Kindle
$3.99
Available instantly
Audible Logo Audiobook
$0.00
with membership trial
Hardcover
$198.82
MP3 CD
$19.95
Buy used:
$198.82
FREE delivery May 20 - 29. Details
Or fastest delivery May 20 - 21. Details
Used: Good | Details
Sold by Fast Cat Books
Condition: Used: Good
Comment: Good condition with moderate shelf wear to binding and pages. Some highlighting and notes.
Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.
Kindle app logo image

Download the free Kindle app and start reading Kindle books instantly on your smartphone, tablet, or computer - no Kindle device required.

Read instantly on your browser with Kindle for Web.

Using your mobile phone camera - scan the code below and download the Kindle app.

QR code to download the Kindle App

Follow the author

Lois McMaster Bujold
+ Follow
More books from this author
Something went wrong. Please try your request again later.

Penric's Demon Hardcover – May 31, 2016

by Lois McMaster Bujold (Author)
4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 5,403 ratings
See all formats and editions
On his way to his betrothal, young Lord Penric comes upon a riding accident with an elderly lady on the ground, her maidservant and guardsmen distraught. As he approaches to help, he discovers that the lady is a Temple divine, servant to the five gods of this world. Her avowed god is The Bastard, master of all disasters out of season , and with her dying breath she bequeaths her mysterious powers to Penric. From that moment on, Penric's life is irreversibly changed, and his life is in danger from those who envy or fear him.

Set in the fantasy world of the author's acclaimed novels The Curse of Chalion, Paladin of Souls, and The Hallowed Hunt, this novella has the depth of characterization and emotional complexity that distinguishes all Bujold's work.
Read more Read less
Previous page
  1. Part of series
    Penric & Desdemona
  2. Print length
    184 pages
  3. Language
    English
  4. Publisher
    Subterranean
  5. Publication date
    May 31, 2016
  6. Dimensions
    5.75 x 1 x 8.25 inches
  7. ISBN-10
    1596067691
  8. ISBN-13
    978-1596067691
  9. See all details
Next page
The Amazon Book Review
The Amazon Book Review
Book recommendations, author interviews, editors' picks, and more. Read it now
Popular Highlights in this book
What are popular highlights?
Previous page
  1. “And it indicates a deep confusion of thinking to mistake one’s own discomfort for a benefit to another.”
    Highlighted by 364 Kindle readers
  2. “You looked a god in the eyes and bore witness for me, by which alone I am preserved.” She took a deep breath, through his mouth. “You looked a god in the eyes. And spoke for me. There is nothing in my power that I will ever refuse you, after that.”
    Highlighted by 305 Kindle readers
  3. Better it seemed to export cheese or cloth, but it was true that fortunes were made in the military trade. Though seldom by the soldiers, any more than by the cheeses.
    Highlighted by 217 Kindle readers
Next page

Editorial Reviews

From the Author

Author's Note:
 
A Bujold Reading-Order Guide
 
 
The Fantasy Novels
 
My fantasy novels are not hard to order. Easiest of all is The Spirit Ring, which is a stand-alone, or aquel, as some wag once dubbed books that for some obscure reason failed to spawn a subsequent series. Next easiest are the four volumes of The Sharing Knife--in order, Beguilement, Legacy, Passage, and Horizon--which I broke down and actually numbered, as this is one continuous tale.
 
What were called the Chalion books after the setting of its first two volumes, but which now that the geographic scope has widened I'm dubbing the World of the Five Gods, were written to be stand-alones as part of a larger whole.  However, the second volume certainly contains spoilers for the first, so Curse-Paladin is the recommended reading order.  The third is in effect an independent prequel, not sharing characters or setting with the other two, so readers of the prior volumes need to adjust their expectations going in. In any case, the publication order is:
 
The Curse of Chalion
Paladin of Souls
The Hallowed Hunt

In terms of internal world chronology, The Hallowed Hunt would fall first, the Penric novellas perhaps a hundred and fifty years later, and The Curse of Chalion and Paladin of Souls would follow a century or so after that.

