Legacy Systems (Adventures in the Liaden Universe ®)

As always, wonderful stories!

I have to tell you, up front, this may BE Book 19, but the first story occurs many years in the past of the main story line. Intelligent Design is about a Cabin Boy and his older brother, a Trader Apprentice. For followers of the Liaden story line, both will be quite familiar. The Cabin Boy is Val Con and the Trader Apprentice is Shan. Since the synopsis, above is correct and the story relatively short, the most I can say is this fills in a piece of the overall story line, which was never really explained, and never completely believable; now it is both. The Space at Tinsori Light Former Scout Jen Sin yos’Phelium, recalled by Korval to serve the Clan, was ordered to discretely deliver a packet, and get out alive, the last part being Jen Sin’s order to himself, to Clan Sinan on Delium. The problem was Clan Sinan was having trouble with their allies. Things did not go well and he ended up in a space between, after an emergency jump. He exits jump near the Tinsori Light, which he discovers is Old Tech and makes a decision. His rescue, he and his ship both being damaged in the action immediately prior to the emergency jump, is the story and to say more would say too much.

Intelligent Design , a great short story covering how the cousins , Val Con and Shan, while on a Trading voyage with Shan's father Er Thom yos'Galen when they are young teens, found and built Jeeves. The Space at Tinsori Light occurs farther back in the Liaden timeline, occurs at a space station like no other, and involves a Pilot of Korval, one Jen Sin yos'Phelium, and this "haunted" space station. Both are good reads, from the Liaden Universe.

The first story fills in the details of how Val Con and Shan found Jeeve. I always wanted the details and this tale more than fulfills that background. A must read for all Liaden fans. The second story is an interesting side note to the Korval family history. Well worth the price.

I loved the first story, the tale of how Jeeves came to be the yos'Galan Butler. But I had already read The Space at Tinsori Light since it was appended to the end of one of the full length Liaden universe novels, so the book wasn't as long as I had hoped for. But I don't have the publication dates so I imagine that The Space at Tinsori Light was published here 1st and only later appended to the novel.

Two more Liaden stories, looking into the past, prior to the "current" stories where Val Con and Miri are together Delm Korval. "Intelligent Design" features Val Con as a boy, with Shan just a few years older. They're heading off on what will be Val Con's first trip as cabin boy on Dutiful Passage, with Er Thom as captain, and Shan as apprentice trader/cargo hand. They're setting off just after Jelaza Kazone has lost its butler due to the butler's clan Delm having no good opinion of Er Thom having married a Terran, Anne Davis. The possibility of more service clans withdrawing from Korval is a background worry as Dutiful Passage sets off. On one of their port stops, Val Con is allowed to join Shan as he is given a few hours to look around for possible private items of trade, to start developing and demonstrating his own judgment and building his own account. In the course of their rambles, Val Con gets one of his hunches, which Shan already knows are better trusted than ignored. In the warehouse Val Con leads them to, they find a crate that's part of an estate sale. Its contents are labeled as an environmental control unit. When they get it on board the ship, it becomes clear that it isn't, and strange things start to happen. "The Space at Tinsori Light" is further back in the history of Clan Korval, and Jen Sin yos'Phelium Clan Korval is running a risky mission for his Delm, delivering an important packet for her to an ally. It goes very wrong, indeed, has already gone wrong when he reaches what should be his contact, and in his escape from the scene of the disaster with that packet, both he and his ship are damaged. When he makes a desperate jump, with the ship selecting from any of a number of preprogrammed destinations presumed to be safe and able to render assistance. He winds up at Tinsori Light, where he meets the Keeper, who is friendly and helpful and gets him into a well-equipped autodoc, and the Light itself, which repairs his ship but may have its own agenda in doing so. These are both enjoyable short stories, giving us more of the background of Korval, and characters we know or, going on comments the authors have made, may be about to get to know. Recommended. I bought this book.

Let’s be real. If you are a fan, like I am, you know anything they write is going to feed your soul in a truly beautiful way. A good read guaranteed!

Two in one chapbook with: "Intelligent Design" and "The Space at Tinsori Light" Both books are sideways from the main story and can be read as stand alones. "Intelligent Design" shows how Korval picked up their robot butler Jeeves, making it a must read for anyone who wants further background on the universe. "The Space at Tinsori Light" is a trifle creepy and a reminder of the Legacy Systems left over from the previous war(s). Worth a read. Can give a hint of the past Lee & Miller haven't fully explored yet. Both are pretty good stories but not shiny gems, solid work-a-day jewelry instead. Good reads, but not must-reads.