A kegyelem ára

by Orson Scott Card, Veronika Farkas (Translator)

A mágia örök törvénye, hogy az árát vérben kell leróni: annál forróbban és drágábban, minél hatalmasabb. Még az istenek sem mentesek ez alól, hisz ők is így születtek, vérben és varázslatban. A mágia előtt nincs lehetetlen – amíg arányosan megfizetnek érte…

Mekkora áldozatot ér meg egy zsarnok bukása? Egy száműzött bosszúja? Egy ország megszabadítása? És mennyi vért kell kiontani hozzá, hogy valaki dacolni tudjon az istenekkel?

Ennek a történetnek három hőse van; felváltva törnek egymás romlására. Mindháromnak felelnie kell ezekre a kérdésekre; és mindhárman más választ adnak. Bölcsen teszik-e vagy sem, de nem mindenki hajlandó megfizetni közülük a kegyelem árát…

Orson Scott Card 1983-ban élénk felbolydulást keltett ezzel a regényével: ez volt az első kirándulása a fantasy területére, és rögtön halomra döntötte vele a hagyományokat.

Az igazság kegyetlen – de kegyelemmel enyhíteni még kegyetlenebb.

Genres: Fantasy, Fiction, Science Fiction Fantasy, Science Fiction, Audiobook, Speculative Fiction, Horror

368 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Orson Scott Card is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is (as of 2023) the only person to have won a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for his novel Ender's Game (1985) and its sequel Speaker for the Dead (1986). A feature film adaptation of Ender's Game, which Card co-produced, was released in 2013. Card also wrote the Locus Fantasy Award-winning series The Tales of Alvin Maker (1987–2003).
Card's fiction often features characters with exceptional gifts who make difficult choices with high stakes. Card has also written political, religious, and social commentary in his columns and other writing; his opposition to homosexuality has provoked public criticism.
Card, who is a great-great-grandson of Brigham Young, was born in Richland, Washington, and grew up in Utah and California. While he was a student at Brigham Young University (BYU), his plays were performed on stage. He served in Brazil as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) and headed a community theater for two summers. Card had 27 short stories published between 1978 and 1979, and he won the John W. Campbell Award for best new writer in 1978. He earned a master's degree in English from the University of Utah in 1981 and wrote novels in science fiction, fantasy, non-fiction, and historical fiction genres starting in 1979. Card continued to write prolifically, and he has published over 50 novels and 45 short stories.
Card teaches English at Southern Virginia University; he has written two books on creative writing and serves as a judge in the Writers of the Future contest. He has taught many successful writers at his "literary boot camps". He remains a practicing member of the LDS Church and Mormon fiction writers Stephenie Meyer, Brandon Sanderson, and Dave Wolverton have cited his works as a major influence.

Reviews

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

6.0 stars. One of my All time favorite novels. I am a big Orson Scott Card fan and this is my favorite book of his (Speaker for the Dead is second and Ender's Game is third). This is an emotionally devastating novel that will leave you thinking about it long after the book is done. Card himself calls this his best writing ever and I completely agree. It is a very "dark" fantasy so don't go into this looking for a "feel good" book. That said, this is an amazing piece of writing that I think gets even better upon its second reading. HIGHEST POSSIBLE RECOMMENDATION!!!

[Olethros · Rating 3 out of 5]

-Sensaciones encontradísimas en el lector y en la narración.-

Género. Narrativa fantástica.

Lo que nos cuenta. El libro Esperanza del venado (publicación original: Hart’s Hope, 1983) nos presenta, mediante la voz de un narrador no identificado (…), a Palicrovol, quien terminó con el rey de Burland aunque, en contra de las profecías que advertían del peligro, permitió que su hija Asineth sobreviviese tras humillarla y vejarla, y tomó a su hermana como esposa. Palicrovol cambia el nombre de la capital, Esperanza del venado, por Inwit, y comienza a gobernar sin saber que Asineth jamás olvidará lo sucedido y busca venganza.

¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:

https://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com...

[Elly · Rating 1 out of 5]

Normally, I'm a big fan of Orson Scott Card. I find him an intelligent, imaginative writer and excellent at creating real, multi-faceted characters. I also love his common themes of family, parenting, and religion. And while Hart's Hope contains all of these, it is so crude, vulgar, and downright foul in so many places that I can't imagine who would actually like reading this book. It was obviously written by a young Card--not only is it not as well constructed as his later novels, it simply reeks of immature male. I think just about every bodily function and fluid appear regularly in disgusting detail throughout the book. For me, these overwhelm and drown what could otherwise be a creative and profound story of fatherhood.

