. :)

#92: Thanks Paulina. I've created the thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/166539

>93 kgodey:: Thanks for setting up the thread, Kriti! I've added the link to the first post.

So I ordered a bunch of Vorkosigan books (I may have mentioned that already, sorry!) and received all of them except the next chronological one – Young Miles. I haven't ordered Miles in Love or Captain Vorpatril's Alliance either, but I have the rest. I'm itching to meet Miles, though, so even though I don't have Young Miles yet, I think I might start on Cetaganda in Miles, Mystery and Mayhem.

Ummm, don't know if I'd encourage that, Kriti. You won't appreciate it like you would if you knew Miles beforehand. You can find The Mountains of Mourning online and read it next.

#96: Thanks, Roni! I think I have The Mountains of Mourning in Borders of Infinity, I can read it there!

I lost all self-control and ploughed through several more Miles books (and Ethan of Athos) – I will wait for the appropriate threads to show up and discuss them then.

>98 kgodey:: You're welcome to start a new thread yourself anytime you like, kgodey. If you're not sure about how to do this or which books to group together, just PM me, and I can give some suggestions (for what they're worth), or I can start the thread myself. If you'd rather wait until more people have reached those books, that's fine too.

#99: Thanks Paulina! I am through Miles, Mystery and Mayhem and the books in Miles Errant, as well as Memory. I can certainly start the first two threads – I'm not sure where to put Memory, though.

>100 kgodey:: Thanks for offering to start the new threads, Kriti. We can always add an "Other Works" thread that covers all the books and short stories that don't fit in an omnibus volume.

#101: Paulina, here's the Miles, Mystery and Mayhem thread: http://www.librarything.com/topic/167661

I will start Miles Errant later.

Yes - Memory escaped all the omnibuses, much to Bujold's dismay/annoyance. And Baen's, for that matter - it just sneaked through the cracks. It may need its own thread.

I don't know if it has been mentioned but I think it was the Cryoburn hardback that came with a CD in the back that contained ebook versions of all the prior stories. Memory may or may not be on that - I can't remember and I don't have my copy handy to check. Anyway it is a very handy way to have access to all the stories. Even our library copy has the CD in the back of the book.

ETA: Wikipedia notes memory was excluded from the CDROM - all the omnibuses are included.

Maybe Memory, Cryoburn and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance can have their own thread ("Miles Miscellaneous" :P)

Thanks, Kriti, for starting the new thread! I've added the link to the first post. "Miles Miscellaneous" sounds like a perfect title for the stand-alone books. :)

>104 RBeffa:: A friend of mine has the CD. That would have made the Cryoburn hardback well worth buying! I didn't realize that Memory was left out of it, though.

Spoilers: opinions sought

There's been a question of how to deal with spoilers, and I'd like to see what the rest of you think. So far, we've had an unofficial policy of "no spoilers" unless they're marked clearly as such. The LT spoiler feature is very useful for this purpose.

However, it's also the case that an awful lot of people have finished Shards of Honor, the first book in the series, and some were wondering if it would be OK to talk openly about this book.

I am concerned that this might discourage people from joining the group read later in the year or reading the books out of order. Also, "order" could mean publication or chronological order. For example, many of us are reading Barrayar after Shards of Honor, but someone reading in publication order wouldn't get to it until much later.

Should we set up a schedule that allows spoilers? (E.g. "After January, spoilers for Shards of Honor are allowed. After February, spoilers for ??? are allowed. Etc.") Should the participants of each subthread just decide when there's been enough discussion to allow spoilers? Or should we stay with a "no spoiler" policy, at least for now?

Well, for some group reads, people set up separate spoiler threads where they can put spoilers in without fear. I don't know if that would make too many threads, though?

ETA : I haven't worked out why, but I can see spoilers even when the spoiler feature is used. Although I've read the majority of the series, but I don't know about other people.

I think using the spoiler feature but also marking the beginning of the post with SPOILERS for Book Title should work, even for people for whom the spoiler feature doesn't work. I think that will let people discuss the book freely but also allow people to join whenever.

I agree with kgodey @ 109. I think we should definitely still mark spoilers, as people are reading these books at different times and at different speeds. And some people are just popping in and out for certain books because they're not planning to read the whole series (like me!). So in my opinion, clearly marked spoilers are a good thing!

106> I guess you don't know that the CDs are all available for download, here among others? As long as you don't try to sell them, they're freely distributable. There's Cryoburn with a lot of Bujold, several Webers with Harrington and other universes, some Ringos with various of his universes, some Flints with 163x etc...other stuff too. I've been collecting the CDs as they came out, at least for those authors I read - either by buying the book, getting it from the library (for those libraries that got the hardback and kept the CD with it), or downloading it from Fifth Imperium.

So if anyone is short a Bujold (except Memory, of course) and doesn't mind reading electronically...

Oh. Oops. Not at Fifth Imperium any more - apparently Bujold asked them to take it down. She's asked other sites, too. It's still here, for now, though I don't know how people feel about downloading it when she's asked it not be shared (though she agreed to the initial release of the CD, which is explicitly shareable).

How does one join this group? I love the Vorkosigan series!

You join the group by posting here, grundlecat. :)
Welcome!

This group is very informal. Just read or reread any of the Vorkosigan books. However, do check out the links in the very first post. There is a Wiki page where participants (optionally) keep track of this year's reads. There are also spin-off threads for books, grouped according to the omnibus editions. So just jump into any of the conversations that interest you. In the first post of the spin-off threads, we do ask participants to warn others of spoilers. Other than that, there aren't any rules or schedule.

Wow!

does anyone is there is a bundled ebook for all the current titles ?

I just finished Falling Free, and I must say I'm pretty impressed so far! I went into with the understanding that it was one of the weaker entires in the series and I enjoyed it quite a bit. My full review can be found on the book's page. :)

I'm not sure if I'll be reading the rest of the series, however, because my library doesn't seem to have the first book.

Aduric, if you purchase the hardback edition of Diplomatic Immunity it comes with a CD of all the books up to that point except memory. Other than that, no.

Steven, if your library doesn't have Shards of Honor, make The Warrior's Apprentice your starting point. If it doesn't have either, shame on it?

Nope, they don't have that one either, but it's a very small town so perhaps they should be forgiven?

#117: Nope, they shouldn't. You should get it on Amazon, the mass market paperbacks are $4 used, shipping included. Cordelia's Honor and Young Miles will get you four books and a short story for $8.

Oh! My library has Young Miles actually, so that could help.

