
Shadow of the Hegemon
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $20.24
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
David Birney
-
Scott Brick
-
Gabrielle de Cuir
-
By:
-
Orson Scott Card
About this listen
Ender's Game told the story of the boy "Ender" Wiggin and his hard-won victory over an alien race that would have destroyed the Earth and all of humanity. But Ender was not the only child in the Battle School. He was just the best of the best. In Ender's Shadow, Orson Scott Card told the story of another of those precocious generals, the one they called Bean - the one who became Ender's right hand, his strategist, and his friend.
And now Card continues Bean's story, and finally tells a tale long awaited by millions of fans. At last we learn what happened on Earth after the destruction of the Hive Queen's worlds, after humanity no longer had a single enemy to unify the warring nations. This is the story of how Bean turned away from his first friend, Ender, and became the tactical genius who won the Earth for Ender's brother, Peter, who became the Hegemon.
Please note: This 2001 recording represents the technology of the time when it was produced. This is currently the best available source audio from the publisher.
Browse more titles in the Ender Wiggin series.©2000 Orson Scott CardListeners also enjoyed...
-
Ender's Shadow
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Gabrielle de Cuir, full cast
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The human race is at War with the "Buggers," an insect-like alien race. As Earth prepares to defend itself from total destruction at the hands of an inscrutable enemy, all focus is on the development of military geniuses who can fight such a war, and win. The long distances of interstellar space have given hope to the defenders of Earth--they have time to train these future commanders up from childhood, forging them into an irresistible force in the high orbital facility called the Battle School.
-
-
Totally Card
- By L. on 10-10-05
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Children of the Fleet
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ender Wiggin won the Third Formic war, ending the alien threat to Earth. Afterwards, all the terraformed Formic worlds were open to settlement by humans, and the International Fleet became the arm of the Ministry of Colonization, run by Hirum Graff. MinCol now runs Fleet School on the old Battle School station, and still recruits very smart kids to train as leaders of colony ships, and colonies.
-
-
Reboot? Same old story...
- By Greg on 11-30-17
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Eragon
- Inheritance, Book 1
- By: Christopher Paolini
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 16 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When fifteen-year-old Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. Overnight his simple life is shattered, and, gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. Now his choices could save—or destroy—the Empire.
-
-
Utterly Awesome!
- By Sandra on 11-07-03
-
Ready Player One
- By: Ernest Cline
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the OASIS, a vast virtual world where most of humanity spends their days. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a series of fiendish puzzles, based on his obsession with the pop culture of decades past. Whoever is first to solve them will inherit his vast fortune—and control of the OASIS itself.
-
-
I’m sorry I waited so long to read this book.
- By Julie W. Capell on 05-27-14
By: Ernest Cline
-
Pathfinder
- Pathfinder, Book 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Kirby Heyborne, Don Leslie, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rigg is well trained at keeping secrets. Only his father knows the truth about Rigg’s strange talent for seeing the paths of people’s pasts. But when his father dies, Rigg is stunned to learn just how many secrets Father had kept from him - secrets about Rigg’s own past, his identity, and his destiny. And when Rigg discovers that he has the power not only to see the past, but also to change it, his future suddenly becomes anything but certain.
-
-
Entertaining and Irritating.
- By DJM on 01-06-11
By: Orson Scott Card
-
The Memory of Earth
- Homecoming, Volume 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
High above the planet Harmony, the Oversoul watches. Its task, programmed so many millennia ago, is to guard the human settlement on this planet, to protect this fragile remnant of Earth from all threats...to protect them, most of all, from themselves.
-
-
I keep hoping, but, alas, ...
- By Ole Hippie on 02-22-10
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Ender's Shadow
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Gabrielle de Cuir, full cast
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The human race is at War with the "Buggers," an insect-like alien race. As Earth prepares to defend itself from total destruction at the hands of an inscrutable enemy, all focus is on the development of military geniuses who can fight such a war, and win. The long distances of interstellar space have given hope to the defenders of Earth--they have time to train these future commanders up from childhood, forging them into an irresistible force in the high orbital facility called the Battle School.
