The Lost Gate

by
Orson Scott Card

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The Lost Gate (Mithermages #1)

by Orson Scott Card

3.72 · rating details · 2,977 ratings · 714 reviews

Danny North knew from early childhood that his family was different, and that he was different from them. While his cousins were learning how to create the things that commoners called fairies, ghosts, golems, trolls, werewolves, and other such miracles that were the heritage of the North family, Danny worried that he would never show a talent, never form an outself.
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Jan 04, 2011

Julia rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy, fiction, notes

Review courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.

Ever since the first time I read ENDER’S GAME, Orson Scott Card had a way of grabbing my attention and pulling me out of my normal genre preferences. In recent years, while I would still pick up his titles as they caught my eye, nothing had been able to recapture that initial attraction. Reading THE LOST GATE was like rediscovering a high school crush and falling in love all over again. I laughed, I read quotes out loud, and stayed up to...moreReview courtesy of All Things Urban Fantasy.

Ever since the first time I read ENDER’S GAME, Orson Scott Card had a way of grabbing my attention and pulling me out of my normal genre preferences. In recent years, while I would still pick up his titles as they caught my eye, nothing had been able to recapture that initial attraction. Reading THE LOST GATE was like rediscovering a high school crush and falling in love all over again. I laughed, I read quotes out loud, and stayed up to all hours of the night until I finished it.

The world building of THE LOST GATE is definitely what boosted my rating right up to five bats. Card, once again, has created a fascinating premise. He draws on familiar mythologies and archetypes before adding his own critical and plausible twists. If the gods and goddesses of yesteryear began to wane in power, yes, I could see some of them ending up in a family compound in Virginia. Don’t read “compound” and think Kennedy’s, though. Most of the North family is petty, cruel, and outright murderous. I think Danny is lucky to be considered a “drekka” (a magic-less person), despite the pain and suffering that came with the title. Being a drekka offers him the chance to develop outside his family’s expectations.

The juxtaposition of real world and fantasy was another one of my favorite things in this book. Danny would overcome fantastic, magical, life-threatening situations only to face being a thirteen year old kid alone in Wal-Mart. With no shoes. (The store greeter explaining the “No shirt, no shoes, no service” sign was both sad and funny). While there were times when Danny seemed bratty and reckless, Card always manages to gather these loose threads back into the narrative, and threw in a twist at the end that has me rethinking my impression of many of Danny’s earlier actions.

This is one of those books that is hard to pigeonhole into genre boundaries. Adult? Probably, despite the fact that the main character starts out as a thirteen-year-old boy, both his mindset and his experiences are pretty grown up. Fantasy? Sure, THE LOST GATE mentions gods and goddesses speaking to animals and making plants grow, fantastic abilities that any kid would want. However, Card also includes detailed mechanics that make this “magic” feel more like a tantalizing science, something to discover and understand alongside Danny. A lot of knowledge had been lost to the North family (or not shared with Danny), forcing him to piece things together from a variety of sources. As a reader I felt challenged and engaged, eager to figure out and discuss which of the theories and clues were going to fit together to form a workable magic structure.

There are so many other aspects of this book that I adored, not the least the parallel story woven in with Danny’s own. It kept me guessing until the end, unsure if I was reading distant history or current events in some far away land. THE LOST GATE is certainly the most engaging and thought provoking fantasy novel I’ve read in a long time, and one I’m going to enjoy passing on to friends and family to discuss.

Sexual Content: Danny is assaulted by a sexually aggressive woman.(less)

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Jun 17, 2011

Amanda rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: crap, young-adult

Tedium, thy name is The Lost Gate.

