Miles is not your standard hero. He is about four feet tall and hunchbacked. His head is too large for his dwarfish body. One leg is longer than the others, and his bones are so brittle they break at the slightest provocation. The son of royalty on a backwards planet, at home he is a mutant, and abroad he is a genius. Miles runs circles around governments, bounty hunters, assassination plots, rebellions, and mercenaries.
Lois McMaster Bujold is that rare thing, a science fiction author whose characters form the center of her stories. The space ships and replicators function much like the cars in the Flintstones; they shape society, but they do not define it. I could tell you about the hugo and nebula awards she has won, I could discuss the cultural and social aspects of her work, I could praise her offbeat and adored characters, but instead I will simply thank the man who first introduced me to Miles and Lois and Barrayar.
Thanks Al. I owe you one.
