Miles is dead, lost, presumed...
Lost.

Mark is taken to Barrayar and discovers that he now is Lord Mark Vorkosigan. But he caused Miles' death, and now there's only one thing left to do: Mark has to return to Jackson's whole and find his brother, and maybe himself.

But they both are wanted by the Great Houses, for different reasons.

And of course nothing is as simple as it should be...

Vorkosigan adventure follows, much and often, and maybe, just maybe someone is found.

Her protagonist, far from being another Miles Vorkosigan, actually reminds me a bit of a cross between Brother Cadfael from Ellis Peters' series of the same name and her avuncular spymaster Simon Illian from the Vorkosigan novels - a kindly, frustrated teacher with a worldly past who follows his cause to and past the point of selflessness. This character is definitely unique, though he shares the same spark of and for life that so many of her other characters have.

The story is one of unexpected boons and dangers, familiar danger (from within and without), intrigue, love and trust. Her world is better put together than many multi-novel series I have read and her religion system is surprisingly well thought out. The narrative is strung together surprisingly well and weaves to a wonderfully well-choreographed ending.

I really can't recommend this novel enough. It's got the political and social cohesion of a George R. R. Martin novel, the heart of an Orson Scott Card novel and the humanity of, well, a Bujold novel. It is, however, it's own unique entity and stands quite well on it's own merits. If you're a Bujold fan that's skittish of her non-Vorkosigan Saga stuff, I definitely recommend giving this a shot. If you're a fantasy fan that's a little wary of reading fantasy from a science fiction author, I also recommend trying it. I recommend this to everyone, really, but I am hard-pressed to think of other types of readers that would need cajoling to read it. "The Curse of Chalion" is simply the best fantasy novel I have read this year. While I look forward to more from the Miles Vorkosigan universe, I hope she returns to this one someday as well.

Bujold is a marvelous writer and does an incredible (where does she get her ideas??!!) job of creating fascinating characters and coming up with innovative story lines. As for comparisons--I would recommend this book over George R.R. Martin's trilogy in a heartbeat, and would readily put it on the same shelf as my Ursula LeGuin books if I didn't shelve books alphabetically by author. There are many elements of the book that are reminescent of others--but I would submit that is true of all good books.

I agree with the reviewer who pointed out that Bujold's books have been getting better and better--unlike many other authors. Although I want to find out about Miles' future life I would hate to see her future books limited to Vorkosigan tales, and I would love to read any other fantasies that she is interested in writing.

In any event, I think that people who like books that combine elements of historical fiction and fantasy/science fiction are likely to enjoy this book. Kage Baker's Company series, Eric Flint's 1632, Connie Willis's Doomsday Book and Orson Scott Card's Enchantment are a few recent books that come to mind (but don't expect a time travel element in this book), also Guy Gavriel Kay, Patricia McKillip and Dorothy Dunnett. Anyone who likes the Vorkosigan books because of similarities to naval historical fiction should consider giving this book a test run by checking it out of the library instead of rushing out to buy it.

So the book becomes a mystery with Miles as the investigator and - naturally - his cousin Ivan as the sidekick. And it is a great story with all the colorful, romantic background of Barrayar.

If "Mirror Dance" was the very dark but brilliant story about his clone-brother becoming Lord Mark, then this is Miles' turn to really become Lord Vorkossigan, new suite and kitchen-staff included. There is also romance in the book, but it mostly evades Miles - well, at least the emperor is happy ...

A mystery, romance, a search for oneself - it's all there in this book. I regard it as one of the best of this brilliant series. To read it before "Komarr" (and consequently "A Civil Campaign") is recommended.

Memory brings Miles Vorkosigan to a new crisis, catastrophe, and disaster which makes it an opportunity as good as any he has encountered before.

This story stands alone well enough that it could be read before any others in the series. In it, Bujold brings a change of pace that invigorated me. When I bought the hard cover copy, I not only read it quickly, but I re-read it within weeks. Bujold tells of people I would like to have as friends and places I would like to live. In this story she places the people in events that continually catch me by surprise yet remain "believable."

Bujold packs more characterization, observation, wry humor and pathos in a paragraph than most authors get in a page. While she does that, she keeps the book light and fun to read. Are you getting the idea I'm trying to recommend this book without taking away any of the surprises? Do, please, get that idea.

well, borders of infinity features as one of the most confusing book in the back of each vorkosigan saga book, where the times of miles vorkosigan/admiral naismith is shown.

what you actually have here is a collection of 3 stories, written in a style in which miles is telling them to simon. so in between each short story, you have the interaction between miles and simon. so in the end you have four stories!

no! don't skip this book! each story is important and will be mentioned again later in the series! the first of the three stories appears in the collection, young miles, but the other two stories don't appear anywhere else.

if you are new to the vorksigan series, start with shards of honour (about miles' parents) or skip the parents and start at the warrior's apprentice or the collection young miles. this is a fantastic sci-fi series ; funny and interesting. you won't regret reading the series!

