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Empire Hardcover – November 28, 2006

by Orson Scott Card (Author)

322 customer reviews

Book 1 of 2 in the Empire Series

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<DIV><DIV>The American Empire has grown too fast, and the fault lines at home are stressed to the breaking point. The war of words between Right and Left has collapsed into a shooting war, though most people just want to be left alone.

The battle rages between the high-technology weapons on one side, and militia foot-soldiers on the other, devastating the cities, and overrunning the countryside. But the vast majority, who only want the killing to stop and the nation to return to more peaceful days, have technology, weapons and strategic geniuses of their own.

When the American dream shatters into violence, who can hold the people and the government together? And which side will you be on?

Orson Scott Card is a master storyteller, who has earned millions of fans and reams of praise for his previous science fiction and fantasy novels. Now he steps a little closer to the present day with this chilling look at a near future scenario of a new American Civil War. </DIV></DIV>

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Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Right-wing rhetoric trumps the logic of story and character in this near-future political thriller about a red-state vs. blue-state American civil war, an implausibly plotted departure from Card's bestselling science fiction (Ender's Game, etc.). When the president and vice-president are killed by domestic terrorists (of unknown political identity), a radical leftist army calling itself the Progressive Restoration takes over New York City and declares itself the rightful government of the United States. Other blue states officially recognize the legitimacy of the group, thus starting a second civil war. Card's heroic red-state protagonists, Maj. Reuben "Rube" Malek and Capt. Bartholomew "Cole" Coleman, draw on their Special Ops training to take down the extremist leftists and restore peace to the nation. The action is overshadowed by the novel's polemical message, which Card tops off with an afterword decrying his own politically-motivated exclusion from various conventions and campuses, the "national media elite" and the divisive excesses of both the right and the left.
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

Some video-game developers asked Card to write a scenario for "an entertainment franchise . . . about a near-future American civil war." They came to the right man and held off on releasing the game until he completed this relentless thriller, which couldn't be timelier and is, for all its hyperactivity and flip, Hollywoodish one-liners, heartfelt and sobering. Its heroes are two special-ops army officers who keep their oaths to defend the U.S. against all enemies when far too many of their ostensible colleagues have decided to abandon theirs. A rocket hits the west wing of the White House, killing the president, vice-president, and secretary of defense. While those directly responsible are Arabs, the next day, 14-foot-tall, bulletproof, armed globes on mechanical legs, backed by shooters on individual hovercraft, seize New York City by killing anyone in uniform. None of the new attackers looks anything other than American. A "Progressive Restoration" administration is established in the city, and it encourages other cities and states to join it to restore government as it should have been but for the stolen elections of 2000 and 2004. Intriguing plot wrinkles come fore and aft of those basic developments, there are many deftly shaped supporting players, and major shocks explode in a split second (no Stephen King slo-mo for Card!). Moreover, all the action doesn't obscure the author's message about the dangers of extreme political polarization and the need to reassert moderation and mutual citizenship; indeed, it drives it home. Ray Olson
Copyright © American Library Association. All rights reserved

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Product details

Series: Empire
Hardcover: 352 pages
Publisher: Tor Books; 1st edition (November 28, 2006)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0765316110
ISBN-13: 978-0765316110
Product Dimensions: 6.4 x 1 x 9.5 inches
Shipping Weight: 1.4 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 322 customer reviews
Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,384,719 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #4715 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > Hard Science Fiction
- #11121 in Books > Science Fiction & Fantasy > Science Fiction > Military
- #19003 in Books > Literature & Fiction > Action & Adventure > Science Fiction

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JTF

Red State vs. Blue State Leads to Benevolent Dictator?

September 18, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Orson Scott Card does nothing if he doesn't thoroughly analyze a topic through his novels. Some may be pure fiction, such as time travel analyzed in Pathfinder and Ruins, stand-ins for the non-fictional such as the Ender series where he analyzes hatred of and hostility towards those who are different (Ender's Game), then dealing with the consequences of how you treat those who are "other", alien or different than you. In Empire and Hidden Empire, Mr. Card reflects on the political chasm of those who are conservative and those who are liberal (red state vs. blue state), a civil war that results from the chasm and a potential leader who views the only solution to that and other global problems is to become a benevolent dictator, albeit one who keeps the form of democracy.

