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Tales of Alvin Maker #5
Heartfire
Peggy is a Torch, able to see the fire burning in each person's heart. From the moment of Alvin Maker's birth, when the Unmaker first strove to kill him, she has protected him. Now they are married. But Alvin's destiny has taken them on separate journeys. But only one slender path exists that leads through the bloodshed, and it is Peggy's quest to set the world on that path to peace.
336 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 1998
67 people are currently reading
3222 people want to read
About the author
Orson Scott Card
891 books20.6k followersOrson 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.
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.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 262 reviews
June 4, 2020
I don’t know how to rate this book. On one hand, I had to keep reading to see what happens, so I know the sequence of events. But, on the other hand, I felt like I was seeing and not understanding. If this is the religious allegory that it seems to be, I'm finding it very slippery to hang onto.
This volume makes the comparison of Calvin and Alvin to Cain and Abel explicit. So there's that. But then we have Alvin wandering the countryside, doing his miraculous Maker things and being persecuted by the law in a very Christ-like way. Even Purity, who causes so much trouble in the book, recognizes the men that he is travelling with as disciples. Card's world seems to have two evil doers, the Unmaker and Satan. Most of the time, Calvin seems to be allied with them, playing Judas maybe? Everybody seems to get multiple Biblical identities.
Just like Philip Jose Farmer's use of Mark Twain in the Riverworld books, which made me cringe, I found myself feeling sorry for the historical figures that Card incorporates into the narrative. John James Audubon and Honore de Balzac must be rolling in their graves. John Quincy Adams might be uneasy too.
Then there's the whole Black slavery issue, which has particular relevancy in these days of protest and the Black Lives Matter movement. Add to this the whole question, during the witch trial, of the nature of law versus justice. There are an awful lot of irons in this fire and I'm sure I don't know how the author intends to wrap it up. And that, I guess, is an admission that I will read the next installment.
Book number 370 of my Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project.
This volume makes the comparison of Calvin and Alvin to Cain and Abel explicit. So there's that. But then we have Alvin wandering the countryside, doing his miraculous Maker things and being persecuted by the law in a very Christ-like way. Even Purity, who causes so much trouble in the book, recognizes the men that he is travelling with as disciples. Card's world seems to have two evil doers, the Unmaker and Satan. Most of the time, Calvin seems to be allied with them, playing Judas maybe? Everybody seems to get multiple Biblical identities.
Just like Philip Jose Farmer's use of Mark Twain in the Riverworld books, which made me cringe, I found myself feeling sorry for the historical figures that Card incorporates into the narrative. John James Audubon and Honore de Balzac must be rolling in their graves. John Quincy Adams might be uneasy too.
Then there's the whole Black slavery issue, which has particular relevancy in these days of protest and the Black Lives Matter movement. Add to this the whole question, during the witch trial, of the nature of law versus justice. There are an awful lot of irons in this fire and I'm sure I don't know how the author intends to wrap it up. And that, I guess, is an admission that I will read the next installment.
Book number 370 of my Science Fiction & Fantasy Reading Project.
May 30, 2010
This fifth volume of the series finds Alvin and Peggy now married, and expecting the birth of their first child, but separated for much of the book by separate missions far apart geographically. His continuing quest for understanding of how to build the "Crystal City" of his vision will take him and his small group of companions to New England, to observe a model human community founded on solidly moral and religious principles. But this is a New England where the Puritan theocracy never fell, and which still hangs "witches" --including anybody who has any visible supernatural knack. Meanwhile, Peggy still hopes to emancipate the slaves AND prevent the looming bloody war over slavery that all the possible threads of the futures she foresees tell her is impending. That will take her on a journey to Camelot (known in our world as Charleston, SC) to seek an audience with the King-in-exile, a mission as dangerous in its own way as Alvin's. And in the background (and sometimes the foreground) is always the wild card posed by Alvin's jealous younger brother Calvin, possessed of significant but untrained powers as a Maker himself, but capricious, vain and lacking in morals and maturity.
A lot of the trademark strengths of this series are evident here, including Card's strong storytelling skills, sometimes singing prose, and attention to ethical and psychological verities. The latter underlies his outstanding characterizations, both of his wholly fictional characters --new ones here include the slave girl Fishy, the confused and conflicted Purity, and the malevolent witch hunter Micah Quill (whom you want to reach into the page and strangle)-- and the ones who are counterparts of real people in our world, with the same personalities but their situations changed by the changed circumstances here, including Honore de Balzac, John James Audubon, Denmark Vesey, and an aged John Adams. (Readers should remember that this is a version of history in which Adams and Jefferson didn't reconcile in old age; so the jaundiced view of Jefferson that Adams expresses, and the ideas he attributes to him, don't necessarily reflect Card's own view.) And a strong point of his characterizations is the recognition of the mixture of good and bad, saint and sinner, that can live in us all. "There's no one who doesn't have memories he wishes he didn't have," Peggy says at one point. "And there are crimes that arise from --from decent desires gone wrong, from justified passions carried too far. Crimes that began only as mistakes. I've learned never to judge people. Of course I judge whether they're dangerous or not, or whether they did right or wrong, how can anyone live without judging? What I mean is, I can't condemn them. A few, yes, a few who love the suffering of others, or who never think of others at all, worthless souls who exist only to satisfy themselves. But those are rare. Do you even know what I'm talking about?" (I think I can answer that with an affirmative, from my own observations of life!)
