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Miles Vorkosigan Saga

Miles Vorkosigan Saga

Author: Lois Mcmaster Bujold

There's a time for everything. There's a time to read heavy novels filled with grand ideas and space, the universe, and the destiny of mankind through Hard Science Fiction. There's a time to read meaningful discourse on the human condition through Soft Science Fiction. Then there's just a time to sit back and read something that's just pretty damn fun without having to think complex thoughts. Miles Vorkosigan is that read. This is heroic, romantic space opera that has the best character writing and development in the entire genre.  The series follows the rise of prodigy Miles Vorkosigan, a young man with a crippled body but a brilliant mind, through his rise in the ranks as he takes on and conquers impossible odds with genius strategy. This is character-driven Space Opera that mixes in humor, comedy, tragedy and loss, politics,, military, and romance in various proportions. Lots of action, lots of adventure, and always fun, this is one of science fiction's most endearing and enduring series. The first book was published in 1986 and the most recent in 2012.  Part of the pleasure of reading this saga is rooting for the underdog, the titular hero of the story Miles Vorkosigan. Miles is the definition of an underdog, a man who's bound by serious physical limitations but with a brilliant mind. It's the juxtaposition of Mile's clear physical inadequacies (his bones are fragile as glass and he's under five feet tall) and the strength of his mind that fuel the emotional conflicts of this novel. Miles is forever the underdog, both in physical contests and strategic ones; he also faces serious prejudice because of his physical appearance, prejudice he is able to overcome through his own heroic efforts, though he must deal with them at an emotional level. If the fact that Miles Vorkosigan is a pretty thrilling read from start to finished with astoundingly deep characterization of the hero (and other characters) isn't enough, then perhaps the fact that Lois McMaster Bujold has won Four Hugo awards, two Nebula awards, two Locus awards and countless nominations for books in the series over the twenty-five year history might help convince you; indeed, if it comes down to a "who has the bigger Hugo collection" brags, only Robert H. Heinlein has tied Lois McMaster Bujold with each having 5 Nebulas. Bottom line: if you want an extraordinarily entertaining series that's fueled some suburb characterization and a lot of politics, action, and adventure, you absolutely have to read this series. This series definitely takes the cake for some of the most entertaining science fiction reads in the genre.A Note About the (confusing) Miles Vorkosigan Series Order We've given the internal chronological order of the series below. This is a different order than the publishing order as Bujold has published a number of novels and novellas from different periods, not always following the publishing order. The author herself suggests that you follow the internal chronological order. Note that not every novel in the series stars the titular hero, Miles. There are also a number of short stories / novellas inter-spliced between the novels. We've the strict internal chronological order. As for recommended reading order, you should probably start out with the "first" book where Miles (rather than start out with the prequel story that takes place before Miles birth) is the (main) protagonist to at least get a feel for the series. This book is "The Warrior's Apprentice" and really marks the point where "the series takes off." If you like the first few Miles books, you can read the prequel series than start following the chronological order.

Books in Vorkosigan Saga Series (37)