[Jennifer · Rating 1 out of 5]

Total crap and needlessly gory and violent. But if you like rape and baby-eating, then this is the book for you.

[Xabi1990 · Rating 2 out of 5]

Grandes misterios del mundo :

¿Cómo se construyeron la pirámides?
¿Existió la Atlántida?
¿Por qué van las mujeres al baño de 2 en 2 (o más)?

…y el más duro … ¿POR QUÉ COÑ0 LE DI A ESTE LIBRO UN 10/10 CUANDO LE LEÍ ALLÁ POR EL 98?

Inexplicable.

En su día yo era un fan acérrimo de Card y varios de sus libros o sagas me encantaron. Es un gran constructor de personajes y, basado en el carisma de los mismos y en lo que empatizamos con ellos, construye historias que tienen fuerza e interés. Esto cuando no las rellena de paja metafísica o encubiertamente proselitista (ya sabéis que es mormón militante).

Pues bueno, la ida de olla que se marca en este libro es total: tanto la forma en que está contada (un narrador que vivió la historia), como la presentación casi en forma de libro bíblico, como los personajes (dioses, humanos, bufones, venados) como las palabras escogidas parece que están pensadas para distanciarse del lector.

Es que ni empatizamos con los personajes ni con sus actos. Es que ni les entendemos. Hasta la última frase nos despista, leñe.

Del gran autor de El juego de Ender o La saga de Bean, o Maestro Cantor, o … tantos y tantos, hay que ser cerril para empeñarse en leer este libro.

Yo le he acabado única y exclusivamente por un sentimiento de culpa, ya que puede ser que en parte haya salido en el Club de Lectura de una página que sigo porque yo le recomendé encarecidamente. Perdón, perdón, perdón …

NOTA par mí mismo : NO-RELEER-NADA, que vaya chascos me llevo cada vez que lo hago.

[Greg · Rating 5 out of 5]

"if only we could stand outside our lives and look at what we do, we might repair so many injuiries before they're done."

When I was younger I considered this my favorite single OSC book (yes, even above Ender's Game). It's been many years since I've re-read it, and it wasn't quite able to hold on to that top position (yes, back to Ender's Game).

I described the book to someone else on goodreads as:

his most dark and yet most beautiful book.

I think that description still stands. It's certainly dark and very twisted at times. And yet the narrative structure and the writing style has a difficult to articulate beauty to it. There's something timeless about it. And since Aerin put it far better than I could, I'll just steal her words:

It reads like an ancient myth, like something set down in cuneiform thousands of years ago.

When I met OSC years ago, I told him it was my favorite of his books, and if I'm remembering the meeting accurately, he told me it was his as well. He signed the book:

A tale of sweetness and light

He also made it out to "Strider", the name I use to post on his forums, which I still think is incredibly awesome.

[Mir · Rating 2 out of 5]

If this book hadn't been so short I don't think I could have finished it, there were so many revolting scenes of cruelty, child molestation and perversion.

[Heather · Rating 1 out of 5]

My least favorite of his books. It is his first stab at fantasy, and feels like it. The violence feels gratuitous. I had a hard time liking the characters.

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Orson Scott Card (OSC) needs little introduction for anyone that has ever read a menagerie of Sci-Fi. OSC is responsible for the "Enders Game" series which has won him both the Nebula and Hugo award and thus making him the only author to consecutively win both awards. Although I have never read the "Enders Game" series, I am familiar with it's celebrity and have a general idea of what it is about. He also is a life long Mormon, who has advocated loudly in favor of the church. It just so happens that his uncle is the one and only, Brigham Young. He also apparently hates the gays, "Regardless of law, marriage has only one definition, and any government that attempts to change it is my mortal enemy. I will act to destroy that government and bring it down..." -24th of July 2008, Mormon Times. Amazing what people are passionate about and willing to say on public record, but I digress.

On to Hart's Hope.

