Various musing on things Vorkosiverse

[nineveh_uk]

I've just finished reading Lois McMaster Bujold's Memory, which I liked a lot - much more than Brothers in Arms and (the Miles bits of) Mirror Dance. I think I have a low tolerance for Admiral Naismith, but quite a high tolerance for things being stupid on Barrayar. Speaking of which, what law applies on Sergyar? Since lots of Komarrans are described as emigrating there, I have to assume that strict Barrayaran legal codes don't apply, because otherwise I can't see any Komarran women doing it. Are there parallel laws depending on where one comes from? In which case what happens to the children? And why isn't there a Barrayaran bougeoisie? The population appears to be divided into contented vassals and would-be masters. Come to that, can anyone who isn't Vor actually own property? Perhaps the bourgeoisie all moved to Sergyar and are biding their time until declaring themselves a dominion rather than a colony. And if humans have been terraforming Komarr for three centuries, why isn't Barryar found sooner? Surely you'd have popped through to check whether something rather more attractively habitable was on the other side? And why has no-one apparently ever managed to smuggle a copy of Das Kapital onto Barrayar since the end of the Time of Isolation, since it evidently isn't available in the bookshops? Why haven't Cetagandan agents done it? Ah well, it all makes sense from a distance.

Oh and (minor spoiler for Memory) given that Illyan and Gregor are both generally characterised as intelligent men, with reasonably astute insights into other people, and that they have both know Miles for a long time, why do they think for a millisecond that he wouldn't be an absolute disaster as Head of ImpSec?

Finally, is there a map of the Nexus anywhere online?