This time, though, I didn't give the book the five stars I gave the preceding series volumes. That's only because I felt Card dropped the ball by not paying attention to some significant details, both in his world-building and his chronology. The previous book was explicitly clear that Appalachee had been admitted to the U.S. as a slave state (in fact, Jackson, who was from there, became President in that book). But at the outset here, we're told that the question of Appalachee's admission to the U.S., and the continuation of slavery there, are still moot points (and a serious bone of contention between the U.S. and the Crown Colonies). For a reader who takes the details of the alternate world seriously, and regards Card's attention to alternate history as a strength of the series and a key part of its appeal, that kind of sloppy mistake is a defect of craftsmanship that bulks large --and should, because I think readers should demand attention to detail from writers! Also, in the earlier part of the book, Card appears to forget that given the chronology here, Arthur Stuart is only twelve years old --his voice wouldn't be changing at that age nor, probably, would he have been interested in girls (kids in that era weren't fed on hormone- drenched meat, and didn't suffer from precocious puberty as a result). But those flaws didn't keep me from really liking the book!
A major interpretive issue with this series is the role Card's Mormon beliefs play into it, and to what extent Alvin is a clone of our world's Joseph Smith (not, IMO, a very big extent, though a comparison exists). The only indication of a direct influence of Mormon theology so far in the series appears in one place here, where Alvin reflects to the effect that God, having made the world, wanted the people in it to "be Makers with Him." (Alvin's magical knack involves considerable power to re-shape matter at the molecular level by "looking" into it and willing the small particles to line up the way he wants, but Card posits that people in general may have some talents along this line and can learn to exercise them by training and practice.) This line can be interpreted as a reference to the Mormon idea of salvation as (for men) eventual deification --and given Card's Mormonism, it's not improbable that he sees it that way. But it's one line in a 336-page book --and it can be interpreted (if you want to apply D. H. Lawrence's "trust the tale and not the teller" adage :-)) in a less extreme way. (From an evangelical perspective, there is a very real sense in which God does want us --and even equips us-- to be "makers" with him: he gives us talent, creativity and imagination that involves bringing into being a great many products of human craftsmanship, inventiveness and hard work that wouldn't exist without us, and that we can take satisfaction in.)
A lot of the trademark strengths of this series are evident here, including Card's strong storytelling skills, sometimes singing prose, and attention to ethical and psychological verities. The latter underlies his outstanding characterizations, both of his wholly fictional characters --new ones here include the slave girl Fishy, the confused and conflicted Purity, and the malevolent witch hunter Micah Quill (whom you want to reach into the page and strangle)-- and the ones who are counterparts of real people in our world, with the same personalities but their situations changed by the changed circumstances here, including Honore de Balzac, John James Audubon, Denmark Vesey, and an aged John Adams. (Readers should remember that this is a version of history in which Adams and Jefferson didn't reconcile in old age; so the jaundiced view of Jefferson that Adams expresses, and the ideas he attributes to him, don't necessarily reflect Card's own view.) And a strong point of his characterizations is the recognition of the mixture of good and bad, saint and sinner, that can live in us all. "There's no one who doesn't have memories he wishes he didn't have," Peggy says at one point. "And there are crimes that arise from --from decent desires gone wrong, from justified passions carried too far. Crimes that began only as mistakes. I've learned never to judge people. Of course I judge whether they're dangerous or not, or whether they did right or wrong, how can anyone live without judging? What I mean is, I can't condemn them. A few, yes, a few who love the suffering of others, or who never think of others at all, worthless souls who exist only to satisfy themselves. But those are rare. Do you even know what I'm talking about?" (I think I can answer that with an affirmative, from my own observations of life!)
This time, though, I didn't give the book the five stars I gave the preceding series volumes. That's only because I felt Card dropped the ball by not paying attention to some significant details, both in his world-building and his chronology. The previous book was explicitly clear that Appalachee had been admitted to the U.S. as a slave state (in fact, Jackson, who was from there, became President in that book). But at the outset here, we're told that the question of Appalachee's admission to the U.S., and the continuation of slavery there, are still moot points (and a serious bone of contention between the U.S. and the Crown Colonies). For a reader who takes the details of the alternate world seriously, and regards Card's attention to alternate history as a strength of the series and a key part of its appeal, that kind of sloppy mistake is a defect of craftsmanship that bulks large --and should, because I think readers should demand attention to detail from writers! Also, in the earlier part of the book, Card appears to forget that given the chronology here, Arthur Stuart is only twelve years old --his voice wouldn't be changing at that age nor, probably, would he have been interested in girls (kids in that era weren't fed on hormone- drenched meat, and didn't suffer from precocious puberty as a result). But those flaws didn't keep me from really liking the book!
