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44th out of 150 books
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Shadows in Flight (Shadow #5)
Ender's shadow explores the stars in this all-new novel--the sequel to Card's"New York Times" bestseller, "Shadow of the Giant."
Hardcover, 237 pages
Published
January 17th 2012
by Tor Books
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I won this book through Goodreads First Reads. I've entered more of the giveaways than I care to admit, and this was my first win. My only problem; this is Book 5 of a six part series. I have never read the first books or even the Ender's Game books also by Orson Scott Card that preceded this series.
So, I read synopses of each book on Wikipedia, which gave me enough background to understand what I was reading. Despite my ignorance of Card's arguably most famous books, I still enjo...more
So, I read synopses of each book on Wikipedia, which gave me enough background to understand what I was reading. Despite my ignorance of Card's arguably most famous books, I still enjo...more
Shadows in Flight by Orson Scott Card, as reviewed here is an uncorrected proof of a book that will be published in January, 2012. This novel does not have a stand-alone plot. Card is tying up one of the last loose ends in the universe that he first created in Ender’s Game back in 1985.
Picking up where he left off, Orson Scott Card immediately reminded me why I was drawn to his writing originally. A true “Hard Sci-Fi” novel, is centered around a plausible and explained future. Card...more
Picking up where he left off, Orson Scott Card immediately reminded me why I was drawn to his writing originally. A true “Hard Sci-Fi” novel, is centered around a plausible and explained future. Card...more
This is another of the sort of follow up books to the Ender/Shadow series. It is a direct sequel to Shadow of the Giant. It follows Bean and his three antonine/leguminote children (meaning the children with the same genetic abnormality as Bean) on their near lightspeed flight through space. I didn't like it as much as I liked Ender in Exile, but it was definitely fun to read another story set in one of my favorite fictional universes. It felt more like experiencing a set length of time in their ...more
It was an enjoyable book because I'm a fan of the series. It's just a stepping stone between the very powerful fourth book in the series and the more substantial book that Card has announced he is writing that will tie much of what happens in this one to what has been happening in his Ender Wiggens saga. Those things that were discovered here that have longer-term implications are interesting and I'm really looking forward to seeing how they play out. It might make some people pretty mad though!...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
What could have been an epic reunion between Bean and Ender that wraps up the final mysteries of both Anton's Key and the language/biology of the Descoladores instead quickly spirals into a blatant re-hash of previous works, except without the depth and psychology of the original novels.
We begin on the generation ship Bean and his 2 Anton-turned children fled earth upon. The children, two boys and a girl, are named Ender, Sergeant, and Carlotta. Sergeant is overly vicious and desperate...more
We begin on the generation ship Bean and his 2 Anton-turned children fled earth upon. The children, two boys and a girl, are named Ender, Sergeant, and Carlotta. Sergeant is overly vicious and desperate...more
Orson Scott Card has a predilection for writing about people who are incredibly intelligent, which gives special problems to the author, who has to create the impression that he is attuned to and can convey to the reader the thinking patterns of people more intelligent than he is. While that is essentially impossible, Card does it fairly well.
Bean, Ender Wiggins’ Battle School friend, is now approaching the end of his life as he reaches his early twenties, with the strange DNA change ...more
Bean, Ender Wiggins’ Battle School friend, is now approaching the end of his life as he reaches his early twenties, with the strange DNA change ...more
I love the original Ender series, I grew to love Bean, despite his not being Ender. What Orson Scott Card does well is he creates, often tragically, human characters that you love an hate for their decisions and actions. That is why I love reading the Ender Universe books. This one is short and sweet and make you question your own mortality and legacy. This ended the way it needed to end, I was even relieved for Bean, who is perhaps as equally a tragic character as Ender. I am always hit by Card...more
Bean, Julian Delphiki remains one of my favorite creations of Orson Scott Card. It was bitter sweet to read this last entry into his life and yet to have the promise of the three children continuing his legacy. As a book, Shadows in Flight is all too brief. Yet, the only way it could have been expanded would have been to create greater suspense as the children tracked down the rodents on the Formic ship. My largest complaint, other than the book's length, is that at the beginning the three chi...more
This one is a short little book, barely more than a novella. I finished in ~6 hrs. Reportedly that was intentional, as OSC is testing the idea of shorter, cheaper books as potential impulse-buy items. I think it was worth it.
This is a classic Card story -- spookily brilliant children, wonder, exploration, moral dilemmas, grappling with growing up and learning responsibility, seeing things from new perspectives, all that good stuff. It is also the end of Bean's journey, and is worth rea...more
This is a classic Card story -- spookily brilliant children, wonder, exploration, moral dilemmas, grappling with growing up and learning responsibility, seeing things from new perspectives, all that good stuff. It is also the end of Bean's journey, and is worth rea...more
Lots of spoilers here, though I leave out some specifics. Fair warning.
I have to admit to very mixed feelings on this one. I love Bean. I wanted more Bean. BUT...I can see why Card had to mostly move on to the lives of the children. So it's bittersweet to get the bits of Bean perspective we do.