This book promises a lot with its spectacular opening chapter (I even remember telling my mom after page 25 or so that "This is going to be a good one"; thanks to Orson Scott Card, I lied to my mother), but quickly fizzles like a cheap firework. The premise is one that's becoming hackneyed: the gods of the ancient world did and do exist. However, Card's novel provides a unique take: the gods of the ancients were actually beings from a...more

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Affably Amanda wrote: "Yup, you got it. I was hostile. And I had a right to be. That's the way this whole book thing works. I pay $25.00 for the righ...more
updated Jan 22, 2012 01:49pm

Kemper Eyzi wrote: "Kemper wrote: "Eyzi - Let me be the first to congratulate you on being yet another Internet user who has confused their own opi...more
updated Jan 22, 2012 01:51pm

Jan 23, 2011

Katieb (MundieMoms) rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: 2011-100-book-challenge, arcs-i-own, mundie-moms-review

2.5 stars

The Lost Gate is the first book I've read by Orson Scott Card. I've heard phenomenal things about his story telling and now I can understand why. Orson kept me engaged with his story with his detailed mythology and world building. I felt like I was apart of the world while reading about Danny's journey. I'll admit, I didn't feel a connection to his main character through out the whole story and at times some scenes were not at all what I was expecting, and little graphic, ta...more2.5 stars

The Lost Gate is the first book I've read by Orson Scott Card. I've heard phenomenal things about his story telling and now I can understand why. Orson kept me engaged with his story with his detailed mythology and world building. I felt like I was apart of the world while reading about Danny's journey. I'll admit, I didn't feel a connection to his main character through out the whole story and at times some scenes were not at all what I was expecting, and little graphic, taking too much away from the story for me.

Danny is a teenage mage in exhile with the rest of his family. Living in the real world, they all have a magical ability, except Danny, or so they thought. Known as a Drekka to his family (someone with out magical abilities), Danny is constantly picked on and left out of things. Danny soon discovers he's more powerful than any of them, as he's a Gatemage- someone who can make gates and open the gates to the other world that have since been closed. Danny's power forces him to flee his family and he is on the run in the human world. Gatemage's are rare, the most powerful and feared.

This once wholesome, at times smart mouth teen soon finds himself hanging with the wrong crowd. What I felt was a huge down fall with Danny's character was his continued lack of making the right choice. I felt his character went from one extreme to the next a little too quickly. He soon discovers he can break into places by making gates and doesn't give a second thought to burglary. This side does show why many Gatemage's don't live long, as they can let their power get to their heads and don't heed with caution. I know he's a teenage boy, but I felt the continued need to moon people, and lust over a girl were mentioned a little too much and took away from Danny's story. The scene were Danny was almost molested by a married women completely threw me for a loop and I'll admit totally shocked me.

I did enjoy learning the rich history of Danny's people, through his journey. The parallel dialogues was at first a little confusing as Orson switches from Danny's story to the one of Wad, who's on the planet Westil. Wad himself was a character I was most interested in, and maybe that's due to the air of mystery that surrounds him. I'm not sure if he's good or bad, but he is able to manipulate the courts so he's close to the King and Queen, and after serving them for some time he finds himself not only in love with the Queen but romantically linked to her as well (keeping it family friendly). I was much more engaged with Wad's story than Danny's. Wad is a powerful character and I'm looking forward to reading more of his story in the sequel.

While at times The Lost Gate can be a little complex and at times I felt a little lost with what was happening plot wise, I did enjoy the way in which Orson introduces "the gods" and the powers they have with the elements and things of the world, be it wind, animals, etc. As I said before, the world building was beyond what I was expecting. The characters, the settings and the history that make up The Lost Gate are a showcase for Orson's story telling talent.

I think The Lost Gate will appeal to YA readers who are fans of fantasy, as well as teenage boys (not saying girls won't), but Danny is a character many boys will be able to connect with. While I didn't get into the story as much as I wanted to, I am looking forward to reading the sequel. I would recommend this story for those 14 years and older, as there is some sexual content and very mild language.(less)

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Dec 29, 2011

Martha rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: scifi-fantasy

I am of mixed minds about this book. It was a very fast and overall enjoyable read in the sci-fi/fantasy genre. I've read other Orson Scott Card books (loved Ender's Game and some of the sequels) and this had many of the same characteristics - precocious boy (perhaps too precocious) coming into his own to save the world with his unique skills. While the plots move along quickly (there are two alternating plots in different worlds that naturally collide at the end),the big climax feels rushed and...more