A major interpretive issue with this series is the role Card's Mormon beliefs play into it, and to what extent Alvin is a clone of our world's Joseph Smith (not, IMO, a very big extent, though a comparison exists). The only indication of a direct influence of Mormon theology so far in the series appears in one place here, where Alvin reflects to the effect that God, having made the world, wanted the people in it to "be Makers with Him." (Alvin's magical knack involves considerable power to re-shape matter at the molecular level by "looking" into it and willing the small particles to line up the way he wants, but Card posits that people in general may have some talents along this line and can learn to exercise them by training and practice.) This line can be interpreted as a reference to the Mormon idea of salvation as (for men) eventual deification --and given Card's Mormonism, it's not improbable that he sees it that way. But it's one line in a 336-page book --and it can be interpreted (if you want to apply D. H. Lawrence's "trust the tale and not the teller" adage :-)) in a less extreme way. (From an evangelical perspective, there is a very real sense in which God does want us --and even equips us-- to be "makers" with him: he gives us talent, creativity and imagination that involves bringing into being a great many products of human craftsmanship, inventiveness and hard work that wouldn't exist without us, and that we can take satisfaction in.)
May 20, 2016
Two stories in one, that end up coming together. On the one hand Alvin has formed a little gang with Mike, Verily and Arthur Stuart. Wandering around trying to work out how Alvin is going to build his Crystal City - or even what the Crystal City really is. In the process, Alvin gets accused of being a witch and Verily suddenly decides to take on the whole principle of witch trials and fight them through the courts.
The other story is of Peggy, now Alvin's wife, who is trying to get an audience with the exiled King in order to avert the coming war. Mixing her story up a little is the appearance of Calvin, Alvin's brother, who is still jealous of Alvin's powers. Add into this story a more detailed explanation of the magical powers of the black slaves and we now have three distinct magic systems - the knacks of the white people, the nature affinity of the native Americans and now the knots and dolls of the African slaves. Think useful functional magic for white folks, noble savage tree hugging for the red folks, and voodoo for the black folks and you won't be far off. Obviously, not a hint of any implied racism here...
Peggy and Calvin's story is arguably the more interesting here - although both stories feature way too much talking (therefore telling) rather than action and plot development (showing). As a whole it does feel bit too much like a filling story. An attempt to build a journey for Alvin rather than having him just rush off and build his city. And, Card does get a little bogged down in the side stories again. But, while they're fun and well told, we're still no closer to having a crystal city than we were all those books ago... Hopefully the final book - helpfully titled The Crystal City - will actually finish the story out.
The other story is of Peggy, now Alvin's wife, who is trying to get an audience with the exiled King in order to avert the coming war. Mixing her story up a little is the appearance of Calvin, Alvin's brother, who is still jealous of Alvin's powers. Add into this story a more detailed explanation of the magical powers of the black slaves and we now have three distinct magic systems - the knacks of the white people, the nature affinity of the native Americans and now the knots and dolls of the African slaves. Think useful functional magic for white folks, noble savage tree hugging for the red folks, and voodoo for the black folks and you won't be far off. Obviously, not a hint of any implied racism here...
Peggy and Calvin's story is arguably the more interesting here - although both stories feature way too much talking (therefore telling) rather than action and plot development (showing). As a whole it does feel bit too much like a filling story. An attempt to build a journey for Alvin rather than having him just rush off and build his city. And, Card does get a little bogged down in the side stories again. But, while they're fun and well told, we're still no closer to having a crystal city than we were all those books ago... Hopefully the final book - helpfully titled The Crystal City - will actually finish the story out.
February 21, 2019
10/10. Media de los 43 libros leídos del autor : 8/10
43 obras que me he leído de Card y media de 8/10. Tela. Creo que eso lo dice todo, y liarme a hacer alabanzas de este autor-y de esta novela- es superfluo. Además El juego de Ender fue la primera novela que leí suya y caí enamorado.
Le he puesto nada menos que 10/10 a siete de sus novelas y 9/10 a otras ocho. Casi merece más la pena decir cuales de esas 43 suspenden; solo hay dos: Ruinas (Pathfinder#2) y Esperanza del venado.
Además solo otras 5 se llevarían tres estrellas. El resto, 4 o 5.
Un crack,vamos.
Quinta entrega de la saga de Alvin Maker en su América alternativa (estilo años del Oeste). Y recuperamos el 10/10 tras 5 novelas, ahí es nada.
43 obras que me he leído de Card y media de 8/10. Tela. Creo que eso lo dice todo, y liarme a hacer alabanzas de este autor-y de esta novela- es superfluo. Además El juego de Ender fue la primera novela que leí suya y caí enamorado.
Le he puesto nada menos que 10/10 a siete de sus novelas y 9/10 a otras ocho. Casi merece más la pena decir cuales de esas 43 suspenden; solo hay dos: Ruinas (Pathfinder#2) y Esperanza del venado.
Además solo otras 5 se llevarían tres estrellas. El resto, 4 o 5.
Un crack,vamos.
Quinta entrega de la saga de Alvin Maker en su América alternativa (estilo años del Oeste). Y recuperamos el 10/10 tras 5 novelas, ahí es nada.
November 16, 2016
Storyline: 3/5
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 3/5
Almost every new volume in the series has been slightly worse than the previous though none have diminished enough to merit the designation of a bad book. I understand now that a big part of Card's plan with the series was to tour 19th century North America and show off his alternate history. There are probably inside jokes and intriguing contrasts being made with colonial towns, historical personages, and popular ideas. I'd count myself as having an above-average familiarity with early American history, but I clearly lack the historical depth to appreciate what Card is doing here. I end up, then, visiting places that I've heard of and encountering events of which I'm vaguely familiar, but none if it is striking. The writing too, is odd here. My wife was surreptitiously reading over my shoulder, and she remarked that the author didn't use adjectives. I hadn't noticed before, but she was right. Not that he completely forgoes them, but analogies, similes, and nouns aplenty saturate the novel but rare is there a description. Card is an old-hand at writing at this point, and he is careful never to violate the "show-not-tell" rule, but in doing so we are largely deprived of environmental context. Thus I rarely could tell you what a town, room, or someone's clothing looked like. Coupled with a slow story this made for a musty read when Card was hoping for something aromatic.