This was definitely not what I expected--a character study of immature geniuses trapped on a small ship. I hadn't expected Bean to be so big and trapped in the cargo hold to stay ...more
I have to admit to very mixed feelings on this one. I love Bean. I wanted more Bean. BUT...I can see why Card had to mostly move on to the lives of the children. So it's bittersweet to get the bits of Bean perspective we do.
This was definitely not what I expected--a character study of immature geniuses trapped on a small ship. I hadn't expected Bean to be so big and trapped in the cargo hold to stay ...more
orson scott card, why did you get rid of the chapter intros? they were such an interesting way to offer an alternative point of view to the story, and this book really lacked that.
the second half was good, although still not great. unfortunately, you have to get through the first half to get there. i haven't read the rest of these books in a while so maybe this has always been the case, but the writing was very stilted. he usually does slang well, but it felt inauthentic in this. the t...more
the second half was good, although still not great. unfortunately, you have to get through the first half to get there. i haven't read the rest of these books in a while so maybe this has always been the case, but the writing was very stilted. he usually does slang well, but it felt inauthentic in this. the t...more
Solid entry in the series but suffers from too much focus on dialogue and internal dialogue and a lack of action to the plot. The plot itself is very simple: Bean has left Petra and Earth behind to take their children to the stars with the hopes of finding somewhere they can live out their limited days in peace. Each of the kids is unique. Ender, a scientist, is focused on learning how to solve their giantism condition and save them all. Carlotta is an engineer, expert on starships, how they ope...more
I wasn't sure if this was the book that was supposed to tie the Ender and Shadow serieses together. (It's not.) I'm glad I read it since it ties up some loose ends, but I expect so much better from OSC.
-I felt like Bean's three kids were just a rehash of Ender, Valentine and Peter, which felt unoriginal and like a ripoff.
-The ending felt really rushed.
-I skimmed over all technobabble, which is surprising for me. I could not get into it at all.
-I missed having the intr...more
-I felt like Bean's three kids were just a rehash of Ender, Valentine and Peter, which felt unoriginal and like a ripoff.
-The ending felt really rushed.
-I skimmed over all technobabble, which is surprising for me. I could not get into it at all.
-I missed having the intr...more
I hate Orson Scott Card so much because his latest book about former Battle School students is clearly designed more to make money than to tell an essential story to the series, but I still read and enjoyed it.
This time around we finally get to hear what happened to Bean and the children sent out into space with him. It's five years after they set out on their voyage and the Antonines (or Leguminotes, as the children prefer to be called) come across what appears to be an ancient Formi...more
This time around we finally get to hear what happened to Bean and the children sent out into space with him. It's five years after they set out on their voyage and the Antonines (or Leguminotes, as the children prefer to be called) come across what appears to be an ancient Formi...more
This book had to be written, I get that. And I had to read it, not denying it, but it is so short, and really just such a... fall from the rest of the series, I kind of wish it was not written.
I love the Shadow series. They are a very interesting departure from regular science fiction and feature one of the greatest science fiction characters I have ever read, but this book does the series an injustice. This may seem contradictory, but this ending was written solely to end the series...more
I love the Shadow series. They are a very interesting departure from regular science fiction and feature one of the greatest science fiction characters I have ever read, but this book does the series an injustice. This may seem contradictory, but this ending was written solely to end the series...more
Chance Maree
rated it
Recommends it for:
Readers of the Ender series
Shelves:
first-reads,
science-fiction
First off, the sci-fi element is grand. Wonderful detail concerning mechanical and biological systems, as well as logistical solutions. Well written and easy to read and understand.
Second, OSC had to write genius interior and exterior dialogue - some from adolescent POVs. That could be difficult to pull off, but I bought it. Some of the quips were funny.
I'll stop counting now -- reading sci-fi stimulates my left brain. I have read most of the Ender series, so this insta...more
Second, OSC had to write genius interior and exterior dialogue - some from adolescent POVs. That could be difficult to pull off, but I bought it. Some of the quips were funny.
I'll stop counting now -- reading sci-fi stimulates my left brain. I have read most of the Ender series, so this insta...more
I am a fan of the Ender and the Shadow saga, so as a story off of the Shadow saga, I think it gave Bean a decent death. As a work within the Ender Universe, I think it might have done more harm than good within the series of books as it has implications on the future, which we know from the Ender Saga. As those have been my favorite books, I can see that many questions and implications would bridge over from this book and simply have no explanation. It ties up Beans life, but opens up more f...more
I remember reading Ender's Game when I was in the fifth grade. I loved it, but didn't understand everything that happened. When I read it again in high school I was excited to learn that there was an entire series. When I came across the Shadow series I was really stoked. I loved Bean and in many ways I liked the Shadow series better because it explained what happen to more of the characters. I was STOKED when I learned I had won an advanced reading copy from Goodreads.
In SHADOWS IN...more
In SHADOWS IN...more
Absolutely perfect, in terms of what it is: more or less merely an interlude. It wraps up a couple loose ends and develops characters and ideas at least some of which will presumably be integral parts of the (supposedly single volume) finale of both the Ender and Bean series.
