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Miles Errant (Vorkosigan Saga (Publication order) omnibus #4)

by Lois McMaster Bujold (Goodreads Author)

4.4 of 5 stars 4.40 · rating details · 1,910 ratings · 62 reviews

Whether he's rescuing prisoners, keeping his enemies from replacing him with a clone, or coming back from his own dysfunctional death, Miles gets the job done. Of course, it may not be "quite" the job his superiors wanted done.

Paperback, 752 pages

Published August 27th 2002 by Baen

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May 10, 2012 Lisa (Harmonybites) rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction, novels, science-fiction

Two things. First, the rating. I acknowledge this isn't an undying classic. If you're looking for science fiction with literary prose, go read Ursula Le Guin or Ray Bradbury or William Gibson. Or for the "Big Ideas" go to Robert Heinlein or Isaac Asimov or Arthur C. Clarke. What Bujold offers is different--characters you care about and want to spend time with, and in that regard, I'd say this installment offers some of the strongest stories in the series I've read yet--and given its Miles Vorkos...more

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May 29, 2010 Jon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Jon by: Beyond Reality Book Club Series Miles Vorkosigan

Shelves: fiction, science-fiction, read-in-my-40s, space-opera

Follow this link for my review of the short story 'The Borders of Infinity' contained within this omnibus edition of the Vorkosigan space opera series.

Follow this link for my review of Brothers in Arms.

Follow this link for my review of Mirror Dance.

This omnibus edition didn't include any author's note or forward. It did include a time line for Miles as an addendum.

Overall, the series took a more serious and dramatic turn in these two novels and short story. Oddly, I look forward to reading ea...more

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Mar 15, 2012 Ryan rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-fi, space-opera

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. I was a little hesitant going into this one. I'd read some things, both here and on wikipedia, that made me worry about the direction the series was headed. Two-wheeled motor vehicles over apex sea predator sort of directions.

I should have known, to borrow a phrase from Nathan Lowell, to Trust Lois.

In the first novel in this collection, Brothers in Arms, Miles attempts to cement the cover story of his Bunburying, Admiral Naismith, by claiming to be a clone of himself. Little does he realize that...more

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Jan 19, 2011 Elijah Kinch Spector rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites

As long as I've been reading this series (by internal chronology, although someday I think I'll read it by publishing order) I've refrained from giving out five-stars, even though I liked what I read very much. There were two reasons. First of all, I've been reading omnibuses (omnibinininibi?), which are less disposed to feel cohesive and more likely to have something that doesn't quite work simply by virute of having more content. Secondly, and more importantly, I alwasy felt like Bujold was le...more As long as I've been reading this series (by internal chronology, although someday I think I'll read it by publishing order) I've refrained from giving out five-stars, even though I liked what I read very much. There were two reasons. First of all, I've been reading omnibuses (omnibinininibi?), which are less disposed to feel cohesive and more likely to have something that doesn't quite work simply by virute of having more content. Secondly, and more importantly, I alwasy felt like Bujold was leading to something, like as great and fun and smart and gripping as each book I read was, there was something larger out there. Well, Mirror Dance showed me how much more there could be. (Barrayar, arguably, could be a five-star book on its own, but my memory's faded and that omnibus thing pops up again.)

Everything in Miles Errant is great stuff, and it gives us all of the disparate flavors that I've come to expect from the series. So far, it is the perfect Vorkosigan volume (not that I'd tell a new reader to start there -- that probably wouldn't end well). It's got the exhilarating "watch-Miles-pull-himself-out-of-a-shitty-situation" adventure story that one has grown accustomed to, the issues of identity and oppression, and a great big helping one of my favorite, often underused, aspects of the series, planet Barrayar itself.

Borders of Infinity, the novella that opens the book, is a great example of why Miles, as a character, works so well in novellas. So much of the fun is watching him sort through a strange problem, and his mercenary army provides him with plenty of them, and so a novella strips us down to the basics (um, no pun intended, what with him spending most of the story naked and all). In another world, Bujold probably could've just written The Warrior's Apprentice and then a series of novellas, each about a different mission, and that could've been the whole series, and it would've been damn fun, but not as nuanced. Borders is especially good, as the very concept (a prison that officially follows every rule of fair treatment for POWs but manipulates them in such a way as to make it a hellhole) is brilliant, and Miles is made about as helpless as humanly possible from the outset. Another good example, too, of how you can get so caught up in Bujold's stories and characters that you can miss how intrinsic the sci-fi elements really are.