There's still some highlights here that series fans will enjoy. Card continues to work in excellent characters that are not only a study of the human condition but a look backward into history and the condition at that time. It is unfortunate the main characters take up so much room in the novels. Card isn't doing anything new with them anymore. Some of the minor characters were remarkable enough though that I wished they had been given major roles and more space in the tale. We also finally get a better understanding of the magical system in this book. The details are spread through the story, and, I think, might even contain some retroactive continuity changes, but the system is finally (though slowly) coming together. The whole Mormon allegory thing keeps getting weirder and weirder though. Obviously either I don't understand Mormonism or the point of the story. Still, I'd rather just enjoy it as a fantasy, and that was made more possible here than in some of the earlier books.
I'll read to the end of the series and be glad when it is finished.
Characters: 4/5
Writing Style: 3/5
World: 3/5
Almost every new volume in the series has been slightly worse than the previous though none have diminished enough to merit the designation of a bad book. I understand now that a big part of Card's plan with the series was to tour 19th century North America and show off his alternate history. There are probably inside jokes and intriguing contrasts being made with colonial towns, historical personages, and popular ideas. I'd count myself as having an above-average familiarity with early American history, but I clearly lack the historical depth to appreciate what Card is doing here. I end up, then, visiting places that I've heard of and encountering events of which I'm vaguely familiar, but none if it is striking. The writing too, is odd here. My wife was surreptitiously reading over my shoulder, and she remarked that the author didn't use adjectives. I hadn't noticed before, but she was right. Not that he completely forgoes them, but analogies, similes, and nouns aplenty saturate the novel but rare is there a description. Card is an old-hand at writing at this point, and he is careful never to violate the "show-not-tell" rule, but in doing so we are largely deprived of environmental context. Thus I rarely could tell you what a town, room, or someone's clothing looked like. Coupled with a slow story this made for a musty read when Card was hoping for something aromatic.
There's still some highlights here that series fans will enjoy. Card continues to work in excellent characters that are not only a study of the human condition but a look backward into history and the condition at that time. It is unfortunate the main characters take up so much room in the novels. Card isn't doing anything new with them anymore. Some of the minor characters were remarkable enough though that I wished they had been given major roles and more space in the tale. We also finally get a better understanding of the magical system in this book. The details are spread through the story, and, I think, might even contain some retroactive continuity changes, but the system is finally (though slowly) coming together. The whole Mormon allegory thing keeps getting weirder and weirder though. Obviously either I don't understand Mormonism or the point of the story. Still, I'd rather just enjoy it as a fantasy, and that was made more possible here than in some of the earlier books.
I'll read to the end of the series and be glad when it is finished.
September 9, 2018
Heartfire, the fifth book in Orson Scott Card's "Tales of Alvin Maker" series, is a travesty. Card has ruined this formerly interesting history of an alternate America and Mormon allegory. Heartfire kills the series that came before it like Children of the Mind destroyed the Ender Quartet and Earthborn wiped out the Homecoming novels.
At the end of Alvin Journeyman, Alvin and Peg Guester were wed and travelled to the home of the Weavers in Appalachee. The beginning of Heartfire sees them departed on separate journeys, Peg has gone to the Crown Colonies to find a way to stop the oncoming war over slavery, while Alvin is wandering around the Northeast and eventually finds himself on trial (again) for witchcraft in Puritan-controlled New England.
There is so much wrong with this novel. The plot is sloppily resolved, and indeed it could be said that Peg's half of the story isn't resolved at all but simply abandoned. Card wraps up Alvin's trial in a mere two pages as if he has grown tired of writing this installment. Calvin's redemption seems like it never progressed past the draft stage. In order to hide his shabby plot and silly characterization, Card stoops to a prurient sex scene where Calvin forces himself on a resisting-but-willing dame like something out of a romance novel (of course, that's what the awful cover art makes the book look like).
Alvin Maker is now essentially omnipotent, communicating telepathically with Peg across huge distances and able to run the entire length of the East Coast in a single night (funny how Card constantly talks about how the greensong is too weak now, but has Alvin perform such deeds). This makes Alvin considerably less interesting as a protagonist, as there are no surprises or suspense. Gene Wolfe, in his Book of the New Sun cycle, was wise enough to end the series after the apotheosis of his hero Severian. Card, however, is going to drag us through two more volumes with this unbelievable character.
Ironically, however, Alvin doesn't figure very much in his own series anymore. Most of the novel relates the thoughts of Peg, Calvin, and Verily Cooper. Alvin is reduced to an "aw, shucks" country boy cameo. There's absolutely no progress in this novel towards the building of the Crystal City.
I used to recommend The Tales of Alvin Maker, its first two volumes were very entertaining, but after Red Prophet it has become worse with every volume. I daresay I'd now recommend avoiding this series.