-
-
Totally Card
- By L. on 10-10-05
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Children of the Fleet
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ender Wiggin won the Third Formic war, ending the alien threat to Earth. Afterwards, all the terraformed Formic worlds were open to settlement by humans, and the International Fleet became the arm of the Ministry of Colonization, run by Hirum Graff. MinCol now runs Fleet School on the old Battle School station, and still recruits very smart kids to train as leaders of colony ships, and colonies.
-
-
Reboot? Same old story...
- By Greg on 11-30-17
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Eragon
- Inheritance, Book 1
- By: Christopher Paolini
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 16 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When fifteen-year-old Eragon finds a polished blue stone in the forest, he thinks it is the lucky discovery of a poor farm boy. But when the stone brings a dragon hatchling, Eragon soon realizes he has stumbled upon a legacy nearly as old as the Empire itself. Overnight his simple life is shattered, and, gifted with only an ancient sword, a loyal dragon, and sage advice from an old storyteller, Eragon is soon swept into a dangerous tapestry of magic, glory, and power. Now his choices could save—or destroy—the Empire.
-
-
Utterly Awesome!
- By Sandra on 11-07-03
-
Ready Player One
- By: Ernest Cline
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 15 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In the year 2045, reality is an ugly place. The only time Wade Watts really feels alive is when he’s jacked into the OASIS, a vast virtual world where most of humanity spends their days. When the eccentric creator of the OASIS dies, he leaves behind a series of fiendish puzzles, based on his obsession with the pop culture of decades past. Whoever is first to solve them will inherit his vast fortune—and control of the OASIS itself.
-
-
I’m sorry I waited so long to read this book.
- By Julie W. Capell on 05-27-14
By: Ernest Cline
-
Pathfinder
- Pathfinder, Book 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Kirby Heyborne, Don Leslie, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rigg is well trained at keeping secrets. Only his father knows the truth about Rigg’s strange talent for seeing the paths of people’s pasts. But when his father dies, Rigg is stunned to learn just how many secrets Father had kept from him - secrets about Rigg’s own past, his identity, and his destiny. And when Rigg discovers that he has the power not only to see the past, but also to change it, his future suddenly becomes anything but certain.
-
-
Entertaining and Irritating.
- By DJM on 01-06-11
By: Orson Scott Card
-
The Memory of Earth
- Homecoming, Volume 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 10 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
High above the planet Harmony, the Oversoul watches. Its task, programmed so many millennia ago, is to guard the human settlement on this planet, to protect this fragile remnant of Earth from all threats...to protect them, most of all, from themselves.
-
-
I keep hoping, but, alas, ...
- By Ole Hippie on 02-22-10
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Stonefather
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Emily Janice Card
- Length: 3 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When Runnel leaves his mountain valley to head for the great city of the water mages, he has no idea of his own magical talents. But he soon finds that without meaning to, he complicates and then endangers the lives of everyone he comes to know and care about. For when it comes to magic, there are rules and laws, and the untrained mage-to-be must be careful not to tap into deep forces and ancient enmities. Otherwise, other people might end up paying the price for his mistakes.
-
-
Familiar and unique--a breath of fresh air
- By Scott on 03-10-09
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Seventh Son
- Tales of Alvin Maker, Book 1
- By: Orson Card
- Narrated by: Nana Visitor
- Length: 5 hrs and 30 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Young Alvin was born the seventh son of a seventh son. By his birthright, he possesses magical powers and is destined to become something great, perhaps even a Maker. Indeed, Alvin is special. But the boy remains vulnerable to dark forces who reach out to destroy him and are willing to do anything to keep him from growing up. Carefully weaving the lore and the folk-magic of the men and women who settled a continent—as well as the beliefs of the tribes who were there before them—Orson Scott Card has created a fascinating alternate frontier America.
-
-
Souther accent clases
- By Alessio on 09-25-03
By: Orson Card
-
Skyward
- By: Brandon Sanderson
- Narrated by: Suzy Jackson
- Length: 15 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From Brandon Sanderson, the number one New York Times best-selling author of the Reckoners series, Words of Radiance, and the internationally best-selling Mistborn series, comes the first book in an epic new series about a girl who dreams of becoming a pilot in a dangerous world at war for humanity's future.
