3.05.2005
Shadow of the Giant
by Orson Scott Card, 363 pgs, hardcover
Series: spinoff series from Ender's Game; Shadow series #4
Amazon website
Overall Grade: A
Wow, first time I've finished something in quite a while! Anyway, this is the last book in the series about Bean, from the "Enderverse" or alternatively spun-off from the "Ender's Game" books which makes more sense. So 'Giant' is really about the last year or so of Bean's life, ie. closure for most of the plot points developed earlier in the series. (In case you don't remember, Bean & Petra have children, sort of, and Peter Wiggin aka the Hegemon is trying to unite the world in peace, unfortunately, the half of the world wants war) So this has some very satisfying endings to be sure. I love what happens to Petra near the end of the book. Absolutely beautiful & unabashedly romantic (in a non-cheesy way). There are also some nice throw-ins to remind us of the merge into the Earth & characters we know later on (chronologically) from 'Speaker for the Dead' et.al. For example, if the name Jane means anything to you, you're in for a treat.
Also of note is the minute subplot that only appears twice in the whole novel. You'll know when you get to it & its nice to know that Card is leaving himself another opportunity to return to the "Ender'" sandbox of his imagination & with the possibility of future castles (books).
Overall warm, fuzzy feeling at the end of this one. So do pick up & read if you've followed the Ender/Bean cycle thus far...if you haven't or haven't read all of them, it is definitely the case where you need to get caught up before you grab the latest one.
Cheerio!
Series: spinoff series from Ender's Game; Shadow series #4
Amazon website
Overall Grade: A
Wow, first time I've finished something in quite a while! Anyway, this is the last book in the series about Bean, from the "Enderverse" or alternatively spun-off from the "Ender's Game" books which makes more sense. So 'Giant' is really about the last year or so of Bean's life, ie. closure for most of the plot points developed earlier in the series. (In case you don't remember, Bean & Petra have children, sort of, and Peter Wiggin aka the Hegemon is trying to unite the world in peace, unfortunately, the half of the world wants war) So this has some very satisfying endings to be sure. I love what happens to Petra near the end of the book. Absolutely beautiful & unabashedly romantic (in a non-cheesy way). There are also some nice throw-ins to remind us of the merge into the Earth & characters we know later on (chronologically) from 'Speaker for the Dead' et.al. For example, if the name Jane means anything to you, you're in for a treat.
Also of note is the minute subplot that only appears twice in the whole novel. You'll know when you get to it & its nice to know that Card is leaving himself another opportunity to return to the "Ender'" sandbox of his imagination & with the possibility of future castles (books).
Overall warm, fuzzy feeling at the end of this one. So do pick up & read if you've followed the Ender/Bean cycle thus far...if you haven't or haven't read all of them, it is definitely the case where you need to get caught up before you grab the latest one.
Cheerio!
Labels: genre: fiction, genre: scifi, media: book, series: Ender's Game, series: Ender's Shadow