At the end of Alvin Journeyman, Alvin and Peg Guester were wed and travelled to the home of the Weavers in Appalachee. The beginning of Heartfire sees them departed on separate journeys, Peg has gone to the Crown Colonies to find a way to stop the oncoming war over slavery, while Alvin is wandering around the Northeast and eventually finds himself on trial (again) for witchcraft in Puritan-controlled New England.
There is so much wrong with this novel. The plot is sloppily resolved, and indeed it could be said that Peg's half of the story isn't resolved at all but simply abandoned. Card wraps up Alvin's trial in a mere two pages as if he has grown tired of writing this installment. Calvin's redemption seems like it never progressed past the draft stage. In order to hide his shabby plot and silly characterization, Card stoops to a prurient sex scene where Calvin forces himself on a resisting-but-willing dame like something out of a romance novel (of course, that's what the awful cover art makes the book look like).
Alvin Maker is now essentially omnipotent, communicating telepathically with Peg across huge distances and able to run the entire length of the East Coast in a single night (funny how Card constantly talks about how the greensong is too weak now, but has Alvin perform such deeds). This makes Alvin considerably less interesting as a protagonist, as there are no surprises or suspense. Gene Wolfe, in his Book of the New Sun cycle, was wise enough to end the series after the apotheosis of his hero Severian. Card, however, is going to drag us through two more volumes with this unbelievable character.
Ironically, however, Alvin doesn't figure very much in his own series anymore. Most of the novel relates the thoughts of Peg, Calvin, and Verily Cooper. Alvin is reduced to an "aw, shucks" country boy cameo. There's absolutely no progress in this novel towards the building of the Crystal City.
I used to recommend The Tales of Alvin Maker, its first two volumes were very entertaining, but after Red Prophet it has become worse with every volume. I daresay I'd now recommend avoiding this series.
February 28, 2018
I guess I shouldn't be surprised that Card's perspective on slavery ranges from facile righteousness to offensive caricature. what a guy.
Aaaand it's another courtroom drama. Can we get back to the part where a Messiah is on his hero's journey, please?
Aaaand it's another courtroom drama. Can we get back to the part where a Messiah is on his hero's journey, please?
August 16, 2020
Първата книга в тази поредица, която прочетох без особено желание, даже я бях зарязал за няколко месеца, преди да се насиля да я довърша.
Не бих казал, че е точно ЛОША, по-скоро разхвърляна и до голяма степен излишна. Алвин ОТНОВО е даден на съд за магьосничество, както и в предния том, което ме кара да се чудя толкова ли авторът не е успял да измисли нищо по-оригинално. Единственото, което ми хареса в тази сюжетна линия, бе ловецът на вещици с бесния му религиозен фанатизъм и гнусните му манипулации; получил се е силен коментар за мракобесието на религията, от който тръпки те побиват. Само дето за разлика от истинската история, в алтернативната вселена на Кард съдебният процес е справедлив, а съдията - високо морален (има си хас, щом в реалния свят е бил президент на САЩ). Ето защо вместо кървава саморазправа, получаваме ударна доза американски патос и възхвала на законността. И това в страната, в която не само в началото на 19-и век, но и чак до средата на 20-и линчуването е било нормален начин за уреждане на проблемите. Ха-ха-ха!
Другата сюжетна линия, тази на Калвин, започна скучно, но след средата на книгата набра скорост и стана доста увлекателна; най-после се изпълни желанието ми да науча повече за негърските магийки с появата на един крадец на души.
Най-голямото ми оплакване от тази книга обаче са героите. Алвин вече е непоносимо съвършен и всемогъщ, някаква шибана богоподобна фигура, но предполагам, това са рисковете, когато използваш като модел за главния си герой основателя на своята религия. Така или иначе, открих, че е престанало да ми пука и за него, и за съвършената му жена, и за съвършената им любов, и за страхотните им верни приятели, които благоговеят пред него без никаква шибана причина, освен че той е Алвин и е съвършен, и е всемогъщ! Драйфа ми се, ама честно.
В заключение - усещам, че тази поредица отива на зле. Признаци за това имаше още в предната книга, но се надявах, че авторът все пак ще намери верния път. Уви, това не стана и честно казано, очакванията ми за следващия (и последен засега) том са доста ниски.
Не бих казал, че е точно ЛОША, по-скоро разхвърляна и до голяма степен излишна. Алвин ОТНОВО е даден на съд за магьосничество, както и в предния том, което ме кара да се чудя толкова ли авторът не е успял да измисли нищо по-оригинално. Единственото, което ми хареса в тази сюжетна линия, бе ловецът на вещици с бесния му религиозен фанатизъм и гнусните му манипулации; получил се е силен коментар за мракобесието на религията, от който тръпки те побиват. Само дето за разлика от истинската история, в алтернативната вселена на Кард съдебният процес е справедлив, а съдията - високо морален (има си хас, щом в реалния свят е бил президент на САЩ). Ето защо вместо кървава саморазправа, получаваме ударна доза американски патос и възхвала на законността. И това в страната, в която не само в началото на 19-и век, но и чак до средата на 20-и линчуването е било нормален начин за уреждане на проблемите. Ха-ха-ха!
