Shadow Puppets

August 27, 2007
Card spins another adventure in the Enderverse, following the exploits of Bean, Petra, Peter Wiggin and many of the other Battle School students. Wiggin, the Hegemon of a floundering and fragile union of countries, has freed the sociopath Acheel. While Wiggin realizes the error of his actions, Bean and Petra are on the run to avoid Acheel's overwhelming realm of influence. Though Card's politics and beliefs permeate the narrative, none can deny his masterful storytelling, enhanced by the four narrators. While presenting different points of views and even voices within the story, they at times overlap and still perform well. Each seem to dominate a different perspective of the book. Birney's brittle voice identifies the cold calculating side of Wiggin while also imbuing at times the desperation and frustration of the aspiring world leader. Brick works best with the cool and collected Bean while De Cuir uses her stern lilting voice to embody the lead female characters. Rudnicki's deep, cold voice is the perfect choice for the almost toneless e-mails prefacing each chapter. A Tor Books paperback (Reviews, July 15, 2002).

July 15, 2002
Fans of Card's bestselling Ender series will be delighted with this tale of teen empowerment (following 2001's Shadow of the Hegemon), as the Battle School brats cope with life after the war with the Formics. Peter Wiggins, now leader of the worldwide Earth government, the Hegemon, makes a tactical error when he authorizes the rescue of his archenemy, Achilles, from the Chinese, only to discover Achilles, dangerously insane, is a Trojan Horse. Peter, along with his parents, must flee the planet temporarily, only to discover plots within plots at the site of the now dismantled Battle School. Meanwhile, Bean, accompanied by his wife, Petra, comes to terms with his body: he won't stop growing, and he's doomed to a short life. He and Petra seek out the man who manipulated his genes in order to have him create children without the same problem, only to have the embryos stolen. Bean and Petra race against time to try to rescue their unborn children while keeping Peter apprised of world events. Into this mix, Card tosses in a war, Chinese expansionism, unrest in India and a dangerously unfettered Achilles. The political becomes the personal in a final showdown between Bean and Achilles. These teens play for keeps: the world is their stage, with Battle School grads in key positions of power in China, the Muslim world and India, all ready to work together to create world peace. Card discusses important topics here—the nature of the parent-child relationship; the roles of love and service—that are implicitly part of coming of age. (On-sale Aug. 19)Forecast:A $300,000 national marketing campaign, including advertising on the Sci-Fi Channel and print advertising targeted to college and military publications, should ensure a run on bestseller lists.