Winterfair Gifts (Vorkosigan Saga)

Why can’t this series have better covers? I know accuracies are never true to books (or at least they’re dang rare) but come on! His height! Eugh.

Anyway. Told from Roic’s point of view (one of the lesser ranked staff in Vorkosigan house), we see guests and distant family return to Barrayar for the wedding between spoilers. You know whom. One of those who returns is Taura who is already getting on in her years, and we see more of her than most of the other characters. It would have also been nice to see how Elena handles her return, and the interactions between Cordelia/Aral with her husband and their child, but ah well. I’ll always want these things to be longer, won’t I?

Even in a simple tale, we have the extra complications that seem to follow Miles around. This is pointed out to his wife to be, who only steps up to the challenge with the sass we know her for, earning both Roic and Taura’s approval.

It’s lovely what we get to see of the characters in tiny side notes – such as Aral’s words with Ivan, the result of this, and how Cordelia handles it. How Gregor handles the day. They’re just all so lovely! They’re fun and ridiculous and feel so real.

Even if the book cover is ridiculous.

Originally posted at FanLit.

Warning: Contains spoilers for previous VORKOSIGAN books.
Winterfair Gifts is a novella that tells the story of Miles Vorkosigan's wedding to the widow Ekaterin Vorsoisson. It you want to follow the chronology, it should be read after A Civil Campaign and before Diplomatic Immunity. You will probably also want to first read the short story "Labyrinth" which can be found as a stand-alone or in the novel Borders of Infinity.

This story is told from the perspective of one of Miles' new armsmen -- Roic -- who we (or at least I) remember fondly as the tall muscular guard who was nearly naked and slathered in bug butter in A Civil Campaign. Here he recounts the wedding preparations and the arrival of the guests, including many old friends, at Vorkosigan house.

One of the special wedding guests is Taura, the weregirl who Miles saved from a Jackson Whole dungeon in "Labyrinth." At first Roic is frightened by Taura, but when Alice Vorpatril gets a hold of her, Taura is transformed into the beauty that Miles knows she can be. Besides being pretty, Roic soon learns that Taura is also interesting, brave, smart, and maybe most importantly to Roic, she's loyal to Miles. Together Roic and Taura uncover an assassination plot and save the day.

Winterfair Gifts is an important part of the VORKOSIGAN saga partly because it reunites many of Miles' friends and describes the wedding. (Unfortunately, it didn't help me like Ekaterin any better.) This story is also of interest because its point of view character is one of the people who works for the Vorkosigans, so we get a feel for "below stairs" life in a Vor family. But mostly Winterfair Gifts is important because it sets up Roic as a competent (though not yet confident) armsman who we'll be seeing more of in subsequent books. Self-confidence is a theme in Winterfair Gifts -- both Roic and Taura grow in that area.

Winterfair Gifts was nominated for a Hugo Award. I listened to Grover Gardener narrate Blackstone Audio's version.

WINTERFAIR GIFTS is a beautiful little gem. I have a copy on my Kindle and another on my iPod so I can reread it when ever I'm stuck somewhere and don't want to die of boredom. As far as I'm concerned McMaster has never written a bad book, and since I can't carry my entire collection with me (I have her books in hard copies so the won't wear out so quickly), I can take this along to give myself a quick fix. Miles is not the main character this time, but it doesn't matter. He there just enough, while Tara gets to shine. There is also a nice little mystery ... I recommend this story highly. If you liked the Vorkosigan Saga, WINTERFAIR GIFTS is a wonderful addition.

Ack...this one is hard. Bujold did well in deciding to cover the wedding of Miles and Ekaterin in a short piece, rather than center a novel on it, since it leaves far less stress for the reader, as compared to Miles's antics in a full adventure. But having any sort of mystery plot does feel a little odd, for me. I'd really rather the mystery have been left behind, and we just be left with the wedding and the story of Taura and her paramour.

It's not really necessary for understanding of the series as a whole to read this story, but it's a good addition to your booklog. Give it a try.

Lois McMaster Bujold is currently being published by Baen books. She is rereleasing the Vorkosigan novels as duologies with a new short story added to each duology. Miles in Love is a duology featuring the novels Komarr and A Civil Campaign. WinterFair gifts was a short story added to the duology to provide new content. The entire trio is available from Baen as an eBook for $6.00. I am not sure of it's availability from the store.

This is NOT a good choice for a stand alone short story. If you are interested in learning about and enjoying the Vorkosigan series I heartily recommend starting with Cordelia's Honor, a duology about Miles's mother which introduces the series $5.00 or Warrior's Apprentice about the early adventures of Miles Vorkosigan. Warrior's Apprentice is available as a FREE download from the Baen Free Library.

If you are looking for romantic murder mystery sci-fi I recommend starting with Miles in Love as the earlier books are more action adventure oriented.

SPOILER
This is a pleasant little murder mystery with Miles and Ekaterin cast as victims while their friends and staff react to save them. Hardly a must read, but if your are a Vor fan I am sure you will enjoy it.

Fun novella featuring the wedding of Miles. Well-done, with the Bujold sense of humor apparent along with brief appearances of all our favorite Miles series characters. Primarily for those already following the series; not really suitable for a first time Miles reader, who will not be able to appreciate the references to other characters and events.

This novella is a must-read for all Miles Vorkosigan fans. It is the first story to include the POV of one of Miles' retainers, which gives us an interesting perspective on the Vorkosigan household, and stars one of my all-time favorite characters, Taura. It also can be read as a stand-alone story for those curious about this universe. Highly recommended.