Tag Archives: small talents

Ambient Conditions

In which Kishara jit’Luso takes advantage of ambient conditions.

This is an oddity: a story retelling another existing story from another viewpoint. We’ve had stories that crossed paths before (“Quiet Knives” comes to mind), but usually that’s a case of two people on different paths that happen to intersect for a sentence or two. This is a special case, for reasons that are explained in the author’s note.
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 38

Off-Grid

In which Padi discusses her day with a friend.

If the authors do more stories in the Redlands, they have some places they can start.
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 35

Healspace

In which there is an exchange of gifts.

I don’t feel like I have anything new and insightful to say about the events of this chapter. And I don’t want to sit around hoping for an insight to show up, because I want to see what happens next.

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 28

Civilization

In which it’s too late to keep hiding under a bush.

This might be the last appearance in the book of the word “vas’dramliz”, the Liaden word for the “small talents”, so I’m going to take this opportunity to share an observation: given that we know what “dramliz” means, vas’ must be the part of the word that signifies “small” or “lesser” — so it’s curious that we know of at least three Liaden surnames with the same prefix. Mae Nir vas’Urbil, in “Degrees of Separation”, is a chef, which might suggest that families with that prefix tend toward lower class jobs. (Menolly vas’Anamac is a scout and Kin Jal vas’Tezin an appendage of the Department, so we don’t have any idea of their families’ social status.)
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 24 (V-VIII)

Volmer

In which yos’Galan makes connections.

I can’t remember the last book in which we had so many bows in so few chapters. The last few books have either been set on Surebleak or involved people being off having adventures among the Terrans, so there hasn’t been so much opportunity for Liadens interacting.
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 16

Tarona Rusk
Meeting Space

In which the Healers plan to excise the Department of the Interior from the healthy body of the universe.

It’s interesting sometimes considering how we think of fictional characters, as in what name we call them by. I generally refer to characters like Shan and Priscilla by their first names, because the narrative encourages us to think of them as people we know and are friendly with; on the other hand, I would probably call Mr dea’Gauss “Mr dea’Gauss” even if we knew what his first name was, because he has that sense of formality about him.

So far I keep finding myself always referring to Tarona Rusk by her full name, because it doesn’t feel right to just call her “Tarona”. (I might use a formal title and surname, like with Mr dea’Gauss, except I’m not sure she has a title that we know of.)
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 9 (V-IX)

Dutiful Passage
Millsap Orbit

In which Padi has a long day.

Shan has a plan: to visit the Redlands, which it turns out is not one country, or even one planet, but a system with three inhabited planets.
Continue reading

Trader’s Leap – Chapter 3

Civilization

In which the Warden is told to expect visitors.

The Warden’s residence is apparently called the Wardian, which makes me think of the Edwardian era, or perhaps that’s just because Bentamin and his aunt remind me just a little bit of Bertie Wooster’s forceful aunts. (Not that Bentamin is much like Bertie Wooster, based on what we’ve seen so far.)
Continue reading

Accepting the Lance – Chapter 60

Six of Us
Jenarian Station

In which Rys makes a gamble.

I suppose it was too much to hope that the official procedure for disbanding the Department merely meant calling the whole thing off and letting everyone go home.
Continue reading