#119: Young Miles is an omnibus of The Warrior's Apprentice, The Mountains of Mourning and The Vor Game, so that totally helps!

Ape, your library may also have the omnibus of Cordelia's Honor which includes Shards of Honor and Barrayar. My library didn't have the single books, but did have the omnibus's.

My library also has the omnibus editions instead of the single books. Baen Books has ebook versions of the omnibus editions at very low prices. You can get Cordelia's Honour or Young Miles for 5 USD each.

I have Shards of Honor in a Book Club two-fer that has The Warrior's Apprentice as well: it's called Test of Honor, so you might look for that too.

There are so very many books out there to be read. Should I spend time re-reading the Vorkosigan books, I asked myself. I walked over to the sci-fi shelf, and there it was: Test of Honor. When I was a teenager I bought it new from the Science Fiction Book Club. Its dust jacket has long since disappeared. The spine is a somewhat battered blue leather-looking thing with faded red lettering. I picked up the book, noting the dirty edges and worn corners. It's an old friend, one that I haven't talked to in a long time. But I have already read this, I remind myself. I open the book, my eyes fall on the first lines.... and now I'm on page 145.
Sometimes I guess you just have to go call on your old friends. :)

>123 grundlecat:: Lovely story. It's good to revisit old friends. :)

Ah, I am reminded of that venerable Brownie song:

Make new friends
But keep the old.
One is silver
But the other gold.

It's definitely worth while to revisit the old friends, for me.

Just discovered this thread. I've been doing an independent Vorkosigan intensive and am very much enjoying the series. Just finished Diplomatic Immunity. Haven't been able to track down Mirror Dance yet so eventually skipped ahead, but look forward to catching up with it eventually.

Enjoy, all. Such a playful yet subtle series. Bujold is a master.

Well to the group read! I hope you'll drop into some of the spin-off threads (listed in the first post) and join the discussions.

ronincats just pointed me in this direction, since I've just picked up Miles, Mystery & Mayhem (I read the first two omnibus editions a year or so ago). I've got the MM&M read starred as well now too!

What a lovely idea, a Vorkosigan year!

Welcome to the group read, Tania :)

>128 wookiebender:: Happy to have you with us, Tania!

I found this list of favourite literary love stories, and was pleased to find both A Civil Campaign and Cordelia's Honor on it. A Civil Campaign is actually doing pretty well.

How's everyone doing with the group read? Don't forget to update our Wiki:
http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/2014_Group_Read:The_Vorkosigan_Saga

What are your March plans? I've finished the two Cordelia stories and will move on to The Warrior's Apprentice in March.

I am also going to be reading The Warrior's Apprentice in March. I am looking forward to getting to know Miles and seeing where this series is going next.

I've had a break, now, after reading the first 5 in January, so will be starting Borders of Infinity.

I finished Miles, Mystery and Mayhem in February, and had a great - and thought-provoking - time, with all the gender identity and genetic issues thrown up.

I was going to buy the next in the omnibus editions, only to get to the bookshop and find it's in a much larger format! (With corresponding price increase. But it's mostly the fitting-on-my-shelves and looking-like-a-coherent-series* issues that worry me.) So I'll have to move into the individual books now, I guess. So I'm thinking it's Brothers in Arms next...

* Yes, I hate it when publishers change covers half way through a series. The first half of my Dresden Files books look nothing like the second half! Irritates me every time I see them on the shelf, especially because I liked the original covers better!

Found this by Jo Walton in a blog she did about how having an e-reader changed her reading habits.

Eight books without charging it was at World Fantasy in Toronto last year when I’d put my back out and was in bed in my hotel room reading Vorkosigan books solidly for most of the con. (When I bought the hardcover of Cryoburn it came with a CD with all the other books on it.)

Clearly a lady who has her priorities straight! The blog is here if you want to read it:
http://www.tor.com/blogs/2014/03/how-having-an-e-reader-has-changed-my-reading-h...

Nice blog post. I always enjoy Jo Walton's writings.

I love my e-reader. I'm about to leave for a week-long vacation, and because we have our e-readers, my daughter and I are bringing a total of 3-4 print books, instead of a dozen like we used to years ago. :)

Excited to be back to the series as I am reading Komarr next. I know i am ahead but are we ready to set up the Miles in Love thread? Where did we decide to include Memory? A Miles Miscellaneous thread?

Just finished Young Miles - so much fun! :)

> 138 Feel free to set up the Miles in Love thread anytime! If you're not comfortable doing so, I'll be happy to do it, but I encourage other members of this group to set up threads whenever they're ready. :)

A Miles Miscellaneous thread sounds like a good place for Memory.

>139 leslie.98: I just finished The Warrior's Apprentice and am looking forward to reading the rest of Young Miles next month. I agree -- it's so much fun!

>140 mathgirl40: I just finished The Warrior's Apprentice today. I loved it!

Just wanted to check back in and say that I'm still reading Shards of Honor, sadly, despite my loving it. I keep saving the little reading time I have for library books and things I think I can read quickly. But really, since I've acquired nearly every book in the series, perhaps I should bump this first (for me) one higher up my "currently reading" list so I can maybe have a shot at finishing all the books by the end of the year!

>142 LauraBrook: " I keep saving the little reading time I have for library books…"

Sounds familiar... I suffer from this problem myself.

>142 LauraBrook: Me too. If I didn't have the distraction of library books, I'd be able to clear off my shelves much more quickly.

How is everyone else doing? Don't forget to update the Wiki page, if you're keeping track of your Vorkosigan reads there:
http://www.librarything.com/wiki/index.php/2014_Group_Read:The_Vorkosigan_Saga

I'm almost finished with The Vor Game myself.

I've been going in chronological order over the past 2 or 3 years. I read them usually 2 at a time. I found the adrenaline got a bit high sometimes to sustain more than 2 in a row without a breather.

I'm a few pages from the end of Komarr at the moment. Miles is nearing my age now and it's brought quite a different perspective.

This has made me realize that more and more I am enjoying series that follow characters throughout their lives. Young Miles and not-quite-as-young Miles are different but still the same person and this is illuminated quite well.

>145 macsbrains: I also enjoy series that show characters at different stages of their lives, and Komarr is one of my favourites from the Vorkosigan series. I would love it if Bujold gave us a story featuring an older Cordelia.

I've finished Brothers in Arms and am ready to start Mirror Dance. Are we going to have a thread for these? I think these two would go well with Memory for a thread.

Hi, folks; I'm still here. I'm not having a very productive reading year, though I have been very active on LT, updating my catalogue with books long overdue for addition and adding new fields.

