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Earthborn (Homecoming Saga #5)

by Orson Scott Card

3.30 · rating details · 2,925 ratings · 64 reviews

High above the earth orbits the starship Basilica. On board the huge vessel is a sleeping woman. Of those who made the journey, Shedemai alone has survived the hundred of years since the Children of Wetchik returned to Earth.

She now wears the Cloak of the Starmaster, and the Oversoul wakes her sometimes to watch over her descendants on the planet below. The population has ...more

Mass Market Paperback, 448 pages

Published May 15th 1996 by Tor Books (first published 1995)

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Jan 12, 2009

Zach rated it

This is the only book I've ever bothered to review on Amazon because it pissed me off so much. Text follows.

So you've read books one through four. You were impressed by Card's fascinating premise in book one, started to get really turned on to his idea of "god as a machine" in book two, loved the fantastic revelations and conflict in book three, and were intrigued by the first-hand narratives of diggers and angels in book four. I guess I should see how it ends, you say to ...moreThis is the only book I've ever bothered to review on Amazon because it pissed me off so much. Text follows.

So you've read books one through four. You were impressed by Card's fascinating premise in book one, started to get really turned on to his idea of "god as a machine" in book two, loved the fantastic revelations and conflict in book three, and were intrigued by the first-hand narratives of diggers and angels in book four. I guess I should see how it ends, you say to yourself.

Don't be a fool. This book is utter dreck.

In retrospect, I can see how the series suffered a gradual, inexorable decline as Card kept writing, how the wonderful premises with which he began (far-future human evolution, god as a machine) were slowly subsumed by his frankly simplistic mysticism and allegorical Mormon proselytizing. But I only recognized this trend about halfway through book five, the one you're thinking about buying. Like you, after reading book four, although I wasn't that impressed with the strength of that volume I wanted to see how it all turned out.

Let me save you the trouble: angels and humans and diggers get along after all, and God loves you.

All the careful characterization of books one through four is thrown away, and we start fresh with all new characters and a "fun" new naming scheme we have to stumble around. Not only that, but the oversoul is practically a no-show, being completely replaced by the keeper of earth. I won't insert a "spoiler" by telling you about the keeper's true nature, but believe me you'll be disappointed with the explanation when it's revealed around 50 pages from the end. Oh, and he never explains the faster-than-light dream-sending mechanism. He never even mentions it.

Leading up to that tiny piece of plot resolution three volumes in the making, we're treated to a protracted morality / religion play where our protagonists learn to put their lives in God's hands and respect the literal truth of a set of golden plates written by their ancestors. For 400 christ-thumping pages. It's not all that well written, it's not very interesting, and most importantly, it's not what you signed on for after the first four books.

I can't for the life of me understand why Card didn't end the series with book four. This is a boring, barely-related addendum to an otherwise decent series. I was literally gnashing my teeth and straining to get through the last 80 pages.

Don't make my mistake. Pretend book four was a reasonable resolution and pretend this one was never written. (less)

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Nov 30, 2008

Nola rated it

Recommends it for: Card fan, Alma the Younger fans, sci fi people, folks who will forgive the dribbled ending

Recommended to Nola by: Card

Shelves: fiction-science-fiction

Of all of Orson Scott Card’s books, “Earthborn” is probably my least favorite. It is not that the novel is not well written – it is – or that it lacks a good story – it does not. But its role as the fifth and final book in a series makes it feel like an incomplete ending.

Unlike the rest of the novels in the Homecoming series, “Earthborn” lacks most of the characters we have come to identify with. Of the original cast, we have only Shedemai, the Oversoul, and the Keeper of the Eart...more Of all of Orson Scott Card’s books, “Earthborn” is probably my least favorite. It is not that the novel is not well written – it is – or that it lacks a good story – it does not. But its role as the fifth and final book in a series makes it feel like an incomplete ending.

Unlike the rest of the novels in the Homecoming series, “Earthborn” lacks most of the characters we have come to identify with. Of the original cast, we have only Shedemai, the Oversoul, and the Keeper of the Earth. I never really understood why Shedemai had to sit around in a starship for generations, watching over the repopulated Earth, and this book doesn’t seem to explain it. Although her final dream from the Keeper fits well into this novel, it doesn’t work for the series; why didn’t Nafai or Luet (or Shedemai) just have the dream to send a probe back to Basilica and be done with it?