Другата сюжетна линия, тази на Калвин, започна скучно, но след средата на книгата набра скорост и стана доста увлекателна; най-после се изпълни желанието ми да науча повече за негърските магийки с появата на един крадец на души.
Най-голямото ми оплакване от тази книга обаче са героите. Алвин вече е непоносимо съвършен и всемогъщ, някаква шибана богоподобна фигура, но предполагам, това са рисковете, когато използваш като модел за главния си герой основателя на своята религия. Така или иначе, открих, че е престанало да ми пука и за него, и за съвършената му жена, и за съвършената им любов, и за страхотните им верни приятели, които благоговеят пред него без никаква шибана причина, освен че той е Алвин и е съвършен, и е всемогъщ! Драйфа ми се, ама честно.
В заключение - усещам, че тази поредица отива на зле. Признаци за това имаше още в предната книга, но се надявах, че авторът все пак ще намери верния път. Уви, това не стана и честно казано, очакванията ми за следващия (и последен засега) том са доста ниски.
April 24, 2022
By far the best of the series so far and fastest to read. Clear plot (for all story lines).
However, Alvin was more annoying than usual.
I usually hate when they make you despise a character and then start him on redemption, but Calvin didn't bother me as much. Maybe that was the idea: make Alvin annoying to make you like Calvin more.
However, Alvin was more annoying than usual.
I usually hate when they make you despise a character and then start him on redemption, but Calvin didn't bother me as much. Maybe that was the idea: make Alvin annoying to make you like Calvin more.
December 27, 2024
Alvin Maker continues his saga. One thing Orson scott Card has in his books is a lot of talking and very little action. I think the conversations he writes are good enough that he is able to get away with it.
March 27, 2020
I enjoyed this installment of the Alvin Maker series. I really enjoy how the author incorporates many historical figures/events in this story.
September 12, 2020
I enjoyed this and am so ready to read the last book!
January 19, 2020
Of all the Alvin Books thus far, this one is my least favorite. I'll not spoil the end with details except to say that OSC has built up a certain amount of plot and then just solves every problem as if he intended to write a book twice as long but had a next day deadline. This series suffers from emotional coddling of the reader, never did I ever "Really" feel nervous about the outcome of any plot line. Almost every plot resolution in this series can be summed up in two words, "Because Superpowers."
I will affirm that OSC writes well, it inspires hope and a willingness to read these books, but the plot and the quick-fixing seem immature and amateurish to me. As in my review of book one, I like the questions that arise in the books, the whole concept of Witch trials and New England Puritanism is fun to look at. However, after provoking my interest, I believed (and felt like I was promised) that I would read profound thought and arguments on the matter. It seemed though, that once the complexity reached a need for thorough thought that OSC simply pulled the ripcord.
Finally, the cohesive nature of the five books is growing tedious. The series keeps talking about a goal to build a Crystal City but now I fear the lasting goal of the series is going to suffer the same fate as each individual novel. I fear that it is going to be a 10 page quick fix that sums up with, "Now I get it," and then the words "He built the city and they lived happily ever after." Book 6 is the last published in the series and I will read that next, but honestly it is simply to honor the time I spent in the series rather than any real interest in the plot.
I will affirm that OSC writes well, it inspires hope and a willingness to read these books, but the plot and the quick-fixing seem immature and amateurish to me. As in my review of book one, I like the questions that arise in the books, the whole concept of Witch trials and New England Puritanism is fun to look at. However, after provoking my interest, I believed (and felt like I was promised) that I would read profound thought and arguments on the matter. It seemed though, that once the complexity reached a need for thorough thought that OSC simply pulled the ripcord.
Finally, the cohesive nature of the five books is growing tedious. The series keeps talking about a goal to build a Crystal City but now I fear the lasting goal of the series is going to suffer the same fate as each individual novel. I fear that it is going to be a 10 page quick fix that sums up with, "Now I get it," and then the words "He built the city and they lived happily ever after." Book 6 is the last published in the series and I will read that next, but honestly it is simply to honor the time I spent in the series rather than any real interest in the plot.
September 8, 2015
Quotes:
Government is like watching another man piss in your boot. Someone feels better but it certainly isn’t you.
Cupid shoots his arrows where they’ll cause the most mischief.
Virtue is what you treasure until you feel desire, and then it becomes an intolerable burden to be cast away, and only to be picked up again when the desire fades.
But that was the way of the world – seducers and rapist rarely bore the consequences of their acts, or at least not as heavily as the seduced and the broken-spirited.
The seeds of all sins were in all people. If it were not so, how would it be virtue when they refrained from acting on those impulses?
There’s no one who doesn’t have memories he wishes he didn’t have. And there are crimes that arise from decent desires gone wrong, from justified passions carried too far. Crimes that began only as mistakes. I’ve learned never to judge people. Of course I judge whether they’re dangerous or not, or whether they did right or wrong, how can anyone live without judging? What I mean is, I can’t condemn them. A few, yes, a few who love the suffering of others, or who never think of others at all, worthless souls that exist only to satisfy themselves. But those are rare.
Well, don’t count on gratitude. It’s the most fleeting of all human virtues.
March 11, 2016
By the fifth book in Orson Scott Card's Tales of Alvin Maker series, Heartfire, there's little chance that this entry will change many opinions about the series. For those with a continued interest in reading about Alvin's quest to become a Maker and build the Crystal City, this will certainly continue that story.