I'm less than a hundred pages in to my re-read of The Warrior's Apprentice, but it's hilarious! I still love Aral and Cordelia; it's wonderful how Bujold can show his humanity in an unguarded moment in spite of all the power he holds.

Delicious!

>147 ronincats: The Miles Errant omnibus contains Brothers in Arms, Mirror Dance and Borders of Infinity, so it would make sense to have a new "Miles Errant" thread. The remaining omnibus that we don't have a thread for yet is the Miles in Love one, containing Komarr, Winterfair Gifts and A Civil Campaign.

There was some discussion upthread about Memory, and I think we'd decided that it can go into a "Miles Miscellaneous" thread, along with anything else that doesn't fit in the other threads. Should this thread be "Vorkosigan Miscellaneous" (or something else that rolls off the tongue more easily), so that Captain Vorpatril's Alliance, which is about Ivan and not Miles, can be included?

Members of this group read should feel free to start any of these new subthreads whenever they're ready, or PM me if you're not sure about the procedure. :)

>148 humouress: Glad to hear you're finding time to do some Vorkosigan reading now! You've reminded me that my own catalogue badly needs some updating too. :)

As some one fairly new to LT I am having no trouble keeping up with the reading, but it seems that posting cuts into my reading time too much. Since something has to give it will be my job and I'll retire the end of the year and hopefully I'll have time for both.

I had a bad bout of bronchitis in February and was less active then usual. I find when I am not feeling well reading something new doesn't always work while rereading "old and dear friends" gives great comfort.

In that vein I started the Vorkosigan Saga (yet again). I listen instead of reading. I have the entire series on audio and highly recommend the audio version. The distinct voices of each character make them even more real. A few weeks later I through once again. The series doesn't lose anything in repetition.

One important note!!!! Captain Vorpatril's Alliance should be read before Cyroburn. Cyroburn is the last book chronlogically in the series though it was the last published. Unfortunately, I also found it my least favorite book except for the very end which did much to redeem the book in my eyes.

McMasters suggested reading order places Cyroburn last and it is a fitting book with which to end the series

>151 bg853: It's always great to hear from people who love this series and indulge in multiple re-reads. Just goes to show how very special the Vorkosigan Saga is.

We are a chatty group here on LT so happy to hear your retirement will give you more time to spend with us. :)

>151 bg853: Glad to have you with us! I've only listened to one of Vorkosigan books on audio and enjoyed it very much. Unfortunately, our library doesn't have any of the others on audio.

If you get a chance to listen to more of the books I highly recommend them. Besides the library, the audio versions of the individual books are all available on Audible with Grover Gardner who does a great job with the voices.

When the audible version is done correctly, it can add quite a bit to the story. Something as simple as Aral saying "Hello boy" in "his" beautiful baritone voice, imparts so much more than a simple hello. There is love, pride and concern in the phrase.

> Thanks for the recommendation. I love audiobooks myself and I agree that when they're done right, they can enhance the reading experience so much.

June is Female Fantasy / Science Fiction month in the 2014 Category Challenge group. This is a great time to continue with the Vorkosigan saga, or to try your first Vorkosigan book if you're just joining us!

downpour.com is like audible. They have had a special going on LMB books that ends in several days. They have 9 audiobooks of LMB for $5.95 each including Barrayar and Shards of Honor (both read by Graver Gardner). Wish they had more of the series on sale but they do periodic specials. You do not have to be a monthly member (I'm not) to make individual purchases (I have in the past). They have the Sharing Knife series complete (4 @ 5.95) and the Palladin/Chalion/Hallowed ones also for 5.95.

Just an FYI for anyone who wants to try the audio without a big expense.

eta: http://www.downpour.com/catalogsearch/advanced/byPromo/promo/bujold-spotlight/

I just blew through Mirror Dance, Memory, Komarr, A Civil Campaign and Diplomatic Immunity so far this month. Once I got going, I couldn't stop.

Lol, Roni - no self control!

Roni, I envy your binge! I'm still "stuck" (read: too many other books pushing it out of the way) in the very first book, but I think I now own every book in the series, so... I still love the story and characters, more than I expected, and I will most definitely be back with them sooner than later. I just don't know when "sooner" is right now.

They are great summer-time reading, Laura--just saying.

I'm finally reading The Vorkosigan Companion now.

>158 ronincats: :-)

Oooh a companion!

Like Ronincats I've gone through several recently as well. I started Captain Vorpatril's Alliance yesterday. Then only 1 more to go! (Right? That's what the LT series list says....)

I recently finished Miles, Mystery & Mayhem. Will there be a discussion thread for the next omnibus, Miles Errant?

>164 macsbrains: Yes, only one more to go.

>165 leslie.98: Cetaganda is my favorite of the books in that omnibus. I certainly hope there will be a thread for Miles Errant--that is the crux point of the series!!

>165 leslie.98: >166 ronincats: There isn't yet a thread for Miles Errant. Any of you are welcome to start the thread anytime! If you're not comfortable doing this, then just let me know and I can create it, but I'm happy to have others initiating the new threads. :)

Also, we should have a thread for Miles in Love, since some of you have finished the stories in that volume. Any volunteers?

A while ago, there was talk about a "Miles Miscellaneous" thread, for other works that aren't part of the omnibus volumes, but I don't think anyone has set that one up yet. That might be a good place to discuss the companion book. I'd love to hear what you think of it.

Sorry I've not been posting much lately. It's been a very busy summer, with lots of travelling. I did finish Cetaganda recently, though, and will post my thoughts on it soon.

A reminder to all: don't forget to update our Wiki page if you're recording your Vorkosigan reads there!

Mmm yes; definitely time for another Vorkosigan book (and I've nearly finished my review for Barrayar, even).

Just putting up a question for consideration : should the page with the books in chronological order have the omnibus editions interspersed through the series i.e. within the chronology rather than all the omnibus listed at the end?

Though I know that one or two of them also have books out of order. *sigh* Sometimes authors have no consideration ;0)

Woo hoo! I'm missing some books; I'll have to go out and buy them I mean : Oh no! There are some books in my Vorkosigan canon missing. What shall I do?

I've misplaced my copy of Cordelia's Honor! Probably lent it out to some ungrateful wretch.

But I found a wonderfully creative board on Pinterest that y'all might enjoy:

Barrayar Dreaming

I haven't liked the back end of the series as much as the front and middle (one or two of the books have read as romances, not sf, which isn't appealing to me) but I'm looking forward to the last one to turn that back around.

>170 2wonderY: Very creative and fun!

I added a new thread for Miles Errant here. Enjoy!