For full review: http://wp.me/p2XCwQ-Yu

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Gary Platt

Card Sharp on Political Fiction

November 9, 2015

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I was expecting science fiction from Orson Scott Card. Never having read any of his books before this one, I was curious about him, but since he was very well published I assumed the quality of his work was high. I was not disappointed. It's not what I would call "science fiction" in the classic sense. It's more like political/military fiction, a la Tom Clancy, which is a good thing. I know, from decades of personal experience, that a book is well-written and entertaining if I can see and hear the characters and the scenes in my head, like watching a movie only I can see and hear. I was easily able to do this with "Empire" and its sequel, "Hidden Empire." Considering the current state of our political system and gearing up for a presidential election roughly a year away, the events depicted in this book are very topical, even though it was written about 9 years ago. If anything, our system is even more polarized now. It's frightening to contemplate hard-liners on both sides taking the law---not to mention, futuristic weaponry--into their own hands to start a second civil war in this country. Glad this was fiction.

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crawbag0311

Maybe your smarter than me, I must be missing something.

August 11, 2014

Format: Kindle EditionVerified Purchase

Not what I was expecting after reading the description. The characters are pretty fluid and believable, however the author leaves you guessing who is on what side if at all, even after cementing your opinion of them in the beginning. Too much unbelievable deceptions and a wild conclusions, really takes away from the main story, which is slow to begin and quick to conclude. Interesting idea (I love modern civil war books) but the author just takes it to wildly obscene directions. It was ok, had some good parts, but big picture: meh.

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Not your father's Orson Scott Card

February 19, 2008

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

I'll admit that I've read every novel Card has written, from the Ender sagas to the Alvin Makers books, even his gothic and biblical novels. The one thing that always marks the high point with his work his his terrific ability to tell a story: simply, clearly, with a terrific tone and voice appropriate to the context.

So I'm passionate about his work. I'm less than wholly satisfied with this book, however, and not because it's a radical departure in theme from his other works, this being a sort of near-future thriller. What is lacking is a consistent voice - the narration seems to switch. There are some plot twists which seem a bit absurd. In his afterward, he credits watching "24" to get the feel for a fast-paced narrative. I think he hit the fast-forward button a couple of times too often.

What saves the book, for me, is what I so enjoy about his writing in general: it's that he is one of the premier story tellers in modern American fiction. And despite its flaws, it's a story well worth reading.

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Stoic Athos

Update: Card had it right

June 23, 2007

Format: HardcoverVerified Purchase

Original Review: I've read nearly all of Card's novels with only a couple of exceptions, and this book isn't up to the quality of what he normally writes.

One aspect of Card's work that I really enjoy is how he gives differring perspectives to the actions in his stories. However, in this book we never really got the progressives' perspective with any kind of depth to the point where their actions would be believable. I think that a few chapters from Aldo Veru's perspective, as well as more of Torrent's perspective would have made this a much better read. It worked for Abner Doon in the Worthing Saga, and Torrent is essentially the same character.

This read like a novel that the author was writing for the purposes of having it later turned into a movie, not unlike the Di Vinci Code. It's kept simplistic and action driven throughout with insubstantial character development. It's also highly entertaining which is why I still give it 3 stars.

It just isn't very thought provoking, because Card doesn't explore the characters and situations so much as he preaches. While I agree with what he brings across in this book, I'd be much more interested in reading a book that explores concepts that I don't agree with to the point that I gain a better understanding of myself and others.

I don't think Card grew very much as a person or as a writer through writing this book, making it ineffective literature for his readers.

7/22/2013 UPDATE: I'm changing the review from 3 stars to 4 stars. After observing the last 5 years of insanity at the Federal level, I think Card had it right. The progressives aren't relying on any kind of rational reason based in reality for their actions. Progressivism or liberalism simply mob-rule insanity cloaked in moralism.

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F V W

great political thriller action

January 29, 2018

Format: Mass Market PaperbackVerified Purchase

great order the sequel Hidden Empire at the same time so you don't have to wait

One person found this helpful

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