I'm leaning towards the opinion that this series was complete, and better, as a trilogy. Still, the series stands as something which shows the unique voice of the author, and is possibly one of the more accessible alternate-history series out there (though the heavy dose of fantasy may not win over so many fans from the lovers of alternate-history novels). While Ender's Game was the book which brought Card to my attention, this series may very well be the one which I always think of as uniquely his.
I'm leaning towards the opinion that this series was complete, and better, as a trilogy. Still, the series stands as something which shows the unique voice of the author, and is possibly one of the more accessible alternate-history series out there (though the heavy dose of fantasy may not win over so many fans from the lovers of alternate-history novels). While Ender's Game was the book which brought Card to my attention, this series may very well be the one which I always think of as uniquely his.
January 1, 2013
Note: I won't be finishing this series, given the author's homophobic stance - I'm not going to fill his pockets. But these were my thoughts on the book before I knew how horrible a man the author was:
Though not quite as up to snuff as the other books in the Alvin Maker series to date, this one wins praise for paying as much attention to Verily Cooper and Peggy the Torch as it does to Alvin and Calvin themselves.
Peggy is taking on slavery, trying to use her gift to see the possible futures of people to arrange a war-free way to end slavery, while Verily is tackling witchcraft laws, trying to find a public trial that will let him set a precedant likely to stop witch hunts forever.
Enjoyable banter starts to fill this book (especially that of Verily Cooper), and Margaret's journey among the slaves is just solidly written.
Best Line: "He was aquitted of all charges," said Verily, "Proving that I'm a clever lawyer." / "Proving I was innocent," said Alvin. "An advantage I don't have this time."
Though not quite as up to snuff as the other books in the Alvin Maker series to date, this one wins praise for paying as much attention to Verily Cooper and Peggy the Torch as it does to Alvin and Calvin themselves.
Peggy is taking on slavery, trying to use her gift to see the possible futures of people to arrange a war-free way to end slavery, while Verily is tackling witchcraft laws, trying to find a public trial that will let him set a precedant likely to stop witch hunts forever.
Enjoyable banter starts to fill this book (especially that of Verily Cooper), and Margaret's journey among the slaves is just solidly written.
Best Line: "He was aquitted of all charges," said Verily, "Proving that I'm a clever lawyer." / "Proving I was innocent," said Alvin. "An advantage I don't have this time."
July 20, 2013
Most of my reviews lately have been in the "more of the same" spirit, and this one will have to follow suit. If you liked the previous Alvin books, you'll like this one too. If you didn't, this one won't offer you new reasons to change your mind. I liked it better than the Journeyman, and that's probably because the plot is finally starting to (slowly) pick up: Arthur Stuart is no longer defined solely by his fanboyism, Verily Cooper gets fleshed out a little bit more, the plot around Alvin and Calvin sees some development, and we get to see some heavy duty lawyer on lawyer action! Oh, and the Crystal City gets mentioned.
Regarding the rating, I couldn't decide between 3 or 4 stars for this book - but it *was* better than the previous one in the series, to which I gave 3/5, so I thought 4/5 would be alright for this one. 7/10 is really what I would give it.
Regarding the rating, I couldn't decide between 3 or 4 stars for this book - but it *was* better than the previous one in the series, to which I gave 3/5, so I thought 4/5 would be alright for this one. 7/10 is really what I would give it.
November 5, 2012
This series is starting to get a bit disappointing. In Heartfire, Calvin didn't quite make the waves that I hoped he would. Instead, Card produced another average book in the series that from start to finish makes little progress in the overall conflict. And the overall conflict seems mediocre at this point as well - the conflict is simply how Alvin will build the Crystal City someday. I understand that Card meant to write an American epic poem or something and that perhaps he succeeded. However, the flow of the story isn't much my style. I still plan to finish out the story, but I don't expect any surprises in the final two books. And at this point, I don't even expect the final book to ever be published...
July 27, 2009
Rampant Jordan-ism. If there's a spot on his map, he has to set part of his story there--populated with new characters and challenges--even if it has next to nothing to do with the main story.
It ought to be rated a two, or maybe even one one, except that Card is such an extraordinary storyteller.
Just read and enjoy.
It ought to be rated a two, or maybe even one one, except that Card is such an extraordinary storyteller.
Just read and enjoy.
March 11, 2014
I really enjoyed this book. Alvin is really coming into his own as a maker, even though he doesn't yet call himself one :)
Calvin is more and more trouble, but I still have a bit of faith on the kid coming around. Who knows right? :)
I loved the part with the slaves. Incredibly interesting idea, and also, the part about witchcraft was great. I really like Verily Cooper :D
Calvin is more and more trouble, but I still have a bit of faith on the kid coming around. Who knows right? :)
I loved the part with the slaves. Incredibly interesting idea, and also, the part about witchcraft was great. I really like Verily Cooper :D
January 18, 2016
Not as good as the previous books in the series, but necessary to keep the story going without skipping too much time.
July 9, 2016
I found that these Alvin stories are really good at taking up moral dilemmas of early America and show then for what they where. The story telling is quite good as well.
