posted
For me it was Shadow Puppets when the shark got jumped. Empire and Hidden Empire were enjoyable reads, despite my issues with the preachiness, until the end, when they each took a turn for the worse, but that was plot-related turn-for-the worse.
It happened to Heinlein too; I still enjoy his post-Moon books, except for two, but the preachiness went way up and consequently the quality went way down.
HOWEVER, that may mostly be because the Shadow series and Empire series dealt directly with politics. What I read so far of Pathfinder seems great. Stonefather didn't have politics in it either. At least, nothing paralleling real-world issues.
When he's world building and character building, and able to forget current politics and democrats and republicans, he can still write great stuff.
Posts: 454 | Registered: Mar 2005
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posted
I have to care, deeply, about characters to truly enjoy a story. I haven't cared enough about Card's characters in Empire, in much of the Shadow series. They seemed too flat, less human than I wanted them to be. In the Alvin series, I lost interest near the end when Alvin basically became a superhuman with incredible knacks. Same reason I don't like Superman the comic hero. I appreciate characters I can relate to.
Posts: 3141 | Registered: Apr 2000
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Blayne Bradley
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posted
I never really noticed any soap boxing in his Shadow Books, sure there's "politics" but in a fairly abstract "hey look lets play Risk/Hearts of Iron" kinda of way, simplistic and consistent and meant to conform to readers expectations.
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When my mother was dying, I was desperate for things to read while waiting in the ICU waiting room (they only allowed visitors for a few hours at a time). I picked up... I think it was Shadow Puppets. Whichever one starts off with forty pages of Petra begging Bean to make babies.
I ended up going with something else. Something with ghouls and vampires and werewolves, and werewolves with bees in their mouths, and when they howl they shoot bees at you.
Now, it may just be that Card's stuff subconsciously reminds me of a difficult time in my life, and have nothing to do with the quality of the work, but I have not picked up one of his books since.
I can't really blame him for that. It is what it is.
Posts: 9293 | Registered: Aug 2000
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quote:Originally posted by Olivet: I ended up going with something else. Something with ghouls and vampires and werewolves, and werewolves with bees in their mouths, and when they howl they shoot bees at you.
Ahh, The Simpsons.
Posts: 668 | Registered: Aug 2010
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quote:Originally posted by Jenny Gardener: I have to care, deeply, about characters to truly enjoy a story. I haven't cared enough about Card's characters in Empire, in much of the Shadow series. They seemed too flat, less human than I wanted them to be. In the Alvin series, I lost interest near the end when Alvin basically became a superhuman with incredible knacks. Same reason I don't like Superman the comic hero. I appreciate characters I can relate to.
Whoa, what's up, Jenny? Been a long time!
Olivet, too! This thread is an old-school Hatrack reunion.
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