Lois’s answer to “Hello! I wanted to thank you first, you are one of my favourite authors. I discovered that I have…” > Likes and Comments
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Maybe Komarr when Ekaterine comes into play? I'm afraid I think Ivan's book is dessert, and should only be consumed after dinner. But it has several women, namely, but not only, Tej and Rish.
"Mountains of Mourning" worked for me. My wife and son were fans of your work, but their descriptions left me unconvinced. I read "Mountains of Mourning" and I was hooked. I have started many friends with this book (it helped that Baen had it in the Free Library). It seems to work.
I started with Cetaganda (on audio book) and then went and read the Miles books in internal chronological order. I didn't read Cordelia until a while later, and even as a woman I'm not sure I would have loved the series so much at the start if that is where I had started. I think part of this may have been age; I was quite young at the time and Miles was more relatable and exciting than Cordelia.
It really depends on the person where the best place for them to start will be. I tailor my recommendations based on what I know of the person so that they get the best starting option. I sometimes will even specifically recommend starting with an audiobook instead of the physical text. After they are hooked most people seem to like reading chronologically (either internal, or publication).
Komarr worked on my wife. She is a high school librarian and has much reading to do, and was resistant to spending our "pleasure reading" time (where we read aloud to each other on long car trips) on space opera. However, after hearing snippets of Ekaterin's terrible relationship with her husband and how that turned out, she was finally interested. However, it should be noted that she is particularly OK with spoilers, and starting with Komarr will (spoiler alert!) result in the reader knowing that Miles is no longer with the Dendarii or any of his earlier girlfriends, which are a fairly significant part of the plot and drama respectively of the previous books.
The Vor Game worked for me, when I was 13. This was my first of Lois' books. After having read it seven times over, I went on to look for more (back then and in my country The Vor Game was part of a really large sci-fi series). It is still the focus of everything I love in Miles, although Mirror Dance was my favourite for a long time.
Thank you very much vor your ideas. I had some success with sharing Vokosiverse. My brother, for once. But it is so diverse, and it grows so much with Miles himself, it is hard. And I think that a mature reader would respond to a more mature Miles better. Maybe Mountains of Mourning... Cetaganda is a favorite of mine, so carefree... for a younger person a very good starting point! I read in chronological order, and got drawn in. So, maybe the conclusion is that I cannot catch all the fish. Unfortunately, they have just no taste (joking)
Komarr was my first book after Paladin of souls. They are bit alike like, in a sence, and I was so exited I read all your books during some months after that.
I did an end-run to finally get my husband to read the Vorkosigan books; when it was my turn to choose a book for our book-club, I chose "the Curse of Chalion." He's always been more a fantasy reader than sci-fi. Not only did he enthusiastically devour Chalion, but he found the writing style so good that he went on to devour every Vorkosigan book to date, as well as "the Paladin of Souls", "the Hallowed Hunt" and "the Spirit Ring". We both eagerly await the new book in 2016.
The very first thing I read of Lois' books was The Mountains of Mourning. I fell in love with the richness and brilliance of Miles' personality. I next read Mirror Dance and I was completely hooked. I've read (I think) everything Lois has published. I usually read the Vorkosigan books in order now but I think my favorite is A Civil Campaign. I got my brother hooked with Barrayar. He wasn't sure he liked it at first but by the time he reached the end he loved it. He did say that The Warrior's Apprentice might have been a better place for him to start but Barrayar was the one I found at the used book store. I adore everything of Lois' that I've read...my favourite novel is Paladin of Souls.
Borders of Infinity certainly worked for me. I gradually tracked down the earlier books and have picked up the new ones as they are published ever since. Doing so was not straightforward in those pre-internet days; generally dependant on a thorough scan of Forbidden Planet's shelves on my infrequent trips to London - often disappointment, but what joy when something new turned up!
