Helpful Score: 7
This is the umpteenth Vorkosigan Saga novel, long salivated after by all right and proper fans (whose ranks do include me, as fair warning), and like all books in the series it functions as a stand-alone and even would serve as a decent introduction to the series. It's not the best introduction, but anyone who comes to the series through this novel will have no trouble keeping up with the plot here and will also not be spoiled on any major events from earlier on, except for Mirror Dance -- but to be fair, just knowing that the series continues is a spoiler for Mirror Dance.
What makes the Vorkosigan Saga unique in my experience (and if there are any other series that share this quality, please, let me know!) is that it is a very long-running series where each book does stand-alone yet which carries the same set of characters throughout (with the occasional addition or subtraction) and in which the characters undergo fundamental change throughout, significant, life-altering experiences that can't be brushed off or reset in the next volume. The best volumes in the series are, in fact, those that deal with those life-altering experiences.
Cryoburn does not fall into that category. Instead, it falls into the slightly-less-satisfying but still exceptional category of Vorkosigan Saga novels that use the science fiction setting to explore the effect of technological innovation on human society. Unlike many science fiction writers, Bujold has little interest in the physics of her universe; she hand-waved some wormhole-aided space travel technology and then never gave it another thought. The technology Bujold is interested in exploring is the technology of life and death. Many of her novels explore what strange subcultures we might create given a workable uterine replicator (Falling Free, Ethan of Athos, and Cetaganda leap to mind, and the technology is important in nearly all of the others); this novel explores in depth what strange distortions the cryochamber (a technology that allows freezing and reliable reviving of humans near -- or recently -- dead) might work through society.
I don't think Bujold gets enough credit for how science fiction -y her novels are. Not hard SF -- we get no lovingly technical infodumps of any of these technologies -- but true soft SF of the sort Ursula LeGuin writes, extrapolating futures frightening for how very human they are. I believe, in every Bujold novel, in the way her societies have been distorted. But unlike much thoughtful soft SF, Bujold always bears in mind that she is writing an entertaining story first. I suspect this is why it's easy for people to brush her off. There is nothing didactic about her writing, and the social extrapolation is always either essential to the plot (in which case you can look at it as purely plot-related) or done in small little asides that, if you are racing to get to the end, are very easy to overlook. She also takes time to make the reader laugh, often -- something I wish far more science fiction authors would do.
So Cryoburn works in both those ways. Like many a Miles novel before it, it's a fast-paced adventure wherein Miles happens to people, and their lives (and worlds) are skewed in his wake. Like recent Miles novels, Cryoburn very much benefits from having two POV characters besides Miles; these POVs let us see more of the human cost of his manic forward momentum. One of the alternate POVs, a young boy named Jin, is very well-done and makes this the first Vorkosigan novel since The Warrior's Apprentice that is fundamentally YA-friendly. (The other POV is Armsman Roic, who though wonderful in the novella "Winterfair Gifts" is used mainly for plot-advancement here.) And like all Vorkosigan Saga novels, everything comes together in a hectic (but never confusing) climax with Miles the victor.
But after that satisfying (though not world-shattering) climax comes the denouement, which was telegraphed from page one (and which Bujold has repeatedly told readers was next for the series) and which I had been dreading from the moment I heard this book was going to be published. And it feels. . . strange. It left me off-balance, and while I'm sure it was supposed to leave me off-balance I can't help but wonder if Bujold just chickened out. The Aftermaths section (a perfectly pitched call-back to the first Vorkosigan novel, Shards of Honor) was delicate, and so very right (it's a set of five drabbles), but. . . it will likely leave any new readers confused and cold, and to longtime fans it feels like the only "To be continued" of the series, because it screams for elaboration.
On the other hand, it does work, intellectually, as a cap for a series that has produced three Hugo-winning novels, one Nebula-winning novel, and a number of Hugo- and Nebula-winning short stories and novellas. So it is entirely possible that I am left unsatisfied simply because it's over. Again.
What makes the Vorkosigan Saga unique in my experience (and if there are any other series that share this quality, please, let me know!) is that it is a very long-running series where each book does stand-alone yet which carries the same set of characters throughout (with the occasional addition or subtraction) and in which the characters undergo fundamental change throughout, significant, life-altering experiences that can't be brushed off or reset in the next volume. The best volumes in the series are, in fact, those that deal with those life-altering experiences.
Cryoburn does not fall into that category. Instead, it falls into the slightly-less-satisfying but still exceptional category of Vorkosigan Saga novels that use the science fiction setting to explore the effect of technological innovation on human society. Unlike many science fiction writers, Bujold has little interest in the physics of her universe; she hand-waved some wormhole-aided space travel technology and then never gave it another thought. The technology Bujold is interested in exploring is the technology of life and death. Many of her novels explore what strange subcultures we might create given a workable uterine replicator (Falling Free, Ethan of Athos, and Cetaganda leap to mind, and the technology is important in nearly all of the others); this novel explores in depth what strange distortions the cryochamber (a technology that allows freezing and reliable reviving of humans near -- or recently -- dead) might work through society.
I don't think Bujold gets enough credit for how science fiction -y her novels are. Not hard SF -- we get no lovingly technical infodumps of any of these technologies -- but true soft SF of the sort Ursula LeGuin writes, extrapolating futures frightening for how very human they are. I believe, in every Bujold novel, in the way her societies have been distorted. But unlike much thoughtful soft SF, Bujold always bears in mind that she is writing an entertaining story first. I suspect this is why it's easy for people to brush her off. There is nothing didactic about her writing, and the social extrapolation is always either essential to the plot (in which case you can look at it as purely plot-related) or done in small little asides that, if you are racing to get to the end, are very easy to overlook. She also takes time to make the reader laugh, often -- something I wish far more science fiction authors would do.