Current internal chronology of the Penric & Desdemona tales is:

"Penric's Demon"
"Penric and the Shaman"
"Penric's Fox"
"Penric's Mission"
"Mira's Last Dance"

Other Original E-books
 
The short story collection ProtoZoa contains five very early tales--three (1980s) contemporary fantasy, two science fiction--all previously published but not in this handy format. The novelette "Dreamweaver's Dilemma" may be of interest to Vorkosigan completists, as it is the first story in which that proto-universe began, mentioning Beta Colony but before Barrayar was even thought of.
 
Sidelines:Talks and Essays is just what it says on the tin--a collection of three decades of my nonfiction writings, including convention speeches, essays, travelogues, introductions, and some less formal pieces. I hope it will prove an interesting companion piece to my fiction.
 
 
The Vorkosigan Stories
 
Many pixels have been expended debating the 'best' order in which to read what have come to be known as the Vorkosigan Books (or Saga), the Vorkosiverse, the Miles books, and other names. The debate mainly revolves around publication order versus internal-chronological order. I favor internal chronological, with a few adjustments.
 
Shards of Honor and Barrayar. The first two books in the series proper, they detail the adventures of Cordelia Naismith of Beta Colony and Aral Vorkosigan of Barrayar. Shards was my very first novel ever; Barrayar was actually my eighth, but continues the tale the next day after the end of Shards. For readers who want to be sure of beginning at the beginning, or who are very spoiler-sensitive, start with these two.
 
The Warrior's Apprentice and The Vor Game (with, perhaps, the novella "The Mountains of Mourning" tucked in between.) The Warrior's Apprentice introduces the character who became the series' linchpin, Miles Vorkosigan; the first book tells how he created a space mercenary fleet by accident; the second how he fixed his mistakes from the first round. Space opera and military-esque adventure (and a number of other things one can best discover for oneself), The Warrior's Apprentice makes another good place to jump into the series for readers who prefer a young male protagonist.
 
After that: Brothers in Arms should be read before Mirror Dance, and both, ideally, before Memory.
 
Komarr makes another alternate entry point for the series, picking up Miles's second career at its start. It should be read before A Civil Campaign.
 
Borders of Infinity, a collection of three of the five currently extant novellas, makes a good Miles Vorkosigan early-adventure sampler platter, I always thought, for readers who don't want to commit themselves to length. (But it may make more sense if read after The Warrior's Apprentice.) Take care not to confuse the collection-as-a-whole with its title story, "The Borders of Infinity".
 
Falling Free takes place 200 years earlier in the timeline and does not share settings or characters with the main body of the series. Most readers recommend picking up this story later. It should likely be read before Diplomatic Immunity, however,which revisits the "quaddies", a bioengineered race of free-fall dwellers, in Miles's time.
 
The novels in the internal-chronological list below appear in italics; the novellas (officially defined as a story between 17,500 word sand 40,000 words) in quote marks.
 
Falling Free
Shards of Honor
Barrayar
The Warrior's Apprentice
"The Mountains of Mourning"
"Weatherman"
The Vor Game
Cetaganda
Ethan of Athos
Borders of Infinity
"Labyrinth"
"The Borders of Infinity"
Brothers in Arms
Mirror Dance
Memory
Komarr
A Civil Campaign
"Winterfair Gifts"
Diplomatic Immunity
Captain Vorpatril's Alliance
CryoBurn
Gentleman Jole and the Red Queen
 
Caveats:
 
The novella "Weatherman" is an out-take from the beginning of the novel The Vor Game. If you already have The Vor Game, you likely don't need this.
 
The original 'novel' Borders of Infinity was a fix-up collection containing the three novellas "The Mountains of Mourning", "Labyrinth", and "The Borders of Infinity", together with a frame to tie the pieces together. Again, beware duplication. The frame story does not stand alone.

