Lois McMaster Bujold - Cetaganda.nfo
General Information
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Title: Cetaganda
Author: Lois McMaster Bujold
Read By: Grover Gardner
Copyright: 1995
Audiobook Copyright: 2006
Genre: Fiction
Publisher: Blackstone Audio
Series Name: Miles Vorkosigan
Abridged: No
Original Media Information
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Media: CD
Number: 8
File Information
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Number of MP3s: 182
Total Duration: 9:04:26
Total MP3 Size: 251.34
Ripped By: JT
Ripped With: EAC
Encoded With: LAME 3.97
Encoded At: CBR 64 kbit/s 44100 Hz Mono
ID3 Tags: Set, v2.3
Book Description
================
Amazon.com
Miles is stuck visiting Cetaganda with his doltish cousin Ivan, representing
Barrayaran nobility at an Imperial funeral. Miles must have suspected
that it wasn't going to be dull after the bogus docking instructions
and the odd man who launched himself into their ship and started to
pull a weapon on them. Three attacks and a mysterious murder later,
Miles is juggling two emperors, two secret services, and a half-dozen
traitors--nd that's not even counting the women.
From Publishers Weekly
The power to engineer a civilization's genetic destiny fosters new variations
on old struggles for political power in this entertaining space-operatic
entry in Bujold's long-running Vorkosigan saga. Miles Vorkosigan, hero
of Mirror Dance (winner of the 1995 Hugo Award for Best Novel), is on
a diplomatic mission to represent his home planet at the funeral of
the dowager empress of the Cetaganda empire when an encounter with an
assailant leaves him with a piece of computer software. This proves
to be a bogus duplicate of a key to the Cetagandan genome, which each
new empress manipulates to produce offspring. With the help of a member
of Cetaganda's matriarchal ruling haut, Miles and his cousin Ivan dodge
inventive assassination attempts to determine which of the empire's
eight governors has tried to pin this "theft" on them in the hope of
usurping control of the genome. With her usual skill, Bujold addresses
timeless issues of human identity through the personal dramas of her
characters, most notably Miles, a deformed mutant whose insecurities
afford him insight but sometimes obstruct his investigations. Set in
a vividly realized world where Machiavellian intrigues are played out
behind a facade of aristocratic discretion, this novel, like its predecessors,
blends high adventure with wry commentary on the seemingly unbridgeable
gulf between human ideals and political realities.
From Library Journal
Hugo and Nebula Award winner Bujold's superb novel is brought to life
in this stellar recording. Lt. Miles Vorkosigan, the book's 22-year-old
protagonist, is smart, bold, ambitious, sensitive, and physically disabled.
As the story opens, Miles and his cousin Ivan are sent to Eta Ceta to
represent their home world of Barrayar at the state funeral of the Cetagandan
Emperor's mother. Upon arrival, the two men are inexplicably attacked
by a servant of the late Empress, who drops an electronic device before
fleeing. When the same servant turns up dead the next day, Miles determines
to uncover the truth about both the device and the servant's demise.
A beautiful geneticist, a suspicious Cetagandan security officer, and
a helpful but secretive fellow Barrayaran embroil Miles further in political
intrigue. Veteran readers Michael Hanson and Carol Cowan demonstrate
a remarkable ability to alter tone, pacing, and mood to capture perfectly
the different emotions and personalities of the various characters.
Narrator Hanson's deep, pleasant voice is particularly compelling as
he effortlessly shifts back and forth among Miles, Ivan, and other males
in several pivotal scenes. Readers who normally eschew sf will delight
in Bujold's intriguing plots, appealing characters, and wry humor. This
splendid recording of this action-packed, character-oriented novel is
a joy to listen to and will be appreciated by library patrons everywhere.
Leah Sparks, Bowie P.L., MD
From AudioFile
In this continuation of the Barrayar series, the diminutive, fragile
Prince Miles Vorkosigan is sent with his feckless cousin, Ivan, on a
mission to a former enemy, the empire of Cetaganda. They immediately
encounter a conspiracy to promote interstellar war. As in other Bujold
presentations by Reader's Chair, a male reader reads the male parts,
and a woman the female. Both carry it off adequately, though the slow-speaking
Michael Hanson has a lot more to do because he carries most of the narration.
2000, Portland, Maine
From Booklist
Having won his creator the latest best novel Hugo for Mirror Dance (1994),
Miles Vorkosigan returns. Filling in some of Miles' earlier career,
Bujold takes him, at age 22, to the capital planet of the Cetagandan
Empire, whose minions have been favorite villains in Bujold's universe
for years. Miles is traveling with his handsome but dumb cousin, Ivan
Vorpatril, and immediately upon landing, falls victim to a nasty practical
joke. Thereafter, matters become complicated beyond any plot summary's
capability to do them justice, but the whole story, lighter in tone
than Mirror Dance, is as witty and well-handled as is usual for Bujold.
It shows us the elite, at least, among the long-lurking Cetagandans;
develops the characters of Miles and Ivan; and demonstrates why Miles'
military superiors frequently wish he could be shot. In the wake of
Bujold's new Hugo, even greater swarms of readers will flock to this
book and swell even more the number of her fans--which is only what
she richly deserves. Roland Green
Midwest Book Review
Miles and Cousin Ivan travel to Cetaganda as diplomats but become spies
and observers of a murder and deception in an alien culture in this
latest installment of Bujold's 'Vorkosigan' adventures. Familiarity
with others in her series will contribute to a better understanding
of the setting and concerns of this fine blend of sci-fi/detective story.-
Book Description
When the Cetagandan empress dies, Miles Vorkosigan and his cousin Ivan
are sent to Cetaganda for her funeral as diplomatic representatives
of Barrayar. Upon arrival, the two men are inexplicably attacked by
a servant of the late empress. When the same servant turns up dead the
next day, Miles and Ivan find themselves in the middle of a mystery.
Miles tries to play detective in a strange, complicated, and deceptively
alien culture, while lascivious Ivan manages to get himself involved
with several noble females at the same time, a diplomatic no-no of the
Miles to save the empire.
With her usual skill, Bujold addresses timeless issues of human identity
through the personal dramas of her characters.
About the Author
Lois McMaster Bujold was born in Columbus, Ohio. She has two children
and now lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota. Lois began reading adult science
fiction when she was nine years old. Her early writing efforts began
in junior high school as a hobby. After college, Lois worked as a pharmacy
technician until she quit to start her family.
Lois's first novel, Shards of Honor, was completed in 1983 and published
with The Warrior's Apprentice and Ethan of Athos as original paperbacks
by Baen Books in 1986. So far, Lois's titles have been translated into
ten languages. In addition to multiple Locus and Nebula Awards, she
has won three Hugo awards in the Novel category, more than any other
writer except for Robert A Heinlein.
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