According to Wikipedia the book was written before his acclaimed works and is of much darker tone. I don't know that I would agree that it is all that dark as I felt the book was equal parts dark as it was just frank account of a day in the life of someone living in this mythical land OSC calls Burland. Burland itself and it's capitol of Inwit, is a standard medieval make believe world where all magic must be paid in blood. The larger and more intricate the spell, the larger and stronger the animal needs to be. In some instances the blood must be worked as the animal transitions from life to death, leaving very little time for the mage to work his/her magic. There are several deities worshipped by the people of Burland. The Hart (Elk and their like) is held in high esteem by men and how they divine their magic's, The Hart appears to be the god of nature, rebirth, and strength. Females worship the sweet sisters who are rumored to be two females congenitally joined at birth who dispense wisdom. New to the pantheon is of course god, disseminating wisdom to anyone willing to hear it and widely encourages his followers to put his faith in him as opposed to the other choices.

The story itself begins with a tale of a king "Palicrovol" who seized power from a cruel and ruthless king who took advantage of the power he possessed. In order to seal his rightful place as king he takes the former kings daughter and rapes her on the gates for all of Inwit to see. After which he spurns her and sends her to live with a mage consort named Sleeve in the far reaches of Burland and takes the flower princess as his new bride. The daughter of the former king is a cruel woman, only made worse by the fact that her father was put to sword, her raped for the world to see, and then dismissed. On top of that her husband, the new king put his seed inside her which has resulted in a pregnancy. Stealing knowledge from Sleeve she works the magic of men and woman together and sacrifices her child which garners her the ultimate gift of power. She decides then to bind the world to her. She becomes a god and de-thrones all of the deities of Burland. She allows Palicrovol to keep power but is cursed. His bowels are always running, he is reduced to a feeble state, stricken blind, and his advisors killed.

In a desperate attempt to save the world the gods put forth all of their power into the fate of a young boy named Orem. Orem is a small farm boy with interesting parents and eventually sets out to the city of Inwit to make a poem for himself. He meets several shady people of good hearts a long the way and eventually comes into the service of a mage named Gallowglass. Inevitably he falls out of favor with Gallowglass and becomes the king of Inwit as the queens puppet. What she does not know is the power that Orem possesses but she will soon discover…

Over all I enjoyed it. It was good enough for me to chug through 170 pages to wait for the book to really engage. Once I was engaged I polished it off and was thoroughly happy with it. The first half of the book is written more as an oratory like Beowulf or any old legend. I found Gallowglass and the magic of Burland to be an interesting take on magic and its description of it's effects was pretty cool. The book itself does not have a traditional ending and it's probably best to be prepared for that. If you enjoy fantasy and are looking for something to read, let me know.

[Richard Kelly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Warning!!!! This book is dark! Ridiculously dark! It contains abuse, humiliation, degradation, torture, imprisonment, possession, rape, incest, and much more. But to emphasize my point, these things are not the reason it is so dark. It is the way these subjects are broached, described, and carried out that makes it so disturbing.

If the purpose of a novel is to allow the reader to experience things in life without having to have lived it, maybe Hart’s Hope is a magnificent piece. But, if the purpose of a novel is to entertain and amuse the audience, then this book may have failed spectacularly somewhere.

This is not a horribly written book. It isn’t my favorite style as it is written more like a myth than a story. The narrator seems to have a detachment from the reality of the character’s lives and a tendency to refer to the story as its own entity which tend to take me out of the fantasy of it all. The vocabulary is vulgar. It is done on purpose, but be forewarned.

The characters are an interesting blend. They are all fairly deep and complicated, but in the story most of them are being played out in a way that stereotypes them. In a strange way they are deep meaningful characters playing a shallow and meaningless role. But, we get to see a rich detail of the people in the story regardless of their importance to the plot or their stance to either side of the hero/villain line.

Now we get to the tough part. The world that is created here is very deep and well thought out, but it is a world that is hard to be a part of. I had been told this is Orson Scott Card’s darkest work. I did not grasp what that truly meant. This is a book full of revolting acts and terrible situations caused by people who feel out of control of their world or morality. There is little to no uplifting message or moments in this book and that makes it very hard to take in. Instead it feels like a pessimists view of how there is no such thing as heroes and villains. We get to see the constant evolution of characters as they sway back and forth between good and evil while they justify everything through other people’s actions.