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Dec 19, 2011

Virginia rated it

· review of another edition

Recommends it for: Sarah Poon, Adam Heine

Shelves: speculative-fiction, contain-ideas-that-have-stuck-w-me

As always, what really sparkles in Card's books is his sarcastic and witty dialog. The rhythm of his words as his characters insult (with great affection) each other is always a highlight to me. That said, I enjoyed the book although I felt that a lot of it was a set-up for the later books. It's understandable since there is a lot of worldbuilding going on and a magic system that takes time to explain.

That's the other thing. I felt as if I could see the workings behind Card's thinki...more

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Dec 31, 2010

April rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: first-read-wins

Wow, I just saw that I won this book yesterday, and it was on my door step this afternoon when I got home from work.. Now that is service! :)which is awesome, cause I am super excited for this one.. gonna start it right away! :)

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I have never read any of Orson Scott Card's stuff. when I found out I won this I did a little research, and have read good things about him as an Author.

I was no disappointe...more

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Feb 02, 2011

Jon Parkinson rated it

· review of another edition

Interesting world, but I didn't find the story-telling to be very compelling. Card gets way too bogged down in explaining, over-explaining, and explaining yet again the details of how things work. Also, as in most of his latest fiction, all of his characters sound the same.

There's also a scene that was entirely uncalled for, involving a sex-crazed 20-something girl jumping the 12 year old protagonist. It seemed like one of those scenes Hollywood throws in to get more viewers--you ...more

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Feb 02, 2012

Betty J rated it

· review of another edition

Ok I picked this up because I finished my paperback for travel when I couldn’t have my nook and wanted something else and it looked good. It’s Orson Scott Card so not horrible author.

This is what Rick Riodan’s Percy Jackson and the Lighting Thief wanted to be when it grew up. Coming of age story for one of the current God’s of the Norse Pantheon. Instead of Percy Jackson’s I get to go to camp and find friends to help me Danny North gets thrown into the Real World ™ where he needs to le...more

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Jan 01, 2012

Shannon rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: supernatural, for-bekah, forannatoread

The Lost Gate is a fascinating concept that ended up in a book that could have used a bit more editing. If I were able to give stars based on the idea, I'd give this book 4 stars. But the writing itself? A mere 2 stars. So I settled on 3. I did enjoy this book. Here's why:

Danny North is a believable character, if not an inherently likable one. Perhaps inevitably, I compared him to another Orson Scott Card youngster - Ender Wiggins. Danny is from a family of gods who live in iso...moreThe Lost Gate is a fascinating concept that ended up in a book that could have used a bit more editing. If I were able to give stars based on the idea, I'd give this book 4 stars. But the writing itself? A mere 2 stars. So I settled on 3. I did enjoy this book. Here's why:

Danny North is a believable character, if not an inherently likable one. Perhaps inevitably, I compared him to another Orson Scott Card youngster - Ender Wiggins. Danny is from a family of gods who live in isolation in Virginia. All of his life, it's been assumed that Danny had no magical gifts. While this could have gotten him killed, his parents held out hope that Danny did have magic - of a special and forbidden kind. When Danny discovers who - and what - he is, he runs away. He meets another group of gods (the Orphans) who are not from one of the magical families, but have powers nonetheless. They help Danny uncover his power and how to use it.

Danny is a bit of a brat - precocious, a prankster, quick to joke when it might be better to be serious. He's also been wounded by the way his family treated him during his childhood - wounds that I felt weren't fully explored by Card.

Also lacking was an in-depth look at how the magic of these gods worked - past and present. There were several times when I had trouble understanding what Card was trying to get across - the descriptions of magical events were wordy or rushed. I think the thought was there, but Card's ideas needed a bit more refining to help the reader see everything easily and clearly.

