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capgambit's review against another edition
4.0
Although this book is shorter than the rest it is nonetheless fantastic. The last book kind of upset me and left a bitter taste in my mouth due to the extreme lack of resolution. This book finally satisfies me.
Shadows in flight in my mind is more about the relationships between Bean and is thre, 6 year old, "non-human" children. There is the clear plot of coming across a wandering ship of an "extinct" race.
Shadows in flight in my mind is more about the relationships between Bean and is thre, 6 year old, "non-human" children. There is the clear plot of coming across a wandering ship of an "extinct" race.
protoman21's review against another edition
5.0
Shadows in Flight is a book more about Bean's children than about the man himself, but it is still a great addition to the series and a joy to read. Bean is now a giant and he is both wise and compassionate. He has grown not only in size, but in character. Bean's son, the new Ender, is a lot like his namesake in that he wants to resolve conflict without violence whenever possible, but he also can and will end a fight with one well planned and executed action. The Sergeant is more like Peter who enjoys testing boundaries and being in control. He takes what he thinks is rightfully his because he is the one who is aggressive and will take it. To complete the family, Carlotta is like Valentine and plays the role of peacemaker and is caught in between her two brothers. She is strong and puts herself where she will do the most good. The crews' encounter with the Formic ship and their discoveries, while interesting, really is just a vessel for telling the story of the characters and the final days of Bean's life. I have always thought Card was the master of dialog and he proves it yet again in this book. The characters all play off each other brilliantly and their conversations are impressive displays of verbal attack and parry with one person seizing the advantage only to have the other person flip their argument around on them and regain control. Though Bean's story is over, the possibility that more stories could be told about his kids leaves me hope that his legacy will continue.
brendalovesbooks's review against another edition
2.0
Meh. Kinda boring, but I felt like I had to read it because it's in the Ender series. Orson Scott Card just doesn't do it for me as an author anymore.
djredhawk's review against another edition
4.0
A great little read... I say 'little' because I read it in a day. It's not as extensive as previous Ender sagas are, but still brings some good information to the Formics table. I learned more about the Buggers than I've ever known before, as well as finally finding out what happened to Bean and his children. I'm glad I picked this baby up!
rainbyrd's review against another edition
3.5
It's been a while since a read this book, but I remember enjoying it. I barely remember the details of this book though, unlike some of the other book in the series, which have stayed with me for years.
kamkanga's review against another edition
4.0
This book took a different approach than the rest of the series and it was nice. Card is clearly better at writing about children. There were no really boring or useless parts, and although the character development was rapid, the intelligence of the children mad it excusable. I enjoyed this book.
kitsuneheart's review against another edition
3.0
So, it's a satisfying end to Bean's story. But it is such an unsatisfying end to all the drama about Anton's Key. Unless Card comes back in the final book and makes it all relevant again, this book pretty much just becomes about Bean's children becoming super-smart and also long-lived. Basically, they're sort of getting set up as supermen.
The children all feel a bit flat. We have the leader, the semi-sociopath, and the nurturer. Basically...they're the Wiggins kids, watered down a bit. In fact, the leader son is named after Ender. Perhaps this is a setup to have them face off against the strange Peter II/Ender and Valentine II/Jane things running about in space. Rather than give everyone their own personalities, Card just recycled. And this is a bad time to practice conservation.
Also, making the daughter aware of her place as the nurturer and making her wonder if her awareness subverts the trope...does not subvert it. It just makes us aware that you're aware of how bad it is to put her in that role, and that you decided not to find some other way.
Overall, a book typical of the decline of the series, but at least it stuck closer to science fiction, instead of the weird fantasy populating Ender's plotline.
The children all feel a bit flat. We have the leader, the semi-sociopath, and the nurturer. Basically...they're the Wiggins kids, watered down a bit. In fact, the leader son is named after Ender. Perhaps this is a setup to have them face off against the strange Peter II/Ender and Valentine II/Jane things running about in space. Rather than give everyone their own personalities, Card just recycled. And this is a bad time to practice conservation.
Also, making the daughter aware of her place as the nurturer and making her wonder if her awareness subverts the trope...does not subvert it. It just makes us aware that you're aware of how bad it is to put her in that role, and that you decided not to find some other way.
Overall, a book typical of the decline of the series, but at least it stuck closer to science fiction, instead of the weird fantasy populating Ender's plotline.
supaflyballa's review against another edition
4.0
I read this book with mixed feelings knowing that Bean probably wasn't a big focal point in the book as all the rumours have pointed to, and of course I can't say the ending was entirely unexpected either with Bean's condition progressing the way it did.
As for the book, I felt like it was a very incomplete story. It felt like there was just a sharp end that didn't quite sit well with me. If I recall, OSC chopped the originally planned Shadows in Flight into the book we have now and also into Shadows Alive, so that might be why. But when you're looking at it all in all, it didn't felt like a lot was going on as a whole.
But of course, being the avid Ender's fan that I am, the character development more than made up for it. I'm just sad that I won't be reading any more about Bean.
As for the book, I felt like it was a very incomplete story. It felt like there was just a sharp end that didn't quite sit well with me. If I recall, OSC chopped the originally planned Shadows in Flight into the book we have now and also into Shadows Alive, so that might be why. But when you're looking at it all in all, it didn't felt like a lot was going on as a whole.
But of course, being the avid Ender's fan that I am, the character development more than made up for it. I'm just sad that I won't be reading any more about Bean.
rockingseahorse's review
adventurous
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
5.0
sarahanne8382's review against another edition
3.0
I hate Orson Scott Card so much because his latest book about former Battle School students is clearly designed more to make money than to tell an essential story to the series, but I still read and enjoyed it.
This time around we finally get to hear what happened to Bean and the children sent out into space with him. It's five years after they set out on their voyage and the Antonines (or Leguminotes, as the children prefer to be called) come across what appears to be an ancient Formic colony ship. Could this ship hold the secrets to their survival or spell their doom?
To be honest, the book starts out a little too precious with the three children, Ender, Carlotta, and Cincinnatus, fitting their given names too well and basically being obnoxious child geniuses. Luckily, the action of discovering the ship propels the story along and things quickly get better. Still, this felt like a short story that was stretched into a novel. And while this one could have had repercussions on the events of other books in the series, Card wisely chose to keep it as a relatively small self-contained story. Which makes me wonder why the artistic choice was to turn this into a novel instead of release another bunch of stories like First Meetings.
The answer probably has to do with the fact that there's already another book following the action of this one set to come out this summer, and while I kind of hate myself for it, I will definitely want to read it. If you are similarly addicted, you know you're going to check it out, too.
This time around we finally get to hear what happened to Bean and the children sent out into space with him. It's five years after they set out on their voyage and the Antonines (or Leguminotes, as the children prefer to be called) come across what appears to be an ancient Formic colony ship. Could this ship hold the secrets to their survival or spell their doom?
To be honest, the book starts out a little too precious with the three children, Ender, Carlotta, and Cincinnatus, fitting their given names too well and basically being obnoxious child geniuses. Luckily, the action of discovering the ship propels the story along and things quickly get better. Still, this felt like a short story that was stretched into a novel. And while this one could have had repercussions on the events of other books in the series, Card wisely chose to keep it as a relatively small self-contained story. Which makes me wonder why the artistic choice was to turn this into a novel instead of release another bunch of stories like First Meetings.
The answer probably has to do with the fact that there's already another book following the action of this one set to come out this summer, and while I kind of hate myself for it, I will definitely want to read it. If you are similarly addicted, you know you're going to check it out, too.