This may all seem vague and confusing, but I try my best to not spoil plotlines of any sort in my reviews and I want to stick with it. This book is tough to describe from a technical sense because although there is a plotline with characters and conflict and action, those are not what makes this book. This book is horrible and wonderful, it is artistic and vulgar, it is painful and ridiculous, it is blinding and eye opening. But it is all these things because of how it treats the human experience as opposed to what actions the characters took.

In the end it is a deep and incredibly dark book. Similar to the Great Gatsby it is more art than entertainment. It is a book suggested to poet and philosophers, but not for the average person. Definitely not for kids. As much as I didn’t like it while I was reading it, I think it may stick with me for a long time. And it may be better than I am giving it credit for, or it might be worse than I am claiming.

[J.J. Torrico · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pillé el libro de tincada en un descuento, y no me arrepiento de haberle dado una oportunidad. Lo compré porque conozco a Orson Scott Card y sé que es un escritor que toma riesgos. Pero el que se arriesga a veces también pierde, y entiendo por qué a muchas personas el libro los dividió. Vamos por partes dijo Orem el Carnicero.

FANTASÍA INUSUAL:

Lo primero que quiero destacar es lo fresca que es la propuesta aquí de Orson Card. De él sólo había leído ciencia ficción, y me alegra ver que su fascinación por los mundos complejos y escalonados se refleja acá. En la era en que vivimos, donde todos los lectores quieren fantasía menos derivativa de la de J.R.R. Tolkien, (al punto de inventar géneros como el New Weird), Orson ya tenía su propia propuesta el año 83.

La historia transcurre en el continente de Burland, un sitio fascinante y lleno de misterio y ambigüedad, donde las personas viajan para ganarse "un nombre, una historia y un poema", que refleja su destino y su alma; donde los hechiceros caprichosos y amorales aterrorizan a la gente con el poder de la sangre, un sistema de "magia blanda" muy místico y esotérico que nunca se explica a cabalidad; y donde tres panteones separados gobiernan la fe de la gente: las enigmáticas Dulces Hermanas, el salvaje y primal Venado, y el dios llamado Dios; que al parecer es nuestro propio Dios.

Me recuerda un poco a la forma en que los personajes de Canción de Hielo y Fuego hablan del "lejano oriente", donde ocurre todo tipo de horrible magia y depravación. Pero en vez de ser puros mitos exotistas, en verdad son así.

NARRATIVA ÁGIL Y SINGULAR:

La decisión de narrador de Esperanza del Venado es muy única: se trata de un narrador en segunda persona que dedica el libro al "Rey Palicrovol" para convencerlo de que no mate a un personaje llamado "Orem el Carniseco". La mayor parte del libro es en tercera persona, pero de vez en cuando el narrador se dirige de nuevo a Palicrovol y da la sensación de que encontramos un documento secreto que no debería estar en nuestras manos. Muy inmersivo.

Debido a su "objetivo", el libro tiene una narrativa ágil y frenética, donde semanas, meses o hasta años pueden transcurrir en unos pocos párrafos. Pero eso sólo es al inicio, pues a partir del primer cuarto descubrimos que todos los increíbles y sangrientos ultrajes, traiciones y guerras no eran sino un prólogo para entender la historia de Orem el Reyecito, el verdadero protagonista, y desde ese punto la narrativa adquiere un ritmo mucho más normal. Lo encontré un truco narrativo buenísimo. Me chantaron 100 hojas de "lore" y me las leí de lo más feliz, cuando a otros autores se las he rechazado y criticado, Tolkien incluido.

Nunca deja de sorprender lo densos que son los párrafos y capítulos. Otros autores (yo igual) hubiéramos narrado esta historia en algo tipo saga de siete libros, pero Orson la logra cerrar en 400 y tantas páginas. Me han tocado muchas novelas donde ocurren decenas de secuencias y eventos un poco "porque sí" o "porque es lógico que tienen que ocurrir", que al final uno lee por encima y termina omitiendo de la memoria; pero en este libro, al contrario, encontramos un tropel de pequeñas historias intrigantes y filosóficas, sin pausas innecesarias; imposibles de olvidar.

