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Posted By: Bmat May 17, 2002 - 09:36 am

Diplomatic Immunity by Lois McMaster Bujold

May 2002, Baen Books

Miles Vokosigan and his wife, Ekaterin, were enjoying a honeymoon and anticipating the birth of their twins who were gestating in uterine replicators. Miles was summoned to intervene in a difficult diplomatic matter involving a merchant fleet that was impounded in Quaddiespace. Quaddies were humans who were specially developed with four arms (instead of two arms and two legs) to function well in a non-gravity environment.

With the discovery of what appeared to be a body’s worth of blood spilled on a floor along with a missing security officer, and after an assassination attempt, Miles discovered that the diplomacy regarding damages that led to the impounding of the fleet were the least of his worries. His quick thinking and his ability to unravel complex observations had his Quaddie and his legged companions racing to prevent devastation and war.


Diplomatic Immunity is the twelfth novel set in the Vorkosigan universe. Through the series we have seen the first meeting of his parents, how Miles came to have severe physical problems due to an attack sustained before he was born, and how he achieved his heart’s desire to be a soldier despite the rigid society on Barrayar that demanded physical perfection. Miles had a quick mind and was an expert at military strategy, which he put to use in his present position as Imperial Auditor. Diplomatic Immunity includes interactions with cultures that were involved in the previous novels. To get the most enjoyment from the novel, the reader should read the other books in the series first.

Diplomatic Immunity is a welcome book for fans of Miles. It has been a long two and a half years since the last novel. The book lacks the engrossing humor and substance from the beginning that one enjoyed in the previous books. For the other books in the series I read them through in at most two sittings, then I read them again immediately. For Diplomatic Immunity it took a week to get through it. It was enjoyable but not much more than other science fiction novels, until about the last fourth of the book. Then watch out! The ride has begun. Once I reached the last few chapters I couldn’t put it down. As soon as it seems the climax of the story has been reached the story gets hotter and hotter. By the end of the book the reader is completely immersed in the story.


(© the writer behind Bmat)

Posted By: cgw Sep 17, 2002 - 12:14 pm

I think that Diplomatic Immunity is a step back to form after A Civil Campaign.