-
-
Has Sanderson been reading Craig Alanson???
- By Customer on 11-18-18
-
Empire: The Empire Duet, Part 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Orson Scott Card is a master storyteller, who has earned millions of fans and reams of praise for his previous science-fiction and fantasy works. Now he steps a little closer to the present day with this chilling look at a near-future scenario: a new American Civil War. The American Empire has grown too fast, the fault lines at home are stressed to the breaking point, and the war of words between Right and Left has collapsed into a shooting war.
-
-
Good pace, weak premise
- By Andrea on 01-01-07
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Dune
- By: Frank Herbert
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Orlagh Cassidy, Euan Morton, and others
- Length: 21 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Here is the novel that will be forever considered a triumph of the imagination. Set on the desert planet Arrakis, Dune is the story of the boy Paul Atreides, who would become the mysterious man known as Maud'dib. He would avenge the traitorous plot against his noble family and would bring to fruition humankind's most ancient and unattainable dream.
-
-
This classic deserves better
- By Matthew Salvo on 07-01-21
By: Frank Herbert
-
Lost and Found
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 9 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
That's the question that has haunted 14-year-old Ezekiel Blast all his life. But he's not a thief, he just has a talent for finding things. Not a superpower - a micropower. Because what good is finding lost bicycles and hair scrunchies, especially when you return them to their owners and everyone thinks you must have stolen them in the first place? If only there were some way to use Ezekiel's micropower for good, to turn a curse into a blessing. His friend Beth thinks there must be, and so does a police detective investigating the disappearance of a little girl.
-
-
Good book from a great Author
- By Jim on 03-30-21
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Wakers
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Laz is a side-stepper: a teen with the incredible power to jump his consciousness to alternate versions of himself in parallel worlds. All his life, there was no mistake that a little side-stepping couldn’t fix. Until Laz wakes up one day in a cloning facility on a seemingly abandoned Earth. Laz finds himself surrounded by hundreds of other clones, all dead, and quickly realizes that he too must be a clone of his original self.
-
-
Flat Flat Flat
- By tattoo on 04-21-22
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Hyperion
- By: Dan Simmons
- Narrated by: Marc Vietor, Allyson Johnson, Kevin Pariseau, and others
- Length: 20 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
On the world called Hyperion, beyond the law of the Hegemony of Man, there waits the creature called the Shrike. There are those who worship it. There are those who fear it. And there are those who have vowed to destroy it. In the Valley of the Time Tombs, where huge, brooding structures move backward through time, the Shrike waits for them all.
-
-
The Shrike Awaits. Enter The Time Tombs...
- By Michael on 10-13-12
By: Dan Simmons
-
Drive
- An Expanse Short Story
- By: James S. A. Corey
- Narrated by: Jefferson Mays
- Length: 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A short story set in the universe of James S. A. Corey's NYT best-selling Expanse series. Now a Prime Original series. This story will be available in the complete Expanse story collection, Memory’s Legion.
-
-
Fun little short story
- By Carson on 12-28-21
-
The Martian
- By: Andy Weir
- Narrated by: Wil Wheaton
- Length: 10 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Six days ago, astronaut Mark Watney became one of the first people to walk on Mars. Now, he's sure he'll be the first person to die there. After a dust storm nearly kills him and forces his crew to evacuate while thinking him dead, Mark finds himself stranded and completely alone with no way to even signal Earth that he’s alive - and even if he could get word out, his supplies would be gone long before a rescue could arrive. But Mark isn't ready to give up yet.
-
-
I love Wil Wheaton but why not R. C. Bray?
- By L. Newman on 01-11-20
By: Andy Weir
-
Red Rising
- By: Pierce Brown
- Narrated by: Tim Gerard Reynolds
- Length: 16 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Darrow is a Red, a member of the lowest caste in the color-coded society of the future. Like his fellow Reds, he works all day, believing that he and his people are making the surface of Mars livable for future generations. Yet he spends his life willingly, knowing that his blood and sweat will one day result in a better world for his children. But Darrow and his kind have been betrayed. Soon he discovers that humanity reached the surface generations ago. Vast cities and sprawling parks spread across the planet.
