If you loved the sparkling repartee around Miles and Ekaterin’s wedding—and the way Roic and Taura flirt their way through a security scare—then The Spare Man will hit the same sweet spot. Newlyweds Tesla Crane and Shal are honeymooning on a luxury starliner when a murder turns their celebration into a case, and the tone stays breezy and clever even as the stakes rise. Like the Winterfair chaos overseen by formidable ladies (looking at you, Lady Alys), Kowal’s book blends cocktail-party glam with quick-thinking investigation and affectionate, funny romance.

Roic’s steady, watchful presence during the wedding—and his determination to head off a threat without ruining the day—echoes in Network Effect. Murderbot’s voice is as wry as any Barrayaran armsman’s under pressure, and its priority is the same: keep its humans (Dr. Mensah and company) alive while picking apart an ambush that arrives at the worst possible moment. If the tight, security-focused sleuthing around the Winterfair assassination scare hooked you, this delivers that mix of competence, humor, and heart.

If Roic and Taura’s unexpected bond—the awkward charm, the quiet gifts and understanding amid larger conflicts—was what made Winterfair Gifts sing for you, try This Is How You Lose the Time War. Two agents on opposite sides begin leaving each other letters across battlefields of time, and what starts as rivalry becomes an intimate, deeply felt romance. Like Roic falling for someone wildly unlike him, this is about connection transcending origin, duty, and expectation.

One of the joys of Winterfair Gifts is its close focus: hallway whispers during wedding prep, private reassurances, and small brave choices that matter. A Closed and Common Orbit stays just as close to its characters—an AI finding a new self and a young woman with a hidden past—building a life through shared meals, gently offered help, and vulnerable talks. If the cozy, personal scale of the wedding-week story charmed you, this will, too.

If what warmed you in Winterfair Gifts was the sense that Miles’s household extends beyond blood—armsmen, friends, and guests rallying to protect and celebrate—then The House in the Cerulean Sea is your next comfort read. A reserved caseworker visits an orphanage for unusual children and slowly becomes part of a household stitched together by kindness and loyalty. It carries the same affectionate, welcoming spirit that lets someone like Taura be embraced as one of the Vorkosigans’ own.