Barrayar readthrough

[flourish]

Okay, readthrough #2: Barrayar! Sorry that this one's a day late - I just got back from vacation last night and was too pooped to post. ;) Some thoughts to kick us off:

• In my readthrough of this novel, I was surprised to see how much the "gun principle" applied. You know - "if you see a gun in the first act of the play, it will certainly be fired by the third act"? Only it applied to everything, not just nerve disruptors. For instance: Drou's disappointment when Cordelia wants to go shopping (and her parallel thrill when they go to Siegling's) is echoed in Cordelia bringing Vordarian's head back in a shopping bag. Even Cordelia remarking on how Drou looks awful in the "superior servant" dresses is echoed by Alys Vorpatril dressing her beautfiully for her wedding. Maybe this is part of what it is to write a really tight story?
• I was kind of uncomfortable with Koudelka's ideas about what he was "doing to" Drou. I think that given Barrayaran society, it's perfectly... understandable? That's not the right word, but you know what I mean. But because we don't really deeply delve into Barrayaran society until books later in the timeline (they were, I think, previously published, though) it is jarring. I'm now kind of itching for fanfic.
• Speaking of itching for fanfic, Barrayar brought up all this great stuff about the Time of Isolation and the Cetagandan war that I'd really, really love to see handled.

On those topics, would people be interested in doing some kind of a fest? I'd be into running one, if people were into writing for one, but I'm nervous that there are too few Vorkosigan fanfic writers around to make it very big at all. Worth it anyway, do you all think?

Comments

Illyan

[elf]

Reading this, I was struck by Illyan's presence, always in the background, but with hints of what he'll grow into.

He takes over as chief of security as the Vordarian Pretendership kicks off, and his first *real* job is clearing out spies and traitors. He had to be combing his memory for shreds of connection to Vordarian, or other shreds of dislike of Aral, and checking those memories against recent activities and public statements. Even with that, he must've been on the edge of panic every time Gregor was in a crowd of more than six people, and doubly panicked every time Aral and Gregor were in the same room, wondering if some idiot with plans to seize the throne had found a way past his security measures.

By the time Miles was a cadet, he must've spoiled a hundred badly-planned assassination attempts. I have the feeling a good portion of his tolerance for Miles was that Illyan was incredibly tired of stupid troublemakers; a brilliant one was so refreshing he didn't want to stop him.

(I like the idea of a fest. I don't know if I'd participate; it would depend on timing. I do have an Aral/Bothari story I'm itching to write, but it's being bumped by more pressing commitments.)

[twistedchick]

It has been a while (since I borrowed the book, not having my own copy) but I remember being struck by how firmly it is told from Cordelia's viewpoint. Given this, it seems to me that what we find is her being appalled at the way Koudelka thinks about sex, and his and Drou's general ignorance of it. Barrayaran society is provincial and backward in distressing ways to someone who is Betan; it makes me think that part of her composure in later books is her steeling herself to deal with this kind of backwardness nearly every day.