Lois’s answer to “Lois do you know of any fictional romances, in any medium, that you consider similar to Cordelia an…” > Likes and Comments
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Maybe the earlier Liaden books by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. Local Custom, Scout's Progress, Conflict of Honours, Agent of Change, Carpe Diem and Plan B. All of these are what I'd call relationship romances - so people falling for each other and there is a developing relationship through the book. The men and the women are all competent people who are good at what they do. I like them a lot, perhaps not quite as much as Aral and Cordelia - but pretty close.
Thanks Carro. As a fan of Vorkosigan I have, of course tried Liaden in a vain attempt to find something similar.
Are any of the relationships between enemies, that are based upon respect, rather than lust.
All the relationships are based on respect not lust (though there is attraction). It isn't actually between people on opposing sides of a war. There are various adventures and problems, and the characters can have different sets of values, both valid, which can cause problems. With the couple in Agent of Change she is a mercenary sergeant.
I concur with Carro. There's a ton in the series and I've not continued on, but the original 6, which you can find in Omnibus (Omnibi?) editions are all SOLID reads as Carro describes. Fun and intelligent romance. But still, they cannot touch the depth of Aral & Cordelia's journey which only deepens with the arrival of Miles.
As this is my 1st time commenting on your thread, let me NOT bury the lead! Thank you for your work Ms. Bujold!
I have already tried, and failed to enjoy Local Custom and Agent of Change. Carro and Mary Regan, which Liaden do you recommend I try next.
Hello! I first read Conflict of Honors and rather enjoyed it, but then I also really enjoyed Agent of Change (a bit less so Local Custom). But again, each is a one-off romance that doesn't build an entire web of relationships like Vorkosigan saga. But that said, the world-building of the Liaden series is well-done and rich. Hope that's helpful, but if not, enjoy whatever you read!
I thought of some books by Anne McCaffrey. The Freedom's Landing series has enemies fall in love, though at first it is more list based like mentioned above. Also The Ship Who Sang, and The Ship Who Searched have equals from different worlds fall in love; the difference being a ship person and a regular human.
For some reason I never read the Catteni books when they came out. The blurb looks really good to me right now and with the prospect of romance, I will certainly try it.
Thanks Heather.
I find similarities between Aral/Cordelia in Shards and Barrayar to Shane/Agnes in Agnes & the Hitman. Both couples come from different, colliding worlds (Barrayar vs Beta and secret service/mafia vs small town property grab0. Okay, so where Cordelia recognizes Aral's hidden past is where on the other hand Agnes prefers to call Shane an insurance salesman. But, well, one's a drama and the other's a comedy.
I would definitely try Agnes & the Hitman if it were a movie, but not really my sort of book.
Agnes and the Hitman is pretty good, but my fave Crusie is Faking It. Though self-contained it follows Welcome to Temptation, which is OK. It gives more context for FI. There are Bits in FI that will always live in my memory -- "I'd have bought it too!"
Ta, L.
I should add, Crusie has a less easy to find stand-alone novella titled "Hot Toy", which is my favorite Christmas madcap comedy ever. Also did some structurally clever things which I must steal someday. It might be an e-title by now, dunno.. checks. YES! Kindle offers it.
I love Agnes and the Hitman. I actually prefer WtT to FI, though I like both. All of the above turn expectations on their heads.
Oh, and if folks want books based on mutual respect - though these do have explicit sex - check out Courtney Milan. Start with her Brothers Sinister series. Don't read the Carhart series. All of the rest are varying degrees of good.
Seantheaussie - I think the Liaden books improve with Carpe Diem, Plan B, and I Dare. I particularly like seeing the relationship between Val Con and Miri evolve in Carpe Diem when they are stranded on a low tech world and have to learn new language and customs, and Val Con starts to understand Miri better. The series as a whole can be uneven, but I think that 3-book sequence is really solid.
Mary Bertke I have just read The Duchess War and loved it, especially chapter 3 which would have landed on my reread list even if the entire book didn't (it did).
I want to thank you for your great suggestion and greedily ask for any similar books with romance where both protagonists respect each other and I can respect and like them.
Megan Whalen Turner's The Thief Series has an interesting romance. Gnashing my teeth in anticipation of the last book, due in a year.
Ita, I certainly have the great romantic bits of King of Attolia highlighted, and reread them when I wan't a nice, emotional jolt.
