Most of the stories in the Vorkosigan saga focus on Miles Vorkosigan as the main character, but in this volume we return to his mother, Cordelia Naismith Vorkosigan, as one of the central character (she's also the lead in Shards of Honor and Barrayar). I can't talk about much of the plot without major spoilers for people who are at all familiar with these books, so I'll just say the story touches on concerns for older adults who are reassessing life goals. Since this is a science fictional setting, reproductive technology (uterine replicators, so that women don't have to carry children unless they wish to; advances in genetic manipulation) has vast effects, both large-scale--the evolution of Barrayaran society--and small--Cordelia's life, not least the survival of her son Miles. Some of the big decisions in the story involve using (or avoiding) various technologies.
Much of this series is space opera, with lots of action. Don't pick up this one expecting lots of external action, because it's more of a character piece. I still enjoyed it a lot.
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