Hidden Empire

The label on the spine says "SCIENCE FICTION", but "FANTASY" would have been more accurate. "RIGHT-WING FANTASY" would have been the most accurate of all.

Global warming is a lie, and even liberals know it in their heart of hearts. Guantanamo is relatively "nice". Progressives conspired against America, and were roundly defeated by patriotic red-state forces. Fox News is the only channel that even occasionally tells the truth. A Rush Limbaugh analog is a brave, noble, and lovable hero.

Three thoughts went through my head as I read this:

First, that George W. Bush could have written the whole thing. I knew that Card had been getting more and more right-wing over the years, but this surprised even me.

Second, that with each page I found show more myself disliking Card more and more. Your mileage may differ, but I found his opinions really offensive. He really seems quite proud of his bigoted opinions; that shouldn't be a surprise to anyone who has read any of his homophobic and religiously-biased articles.

Third, whatever storytelling talent Card had has long since been replaced with a dumbed-down writing style and an urge to grab the microphone and preach the True Faith. He's really gotten himself into a rut; he seems utterly dependent on overly-precious banter between precocious kids and their parent(s), alternating with warmed-over right-wing political philosophy and rather limp and confused action scenes.

There's a worldwide epidemic and African warfare thread which is slightly less tedious than the rest of the book, but it certainly doesn't make up for the rest of it. The whole thing rather reminded me of the Left Behind series, and that's a memory I would rather not have dredged up.

It's funny; he was able to write well, once upon a time. It's hard to believe that this book is by the same guy who wrote [b:Songmaster|31352|Songmaster|Orson Scott Card|http://photo.goodreads.com/books/1168275827s/31352.jpg|2904642].

Avoid! show less

Hidden Empire, Orson Scott Card, 2009

Sequel to Empire, super-powered good guys become bad guys for a good reason; but is the real bad really bad?

After reading some other reviews of this book it might not be amiss to provide another viewpoint. I don't believe Card is describing a right wing manifesto. The anti-hero here seems to be succeeding at creating a more rational world government (remember the "Hegemon"?). There are also some very cogent references to Julius Caesar in the book.

My take is that Card is describing a very unlikely attempt by someone who WANTS to be good and just and knows that the Jimmy Carters don't stand a chance at achieving anything useful, much less profound. He understands that there's a very real danger of show more becoming the enemy, but at the time of this story line, he's trying to surround himself with..."Jiminy Crickets?"

The question that has come up in these reviews is: is the attempt to insert some justice into the world worth a few "broken eggs"? Would it be evil to go back in time and murder a young Adolf Hitler? I remember contemplating taking a Masters in Political Science and commenting on the "ick" factor associated with politicians. The department dean asked me what kind of people made up the majority of politicians? It didn't take me but a few seconds to realize that most politicians are lawyers....people trained in criminal behaviour! People who often seem to have a distorted view of history. From there it's logical to think that a History professor might be just the right person to navigate the pitfalls of historical precedent--assuming he could also navigate the pitfalls of psychology, a la Abraham Lincoln.

I personally am not assuming that Card thinks there's anyone out there now that has the skill and temperament to even attempt such a juggling trick; and I don't think he's recommending it, either. I think he's writing a book of fiction describing an ideal situation and how it might happen: if pigs could fly and if we had some super-weapons, here's how it might be done. [Read "Bio of a Space Tyrant" by Piers Anthony for another view of the possibilities. One not as logical as this one.

When I finished the book I kept rehashing in my head how the hero could have agreed with the other "good" guys and then persuaded them to bide their time until the anti-hero actually turned to the dark side, and THEN stepped in. Why waste the opportunity of accomplishing some good changes in the world, just on the off-chance that it'll turn out bad, sometime in the future? show less

Sequel to Empire, a story seemingly ripped from the headlines of the Trump era by OSC's imagination. Some reviewers don't like the apparent political leanings of the author, but I read the book as fantasy, not as history nor prognostication. Yes, it could happen, but shouldn't be rejected because the reader can't stomach the story. Main characters both help to save the world...and make cookies. Fun read,

I read the first volume of this series five years ago and thought it was a pretty good story, about an attempted coup in America. This time it's about a virus outbreak in Africa and the extension of American power, yet there's also considerable religious under & overtones to this book which I don't remember there being in the earlier volume.

For example the entire drive of one of the main plot points is for Americans to go to Africa to nurse the infected because that's what good Christians do, and I can't help but feel there's a subtle dig towards Islam the way there's such an overwhelming volume of pro-Christianity references yet the only time Islam is brought up it's when the Nigerians are massacring civilians and stealing resources. show more It's like they're the boogeyman and the author is displaying his prejudices, likewise there's a chapter opening where people who care about the environment and global warming are decreed as being, essentially terrible people with bad judgement.

There's an alright story in there but I didn't enjoy it anywhere near the amount I did the earlier opening book with the religious aspect wedged in there which didn't seem to add anything to the story beyond lecturing. The characters could have wanted to help others for the simple reason alleviating others suffering is a decent human thing to do when you have the ability to help, but no, it was all about religion. show less

I really enjoyed this continuation several years after the first book. I'd suggest reading the other book first, but you don't have to. Card did fill in just enough that you wouldn't be lost, but he didn't recap in detail, thankfully. This short (only these 2 books so far) series is based on a concept that was being developed for a video game (now on Xbox, although with a different name) & comics. Card just took the basic idea & developed these novels. As usual, his afterword (which he read) was excellent.

Interesting characters & problems, much drawn from history which made it even better. The idea of religion as a way of life which was more successful than what it displaced. The story was quicker & less complicated than the first one show more which laid everything out & concentrated on a civil war in the US. Card isn't easy on his characters again.

Very well read by both Card & the other guy (Rudnicki?). Card did just the beginning of every chapter which were thoughts by his fictional president. They were truish enough to make me think. I really liked the beginning of chapter 8:

People know many things and half of them are wrong. If only we knew which half, we'd have reason to be proud of our intelligence.
What is knowledge? A belief that is shared by all the respectable people in the community whether there is any real evidence for it or not.
What is faith? A belief that we hold so strongly that we act as if it is true even though we know there are many who do not believe it.
What is opinion? A belief that we expect other people to argue with.
What is scientific fact? An oxymoron. Science does not deal in facts, it deals in hypothesis which are never fully & finally correct.

No, not high philosophy, but definitely points to ponder & they were well done in the context of the story. Worth reading & highly recommended. show less

Substance: Intricate conspiracy plot and questions of honor, loyalty, and trust. Puts what could be abstract moral statements in the mouths of real people, giving all factions a spokesman. Expresses what may be Card's own POV on the current political situation and the fundamental questions facing the US citizens regarding governance. Unlikely anyone could pull off "President Torrent's" coup, because no on is that smart, although Card makes as good a case as any for his intellect and election. (See "Empire").
Style: Action-adventure with moral philosophy.

Blatant, poorly thought out propaganda, with the tiniest threads of interesting story telling occasionally showing through. . That glimmer is the second star. This is the last time I will hold out any hope for what once was a favourite authour.