How is everyone doing? I thought I'd propose a mid-year (well ... somewhat past mid-year) survey.

Which books have you read so far?
What are your plans for the remainder of the year?
Which is your favourite book? Which did you like least?
Which character would you most like to meet or which place in the Vorkosigan universe would you like to visit?

My answers:

I've read the two volumes of Cordelia's Honor, the two books and novella in Young Miles, and Cetaganda.

Since I'd already finished the Miles in Love omnibus, Diplomatic Immunity and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance before the start of this group read, that leaves 8 novels and a novella to finish the entire series. I'd like to complete them before the end of the year, but realistically, I think I'll manage only about half of that. Still, that would be a good amount of Vorkosigan reading for the year!

Of the ones I'd read for this group read, I liked Barrayar best, but Komarr might be my favourite of all the ones I've read. It's hard for me to choose a "least liked" book. I've liked them all!

I think luncheon with Lady Alys Vorpatril would be a grand experience, and I'd love to visit Eta Ceta!

I finished my reread of them all. So have no future Vorkosigan plans.

My favorite book is A Civil Campaign. My least favorite is Cryoburn - but I loved the end of the last chapter.

I would love to meet Aral Vorkosigan and Cordelia on Sergeyar(sp?)

Having read Shards of Honor last December, I started the year with Barrayar, then followed with The Warrior's Apprentice, The Mountains of Mourning, The Vor Game, and Cetaganda.

Next up for me is Borders of Infinity followed by Brothers in Arms and Mirror Dance.

I'm really enjoying this year long read of this series. I've liked all the books that I've read so far but the novella The Mountains of Mourning was outstanding.

I was very intrigued by Cetaganda and would love to visit that planet, but strickly as a tourist as their society is entirely too rigid for me.

Favorite character, well, I guess I have to go with the obvious and say it's Miles. Although I would love to spend some time with his mother as well.

This series is mostly a re-read for me - except for the books I haven't got yet. For the group read, I've got as far as the two books in Cordelia's Honour (being Shards of Honour and Barrayar), The Warrior's Apprentice and The Mountains of Mourning from Young Miles. I will continue from The Vor Game.

The other questions are hard to answer until I've brushed up on more of the series. Which did I love most? Hmm ... the Cordelia books ... or the last one I read ... no, ALL of them ... oh, it's so hard. I love the wit and the humour and the plotting ...

This year I read the Young Miles omnibus, which contains The Warrior's Apprentice, The Mountains of Mourning, and The Vor Game. Really enjoyed all the books, although I thought The Vor Game was a bit disjointed. I probably won't read any more Vorkosigan books this year, unfortunately, but I do plan to continue with the series at some point! So far I love Miles and Cordelia, and I always enjoy seeing cousin Ivan. :)

I think Ivan deserves his own book. I'd like to spend time with Gregor; and Miles' brother Mark is fascinating.

Apparently, LMB agreed that Ivan deserved his own book.

You need to check out Captain Vor Patril's Alliance ;)

So far this year, I've reread everything from Shards of Honor to Diplomatic Immunity. I'm saving the last two for later in the year, but it's been great fun revisiting the series again.

The books are so very different that it's hard to have a favorite--they are all favorites of one type or another.

Which books have you read so far?

Since January I read from Komarr all the way through to the end. (I had started my read last year and was already halfway through.) This was a first-time reading of the series, but it will definitely get re-read in the future.

Which is your favourite book? Which did you like least?

My absolute favorites of the bunch were Mirror Dance and Memory which I read in immediate succession so I am not sure where one ends and the other begins. I found both books heartbreaking and I stopped to digest for a while afterwards before picking up the series again.

My least favorites were A Civil Campaign and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance. In ACC I found the Lord Dono dilemma really interesting and I liked that a lot, but the switching POVs really didn't work for me, and the rom-com elements didn't mesh with my preferences for romance, (though I quite like Ekaterine). CVA was a different beast, and I liked to finally see Ivan, but I wish we'd gotten closer to him sooner so the before/after versions would be better illuminated. The romance was really flat for me here.

Which character would you most like to meet?

I would have loved to have seen more of Gregor, and, after Ivan's book, I was fully charmed by Byerly. He needed some more page time.

I think it's interesting that there are so many characters we want to get to know better. It shows how much depth there is in LMB's characters, not just the main ones but also the supporting ones.

I read from Shards of Honor up to Brothers in Arms. I loved Cordelia's stories and of Miles stories I enjoyed The Warrior's Apprentice, Mountains of Mourning and Cetaganda. I thought Labyrinth was a little over the top even by Vorkosigan standards.

I have to say I really enjoy Ivan more than I thought I would and I read Ethan of Athos and I absolutely think it deserves a sequel! Cordelia is my favorite though.

I should add the caveat that I did not reread Falling Free nor Ethan of Ethos (although I did reread the latter last year) this year. I agree about the depth in LMB's characters, one of the things I really enjoy about her.

If Memory is "Miles hits 30; 30 hits back", then A Civil Campaign is when Ivan hits the wall, and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance where it all comes home to roost.

I blew through all the books in January :(

Maybe I should do a re-read?

"A lot of people are baffled by Ivan, sir."

Miles, in Cetaganda.

By the way, do you hear 'I-van' or 'Yvaan' when you read his name?

>187 humouress: The audio books pronounce it I-van.

>187 humouress: In my head it's always been I-van.

>188 luvamystery65: I wonder if that's true for all the audiobooks in the Vorkosigan series. I've now encountered two series that have had books narrated by different people using different pronunciations of certain characters' names! It makes me wonder if the authors have any say in the audiobook production. I guess we can always ask Bujold herself about Ivan's name! :)

I suspect many don't have any say. I know of one case where the audiobook producers asked the authors for a pronunciation guide, but given their surprise and delight at this, I doubt it's normal procedure.

I have always said I-van. But you remind me, I need to work in the last two books soon to complete my reread.

Oddly, I've always thought of it as I-van ... until this re-read, when I thought 'they've got a Russian based heritage', and so I thought it might be meant to be Yvaan. So now, I'm actually confused and use both :0)

Yes they do have a Russian based heritage. I believe Grover Gardner narrates the entire series and he pronounces it I-van. I have listened to other works by him though and a couple of his "regular" words are pronounced a bit off. Of course I am from Texas and my pronunciation is probably a lot off! Ha!

>190 mathgirl40: I would be very interested in what Bujold had to say about it.

