Instant reactions needed: this is a test, this is only a test

[kinzel]

I'm on the road this morning, but after a breakfast discussion and consideration I have a question for you:

without re-reading the complete works, working from memory, right now, making a short list without looking at other people's answers:

which three Lee & Miller books are the least violent
which three Lee & Miller books are the most violent


Thanks -- we can talk about this next week.

meanwhile, we still are planning on seeing some folks at BangPop tomorrow.

Comments

[keristor.livejournal.com]

As per the instructions:

Least violent: Fledgling, LC, CoH
Most violent: AoC, ID, PB

[alicebentley]

I'm sure my answers will change if I walk over to the shelf and review the books, but off-the-cuff and without ranking within a category:

Least violent: Balance of Trade, Local Custom and Fledgling

Most violent: Crystal Dragon, Agent of Change, I Dare

[nephir.livejournal.com]

Least violent? LC, CoH Fledgling
Most violent? Crystal Dragon, AoC, I Dare

[brownkitty.livejournal.com]

Least violent: Mouse and Dragon, Fledgling, Local Custom

Most violent: Crystal Dragon, Agent of Change, I Dare

[sleary.livejournal.com]

Most violent: Plan B, Agent of Change, I Dare. I really want to throw in one or both of the Crystal books, which should get extra points for demolishing an entire galaxy, but it's been ages since I reread them, and most of that action happens in the rearview mirror, as I recall.

Least violent: Local Custom, Balance of Trade, and Fledgling, I think. CoH is pretty non-violent until the knife/fireball fight, and Mouse and Dragon would get a spot on the list if it weren't for... well, you know.

[(Anonymous)]

We are only talking about Liadan, right? If not, Duainfey wins most violent, hands down...



Least Violent
Local Custom
Scout's Progress

Most Violent
I Dare
Crystal Dragon

I debated a long time on the violent ones. I am still waffling. But I'll go with these two.

[masgramondou.livejournal.com]

Least Violent - Fledgling, Local Custom, Balance of Trade
Most Violent - Crystal Dragon, Plan B, Agent of Change

[masgramondou.livejournal.com]

Sorry I meant "I Dare" not "Plan B" I got those mixed up somehow

[(Anonymous)]

Least:
Balance of Trade
Local Custom
Fledgling

Most
Duanfey (Probably less death than many, but more visceral)
I Dare
Crystal Dragon

My memorys not great, and I had to do a little bit of a summary check to make sure I had the righ titles, but that's my try.

[kay-gmd.livejournal.com]

Didn't realize I wasn't logged in.
Kay

[darkfoxprime.livejournal.com]

Off the top of my head:

Most violent: Agent of Change, Plan B, I Dare

Least violent: Fledgeling, Saltation, Balance of Trade

[drammar.livejournal.com]

Least:
Local Custom
Balance of Trade
Fledgling

Most:
Duainefy (probably not spelled correctly)
Agent of Change
Plan B

And now to see what others said!

[saruby.livejournal.com]

First, I would like to note that for me the level of violence is relatively static. I really had to think about this (ok, it took me 2 minutes to mentally sort the list). I also think it may depend on your definition of violence. For me, violence is greater when it is close up and in person rather than distance or remembered. Also intention is important. Personally motivated violence is worse than violence in war.

least: Fledgling, BoT, LC
most: Duainfey, Longeye, Tomorrow Log

[gingerwood.livejournal.com]

Least Violent:
Conflict of Honors
Balance of Trade
Fledgling

Most Violent
Plan B
I Dare
Crystal Dragon

[(Anonymous)]

Without looking at the other comments...

Least violent:
Fledgling
possibly Balance of Trade
Carpe Diem or Conflict of Honors

Most violent:
Plan B
Agent of Change
Crystal Dragon?

Melita

[cailleuch.livejournal.com]

I had to think about this because there are many definitions of violence. Taking the easy road and commenting on overt violence (guns and war) I'd say Plan B and Crystal Dragon but for nasty, insidious violence I say Scout's Progress.

Least violent: Fledgling, Balance of Trade, Carpe Diem

[adina-atl.livejournal.com]

Most:
Agent of Change
Plan B

Least:
Conflict of Honors
I Dare

For some reason I'm coming up with two of each, not three.

Least and most violent

[fergusonar.livejournal.com]

Least violent books:
Local Custom
Scout's Progress
Conflict of Honors

Most violent:
Plan B
Saltation
Crystal Dragon

I have purchased but not yet read Mouse and Dragon. Like you said, not deeply thought about.

[(Anonymous)]

Least:
Balance of Trade
Conflict of Honors
Fledgling

Most:
Plan B
Crystal Dragon
Scout's Progress (I think this is the right one -
the one where Aelliana keeps getting abused by her
brother)

That was very interesting

[(Anonymous)]

It depends on one's definition of violence - I tried to not read anyone else's contributions but
we have some different ideas.

