Reviews tagging 'Murder'

Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card

23 reviews

pulcotinette's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous mysterious tense fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? Character
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? No
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A

3.5

I read that book first when I was 14, and I decided to re-read at 21. I had a TREMENDOUS good memory of it, and because I hadn't read a good book in a long time, I decided to give it a go. Well, I was disappointed. I don't think reading the original instead of the translation is to blame: I just was not relating to the characters anymore. I remember it as a psychology-filled book, as a great tale of a small kid growing alone and building himself on himself, making friends along the hard way. However, this time around i was much more detached from Andrew, the plot train went on and I watched from afar, and it all seemed pretty irrealistic.
The way all his friends just spawn for the last battle? Completely unrealistic.
I usually have no problem when the "Chosen" trope, but this seemed irrealistic. Too much deus ex machina for me, I guess. 
So disappointed, yes, but also weirded out because, in the introduction, the author says that he received a great amount of letters from adults saying they hated the book, and from children saying they absolutely loved it. 
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

taelights's review against another edition

Go to review page

adventurous dark tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? No

2.5

The book was pretty interesting and had so many cool twists, some of which I didn't expect at all. It's slow at times and took me a bit to get into but I ended up really enjoying listening to this audiobook.

The author is a piece of shit which takes away some enjoyment from the book. I probably would have rated it a slightly higher star (3 or 3.5?) than what I did if it wasn't for the author of the series wasn't a homophobic mormon asshole.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings

poetskings's review

Go to review page

adventurous emotional hopeful reflective sad fast-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? Yes
  • Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

“Humanity does not ask us to be happy. It merely asks us to be brilliant on its behalf.” 
 
Ender’s Game will always be one of my favourite books. It resonates with me in a way that few other books do, and Scott Card creates a world that is both easy to fall into and wholly believable. These are twelve year olds who are being forced into committing atrocities because the human race can’t believe for even a moment that any other species might be interested in peace. 
 
While yes, I know that Orson Scott Card is kind of an awful person, and some of his less savoury views come across clearly in this book (misogyny is basically coded into every character from the get-go and reading a six year old say the n-word with a hard -er is incredibly jarring to say the least), I can’t help but believe in and root for these characters as the adults increasingly become the enemy. 
 
I don’t think I’ll ever read the rest of the series, but Ender’s Game is a classic, and that’s a label it deserves.
Expand filter menu Content Warnings
More...