I kind of think Memory is a good start. What was that old saw with starting with your hero's fanny inthe bear trap? There's enough of his manipulations clear in the start of Memory that it is a good candidate. As an addition it's the first of my three favorite reread trilogy with Komarr and Civil, I prefer Miles when he HAS to deal with the detrius.
Our first book was Cetaganda, we listened to the audiobook on a long road trip. It was perfect for that, and we went ahead and collected the rest of the Vorkosigan books on audio. We (hubby and I) loved the Chalion books as well.
I've found _The Warrior's Apprentice_ works well as an intro to the series. Excellent as Cordelia and Aral are, Miles is the more striking character. Starting with him, and circling around to the backstory later, got my daughter hooked.
I've been recommending starting at "The Warrior's Apprentice" for 20+ years and nobody has complained :-) (well, maybe about availability in Spanish :-D)
Hmm... I started with whatever collection Cetaganda is part of, got about 4 chapters in and realized I wanted to start at the beginning.
Since then, I generally just hand out Cordelia's Honor (did so earlier this week), which I never seem to get returned to me so I've bought it 5 times now, or Curse of Chalion.
Though, I suppose depending on who the new reader is and where they are in their life, the best jumping on point could vary significantly. A Civil Campaign would be an interesting place to start for a lot of women who are into classic literature.
Lois, I agree that Borders is the way to start. Mountains of Mourning is one of the best shorts, and it is part of the Borders collection. I admit that I've been hoarding Miles all to myself instead of sharing with my family, but I pledge to end my selfishness this Christmas!
I started with Vor Games. It worked for me. (FYI - I got it because I was a member of the Science Book Club and DIDN'T send my rejection for that month. The book arrived and I was going to return it for credit. Made the mistake of reading the first page. Have bought every one your works since then. Sooooo, I found the Vor world by mistake.)
I started with Cryoburn because it was nominated for the Hugo and for a year or two I was trying to read all Hugo nominees before the awards. I was impressed by the weaving of technological/political extrapolation (what happens to the votes of those in cryostasis? what awaits those thawed from stasis years in the future because they're out of money?) with a mystery/adventure narrative.
From there, it seemed the right thing to do was to go back to the beginning, with the Young Miles collection (The Warrior's Apprentice, Mountains of Mourning, and The Vor Games). After that I hop-scotched all over the series, enjoying references to things I hadn't yet learned and then working back to fill in those gaps.
After reading Mountains of Mourning, I shared a synopsis of the plot with my mother and also my wife. Both were intrigued and devoured the series even faster than I did (to my pleased surprise)!
Mountains of Mourning, definitely, for readers who shy away from space opera.
I started with The Vor Game and I would recommend that one. The characters aren't overwhelming in number, the situations are manageable, and Miles is perhaps a bit less unbelievably lucky than in WA. From there a reader can go back or forth (or both) without much trouble.
I got the first one from the SF Book Club and just continued buying them when they came out. So my first reading was in publication order. But I devour books of many kinds, so that may not work for others. When doing a major reread, I always start at the beginning and go on through all. When just picking up one for relaxation, it's nearly always A Civil Campaign, just because it's so much fun! Although that sometimes leads to reading Komarr to remind me of the background, or just continuing on to the end again.
My success to the introducing Lois to new readers is the Curse of Chalion. This has generally led my friends to devouring everything else she has written, as quickly as they can aquire copies.
For years, "Mountains of Mourning," was available for free download on Baen Books. So, it is the only title that I feel free to giveaway. "Mountains of Mourning" is also the book that I started with. If someone can't understand who Miles is from that book, they likely will never get it.
Borders of Infinity is where I began with your work, ma'am. Now I've read it all, and waiting humbly and politely for more!
I know this is unpopular opinion, also not coinciding with Lois' own suggested order but... "The Vor Game" works exceptionally well as a standalone, is set relatively early in Miles' story and I can vouch with my life that they will crave more afterwards (be it forward or backward in chronological order).
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Maybe Komarr when Ekaterine comes into play? I'm afraid I think Ivan's book is dessert, and should only be consumed after dinner. But it has several women, namely, but not only, Tej and Rish.
