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Shadow of the Hegemon
(The Shadow Series #2)
by
The War is over, won by Ender Wiggin and his team of brilliant child-warriors. The enemy is destroyed, the human race is saved. Ender himself refuses to return to the planet, but his crew has gone home to their families, scattered across the globe. The battle school is no more.
But with the external threat gone, the Earth has become a battlefield once more. The children of ...more
But with the external threat gone, the Earth has become a battlefield once more. The children of ...more
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Mass Market Paperback, 451 pages
Published
December 9th 2001
by Tor Books
(first published December 10th 2000)
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Start your review of Shadow of the Hegemon (The Shadow Series, #2)


5.0 stars. Sometimes love is not a strong enough word so I am going to borrow from Woody Allen, "I LURVE THIS BOOK!!! This is my second favorite book in both Ender series (behind only Speaker for the Dead). In fact, like Speaker for the Dead, I thought this book significantly surpassed its predecessor, Ender's Shadow which I loved by the way.
This story takes place in the latter half of the 22nd century (so my poster above is for the 2208 elections), soon after the end of the Formic (aka B ...more

I'm tired of you Orson Scott Card.
Ender's Game was fun. Ender's Shadow was a similar kind of fun in the same setting. I had hoped Shadow of the Hegemon would follow the nifty character of Bean back to Earth.
It does.... sort of.
Have you ever met one of those nerds who owns multiple editions of Risk? Who had complete DVD series spanning half a wall that's entirely about World War 2? Who owns board games relating to a single historical battle? That's how Card seems to roll these days.
This book scra ...more
Ender's Game was fun. Ender's Shadow was a similar kind of fun in the same setting. I had hoped Shadow of the Hegemon would follow the nifty character of Bean back to Earth.
It does.... sort of.
Have you ever met one of those nerds who owns multiple editions of Risk? Who had complete DVD series spanning half a wall that's entirely about World War 2? Who owns board games relating to a single historical battle? That's how Card seems to roll these days.
This book scra ...more

I enjoyed Shadow of the Hegemon but not nearly as much as Ender's Shadow, the first in the Shadow series.
I don't know, and I had this same problem after finishing Speaker for the Dead (Book 2 in the main Ender series), but I just feel like this series is getting beat to death. I'm not the only one right? As good as these sequels are, I still think Ender's Game (with possible addition of Ender's Shadow) should have been left that way, on its own, no sequels. I know, now I'm beating a dead horse.
I ...more
I don't know, and I had this same problem after finishing Speaker for the Dead (Book 2 in the main Ender series), but I just feel like this series is getting beat to death. I'm not the only one right? As good as these sequels are, I still think Ender's Game (with possible addition of Ender's Shadow) should have been left that way, on its own, no sequels. I know, now I'm beating a dead horse.
I ...more

This is my second book by Orson Scott Card (born 1951) and he is still to disappoint. I think he is a born-storyteller as I haven’t met anyone like him who wrote a book Ender’s Game in 1985 and after 25 years, it is now a full length series branching into several two excellent sagas, i.e., The Ender’s Saga (7 books, 9 short stories) and The Shadow Saga (4 books published called Bean Quartet, 2 forthcoming). So 11 books so far with related 9 short stories is something that I have not seen yet don
...more

I didn't enjoy this one as much as Ender's Game or Ender's Shadow. As in those two, the plot and action were just backdrop. The book was really about people deducing what other people were thinking. In the previous books, this was used for character development and I enjoyed it. In this one, it seemed like the author used it more as a gimmick. Rather than use it as a tool to accomplish something else, he just trotted it out to do tricks over and over. It accounted for most of the book and got ol
...more

Shadow of the Hegemon follows the brilliant battle school children from the exciting space-centered, alien-fighting novel Ender's Game into a new political thriller.
Full disclaimer: In general, I do not like thrillers and I don't like heavy politics in books. However, since I already know and care about the battle school kids, I should have liked this book more. The book starts out with the kidnapping of all of Ender's friends except for Bean, who is instead nearly killed when his vacation home ...more
Full disclaimer: In general, I do not like thrillers and I don't like heavy politics in books. However, since I already know and care about the battle school kids, I should have liked this book more. The book starts out with the kidnapping of all of Ender's friends except for Bean, who is instead nearly killed when his vacation home ...more