Similarly, the true understanding of the Keeper is very weak. Of course, Card set us up for this when he made God a computer program in the first four novels. The god the humans on Basilica have prayed to for however many million years ago wound up being a computer program. But wait! We learned in those books that there was some other message-sending, human-prodding entity that was calling humans back to earth. Now, I agree with the “yes, there really is a God” argument – that’s one of the perks of being Christian – but after weakening his case, I just didn’t feel like Card made a strong case in the other direction for such a being. And again, I don’t understand why this profound statement didn’t come in Book Four – nothing earth shattering happened in “Earthborn” to provoke it.

Okay, okay, on to the story. We have a lovely rendition of Alma the Younger, science fiction style. With the first four novels, I appreciated the way Card brought people that I was familiar with to life and made me say, “Oh, so THAT’S how they could reason away all of the miracles!” The same is true here. “Oh,” I nodded, “THAT’S how four sons of a king and the son of a priest could run amuck.” Card provides realistic characters with excellent motivations for their actions.

One review I read noted that it was ironic that the five “bad” guys brought about a separation of church and state, and asked if perhaps Card was arguing for a government sponsored religion. Given that fact that Card is LDS and probably reasons as I do in that aspect – that the church we have strong faith in could not have existed in a land that enforced religion, and that the Founding Fathers were inspired to set up America with freedoms that allowed our church to be instated – I doubt that is the case. I urge readers, then, to look at the circumstances that brought about this separation. It came when the king had to decide whether or not to enforce the death penalty on someone who did not accept the monarch’s doctrine. It came after the official priests were turned out so they could not perpetuate evil on others who did not believe the same way. Remember, thirteen years before Akma and his friends attacked the church, the king proclaimed, “From now on, priests will no longer be servants of the king, appointed by the king, and staying with the king to perform the great public rituals.” The final separation, then, was a natural result of this self-induced split. And so I think Card is not saying that the wicked were wrong to want a separation, but that, though they sought it to tear down the Keeper’s works, it wound up being part of the Keeper’s plan.

I think this novel would have worked best as a stand-alone book, separate from the Homecoming series. It doesn’t fit into the series as a whole, other than to satisfy the curiosity of people who wonder, “What ever happened to their kids?” It’s a great story, but as a conclusion, it just sort of drags off.
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Jul 10, 2010

Nathan Johnson rated it

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. For those of you that do not know, the homecoming series follows The Book of Mormon quite closely. This is not a bad thing, and I appreciated Card's opinion of many of the events. His interpretation was fresh and entertaining to read.

I loved the first book, however, from that point there was a steady decline in the series. The third and fourth books were not very fun to read. I felt that the enmity between the two brothers was not something that needed to stretch out for so many book...more

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Oct 12, 2010

Brenda rated it

Shelves: dnf, science-fiction

It's been a long time since I read the other books in this series. In fact, it was in June of 2003 that I read Earthfall (book 4 in the series). I honestly don't remember much about them, but according to my goodreads ratings, I really liked them a lot.

I couldn't even finish this one. I think it's mainly because I didn't care for the story, but also contributing may be that I'm not LDS (and there is just so much in here that parallels the Book of Mormon, and it's too blatant to ig...more

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Jul 28, 2011

Lisa rated it

I felt like the concept of the Homecoming series was intreging. Mankind exiled from earth, the promised land, until they learned to get along better and evolve into better people. Technology was stifled to keep us from killing each other off in the meantime. Millions of years later mankind is no better but they get to return...hmmm.... Oh, and 'god' is a computer called the oversoul...

