[LMB] "Brothers in Arms"

[Jim Parish]

I just finished rereading _Brothers in Arms_, and I have to say that my 
appreciation for the book has gone up. Specifically, I've (finally?) 
noticed how important _BiA_ is in the overall architecture of the series; 
a number of important developments are foreshadowed or otherwise 
set up in this book.

1) We get, I think, the first clear discussion of cryofreezing, in Miles's 
discussion with Siembieda, and in particular its effects on memory are 
mentioned.

2) Early in the book, Miles has - at least in words - learned a key 
lesson: "I just have to learn to resist the temptation to play field officer. 
The place for my ass is in a nice padded tactics-room chair, not on the 
line." Of course, he didn't take the lesson to heart...

3) _BiA_ introduces Mark; I don't think I need go into the importance of 
that, given his central role in _Mirror Dance_ and his important, though 
lesser, role in _ACC_.

4) Mark's arrival onstage also sets up a change in the relationship 
between Miles and Ivan. Early on, Miles thinks of Elena as "his oldest 
friend" - with not a thought for his cousin, whom he has known every bit 
as long. Near the end, he comes to a realization: "Ivan... was a hundred 
times more his brother than Mark could ever be. It was just possible he 
had underappreciated Ivan's merits." And despite his territorial reaction 
when Ivan intrudes on his conference with Ekaterin, he does display 
increased respect for his "feckless cousin" on a couple of occasions - 
and his acceptance of Ivan's refusal to help in _ACC_ in turn pushes 
Ivan into acting on his own initiative instead of being Miles's donkey 
(and thereby save Dono from defeat in the Council vote).

5) The conversation between Miles and Mark in the pumping chamber 
outlines Mark's future trajectory almost exactly. After Mark mentions his 
hatred of the cloning business, Miles presses him on tactics. Mark 
suggests blowing up the labs and rescuing the kids; Miles instead 
urges him to consider seeking a medical breakthrough, and to amass a 
personal and financial power base and complete his education.

So. In large measure, I think, it's a preparatory work, but it lays a great 
deal of groundwork, and does so unobtrusively. I still don't rate it as 
among the best of the series, but it's more important than I had 
realized.

Jim Parish