Treasure Box [Paperback]

Orson Scott. Card (Author)

Product Details

• Paperback
• Publisher: HarperCollins (1996)
• ASIN: B0017RX5UC
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (68 customer reviews)

More About the Author

Orson Scott Card is the bestselling author best known for the classic Ender's Game, Ender's Shadow and other novels in the Ender universe. Most recently, he was awarded the 2008 Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in Young Adult literature, from the American Library Association. Card has written sixty-one books, assorted plays, comics, and essays and newspaper columns. His work has won multiple awards, including back-to-back wins of the Hugo and the Nebula Awards-the only author to have done so in consecutive years. His titles have also landed on 'best of' lists and been adopted by cities, universities and libraries for reading programs. The Ender novels have inspired a Marvel Comics series, a forthcoming video game from Chair Entertainment, and pre-production on a film version. A highly anticipated The Authorized Ender Companion, written by Jake Black, is also forthcoming.Card offers writing workshops from time to time and occasionally teaches writing and literature at universities.Orson Scott Card currently lives with his family in Greensboro, NC.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

14 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Disappointing compared to his more intellectual works, June 15, 2000

By 

Ellen Denham (Indianapolis, IN USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Treasure Box (Mass Market Paperback)

Since I love Orson Scott Card's other work I probably am more critical of this than I would be from another writer. I found this book a mild disappointment, though it is still an engaging and fun read.

If you like his Alvin series, Ender, and so forth, this reads a bit more like, well, Stephen King. The characters are believable but the supernatural elements pushed the plausibility meter a little, and this from someone who loves his fantasy and science fiction oriented work and never had any trouble with his explanations in these books. I can't say much more about that without giving away the one big plot twist, but I found what happened with the character Madeline a little too convenient and not set up very well -- like a bad mystery where once you find out 'whodunit', you do recall a few previous clues, but still just don't buy it.

That may sound overly critical, but Card is one of my favorite writers so I hold him to a high standard. He can do (and does) much better. If you haven't read this one yet and are a fan of his other books, I would recommend one of his newer books, Enchantment, which is an amazing read.

7 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars An Entertaining Read, November 10, 1999

By 

Fosky Bob "human" (Vacaville, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Treasure Box (Mass Market Paperback)

You know you'll never go wrong with a Card book. They're all entertaining. The first 20-30 pages of this book are enchanting. I couldn't put it down. It was entertaining the rest of the way, but not at the same level.

The climax of the book is rushed, Card compresses it into 20 pages leaving the reader a little shell-shocked. Tension and mystery build..and then it's all over. Not a great book, but a decent read.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars THINGS ARE NOT ALWAYS WHAT THEY SEEM..., November 25, 2006

By 

Lawyeraau (Balmoral Castle) - See all my reviews
(TOP 100 REVIEWER)    (VINE VOICE)    (COMMUNITY FORUM 04)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Treasure box : a novel

This was my first book by this author, and I was not disappointed, as I found it to be a very creative and inventive book with some genuinely spooky moments. It started off a little slowly but then quickly picked up momentum.

The book revolves around Quentin Fears, whose childhood was marred by the tragic death of his beloved sister. Though it left him emotionally crippled, it did not stop him from discovering a talent he had for making money. Independently wealthy, his life is a fairly reclusive one, until he meets the women of his dreams, the mysterious Madeleine, a woman about whom he knows little. After a brief courtship, he marries her. After all, for him it was love at first sight.

When he finally goes to her family homestead in upstate New York and meets her family, a motley and bizarre crew at best, he realizes that he may have bitten off more than he can chew. It seems that Madeleine has a secret, and had she shared it with Quentin when they had first met, he most certainly would not have married her. You see, Madeleine is not exactly as she seems.

This is a wonderfully inventive and genuinely spooky book that has some great moments. Towards the end, however, the story sort of gets away a bit from the author. Still, this is a very entertaining read and one that will make me look for this author again.