Сага о Воркосиганах: Вселенная Лоис Макмастер Бужольд

Science fiction book series by Lois McMaster Bujold

The Vorkosigan Saga is a series of science fiction novels and short stories set in a common fictional universe by American author Lois McMaster Bujold. The first of these was published in 1986 and the most recent in May 2018. Works in the series have received numerous awards and nominations, including five Hugo award wins including one for Best Series. The point of view characters include women (Cordelia in Shards of Honor, Barrayar, and Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen; Ekaterin in Komarr, A Civil Campaign, and The Flowers of Vashnoi), a gay man (Ethan of Athos), a pair of brothers, one of whom is physically disabled and the other a clone (Miles and Mark Vorkosigan), and their cousin (Ivan Vorpatril), together with some minor characters (e. g., Miles' bodyguard Roic, family friend Kareen Koudelka, and the runaway lad Jin). The various forms of society and government Bujold presents often reflect contemporary politics. In many novels, there is a contrast between the technology rich egalitarian Beta Colony (or more generally, galactic society) and the heroic, militaristic, hierarchical society of Barrayar, where personal relationships must ensure societal continuity. Miles Vorkosigan, the protagonist of most of the series, is the son of a Betan former ship captain mother and a Barrayaran aristocrat father.

Humanity has colonized a galaxy in which there are no competing intelligent species. Since then (at least 400 years before Falling Free or 600 years before Shards of Honor), dozens of planets have been colonized and have developed divergent cultures. Barrayar was colonized and then lost contact with the rest of the galaxy, suffering a "Time of Isolation", after which it was reconnected. Due to apparent nuclear warfare that has left large areas too radioactive to inhabit, low genetic diversity on Barrayar during the time of isolation, as well as the effects of mutagenic compounds found in native Barrayaran plants, a cultural phobia about mutation developed that leads to a high level of xenophobia. Within the series, exploration and colonization of new planets is still ongoing, most notably on the planet Sergyar. Interstellar travel is achieved by "jumping" from solar system to solar system via spatial anomalies known as wormholes that create tunnels in a five dimensional space. Typically wormholes are bracketed by space stations, military or commercial, which provide ports for jump travel. Stations may be owned by planetary governments, or by specific commercial organizations, or they may be completely independent of any planetary organization. Barrayar's original wormhole collapsed, a rare event leading to the Time of Isolation. Barrayar was later re discovered via a wormhole jump from Komarr. Komarr allows the neighboring Cetagandan empire to use their wormhole to conquer Barrayar, and is later conquered in its turn when Barrayar eventually defeats the Cetagandans. The stories feature several planetary systems, each with its own political organization, including government by corporate democracy, rule by criminal corporations, monarchies, empires and direct democracies. In most cases, there is a single government which dominates the entire planet (exceptions include Jackson's Whole and Earth). Both Cetaganda and Barrayar have empires, acquired by conquering other planets via neighboring wormholes. As a tool to simplify the writing process, Bujold devises a standard system of timekeeping universal to all planets regardless of the length of their day and year. Bujold herself has commented that her posited system is neither technologically nor economically feasible, but is rather a convenience for storytelling.

Most of the technology in the series is based on 20th century engineering situations, projected into null g or alternative solar system situations. Biomedical advances such as cloning, artificial wombs (named "uterine replicators") and cryochambers to preserve and revive recently deceased people are featured heavily in the series. Bujold presents issues of technological obsolescence and the high rate of failure of R&D projects in personal terms, via bioengineering. Two jump pilots with obsolete navigational brain implants and a number of characters created by genetic manipulation are psychologically stranded by the termination of the programs for which they were designed. The series features gravity manipulation, both artificially generated in spaceships, and artificially suppressed in ground transport and elevators. Falling Free and Diplomatic Immunity explore the relationship between a culture adapted to an environment without gravity and one which depends on gravity.

In most societies featured in the series, paper has been mostly replaced by either plastic sheets or electronic devices, and two dimensional video is replaced by three dimensional holograms. Most characters use portable computers called "wristconsoles" and personal computers named "comconsoles". Interstellar messages, however, have to be recorded on a physical disc which is transported through wormholes at a high cost, and relayed between wormholes by the ships' communication systems, imposing both time and cost constraints on interstellar communications.

As the series features a military background in several novels, special attention is paid to military technology. Ship to ship combat includes plasma rays and attacks based on gravity manipulation, and defensive countermeasures. Personal combat includes the use of combat suits, plasma rays, needlers, and nerve disruptors, which emit rays that destroy nerve tissue. Biological weapons are also mentioned in the form of wide spectrum toxin bombs and genetically modified microbes that target specific races, and in some cases, specific people. A truth serum, "fast penta", is a widespread tool used in interrogation. Several defenses are devised, such as induced allergies that kill the subject before they can reveal information, genetic engineering to create immunity, or compartmentalization of information on a need to know basis. Miles Vorkosigan has an atypical reaction to the drug, which enables him to thwart his enemies on at least one occasion.