If you're a fan of books that explore new explanations for old ideas like Greek mythology, The Lost Gate is an interesting take. If you're looking for top-notch fantasy writing, you might be better served by Patrick Rothfuss, who is both wordsmith and fantasy world-creator, rolled into one. A final note: The Lost Gate is not marketed as young adult fiction, but both my husband and I read it and agree it's a book we can share with our 10 and 12 year old daughters. For that reason alone, it might be worth you time.(less)

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Dec 24, 2011

Dmdutcher rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: fantasy

It's good because of its world. The ancient gods of this world were actually mages that crossed here from a gate linking another world, and over time they have interbred into squabbling families. Danny is a smarty, non-magical child from one of those families living in semi-squalor on a private compound. He soon discovers he is a powerful gate mage, someone who can link the two worlds, and he flees.

It's bad because of its plotting. Card in the afterword says he tried to work two stori...moreIt's good because of its world. The ancient gods of this world were actually mages that crossed here from a gate linking another world, and over time they have interbred into squabbling families. Danny is a smarty, non-magical child from one of those families living in semi-squalor on a private compound. He soon discovers he is a powerful gate mage, someone who can link the two worlds, and he flees.

It's bad because of its plotting. Card in the afterword says he tried to work two stories in the universe together, and it shows badly. Interspersed with Danny's tale is Wad's, a boy in the other world who emerges out of a tree and gains access to the royal court. The problem is that this is entirely unconnected with the main story save for a ridiculous thing at the end, and pretty dull, bog-standard high fantasy. The contrast between ancient gods who distrust muggle computers, or who squabble with their muggle wife, or try to hide as farmers is so much more interesting than the standard fantasy tropes, and Wad's story distracts. It probably would have been better to skip it entirely in this book, and set it up as the premise of the second for a rather shocking twist. But for me it serves as a distraction.

Danny's plot has issues as well. He leaves the compound much too fast, and the middle of the book lacks any real danger, especially since it was hammered in how the families would hunt and kill gatemages as they were such a threat. That is seriously underplayed in the book to the point where Danny goes to a high school within 20 miles of his old compound and openly does gatemage tricks. There's a lot of "just happened" moments too, that are setup with no foreshadowing-the greek girl for one feels very tacked on. Also, as others have stated, Danny's mood varies so wildly it makes him as hard to follow. Though to be fair, this is explained as a plot point.

Despite this though, it's a good read. Contemporary science fiction and fantasy has grown incredibly stale over the recent years, and just the creativity in the world, and Card's skills as a writer salvage a lot of the book. It's not another "girl/guy who hunts supernatural monsters" book, and not another videogame tie-in novel, and that's a big plus in its favor.(less)

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Dec 12, 2011

Brent rated it

· review of another edition

I admit that I initially found the book entertaining and engrossing. But, unfortunately, Card has the tendency to push the sexual content envelope in some of his novels--and did so here when I was about halfway into the book. I have reached a point in my life where no matter how good of a read the book might be, it is not worth completing if it contains "crap". In this case, it was all the more ridiculous because the incident did not appear germane to the plot whatsoever.

...more

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Nov 29, 2011

Julia Driscoll rated it

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Shelves: appropriate-for-high-school, fantasy-urban-modern, fantasy, families

I really enjoyed this book, but then again it is Orson Scott Card. I'd expect nothing less. Danny North's lack of a magical ability in his family made up almost entirely of mages creates problems for him. But when he learns that he's actually a gatemage, with the ability to create passages through spacetime, that's an even bigger problems. All the magical families around the world have agreed to kill all gatemages to make sure that no family gains too much power. Danny's gift is a death sen...more

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Sep 15, 2011

M. rated it

· review of another edition

Can't wait for the next book in this new series by Orson Scott Card. Probably a book for middle schoolers or older, but a 4th or 5th grader who likes fantasy may like this one. The premise--the old gods of Olympus, Valhalla, etc., lost their gateway into Westil, the magical source of their powers, some 1400 years ago. Since then, with greatly reduced abilities, they've lived in compounds on Earth. Each pantheon, or family group, squabbles with the others in endless macho displays of power.
...more