-
-
HUMANS ARE ALWAY NEGOTIATING,
- By Jim "The Impatient" on 01-30-15
By: Pierce Brown
-
Monster Hunter International
- By: Larry Correia
- Narrated by: Oliver Wyman
- Length: 24 hrs
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Five days after Owen Zastava Pitt pushed his insufferable boss out of a 14th story window, he woke up in the hospital with a scarred face, an unbelievable memory, and a job offer. It turns out that monsters are real. All the things from myth, legend, and B-movies are out there, waiting in the shadows. Some of them are evil, and some are just hungry. Monster Hunter International is the premier eradication company in the business. And now Owen is their newest recruit.
-
-
Suprizingly entertaining
- By Konstantin on 02-17-12
By: Larry Correia
People who viewed this also viewed...
-
Ender's Shadow
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Gabrielle de Cuir, full cast
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The human race is at War with the "Buggers," an insect-like alien race. As Earth prepares to defend itself from total destruction at the hands of an inscrutable enemy, all focus is on the development of military geniuses who can fight such a war, and win. The long distances of interstellar space have given hope to the defenders of Earth--they have time to train these future commanders up from childhood, forging them into an irresistible force in the high orbital facility called the Battle School.
-
-
Totally Card
- By L. on 10-10-05
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Ender's Game
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A full-cast production of the science fiction classic featuring original recordings of Orson Scott Card
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Earth Unaware
- By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Stephen Hoye, Arthur Morey, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
alaxy. Humanity was slowly making their way out from Earth to the planets and asteroids of the Solar System, exploring and mining and founding colonies. The mining ship El Cavador is far out from Earth, in the deeps of the Kuiper Belt, beyond Pluto. Other mining ships, and the families that live on them, are few and far between this far out. So when El Cavador's telescopes pick up a fast-moving object coming in-system, it's hard to know what to make of it. It's massive and moving at a significant fraction of the speed of light.
-
-
The beginning- or a plot filler
- By Don Gilbert on 08-22-14
By: Orson Scott Card, and others
-
Children of the Fleet
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ender Wiggin won the Third Formic war, ending the alien threat to Earth. Afterwards, all the terraformed Formic worlds were open to settlement by humans, and the International Fleet became the arm of the Ministry of Colonization, run by Hirum Graff. MinCol now runs Fleet School on the old Battle School station, and still recruits very smart kids to train as leaders of colony ships, and colonies.
-
-
Reboot? Same old story...
- By Greg on 11-30-17
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Earth Afire
- By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye, Arthur Morey, Stefan Rudnicki, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One hundred years before Ender's Game, the aliens arrived on Earth with fire and death. Earth Afire by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston is the story of the First Formic War. Victor Delgado beat the alien ship to Earth, but just barely. Not soon enough to convince skeptical governments that there was a threat. They didn't believe that until space stations and ships and colonies went up in sudden flame. And when that happened, only Mazer Rackham and the Mobile Operations Police could move fast enough to meet the threat.
-
-
ARGH - performance was too irritating to listen to
- By connie on 06-05-13
By: Orson Scott Card, and others
-
Pathfinder
- Pathfinder, Book 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Kirby Heyborne, Don Leslie, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rigg is well trained at keeping secrets. Only his father knows the truth about Rigg’s strange talent for seeing the paths of people’s pasts. But when his father dies, Rigg is stunned to learn just how many secrets Father had kept from him - secrets about Rigg’s own past, his identity, and his destiny. And when Rigg discovers that he has the power not only to see the past, but also to change it, his future suddenly becomes anything but certain.
-
-
Entertaining and Irritating.
- By DJM on 01-06-11
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Ender's Shadow
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Scott Brick, Gabrielle de Cuir, full cast
- Length: 15 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The human race is at War with the "Buggers," an insect-like alien race. As Earth prepares to defend itself from total destruction at the hands of an inscrutable enemy, all focus is on the development of military geniuses who can fight such a war, and win. The long distances of interstellar space have given hope to the defenders of Earth--they have time to train these future commanders up from childhood, forging them into an irresistible force in the high orbital facility called the Battle School.