In the Vorkosigan saga, humans live on planets with diverse degrees of habitability, and have developed diverse adaptation strategies to environments that are only approximately fit for human life. For example, Komarr is a cold planet with high CO2 that is going through long term terraforming to make it habitable, while Beta Colony is a hot, sandy planet where humans must live underground. Barrayar's vegetation is incompatible with Earth's, and often poisonous or allergenic to humans; Barrayarans clear native forest and use compost from Earth descended plants or horse manure to grow new Earth vegetation. In spaceships and space stations, people live in closed ecologies in which air and waste are continuously reprocessed.

Medical advances are a fundamental part of the saga's worldbuilding. The most ubiquitous are "uterine replicators", devices that allow complete in vitro reproduction, with gene therapy ("gene cleaning") to correct for congenital defects. In Ethan of Athos, this also makes possible an all male society in which eggs are produced by ovaries maintained in a lab. The Cetagandan haut go beyond gene cleaning, deliberately engineering the human genome in an attempt to produce a post human species (Cetaganda, Diplomatic Immunity). Other advances include genetic manipulation to produce microbes and animals tailored for specific purposes, including decoration, or humans adapted for combat or to live and work in zero gravity. Fertile hermaphrodites have been created in an attempt to surpass gender roles. Medical prolonging of human life has advanced to achieve natural lifespans of 120 years or more, though Barrayar lags galactic civilization on this. Cloning is featured in the series, prominently in the person of Mark, Miles' clone brother, and in a morally dubious industry on Jackson's Whole that grows clones of wealthy people to transplant their brains from elderly bodies to youthful, healthy ones. Barrayar is an exception to most of these advances due to its long isolation from the rest of humanity. Women carrying their babies to term without uterine replicators are the rule at the beginning of the series, and there is an ingrained fear of mutation in its society. The social challenges posed by medical technology and Miles Vorkosigan's visible deformities are integral to the plot of several of the stories.

The time required for wormhole jumps between planetary systems means travel and communication require time and effort which isolate each planet and allow it to develop its own culture, most of them derived to some extent from a culture known historically on Earth. For example, the planet Athos creates a monosexual culture in which men reproduce in vitro without female intervention, Cetaganda is an empire in which hierarchies are based in genetic fitness, Jackson's Whole is a cutthroat criminal planet in which trade and money are law, and Escobar is a moderate planet focused on scientific advancement. The novels do not focus much on several sources of social organization and prejudice on Earth, such as language, skin color, and religion. In general, Nexus inhabitants speak a common language, though they may know other languages or have a planetary accent. A good looking woman, whether a four armed quaddie, a Cetagandan haut lady glimpsed in her floating bubble, or a Barrayaran damsel, has skin comparable to ivory or milk. On the other hand, the most prominent genotype on Barrayar is olive skin (and brown eyes and dark hair). The Arqua family are described as dark skinned, and the Durona group and Ky Tung are Eurasian. Only isolated Athos has a planetary religion, though Cordelia Naismith and Leo Graf (the hero of Falling Free) believe in a God. The environment and history of the planets dictate their social structures and prejudices. For example, because of the isolation of Barrayar, located with a single wormhole to connect it with the rest of the galaxy, and its people having to defend a broadly habitable planet, Barrayarans both need and can afford a militaristic society. Their genetic isolation has led them to create a patriarchal society to preserve genetic purity. The Betans, on a hostile planet where they must live in domes, rely on industrial export and limit not only childbearing but also every kind of behavior that might be considered "antisocial". From their point of view, Barrayaran society is irrational and backward, while the Barrayarans view the Betans as sexually and politically undisciplined, referring to a "Betan vote" as an obstacle to decision making. Planets accessible by many wormholes become centers of trade and finance, whether benign (Komarr, Escobar) or malicious (Jackson's Whole). Finally, some dwellers in space habitats look down on those who call one planet home as "dirt suckers".

Three of the novels made the New York Times Bestseller List when first released in hardback: A Civil Campaign at #26, Diplomatic Immunity at #25, and Cryoburn at #32. The novels have been translated into a number of languages and the covers of various international editions have been archived. A Warrior's Apprentice comic book was published in France in 2010, which was the first of a projected series called La Saga Vorkosigan.

The Saga's internal chronology does not match the order in which the books were written. Bujold has stated that she is generally in favor of reading the books in internal chronological order, with caveats. A more detailed chronology can be found in The Vorkosigan Companion. Miles covertly signals his fleet to attack and rescue them. The Dendarii thereby stage one of the largest mass breakouts in history. As a result, the Cetagandans put a price on Naismith's head. At this point, they (along with nearly everyone else) are unaware that Naismith and Miles Vorkosigan are one and the same. Collected in the omnibus editions Vorkosigan's Game; Miles Errant; and Borders of Infinity.