Happy reading!
 
-- Lois McMaster Bujold

About the Author

One of the most respected writers in the field of speculative fiction, Lois McMaster Bujold burst onto the scene in 1986 with Shards of Honor, the first of her tremendously popular Vorkosigan Saga novels. She has received numerous accolades and prizes, including two Nebula Awards for best novel (Falling Free and Paladin of Souls), four Hugo Awards for Best Novel (Paladin of Souls, The Vor Game, Barrayar, and Mirror Dance), as well as the Hugo and Nebula Awards for her novella The Mountains of Mourning. Her work has been translated into twenty-one languages. The mother of two, Bujold lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Subterranean; Deluxe Hardcover edition (May 31, 2016)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 184 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1596067691
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1596067691
  • Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 12.8 ounces
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 5.75 x 1 x 8.25 inches
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.6 4.6 out of 5 stars 5,403 ratings

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.
Lois McMaster Bujold

Lois McMaster Bujold

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.
Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

A science fiction legend, Lois McMaster Bujold is one of the most highly regarded speculative fiction writers of all time. She has won three Nebula Awards and six Hugo Awards, four for best novel, which matches Robert A. Heinlein's record. Bujold's Miles Vorkosigan saga is a massively popular science fiction mainstay. The mother of two, Ms. Bujold lives in Minneapolis.

Customer reviews

4.6 out of 5 stars
4.6 out of 5
5,403 global ratings
Penric finds himself matched with a better lady than he’d hoped
3 Stars
Penric finds himself matched with a better lady than he’d hoped
Penric’s Demon by Lois McMaster Bujold is the first in a series about Penric and the demon, Desdemona. The novella is short (as befits a novella), coming in at 109 pages, making it a fairly quick read with a fairly linear storyline. It’s somewhat of a classic fantasy read, set in a world and with many characters whom we only get to know cursorily. Still, the magic, the setting, and the demons are all interesting in their own way; I want to continue with the series, in other words.At the onset, we find Penric on his way to his wedding. As a minor noble, Penric finds himself matched with a better lady than he’d hoped, and he’s looking forward to the union. On the way, however, he stops to come to the aid of a fallen elderly woman, not knowing that she is in actuality a powerful sorceress and a host to a likewise powerful demon. As one might imagine, Penric’s life becomes entangled with that of the demon in such a way that the two become inseparable.Penric is a likeable enough fellow. He’s not exactly the most heroic character, but he also doesn’t shy away from doing the right thing. Desdemona is a bit of a mystery and an intriguing one at that. She’s very old, very powerful, and very motherly when it comes to Penric. Or maybe she’s more like an older sister. Regardless, she becomes a tutor of sorts to him, imbuing him with her experience and knowledge, both of which come in handy when Penric needs to get himself out of a jam.I’m giving Penric’s Demon three rockets because it’s a fun, fast, enjoyable read, and I’m looking forward to reading on in the series.
Hide
Thank you for your feedback
Sorry, there was an error
Sorry we couldn't load the review

Top reviews from the United States

Elorin
5.0 out of 5 stars Welcome Desdemona
Reviewed in the United States on March 31, 2024
Verified Purchase
Though brief, this story is a great introduction to Penric and how he came to be possessed by Desdemona. I can't wait to read the next story and see where they go together.
Helpful
 Report
QCLady
4.0 out of 5 stars The Beginning of the Story Rather Than a Novella
Reviewed in the United States on September 18, 2015
Verified Purchase
I absolute love Ms. Bujold's writing. There are none better at the mixture of comedy and drama. None. Nada. This story follows suit. Good story, good chuckles, very interesting non-heroic, hero, and interesting situation, would love to read the rest of the story.