Brothers in Arms is an especially good "classic" Miles Vorkosigan story. That is to say, it boils down to the basic twisting and turning adventure story with relatively familiar beats driven home very, very well, and a couple of great new characters with uncertain, but believeable, motivations (Duv and Mark are both counterpoints to Miles, with the former being moreso than you might think at first). With the addition of some nice romance for Miles (it's a measure of how good Bujold is that I'm always rooting for her protagonists to get laid) and a really great setting (Earth as a backwater tourist trap), it's a great read, but not without anything a reader of the series wouldn't already expect (considering that, in publishing order, it's only the second she wrote about Miles, this shouldn't be too shocking), and with a climax that, at times, got a little hard for me to follow.

Those two stories together would already be leaning toward a four-and-a-half rating anyway, but Mirror Dance is something else entirely. Though it is very dependent on earlier books, it jumps away from feeling like "one in an episodic series" and feels more like a big ol' novel (not big in length, although it is that too). It starts feeling like more regular novel in the series, but with Mark showing up to stack the deck especially against our hero, but it also does something else right from the start: it gives us the first damn time that we actually see these stories from another perspective, that we actually get to see how the world (and Miles) are from another set of eyes. At first, I didn't like it, but that's mostly because Mark starts the book as an entitled dick (I've been using a lot of parentheticals, so I thought I'd put one here too). What would be a normal royal fuck-up for Miles to get out of escalates, and soon we're wondering how the hell this scenario can be stretched out for the few hundred pages still remaining. Then, no spoilers, but the bottom drops out and the story starts to go in directions that I absolutely did not expect. That one of those directions is back to Barrayar and Miles' parents (who I'm especially fond of) made it even more fascinating.

What make Mirror Dance really work, is Bujold's insistence to not let us get comfortable and go "ok, so THIS is what the story will be" in just about any way. Mark is never an exact opposite or an exact match to Miles, it's much more messy than that, and the directions we move in as we follow the story are so hard to gauge. These books are often structured like an action movie (and I mean that as a compliment), but this one really embraces the tangents that a novel can go into and is better for it. There's still plenty of bad-ass shit, no worries, and there's also a lot of really gruesome and horrible stuff too. Also: a lot of talking while wandering around Barrayar, which is as captivating as the horror, in its own way.

I've heard that the next book, Memory, makes sweeping changes and leaves Miles a very different person, and considering Mirror Dance, I don't really see any other direction that Bujold could've gone in. I do hope that something comes about to change my one main problem with the series, and this popped up especially with Mirror Dance: so much of these stories is about that whole "rooting for the underdog" thing, and yet Miles' family is one of the most influential on the planet.

Miles is deformed on a world that hates deformity, a weakling consistently in combat situations, etc, etc, but I can't help wondering how much more challenging his life would be if he were the son of minor nobles. Naturally, he has to come from some money to not have been killed as a baby on his planet, but the amount of power and influence that his family wields sometimes feels like a cheat. It's like when you read the original Zorro novel and see that Diego is from SUCH an important and upstanding family that he probably could've done more through political influence than he did with a mask and sword, and so it's no wonder that later adaptations usually diminish his family somewhat. When Miles is best buds with the Emperor, it's hard to see where the challenge is, at times. That said, I find Emperor Gregor, Simon Illyan, and all the other people and things that come with his privilege fun to read about, so I guess I can't complain too much.

Phew, that was a lot. Uhhh... I liked this book!(less)

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Dec 26, 2011 Brendan rated it 5 of 5 stars

This is probably the most coherent omnibus so far. Each story flows into the next smoothly, setting up a plot that seems to connect them all. I think they work better in the omnibus, actually, as it provides room for the complete character arcs to play out.

In Borders of Infinity, the short story of the collection, Miles is as deliriously maniacal as ever, founding a fake religion in order to evacuate a penal colony. Bujold does a good job of setting this up without giving away the explanation to...more

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Nov 08, 2011 Libby rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: year-of-women, sci-fi

As much as I enjoyed the earlier books in the Vorkosigan series, the three in this collection, "Borders of Infinity", "Brothers in Arms", and "Mirror Dance," comprise the first omnibus to which I unhesitatingly give four stars. I sense a real shift with these books to come to terms with some of the darker implications of Bujold's world and a desire to tell a story that doesn't necessarily wrap up as neatly as the previous installments. The shift in tone is clear from the first story, "Borders of...more

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Apr 20, 2011 Krom rated it 2 of 5 stars

This is marks the first time on my journey through the Vorkosigan saga that I found myself disappointed. The compendium begins with a brilliant short story. The two full-length novels are themed around the story of Miles' clone.

In a Sci-Fi universe that includes uterine replicators and life-extension via brain transplants, clones seem darn right straight forward. And while Bujold's world supports the existence of this technology, even her writing was unable to avoid the tired tropes and pitfall...more

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Jul 10, 2011 Alexandra rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2011

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. A conversational review...

