Treasure Box (edition 1997)

Yuck

Card makes his political leanings a little more overt in this book, probably because it's set in the year 1996, but he can be forgiven because he's given us such a riveting story. As a young boy, Quentin Fears wrestled with his parent's decision to pull the plug on his teenage sister after a car accident left her brain dead, and he's never really recovered. Now a millionaire with no real purpose, he is searching for some meaning in life. He meets Madeleine, who seems like the perfect woman, and very reminiscent of the deceased Lizzy, and quickly marries her. Unfortunately, Madeleine is on a quest for power that will take Quentin places he is not prepared to go, with a very supernatural twist, as it's not just political power the woman who seeks to control him is after.
I thought the character of Quentin was very well-developed, even though Quentin himself is not a very well-developed person. However, he does a lot of growing throughout the tale and becomes very dynamic. When the novel begins it's turn from rather ordinary tale of grief and loss into the realm of the metaphysical, it really gets intriguing. I ended up not being able to do anything but finish this book, ignoring friends at the bar, and my husband on a road trip until I reached the end. ( )

Treasure Box by Orson Scott Card was ultimately a disappointment for me due to my own expectation- not necessarily the fault of the book itself. Orson is one of those "legendary" authors so I was expecting to be mindblown and disappointed when I wasn't. This book really deals with letting go of the trauma of your past and the dangers of introversion- "let go and go live" so to speak.
The story pulls you in with his sister in a coma and the battle between him and his parents over pulling the plug. It shows you the effects of this continuing into his adulthood- he closes out the world, is bitter, doesn't date really because no one would be as good as sister. The positive impact is that it allows him to be a workaholic and make millions...but soon he grows bored and leaves his field (computers). He soon thinks that life is long and maybe just maybe he should make an effort to connect with someone and find a wife. Long story short... he meets the PERFECT!!! woman at a D.C. party and shortly after (like 2 months) decides to marry her with no pre-nup. Things are good until she takes him home to meet her family whoe she warns him about... the creepiness ensues from here.
Overall- the book was often interesting but things just didn't flow together well and the ending was a bit silly and trite. I didn't feel this book really made a case for introverts getting out (although the tacked on ending tries to supoort that idea). It became predictable towards the middle and just was a bit of a let down for me. Honestly this isn't a book I'm going to keep (and I like to keep a LOT of my books on the idea I might read them again someday). I will try Orson Scott Card again though. ( )

This OSC novel had been on my shelves for a while, as I tend to buy anything and everything by the man. He has so many types of writing, that I find myself forever intrigued by his style.

This is not his best horror (see Lost Boys for that), but it's still a fast-paced read.

My largest complaint about this novel would be the ending. Yes, I realize the main character deserves some happiness, and that he has learned some lessons about the way humans interact with one another, but...

The final pages were just too sweet for the rest of the book. The styles didn't match; I didn't feel the story reach the natural ending, which is one of the reasons I tend to love OSC. His wrap ups tend to feel perfect, with the correct mix of reward, lesson and questions. This was far from it. Too clichee, too plum, too oh-my-god-let-me-gag-now-and-get-it-over-with.

Still, there were definitely winning moments. The grand dame's character and interactions are among them.

All in all, an interesting read, which moves quickly. A new exploration of current day's witches is able to open doors that otherwise would be locked (yes, in the literal sense in the story and in the theoretical sense of themes). There were just some doors that I wish had been left alone toward the end. ( )

Good. Gripping. Hard to put down. Nice plot. Liked it more than I should have, because of the tone, originality. ( )