Cryoburn

I think that Cryoburn is a novel that will work best in the context of the rest of the series. It's certainly enjoyable on its own, but there are parts of the book that won't be emotionally effective unless the reader is already familiar with the universe and the Vorkosigan family. The story of the corrupt Kibou-daini crycorps is interesting enough to carry the book, though, and the society of Kibou-daini is an interesting exploration of how the impermanent death of freezing would affect the balance of power in the society. I enjoyed Miles as a protagonist, and the little orphan Jin was an interesting character, if a little overly adorable and convenient. I wouldn't recommend this as a starting point for the series (my mistake), but it was fairly interesting as a mystery and as a discussion of mortality.