Rating: 
Summary: Not up to snuff -- glad I waited for the paperback edition
Review: Shadow of the Hegemon does not live up to its predessor works. The book is loosely written and not as tight as Card's other works. You can skip the first 200 pages which is repetitive, predictable and simply not up to his standards. The remainder of the book is fine but it comes to a rapid conclusion with a number of sweeping paragraphs that wrap everything up with little imagination. The book reads more like a play-by-play account of the game RISK, something that the author points out in his epiloge -- it should have been the prologe. The characters are particularly flat and one dimensional -- a real disappointment given the earlier Ender books. Achillies is bent on taking over the world and killing Bean, Bean is bend on killing Achillies and the other characters fall on either side of this fence. Peter Wiggen while present in the book is really dealt with in a superficial way with a minor role. I know that Card returned to the Ender series after a long hiatus and Ender's Shadow is as good as Ender's Game. Unfourtunately this work reads like it was written as part of a multi-book publishing contract -- something he had to do but didn't have enough material for it. It could have been a terrific Novella or short story but it goes thin very fast when streatched into a novel. Overall a poor showing. I almost bought this book in hardcover after reading Enders's Shadow -- a very good book and highly recommended. But I am glad I only invested a few dollars in the paperback edition.
Rating: 
Summary: Almost preachy, but an excellent read
Review: Shadow of the Hegemon is a fascinating book that held my interest the entire way through. I read it in one day because I couldn't put it down. The pace was good and I fell in love with the characters all over again. Only one thing seemed strange to me. The flow of story was interrupted a few times by long conversations and reflections that seemed like the author was slipping in his religious views. The passages didn't fit with the characters at all and for a few pages, I thought I had accidentally picked up a book from the "Left Behind" series. I hadn't noticed this before in the other Ender books. Maybe it was because Card was simultaneously writing "Sarah: Women of Genesis". Those pages were definitely bearable because the strategies and power struggles were totally engrossing. Judging from Card's skill as a writer, the reflections probably serve as development for future books. I didn't necessarily disagree with the content, and he has earned the right to do whatever he wants in his writing. If you liked Ender's game and Ender's shadow, don't hesitate in buying this book.
Rating:
Summary: the young genius
Review: This book by Orson Scott Card, is a very good sequel to Enders shadow. It gives more depth about the character known as bean. They tell about his personal life and how he struggled to stay alive. Bean is my favorite character in the Enders game series. He shows the most wits and learns the fastest. He develops emotion, which he has never felt before. Bean, ends up saving the world along with a team of super intelligent kids that think they are playing a game but in reality they are actually commanding star ships in a galaxy where the buggers reside. Not only is Bean a survivor of 25 which 23 were burnt down, he ends up finding his parents and eventually meets his long lost bother. His savior, who is also like his mother, finds Enders brother Peter. Bean helps peter become Hegemon. To me this is the best book of the series, because to me Bean was my favorite Character, because of his intelligence and his past experiances.
Rating:
Summary: Not just another retelling of Ender's Game
Review: This book, although highly readable and recommended, is somewhat of a departure from Scott's usual sci-fi space-traveling "hero's journey" of the Ender series. "Shadow of the Hegemon" is more of a earth-bound story, where space and interstellar xenocide fade into the background amidst the usual suspects in the fight for world domination. Following Bean's story would, in and of itself, make a great novel. We also follow Petra and a few of the other battle school graduates as they show that they have matured past being just child genuises used as pawns by adults to save humanity. In this story, we finally see them using their own resources as they act alone to save themselves. Peter Wiggin, formerly known as the sadistic brother of Ender, becomes a fully rounded character, both impossibly arrogant and charismatic. In my opinion it is this interaction between Bean and Peter Wiggin and what they accomplish together which is truly the gem in the midst of this high-stakes story of world diplomacy. And it is this relationship, and Peter's subsequent rise to power that sets the stage for this story's obvious continuance.
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