"Mountains of Mourning" worked for me. My wife and son were fans of your work, but their descriptions left me unconvinced. I read "Mountains of Mourning" and I was hooked. I have started many friends with this book (it helped that Baen had it in the Free Library). It seems to work.
I started with Cetaganda (on audio book) and then went and read the Miles books in internal chronological order. I didn't read Cordelia until a while later, and even as a woman I'm not sure I would have loved the series so much at the start if that is where I had started. I think part of this may have been age; I was quite young at the time and Miles was more relatable and exciting than Cordelia.It really depends on the person where the best place for them to start will be. I tailor my recommendations based on what I know of the person so that they get the best starting option. I sometimes will even specifically recommend starting with an audiobook instead of the physical text. After they are hooked most people seem to like reading chronologically (either internal, or publication).
Komarr worked on my wife. She is a high school librarian and has much reading to do, and was resistant to spending our "pleasure reading" time (where we read aloud to each other on long car trips) on space opera. However, after hearing snippets of Ekaterin's terrible relationship with her husband and how that turned out, she was finally interested. However, it should be noted that she is particularly OK with spoilers, and starting with Komarr will (spoiler alert!) result in the reader knowing that Miles is no longer with the Dendarii or any of his earlier girlfriends, which are a fairly significant part of the plot and drama respectively of the previous books.
The Vor Game worked for me, when I was 13. This was my first of Lois' books. After having read it seven times over, I went on to look for more (back then and in my country The Vor Game was part of a really large sci-fi series). It is still the focus of everything I love in Miles, although Mirror Dance was my favourite for a long time.
Thank you very much vor your ideas. I had some success with sharing Vokosiverse. My brother, for once. But it is so diverse, and it grows so much with Miles himself, it is hard. And I think that a mature reader would respond to a more mature Miles better. Maybe Mountains of Mourning... Cetaganda is a favorite of mine, so carefree... for a younger person a very good starting point! I read in chronological order, and got drawn in. So, maybe the conclusion is that I cannot catch all the fish. Unfortunately, they have just no taste (joking)
Komarr was my first book after Paladin of souls. They are bit alike like, in a sence, and I was so exited I read all your books during some months after that.
I did an end-run to finally get my husband to read the Vorkosigan books; when it was my turn to choose a book for our book-club, I chose "the Curse of Chalion." He's always been more a fantasy reader than sci-fi. Not only did he enthusiastically devour Chalion, but he found the writing style so good that he went on to devour every Vorkosigan book to date, as well as "the Paladin of Souls", "the Hallowed Hunt" and "the Spirit Ring". We both eagerly await the new book in 2016.
The very first thing I read of Lois' books was The Mountains of Mourning. I fell in love with the richness and brilliance of Miles' personality. I next read Mirror Dance and I was completely hooked. I've read (I think) everything Lois has published. I usually read the Vorkosigan books in order now but I think my favorite is A Civil Campaign. I got my brother hooked with Barrayar. He wasn't sure he liked it at first but by the time he reached the end he loved it. He did say that The Warrior's Apprentice might have been a better place for him to start but Barrayar was the one I found at the used book store. I adore everything of Lois' that I've read...my favourite novel is Paladin of Souls.
Borders of Infinity certainly worked for me. I gradually tracked down the earlier books and have picked up the new ones as they are published ever since. Doing so was not straightforward in those pre-internet days; generally dependant on a thorough scan of Forbidden Planet's shelves on my infrequent trips to London - often disappointment, but what joy when something new turned up!
I kind of think Memory is a good start. What was that old saw with starting with your hero's fanny inthe bear trap? There's enough of his manipulations clear in the start of Memory that it is a good candidate. As an addition it's the first of my three favorite reread trilogy with Komarr and Civil, I prefer Miles when he HAS to deal with the detrius.