-
-
Totally Card
- By L. on 10-10-05
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Ender's Game
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Harlan Ellison
- Length: 11 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A full-cast production of the science fiction classic featuring original recordings of Orson Scott Card
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Earth Unaware
- By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Stephen Hoye, Arthur Morey, and others
- Length: 13 hrs and 59 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
alaxy. Humanity was slowly making their way out from Earth to the planets and asteroids of the Solar System, exploring and mining and founding colonies. The mining ship El Cavador is far out from Earth, in the deeps of the Kuiper Belt, beyond Pluto. Other mining ships, and the families that live on them, are few and far between this far out. So when El Cavador's telescopes pick up a fast-moving object coming in-system, it's hard to know what to make of it. It's massive and moving at a significant fraction of the speed of light.
-
-
The beginning- or a plot filler
- By Don Gilbert on 08-22-14
By: Orson Scott Card, and others
-
Children of the Fleet
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 11 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Ender Wiggin won the Third Formic war, ending the alien threat to Earth. Afterwards, all the terraformed Formic worlds were open to settlement by humans, and the International Fleet became the arm of the Ministry of Colonization, run by Hirum Graff. MinCol now runs Fleet School on the old Battle School station, and still recruits very smart kids to train as leaders of colony ships, and colonies.
-
-
Reboot? Same old story...
- By Greg on 11-30-17
By: Orson Scott Card
-
Earth Afire
- By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston
- Narrated by: Stephen Hoye, Arthur Morey, Stefan Rudnicki, and others
- Length: 15 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
One hundred years before Ender's Game, the aliens arrived on Earth with fire and death. Earth Afire by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston is the story of the First Formic War. Victor Delgado beat the alien ship to Earth, but just barely. Not soon enough to convince skeptical governments that there was a threat. They didn't believe that until space stations and ships and colonies went up in sudden flame. And when that happened, only Mazer Rackham and the Mobile Operations Police could move fast enough to meet the threat.
-
-
ARGH - performance was too irritating to listen to
- By connie on 06-05-13
By: Orson Scott Card, and others
-
Pathfinder
- Pathfinder, Book 1
- By: Orson Scott Card
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Kirby Heyborne, Don Leslie, and others
- Length: 17 hrs and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Rigg is well trained at keeping secrets. Only his father knows the truth about Rigg’s strange talent for seeing the paths of people’s pasts. But when his father dies, Rigg is stunned to learn just how many secrets Father had kept from him - secrets about Rigg’s own past, his identity, and his destiny. And when Rigg discovers that he has the power not only to see the past, but also to change it, his future suddenly becomes anything but certain.
-
-
Entertaining and Irritating.
- By DJM on 01-06-11
By: Orson Scott Card
What listeners say about Shadow of the Hegemon
Highly rated for:
Reviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
- Evan
- 05-06-08
Great Story, Poor Performance
I'm a huge fan of the Ender series, and I have had the good fortune of listening to the entire series thus far on audiobook (which as Card says is his preferred format). This is another fantastic story involving Bean, who is now living on Earth after the Formic War.
Unfortunately, the production quality of this audiobook is extremely poor compared to the previous books in the series. Initially, the audio was very poor quality and the volume was very low. While the audio levels eventually became normal again, the audio quality was often very poor with certain voice actors.
Multiple mispronunciations plagued this performance, which varied from minor to major distractions. The word Hegemon (being the title of the book, no less) was mispronounced throughout the entire audiobook, and was crudely dubbed over with the correct pronunciation by what sounded to be a different actor.
Finally, the name of the antagonist was severely mispronounced throughout the book, with the exception of a few correct pronunciations strewn intermittently throughout the performance. Achilles, the Battle School failure who later became involved involved in global politics, was pronounced phonetically, instead of with the correct French pronunciation "a-SHEEL". This pronunciation was made very clear in Ender's Shadow, so it was very hard to become accustomed to the mispronounced version. At first, I thought that it was being mispronounced because the character being spoken through did not know the correct pronunciation, but I soon realized that was not the case. The same voice actor would pronounce it correctly in one part of the book, then completely the opposite in a later part of the book.