And I mean that literally. I am with those that expect a story to have a beginning, a middle and an end. Each book in a trilogy should have each part. And this is a novella, I expected a novella from the fact that it was described as a novella, the page count, etc. (PS, I also never buy novellas, check them out from the library, yes, buy, no, but this is Bujold!) However, when I finished reading this novella, I felt like it was actually just the beginning of a novel, not a total story. I didn't have the sense of satisfaction of having read a total story. Loved it, but felt like I have had the appetizer and now I am expected to skip the rest of the meal. Which can leave you dissatisfied. Don't get me wrong, an absolutely delicious appetizer, but an appetizer none the least.

This is worth the $3.99 I paid for it. As always her characters are complex, the scenes are well drawn, I can picture the environment because they are well developed and well drawn in the author's mind. For the person that said this was juvenile, the character is young and a bit naive, that doesn't make writing juvenile.

It feels like Ms. Bujold got this much done and published it. I don't feel cheated, I only paid for a novella. But please, please tell me you are going to give us "the rest of the story"! So, if this was a trial balloon to see if we would like the character or perhaps to see if self publishing works, then yes and yes, the rest of the story, please!!
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars An old Friend is as Good as Ever
Reviewed in the United States on February 20, 2024
Verified Purchase
He is observant, he is polite, he is considerate, and he is a pleasant host for his demon Desdemona, who responds with helpful skills and warnings. It is nice to be in their gracious company again.
Helpful
 Report
Susan Palmer
5.0 out of 5 stars I Do Love the World of the Five Gods!
Reviewed in the United States on November 25, 2023
Verified Purchase
As always. Bujold is a delight, her characters, her plot, her situations, the descriptions. Her humor is so gentle, but so firmly there, kind of like Des in Penric. If I had a criticism, which I don't, I would say that the novella format is not as conducive to the depth of her writing as a full-length book, and in the Pen and Desdemona series lends by nature an episodic feeling to each new "chapter".
One person found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Esther Schindler
5.0 out of 5 stars A lovely frolic in the World of the 5 Gods
Reviewed in the United States on February 13, 2016
Verified Purchase
Bujold writes un-put-downable stories. Even if I think I'll read one chapter before going to sleep, I end up reading for an hour... and then wake up early to continue reading. So it's no surprise that I adored this novella -- especially since it's told in my favorite of the Bujold "universes," in which the gods are real but cannot interact directly with humanity.

The setup is easily enough described: On the way to his betrothal, young minor-lord Penric stops to help an old woman on the road, who promptly died on him. And in so doing, he inherits her "demon" -- the spiritual entity who shares her (now his) consciousness. That turns him into a sorcerer, which might be handy if he knew what such a designation conferred. Which leads Penric to have to figure out, "Oh no NOW what happens?!"

Like all of Bujold's main characters, Penric is a wonderful guy whom you want to know better. There's nothing "heroic" in him; he's just a nice person who is trying to make the best of his circumstances, and he goes about it with gentle humor, self-deprecation, and kindness. You'll be cheering him along in only a few pages.

Among Bujold's strengths is that she writes "light" fiction that's easy to consume -- even on a long plane flight after an an exhausting week -- yet not insubstantial fluff. This isn't brain candy. The characters stay with you, in that perfect-fictional-experience wherein you almost "remember" the events as if they were your own.

Since this is a standalone story, and comparatively short, it might tempt you to pick it up as your initial Bujold experience. You won't regret doing that. But I do encourage you to read  The Curse of Chalion  first, because it introduces some of that world's best qualities (such as her notion of what a demon is) in far more depth. It's not like reading yet another 5-star novel is going to hurt, is it?
5 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report
Royce Day
4.0 out of 5 stars Minor Bujold is still better than most
Reviewed in the United States on July 9, 2015
Verified Purchase
Summary: Penric, a young, very much lower lording, is on his way to be dutifully married when his wedding day is turned upside down. Finding a dying sorceress of the Bastard's Order by the side of the road, he's unexpectedly infested with the demon she carried when she passes. So the wedding is off, Penric has a demon carrying the lives of ten women (plus a lioness and a mare) in his head, and he's got a very uncertain future ahead of him.