So most of what it does is portend greater things to come, and this it does very compellingly. The other part, the human (sorry, leguminote) relationships between Bean and his children, are drawn brilliantly. The...more
So most of what it does is portend greater things to come, and this it does very compellingly. The other part, the human (sorry, leguminote) relationships between Bean and his children, are drawn brilliantly. The...more
I read the the original Ender series, but I haven't read any of the Shadows series. Consequently, I was a little worried about getting Shadows in Flight as a Goodreads giveaway since it is not the first book in the Shadows series. However, Orson Scott Card always does a good job of delivering a story as a stand alone, even if it's part of a series. I really enjoyed this book. It was a short, easy read and I was reintroduced to the story from the original Ender series. Reading the book made me wa...more
This is easily the best thing that Card has written in years-- infinitely better than the awful Ender in Exile-- and it is a fitting swan song for Bean, one of my absolute favorite fictional characters. I was drawn into the story almost immediately and fascinated to watch the three children develop and interact with the Formics.
The book is FAR too short-- practically a novella-- and it's very frustrating to me that there is still so much left of the story to tell. I feel like I jus...more
The book is FAR too short-- practically a novella-- and it's very frustrating to me that there is still so much left of the story to tell. I feel like I jus...more
To say I love the Ender and Shadow series is a bit of an understatement. This is a good continuation of the Shadow storyline. I think I like reading about Bean more than Ender, maybe it's because Card has more to say in these books. This one felt more like a connector book than some of the others. I'm not sure it could be read and enjoyed on its own. It does set up nicely what I hope I the next book about Bean's brilliant children. Overall, this isn't the best book in this series but if you like...more
I think the trouble with these intermediary novels is that there are not any real revelations. It is nice to re-visit the character we have come to know throughout the Enderverse, and to fill in holes in the history, but I'm not sure anything new is coming of it. SHADOWS IN FLIGHT spends a majority of its time catching up on what Bean and his antonine children have been up to. It isn't until the end that any sort of action takes place, and a mini revelation of sorts is made. But no time is s...more
It has been a long time since I have sat down and read a book in one day. But the second I opened this book I couldn't stop turning the pages. The depth of this novel is everything we have come to expect from Orson Scott Card.
It certainly brings a connection between the stories of Ender and the stories of Bean. However, it is more than just a tying of loose ends. It is a story about family, love, and survival. It is a tale of scientific discovery but also self discovery. Howeve...more
It certainly brings a connection between the stories of Ender and the stories of Bean. However, it is more than just a tying of loose ends. It is a story about family, love, and survival. It is a tale of scientific discovery but also self discovery. Howeve...more
When I saw the title, I immediately assumed that this book would be about Bean's children after he had died, so I was thankful to find Bean still alive and a significant part of the story, thus tying it back easier to both series. The book manages to further expand our knowledge of the Enderverse and (probably) concludes the Shadow storyline, however didn't grab this reader as much as the first two books of both series. It was a bit jarring to see the name Ender refer to a new character, and the...more
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
click here.
Orson Scott Card’s Shadows in Flight is a 5 Star ride at light-speed with Julian “Bean” Delphiki and his three similarly gifted and cursed children. Bean is simply the best character from the original Ender’s Game and this chapter in the tale is pure gold, at least for me. Bean is a genius due to genetic modifications but that tinkering has also caused a problem, giantism. Bean doesn’t stop growing and his kids will have the same genius brain but also the same disease. They are loaded on a space...more
I was going to give this 5 stars but when my mouse hovered over the 5 star option, it said "It was amazing!" and I don't feel that way about this book, so I was forced to reduce it to 4 stars (which has happened a lot lately, just look how many 4 star ratings I have given!).
I don't feel that "it was amazing!" is that I felt like some characters changed too much over the course of the book. Well, one character. Although one might argue that the viewpoint switching explai
...more
Over time, the Ender novels have become a series of diminishing returns. Orson Scott Card breathed a bit of new life into the series by going back to its roots and examining the saga from Bean's point of view, but after five books I find myself once again suffering series fatigue.
The latest installment Shadows In Flight isn't necessarily a terrible book. It's just a pale shadow (pun fully intended) of the first novels in this series. Bean and three of his children have launched th...more
The latest installment Shadows In Flight isn't necessarily a terrible book. It's just a pale shadow (pun fully intended) of the first novels in this series. Bean and three of his children have launched th...more
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Orson Scott Card is the author of the novels Ender's Game, Ender's Shadow, and Speaker for the Dead, which are widely read by adults and younger readers, and are increasingly used in schools.
Besides these and other science fiction novels, Card writes contemporary fantasy (Magic Street, Enchantment, Lost Boys), biblical novels (Stone Tables, Rachel and Leah), the American frontier fantasy ser...more
More about Orson Scott Card...
Besides these and other science fiction novels, Card writes contemporary fantasy (Magic Street, Enchantment, Lost Boys), biblical novels (Stone Tables, Rachel and Leah), the American frontier fantasy ser...more
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Jan 12, 2012 12:44pm
Jan 12, 2012 12:50pm