So Cryoburn works in both those ways. Like many a Miles novel before it, it's a fast-paced adventure wherein Miles happens to people, and their lives (and worlds) are skewed in his wake. Like recent Miles novels, Cryoburn very much benefits from having two POV characters besides Miles; these POVs let us see more of the human cost of his manic forward momentum. One of the alternate POVs, a young boy named Jin, is very well-done and makes this the first Vorkosigan novel since The Warrior's Apprentice that is fundamentally YA-friendly. (The other POV is Armsman Roic, who though wonderful in the novella "Winterfair Gifts" is used mainly for plot-advancement here.) And like all Vorkosigan Saga novels, everything comes together in a hectic (but never confusing) climax with Miles the victor.
But after that satisfying (though not world-shattering) climax comes the denouement, which was telegraphed from page one (and which Bujold has repeatedly told readers was next for the series) and which I had been dreading from the moment I heard this book was going to be published. And it feels. . . strange. It left me off-balance, and while I'm sure it was supposed to leave me off-balance I can't help but wonder if Bujold just chickened out. The Aftermaths section (a perfectly pitched call-back to the first Vorkosigan novel, Shards of Honor) was delicate, and so very right (it's a set of five drabbles), but. . . it will likely leave any new readers confused and cold, and to longtime fans it feels like the only "To be continued" of the series, because it screams for elaboration.
On the other hand, it does work, intellectually, as a cap for a series that has produced three Hugo-winning novels, one Nebula-winning novel, and a number of Hugo- and Nebula-winning short stories and novellas. So it is entirely possible that I am left unsatisfied simply because it's over. Again.
Helpful Score: 2
So many books I thought I reviewed. And yet another one I didn't.
According to my notes, I read it late last year - a birthday present to myself. And its the last of the Vorkosigan books. I won't bother recounting what its about - the cover blurbs and wikipedia do far better jobs of that.
Sadly, this was only a decent book for the series. It felt, well, off. Supposedly, and she wrote Cryoburn in honor of Jim Baen's passing and I think it shows. Like Diplomatic Immunity in that regard, where the opposition is as deep over their heads as Miles frequently is. To be honest, they felt like folks who'd gotten lucky, not like any serious threats. It'd have been a darn sight more interesting if there were puppetteers behind the opposition - Jacksonians, or some new threat.
It was also a departure from her formula of "What's the worst thing I can do to Miles?" and I think it shows for that.
As a meditation on family and responsibility though, its good and what helped push it up into 3½ stars for me.
Ah well. The Coda was worthwhile.
According to my notes, I read it late last year - a birthday present to myself. And its the last of the Vorkosigan books. I won't bother recounting what its about - the cover blurbs and wikipedia do far better jobs of that.
Sadly, this was only a decent book for the series. It felt, well, off. Supposedly, and she wrote Cryoburn in honor of Jim Baen's passing and I think it shows. Like Diplomatic Immunity in that regard, where the opposition is as deep over their heads as Miles frequently is. To be honest, they felt like folks who'd gotten lucky, not like any serious threats. It'd have been a darn sight more interesting if there were puppetteers behind the opposition - Jacksonians, or some new threat.
It was also a departure from her formula of "What's the worst thing I can do to Miles?" and I think it shows for that.
As a meditation on family and responsibility though, its good and what helped push it up into 3½ stars for me.
Ah well. The Coda was worthwhile.
Helpful Score: 1
This latest book in the Vorkosigan Saga takes us to an entirely new world. If it was mentioned in any of the previous books, it was only in passing. The world of Kobou-daini is run by corporations that specialize in cryofreezing. The goal of everyone on planet is to have enough money on hand that when they become too ill, too old or too injured they can be frozen until a cure for what ails them is invented. The corporations wound up running everything because someone who is cryofrozen is still, technically, alive. Since Kobou-daini is nominally a "one-vote per person" democracy, the corporations that control the frozen body are aloud to cast their vote for them.
The culture of Kobou-daini is Asian with a little Egyptian thrown in.
The book begins very abruptly, which leaves the reader scrambling to figure out what's going on. A lot of that orientation is covered in characters musing on how they got to be where they were. It would have been much better to simply show us the action instead. Once oriented the book becomes the traditional Miles Vorkosigan adventure, with Miles charging out to do what he feels needs to be done. The book is co-narrated by Armsman Roic and Jin, a native boy. This adds some nice viewpoints to get other takes on the action.
While seeing a new culture in Bujold's world was nice, it was a bit disappointing to have Miles so far from the Empire, and his family and friends. A bit of something was missing.
Overall a decent book in the series, although not a great one.
The culture of Kobou-daini is Asian with a little Egyptian thrown in.
The book begins very abruptly, which leaves the reader scrambling to figure out what's going on. A lot of that orientation is covered in characters musing on how they got to be where they were. It would have been much better to simply show us the action instead. Once oriented the book becomes the traditional Miles Vorkosigan adventure, with Miles charging out to do what he feels needs to be done. The book is co-narrated by Armsman Roic and Jin, a native boy. This adds some nice viewpoints to get other takes on the action.
While seeing a new culture in Bujold's world was nice, it was a bit disappointing to have Miles so far from the Empire, and his family and friends. A bit of something was missing.
Overall a decent book in the series, although not a great one.
This is really an outstanding series.
This last book may not have all the thrills and chills that all the other books have, it is still a good book and I'm glad to have it to read and add to my collection.
This last book may not have all the thrills and chills that all the other books have, it is still a good book and I'm glad to have it to read and add to my collection.
The opening chapter is a little off-setting. You wonder what happened to cause the author to write it as such. However, with the second chapter you are back in the Miles Vorkosigan universe, as enjoyable as ever.