I hope I can finish this book. I liked the Ender quartet and Ender's Shadow too much not to try. Yet it is difficult to actually believe the same person wrote Shadow of the Hegemon and the others. Ender’s Game is a fun fast paced book of adventure while the other three books in the Ender quartet borderline on genius. The formulations of issues of xenophobia are uncanny in SFTD, Xenocide, COTM and integration of Christian beliefs into the mix yield an unparallel argument for empathy being central
...more

Listened to the audiobook. 2 stars for the book, one for the audio production.
First, the audio production: After the excellent production of Ender's Shadow, this book returns with the same actors, but gets everything wrong. The volume is too soft. Many of the actors mispronounce "hegemon" and in some places this is crudely dubbed over by a different actor! Achilles' name is pronounced inconsistently throughout. The music is terrible and too long. Overall, it sounds like a high school project and ...more

Shadow of The Hegemon is the second novel in the Shadow Series but my first book by this author. I picked it up from the library a while ago. I figured out that it didn't matter that I missed the first novel and that it won't be hard to follow the plot. It wasn't, but I ended up not enjoying the novel anyway. I don't think I will continue with this series. Maybe Shadow of the Hegemon is not the strongest book in the series, but from I read I doubt I would immensely enjoy any of it.
I found it ha ...more
I found it ha ...more

God! I‘d been having an Orson Scott Card’s books marathon these last few weeks. So far, since there is nothing left of his books in my hand that I haven’t read yet, I’ll have to take a pause reading his books and resume till I find his other books then—especially the sequels of this book.
After checking the rating details of this book on Goodreads, I found out that I belong to those people who are twenty-two percent addicted at this. Unfortunately, since before reading a book, I always refer the ...more
After checking the rating details of this book on Goodreads, I found out that I belong to those people who are twenty-two percent addicted at this. Unfortunately, since before reading a book, I always refer the ...more

Honestly, if I hadn't read the third book in this series out of order and enjoyed it, I don't know that I would've continued the Shadow series. There were just so many things about this audiobook (and book) that annoyed me. Now, I know that a lot of OSC's religious views (and misogyny) come out in his books but this is the first one that has really annoyed me. A lot of his characters always "seem to know what is best" and it is frustrating to listen to. In addition, this particular audiobook is
...more

Dec 20, 2007
♥ Rebecca ♥
rated it
it was amazing
Recommends it for:
fans of the Enderverse, war, and political intrigue.
This was fascinating! As I am sure I have said in reviews for previous additions to the Ender series, I love seeing how the characters minds work. They are all so genius. This addition was a particular treat because the earthly war was something not previously visited in this series. So far, two books had been set in Battle School, and three had been regarding the planet Lusitania and saving the native species, the Pequeninos. I was surprised to see the characters caught in this new and exciting
...more

This didnt really do it for me. I wasn't enthralled in the storyline. Seemed to be filled with so much dialogue and barely any action.i just began to skim through some the pages. It did have potential but felt like it fell short.
I will give it a 2 maybe 2.25. ...more
I will give it a 2 maybe 2.25. ...more

A very good sequel to Ender's Shadow, although a much different book. Although this book may have lacked the thematic depth of its predecessor, the attention to detail of the military and political machinations was extremely well done. All while presenting a great deal of character depth and development, with a tremendous scope of world building. I was impressed with Card's remarkable knowledge of military history, especially his using parallels to past events to shape the action in the text. Sh
...more

This book moved along at a pretty good clip. It was easy to read and kind of entertaining. I like Bean. So it was OK.
Except that it was really pretty terrible. All the Battle School kids are back on earth and they are basically shunted away as being "just" children. That means that all the kids who won the war for mankind's survival now have subordinate roles. And that's just fine.
But then there's Achilles. He got into Battle School, and was there for a couple of weeks. He got kicked out and sen ...more
Except that it was really pretty terrible. All the Battle School kids are back on earth and they are basically shunted away as being "just" children. That means that all the kids who won the war for mankind's survival now have subordinate roles. And that's just fine.
But then there's Achilles. He got into Battle School, and was there for a couple of weeks. He got kicked out and sen ...more

