Bujold, Lois McMaster
YOUNG MILES (an omnibus of THE WARRIOR'S APPRENTICE, the story "The
Mountain's of Mourning" from the book BORDERS OF INFINITY, and THE VOR GAME)
Lois McMaster Bujold
BAEN Publishing 1997
Pb 838 pages
ISBN#
0-7434-3616-4
THE WARRIORS APPRENTICE: Born on the planet Barrayar where the military is everything and there is no room for a Vor lord's deformed son, Miles Vorkosigan still tries to compete with his peers by participating in the eliminations for officer's candidacy in the Barrayaran Imperial Military Service. Being the son of brilliant parents, the written exams are no problem for Miles. But he fails the physical tests, going home with two broken legs. Miles has a very rare bone disorder caused by his mother's exposure to a poison gas bomb and its subsequent treatment when she was pregnant with him. But Miles is more upset about his standing in Barrayaran society than about bones that keep breaking. Son of Admiral Lord Aral Vorkosigan, Prime Minister of Barrayar in the service of Emperor Gregor Vorbarra, former Regent of same, Miles's greatest wish is to outshine his father and stand as a man with his own honors. Tall order for a short guy in a power-hungry society. So, Miles takes a trip with his faithful bodyguard Sargent Bortheri and his friend Elena (Botheri's daughter) to Miles's mother's home planet of Beta Colony where they visit Miles's grandmother--supposedly. But Miles, now Lord Vorkosigan since his paternal grandfather's death which passed on the mantle of Count to Miles's father, uses his new lordship to get into all kinds of trouble. In a matter of days he acquires a derelict space ship and its crazy pilot, a deserting Barrayaran engineer who thinks himself a coward, and a contract to ship weapons into a war zone. One thing leads to another once Miles and his cohorts reach Tau Verde local space. The Oseran Mercenaries try to board Miles's ship but find themselves outmaneuvered. Before he quite knows how it happens, Miles finds himself hailed as Admiral Naismith in command of the Dendarii Mercenaries and basically in total control of Tau Verde space! Unfortunately, owning a private army is considered treason by Barrayaran law!
"The Mountains of Mourning" gives readers an interesting intermission from Miles's space adventures to the backward society of rural Barrayar where deformed babies are killed at birth. Miles's father Count Vorkosigan the Prime Minister of Barrayar wisely sends his full grown deformed son to solve the mystery of who murdered a baby born with a cleft-palate. The people are affronted with Miles's deformity, but a Vor lord is not to be ignored, especially when he intelligently solves the crime and sets up a precedent for future Barrayarans to follow.
THE VOR GAME: Having entered the Barrayaran Military Academy (by the sufferance of his emperor), and graduated, Miles now gets his first official military assignment, an insignificant post on Kyril Island up near the arctic circle--as backwater as one can get. It is a test to see if Miles can behave himself enough to earn the right for ship duty. And, of course, he can't. But the trouble he finds himself in is not all of his own making. Miles manages to get his insane commander discharged and himself babysat by Imperial Security. Eventually, the emperor and the head of ImpSec decide the best place for Miles is out in space as a spy where he will be the least threat to the planet Barrayar. Besides, they can't discredit Miles's natural talent for security issues. So, Miles is sent off, second to a Captain on an ImpSec mission to determine the reason for increased activity in the Hegan Hub, a nexus of wormhole connections for four adjoining systems. Along the way, Miles gets separated from his captain and stumbles upon his own Barrayaran emperor who "ran away from home" when he discovered the secret behind his own father's death. Miles loves Gregor like a brother, but cannot allow his emperor friend to have his own way in this. In an attempt at returning Gregor to Barrayar, however, they come upon the hidden meaning behind this buildup of forces in the Hegen Hub. Emperor Gregor is taken from Miles. In desperation, Miles resumes his Admiral Naismith persona, retakes control of the Dendarii Mercenaries, outlives several assassination attempts on his person, rescues his emperor, and faces an invasion force from Cetaganda.
Mmm--a delightful book, highly recommended for high action space fantasy addicts who really appreciate the little guy who can beat the odds, especially when they are stacked nearly vertical against him! Ms. Bujold is a master at characterization. Her Miles has a manic wit that I just adore.
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