Scan barcode
A review by slichto3
Empire by Orson Scott Card
1.0
I really didn't like this book, but I think it presented some interesting ideas. I just wish that those ideas were packaged into a better form. Empire reads like a shoot 'em up video game, which leads to a lot of mundane action scenes and not enough character development and discussion of real ideas and perspectives.
The story is about a modern civil war that occurs in America. The war is sort of between the political left and the political right, but there's this whole plot about there being a conspiracy deeper than that. The main characters are two military guys who are trying to stop the civil war before it spreads.
There's a ton of potential in this book. There is a really strong political polarization in America that's led to not just disagreements but outright demonization. That schism is concerning - at least, to me. The afterword of this book was probably my favorite part because the author, Orson Scott Card, actually discussed that. The rest of the book presents the danger of polarization, but then gets completely wrapped up in a really silly action story.
The action itself is boring and, at times, even laughable. There's a scene at the very beginning where the main character literally tears off his clothes and shouts "noo!!!!" when someone dies during a military operation. It's just cliched and over-the-top and is not at all out of place with the rest of the novel.
Further, despite a lot of crazy and potentially emotionally jarring incidents, the prose and the emotional reactions of the characters is stunningly flat. A minor spoiler: But there is so little reaction to this huge event that I wasn't sure for quite a while whether it was a simulation or something.
Because of the flatness and cliches, reading Empire was a real slog. I wish that Card had been able to spend more time and effort on it, because I think a story like Empire could have a lot of potential as an eye-opening discussion of the dangers of our political polarization. But, as it is, Empire sucks. Don't waste your time on it. At most, read the afterword, then chuck it.
The story is about a modern civil war that occurs in America. The war is sort of between the political left and the political right, but there's this whole plot about there being a conspiracy deeper than that. The main characters are two military guys who are trying to stop the civil war before it spreads.
There's a ton of potential in this book. There is a really strong political polarization in America that's led to not just disagreements but outright demonization. That schism is concerning - at least, to me. The afterword of this book was probably my favorite part because the author, Orson Scott Card, actually discussed that. The rest of the book presents the danger of polarization, but then gets completely wrapped up in a really silly action story.
The action itself is boring and, at times, even laughable. There's a scene at the very beginning where the main character literally tears off his clothes and shouts "noo!!!!" when someone dies during a military operation. It's just cliched and over-the-top and is not at all out of place with the rest of the novel.
Further, despite a lot of crazy and potentially emotionally jarring incidents, the prose and the emotional reactions of the characters is stunningly flat. A minor spoiler:
Spoiler
the president is assassinated early in the book.Because of the flatness and cliches, reading Empire was a real slog. I wish that Card had been able to spend more time and effort on it, because I think a story like Empire could have a lot of potential as an eye-opening discussion of the dangers of our political polarization. But, as it is, Empire sucks. Don't waste your time on it. At most, read the afterword, then chuck it.