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Jul 11, 2011

Denise rated it

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Danny North is a young man, growing up as an outsider in a powerful and mysterious magical family. His family isolates themselves in the mountains of western Virginia, practicing magic and teaching it to their children, but Danny is scorned for his lack of magical talents. As he get older he becomes more aware of the secrets and tensions wrapped up in his birth and the old legends of Loki. Loki long ago closed all the gates between Earth and the gods, trapping Danny's family on Earth. Soon, Dann...more

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Jul 09, 2011

Jocelyn Lee rated it

· review of another edition

This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it, click here. Okay, I thought it would be good because I always like Card's books, no matter how much I dissect them afterwards.
However, this one had a few glaring holes in it.
It had no true conflict. Guy wants to kill you for your powers? Run away. Guy wants to beat you up and get your stolen stuff? Run away after persuading someone else to kill him. Guy wants to steal your powers? Steal his powers and run away. The third example was the climax and it started and ended in a couple pages. Danny, t...moreOkay, I thought it would be good because I always like Card's books, no matter how much I dissect them afterwards.
However, this one had a few glaring holes in it.
It had no true conflict. Guy wants to kill you for your powers? Run away. Guy wants to beat you up and get your stolen stuff? Run away after persuading someone else to kill him. Guy wants to steal your powers? Steal his powers and run away. The third example was the climax and it started and ended in a couple pages. Danny, the main character, has it made. I was 2/3rds into the book, when it occurred to me that it wasn't supposed to still be the set-up. Card introduces a side plot halfway through the book but only a few chapters are devoted to it and only two to the main conflict. Not enough meat.
And no, a sequel would not make up for this.
Secondly, it had one-sided characterization. All of the Families are BAD except those who run away. All of the Orphans are GOOD. All high up officials scheme to murder others for their own advantage. All the people who live in little villages are innocent and morally perfect. Card makes a huge show about not grouping people together but then goes about grouping people and then having mages of different powers have corresponding personalities.
Well, the main protagonist isn't necessarily one-sided as much as inconsistent. Sure, it's cool that personality wise he isn't a perfect, although wise-cracking isn't very much of a character flaw. However, Danny's actual difficulty with making many mistakes only comes into play halfway through the book, as does the characterization of him as a jerk. It feels very forced, as if Card only uses the mistakes to drive along the plot and decides everything Danny does should be another reason for the characters to bring up Danny being a smart-Alec. All of the character cracked jokes and played pranks but when Danny did it, he was a jerk. All the characters disrespected certain people but when Danny did it, he was a jerk.
I'd like to see it as an example of an unreliable narrator, but the plot suggests that it isn't, and Danny's huge rants at his parents and other 'Westilians' suggests that it isn't.
Just... I'm disappointed.
It's like this: normally with Orson Scott Card, the timing's too perfect, the characters are too powerful, and the plot's a bit slow to start up but he usually makes up for it with his world-building, writing style, and other things like the abundance of plot-lines. This time, that stuff only accounted for one start instead of four.(less)

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Jun 26, 2011

Jen Marin rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: fiction-mythopoetic

Card brings his broad knowledge of archetypes and human behavior into this surprising coming of age story that takes a new look at the history of civilization. Set in modern times withing ancient families, boy on the edge of growing up discovers a surprising secret about who he is and what he could become. Somewhere between Percy Jackson and American Gods, Card explores some of the difficult issues that face teens today as they work to navigate a healthy path into adulthood.

This bo...more

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Jun 25, 2011

Splen rated it

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Shelves: orson-scott-card

This summary from the library is pretty worthless but here it is:
Danny grew up in a family compound in Virginia, believing that he alone of his family had no magical power. But he was wrong. Kidnapped from his high school by a rival family, he learns that he has the power to reopen the gates between Earth and the world of Westil.