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Jul 31, 2017 01:12AM
Maybe the earlier Liaden books by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. Local Custom, Scout's Progress, Conflict of Honours, Agent of Change, Carpe Diem and Plan B. All of these are what I'd call relationship romances - so people falling for each other and there is a developing relationship through the book. The men and the women are all competent people who are good at what they do. I like them a lot, perhaps not quite as much as Aral and Cordelia - but pretty close.
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Thanks Carro. As a fan of Vorkosigan I have, of course tried Liaden in a vain attempt to find something similar. Are any of the relationships between enemies, that are based upon respect, rather than lust.
All the relationships are based on respect not lust (though there is attraction). It isn't actually between people on opposing sides of a war. There are various adventures and problems, and the characters can have different sets of values, both valid, which can cause problems. With the couple in Agent of Change she is a mercenary sergeant.
I concur with Carro. There's a ton in the series and I've not continued on, but the original 6, which you can find in Omnibus (Omnibi?) editions are all SOLID reads as Carro describes. Fun and intelligent romance. But still, they cannot touch the depth of Aral & Cordelia's journey which only deepens with the arrival of Miles. As this is my 1st time commenting on your thread, let me NOT bury the lead! Thank you for your work Ms. Bujold!
I have already tried, and failed to enjoy Local Custom and Agent of Change. Carro and Mary Regan, which Liaden do you recommend I try next.
Hello! I first read Conflict of Honors and rather enjoyed it, but then I also really enjoyed Agent of Change (a bit less so Local Custom). But again, each is a one-off romance that doesn't build an entire web of relationships like Vorkosigan saga. But that said, the world-building of the Liaden series is well-done and rich. Hope that's helpful, but if not, enjoy whatever you read!
I thought of some books by Anne McCaffrey. The Freedom's Landing series has enemies fall in love, though at first it is more list based like mentioned above. Also The Ship Who Sang, and The Ship Who Searched have equals from different worlds fall in love; the difference being a ship person and a regular human.
For some reason I never read the Catteni books when they came out. The blurb looks really good to me right now and with the prospect of romance, I will certainly try it.Thanks Heather.
I find similarities between Aral/Cordelia in Shards and Barrayar to Shane/Agnes in Agnes & the Hitman. Both couples come from different, colliding worlds (Barrayar vs Beta and secret service/mafia vs small town property grab0. Okay, so where Cordelia recognizes Aral's hidden past is where on the other hand Agnes prefers to call Shane an insurance salesman. But, well, one's a drama and the other's a comedy.
I would definitely try Agnes & the Hitman if it were a movie, but not really my sort of book.
Agnes and the Hitman is pretty good, but my fave Crusie is Faking It. Though self-contained it follows Welcome to Temptation, which is OK. It gives more context for FI. There are Bits in FI that will always live in my memory -- "I'd have bought it too!"Ta, L.
I should add, Crusie has a less easy to find stand-alone novella titled "Hot Toy", which is my favorite Christmas madcap comedy ever. Also did some structurally clever things which I must steal someday. It might be an e-title by now, dunno.. checks. YES! Kindle offers it.
I love Agnes and the Hitman. I actually prefer WtT to FI, though I like both. All of the above turn expectations on their heads.
Oh, and if folks want books based on mutual respect - though these do have explicit sex - check out Courtney Milan. Start with her Brothers Sinister series. Don't read the Carhart series. All of the rest are varying degrees of good.
Seantheaussie - I think the Liaden books improve with Carpe Diem, Plan B, and I Dare. I particularly like seeing the relationship between Val Con and Miri evolve in Carpe Diem when they are stranded on a low tech world and have to learn new language and customs, and Val Con starts to understand Miri better. The series as a whole can be uneven, but I think that 3-book sequence is really solid.
Mary Bertke I have just read The Duchess War and loved it, especially chapter 3 which would have landed on my reread list even if the entire book didn't (it did).I want to thank you for your great suggestion and greedily ask for any similar books with romance where both protagonists respect each other and I can respect and like them.
Megan Whalen Turner's The Thief Series has an interesting romance. Gnashing my teeth in anticipation of the last book, due in a year.
Ita, I certainly have the great romantic bits of King of Attolia highlighted, and reread them when I wan't a nice, emotional jolt.
