Lois McMaster Bujold

Pen and Des! 💖

Roz the bandit spots Penric in a tavern. Look, here is a rich traveller! Penric is seeking a remote temple, where valuable things are hidden. Is Roz interested? You bet. Let’s travel together, gullible person.

Well, the problem is that Roz is trying to con and rob Pen and Des, so who is conning who, really?
Des: “So, what, Learned, you want to run him in Penric-circles till he reforms of sheer exhaustion?”

(Me, having known Penric for 13 books: yes, that would show more work.)

Adventures ensue. As Roz discovers, Penric’s company is exciting in many ways. “Roz thought he might just start dubbing it all sodding magic. They stared each other down. Roz lost.”

This is a novella of redemption, choices, and second chances. Bujold’s stories are always humane. They make me happy. show less

After so many books, these characters feel like family.

Penric and Desdemona, it’s lovely to see you again.
“How a bodiless, invisible demon smirked, he’s never quite been sure.”

Lois McMaster Bujold’s books are wise about families – the author knows exactly how good families work, how good marriages work. There are lots of details to make a reader happy.

“But two chaos demons in one place is usually considered an imprudent concentration. Although,” his voice went pensive, show more “how’s that worse than one chaos demon and two small children in a household, I don’t see.”

I marveled at how easily the story flowed, and how small the brushstrokes were. It takes a lot of skill and experience for the author to know know exactly when to show and when to tell, and how much. Also, there are three POV’s in 150 pages, and they follow each other seamlessly. Everything looks deceptively effortless.

There is a lot of cozy domesticity in this novella. Yet, there is also a lot of darkness, tough questions, moral dilemmas and heartbreak. Otta’s story is desperately sad. Seeing Penric and Desdemona disagree, quarrel, be upset with each other was disturbing. If there will be more books, I wonder where they will go from here?

Here are my favourite moments:

1) Nikys telling it like it is
“Granted that Otta is only six,” said Nikys, “but speaking as a woman who has been left in the dark a few too many times by well-meaning men who actually just didn’t want to endure my distress, I would say tell hr as much as possible as soon as possible.”

2) Iroki competing for the title of “Best and Coolest Saint in the book universe”.

The novella was too short! I wanted to enjoy it longer :) show less

What a happy re-read, lucky me. I had also managed to forget the book completely - except for the very beginning, the ending (the characters that end up together, that is), and that there was some kind of curse, lol. Obviously, it added to my enjoyment.

I really cannot thank Lois McMaster Bujold enough for her books. The writing is as great as always, creating characters that are vivid and alive. The plot is tightly and cleverly crafted. It is also taking its time at the very beginning, which show more is fine - you enjoy the worldbuilding and the details, getting to know the characters.

How can broken people heal? How do you remain human in horrible situations? How do you grow when thrust into a new role? What happens when good deeds snowball in unexpected and oh so right ways? I love how the answers are woven into the book.

I am left with a lovely “good book hangover” :) show less

I will read anything Lois writes that takes place in this universe. This isn't the most emotionally packed story, nor is it the deepest or wittiest, or even the best plotted of the series. But I still enjoyed it as it was a chance to see old friends.

This is a quieter novella than the rest of the series - which make sense as it's Ekaterin's story, not Miles's, and she is quiet competence and intelligence rather than her husband's over-the-top grandstanding genius.

Here, we see more of how life show more might be for those who aren't Vor, particularly those who live in the rural backcountry of Vorkosigan land. And it's suitably tragic, but Ekaterin turns it into something potentially hopeful. This is her "Mountains of Mourning" in a way.

(Also, yes, more Borgos!) show less