I say that O.S.C. has successfully retold/re-explained the modern & ancient world,
packed with fascinating reinventions of mythological historic...more

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May 31, 2011

Stephanie rated it

· review of another edition

A great stand alone piece of science fiction fantasy, and likely the start of a promising new series. This novel should appeal to Card's legion of fans as well as anyone who enjoys speculative fiction with characters who rely on quick thinking rather than violence or tales of mind-bending time-travel conundrums. ( I have been a huge fan, ever since The Ender series, and have whole-heartedly loved his novel Enchantment. I still carry around a copy of this paperback. lol)
Orson Scott Card ...more

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May 02, 2011

Liz rated it

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I listened to this over the course of a month. Being fairly new to the world of audiobooks I found the process rather interesting, listening to rather than reading a book. As for the book itself, I enjoyed the story, the creation of a new worldview. The parallel story lines were a clever touch but the wrap-up, the "revelation" at the end seemed forced, contrived, too pat and quickly executed, as if the author was saying, "enough already, let's save something for the next book"...more

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Apr 27, 2011

Jennie rated it

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Recommends it for: teens, fantasy fans

Shelves: ya, fiction, sci-fi, fantasy, humor

With The Lost Gate, the debut novel of The Mither Mages Series, Orson Scott Card (Ender’s Game) proves that he might be one of the most prolific and imaginative sci-fi/fantasy writers still publishing today. Combining a heady mix of vivid world-building, multicultural mythology, urban fantasy, and science fiction, Card starts out the wholly unique saga of Danny North—exiled heir to a family of once great “gods” cut off from their power source. Fans of Tolkien will appreciate the unique premise o...more

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Apr 09, 2011

Tad Hopp rated it

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I was first introduced to Orson Scott when Ender's Game was assigned reading in my English class freshman year of high school. All these years later, he remains my favorite writer and this book proves why and also provides proof that he is still at the peak of his abilities after almost 40 years of writing. While I found some of the magical elements a little hard to follow, what really got me into the story were the characters. Just like he did with Ender's Game, Card's main character is a craft...more

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Mar 06, 2011

Valerie added it · review of another edition

Genre: Science Fiction

The Lost Gate follows the story of Danny, just one young boy in a family of exiled mages, forced to live in the real world where kids create stories of fairies, werewolves, and the type of stuff his family knows is real. Danny lives his life in a realm of secrets, some of which he can never share with others, but he’s beginning to learn that there are just as many (if not more) secrets being hidden from him. His family calls him a Drekka, or someone without powe...moreGenre: Science Fiction

The Lost Gate follows the story of Danny, just one young boy in a family of exiled mages, forced to live in the real world where kids create stories of fairies, werewolves, and the type of stuff his family knows is real. Danny lives his life in a realm of secrets, some of which he can never share with others, but he’s beginning to learn that there are just as many (if not more) secrets being hidden from him. His family calls him a Drekka, or someone without powers. But unknown to Danny, there is more power than he could ever imagine lurking inside of him. He’s a gatemage – and so powerful that it could very well be more of a curse than a magical gift.

Before this, the only work of Orson Scott Card that I’d read was Ender’s Game, which is kind of a hit or miss series, or so I hear. Luckily, it was a hit for me, so I was incredibly excited to read The Lost Gate. The first book in a new series called the Mithermages, The Lost Gate is a urban fantasy adventure blending mythology with an intricate plot that’s equal parts spellbinding and cryptic. Orson Scott Card has an amazing writing style that sends the reader on a journey with the characters, allowing you to experience and feel exactly what they feel giving life to the world within The Lost Gate.

I’ll admit, The Lost Gate is complex at times, and there are moments when the mythology and background of the story gets a bit tedious and too intricate, but the world that’s been created is phenomenal. Danny was a bit hard for me to connect with at first. He was very…bland, and rather unlikeable, but the character development he portrayed throughout the story redeemed him in the end. Wad, however, was the character that defined the story for me. Almost completely shrouded in mystery, I was hooked to every action of his character, desperate to find out who he really was. The way the boys talk between each other really states what age group they are in but honestly this book is a bit TO graphic at times!(less)

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Feb 22, 2011

Lauren rated it

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Recommends it for: fans of Neil Gaiman or Orson Scott Card

I’ve been a fan of Orson Scott Card’s since I first picked up Ender’s Game back in seventh grade, so when I got a chance to read The Lost Gate I jumped on it. It’s a great mix of the mythic and the modern day, very similar to some of Neil Gaiman’s books.

