James Nicoll Reviews

2025’s Testimony of Mute Things is the fifteenth published work in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric & Desdemona secondary universe series. In terms of internal chronology, Mute Things occurs between Penric’s Fox and Masquerade in Lodi.

Learned Penric accompanies princess-archdivine of Martensbridge, Llewen kin Stagthorne, to Occo. There Penric expects to play a useful but tedious minor role supporting Llewen as she arbitrates a post-war settlement between the duchies of Carpagamo and Adria.

The murder comes as a surprise.

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2025’s The Adventure of the Demonic Ox is the fourteenth work in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric and Desdemona secondary-universe fantasy series.

As the son of a sorcerer, young Wyn realizes an ailing ox is not, as its owner believes, afflicted by brain worms. The malady is supernatural in nature. The ox is possessed by a demon, a demonic ox.

Which is to say, right up Wyn’s father’s alley.

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Lois McMaster Bujold’s 2018 The Flowers of Vashnoi is a novella set in her Vorkosigan universe. While series protagonist Miles Vorkosigan appears briefly, the focus is on his wife Ekaterin. When Ekaterin married Miles, she married into wealth and status. However, she also married into stewardship of the Vashnoi exclusion zone.

A lifetime ago Cetaganda’s attempt to annex Barrayar ended in abject defeat for the invaders. Among the Cetagandans’ lasting legacies, the Vashnoi exclusion zone, radioactive courtesy of a nuclear strike aimed at resistance leaders. Only time could deal with the contaminants. Having no other choice available, the Barrayarans (or rather, the Vorkosigans, whose land it is) marked off the radioactive zone and discouraged settlement.

Visionary scientist Enrique Borgos offers a method to speed up decontamination.

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2020’s Masquerade in Lodi is the ninth entry in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric and Desdemona series.

Seconded to the city of Lodi to provide translation services, Penric and his demon Desdemona are fortuitously available to assist in a local mystery involving a babbling madman found washed ashore. Penric, being both a physician and a sorcerer, is able to diagnose the unfortunate’s problem.

Demonic possession.

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Penric and the Bandit is the thirteenth volume¹ in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric & Desdemona secondary universe fantasy series, set in her Five Gods milieu.

Rozak’s life has been a long sequence of misfortunes and poor life choices. With Penric’s help, he may be able to turn that around.

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Demon Daughter is a secondary universe fantasy novel. Demon Daughter is the 12^th volume in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric & Desdemona series.

Adorable moppet Otta has lived all her short life on her father’s trading vessel Golden Chance. Like many children, she would like a pet. Her misguided attempt to tame a ship’s rat provokes the First Mate to throw the beast overboard. The consequences are far beyond anything the First Mate could have imagined.

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Knot of Shadows is the eleventh volume in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric and Desdemona series, which takes place in her Five Gods secondary fantasy universe. 

Drownings are not rare in Vilnoc, a port. Drowned men who stand up and try to escape the morgue, on the other hand, are unusual. Clearly the ambulatory corpse is a matter for a sorcerer. Physician Tolga asks Penric and his demon Desdemona to help.

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2021’s The Assassins of Thasalon is the tenth installment in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric and Desdemona secondary-universe fantasy series. It is set in her Five Gods Universe.

Eight months ago, the Emperor of Cedonia died of what appeared to be (and may have been!) a simple accident. The emperor’s son being a minor, a regency council was established, including in its number of the most determined power-grabbers in the Empire. Since then, a number of the council members have died, in battle and of what appeared to be natural causes. The stability of the court has been upended. For men like Minister Methani, the current circumstances are an opportunity.

Methani is well aware others may also see opportunity in imperial chaos. Thus, he dispatches two subordinates to deliver a message to the exiled General Adelis Arisaydia, who could be tempted home to command a military faction in the impending struggle. That message is ​“please drop dead,” expressed as several sincere assassination attempts. 

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Lois McMaster Bujold’s 2020 The Physicians of Vilnoc is the eighth installment in the Penric & Desdemona series.

Penric has finally settled down. The sorcerer has a wife (Nikys), a child (Florina), a home, and no reason to go haring off on dangerous missions.

One day, a dangerous mission comes to Penric.

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2019’s The Orphans of Raspay is the seventh entry in Lois McMaster Bujold’s Penric & Desdemona series of novellas.

The merchant ship on which Penric is sailing is captured by Carpagamon pirates. They don’t just take goods; they collect victims to be ransomed or sold as slaves. Penric passes himself off as a temple scribe. A scribe might rate a ransom; a temple sorcerer might be thrown overboard by superstitious sailors.

Even for a sorcerer, escaping from the pirates’ island stronghold would be challenging. When that sorcerer finds himself helping a pair of luckless orphans, it becomes even more difficult.

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