>190 mathgirl40: >194 luvamystery65: Didn't someone say they had met her? (Was it Roni?) I propose we vote for them to go and ask her.
:0)

Late to the party, but The Vorkosigan Companion actually has a whole pronunciation guide! It (or some version of it) is online here: http://www.dendarii.com/dictionary.html.

>196 Tafadhali: That's great to know!! Thanks.

We've now got less than two months left in our group read! It's been quiet the past few months, but is anyone planning a final push to get more Vorkosigan reading done? I just finished the novella Borders of Infinity and hope to read Brothers and Arms and maybe Mirror Dance too before the end of the year.

I'm also thinking ahead to next year. I plan to fit my remaining Vorkosigan books into various months of the SFFFCAT.

When this group read was first proposed, I had asked if anyone would be interested in either a Vorkosigan or Liaden Universe group read. There was a lot of enthusiasm for Vorkosigan but some for Liaden as well.

Would anyone be interested in a Liaden group read next year? I don't think a year-long one would be sustainable, even if there are enough books in the series to fill it. Even this group read got very slow after the first few months, though that wasn't unexpected to me, and overall, I'm happy with the way it's turned out. Maybe a one-month or two-month Liaden group read would be feasible? I'll propose this on the 2015 group reads thread too.

Anyhow, I would love to hear your plans for the remainder of this year and next year!

>198 mathgirl40: I am doing quite alright with both my year long series reads, this one, as well the Culture series one. I have only Cryoburn and Captain Vorpatril's Alliance to read as far as Vorkosigan read goes.

Culture still finds me 3 short, I might have to take the last one to next year probably.

I won't mind a Liadem group read next year, but there seem to be too many books for a year or even two...

I like the suggestion elsewhere ??? (sorry can't keep up where right now) about August for Liaden group read. This way we can continue in September for Series and Sequels if we want to read more. I've got the audio of the first one.

I'm going to try to squeeze Mirror Dance in towards the end of the month. I'll keep going with the Saga next year. I have a SF/Space Opera category for 2015!

I'm on schedule to finish this year. I've only 2 left, Captain Vorpatril's Alliance and Cryoburn. I read the first twice last year, once when I got the ebook ARC and once when I got my hardback, so I'm thinking about maybe skipping it and just doing the last book.

Always up for Liaden Universe rereads. If people don't want to commit to the whole series, maybe just the first trilogy, which is really one story?

Which first trilogy? Are you counting Conflict of Honors? I think of that as more a side story, though necessary to fill out the personae so they could write Carpe Diem.

I might join in on a Liaden read, though I've read all of them so many times (OK, only a couple times for the last few - Dragon Ship and later)...

>201 ronincats: We've scheduled it for August in the 2015 Group Reads thread. Since it's not as popular as the Vorkosigan series, I thought a year-long read wouldn't be sustainable, and there's already a year-long Asimov read. However, if there's a lot of participation in August, there's no reason why we can't keep the discussion going for the remainder of the year. We won't be focussing on specific books but just suggest people read whichever ones they want and we'll discuss the series as a whole, hopefully without giving away too many spoilers. However, it would indeed be helpful to beginners to suggest books they should start with.

I'm a fan of the Liaden series, too, and would love to see a group read. Like JJ (>202 jjmcgaffey: ), I'm up to date, but I'd re-read some along the way if there were a group read.

I read Cetaganda last month, and started on Ethan of Athos last night, both from Miles, Mystery & Mayhem.

As for a group read of Liaden, I'm afraid it's pretty much impossible to get the books here. I have a couple of e-books, but that's it.

I stink, I'm still only partway through the first book! :( I do like it a lot, though, and I do now own the rest of the series, so I fully expect to keep Vorkosigan-ing it up in 2015!

>206 LauraBrook: Laura, I ran out of steam on the Vorkosigan series but I am planning to read one or two next year as I enjoyed the ones I did read very much.

>206 LauraBrook: I also have a few more in the series to finish next year!

>207 DeltaQueen50: & >208 mathgirl40:: Glad to see I'm in good company! I was feeling like a really schmuck about it.

Many of the Vorkosigan audiobooks are on sale this weekend at Downpour.

I finished Cryoburn yesterday, completing my reread of the series this year. Bujold's books reward rereads, especially since I tend to gulp them down whole upon first reading.

For those that have access to Hoopla, the entire series is available as audio book. Grover Gardner is excellent in his narration!

I am going to listen to Mirror Dance during my drive to my Reading Retreat with Katie! Then I will continue on next year. I have a category for Science Fiction/Space Opera in my 2015 Category Challenge.

I'm so glad that those of you who started the series are going to continue into next year!

>211 ronincats: I finished Cryoburn at the end of November. Now I have only one left I think, Captain Vorpatril's Alliance.

Good for you, Piyush! ! CVA actually takes place before Cryoburn and I'd recommend generally to read it first, in chronological order, but since CVA was written later, I like you first read it after Cryoburn.

>214 PiyushC: Wow, only one left! Well done.

>215 ronincats: Me, too, Roni. I so hope she comes out with more!

>215 ronincats: I didn't know that Roni, I also don't remember any referencing to CVA in Cryoburn. It would be interesting to see if Ivan plays a more active role in her books henceforth.

>216 mathgirl40: Thanks Paulina! I didn't do as well on my other year long read, The Culture Series by Iain M. Banks, I am on my 8th, the remaining two might get pushed to next year.

>218 PiyushC: No, it's just obvious in CVA that Miles hasn't gotten the news he got at the end of Cryoburn. I'd like to see more of Ivan, too.

>219 jjmcgaffey: Thanks for the clarification. As bad as the news was, it would be interesting to see how the series progresses from here, if we would see another shift in Mile's role/career...

I'm not planning on going over to the 2015 group until 2015, so I'll ask here; will this group read continue next year? I know most people have finished, but I suspect there are others who haven't finished yet, though probably not as far behind as me.

>221 humouress: There are no specific plans to continue the group read next year. However, I do have a few on the list to finish off.

If there is interest, I can start a general space opera discussion thread in the 2015 group. This can include continuing discussion of the Vorkosigan books, as well as other space opera series. Also, a number of us are planning to do the Liaden group read. Although the group read is not until August, some people are asking questions about the optimal reading order and doing advance planning.

What do the rest of you think?

>222 mathgirl40: That would be great!

I am 3/4 of the way through Mirror Dance I was taken aback at how long it is at first, but the story is excellent. I am going to continue with the series and then get my feet wet in the Liaden universe.

Sounds good. Unfortunately, much as I'd love to join the Liaden group read, I'm finding it tough to get hold of the books.