I, too, recommend The Warrior's Apprentice as the first Miles Vorkosigan book to read. It's primarily action, but I didn't find this to detract from its charms.

I especially like how well this book flows -- it seems so natural for Miles to go from military service exams, to vacation, to Admiral Naismith, and finally to end up as Lord Vorkosigan.

The characters, scenes, situations, and dialog are all skillfully woven together - consistent, believable, and engrossing.

This book contains one of the most powerful and memorable scenes I have ever read - when Cordelia returns after ending the Vordarian Pretendership (with extreme prejudice). It is the climax of the book in every meaning of the word. I re-read the scene several times, relishing its perfection, and I have re-read the novel several times with no loss in the power of that scene.

If you cannot find this book (it's out of print) read "Cordelia's Honor", a combination of "Barrayar" and "Shards of Honor". Then read each and every book about Miles Vorkosigan, the child of Cordelia and Aral. You will be fascinated by this (and all her other) characters.

My other favorite authors are David Drake, Robert Heinlein, Jerry Pournelle, S.M. Stirling, Harry Turtledove, Robert B. Parker and John D. MacDonald, so Ms. Bujold is in some very good company.

After leaving her home planet of Beta to marry Aral Vorkosigan on his home planet of Barrayar, Cordelia tries to settle into a Barrayaran retired nobles' life. Aral has retired from politics and wants to lead a quiet life with his new wife. Cordelia is pregnant with their son, and he just wants to live a happy life with her. Unfortunately, events transpire to make that impossible. The Emperor is dying and his grandson (the son died in Shards of Honor, the first book) is only four years old. A regent must be appointed, and Vorkosigan is the only one who would be agreeable to the majority of Counts. Thus, Cordelia and Aral's life is turned upside down when he assumes his new duties. There is plenty of political intrigue as other Counts scheme for power because Vorkosigan wants to bring Barrayar into the current century while the conservatives want things to stay as they are. These events even go so far as to really affect the unborn Miles in ways that will be familiar to long-time Vorkosigan fans, but which I won't spoil in case you've never read a Vorkosigan book.

This book is fascinating in many ways. First, as a fan of the series already (I've only got two books to go, not counting the new one that's coming out this summer), it was very interesting to see the characters I've known and loved for so long before they became the characters I've known. It is interesting to see them develop the attitudes that I'm familiar with. Simon Illyan (the head of Imperial Security in the series) starts out as captain of Aral's personal security force. Emperor Gregor, who we've only seen since he was seventeen, is now a four-year old child, aware of what's going on around him but not really understanding the political situation. A lot of the nobility would like to control him, especially through his mother.

Not only the characters, but there's also many events that have been referred to in the series that we finally get to see happen on screen. Biggest of these, of course, is what happens to Miles. We have been told many times what happened, but it's interesting to finally see it. Of course, there has also been a lot that hasn't been mentioned before, and those events are intriguing too. A lot of what we know is now coloured a different way now that we know the events that surrounded it. Some people have suggested that you should read this series chronologically, starting with Shards of Honor. I'm almost of the opinion that you should have a few Miles books under your belt before tackling these, just because it makes these books even more interesting than they already are.

The second reason the book is fascinating is because of the view of Barrayaran politics that we get. Cordelia is an outsider, and some of the practices on Barrayar are almost barbaric to her. There is very little genetic manipulation of offspring, for one. Mutants are killed as soon as they are born so they don't affect the gene pool. Some other political aspects are so different than what she's used to that she needs some coaching in how to deal with them. Thankfully, Aral's family is up to the task. It's interesting to see these from an outsider's point of view. I don't think the story would be nearly as effective if it was just a political tale told from within Barrayaran society. Some of the most priceless scenes come from this weird dichotomy.

For fans of romance, though, there is definitely some of that in here. This book continues to develop the relationship between Aral and Cordelia, showing how strong their love is as it withstands the pressures that politics places on it. Again, as with Shards of Honor, this is a mature romance, though because they are actually together now (unlike Shards), there are some playful moments as well. These are two character that the reader cares deeply about.

I couldn't put this book down. It has everything: action, romance, explosions, intrigue, great characters. This one is certainly worth a pick up. It also stands alone, as you don't need to read any of the other books to enjoy it. It helps to read the others (especially Shards of Honor), but it's not mandatory. Wonderful book.

"Shards of Honor" details the meeting and subsequent romance of Miles' parents, Cordelia Naismith and Aral Vorkosigan, on a backwater planet during an interplanetary skirmish. Despite belonging to opposing sides of the conflict they fall in love and the rest of the novel chronicles their adventures (together and apart) as they struggle to survive both physically and spiritually in a time of war. This book will be especially interesting to those who love the Miles Vorkosigan character; as he is an exact blend of his parent's more spectacular qualities.