The series was a quick read that was easy to get through but not satisfying. It just seemed like a retell...more

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May 23, 2011

Villager rated it

This was the final book in the Homecoming series. In many respects it was a story that could stand alone. With one exception ... all of the characters were new. The story was strong with many themes including religious freedom, redemption, love, finding oneself and impact of discrimination (as well as slavery). I must admit that I wasn't excited about the beginning of the book ... because I realized that it didn't have any of the characters that I grew to know in the first 4 books of the se...more

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Jan 19, 2012

Penni rated it

This book pissed me right the eff off. I read this whole series two and a half years ago and I'm still mad thinking about it. You spend four whole books getting invested in a series of characters, a particular world and culture, etc., and then the final one is set thousands of years in the future with a totally new society? If that's what you wanted why not just write it as a stand alone? It really felt like he just got bored with his premise and got as close to rocks-fall-everybody-dies as ...more

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Nov 28, 2010

Mukta Mohapatra rated it

This book was a disappointing end to what started off as a reat series. I am not familiar with the book of mormom, so this story was new to me.
The characters we were attached to are long dead when this book starts. While the characters in this bok were fine, I found myself constantly wondering about how Nafai and Luet finally died.
The lesson in this book? God always loves you. You can turn your back on him/her, but the love is always there waiting for you. Meh. Not what I am ...more

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Jul 02, 2011

Jadie rated it

I'm really being generous here when I say that Earthborn was "okay," but to say I disliked it would also be too extreme I feel. If I could, I would say it's somewhere in the middle. When I first started reading it, I was horribly disappointed. The book is set about 500 years after Earthfall, the last book. The only original character that is left is Shedemei. The rest are referred to as ancient heroes by the people in Earthborn and very few know the true stories of the Heroes, though N...more

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Feb 22, 2008

Allison rated it

Shelves: 2008

The first time I read the series, I skipped this last book. When I was making my way through the series again, I decided that this time I was going to make it though, no matter what. It wasn't initially appealing, I think, because the characters you've come to know and love over the course of the last four books are all gone but for one character. It didn't take long for me this time, though, to become interested in the new characters and the conflict that was building.

In the end,...more

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Sep 04, 2011

Molly rated it

Shelves: mythology, political, religion-philosophy, science-fiction, gender-studies

Reread 12-26-09

Reread 7-21-11. Remember loving it more than I expected to, and still do. Find aspects of it almost painfully/nauseatingly upsetting: the anti-agnostic, anti-intellectual passages. They are mitigated, very beautifully and even truthfully, by the bigger picture of the plot and characterization, whereby logic alone can be used to justify anything, and intellect that is NOT objective is dangerous indeed, but twisted by unaccepted, repressed emotionality; and true intellectu...more

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Sep 27, 2007

Johnny Leal rated it

This book... *sigh*

Card is my favorite Sci-Fi author. The first four Homecoming books were fantastic. Many seem to complain about how much Mormonism is in this series (specifically book 5) but that's just it; The novels were actually BASED on the book of Mormon. I'm not of the Mormon belief myself, and no offense meant by this but - Mormon beliefs make for great science fiction, heh.

Anyway back on topic, this book is not about the characters you come to love and hate i...more

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May 10, 2007

Ellie rated it

This is really more of a religious and political commentary than a science fiction novel. Card has some really interesting characters and tells a good story, but unfortunately his books have way too much Mormonism in them to completely appeal to a non-Mormon audience. Although it seems like the ends of the series are more religious than the beginnings. Perhaps he is getting more sure of himself with regard to using his religion in his books. In this book the Mormon imagery just gets out of hand,...more

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Aug 19, 2010

Brian rated it

Shelves: scifi, fantasy

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Mar 13, 2011

Peter added it

What's the problem with the Spanish edition????: Compré el primer libro de la saga en España y realmente me encantó. Por eso, cuando llegue a Argentina (donde vivo) me compré el 2do, 3ro y 4to. Tuve muchísimos problemas para encontrar la edición en español del 5to, de hecho, NO LA ENCONTRE. Qué pasa con las personas que no saben inglés? Se quedan sin el final de la historia? Me parece que tendrían que solucionar ese problemilla. Igualmente, los felicito por los otros cuatro!

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May 21, 2009

Rita Webb rated it

Shelves: scifi, read-in-2009

500 years after Nafai and his family land on Earth, the lands are repopulated and the truth behind the Heroes has long been forgotten. The Nafari, descendents of Nafai and Luet, bicker over the meanings of the history / religious books left by Nafai. And with these questions comes turmoil and power struggle and religious revolution.

