I was a huge fan of Enders Game and Enders Shadow, however, Shadow Of The Hegemon disappointed me. There was almost no action in it. The whole book was just political conversations, so political, that they were hard to follow. What little bit that I was able to follow, was uninteresting. If you were a fan of the rest of the Ender series, I recomend that you at least try this book. That is why I gave it two stars instead of one. You may get something out of this book that I did not. But before you dive into this tale be warned. It is extremely political and almost entirely comprised of long conversation. But at least attempt to read it like I did.

I absolutely loved Ender's Shadow and have reread it multiple times. I was so fascinated by the life and students of Battle School, that I was actually upset when the book ended right at the end of the war. So, when I realized that there were more books about Bean, I was thrilled, and I could not wait to read about what the Battle School children did with the rest of their lives after the war. Orson Scott Card hit a home run with the book Shadow of the Hegemon. It was so interesting to follow Bean through early post-war life, and to see how he dealt with the repercussions of the war. The reader can really understand the characters and how they think through Card's writing. I always love reading this series because the characters are described so well that, in a way, I start to think of them as real people. The action of escape is so thrilling, and when you add in the suspense, and even some mystery, of kidnapping, it makes for such a great book. Relating to the characters is easy because they are adolescents, even if they are extremely brilliant. I really enjoyed learning a lot more about some of the smaller characters in the previous books such as Peter and Petra. In Shadow of the Hegemon, they are much more important to the story and play bigger roles than before. There were definitely some surprises and just a little too much military history from Card, but overall, this book was very enjoyable to read.

Shadow of the Hegemon is the sixth chronologically written book of the Ender's Game Series, the first sequel of Ender's Shadow (book five). Orsen Scott Card is an indisputable literary genius, and to critique his book is to dabble the black arts. Flawless characterization and storytelling is expected, and again, Scott Card weaves and stuns with each keystroke. Therefore, expect this 'review' to be only the most humble quibble and sigh.

Shadow of the Hegemon follows the storyline of Bean and the rest of Ender's jeesh after the end of the Formic War. Following the known facts from previous (chronologically written) books, more was expected along the storyline of Peter, whom we know becomes a great political figure as the Hegemon. Instead, the story is almost usurped by Petra Arkanian; 'Hegemon' revolves around Petra's kidnapping and Bean's well-plotted endeavors to rescue her (perfectly setting up the scene for the next book, Shadow puppets).

This is because of one of Card's greatest assets: his humility toward his inner circle of wise readers. Hegemon's afterward explains how a wise reader changed the scope of the book by suggesting (in an early manuscript) that the kidnapping plot of Ender's jeesh was too easily resolved. Card responded by extending the conflict of Petra's storyline, therefore changing the account of the entire book which ultimately spilled the expanding story into the next book, Shadow Puppets. Petra carries her part of the story superbly-- a perfect trade off for deviating from what we expected from Hegemon's title.

Which brings me to Peter Wiggin, our Hegemon. Although Scott Card has stated that the order of reading the Ender Series matters little, with the exception of Xenocide and Children of the Mind (http://www.hatrack.com/faq/003.shtml), I must make the case for reading 'Hegemon' after Speaker for the Dead, Xenocide, and Children of the Mind. Shadow of the Hegemon illustrates the classic struggle of deciding between the better of two evils, in this case, between Achilles de Flandres and Peter Wiggin. Except, it's an obvious choice. Achilles makes another chilling bow in 'Hegemon' as Bean's arch nemesis with a terrifying performance as the resident sociopath and psychopath, the all around bad-guy. Peter, however, makes a mild case as a contending antagonist. Not only is he unconvincing as the barely-better villain, reading 'Hegemon' before the above mentioned books aggressively dilutes the shocking and genius plot twist in Children of the Mind.

Lastly, our hero, Bean. Within a single chapter, we are reminded ten-fold why we love Bean. While the scope of the Formic War in Ender's Shadow may have been arguably riskier, Hegemon deals with War on earth which strikes closer to the reader's heart, and Bean is just as confident and reassuring. Never are we left with the mediocre feeling that Bean is smart for smart's sake; Card grows this character with craft, balancing Bean's brilliance with an equally trying plot reeking of the despicable Achilles. Bean carries this book with his irresistible aplomb while Card continues to branch his Ender's Series with their two distinct story lines and unique tones.

Conclusion: Never are we left with the feeling that the author is wringing the last drops from his previous success; Hegemon proves possible that the limits of literary mastery can be shattered, yet again.

4 Stars, and only because of the 5 Stars I must reserve for 'Speaker of the Dead'. Because 'Speaker' outranks Amazon's star system.

In truth no matter how good this book may be it is not ever going to gain the same level of popularity that Ender's game has. Personally I like where these books go as they give a in depth look at the other children from battle school and what they return home to. If you were a fan of the Ender's Game and want to know about the characters that remain behind after Ender leaves this is a pretty good read. HOWEVER be warned that you will never be able to look at Ender's Game in the same light again.

I thoroughly enjoyed the story.

I, however, did not enjoy the audio presentation. There were several voice overs where the narrator voice was over written with a different voice. The last track on each CD was blank. I am not sure if this was by design. I had the impression that there was missing material. I listen to many books on tape, many where the books author is Orson Scott Card and I have never had issues until this particular book.

Excellent Book. Ive read better but its still a very good book.

It's a good book, and definitely worth reading, but is not nearly as good as the previous five books of Ender's Saga and the Shadow series.

Continuing where Ender's Shadow leaves off, the plot is the normal of Card in the Ender series: saving the world from humanity. A lot of fans enjoy the peek into Bean's, Petra's, Peter's and other character's lives, but...it's just not Ender's Game.

Fantastic book! More than kept up the energy started in "Ender's Shadow." Bean is the man. Granted, he's a very, very little man, but he's still the man.

One of the only books I haven't felt cheated by paying more than $25. Sequel to Ender's shadow, this book continues the story of Bean when he returns to earth after the Formic War. Achilles comes back, trying to kill Bean and make a play for power. I expected Peter to play a larger part in this book, but I'm content to wait for him in the next one.