Well, at least his no-longer-bride-to-be gave him a nice cheese wheel as a going away present.

Review: I think the best way to describe this story is "Amiable". It's a self-published novella that Lois points out is the longest she's written, but it's got less *plot* than say "Borders of Infinity", "The Mountains of Mourning" or "Labyrinth". It's actually a sly commentary about the two halves that make up a marriage (it's no coincidence Pen got his demon on his supposed wedding day), not a great pile of storm and thunder. Much of the bulk of the story is just Penric talking to the demon, which he names "Desdemona" out of discomfort of the idea of just calling it "Demon" as it had been in its previous ten lives. There's a very minor conflict at the end, but it's dealt with handily by Pen and Des, and has the feel of being tacked on just because Lois figured she needed something to actually threaten Penric before the story finished.

Honestly, as a Bujold story it's minor at best. But it's a pleasant read to help pass an hour or two, and there's quite a bit of worldbuilding (as Lois is wont to do) about how the Bastard's Order uses sorcerers and their demons, which would be useful for anyone writing Five Gods 'Verse fanfics.

Recommended
60 people found this helpful
Helpful
 Report

Top reviews from other countries

Translate all reviews to English
Cathy H
5.0 out of 5 stars Great introduction, coming of age, demons
Reviewed in Germany on March 8, 2024
Verified Purchase
Young Lord Penric and his family are travelling. They come across another travelling party in distress. An elderly lady is dying. Penric goes to help and as the lady dies in his arms, her demon passes on to Penric. Turns out that she was a Divine of the Temple of the Bastard. And Penric has aquired a demon that carries the personalities and voices of the 10 or 12 ladies it has ridden previously. What is a male teenager to do?

Pretty amusing. I had fun listening to this novella. Grover Gardner did a good job narrating this and gave Desdemona a convincing voice.

Novella, 103 pages. Nominated for a Hugo in 2016, this series for now comprises of 12 novellas. I am pretty sure that I will continue at some point. I have not read anything else by Bujold set in this world.
Report
Kindle Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars Penric and Desdemona are a delight.
Reviewed in Canada on June 6, 2018
Verified Purchase
I have at last given in and joined the eReader group. I have been hoping this series would come out in paperback but it seems this is not the plan.
The book is as good as I expected and now I will have to eRead the others as well. But at least there is lots to look forward to.
Report
Kiitteriine
5.0 out of 5 stars Amazing
Reviewed in Australia on January 22, 2024
Verified Purchase
So I had come across this author because of cross collaboration 20 years ago, and to my regret it took me too long to read something by her singly, 20 years of missing out!! But, now I am so excited because I have so much catching up to do! I tried this book as a sample and bought the first 3 in the series only 10 pages in 😍
Report
Yannel
5.0 out of 5 stars Daans la lignée de Chalion et avec le style
Reviewed in France on April 12, 2018
Verified Purchase
J'ai l'habitude de lire plusieurs livres en même temps. Là je n'ai pas décroché tant que je l'ai pas eu fini. Un peu court, l'impression d'une longue nouvelle, mais il est gratuit ! Je ne vais pas (trop) me plaindre. Excellent livre dans l'univers des 5 Dieux. Vous retrouverez avec plaisir les 'facéties' du Bâtard, déjà rencontrées dans le Paladin des âmes. J'ai hâte d'acheter la suite de la série qui promet d'être délectable.
Report
Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars The world of the five gods are part of my mind
Reviewed in Spain on August 6, 2017
Verified Purchase
How to explain it? I read in english these ebooks, despite my low knowledge of that language, because I LOVE the stories of Lois McMaster, and it's the only way, now, to go again inside of her fabulous world.
Thank you, Lois!!!
Report