Scan barcode
corvingreene's review against another edition
3.0
I loved this series as a kid, though now that I know Orson Scott Card is a nasty LDS homophobe, and that this series is, essentially, a re-telling of the Book of Mormon, I'm much less interested/impressed.
itsbean's review
adventurous
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
olivas512's review
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
hopeful
informative
mysterious
reflective
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
zeydejd's review against another edition
3.0
Probably the best book out of the Homecoming series. I think Card is better at writing about the interaction between humans and other sentient species than he is at writing about anything else, and this is the first book that really introduces the diggers and the angels and the relationships between them and the humans.
craftingrama's review against another edition
3.0
I can't really decide if I liked it or not. It was heavy with the mormonism and the family drama was so strong that at times I just had to put it down and find something else to listen to just so I could calm my nerves. To much pain in this one, too much hatred, too much of everything negative that it almost outweighed the good in the book. It was a good story but holy hell take a chill pill man. I've lived a life of nasties like the older brothers and its really hard to read a series of books that brings it so much in your face that it almost makes you sick to your stomach. I like the narrator though and that helped get through it or I might have just put it down and never picked it up again.
lkmreads's review against another edition
2.0
Started interesting, turned boring. Exact opposite than the previous one.
You'd think after however many years either one of the brothers would grow up and realize that they are not going to get what they want from the other.
Halfway through the book I got tired of hearing the sibling's whining on love me/kill him. Someone should have had some brain and killed Elemak ages ago so that we could have an actual subplot as plot, and maybe a decent ending.
Ending completely disappointing too, quick wrap up that says nothing at all. Makes it seem that the point wasn't the trip to Earth and war there and stuff (as the back of the book makes me believe), but just the brother's whiny enmity. If I'd known that, I would have stopped at book two.
You'd think after however many years either one of the brothers would grow up and realize that they are not going to get what they want from the other.
Halfway through the book I got tired of hearing the sibling's whining on love me/kill him. Someone should have had some brain and killed Elemak ages ago so that we could have an actual subplot as plot, and maybe a decent ending.
Ending completely disappointing too, quick wrap up that says nothing at all. Makes it seem that the point wasn't the trip to Earth and war there and stuff (as the back of the book makes me believe), but just the brother's whiny enmity. If I'd known that, I would have stopped at book two.
winterscomin's review against another edition
1.0
Finally finished this book after about 3 months of reaching the final 50 or so pages and not wanting to pick it back up again. It seemed to me that half the characters have changed, the entire world and setting have changed, time jumps are a common occurrence in the storyline and character development is basically non-existent. So overall, there wasn't much reason left to want to continue this book, or series. But since I'm only one book away from the end I may as well try? Slowly.
ncrabb's review against another edition
4.0
As book four opens, the family chosen to repopulate Earth has completed the work of building the ancient star ships that will take it home. But an unending hatred between two brothers could pull the family apart. The aging father insists that family members swear an oath to follow his youngest son, Nafai. To keep the peace, everyone enters the oath, but the oldest brother is quietly biding his time until the old man is dead, and he can take over.
But is there another way to ensure that future generations of the colonists will follow the more righteous Nafai? Indeed, there is. Although all the colonists were supposed to sleep for 10 years in suspended animation, Nafai and his associates program the computer to awaken a select number after the ship had been in transit for a short time. These children would be under Nafai’s supervision once they were awake, and he could work with them without interruption to gain their loyalty.
The problem is, Elemak, the oldest son, had played computer programmer, too. He fixed things such that he and his children would wake up some six years or so into the voyage. With everyone awake, the divisions began in earnest, with Elemak insisting that Nafai had robbed him of the loyalty of his children. Elemak made every attempt to torture his younger brother and kill him, but the cloak Nafai wore protected him from the worst of things, and he lived despite their best efforts to kill him.
Meanwhile on Earth, the Keeper of Earth alerted two groups of non-human species that the humans were coming. It involves some interesting forms of worship and dreams, some of which bogged me down a bit. But by reading to the end, I understood the purpose of the two species and their interaction with the humans once they arrived.
I highly enjoyed this, and I read the commercial edition, so I can’t speak to the NLS narration, but I’m sure it is excellent and compelling. It certainly was in the first book.
But is there another way to ensure that future generations of the colonists will follow the more righteous Nafai? Indeed, there is. Although all the colonists were supposed to sleep for 10 years in suspended animation, Nafai and his associates program the computer to awaken a select number after the ship had been in transit for a short time. These children would be under Nafai’s supervision once they were awake, and he could work with them without interruption to gain their loyalty.
The problem is, Elemak, the oldest son, had played computer programmer, too. He fixed things such that he and his children would wake up some six years or so into the voyage. With everyone awake, the divisions began in earnest, with Elemak insisting that Nafai had robbed him of the loyalty of his children. Elemak made every attempt to torture his younger brother and kill him, but the cloak Nafai wore protected him from the worst of things, and he lived despite their best efforts to kill him.
Meanwhile on Earth, the Keeper of Earth alerted two groups of non-human species that the humans were coming. It involves some interesting forms of worship and dreams, some of which bogged me down a bit. But by reading to the end, I understood the purpose of the two species and their interaction with the humans once they arrived.
I highly enjoyed this, and I read the commercial edition, so I can’t speak to the NLS narration, but I’m sure it is excellent and compelling. It certainly was in the first book.
rpmiller's review against another edition
2.0
I am less impressed with this series as I progress through each book. I did like Ender's Game (although the movie wasn't as good as the book), maybe I only read the first book of the series, but I thought I read the series. Anyway, one more to go, I hope the climax adds value.
forestjay's review against another edition
4.0
Suspenseful! - I didn't expect so much suspense to be in a book about a long trip to Earth. It's an excellent book and adds great detail in the next generation characters.