UN CIERRE QUE SE DESINFLA

Vamos a lo malo. Para mí, la parte más cuestionable son los últimos capítulos, que llegan a ser innecesariamente complejos y con una sucesión de eventos media inverosímil. Es como si a Orson le hubiera costado atar los cabos, (cosa de la que no lo culpo); pero me da pena, porque en sus otras dos novelas que he leído lo hace muy bien, y eran al menos igual de complejas que Venado.
De todas formas, lo más negativo para mí es que…

----[PEQUEÑO SPOILER AQUÍ]---
ya que el libro es una carta a Palicrovol para que NO mate a nuestro protagonista, leemos el final, y resulta que… no podemos enterarnos si mató o no al protagonista, porque obvio, el libro fue escrito ANTES de que eso pase, y se lo mandaron para ayudarlo a tomar la decisión. Producto de eso tenemos un cierre que además de agridulce es incierto. Eso de verdad le hace daño, por algo que voy a explicar más adelante.
---[FIN DEL SPOILER] ---

SANGRE Y VÍSCERAS

Aprovecho de abordar una queja que he visto harto aquí en Good Reads: muchos dicen que les da asco el contenido explícito del libro, y lo tildan de ser provocativo porque sí; pero no puedo estar de acuerdo. Encuentro que esos lectores leyeron cosas que les produjeron emociones feas, se pusieron puritanos, y por eso no quisieron tener un “diálogo” con la narrativa, que para mi es la única razón por la que vale la pena leer cosas.

Que el libro contenga crudeza no significa que la narrativa la glorifique; de hecho los personajes son castigados un montón de veces cuando actúan de forma cruel, y siempre se celebran las muestras de valor y compasión. Además, aunque todos tienen derecho a evitar lecturas asquerosas o gatillantes, no pueden actuar como si fuera una sorpresa. No sólo Orson siempre escribe cosas así, en mayor o menor medida, sino que no he visto contraportada que no mencione que el libro contiene cosas como sacrificios humanos, canibalismo o violación.
Si no podemos analizar esos temas en el contexto de la ficción fantástica, ¿entonces dónde?

LA FINALIDAD Y VIRTUD DE LA FANTASÍA OSCURA

De todas formas, hay un sentido en el que estoy de acuerdo con los críticos, y es donde los temas sanguinarios de la historia le juegan en contra. Ya que el final de la novela es abrupto, después de enfrentarnos a tanta crueldad e injusticia, puede resultar super desalentador. Justamente la gracia de la fantasía oscura, para mí, es que los personajes luchan contra retos casi imposibles, pero no porque crean que van a ganar, sino porque luchar contra la injusticia y la crueldad ES LO ÚNICO CORRECTO. Así, ocurre una “dignificación” de enfrentarse a escenarios tan injustos, que le pueden dar esperanzas hasta a personas en situaciones horribles en su día a día. Es por eso que, teniendo esta novela un final tan ambiguo, nunca logramos concluir si el sufrimiento de Orem valió la pena, y para mí resulta más deprimente que inspirador. Esa falla no creo que empañe las partes buenas del libro, pero entiendo por qué una persona leería esto, llegaría a la última hoja, y diría "esto es el peor libro de la tierra".

CONCLUSIÓN: IMPOSIBLE QUEDAR INDIFERENTE:

A pesar de sus falencias, creo que Esperanza del Venado triunfa en suficientes frentes como para ser una novela destacable y que vale la pena analizar. Opino que lo peor que puede hacer una historia no es ser mala, es ser del montón; y no se me ocurre que alguien pueda leer esto y salir indiferente.

Orson aquí no parece estar preocupado por plantear una narrativa satisfactoria, sino una singular. Y sin embargo, noto que con unos pocos replanteamientos y detalles podría haber sido ambas cosas.

No suelo quejarme de los finales abiertos, pero en este caso, si pudiera saber qué fue de Orem y qué resultó a largo plazo de sus buenas obras, lo leería con gusto.

NOTA:

Mención honrosa a la horrible, horrible portada de la edición de que yo leí, de Ediciones Nova, que parece libro de Chuck Tingle, y además de no reflejar en nada el contenido de la novela, tampoco se parece a las ediciones deotros idiomas. Derechamente resultado de algún diseñador gráfico con la realidad media alterada.

[Dan · Rating 5 out of 5]

When the author signed my copy, he wrote "For Dan: a tale of sweetness and light".

He didn't mean it.

This is possibly the darkest, bloodiest, most unrelentingly depressing fantasy I've ever read, and I love it. I've read it six times. This probably says something not very flattering about me, but there you are. It also is beautifully written, thoroughly realized, and haunting. I can't recommend it highly enough, provided you've got a taste for the disturbing.

