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A Civil Campaign

A Civil Campaign

List Price: $7.99
Your Price: $7.99
Product Info Reviews

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Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Her Best Yet
Review: I almost made a mistake. I almost failed to read this book. As a big fan of the Miles' series, I was dismayed and disappointed to read that A Civil Campaign would be a romance. A romance! I do not like romances! But a friend loaned it to me, and I grudgingly opened it and...and...the book reached out, grabbed me and wouldn't let go until I finished it. Bujold takes the romance conventions and simply uses them to frame a wonderful story. There's a dinner party that I can only compare to Charlie Chaplin at his best, i.e. just when you think nothing else could go wrong--something else does until just about every guest at the dinner party is just about ready to kill every other guest. This is definitely a "don't miss" for Miles fans. I would not recommend it though to beginners in the series. I think it would be hopelessly confusing. For anyone who hasn't read the series, I suggest starting with Shards of Honor and working your way down through the series. Know that I and the other fans envy you as you read these stories for the first time. But for long-time fans like me, don't let the fact that its a romance stop you. This actually is one of the best in the series. My only concern is that Bujold is tying up all the loose ends too well. Is the series ending?(Tell me it ain't so!)

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Fabulous book
Review: This is another one of those books which will keep you up way past your bedtime because you can't stop until you find out what happened. I agree with Anne McCaffrey "Boy, can she write!".

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Halt! Who goes there?
Review: If you are a Miles Vorkosigan fan, then you don't need any review beyond - Wow! Bujold has outdone herself. 'Nuff said.

If you have no idea who this Miles guy is or why he has such a funny last name, please, please, PLEASE do NOT start with this book. Start with Shards of Honor or Barrayar or even The Vor Game, but not here with this book.

Oh, I don't doubt A Civil Campaign can stand on its own as an entertaining read, but even so, the climax of this book cannot possibly be nearly as satisfying if you don't know all the background. Don't cheat yourself.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Space Opera meets Historical Romance
Review: A thoroughly entertaining novel. I have not read any other work which has attempted to combine these two genres. Bujold sticks pretty close to the standard historical romance plot line but I was still left wondering, for most of the book, whether she would allow Miles and Ekaterin to get together in this book or leave it to the next. The political side of the story is great fun too. Throw in genetic engineering and human psychology, stir, and you have a very good novel indeed. I have not previously met Miles and Co (although I *was* very impressed by "Falling Free", her novel about the creation on the Quaddies), but I will certainly now go and hunt out the rest of the series.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Another Delight from LMB
Review: Perhaps the title should have been "Civil Campaigns," becasuse there is more than one. Miles and Mark are each engaged in a civil campaign. The course of love does not run smooth for either. Miles is the target of blackmail by a Vor lord who wants to be confirmed as a Count, and Miles' love quest is unintentionally sabotaged by one of his friends. The would-be Count learns that Miles' response to attempted blackmail is not quite what he had anticipated, he attempts revenge with surprising, delightful, and hilarious results.

You will enjoy this book more if you have already read the other Vorkosigan books. Start with "Cordelia's Honor" if you can, and read the rest in order. Every one is a delight. And, speaking of Honor, check out the Honor Harrington books by David Weber, also great fun to read.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Great, FUN TO READ
Review: I have read all the Vorkosigan books and have loved each and every one (excepting Ethan of Athos). I LOVE Miles!! This one was a bit different from the others and to me the most fun to read. It was just plain enjoyable. I can't wait until Ms. Bujold releases the next one. My husband and I are both addicted and it is one of the few books we obtain in hard cover and as soon as it reaches the shelves. Thank you Ms. Bujold for writing this book as well as all the others.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Mo' Momentum
Review: Reviewers should reveal possible biases so here's two. One: I was a pharmacy technician (unknowingly on another floor) at the same hospital with Ms. Bujold. Of course, she used her free time more productively, and is the one who has all the Hugos. Two: some years later, I was able to get an autographed copy of a Miles Vorkosigan novel, personally (her, not me) inscribed with "Forward Momentum!" -- Mile's motto that triggers the start of adventure.

These prejudicial events notwithstanding, you should trust me, when I reccomend the sheer enjoyment of reading all the Vorkosigan novels, the current twelve, and those you will pray come soon. The Vorkosigan novels are exciting, complex, and pure fun to read. If you start one in daytime, you'll likely not meet sleep until finishing it (with a smile and a sigh as you close the cover). Hey, an author from a humble (believe me) profession, a clutch of Hugos, and moi says read it. What more do you need?

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Couldn't Put This One Down Either!!!
Review: I don't knwo how she does it, but Bujold has delivered another tour de force. That phrase is really getting redundant with her! This is another welcome addition to the Vorkosigan saga, but it can also be a good place to start for those who haven't read her. I have read entire works of authors that don't have one scene in them as good or as funny as the dinner party scene. And there are some truly startling and intriguing characters devloped in here, including some really good strong female characters like she does so well. Good strong female characters in an ostensibly patriarchal society is a fruitful situation for Bujold. This book meets my ultimate test of a truly memorable novel; I pick it up and read sections out of it, or just read the whole thing over again. She goes down easy, and you don't necessarily consciously realize the points she's getting across until you read them again. I only have one minor quibble with this book, and it's not with the book at all, it's the cover illustration. For some reason, the publishers or whoever switched cover artists on this one, to someone who has not only obviously never read a single Miles Vorkosigan story, but learned his anatomy from chickens! The cover illustration is TERRIBLE! But buy the book anyway, it's a great read. I'd love to see her do another fantasy novel.

Rating: 5 stars
Summary: Aptly chosen title
Review: Picks up steam after a somewhat slow start, then you can't stop. I was a bit concerned about the "romance" bit, but this is no sappy tearjerker. (Miles Vorkisogan and Ekaterin Vorsoisson have their feet too close to the ground for that.) Perhaps the most humorous of the series: the scene where Viceroy and -reine Vorkosigan return to the mansion to find [no, I won't give this away] is pure slapstick, as is a scene where Ivan meets a former (voluptuous female) lover who returns after a gender change operation. And there are enough other sub-plots to keep you entertained. If you own part or all of Bujold's books, you'll certainly want to buy this one. For a first read, I would rather recommend "Cordelia's honor" (a joint reissue of the first two books) or the awesome "Mirror Dance". Yet I can't bring myself to give out less than five stars.

Rating: 3 stars
Summary: Good, but not as good as the earlier books
Review: I have been a Miles junkie from way back, but the more recent offerings in this series have served to wean me off the addiction. I understand that the types who like cute and clever romance love this book, and that's all well and good, but I misstrhe real Miles. I'm sorry.

The book is entertaining, and there are a few passages that are quite funny. But unlike Elizabeth Hayden, who infuses humor into romance, action, reflection and history with stellar characters, I feel that Bujold has sold Miles out a little. Still, it's worth reading. It just doesn't merit all the adulation.


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