On the run from Cetagandans furious about his Dagoola IV escapade, Miles and his fleet reach the relative safety of Earth. When he reports to the Barrayaran Embassy there, he is made the Third Military Attaché. Miles is captured, and his clone, trained as an assassin by Komarrans bent on exacting a measure of revenge for the conquest and annexation of their planet, is successfully substituted for him. Collected in the omnibus edition Miles Errant.

The novellas "The Mountains of Mourning", "Labyrinth", and "The Borders of Infinity" were reprinted with an untitled framing story in which Miles reports to Simon Illyan, head of Barrayaran Imperial Security ("ImpSec"). The framing story emphasizes an audit—both financial and political—of ImpSec, questioning Miles' activities and expenditures during the previous adventures. This volume is short novel length; the three novella anthology with its framing story was reprinted in the book sales club omnibus Vorkosigan's Game (1990). The novellas are currently in print as part of other omnibus volumes but without the tie together framing story.

Pretending to be Miles, Mark takes part of the Dendarii on a mission to free clones from Jackson's Whole, but is soon surrounded by the enemy. When Miles comes to the rescue, things go very badly wrong. Collected in the omnibus edition Miles Errant.

After Miles is forced to resign from ImpSec for covering up his new medical disability, he finds himself temporarily appointed an Imperial Auditor, with sweeping powers and answerable only to the Emperor, to investigate the sudden mental impairment of ImpSec chief Simon Illyan.

Miles Vorkosigan accompanies fellow Imperial Auditor Professor Vorthys to Komarr to investigate a serious accident in space which may have been sabotage. There, he manages to defeat plotters who seek to seal off the only wormhole to Barrayar, and falls in love with his hostess, Ekaterin Vorsoisson, who is trapped in an unhappy marriage. This novel is notable for the switching of viewpoints between its two protagonists as part of the structure of a given scene. For instance, the scene of Ekaterin's questioning with fast penta begins from her viewpoint, but as the drug takes hold (and the novel begins a new chapter), it switches to Miles' viewpoint. This technique is expanded in the next novel where multiple viewpoints are used. Collected in the omnibus edition Miles in Love.

As Barrayar prepares for Emperor Gregor Vorbarra's wedding to a Komarran heiress, Miles attempts to court Ekaterin Vorsoisson without her knowledge. Part of the omnibus edition Miles in Love.

This novella was published in February 2004 as part of the anthology Irresistible Forces (Catherine Asaro, editor). Bujold wrote this after completing Diplomatic Immunity. The wedding of Miles and Ekaterin is recounted from the viewpoint of Miles' Armsman Roic. Miles introduces Roic to Taura on her first (and due to her short life expectancy, probably her last) visit to Barrayar. The pair get along well, despite her rather unusual appearance. However, their blossoming romantic relationship is shattered when he makes a careless remark about "hideous, bioengineered mutants" —referring to the 'butter bugs' in Mark's latest commercial venture. Taura is hurt and insulted. When Ekaterin is taken ill, Taura traces the cause to a string of pearls that had apparently been sent by current Dendarii Admiral (and Miles's ex lover) Elli Quinn, and which do not look right to her augmented vision. With Roic's help, she brings it to the attention of ImpSec. The poisoned pearls are traced to a newly acquired enemy of Miles'. Ekaterin recovers, and the wedding goes smoothly. That night, Roic is on guard when Taura joins him. She tells him that she probably only has a year or two left to live, and therefore takes everything as it comes. Roic replies, "Can you teach me to do that?" Collected in the omnibus edition Miles in Love.

On the way back from his belated honeymoon, Miles is dispatched to Quaddiespace to untangle a diplomatic incident. Collected in the omnibus edition Miles, Mutants and Microbes.

On Komarr, Ivan is asked by an ImpSec friend to protect a pretty young woman targeted by a criminal gang, and stumbles into a conspiracy involving Jackson's Whole politics, hired assassins, criminal syndicates, and an old and potentially dangerous secret on Barrayar. And embarrassing in laws.

Still new to her duties as Lady Vorkosigan, Ekaterin is working together with an expatriate scientist on a radical scheme to recover the lands of the Vashnoi exclusion zone, the lingering radioactive legacy of the Cetagandan invasion of the planet Barrayar. When the scientist's experimental bioengineered creatures go missing, the pair discover that the zone still contains deadly old secrets.

Miles investigates a cryogenic corporation on the planet Kibou daini, with the assistance of Jin, a local boy.

Three years after the death of Aral Vorkosigan, Admiral Jole of the Sergyar Fleet (who once was Aral's subordinate as well as lover) receives a proposal. Aral's widow Cordelia plans to use the genetic material she and Aral had saved and offers him the option of fathering children from his genes and some of Aral's frozen gametes.