If you don't put it in the Cat challenge (which I've crashed for this group read), would you consider another group, like Green Dragon or similar to continue the Vorkosigan group read? Just asking :0)

+1 to general space opera thread

edited to add: I don't think I'm going to be doing a category challenge next year either (I always fail miserably) so I'm happy to move to another group if that's the plan.

If it does move remember to give us a link here.

>224 humouress: Are the ebooks no good to you (either because they won't sell them where you are, or because you don't read ebooks)? All the Liaden books can be purchased through Baen Ebooks or Amazon. I've got almost all of them both ways (the latest ones not (yet) in paper).

Remember, if you have this thread starred, any time there is a new post, it will show up on your posts, even though it is a 2014 thread. So we could just continue this thread as an option as well.

>228 ronincats: I was actually thinking about that today. I was filling in the Wiki and thought that I want to finish filling out the Wiki. I don't see why we can't keep this thread active for 2015 and continue to post in the Wiki.

>222 mathgirl40: If you start a Space Opera thread in the 2015 Challenge group you can also post a link to here and the Wiki so those of us that started this year can finish filling out the Wiki. I'll just add the year in addition to the month on the 2014 Wiki.

Either way I'll follow. I really love this series. I started Mirror Dance this evening on audio.

Thanks for all the replies. It sounds like the easiest thing to do is to add a general space opera thread in the 2015 group. I will go ahead and do this. Of course, anyone is welcome to join in the discussion, even if you're not doing the category challenge! It's just convenient to put the thread in the 2015 Category Challenge group because a large number of our participants are in that group. I don't think of others as "crashers" but as "very welcome guests" who eventually become "part of the family". :)

Here's the new 2015 space opera thread!
http://www.librarything.com/topic/185168

Thanks. I am going to continue reading the series in 2015 in small bits.

Me too! Thank you!

>232 RBeffa: >233 LauraBrook: You are very welcome. I'm glad that there's so much interest in continuing the group read!

Don't forget to update our Wiki page with your last Vorkosigan reads of 2014. We can continue to use this page to record our 2015 reads.

I finished Mirror Dance and started Memory, both on audio.

Okay, I went and updated the wiki--which I hadn't done since last spring, so thanks for the reminder.

I didn't get nearly as far with these as I had wanted to -- only finished two of the omnibus editions (having previously read the first) so finishing this series is part of my personal challenges for 2015.

Finished Memory and it is my favorite so far.

>238 luvamystery65: That's good to know! It'll be part of my 2015 reads.

See you all over in the 2015 space opera thread!
http://www.librarything.com/topic/185168

I'm losing track of where I am in my reading, which I'm trying to do in chronological order. Since I have several compilations, it's getting a bit confusing :0) So, if you don't mind (since this is last year's thread, anyway), I'm just going to put it down here.

2014
2 January : Shards of Honour (from Cordelia's Honour)
3 January : Barrayar (from Cordelia's Honour)
4 May : The Warrior's Apprentice
4a July : The Mountains of Mourning (from Young Miles)
5 August : The Vor Game (from Young Miles)
6 October : Cetaganda (from Miles, Mystery & Mayhem)
7 December : Ethan of Athos (from Miles, Mystery & Mayhem)

2015
7a January : Labyrinth (from Miles, Mystery & Mayhem)

Looks like I need to get Miles Errant next (oh, goody - I get to buy more books)

I posted this in the 2015 thread, too but there's a new Vorkosigan book coming out in 2016! Featuring Cordelia!

Link: http://www.goodreads.com/author_blog_posts/8046824-new-book

>241 kgodey: Oh be still my beating heart. Thanks! The news doesn't get much better than that. I've sure missed having more Cordelia.

>241 kgodey: Woo,WOO!!!

I'll be starting Komarr on my drive to work tomorrow!

Komarr is one of my favourites! Last year, most of the group read participants didn't get this far in the series so unfortunately, we didn't get a chance to discuss the later books. I'm glad some of us are continuing the Vorkosigan group read.

After you finish, feel free to post your comments in the 2015 space opera thread if you wish:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/185168
It's fine to continue with the 2014 threads, though. I've got all of them starred.

I'll head right over there. Thanks. I'll post in both when it comes to Vorkosigan because I have a soft spot for this group that got me started on this wonderful series. I'll update the Vorkosigan Wiki when I finish. Whoop!

>246 luvamystery65: Thanks for saying that, Roberta. I'm glad the group read was successful in creating new Vorkosigan fans. :)

Hey, you are the prime audience for my new project! If you love Bujold, you should also love Lee & Miller.

Let me advertise the latest project. Last year during the year-long read of Bujold's Vorkosigan series, the possibility of a similar year-long read of Lee and Miller's Liaden Universe series was bruited about for this year. What with all the issues with my brother's cancer the first part of the year, I never followed up on it, but I'm now looking for people who might want to participate in a July through June format. This would be for people currently reading in the Universe, people who want to give it a try for the first time, and those who are up for a reread or simply love to talk about the books. There is no "schedule"--you simply post when you are reading a book and invite discussion about it if you wish. It's really just an excuse to add a bit of impetus to reading these books. Suggested reading order on my thread (http://www.librarything.com/topic/191746)--let me know if any of you might be interested.

>248 ronincats: Roni the Category Challenge is doing a Liaden Universe read in August. This was planned since last year. Some of us were planning to dip in early. Would you mind extending your read from June-August? That way some of us can participate in both groups.

>249 luvamystery65: Is there a thread yet, Roberta? I plan on participating.

I am (finally) getting to Memory. Even though I own the paperback, I decided to get the audiobook from the library. In print, it kept being pushed aside for other books; as an audiobook (with a deadline built in) I hope I can make time for it more easily.

Has anyone else listened to these books as audiobooks? Grover Gardner is the narrator, I hope he is good.

>250 jnwelch: Joe no thread yet that I have seen. I'll keep you posted. Also, go here for Space Opera: Group Reads and general discussion. https://www.librarything.com/topic/185168#5177434

>251 leslie.98: I have listened to every book on audio. Grover Gardner does a great job. Memory is my favorite book to date. I am up to Winterfair Gifts now.

Thanks >252 luvamystery65:! I am already about 12% in and loving it!

Having enjoyed my audio edition of Memory so much, I have gone ahead and checked out the next book in audio as well -- just starting Komarr now.

>254 leslie.98: Yay! Go Leslie!!!

Way to go! I hear the reader for these books is excellent. Memory is SUCH a pivotal book in the series.

Ah, Komarr provides a key development, too. :-)

Well, it is the first step in the new direction, certainly! ;-)

Memory is the next Vorkosigan book for me, so I'm happy to see all the love for it here.

