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2011 Mid June book: Lee and Miller
I really should be reading Hugo-nominated works so I can vote with a clear conscience. Thank you authors, publishers and Hugo committee for providing the Hugo Voting Packet! Anyway, instead I reread Balance of Trade by Sharon Lee and Steve Miller. BoT is set in the Liaden universe, but a few hundred years before the main sequence. Positioned as YA, it tells the story of Jethri Gobelyn. Jethri is the youngest on a family tradeship, Gobelyn Market. Even though he's the son of the captain, she doesn't get on with him. He's in training to become a trader--who arranges for the cargo. The ship is due for a refit. To fill his time, she decides to apprentice him to another family ship that runs a route through several mining colonies. Jethri and that ship's youngers don't get on, to the point that there was a fist fight the last time they were both on port at the same time.
The actual contract hasn't been signed yet, and as Jethri is wild to find another berth, the captain gives he leave to try to find one. Before doing so, he gets involved with a scam and comes to the attention of a Liaden ship's Trader. Jethri needs to learn not only trading skills but how to make his way in the highly ornate Liaden culture. Old tech has a place too, so this book links the Crystal Variation duology to the later ones in the overall timeline.
Like most Lee and Miller stories, there are some mighty lucky coincidences. Personally, I don't feel this is the strongest L&M book, and although Jethri is an appealing character, I like others more. I can't decide if that's a bit due to the age of the character, although I like Theo (from Fledgling and Saltation) better. It is a worthy addition, and interesting in seeing a transitional period in human and Liaden history.
I'm not sure what my next fiction book will be. I do want to read The Dervish House which is a Hugo nominee. I borrowed two books from my work's library so I'll likely skip around in them next. One is about Eratosthenes (he did a credible job of measuring the earth's circumference before 200 BCE, off between 2% and 16%) and the other about the Great Arc (the traverse of India which also determined Mt Everest's elevation).
The actual contract hasn't been signed yet, and as Jethri is wild to find another berth, the captain gives he leave to try to find one. Before doing so, he gets involved with a scam and comes to the attention of a Liaden ship's Trader. Jethri needs to learn not only trading skills but how to make his way in the highly ornate Liaden culture. Old tech has a place too, so this book links the Crystal Variation duology to the later ones in the overall timeline.
Like most Lee and Miller stories, there are some mighty lucky coincidences. Personally, I don't feel this is the strongest L&M book, and although Jethri is an appealing character, I like others more. I can't decide if that's a bit due to the age of the character, although I like Theo (from Fledgling and Saltation) better. It is a worthy addition, and interesting in seeing a transitional period in human and Liaden history.
I'm not sure what my next fiction book will be. I do want to read The Dervish House which is a Hugo nominee. I borrowed two books from my work's library so I'll likely skip around in them next. One is about Eratosthenes (he did a credible job of measuring the earth's circumference before 200 BCE, off between 2% and 16%) and the other about the Great Arc (the traverse of India which also determined Mt Everest's elevation).