Memory by Lois McMaster Bujold

Hello, Stranger.

Let's talk about Lois McMaster Bujold's Memory.

The Short of It

Plot: After be declared unfit for active duty, Miles is tasked with investigating issues within Imperial Security.

Page Count: 462

Award: Part of the Vorkosigan Saga

Worth a read: Yes
Primary Driver: (Plot, World, or Character)
Bechdel Test: Pass
Technobabble: Minimal
Review: Start of the next chapter for Miles. Fun mystery elements and tight focus keep things moving. Excellent character work and development of Ivan, Illyan, and Miles. Nice to be back on Barrayar and engaging with a smaller cast of characters. Some side stories are less interesting but nonetheless nicely woven into the main plot. 

The Medium of It

Spoiler Free!

It is hard to continually raise the stakes in a series this long. We're somewhere past book ten here. And Miles full on died in the last one. Admittedly, not permanently, but still. Dude was a corpsicle. Where do you go from there?

After all, this changes the game dramatically. Death in the Vorkosigan world seems less severe, because we know that there are some ways for it to be undone. And putting Miles in a life-threatening situation right after he was resurrected is silly: What'll they do, kill him again? 

The risks and threats faced by Miles, then, must be different. Having spent so much time carving out his place and making a name for himself as a "mercenary" captain, Miles must confront a fundamental question: If he is no longer in charge of his fleet, who is he? This is the major focus of Memory. Miles versus his own insecurities, doubts, and morals. 

All this means that the context for Memory is smaller and tighter than the preceding Vorkosigan books. Winning or losing is not a matter of war: it is instead a question of whether or not the Miles who gets out the other side is still the person he wishes to be.

Bujold writes good characters. It be like that, and here it do too. Dialogue is particularly tight here, bouncing from Miles internal self-recriminations to his interactions with others, giving a full image of the state of his mind. A number of characters who have been interesting in other books but lackign in depth, including Illyan, Gregor, and Ivan, are given much larger roles to play. Illyan is the main focus of this, and his fragmenting memory hints at all sorts of other adventures as well.

Pacing is mostly good. Miles wallowing at the beginning slows things down, and the romance subplots are given disproportionate play for their marginal impact. The main plot moves along well.

The only real issue here is the total lack of surprises. At this point in the series it is pretty clear what choices will be made, which way things will go, and so on. It's still an enjoyable read, but things are telegraphed extremely clearly. 

The Long of It

Spoilers Ahead!

Does everyone need to be in a relationship at the end? Don't get me wrong, it's nice that everyone ends up happy, but some of it feels undeserved. Specifically, Duv Galeni and Delia Koudelka. There are a lot, a lot, a lot of characters in the Vorkosigan universe at this point. Bujold tends to hit the mark on focusing her attention on those in which we're invested. Both Galeni and Koudelka are a miss. There is not enough to them for me to be invested in Galeni's anger about his crush being interested in someone else, nor for me to feel gratified that it all turns out alright for him. 

This is also where the predictability issues come into play. Galeni is obviously not going to be the villain here. And we know it is not Miles. Could it instead be the character who starts out trying to interfere with the investigation? Who we dislike both for causing problems for Miles and simply because he is not Illyan? I wonder.

The final confrontation still lands, despite us knowing exactly who the bad guy will be. Miles is offered his job back as captain of his fleet - everything he wants. The only thing he needs to do is look the other way and let an innocent person take the fall.

I want, I want . . . Had Haroche read the naked longing in his face? Yes, of course; Miles had seen the knowledge in Haroche's smug eyes, in the easy certainty of his smile, in his casually tented hands reflected darkly in the black glass. Powerful hands, that could give or withhold so much at will. He sees me, oh yes. Miles's eyes narrowed, and his sore lips parted. His breath puffed on the chill air of the tiny room, as if he'd just been rabbit-punched in the stomach.

Oh, God. This isn't just a job offer. This is a bribe. Lucas Haroche had just tried to bribe an Imperial Auditor.

Tried? Or succeeded?

We'll get back to that.

And what a bribe. What a sweet bribe. Could Miles even prove it was a bribe, and not sincere admiration?

This also sets up an excellent back and forth with Cordelia:

"What are you doing?" the Countess asked. "We heard a lot of footsteps, and a thump through the ceiling..."
He fought to keep his words even. "Just . . . wrestling with temptation."
Illyan's voice came back, amused. "Who's winning?"
Miles's eye followed the cracks in the plaster, overhead. His voice came out high and light, on a sigh: "I think . . . I'm going for the best two falls out of three."

We know Miles well enough at this point to understand that he will never actually take the bribe. That said, Bujold builds up just how desperately Miles wants to be reinstated, how much he misses his old life. While this then means that his rejection of it is a forgone conclusion, it also allows Miles to make the choice himself to give up his old life. Instead of being forced out of duty, he ultimately leaves on his own terms.

How much would you give up to have the life you wanted, Stranger?
And don't forget to read a book!