ALEX:

“Borders of Infinity” is a curious novella, in that it sets Miles almost completely apart from all of the other characters we’ve come to know and love. Here, he doesn’t have the support of his parents, or Ivan, or a Bothari… it’s just him and his wits. And for much of the story the reader has no idea what is going on, which is also quite different from Bujold’s style in earlier books. No idea why Miles is in the POW camp – was he captured? is this deliberate? – no...more

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Sep 21, 2012 Alina rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction

This omnibus contains a novella and two novels (written in the '80s and '90s) which form a continuous story arc within the Miles Vorkosigan saga. Though I generally prefer novel-length fiction, I was very impressed by the novella that kicks off this omnibus, "Borders of Infinity." It features Miles trapped inside a lawless POW camp, handicapped by his physical frailties, and explores themes of mind and spirit over matter. The novella sets the stage for the first novel, Brothers in Arms, which in...more

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Aug 20, 2011 Isaac rated it 5 of 5 stars

In the novella "Borders of Infinity", Miles is dropped off at a 10,000 person Cetagandan prison camp where he quickly learns that he must be on top if he wants to survive. I found this Vorkosigan story a bit more of a stretch than usual.

In Brothers in Arms, Miles flees Cetandan pursuit with his Dendarii Mercenaries to Earth where he is sucked into a Komaran plot to free their world involving replacing Miles with a clone. Can anyone be fooled?

In Mirror Dance, Miles's clone commandeers a Dendarii...more

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Feb 26, 2009 Emily rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: read-in-2009

McMaster really shows what a good story teller she is in the first book in this omnibus. With no background, she drops Miles into a prisoner of war camp and you get to watch him do all kinds of crazy things. Except everything he did was carefully planned to achieve a specific end. What a fun read! The second book was also a lot of fun. You get to meet Miles' clone, Mark, and see all the problems that creates! The third book was a lot harder to read. Things don't go well when Mark tries to rescue...more

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Jun 03, 2011 Jon rated it 4 of 5 stars

Recommended to Jon by: Amy

"Borders of Infinity" was masterful: again, showing Miles not just cleverly fooling people, but genuinely leading them. I dug up the frame story and it's not all that much (although it does get referenced in later stories.) Brothers in Arms finally gave me what I wanted: Miles' position with the Dendarii clashes with his responsibilities as Vorkosigan, and he can't really keep ahead of it. It also raises some serious questions of his self-identity. Mirror Dance had its very messed up scenes, but...more

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Nov 03, 2011 Allie rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: epic, space-opera, science-fiction

OK, so I skipped backwards to read this one after finishing Miles in Love. A-MAZ-ING!!! Seriously, couldn't contain myself, there were moments when my whole body was coiled up with the tension. This one has "The Borders of Infinity", Brothers in Arms, and Mirror Dance. Of the three, I think I liked the last one best, because it was the most dramatic; it definitely has the darkest elements in it.

ALSO. Helloooo, next book, possibly to be published NEXT NOVEMBER OMG.

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May 25, 2011 Reepacheep rated it 5 of 5 stars

Wow! This book contains three stories: Borders of Infinity, Brothers in Arms, and Mirror Dance. At first I was disappointed not to be able to get them separately--I have a thing about one book being one story. However, these three stories mesh so well together my enjoyment of the story was multiplied by being able to read them straight through.

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Feb 14, 2011 Margot rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2011, sci-fi, space-opera, humorous

Every page of action in this omnibus, particularly in Mirror Dance is bliss. Pure bliss. The Borders of Infinity was awesome. Brothers in Arms was good. Mirror Dance was amazing. Three hours after finishing, I was already going through Miles/Mark withdrawals. I read the last three hundred pages in two days.

Lois McMaster Bujold, thank you thank you thank you for being the master that you are: characterization, plot, action--all superb. Every omnibus collection contains at least one story that ard...more

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Oct 25, 2012 Janet added it

Shelves: fiction, sff, vorkosigan, 2010

This is an omnibus of "The Borders of Infinity", "Brothers in Arms", and "Mirror Dance". All feature Miles Vorkosigan after he's gotten over the worst of adolescence, finding his way to being an adult. "Borders" is a long short story, or novella, in which Miles is dropped into hell and does the impossible. Pretty straightforward caper/heroism. In the two novels, his clone brother Mark appears, and is sorted out. I rather like Mark, though Bujold goes rather over the line into easy-peasy psycholo...more

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Sep 13, 2009 Unwisely rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: 2009, military-sf, science-fiction, re-read

This is a re-read, so I won't give it a full review, but I will mention that I found the form-factor totally inconvenient. Most of my reading is done in transit, and this was too big to hold easily one-handed and awfully heavy to drag around - I would prefer the volumes separately.

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Dec 04, 2012 Elizabeth rated it 3 of 5 stars

Shelves: fiction-science-fiction

Mark is not the most compelling of characters for me, and I tend to find books in which he is involved more forgettable than they ought to be. But Ivan's all-too-brief appearances were delightful, and I heart the Dendarii Mercenaries a LOT. And GOD I love Cordelia.