Danny’s the odd man out in his family, a mage with no magic among gods with no worshipers. A drekka with no place in the North complex. That is, until the day when he discovers that he’s a gatemage and his world becomes a deadly ga...more I’ve been a fan of Orson Scott Card’s since I first picked up Ender’s Game back in seventh grade, so when I got a chance to read The Lost Gate I jumped on it. It’s a great mix of the mythic and the modern day, very similar to some of Neil Gaiman’s books.

Danny’s the odd man out in his family, a mage with no magic among gods with no worshipers. A drekka with no place in the North complex. That is, until the day when he discovers that he’s a gatemage and his world becomes a deadly game of cat and mouse. Gatemages are killed as soon as they are discovered among the families with exception to the weakest of the weak, those who can sense gates but not make or use them. Danny is neither weak nor willing to die, so he runs to save his own life and to give himself a chance at learning about his powers. We see Danny grow up, meet new people, and learn what it means to be human.

As I said back at the beginning I’m a big fan of Card’s Ender series of books, and it looks like I’ll be a fan of this series as well. Danny is a trickster hero who relies on his brains to stay out of trouble. He avoids direct confrontation, preferring to misdirect an opponent to taking them on alone. Like Ender before him, Danny worries about becoming a monster due to some of the choices he makes. It could’ve gotten a little tiresome, but Card uses Danny’s self doubts to make him a more human figure in comparison to the casual monstrosities of his family and some of the humans that me meets. I like that Card doesn’t write down to his audience, he seems to expect them to keep up with him, this is a habit I tend to find terribly lacking in current young adult literature. This is a series that I would start buying for my younger cousins as well as for myself. That said, my one complaint is how quickly Danny mastered his magic. It seemed kind of like in a super hero comic where the hero gets new powers just as they need them or, failing that, right before they need them. Over all, I give The Lost Gate a five out of five.
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Feb 09, 2011

Warren Rochelle rated it

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That finished date is an estimate.
I am an Orson Scott Card, despite his conservative politics and all the ranting he did a little while ago about gay marriage. He tells a good story and is clever and inventive. The Lost Gate is a good story--the old gods have left, the gates to their world, Westil, have closed, thanks to Loki, it seems, and the ones left behind, called mages, live apart from us lesser beings, cultivating and preserving their powers. There are some, like Danny, of the Nort...more

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Feb 09, 2011

Amber rated it

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I've been a fan of Mr. Card's for a long, long time now. Ender's Game was the first science fiction book I ever read, and it was a potent "gateway" book that has led me to an abiding love of the genre. After having read the novella Stonefather, I was very excited to return to the world of the Mithermages. It was a very exciting day when this book was finally in my hands.

The Mithermages are born with a power linked to certain elements - stone, water, air, etc - allowing the...more

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Feb 05, 2011

Steven rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: sciencefiction, youngadult, novels

As with most of the science fiction/fantasy books I'm reading, The Lost Gate helps me as I exercise at the Y. They are read for their stories, their humor, and even some minor character development. Occasionally they are good enough that I have to read them outside of the Y. Such was the case with this book.