It was a strong end to a good series. Card tied things up well, and I enjoyed the message on humility and love that pervaded the story. Though sometimes I...more

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Feb 15, 2010

Jason rated it

Shelves: sci-fi

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here.

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Jan 04, 2010

Shantel rated it

Honestly, didn't really care for the 5th book. It was basically a completely separate story with all new characters from in comparison to the first four books. It was basically the story of Alma the Younger in the Book of Mormon, and I really just felt that the books should have ended with the fourth book. But that's just a personal feeling. My husband loved it.

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Jul 16, 2011

Jason McIntosh rated it

· review of another edition

OK. really glad I finished this series. I was initially put off because it was basically like starting a whole new saga, with shedya being the only returning character. But Card really has a way of sucking you into his worlds and making you care about his characters. great story, I actually might almost like it better than some of those middle books!

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Nov 11, 2011

Amblingbooks.com marked it as to-read · review of another edition

Shelves: available-on-audio, science-fiction

"Card's far-future religious saga manages, brilliantly, to be at once entertaining, unobjectionable, and edifying." - Kirkus Reviews

Listen to Earthborn on your smartphone.

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Dec 20, 2011

Jomel Imperio rated it

Nothing much actually does happen, and the focus here is on the relationships between characters and how they develop over the course of the book. While the same can be said (to some extent) of the later books in the Ender series, for some reason this one didn't work quite as well for me. Maybe it's the sudden change of characters from the preceding books in the series (the involvement of an old character did liven things up for a bit), but none of the ones here really drew me in. Still, the res...more

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Dec 19, 2010

Manofwaves rated it

This book is the last of the Homecoming Saga and while it wraps everything up for the reader; it's just is not on the same level as the other books in this series. I would recommend reading this book just to finish the saga.

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Aug 25, 2011

Wynne McLaughlin rated it

Read the first five and skip the last. A fascinating and entertaining epic for four books suddenly takes a left turn and becomes a heavy-handed, thinly-veiled Mormon allegory in book five. I wish I'd stopped at #4.

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Jul 30, 2011

Benjamin Plume rated it

This one lost something for me, because it was one of those way-after-the-fact novels. I missed the characters. I feel like this was basically a prologue instead of a novel.

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May 24, 2010

Kara rated it

This series is loosely based on the Book of Mormon. Interesting read, but more sexual in content than I expected. Not a book for children.

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Jun 29, 2010

Evan rated it

Good insight into the possibilities, motives and inner thoughts of Alma the younger and elder and their peers.

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Feb 16, 2008

Ryan rated it

Recommends it for: sci-fi Mormons

I have to recommend this book to any sci-fi appreciating Mormon. Actually to any Mormon period. Card does a great job of getting inside the Nephite society. If you've ever read the Book of Mosiah and wondered about the implications of why Alma was setting up churches in an already religious society, the development of excommunication, the separation of church & state and the end of the monarchy, then this book is a must-read.

He also has an interesting take on Alma's three days of unc...more

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May 14, 2010

Mark Sanchez rated it

Meh. Don't like the direction Card took with this book. A good ending, but that doesn't make up for the rest.

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Dec 24, 2011

Abby rated it

I really feel like Card should've stopped the series with book #3.

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May 29, 2009

Laura added it

Earthborn (Homecoming Saga) by Orson Scott Card (1996)

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About Orson Scott Card

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

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Quotes from Earthborn

“...He found himself filled with joy, for now his existence had a meaning. He had a future, because he was part of a world that had a future, and instead of wanting to decide for himself and determine that future for everyone else, he knew that he would be glad just to touch some small part of it. To marry and give happiness to his wife. To have a child and give it the same love that his parents gave him. To have a friend and ease his burdedn now and then. To have a skill or a secret and teach it to a student whose life might be changed a little by what he learned. Why had he dreamed of leading armies, whichwould accomplish nothing, when he could do these miraculous small things and change the world?” — 1 person liked it

“That's the difference between life and art, of course. Life has no frames, no curtains, no beginnings and no endings.” — 1 person liked it

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Earthborn (Homecoming Saga #5)

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