That last was me -
Lauretta@ConstellationBooks

[(Anonymous)]

Least Violent
Local Custom
Conflict of Honors
Scout's Progress

Most Violent
Agent of Change
Plan B
I Dare

I'm still reading though both Crystal books and have not yet read Fledgling or Saltation.

[(Anonymous)]

Least: Fledgling, Saltation, Balance of Trade

Most: I Dare, Plan B, Crystal Dragon

Sidney

[joycependle.livejournal.com]

Scout's Progress is the only Liaden book whose violence bothers me. Oh, on a much lesser level Balance of Trade and Local Custom. These are the ones I have difficulty re-reading. I can't rank the others at all - I would have said they were all non-violent, but I'd have meant no family violence.

[sibylle]

which three Lee & Miller books are the least violent

Local Custom
Conflict of Honors
*blank*

which three Lee & Miller books are the most violent
I Dare
Plan B
Agent of Change

[sfminou.livejournal.com]

Violence is such a personal term. I think of Fledgling as terribly abusive, even though the violence is done by a society and does not involve hitting. But violence is in ALL the Lee/Miller books.
Balance of Trade -- throwing out a teenager cannot be otherwise.
Local Custom -- taking away a child from a loving mother; the acid, acid views of Kareen.
Conflict of Honors -- personal abuse abounds.

As for body count, the most violent would be Agent of Change, I Dare, and Scout's Progress.

[sfminou.livejournal.com]

No -- Chi's twin, consumed by her own pain and bitterness.

[verana1111.livejournal.com]

Without reviewing or peeking:

Least violent: Local Custom, Scout's Progress (for a value of violent emphasizing things blowing up and blood flowing, not interpersonal mental violence), and Conflict of Honors.

Most violent: I Dare, Agent of Change, Plan B.

[enleve.livejournal.com]

This question was tough for me to answer, because there seems to be violence in every novel I thought of. I decided to leave out the short story collections and non-Liaden books from consideration when I was making the list. Some of the short stories would fall in the least violent category though.

SPOILER WARNING

Least violent:

Balance of Trade
Fledgling
Local Custom

There are scenes in all of these where the lives of the main characters are threatened, and there is violence involved, but that violence isn't the focus of the book, and isn't repeated much, and the scale seems to be individuals clashing with each other. Sometimes larger plots by the villains are involved, but we don't see much more of those plots and the possible other violence springing from those plots. I was tempted to put Carpe Diem in there, since most of it was about culture clash on a peaceful planet, but the violence with the Agent at the end was too scary and memorable.

Most violent:

Plan B
I Dare
Mouse and Dragon

The conflict in Plan B and I Dare is of a larger scale - war, multiple assasinations. I include Mouse and Dragon because a main character dies.

[painoarvokas.livejournal.com]

Depends on the definition of "violent" in the context of fictional stories. Here's one list:

Least violent:
Balance of Trade
Fledgling
Carpe diem

Most violent:
Crystal soldier
Crystal dragon
I dare

[mbarker.livejournal.com]

One does wonder just what the results of such a measure might be useful for, but...

Let's start by noting that people die, often as a result of deliberate violence, in most of your books. Off-hand, I think perhaps only Fledgling does not have a death somewhere in it.

Most violent? The Crystal Duology destroys a universe along the way, which must count for something. And a key character dies. I Dare, similarly, has a large-scale attach and all that fun. But, as I believe is true for all of your books, the violence is there for a reason, and the "good guys" fight back effectively. So we're not talking meaningless violence, nor is it anything that the characters seem to wallow in or even (mostly) seem to enjoy. Along with that, I should mention both Scout's Progress and Duainfey, which have a great deal of stressful activity, whether it is accounted as violence or not. On the other hand, both also have "what comes next" books -- Mouse and Dragon and Longeye -- that do a lot to relieve the bleakness.

Least violent? Probably Balance of Trade, even if it does start with a tale of Liaden murders, and definitely has a con man die early on. Still, the focus of the story is not on violence, but trade. I suppose Fledgling also belongs in this group, although the thread of drugging Theo into conformity bothers me at least as much if not more than simple violence would.

However, even books such as Agent of Change, with gunfights, mercenaries, fires, and all that, don't really feel violent. I think part of this is attitude -- Val Con and Miri and others seem to see violence more as a regrettable temporary expedient than as an ongoing desirable method of solution. There's at least an intention to get away from violence. Or consider the ending of Conflict of Honors. That climactic meeting, which in many books would have been a bloodbath of violence, was a simple meeting, with good results, instead of simple death and destruction.

[victorthecook.livejournal.com]

Least violent:
Conflict of Honors
Fledgling
Balance of Trade

Most violent:
Agent of Change
Plan B
I Dare

[jane-barfly.livejournal.com]

Least Violent: Balance of Trade, Local Custom, Fledgling.
Most Violent: Crystal Dragon, I Dare, Crystal Soldier