Sunsets, Stars, West, Wind
Those waiting for Clone Wars: The Lost Missions to get some kind of closure for the hit Star Wars cartoon won’t need to wait much longer. The never-before-seen final episodes will debut on Netflix on March 7th, and here’s the first clip featuring a very special cameo!
I first saw mention of this yesterday via my smartphone app feeds, but this was my first chance to really get the full picture. Looking forward to March now, and not just for the snowmelt.
Io9 is on a roll today. Lots of goodies to share from SF classics including hands on (or minds on) information that can be useful in the real world.
Posted from WordPress for Android via my Samsung smartphone. Please excuse any misspellings. Ciao, Jon
I dud not vote for Scalzi’s The Human Division, even though I thought it was a great addition to the Old Man’s War universe. Instead, I wrote in a nomination and voted for the exceptional debut space opera Ancillary Justice.
Why Everyone Should Be Reading Ancillary Justice
http://www.kameronhurley.com/?p=13346
I read Ancillary Justice last week but no time to write a review yet. Read this review (follow link above) because she nails it.
And I agree … go buy this book right now and read it.
Diplomatic Immunity by Lois McMaster Bujold
Ready in May 2010
I read this as part of the omnibus edition Miles, Mutants & Microbes and as the Beyond Reality book club series selection for May 2010.
On the return trip from their delayed honeymoon, Miles and his wife are diverted by Emperor Gregor to do diplomatic damage control duty in Quaddiespace. Since they are expecting twins back home on Barrayar (via the ultraconvenient uterine replicators), they are anxious to mop up the mess and be on their way. Like an onion, the layers of mystery unpeel slowing, revealing a deeper, more sinister meaning behind an otherwise manageable diplomatic gaffe.
I liked this story, but didn’t love it. After the last two superb novels, as encapsulated in Miles in Love, this one was a bit of a let down.
Miles in Love by Lois McMaster Bujold
Read in March 2010
This omnibus edition contains the following works:
Komar (4 stars)
A Civil Campaign (5 stars)
The novella ‘Winterfair Gifts’ (4 stars)
‘Winterfair Gifts’ grants us a glimpse of Vorkosigan House through the eyes of Roic, the newest member of the armsmen, infamous for his spectacular brief rescue of Dr. Borgas and his assistants in A Civil Campaign. Roic feels he failed Lord Miles then and second-guesses himself constantly. Galactic gifts and guests begin to arrive for Miles and Ekaterrin’s wedding, further stressing Roic’s confidence and competence. Taura’s arrival further confuses Roic and eventually places him in the unenviable position of accuser tempered with trust.
Quite a different viewpoint, a newcomer to Miles’ orbit looking on with confusion and awe as Miles spins and whirls, gathering great friends and cunning enemies like a singularity traps light itself.
My favorite Vorkosigan Saga omnibus to date. Only one more to go and then a few months wait for the publication of CryoBurn.
A Civil Campaign by Lois McMaster Bujold
Read in March 2010
I cried. I raged. I laughed. I laughed some more. Any author who can make me care so much about characters who don’t exist deserves five stars.
A Civil Campaign picks up just three months after Komarr. Ekaterrin and Nikki returned to Barrayar to live with her aunt and uncle so she can attend university. Miles not-so-cleverly thought to persuade Ekaterrin to create a public park next to Vorkosigan House in Vorbarr Sultanna just so he could see her everyday and to get a leg-up on the competition for the widow’s hand. Eventually, this plan backfires — spectacularly.
While the preparations for the Emperor’s Wedding swing into high gear, the political scandals among the Counts seem in a mad rush to pick up the pace. Miles crosses that minefield nearly intact and Ivan matures enough to help the Empire, but learns something new about his mother which drives him to drink, temporarily, to ease the shock.
I loved this novel, but I’m sad that I’m nearly to the end of the Vorkosigan Saga series. This installment was the best of the bunch to date.
Komarr by Lois McMaster Bujold
Read in March 2010
I connected deeply with the character Ekaterin. Her predicament broke my heart at times. Miles’ heart melted as well.
Komarr takes place just three months after Memory. Miles acquires an Auditor Mentor in Ekaterin’s uncle Vorthys. Both Imperial Auditors arrive at Komarr to investigate a tragic and seemingly inexplicable near space accident involving an ore freighter and the Komarran solar mirror array. Each Auditor brought a different perspective and expertise to the investigation. Vorthys’ engineering background appeared at first blush to be the most vital asset, but when extra parts, including body, were discovered and retrieved, Miles’ unique talents became a necessity.
Mystery, sabotage, embezzlement, get-rich-quick schemes, murder, kidnapping and revolution round out the hurdles to Miles’ blossoming love life.
Bujold keeps delivering and I keep reading. Highly recommended to space opera junkies everywhere.
Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold
Ready in February 2010
Miles turns thirty and thirty hits back … hard. This will be a short sweet review lacking in many details because nearly everything and anything I say will be a spoiler. Miles walks through some of his deepest, desperate valleys and climbs to new heights of integrity, honor and satisfaction. I stayed up late and woke up early just so I could keep reading.
One of the best installments in the Vorkosigan Saga. I highly recommend it to space opera fans.
Miles Errant by Lois McMaster Bujold
Read in January 2010
Omnibus edition that contains the following works:
The short story ‘The Borders of Infinity’ (see short review below)
Brothers in Arms
Mirror Dance
This omnibus edition didn’t include any author’s note or forward. It did include a time line for Miles as an addendum.
Overall, the series took a more serious and dramatic turn in these two novels and short story. Oddly, I look forward to reading each new novel because the concept is so different from what I’m used to in a fantasy series. Miles isn’t on a quest, he’s not the ‘Chosen One’, he’s not cursed, he’s not magically endowed beyond reason nor does he have a wizardly mentor leading him around by the nose. He uses his talents, his intelligence, his wit and his heart to great effect. He inspires others to exceed their perceived limitations, even some enemies.
I am looking forward to reading the next novel Memory next month.
Review of “The Borders of Inifity” Short Story: If you’ve ever wondered how Miles would survive and persevere as a prisoner of war, this story answers that question exceptionally well.