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May 02, 2012 Chris Bare rated it 4 of 5 stars

This is one of the most fun books I've read in a while. It is very character driven, but with enough action and sci-fi trappings to keep me interested. It was written as 3 novellas, but they flow together very well to tell the story arc of one of the main characters.

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Dec 08, 2009 Ken rated it 3 of 5 stars

I enjoyed the books but not as much as the previous Miles installments
Here we are given a trilogy of sorts. First we have a short story of Miles intentionally sent to a Prison Camp in order to break out, that story falls directly into the the first book, Mirror Image, Miles heads to earth to hide out from the Centageans whom he broke out of their prison. Here is uncovers a conspiracy and meets his Clone.
I thought this was ok but it seemed more of a stumble around type of a book and thats not how...more

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Jan 06, 2012 Jenn rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: own

"The Borders of Infinity" - 1/1/12 - A - I liked this story. I liked how we didn't know why Miles was there for most of it, so we didn't know what was coming at all. Very entertaining.

Brothers in Arms - 1/2/12 - B+ - I rather liked this one as well, but it felt like it dragged a lot in places. I liked the Galani character. I get that Ivan's not the fastest thinker, but I don't get why Miles seems to dislike him so much.

Mirror Dance - 1/5/12 - B- - I liked this one too, but it felt like me took...more

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Nov 07, 2009 Jill rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-fi

This contains Border of Infinity, Brothers in Arms and Mirror Dance. Not the funniest of the books, but still good stories with some funny parts. I really like the dry wit and mental running commentary Miles has.

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Oct 11, 2011 This Is Not The Michael You're Looking For rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: ebooks, fiction, omnibus, science-fiction, space-opera

Miles Errant is an omnibus containing one novella and two novels: Borders of Infinity, Brothers in Arms, and Mirror Dance. Broadly the themes of the stories focus a lot on cloning and identity, with a lot of space opera intrigue and action mixed in for good measure. Miles is past the early floundering phase, more comfortable in his role as Admiral Naismith (perhaps too comfortable?), but still reasonably young (mid-to-late 20's) without some of the greater responsibilities that will likely fall...more

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Oct 13, 2012 Titus Fortner rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-fi, hugo

So, this book had 3 portions. I absolutely loved Borders of infinity, I was a little annoyed with Brothers in Arms, and while Mirror Dance was a little slow through the middle I felt like the payoff at the end was supremely worthwhile.

(view spoiler)...more

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Nov 23, 2010 apple rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-fi

5 stars for Borders of Infinity, by far my most favoritest Miles escapade! Dude can plot a scheme to overthrow god..and will have hell to pay talking his way out of it as usual

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Dec 08, 2012 David Ward rated it 5 of 5 stars

All these books have been really good reads and I would recommend any of them to scifi fans that love a great story with amazing characters.

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Oct 02, 2010 Anna rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sci-fi

Mirror Dance, the last part of this omnibus edition, is one of the best in the series.

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May 09, 2012 Peter rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: science-fiction

Bujold's Vorkosiganverse - I have bouth this in ebook awhich I keep in my drop box account so I can have them available anywhere

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Apr 17, 2011 Christine (AR) rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: sff, e-book, nook

Wonderful, wonderful, wonderful... especially Mirror Dance, the last book in this omnibus. I was so happy to see Cordelia and Aral again (though their storyline was harrowing, in usual Bujold-style) and oh, God, poor Mark! Another heartbreaking, plot roller-coaster of tension; Bujold is a master.

(Bonus! Both Ivan AND Gregor show up in brief roles, which is just too good to be true. I really hope there's another Gregor-centric book coming up in this series. I'm afraid to read the back-cover blur...more

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Aug 30, 2011 Nicole K rated it 5 of 5 stars

I believe I will find myself embroiled in the Vorkosigan series for a long time to come.

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About Lois McMaster Bujold

One of the most respected writers in the field of speculative fiction, Lois McMaster Bujold burst on to the scene in 1986 with Shards of Honor, the first of her tremendously popular Vorkosigan Saga novels. She has received numerous accolades and prizes, including two Nebula Awards for Best Novel (Falling Free and Paladin of Souls), four Hugo Awards for Best Novel (Paladin of Souls, The Vor Game, B...more

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Books by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Warrior's Apprentice (Vorkosigan Saga, #2)

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Quotes from Miles Errant

“If you can't do what you want, do what you can.” — 15 people liked it

“Now, there's this about cynicism, Sergeant. It's the universe's most supine moral position. Real comfortable. If nothing can be done, then you're not some kind of shit for not doing it, and you can lie there and stink to yourself in perfect peace.” — 6 people liked it

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Miles Errant (Vorkosigan Saga (Publication order) omnibus #4)

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