extrapenguin: Northern lights in blue and purple above black horizon. (Default)
ExtraPenguin ([personal profile] extrapenguin) wrote in [community profile] vorkosigan2016-06-17 05:27 pm

Vorkosigan Readthrough: Barrayar

This is slightly ahead of schedule, since apparently my weekend shall be consumed by the Barrayar-approved activity of "boffering", that is, "playing medieval warfare with pieces of drainage pipe coated with foam plastic". In any case, here are my notes on Barrayar:


  • Hmm, no regents for 120 years?

  • There's a very nice description of the Residence near the beginning!

  • Aral, you really should've briefed Cordelia before sending her to meet with Kareen. Or given her a Barrayar Translator.

  • Kareen only wears half-mourning (grey) in private. Scandalous, or expected?

  • What's going on in Darkoi with Count Vorlakial? Do we ever get an answer?

  • Kou is 6'4. Barrayarans: tall. Very tall. That's like 193cm in real units. Though since he's a grocer's son, I guess he got adequate nutrition while growing up?

  • "Appeal to Irrelevant Authorities at Headquarters" oh, Cordelia

  • Bujold: very good with foreshadowing – Vordarian's family tree, Bothari the midwife, A+

  • Alys has two sisters.

  • Cordelia's Rules of Barrayaran Sexual Behavior :DDD

  • Hm, Piotr enjoys explaining Barrayar to Cordelia. An interesting, if tragically brief, moment in canon.

  • Gergor's birthday seems to be in the autumn. Ezar's was earlier in the year.

  • Cordelia's conversation with Vordarian: very confusing for both of them. Yet another example of Cordelia operating from a completely different reference system.

  • Barrayaran therapy: not all that good, it seems.

  • The Caravanserai is part of Vorbarr Sultana, but guarded by Count Vorbohn's guard? What's going on here?

  • There are a surprising amount of incidents summarizable as "Kou noooo".

  • "Post-partum fatigue" oh dear. :D

  • Aral and Piotr's arguments are very gut-punching. Piotr, please get your head out of your ass.

  • Drou: A+ pulling of Kou's strings during the start of their rescue mission.

  • Dorca's great-uncle kept over 300 horses in the old old imperial stables.

  • The amount of gut-punch lines seems to have increased notably: ghost of his most notable failure at his banquet of victory

  • Vordarian's head! On the table!

  • Captain Illyan: certified grade-A puppy.

  • Cordelia has a lot of troubles adjusting to the Barrayaran attitude, it seems.



Next book (The Warrior's Apprentice) will be later, I fear, since I'll be going abroad for a while. I can't promise anything, but somewhere in the vicinity of the 6th of July.
spiralsheep: Flowers (skywardprodigal Cog Flowers)

[personal profile] spiralsheep 2016-06-24 08:38 am (UTC)(link)
Maybe he wouldn't have been allowed to marry her until [x thing] happened and suddenly made him eligible?
beatrice_otter: Me in red--face not shown (Default)

[personal profile] beatrice_otter 2016-06-26 01:37 am (UTC)(link)
Or he'd been married and widowed, and they had no children, or married with no children and he divorced her to marry the Vorbarra princess.