As with all of McMaster's books, "Shards of Honor" moves at a breathtaking pace and is crammed with wonderful dialogue and characters. If you haven't yet read any of her books, "Shards of Honor" is a great place to start, but if you are only going to read one, I would have to say let it be "The Warrior's Apprentice", the next in the series and the first to feature Miles. McMaster hit an all-time high with "Apprentice" which she hasn't yet managed to duplicate, but "Shards of Honor" belongs alongside "Borders of Infinity" as her next-best work. Recommended.

GRADE: A-

So how is Shards? It's very, very good, especially for a first novel. Cordelia Naismith is on a survey mission for her home planet, Beta, when her landing party (to borrow a phrase from Star Trek) is ambushed and almost completely wiped out by a Barrayaran force that is using the planet as a supply depot. Cordelia is captured by Captain Aral Vorkosigan, the commander of the Barrayarans. However, things aren't quite what they seem, as Vorkosigan's crew seems to be divided between loyalty to him and mutineers. Vorkosigan was left for dead by the mutineers, and so he and Cordelia (along with an injured member of Cordelia's team, who's mind has been blown away by a Barrayaran weapon) have to make their way to the supply depot. The mutineers are the ones who wiped out Cordelia's crew, as Vorkosigan is too honourable a man to do something like that. She finds herself being drawn to him during the many days of their journey, and a bond develops between them. Cordelia ends up helping Aral in dealing with his crew.

Once this section of the book is over, they separate, but events transpire to bring them together again, and their bond grows. The book details the story of how their relationship develops, deepening into a love that is a lot more mature than relationships are sometimes portrayed in science fiction. Usually, the heroes that get involved in romances are very young, where sex is the most important thing. The romances seem very physical. That doesn't happen in this relationship, though, as both parties are drawn to the mind of the other person, their honour and how they react to people. It was very refreshing.

The book also shows how, even as a Betan and not a Barrayaran, she gets involved in Barrayaran politics. The political intrigue in this book is very interesting. Clashes of honour make the character interaction fabulous. Cordelia has problems at home based on her captivity. She can't tell anybody what really happened when she was captured as it would make Vorkosigan's political life very difficult. So she takes that difficulty on herself instead. All of the main characters are well-rounded, with valid reasons for doing what they do, even if it's obvious that their actions will cause themselves grief. The sheer inevitability of the events, and how the characters deal with them, make this a great book.

If you are a regular follower of the Vorkosigan series, then this book (and it's companion, Barrayar), make an interesting look into the history of the Vorkosigan family. A lot of the events that have been referred to in the series are finally shown here. It's nice seeing how Cordelia and Aral's relationship developed, considering how set in stone they are now. The love that has always been visible between them finally has a genesis. It's very cool to look at this and see how our favourite characters became who they are now.

It's hard to believe that this was Bujold's first book. While the prose isn't the most wonderful thing, it stands high above the usual first-timer's writing. Some of the military aspects of the novel are a bit unbelievable, but that has gotten better over time as she continues the series. What you will get in this one are great characters in a science-fiction setting. It really is a romance, though, even though it doesn't really have the trappings of one (there is no bodice-ripping, for one thing). Even if romances turn you off, you should enjoy this, though. It is intelligent sci-fi.

As you'll see in the other reviews, this tells the story of Cordelia Naismith and Aral Vorkosigan, eventual parents of Miles Vorkosigan who becomes the main character of the series. However, this covers the beginning, before Miles.

It begins with the attack on an astronomical survey team which has the effect of most members fleeing off planet. Cordelia Naismith and her botanist, who is attacked and left helpless and senseless, are captured by Aral Vorkosigan who's been abandoned by a group of mutineers. Forced to trust each other to survive, they predictably fall in love, but their separate allegainces cause considerable complications. There are space battles, political conflicts and bloodshed enough for the adventure fan and emotional situations enough for a romance fan.

It's told from Cordelia's viewpoint, but don't let that scare away any men. There's plenty of action here, and there's intrigue. There's keen insight into opposing viewpoints of conflict situations. We're shown both the Betan perspective and the Barrayaran perspective, and we learn that the truth of a conflict lies between the two perspectives, not from one alone.

There's much more here. I recommend you read it for yourself.

In Cetaganda, Miles is faced with a political overthrow while trying to "soak" up cultural awareness on the orders of Emperor Gregor. Little did he know that he would be swept into a beautiful lady's court, a police officer's suspect list, a Cetagandan's assassination list, and the Cetagandan culture itself.

But true to the Vorkosigan nature, Miles became the hero of an empire; but, it just wasn't the empire he was expecting