Which I apparently do.

[Jason Walsman · Rating 1 out of 5]

A load of hideous toxic garbage that makes me question OSC as an author and a human. More (disturbing) detail below. I enjoy almost everything of OSC's I've read but this is by far one of the worst books I've read in a long time. Didn't even finish it, which is very unusual for me.






The plot starts in a confusing, poorly motivated fashion in which Card clearly expected us to care about the characters simply because his writing must obviously be interesting. It gets worse. The sort-of good guy rescuer of the land rapes a 12 year old. It gets worse. This is a long, drawn out, described scene that takes place in front of a crowd. It gets worse. She's horrifically bound in a fashion that itself causes injuries. It gets worse. She learns to be... seductive?... while being raped. Card creating this scene makes the book irredeemable and makes me wary of picking up more of his books in the future.

[Suzanne Thackston · Rating 5 out of 5]

Weird. This is one of my desert island books, and I've been re-reading it for decades now, but I've never reviewed it here before?
Well, better late than never.
I love this book. It's the main reason I can't quit OSC, despite his awfulness in real life.
It's not an easy read. Terrible things happen. If you're not a fan of myth and real faery tales (not the sanitized ones we've been pushing on children for too many generations now) where bad people thrive and good people do bad things and the wrong people die, don't read this.
Even being a big fat giant myth and faery tale lover, this one is hard.
But it's beautiful. It's just so damn good.
I love this book.

[Tra-Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

What's all this fuss about "darkness"? Pay no mind, fantasy fans; there's nothing here worse than what you'll find in Goodkind or GRRM. There is, however, delicate prose that seems to hold great meaning. Reading the book almost feels like unrolling a tapestry (though that tapestry may hold centuries of torture, all bodily fluids, and immeasurable hate). Beauty and ugliness in all their forms are equally as common in Hart's Hope, strengthening the impact of each. Characters' motivations are explored in expert depth. I liked it very much.

[Mike Copeland · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very intense, and it is a little bit of a tragedy. No one is completely good or completely bad, but there are clear lines of good/evil dilineation. The religious/cultural inter-play is facinating. The women have their own religion, and the men debate between two others, but often actually follow both. The whole story is wrapped up in lineage, in fertiltiy, in growth and power. Thus there is alot of sexual inuendo and actual action, but it is not superfluous. It plays into the relifious and essence of life understanding of the people. It is not like most books (i.e. "Makers" by Doctorow) It actually advances the story and deepens the plot and characters. It plays into who they are, and there is no more then what is useful for that. It is very descriptive, even slightly erotic, but in the context of cultural understanding of the characters. Its deeply part of their life and their experience and how they reacte to things.

It hurt to read this book, because of what happens to children in it. What the characters do to children. Also the protaganist is a tragic figure, as often happens with anyone in any story where he/she is allie/enemy to the gods.

There are highly inventive parts and texture to the story which, in OSC's latest works, seem to be absent. Creativity which is, possibly because he is not having to prove himself anymore. Books like "Hidden Empire" do have some texture to them, but did not seem to have a great deal. Entertaining, but not encompassing like "Enchantment", "Ender's Game", "Xenocide", "Treason." I hope that Mr. Card will delve into something very deeply soon, more deeply then he has done in a number of years, it seems. You know, I do think he has a great deal on his plate, and he still has children at home, which he mentioned in his Uncle Orson Reviews Everything articles, he wants to focus on. So maybe there is greatness yet to come. I know he can go even more deeply and I can't wait to read it. His "Ender in Exile" was very good, but still there is more there. Oh, and Bean's story (which encompasses the Shadow books) was very good, though the middle books seemed to wain a little.

[Christopher Rush · Rating 4 out of 5]

This one is ... something else. It was my first OSC novel many years ago, I once got him to autograph it, so I won't be giving it up anytime soon, but now on finally re-reading it as a grown-up, I clearly did not understand most of this book during my first reading all those years ago. George RR Martin and Westeros can only dream of being this dark and gritty, and I mean that sincerely. Mr. Card wrote in his inscription on my copy something to the effect of this is a story of "sweetness and light," and while I can sort of see what he's saying, I'm not fully convinced just yet. There's a whole lot of anger and darkness with just a skosh of sweetness and light. Now, the sweetness and light are sincere and deeply felt, indeed, but there's a lot of really terribly things to be waded through before it, and when the s+l are gone, man, they're gone hard and fast and forever.