In summary, I would greatly recommend this book, but do be aware of the audiobook's multiple problems. I am very surprised that this has not been addressed yet, and I hope it is republished in the future.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
45 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Amy
- 06-04-04
An easy five-stars
The writing style of "Ender's Game" sort of petered out of the latter three books -- for the most part -- but it comes back in full force in "Shadow of the Hegemon".
I enjoyed the entire Ender series, but I know others who didn't even finish "Speaker for the Dead" -- never mind "Xenocide" or "Children of the Mind". If you're a member of that group, THIS is definitely the book for you!!!
"Shadow of the Hegemon" takes us right back to the end of the war with the buggers, which was a little weird having finished the Ender series because it's quite a jump back in time. If I had it to do over again, I don't know that I'd listen to this book before "Speaker for the Dead"...but I might try to listen to the two concurrently.
I can't wait to start "Shadow Puppets" (the next Bean book)!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
6 people found this helpful
-
Overall
- Nicholas
- 10-29-05
Worth Reading
This book is a good read, however it may get a bad wrap by some because it is not as good as Enders Game. If you LOVED the Enders Game series then you should enjoy the Shadow books as well. If you were only half hearted about the preceeding books, however, these are not worth your time. Also, regarding the previous post about the pronunciation of the name "Achilles": in the first book of this series (Enders Shadow) it discusses the fact that the name is Dutch which is why it sounds diffrent from the way you are used to hearing it.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Anonymous User
- 09-24-20
Annoying music between chapters
Love the Ender’s series, only complaint about this audio book in particular is the annoying music in between chapters.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Karl
- 02-15-12
Pronunciation
One of the narrators doesn't know how to say Achilles or Hegemon. They tried to fix the Hegemon issue by replacing words or sentences with a completely different recording with all mixed up levels. The female narrator did a much better job than she did in Ender's Game and Ender's Shadow where she made me hate Valentine so much.
Story is not as rad as Ender's Game or Ender's Shadow. If you like the characters from these books and loved the part of 'Game where Peter/Valentine are becoming noted commentators, you'll really love this.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Trevor R
- 01-21-13
Great book! Weird issues though.
This is a wonderful book and I highly recommend it (especially if you have enjoyed the other Ender/Bean books). I took one star off the performance rating for two reasons:
1) There is extremely cheesy midi music between each chapter. My wife and I literally laughed out loud every time there was a chapter change.
2). SEVERAL times during this book it was clear the narrator mispronounced "Hegemon" and they had to re-record someone else saying it correctly. As a listener it would pull me out of the experience when I would be happily listening to a portion of the story and every time they said "Hegemon" it was in a different voice.
Otherwise---This book is as fantastic as the others!
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- David Munoz
- 08-30-15
Good book, bad recording
The readers are good, but sounds like it was ripped from a cassette tape. Not up to audible quality.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Cyrus
- 08-03-17
Excellent book, well read
Only one thing kept me from giving this a 5 star review; the soap opera music between chapters was irritating. The idea to have a medical interlude isn't a bad one, but if your going to use it, it should better match the tone of the story. Preformance was excellent otherwise.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Pat Webb
- 02-17-16
Great story, bad job editing, bad music
What made the experience of listening to Shadow of the Hegemon the most enjoyable?
The story is well written and mostly well read, but the edits/updates were poorly done. The voices don't match and the edits were only a few words in the middle of a sentence, giving the effect of jarring your focus away from the story and onto the edits themselves. Also, the music was terrible. It would have been much better without music.
One personal pet peeve, the author talks about the character putting another "clip" into their pistol...it's a magazine, not a clip. The slang term is "mag".
Who was your favorite character and why?
no favorite
Would you listen to another book narrated by the narrators?
yes, overall the production was good
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
don't know, don't care :-)
Any additional comments?
The entire series is enjoyable, but these edits and the music are not well done.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- mark salisbury
- 07-23-16
great story
another excellent story, but sometimes distracted by careless editing in the audio production. I was surprised/ disappointed by that.
these are expensive editions, and should at least have a professional feel.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!