Our first book was Cetaganda, we listened to the audiobook on a long road trip. It was perfect for that, and we went ahead and collected the rest of the Vorkosigan books on audio. We (hubby and I) loved the Chalion books as well.
I've found _The Warrior's Apprentice_ works well as an intro to the series. Excellent as Cordelia and Aral are, Miles is the more striking character. Starting with him, and circling around to the backstory later, got my daughter hooked.
I've been recommending starting at "The Warrior's Apprentice" for 20+ years and nobody has complained :-) (well, maybe about availability in Spanish :-D)
Hmm... I started with whatever collection Cetaganda is part of, got about 4 chapters in and realized I wanted to start at the beginning. Since then, I generally just hand out Cordelia's Honor (did so earlier this week), which I never seem to get returned to me so I've bought it 5 times now, or Curse of Chalion.
Though, I suppose depending on who the new reader is and where they are in their life, the best jumping on point could vary significantly. A Civil Campaign would be an interesting place to start for a lot of women who are into classic literature.
Lois, I agree that Borders is the way to start. Mountains of Mourning is one of the best shorts, and it is part of the Borders collection. I admit that I've been hoarding Miles all to myself instead of sharing with my family, but I pledge to end my selfishness this Christmas!
I started with Vor Games. It worked for me. (FYI - I got it because I was a member of the Science Book Club and DIDN'T send my rejection for that month. The book arrived and I was going to return it for credit. Made the mistake of reading the first page. Have bought every one your works since then. Sooooo, I found the Vor world by mistake.)
I started with Cryoburn because it was nominated for the Hugo and for a year or two I was trying to read all Hugo nominees before the awards. I was impressed by the weaving of technological/political extrapolation (what happens to the votes of those in cryostasis? what awaits those thawed from stasis years in the future because they're out of money?) with a mystery/adventure narrative.From there, it seemed the right thing to do was to go back to the beginning, with the Young Miles collection (The Warrior's Apprentice, Mountains of Mourning, and The Vor Games). After that I hop-scotched all over the series, enjoying references to things I hadn't yet learned and then working back to fill in those gaps.
After reading Mountains of Mourning, I shared a synopsis of the plot with my mother and also my wife. Both were intrigued and devoured the series even faster than I did (to my pleased surprise)!
Mountains of Mourning, definitely, for readers who shy away from space opera.
I started with The Vor Game and I would recommend that one. The characters aren't overwhelming in number, the situations are manageable, and Miles is perhaps a bit less unbelievably lucky than in WA. From there a reader can go back or forth (or both) without much trouble.
I got the first one from the SF Book Club and just continued buying them when they came out. So my first reading was in publication order. But I devour books of many kinds, so that may not work for others. When doing a major reread, I always start at the beginning and go on through all. When just picking up one for relaxation, it's nearly always A Civil Campaign, just because it's so much fun! Although that sometimes leads to reading Komarr to remind me of the background, or just continuing on to the end again.
My success to the introducing Lois to new readers is the Curse of Chalion. This has generally led my friends to devouring everything else she has written, as quickly as they can aquire copies.
For years, "Mountains of Mourning," was available for free download on Baen Books. So, it is the only title that I feel free to giveaway. "Mountains of Mourning" is also the book that I started with. If someone can't understand who Miles is from that book, they likely will never get it.
Borders of Infinity is where I began with your work, ma'am. Now I've read it all, and waiting humbly and politely for more!
I know this is unpopular opinion, also not coinciding with Lois' own suggested order but... "The Vor Game" works exceptionally well as a standalone, is set relatively early in Miles' story and I can vouch with my life that they will crave more afterwards (be it forward or backward in chronological order).
When I reread the series I do it in chrono order (minus the non-Vorkosigan-centric prequels) and I tend to sorta leaf through all the books from Warrior's Apprentice until Brothers in Arms; there are awesome moments throughout that are absolutely necessary to get the full impact of the later books in the series, but it does lag in places. Perhaps you should get all the ebooks and create an abridged version of the entire saga to get your friends hooked!