You don't need me to talk about the plot and characters and all that here. You've likely read it by now yourself, or you're going to, so you don't need a total narrative break down. What struck me upon re-reading it again twenty-plus years later, aside from the realization this is a book for grown ups not children, is the many layers and frames, narration-wise, especially at the beginning. It all comes together fine by the end, but it takes a fair amount of time for this story to get going. It definitely shows Mr. Card's youth and inexperience as an author, which is not meant as a criticism, just a chronological marker. This can only be written by young authors who don't know better, or are just, well, not "angry," I suppose, just wild and "come at me, bro" as the kids say.

Seriously, if you think Game of Thrones is "serious" and "mature" and "dark," Hart's Hope makes that look like a Disney tale (during the mid '80s, Return to Oz, Mr. Boogedy era of Disney, I mean).

[J. Wootton · Rating 3 out of 5]

Relentlessly gruesome and grotesque and most definitely X-rated, which are not flavors I knew Card trafficked in. The plot turns upon and wallows in hideous magick, the sort aggressively purged in every actual place any real person has dared experiment with its practice... and with well-justified reason, since assault and murder are its ingredients. The sort that gives all magic its bad name.

Yet Hart's Hope is a genuinely well-made fantasy, mythic and fateful, a curious tale about the nature of goodness and politics in a cruel world full of wonders. I cannot in good conscience recommend it; indeed, had the paperback blurb included the content warning it probably ought to have had, I wouldn't have brought this book home. Yet I admire it all the same.

[Greg · Rating 1 out of 5]

I didn't like this book. I tried to like it, but couldn't. Getting to know the characters was difficult, and then names started to change. I couldn't align with any of the characters. It was like a story of dark vs dark, evil vs evil. Nobody to cheer for. It was too erotic for my taste as well. Just not a good read in my opinion.

[Jenny Clark · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a little strange for Orson Scott Card, but interesting all the same. Some parts were a little hard to read in all honosty. There did not need to be that much detail about bodily function and child bride. It is set in a different world and the past, however, so I can overlook it to an extent.
That ending though.... What a way to leave it open.

[Jeff · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good Card classic. Intricate, well thought out plot with strong well developed characters. A little graphic for my tastes...but hey.

[Whitney · Rating 2 out of 5]

My husband has been wanting me to read this for years. I went into it not knowing a thing about it, and all I can say is, what the heck did I just read? I still don't know the point of the book, it was very dark which I don't necessarily mind if it lifts at some point with some sort of redemption, but no. I feel like it's supposed to be a cautionary tale, but of what I just don't know. It didn't make a lot of sense, it didn't have a point, and it was filled with a lot of ickiness.

[Andres · Rating 3 out of 5]

Es una buena historia, clásica en su forma. Llena de momentos interesantes.
No logré enganchar con la segunda mitad, me hubiera quedado con el principio solamente.
Pero, en resumen, es un libro de fantasía que no hay que despreciar aunque Scott Card creo tiene libros más memorables (como Maestro Cantor).

[Brandi Johnson · Rating 2 out of 5]

I made the mistake of mentioning to Brian that I might be a fantasy fan after all, and he insisted I read his favorite fantasy novel. Friends, this one wasn’t at all for me. I disliked all of the characters and found the plot to be flat & boring. The magic wasn’t “magical” for lack of a better term, at least not for me. I won’t give up on the genre entirely, though I do think I need a break for a bit.

[Danielle Camorlinga]

DNF

[Boris Morales Rios · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aunque por unos pocos momentos se torna un tanto grotesca, me encanto el tono casi bíblico que tiene y también el tremendo estilo narrativo

[Austin M · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wonderful world building, and how the scenes are painted build beautiful, if not sometimes dark and gruesome, imagery of the world Card has crafted.

[Austen Miller Aceituna · Rating 4 out of 5]

I don't write reviews, but this book is being done a complete injustice by the other reviews here. Including most of the positive ones.

Hart's Hope is not Fantasy. It seems to draw little inspiration from the modern genre and really pulls from pre-Disney pre-Grimm myths and fairy-tales. If you're familiar with the original versions of those myths, then you know that this is why there are so many awful things portrayed in this book. It dares to be something almost unheard of in modern fantasy: a tragedy. This book has more in common with Shakespeare and I Have no Mouth and I Must Scream than with Lord of the Rings.