Not nearly as ambitious as Ender's Game or Speaker for the Dead, or even Ender's Shadow, but just as well done. There's nothing Earth-shatteringly poetic or profound, it's just good clean fun. And what fun it is, featuring political intrigue, nonstop action, and always intelligent, occasionally hilarious dialogue. Needless to say, I enjoyed this entry in the Ender series immensely, and found myself wishing that I had found it years ago. Thirteen-year-old me would have eaten this up.
Despite what ...more
Despite what ...more

Dedicated with affection to Jorge Sáez Criado and an unimportant woman.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
Ladies and gentlemen first of all I apologize for how dense my last criticism has been. I would have liked them to have been much shorter, but I tend to go too long. This book, which I'm going to comment on, also has history. Years ago in the happiest time of her life of 2006-2007 I met a person I loved her very much, and I spent nine wonderful months with her, and we talked about eve ...more
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1...
Ladies and gentlemen first of all I apologize for how dense my last criticism has been. I would have liked them to have been much shorter, but I tend to go too long. This book, which I'm going to comment on, also has history. Years ago in the happiest time of her life of 2006-2007 I met a person I loved her very much, and I spent nine wonderful months with her, and we talked about eve ...more

Orson Scott Card has a natural talent for stretching a novella into a novel. Pages and pages of dialogue simply regurgitate things we already know. Ideas and themes are thoroughly beat into your brain by sheer repitition. I find myself skipping entires pages without consequence because there is no content there. Between the fluff, however, is an engaging story. The consequences of sending all the student of Battle School back to Earth is fascinating and Card capitalizes on this. Poltiics and mil
...more

May 30, 2011
Wendy, Lady Evelyn Quince
rated it
did not like it
Shelves:
own,
fiction,
adventure,
read-in-2010s,
reviewed,
boring,
series,
0-and-a-half-star,
so-disappointed,
xx2014xx-read
I am sure that were I given an opportunity to converse with author Orson Scott Card regarding the vast empires, rulers/kings, and military leaders that the world has seen rise and fall, from Alexander the Great to the great Caesars, from Charlemagne to Charles V, from Napoleon to Hitler and Stalin and Churchill and Roosevelt, we’d have an engaging time. I’m boring that way (in fact that that’s how I once caught the attention of a former, handsome--yet equally boring--boyfriend, with a long conve
...more

Originally posted on SpecFic Junkie.
Ender's Shadow was fine, if not great. This book is bad and should feel wrong. Orson Scott Card decides to get weirdly preachy and weird moments, he keeps emphasizing how nothing but children matter, he's incredibly offensive to people with genetic disorders (cough ME), and he seriously says at the end that Guns, Germs, and Steel laid the ground rules for him. And everyone should read it. Oh, and he can't write women. Spoilers everywhere.
Wow! That was a lot to ...more
Ender's Shadow was fine, if not great. This book is bad and should feel wrong. Orson Scott Card decides to get weirdly preachy and weird moments, he keeps emphasizing how nothing but children matter, he's incredibly offensive to people with genetic disorders (cough ME), and he seriously says at the end that Guns, Germs, and Steel laid the ground rules for him. And everyone should read it. Oh, and he can't write women. Spoilers everywhere.
Wow! That was a lot to ...more

This actually deserves a 3.5 rather than a 4. Hello Goodreads! Give me half stars!
I'm tearing through this series at a rate of about one a day, which must mean something. I'm following the two storylines in parallel chronology (ish, as they move at different rates of speed), by which I mean that I've read Ender 1, Bean 1, Ender 2, and now Bean 2.
I like the Bean storyline because it deals with things that seem very real: the problems left behind on Earth after the globalizing external foe has be ...more
I'm tearing through this series at a rate of about one a day, which must mean something. I'm following the two storylines in parallel chronology (ish, as they move at different rates of speed), by which I mean that I've read Ender 1, Bean 1, Ender 2, and now Bean 2.
I like the Bean storyline because it deals with things that seem very real: the problems left behind on Earth after the globalizing external foe has be ...more

The follow up to Ender's Shadow, this unfortunately showcases Card's tendency to write sequels for the sake of growing a successful franchise, even when the stories don't quite merit it. This is not a bad book, but it suffers in comparison to its predecessor.
Again, this book showcases many of Card's strengths: internal character monologoues reveal mostly well developed characters with psychological foibles; moral and religious discussions/debates; strong young adults. But, as with the first boo ...more
Again, this book showcases many of Card's strengths: internal character monologoues reveal mostly well developed characters with psychological foibles; moral and religious discussions/debates; strong young adults. But, as with the first boo ...more

