Synopses & Reviews
LIMITED SIGNED EDITION A new installment in the New York Times best-selling, award-winning Vorkosigan science fiction adventure series.
Book Fourteen in the best-selling Vorkosigan series.
GOOD INTENTIONS, BAD INTEL
Captain Ivan Vorpatril sometimes thinks that if not for his family, he might have no troubles at all. But he has the dubious fortune of the hyperactive Miles Vorkosigan as a cousin, which has too-often led to his getting dragged into one of Miles’ schemes, with risk to life and limb—and military career—that Ivan doesn’t consider entirely fair. Although much practice has made Ivan more adept at fending off his mother’s less-than-subtle reminders that he should be getting married and continuing the Vorpatril lineage.
Fortunately, his current duty is on the planet Komarr as staff officer to Admiral Desplains, far from both his cousin and his mother back on their homeworld of Barrayar. It’s an easy assignment and nobody is shooting at him. What could go wrong?
Plenty, it turns out, when Byerly Vorrutyer, an undercover agent for Imperial Security, shows up on his doorstep and asks him to make the acquaintance of a young woman, recently arrived on Komarr, who seems to be in danger. That Byerly is characteristically vague about the nature of the danger, not to mention the lady’s name, should have been Ivan’s first clue, but Ivan is no more able to turn aside from aiding a damsel in distress than he could resist trying to rescue a kitten from a tree.
It is but a short step down the road of good intentions to the tangle of Ivan’s life, in trouble with the Komarran authorities, with his superiors, and with the lethal figures hunting the mysterious but lovely Tej and her exotic blue companion Rish—a tangle to test the lengths to which Ivan will go as an inspired protector.
But though his predicament is complicated, at least Ivan doesn’t have to worry about hassle from family. Or so he believes . . .
About Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan Saga:
“Fans have been clamoring for Hugo winner Bujold to pen a new Vorkosigan Saga novel. . . her deft and absorbing writing easily corrals the complex plot.”—Publishers Weeklyon Cryoburn
“Bujold mixes quirky humor with action [and] superb character development…[E]normously satisfying.”—Publishers Weekly.
“One of sf’s outstanding talents . . . an outstanding series.”—Booklist
“. . . an intelligent, well-crafted and thoroughly satisfying blend of adventure, sociopolitical commentary, scientific experiments, and occasional perils . . . with that extra spicing of romance. . . .”—Locus
About Vorkosigan series entry Diplomatic Immunity:
“Bujold is adept at world-building and provides a witty, character-centered plot, full of exquisite grace notes. . . fans will be thoroughly gripped and likely to finish the book in a single sitting.”—Publishers Weekly
Synopsis
Book Fourteen in the best-selling Vorkosigan series.
Captain Ivan Vorpatril is happy with his relatively uneventful bachelor’s life of a staff officer to a Barrayaran admiral. Ivan, cousin to Imperial troubleshooter Miles Vorkosigan, is not far down the hereditary list for the emperorship. Thankfully, new heirs have directed that headache elsewhere, leaving Ivan to enjoy his life on Komarr, far from the Byzantine court politics of his home system. But when an old friend in Barrayaran intelligence asks Ivan to protect an attractive young woman who may be on the hit list of a criminal syndicate, Ivan’s chivalrous nature takes over. It seems danger and adventure have once more found Captain Vorpatril.
Tej Arqua and her half-sister and servant Rish are fleeing the violent overthrow of their clan on free-for-all planet Jackson’s Whole. Now it seems Tej may possess a hidden secret of which even she may not be aware. It’s a secret that could corrupt the heart of a highly regarded Barayarran family and provide the final advantage for the thugs who seek to overthrow Tej’s homeworld.
But none of Tej’s formidable adversaries have counted on Ivan Vorpatril. For behind Ivan’s faÇade of wry and self-effacing humor lies a true and cunning protector who will never leave a distressed lady in the lurch-up to and including making the ultimate sacrifice to keep her from harm: the treasured and hard-won freedom from his own fate as a scion of Barrayar.
About Lois McMaster Bujold’s Vorkosigan Saga:
“Fans have been clamoring for Hugo winner Bujold to pen a new Vorkosigan Saga novel. . . her deft and absorbing writing easily corrals the complex plot.”—Publishers Weeklyon Cryoburn
“Bujold mixes quirky humor with action [and] superb character development…[E]normously satisfying.”—Publishers Weekly.
“One of sf’s outstanding talents . . . an outstanding series.”—Booklist
“. . . an intelligent, well-crafted and thoroughly satisfying blend of adventure, sociopolitical commentary, scientific experiments, and occasional perils . . . with that extra spicing of romance. . . .”—Locus
About Vorkosigan series entry Diplomatic Immunity:
“Bujold is adept at world-building and provides a witty, character-centered plot, full of exquisite grace notes. . . fans will be thoroughly gripped and likely to finish the book in a single sitting.”—Publishers Weekly
About the Author
A science fiction legend, Lois McMaster Bujold has won six Hugo Awards and three Nebula Awards. Her Miles Vorkosigan saga is a hugely popular science fiction mainstay with multiple New York Times bestsellers including previous entries, Cryoburn and Diplomatic Immunity. The mother of two, Ms. Bujold lives in Minneapolis.