Fledgling

Liaden Universe: Theo Waitley, Book 1

By: Sharon Lee, Steve Miller

Narrated by: Eileen Stevens

Theo Waitley has lived all her young life on Delgado, a Safe World that is home to one of the galaxy's premier institutions of higher learning. Both Theo's mother, Kamele, and Kamele's onagrata Jen Sar Kiladi, are professors at the university, and they all live comfortably together, just like they have for all of Theo's life, in Jen Sar's house at the outskirts of town. Suddenly, though, Theo's life changes. Kamele leaves Jen Sar and moves herself and Theo back into faculty housing, which is not what Theo is used to.

Once settled back inside the Wall, Kamele becomes embroiled in faculty politics, and is appointed sub-chair of her department. Meanwhile, Theo who has a notation in her file indicating that she is "physically challenged," has a series of misadventures, including pulling her best friend down on the belt-ride to class, and hurting a teammate during a savage game. With notes piling up in her file, Theo only wants to go "home", to the house in the suburbs, and have everything just like it used to be.

Then, Kamele uncovers evidence of possible dishonest scholarship inside of her department. In order to clear the department, she and a team of senior professors must go off-world to perform a forensic document search. Theo hopes this will mean that she'll be left in the care of the man she calls "Father", Professor Kiladi, and is horrified to learn that Kamele means to bring Theo with her!

©2009 Sharon Lee and Steve Miller (P)2012 Audible, Inc.

A fine start to the series

This first novel of the Liaden Universe/Theo Waitley series does what you would expect it to. It has a fair amount of "world building" where you are learning the lay of the land in Theo Waitley's story. You get a feel for the main characters as this coming-of-age story begins. How refreshing to find a coming-of-age story involving a female character, too!

In addition, Eileen Stevens gives a very good narration which adds to your listening experience.

I think this novel has whetted my appetite and left me wondering what is next for Theo. So yes, I will be following up in the near future on her next adventure in book 2 of the series.

School Pressures of the future.

Apparently this is Theo Waitley book 1 but it is Liaden Universe book 11. Fascinating. It is the first work in this series I have consumed. Hmmmm.

Upon the fanatically safe world of Del Gado where a very prestigious university stamps out its graduates a young woman named Theo Waitley is coming of age. The daughter of Camille and Genzar, she has made it to fourteen years of age amassing a volume of warnings in her file regarding clumsiness and reckless decisions. On Del Gado some view that as evidence enough to drug the...offender into a safer state of being.

Her mother and Father, or Honor Grad, are high level academics in the University of Del Gado. They have the clout and sense to push back against such notions but for how long. A published peer of theirs has been outed as a fraud and they've uncovered a conspiracy that would bring down the University, the only major source of economic succor on Del Gado.

They must act to save their daughter and the well being of the planet.

I really enjoyed this work. Though there was little science involved there was bio-science, space opera and social engineering displayed in abundance. While not a novel I would usually seek out I do recommend this one for the younger crowd, perhaps twelve and up as any touchy subjects are dealt with rather tastefully here.

Four out of five entertainment points are thus awarded.

Oh please! Check pronunciation!

Some simple words get mispronounced and it drops me right out of the story. There's no K in eschew. That's just one example of the occasional laughable mistakes. So close.

I guess they were going for a broken society on Delgado, so the thing where she calls her mother by her given name was probably intended to make me feel like she had a mental disorder. For all that I still love this series, this is my third time through I believe.

It's kinda complicated

This book is the start of the answer to a Character's comment at the end of I Dare.
The Narrator caught the sweep of Theo and her complex interactions and the start of her flowering. I'm so delighted to finally have acess to one of my favorite books in the Liaden Universe in audio. I watched this story take shape in the weekly chapter postings.
This book can stand alone but the rest of the series is enhanced by knowledge of the Agent of Change books.
Necessity requires that I obtain all the books in this series.
Only one wish left and that is that the Chap books be produced in audio.

loved it

I really loved it and intend to buy the rest of the series to listen to while I work