Komarr

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Komarr
Komarr.jpg
Cover of the first edition
Author Lois McMaster Bujold
Country United States
Language English
Series Vorkosigan Saga
Genre Science fiction
Publisher Baen Books
Publication date
1998
ISBN 978-0671017835
Preceded by Memory
Followed by A Civil Campaign

Komarr is a 1998 science fiction novel by Lois McMaster Bujold.[1] It is a part of the Vorkosigan Saga, and is the twelfth full-length novel in publication order. It was included in the 2008 omnibus Miles in Love.

Plot

In his new role as Imperial Auditor, Miles Vorkosigan finds himself on Komarr, a planet with which his father has an unfortunate association. He is there, along with an older, more experienced Auditor, to investigate whether the destruction of a solar power satellite vital to the ongoing terraforming of the planet was an accident or sabotage. In doing so, Miles uncovers an extremely dangerous Komarran conspiracy, one which threatens the entire Barrayaran Empire, and is attracted to Ekaterin Vorsoisson, the unhappy wife of a Barrayaran engineer, though he keeps his feelings hidden.

When Ekaterin and the other Auditor's wife are taken prisoner by the fleeing conspirators, Miles sets out to rescue them. He is surprised and utterly delighted to discover that Ekaterin has a previously hidden talent for inflicting mayhem on her enemies and has already dealt the plot a fatal blow. In a departure from the style of the previous Vorkosigan books, much of Komarr is narrated from her point of view.

Reception

Komarr has had a positive reception from reviewers. Writing for Tor.com, Jo Walton stated that "The plot of Komarr is one of the best and tightest in the series...it’s a perfect mystery, with all the clues in plain sight for a re-read but cleverly misdirected. It also has plausible villains who think of themselves as heroes",[2] and Nicki Gerlach stated in her review for The SF Site that "if this book is any indication of what's to come, it's a chapter in which I'll be very interested indeed."[3]

References

  1. Bujold, Lois McMaster (1998) Komarr, Baen Books
  2. Walton, Jo (Apr 14, 2009) But I’m Vor: Lois McMaster Bujold’s Komarr, Tor.com, accessed January 24, 2013
  3. Gerlach, Nicki (2011) Komarr: Lois McMaster Bujold, The SF Site, accessed January 24, 2013