Hurray! I ordered and picked up my new copy of Miles Errant. For some reason, I could only get it in trade paperback, though.

I think Memory was a very pivotal book. I think you will like it >259 mathgirl40:! I couldn't stop listening to Komarr or even concentrate on anything else so did a bit of an immersion read (where I read the text while listening to the audiobook). I managed to finish it already! Some very interesting developments :-)

Our new year-long read of the Liaden Universe books by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller kicks off tomorrow. Join us at http://www.librarything.com/topic/192715

Wow, just finished A Civil Campaign and think it might be my favorite one of the series so far! Not quite as much adventure/space opera but the romance angle was wonderful. I was pleased to see Ivan have some more independent action too ;)

>263 leslie.98: Quite a romp. I enjoyed it.

Winterfair Gifts was a nice novella to round out the Miles in Love omnibus. This omnibus has become my favorite, even edging out Cordelia's Honor which had been my favorite.

I'm going to have to replace my Cordelia's Honor. I thought I had lent it, but no one is admitting possession.

Since my listening time is more plentiful than reading time, I'm trying to get hold of audio versions. My public library is not being particularly helpful, but I just listened to Brothers in Arms. I love the dynamic between Miles and Mark at the end of the book.

>266 2wonderY: Don't look at this until you've finished Mirror Dance - it's rather spoilery, in the best way (Oh, _that's_ what that line of the song was talking about!). But it's a fantastic song, specifically about the dynamic you mention.

http://echoschildren.bandcamp.com/track/marks-song

The full lyrics are there, and you can stream or buy the song or the whole album (though that's the only Vorkosigan song on that album - a couple others on their other two CDs (and none on the album that's out of print, though there are excellent non-Vorkosigan songs)).

>267 jjmcgaffey: Never fear. I've read them all. Wow! That's a great song. It brushes up against Bujold's writing strengths!

>268 2wonderY: Yep. Others (other Vorkosigan songs) of theirs I love are Two Falls Out of Three (Memory), How It Is Applied (what was that, one of the shorts. The finding of Sgt Taura, anyway), Butterbug Blues (Civil Campaign)...a couple more that don't spring to mind at the moment. All lovely. I like a lot of their songs, anyway. But as I said above, the Vorkosigan songs are scattered across three of their four CDs.

Just read Captain Vorpatril's Alliance which I enjoyed. Ivan did need his own story.

>270 hailelib: I agree. I hope we'll get another Ivan story in the future.

Yes, Ivan has always tried to blend into the background, but he has hidden depths.

Coincidentally, I have Captain Vorpatril's Alliance in my hand (literally), because I picked it up to enter in my catalogue (having bought it on my last shopping spree), and then got snagged by Talk.

If Ivan has hidden depths (!?), it's going on my TBR-soon pile.

eta: retyping square brackets, because they didn't take the first time

I started Falling Free today -- I was not sure I would like this one but so far so good.

^Quaddies!

>273 humouress: Ivan has spent most of his life HIDING his depths!

>276 ronincats: :0)

Well, I've just left Ivan in London, Earth, having finished Mirror Dance Brothers in Arms (I finally got to it!) and he didn't perform too badly, I must admit.

I'm somewhere close to the beginning of Brothers in Arms, Mirror Dance, when Miles ... well, even he doesn't seem to have foreseen this one.

eta: oops, sorry. I didn't have the book in front of me when I wrote this post, and I've transposed the last two names.

>277 humouress: Are you reading them backwards?

Brothers in Arms was my first exposure to the Vorkosigans, and though I remember it fondly, like Onionspark says in a review, knowing the history greatly enriches the story.

I took a literature course at my community college focusing on science fiction and fantasy. Each student gave a final presentation and one lady was so enraptured by the Vors, I checked them out more thoroughly. I next read The Warrior's Apprentice and I was very taken with the structure Bujold had built into the story.

Next I read Shards of Honor and fell madly in love with Cordelia. Aral's last observation of her took my breath away.

My favorite story though is Mountains of Mourning for its emotional power.

I would read laundry lists if Bujold has written them.

I finished Falling Free today. It was good but I missed Miles... Really, it is only tangentially part of the series; more of a stand-alone novel set in the same universe Bujold has created. Maybe this opinion will change after I read Diplomatic Immunity though.

>278 2wonderY: You spotted it before I could change it! I checked the names of the books when I came home and continued reading, and realised I'd assumed the wrong name for each story.

>279 leslie.98: Yes, Falling Free and Ethan of Athos are tangential stories, and Diplomatic Immunity ties the quaddies back to Miles. But it's not anything like a sequel to Falling Free, FF is distant past by the time of DI. I don't know if she always meant to write DI and had to write FF to make it comprehensible, or if she wrote FF just because it wanted to be written, and then it worked as a setting for DI. FF is still a favorite, though.

It felt to me as if she wrote FF just because it wanted to be written -- the moral dilemma posed by the quaddies and Leo's struggle with his conscience seemed too well crafted to be an afterthought (although Bujold is such a good writer that I might be wrong about that!).

>282 leslie.98: I agree with you, Leslie. For one thing, FF was written long before DI was a gleam in Lois' eye, and she says she doesn't plan that far ahead on her books. I think she brought Nicole in as a character as a nod to that early book, and then found a visit to the quaddie habitat a great setting for DI.

Last week I acquired three hardcovers with pristine dust covers

Mirror Dance
Komarr and
Diplomatic Immunity

and sat down and read two of them straight through.

I found that I must have missed reading Diplomatic Immunity, as it seemed a new read. But I really loved Komarr as a second time around. Ekaterin rivals Cordelia here.

>284 2wonderY: I'm a big Ekaterin fan, and Komarr has been a favorite re-read for me for that reason.

I have Cryoburn coming soon and I expect I'll read it soon after it arrives.

>284 2wonderY: Thanks for the reminder that I need to read Diplomatic Immunity ;)

I got the Grover Gardner audiobook of that from the library this morning but decided to reread Labyrinth before diving in. It was fun to go back and see a younger Miles; I had forgotten the part that the quaddie Nicol had played in the plot.

Totally forgot that this thread was still ongoing. After reading Falling Free a couple of years ago I've finally started in on the series proper. So far this year I've read the first two of the omnibus editions: Cordelia's Honor and Young Miles. Really enjoyed what I've read so far as evidenced by the reviews and ratings (4 & 4½★'s respectively). Not sure if I'll manage another volume this year but I'll definitely be carrying on at some point.

I finished Diplomatic Immunity yesterday. Only two more books to go!