I've always liked Orson Scott Card, though he can grow tiring. I've read his two most recent books over the last month. This one is significantly better than the other, left me...more

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Feb 02, 2011

Nina Bradley rated it

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I'm definitely in the minority here, but I don't enjoy reading Orson Scott Card. He can think up a good story, sure. The problem is with the way he conveys the story. He is the classic example of telling rather than SHOWING. He doesn't let the reader figure anything out. There is too much dialogue and not enough descriptive writing. Reading this book was like being handcuffed to the main character's brain and having to listen to every inane thing he ever thought or said. There were also some par...more

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Jan 31, 2011

Sarah rated it

· review of another edition

The beginning of a brand new series from Orson Scott Card. I like the genre this book is in: the supernatural-hiding-in-our-modern-world type. It is about a teenage boy who is born into a family of exiled gods on earth. The gods are descended from the gods of the ancient myths (Greek, Roman, Hindu, etc.), but the modern gods have watered-down power because they lost access to their home planet, Westil, 1400 years earlier. Going home makes them stronger, so after all these years of staying on...more

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Jan 30, 2011

Glee rated it

· review of another edition

Orson Scott Card is a very good writer. The man can tell a story. And one of the things he does best is coming-of-age stories, especially with adolescent misfits as the protagonists. “The Lost Gate” has such a misfit, Danny North. Danny is the only kid in his village who can’t do magic. He is smart and athletic and funny, but he can’t do the simplest magic. Sadly for Danny, magic is not only the most valued skill, but also the ticket to success and status in his community. So Danny feels ...more

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Jan 22, 2011

Kathleen rated it

· review of another edition

Shelves: young-adult

This one is shelved in the adult fiction section of our library, but I can see that Orson Scott Card intended the mature teen as his audience. This is definitely a high school level YA coming-of-age story.

Anyone familiar with OSC will know that he does a brilliant job of creating young characters and putting them in situations where their wits and resilience keep them from certain death. This story is no different. It starts with Danny, a young man growing up in the North clan's compou...moreThis one is shelved in the adult fiction section of our library, but I can see that Orson Scott Card intended the mature teen as his audience. This is definitely a high school level YA coming-of-age story.

Anyone familiar with OSC will know that he does a brilliant job of creating young characters and putting them in situations where their wits and resilience keep them from certain death. This story is no different. It starts with Danny, a young man growing up in the North clan's compound in Virginia. But this is not your religious-compound-dwelling clan, these folks are descendants of the Norse Gods, come to meaner circumstances through the gradual loss of their powers. Ever since Loki (The Trickster) closed the Great Gates from Mittlegard to Westil, there has been a dwindling of the mages' powers. Every generation of North children is brought up to develop and nurture their magical abilities, but Danny shows no affinity for any of the flavors of family magic. He is "drekka" - non-magical. That is, until the day he discovers he is a gatemage and runs for his life. To be a gatemage like Loki is to have a death sentence over your head. Even his parents are out to kill him in earnest.

I eat Norse mythology up with a spoon, so I liked this book. I enjoyed the fact that Danny is a smart aleck. He just can't help himself because he has the characteristics of a trickster like Loki. However, some of the parts where Danny is learning about girls through a very forward and aggressive woman is unsettling and I think unnecessary, but we'll see if what he learns about her applies later in the series. There is also a parallel story woven into the narrative that tantalized me because I couldn't place whether it had happened long ago, or was a retelling of a legend. You do find out by the end of the book, but as this is the first in a series, the story is not over.

Some quotations for the quote heads:

"But the real hope of all Families, whenever they had a Sniffer or Doormouse, was that they would find a longforgotten gate to Westil that Loki had somehow overlooked when he was closing all the gates in the world. Then the Family could pass through to the other world, return with their power vastly increased, and rule all the Westilian Families in Mittlegard."

"Loki tricked Bel into thinking he was captive, but he was not captive.
His heart held the jaws; the jaws did not hold his heart.
And when he found the gate of Bel, he moved the mouth over the heart of the sun.
Let Bel eat the heart of the Sun and drag it back to his dark world!
He has no more home in Mittlegard."

"Where is the stonemage who can take apart an atomic bomb without touching it? Where is the Tempester who can blow a missile off its course? Where is the Sandfather or Claymaster who can swallow up a tank? And as for stopping a bullet or bending its course - there is no magery to deal with that. Not unless we can pass through a Great Gate once again and make ourselves strong. Instead of fighting each other, we must be preparing to protect ourselves against the drowthers."

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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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