Shadow of the Hegemon
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| Author | Orson Scott Card |
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| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Series | Ender's Shadow |
| Genre(s) | Science fiction novel |
| Publisher | Tor Books |
| Released | January, 2001 |
| Media type | Print (Hardcover & Paperback) |
| Pages | 352 pp |
| ISBN | ISBN 0-312-87651-3 |
| Preceded by | Ender's Shadow |
| Followed by | Shadow Puppets |
Shadow of the Hegemon (2001) is the second novel in Orson Scott Card's Ender's Shadow series (often called the Bean Quartet) and the sixth novel in the Ender's Game series. It is told mostly from the point of view of Bean, a largely peripheral character in the original Ender's Game.
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[edit] History
Card accredits two books in particular as being profoundly influential in the writing of this novel: Thailand: A Short History by David K. Wyatt and Raj: The Making and Unmaking of British India by Lawrence James. In addition to these two books he was also inspired by Phillip Absher, who was one of the readers of the first draft. Phillip suggested that the Petra arc of the novel was anti-climactic. Upon hearing this criticism, Card rethought this entire book and decided to split it into two books. At the time of publication, Card thought the Bean series (Shadow series) of the Enderverse would only be four books long. [1]
[edit] Plot summary
In Shadow of the Hegemon, all of the Battle School graduates, except Ender, return to Earth in approximately 2170 A.D. Ender's brother Peter, using his online pseudonym Locke (a conscious nod to John Locke), arranges for Ender to be sent into exile on another planet so that the world's leaders won't be tempted to fight over his military genius. Shortly after their return, the members of the unit Ender commanded (called his jeesh, an Arabic word meaning 'army'), with the exception of Bean, are kidnapped to be used as strategists in an upcoming struggle for world dominance.
The mastermind behind the kidnappings, Achilles--the sociopath, captures all of Ender's Jeesh except Bean. He then subjects all of them to solitary confinement so they help him in his plans of world domination. Bean had captured Achilles in the previous novel, so in retaliation Achilles attempts to kill Bean and his family. He fails with both attempts, however. After Bean discovers an encoded message in an email by Petra confirming that the Russians are Achilles' backers, he works to free her and the others, while helping Peter come to power under his own name so he can eventually be appointed Hegemon and work against Achilles.
When Peter publishes a column under the Locke pseudonym revealing Achilles for the psychopathic murderer he is, the Battle Schoolers are released--except for Petra, whom Achilles takes to India, where he has secured a position of power. From there, he requests plans for an invasion of Burma and then Thailand. Indian Battle School graduates serving their country, including Sayagi and Virlomi, develop plans for brute-force attacks involving long supply lines. Petra, for her part, arranges a different plan, involving stripping India's garrisons along her borders with Pakistan--something she expects will never happen. What she does not know is that Achilles plans to arrange a nonaggression pact with Pakistan, leaving the troops free to leave the border. He takes her along as a hostage to the meeting, and deftly arranges just such a treaty. Petra feels distinctly stupid.
Nonetheless, her plan is not used, but for a surprising reason: Achilles is secretly working for China, and has convinced India to move the bulk of its forces to the border of Thailand, giving China the opportunity to launch a devastating attack against India's weakened defenses. At that point, Achilles plans to leave India for China, and continue his efforts towards world domination.
However, Bean, having allied with Peter, moves to Thailand, and fully intends to get in Achilles's way. He enters the Thai military under the patronage of Suriyawong, a fellow Battle School graduate and (nominal) head of Thailand's planning division. Bean trains his own force of 200 Thai soldiers for special operations against India. And the Thai command in Chief betrays Suriyawong and Bean when he blows up the building where they were housed. But Bean lucky gets out along with Suriyawong and hides in the barracks of his troops. Thailand is declared in state of Emergency. Bean and Suriyawong use the troops Bean trained to help halt Indian supply lines. It is there on a bridge they plan to blow of they meet Virlomi. Virlomi defects, bringing news of Petra, the three band together and, with the aid of Bean's soldiers and Locke's distinguished connections, move on Hyderabad, arriving just as the Chinese do. Bean foils Achilles again, rescues Petra, and—following the murder of Sister Carlotta by Achilles—learns about the secret of his genius and the doom it will bring him.
[edit] Characters in "Shadow of the Hegemon"
- Julian "Bean" Delphiki
- Petra Arkanian
- Achilles de Flandres
- Sister Carlotta
- Peter Wiggin
- Hyrum Graff
- Suriyawong
- Virlomi
- John Paul Wiggin
- Theresa Wiggin
[edit] External links
[edit] Footnotes
- ^ Orson Scott Card, Shadow of the Hegemon (Tor Books, 2000). Pgs 447-450. ISBN 0-8125-6595-9.
| Orson Scott Card's Ender's Game series | |
|---|---|
| Ender Quartet | Ender's Game | Speaker for the Dead | Xenocide | Children of the Mind |
| Bean Quartet | Ender's Shadow | Shadow of the Hegemon | Shadow Puppets | Shadow of the Giant |
| Additional books | Shadows in Flight | Ender in Exile: Ganges (working title) |
| Short stories | First Meetings: "The Polish Boy" | "Teacher's Pest" | "Investment Counselor"
Intergalactic Medicine Show: "Mazer in Prison" | "Pretty Boy" | "Cheater" |
| Books | Characters | Concepts | |