>287 leslie.98: I'm still with younger Miles. It is fun; the pace is so frenetic!

>291 leslie.98: Frenetic is a good word to describe young Miles!

Way back in >36 jjmcgaffey: I mentioned a favorite scene, that I never got around to describing - it's exactly about Miles being frenetic, so I'm going to put it in here. Spoilered:


Miles is on the damaged ship with the pilot, and drinking the pilot's chartreuse energy drink. He's literally walking the walls (ok, in low-G) as he comes up with plans. Then he collapses - instantly asleep. His bodyguard is concerned, but the pilot comments that he was surprised it took so long for the energy drink to wear off - then the pilot realizes that the bodyguard didn't know Miles was on an energy drink - "You mean he's like that all the time?!"


And that freneticity was why I couldn't handle reading Miles in order, he wore me out. I read his story backward from Diplomatic Immunity back to Brothers in Arms (which was as far as I'd gotten, with a few bits of Mirror Dance, going forward).

After reading Komarr, it was a natural to move right on to A Civil Campaign. I am struck by Bujold's use of the romance novel here. Miles' internal script reads like a fantasy where he (cautiously and subtly) rescues the damsel. The dinner party at the center of the book brings everything back to a base in reality. And we get more reality than in a romance novel, yes? What a nightmare scene! Everyone's humanity is highlighted. Miles, Mark, Ivan all can make a mess of things. Cordelia's mothering is spot on for each of her sons.

I'm reading from the omnibus Miles in Love and find I no longer prefer big paperbacks, and I plan to finish purchasing the set in original hardbacks. The paperbacks were a good value, but they flop unhelpfully when I'm reading in bed.

>292 jjmcgaffey: :-) That's our (young) Miles!

Side note : having gone to all the trouble of ordering and buying Miles Errant to fill in some gaps in my collection, and so I could continue reading the series, I'm now contemplating buying the individual books and trading horizontal space for vertical (on my bookshelves) since the compilation volume is trade paperback size. *sigh*

Well, I'll leave it for now; I'm alright unless I buy taller than usual books for the shelves below (or, to be honest, if I buy many more books). I may have to (shock, horror!) clear some books out. I suppose I could start with the duplicates, or the books I'm really not keen on ...

Just got the audiobook of Cryoburn from the library. I want to finish my current audiobook first but I am looking forward to my next installment of this series :)

I finished Diplomatic Immunity this month. I enjoyed it and it was fun seeing Miles a little more like Admiral Miles Naismith than Auditor Vorkosigan again. I still hold Memory as my favorite with Barrayar as my second favorite.

I look forward to Ivan's adventure next.

>297 luvamystery65: I've got Memory coming up next. I hope you enjoy Ivan's adventure. Captain Vorpatril's Alliance is not among my favourites but it was a thoroughly entertaining story and I hope we get to see more of Ivan in future books.

I recently finished CryoBurn -- only Captain Vorpatril's Alliance left to go...

Hello, my name is Roni and I am an addict.

The eARC of Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen has become available at ebaenbooks.com for $15. Despite the fact that I have already pre-ordered the dead-tree edition coming out in February and that this is expensive for an ebook, guess what is already on my Kindle. Sorry, have to go read now.

Oh no, ronincats! Now I've got a tough choice. I've also preordered and feel mayyyyybe I should wait 'til February...but I think that resolve is only going to last until I get home from work.

The choice is easier for me, since all my Vorkosigans are in paperback, sitting in a row on my bookshelf (even that pesky trade size on that's throwing out my shelving system). In the meantime, I'll just have to cover my ears and sing loudly whenever y'all discuss the new book.

.... lallalalllalalalallallalalalalalalala .....

I'm eager to read the new Cordelia book too! I'll try to wait for February, though, as I still have a few Vorkosigan books to go.

Just because I have absolutely no self-control does not mean the rest of you should follow suit. Definitely wait until February.

Ha! I'm not sure I have enough self-control, Roni, but I did pre-order the hc. Lots of Cordelia! It's going to be hard to wait.

Yeah, no, I caved.

But I'll be glad to have my hc in February too!

I finally finished Captain Vorpatril's Alliance which wraps up this challenge for me -- at least until February's release of Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen! Even though it took me 2 years to finish this challenge, I have enjoyed these books & especially the audiobook editions immensely so I'd just like to thank whoever it was that suggested this group read.

I just read, for the first time, a book by Lois McMaster Bujold, Falling Free. I enjoyed it, and am looking forward to reading more of her works.

>307 leslie.98: Congratulations for getting through the entire series!

>308 fuzzi: I'm happy to hear you enjoyed your first Vorkosigan book! Glad to see you here.

I've started the audiobook of Memory.

>309 mathgirl40: Memory has been my absolute favorite of the series so far!

How about starting a continuing thread? There are still a few of us that need to finish up and this one is getting mighty long. ;-)

>310 luvamystery65: We have a space opera thread in the 2015 group, but it's not been all that active. One reason is that this Vorkosigan thread is still conveniently available, and much of the Liaden Universe discussion got moved to a different thread in the 75 Books Challenge group, where they're hosting a year-long read.

How about if we start a new Vorkosigan thread in the 2016 group? Since Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen is coming out early in 2016, that gives us a perfect excuse to continue the Vorkosigan group read.

That sounds great. Would you provide a link for it here please.

I'm re-reading Memory and I'm finding it very dark and heavy. It hadn't struck me that way before.

Seconds reads of these novels allow for much more appreciation of theme and technique.

Here is our shiny new 2016 thread!
http://www.librarything.com/topic/206634

>3 luvamystery65: Could you copy your post over for us? I think this information will be good to have in the new thread.

>313 2wonderY: I agree about second reads. After I finish Memory, I might reread Komarr and A Civil Campaign, which were actually the first Vorkosigan books I'd ever read. I think I'd probably enjoy them even more than I did first time around. On the other hand, I'm also eager to get to Cryoburn and Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen. Decisions ....

Done! Thank you.

>314 mathgirl40: >315 luvamystery65: thanks!

I just pre-ordered Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen. Can't wait!

Having recently re-read Komarr and A Civil Campaign, I'm sure I will love Bujold's treatment of mid-life re-evaluations, particularly Cordelia's. But I'm slightly put-off that she introduced a character who was central to Cordelia and Aral without having any breath of the relationship before this.

>317 jnwelch: >318 2wonderY: Glad to hear that you're also looking forward to the new Cordelia book!

I'd like to remind everyone that we have a new thread now:
http://www.librarything.com/topic/206634

Please carry on over there! :)