Fantastic!
This sequel to Ender’s Shadow (also fantastic!) is a very different book from Ender’s Shadow, but wonderful just the same.
In Ender’s Shadow, we get a new look at Ender’s Game from the eyes of another of the genius children who have been trained in Battle School to save the Earth from the alien invaders.
In this sequel to Ender’s Shadow, the alien invaders are vanquished and humankind has been saved by these children. The children are sent back to Earth to their families after many years ...more
This sequel to Ender’s Shadow (also fantastic!) is a very different book from Ender’s Shadow, but wonderful just the same.
In Ender’s Shadow, we get a new look at Ender’s Game from the eyes of another of the genius children who have been trained in Battle School to save the Earth from the alien invaders.
In this sequel to Ender’s Shadow, the alien invaders are vanquished and humankind has been saved by these children. The children are sent back to Earth to their families after many years ...more

A very smart, engaging read--though without the mass appeal of its predecessor, Ender's Shadow, mainly due to Card's decision to drop virtually all the sci-fi aspects, as well as to cut down on the amount of action contained in the story. What you end up getting is a lot of political intrigue and strategizing...like one of those alternate history novels, but taking place in the future. This would be a very difficult novel to pull off, seeing as how most of the characters in the story are geniuse
...more

Jan 02, 2008
Missy Frederick
rated it
really liked it
Recommends it for:
Card fans, sci-fi readers, those who like books with moral complexity/well-developed characters
This is the second book I've read in the series in the same universe as the Ender Quartet. I read it basically in 24 hours, which speaks to its fast pace and readability. I'm starting to like this series possibly even more than the quartet. There are a lot of really interesting characters - the complex Bean, the ambiguous Peter, etc. Plus I really like the theme of genius kids who aren't cutely precocious, etc. This book deals a lot with military strategy, which doesn't tend to be my thing, but
...more

Kind of similar to Robert Jordan's last few books in the Wheel of Time series, where he tries to write political intrigue, but doesn't do a great job. I think that real political intrigue doesn't get conveyed well in a page-turner format, since the only way to explain everything is through a ton of exposition.
We're constantly being told to appreciate how smart Bean and Petra are, with no real option other than taking the author's hand waving as evidence.
I think I'm slowly realizing that despite ...more
We're constantly being told to appreciate how smart Bean and Petra are, with no real option other than taking the author's hand waving as evidence.
I think I'm slowly realizing that despite ...more

This is a great story as it centers on Bean, and what he is becoming. Peter Wiggin is a necessary part of the story as it is so involved with world politics, and Peter is becoming the world's leader. I loved the development and problems caused by Achilles, the anti-hero. I also enjoyed the feelings that grew in Petra. It is terrible, however to come to see the tragedy that is Bean.
...more

(2.7/5)
This was alright. I’m barely interested to continue in the series, and I probably will since my library has all of these on audio.
The world is in chaos after the events of Ender’s Game and who is coming to rescue but a bunch of little kids! Ender’s Game was a stretch in terms of what the kids became conditioned to do, but this is a new level of ridiculous.
We have kids manipulating the world’s politics via an online pseudonym and leading armies. Kind of hard to believe.
Ignoring all that, ...more
This was alright. I’m barely interested to continue in the series, and I probably will since my library has all of these on audio.
The world is in chaos after the events of Ender’s Game and who is coming to rescue but a bunch of little kids! Ender’s Game was a stretch in terms of what the kids became conditioned to do, but this is a new level of ridiculous.
We have kids manipulating the world’s politics via an online pseudonym and leading armies. Kind of hard to believe.
Ignoring all that, ...more
topics | posts | views | last activity | |
---|---|---|---|---|
Is this sci-fi? | 2 | 4 | Dec 17, 2017 09:40AM | |
Is it just me... | 4 | 103 | Dec 12, 2014 05:57PM | |
Brit. Lit. | 1 | 12 | Jun 02, 2014 07:54AM | |
Question about Achilles in the Shadow Series | 6 | 69 | May 30, 2014 03:37AM | |
Class of 2014: Shadow of the Hegemon | 1 | 15 | Mar 27, 2013 08:47PM |
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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 series Th ...more
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 series Th ...more
Other books in the series
The Shadow Series
(6 books)
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