Yes there is rape, murder, torture, cannibalism, and blood sacrifice (I saw one reviewer claim incest, but I didn't see it). I see comparisons to Game of Thrones which I don't think are very accurate, except in terms of gratuity. Hart's Hope isn't interested in political drama.

From some of Card's largely Mormon following I see complaints of being anti-religion and the "killing God" scene. These same complaints were made about the Golden Compass series and missed the point of freeing God from human constraint in those books as much as they miss the point here. I see as well "This doesn't have wholesome with themes of family like his other books." There's definitely themes of family here (Orem's genuine love for his relationships), but as a tragedy, this can't be about a family succeeding and coming together. As for his other "wholesome" books, I guess I must have imagined that part in Ender's Game where a child soldier is tricked into committing the worst war crime in history and the accidental incest plus aliens graphically dissecting humans in Speaker. Okay, Hart's Hope is actually darker than that, but pretending Card's books are "light" is willful blindness.

So why should you read this? You probably shouldn't if you want something like Card's other books. If his name weren't on the cover, I wouldn't have known it was him. The pacing is bad, the action is meh, and all but a few of the characters are cardboard. In a certain sense this is not a "good book". You can tell it was written in the early career of someone brilliant, but inexperienced. But it is good literature. 

There is something moving about the fate of Orem and Hart's Hope. Every page is full of symbolism and metaphor. The characters are cardboard because they are deeply archetypal, but in a deeper way that's difficult to describe. The magic is something I especially liked. If you're not used to "soft magic", then you're going to have a hard (but interesting) time. The magic is all very ritualistic, symbolic, gendered, sacrifice based, and never well explained. It's all powered by blood which is where a lot of the goriest things in the plot come from, but that is what magic and religion were to ancient people for a very long time. It does a wonderful job of reinforcing the "mythical" feeling. The three gods (the Hart (stag), Sweet Sisters, and God (the father)) help that theme too.

But being a fairy-tale does not mean generic moralizing. Like I said, Hart's Hope is a tragedy and Card is not interested in black and white. There is an "evil queen" and "good king", but both engender large amounts of sympathy and disgust. None of the characters are missing a horrific fault of some kind, but that's life.

I wish I could have liked this book more. You have to pay attention to understand everything that it throws at you. To be frank half of it went over my head and I'll have to reread it at some point to truly understand it. The challenge is part of the charm, but there are parts that it felt like the obscurity was getting in the way. That and the relatively weak middle are why I can't give five stars.

Tl;dr If you want something dark, tragic, artistic, and challenging which you'll hate while you love, then this is your book. If instead you want something more standard try Ender's Game, Speaker, the Homecoming series, or pretty much anything else because all Card's other books are at least good if not great.

[Leah Baker · Rating 4 out of 5]

Orson Scott Card’s book “Enchantment” is one of my favorite novels, so I had been searching for another fantasy novel of his when I discovered “Hart’s Hope.” I was not displeased! Meandering at times, but tied together quite beautifully at its close, “Hart’s Hope” weaves its own entirely new, yet nostalgic folktale. I may even have enjoyed it more than “Enchantment” because it forsakes the modern world entirely and lives within the borders of the world Orson Scott Card created. It takes a few chapters to learn the rules of his world, and to figure out who truly is our protagonist, but once the story clicks in place it’s compelling and intriguing. If you love world-building, you’ll enjoy that this story takes you all over the landscape of this magical city and it’s mysterious corners. One drawback for me was that this story got quite gory, but others with stronger stomachs than I would probably not think so. Also, after closing the book, I realized how much more I wanted to understand King Palicroval in the story than what the reader was given. All in all, I grew to love all the characters and understand their motivations, even if their intentions were evil. Since I struggle to find one-off fantasy books that aren’t part of a series, I gave this book a chance and it paid off! Would recommend to fantasy lovers and fans of Orson Scott Card’s writing.

[Suz · Rating 2 out of 5]

I feel very mixed about this book.

I liked some of the magic and a lot of the religious aspects of the book (the religions/worship that were present in the book, not that the book is preachy), but overall, a lot of the book felt a little over the top.

This is a very early foray for Card into fantasy, and it does feel like it. He has definitely refined his fantasy writing since this time. It's not a total waste, but I feel like a lot of potential was lost.