January 4, 2020
It’s been a while since I read this far into a series, and I can start to see why I like trilogies and stand-alone books. If I didn’t know any better, I’d think this series had evolved into a courtroom drama instead of a historical fantasy. At this point, the whole premise of this series seems to have veered off course and has lost its focus to tackle unrelated issues that were somewhat prominent at the time. Or, at least it’s merely acting as a chance to name drop historical figures and take the side of history against well-known issues that haven’t aged well over time.
If anything, Heartfire could have easily been the fourth book in the series, since Alvin Journeyman added nothing to the story. Even so, Heartfire didn’t feel as strong as earlier books in the series. It almost seems like there’s more of a focus on world-building. There is less focus on actually progressing the story—like the path toward the Crystal City. Certain plot elements were almost entirely forgotten as well, even if there was a whole legal battle in the last book to re-hash how Alvin came into possession of a sentient golden plow (which itself is still unclear why it’s important).
By now, I’m merely reading the series on autopilot just to see if there is any conclusion to the alternate history presented here. I still think there are clever takes on historical figures, but by now, they seem added in as a heavy winking nod to the reader, most of whom will already know the referenced individual. Perhaps the lack of overall character growth in this book is what made it such a so-so read for me. Sure, there were baby steps toward some redemption arc, but in the end, nothing ended up changing the drive of the overarching story.
Another weak link in the Alvin Journeyman series, I give Heartfire 3.0 stars out of 5.
For more reviews of books and movies like this, please visit www.benjamin-m-weilert.com
If anything, Heartfire could have easily been the fourth book in the series, since Alvin Journeyman added nothing to the story. Even so, Heartfire didn’t feel as strong as earlier books in the series. It almost seems like there’s more of a focus on world-building. There is less focus on actually progressing the story—like the path toward the Crystal City. Certain plot elements were almost entirely forgotten as well, even if there was a whole legal battle in the last book to re-hash how Alvin came into possession of a sentient golden plow (which itself is still unclear why it’s important).
By now, I’m merely reading the series on autopilot just to see if there is any conclusion to the alternate history presented here. I still think there are clever takes on historical figures, but by now, they seem added in as a heavy winking nod to the reader, most of whom will already know the referenced individual. Perhaps the lack of overall character growth in this book is what made it such a so-so read for me. Sure, there were baby steps toward some redemption arc, but in the end, nothing ended up changing the drive of the overarching story.
Another weak link in the Alvin Journeyman series, I give Heartfire 3.0 stars out of 5.
For more reviews of books and movies like this, please visit www.benjamin-m-weilert.com
November 12, 2017
Heartfire is the kind of Orson Scott Card book I wish I could like. It's got tons of vintage Card touches that he pulls off well. There's the new character of Purity, a New Englander who should remind Xenocide fans (yes, there are some, and I'm one of them) of Gloriously Bright. There's the disquieting scene where an unscrupulous Maker-- a magician, essentially-- seduces (rapes, really) a stranger by altering her hormones and brain chemistry. And there's the best alternate-history cameo yet in the Alvin Maker series: John Adams as a crotchety old judge with an axe to grind. In these and other moments I felt like Card was up to the relentless, innovative, challenging standard of the first few books of the series. Unfortunately, most of the way through the book I didn't have the same feeling.
Really, the problem with the series since Alvin Journeyman can be summed up in terms of Alvin's power. As a trained Maker he has the ability to do essentially anything, but he spends most of books 4 and 5 doing practically nothing, and there are no serious conflicts to challenge him. His adventures in Philadelphia and New England are noticeably lacking in excitement and originality. The plot in Charleston-- featuring Alvin's second-sighted wife Peggy and good-for-nothing brother Calvin-- is much more interesting for not having Alvin around and delivers most of the book's strong moments, but it gets bogged down in a story of slave revolt that Card doesn't make especially believable or relatable. Overall, the plot just doesn't manage to come together in either location.
Having read book 6, The Crystal City, I see Heartfire's failures in an especially harsh light-- not because The Crystal City is significantly better (stay tuned), but because it resumes the main theme of Alvin's quest with barely any mention of Heartfire's plot points. For all that it matters to the main arc of characters and plot, Heartfire might as well not have happened. If you're invested in the series by this point, you'll probably want to read it anyway, and you probably won't mind-- like I said, Card is still doing good stuff. But my appetite for this kind of Card book is starting to decrease.
Really, the problem with the series since Alvin Journeyman can be summed up in terms of Alvin's power. As a trained Maker he has the ability to do essentially anything, but he spends most of books 4 and 5 doing practically nothing, and there are no serious conflicts to challenge him. His adventures in Philadelphia and New England are noticeably lacking in excitement and originality. The plot in Charleston-- featuring Alvin's second-sighted wife Peggy and good-for-nothing brother Calvin-- is much more interesting for not having Alvin around and delivers most of the book's strong moments, but it gets bogged down in a story of slave revolt that Card doesn't make especially believable or relatable. Overall, the plot just doesn't manage to come together in either location.
Having read book 6, The Crystal City, I see Heartfire's failures in an especially harsh light-- not because The Crystal City is significantly better (stay tuned), but because it resumes the main theme of Alvin's quest with barely any mention of Heartfire's plot points. For all that it matters to the main arc of characters and plot, Heartfire might as well not have happened. If you're invested in the series by this point, you'll probably want to read it anyway, and you probably won't mind-- like I said, Card is still doing good stuff. But my appetite for this kind of Card book is starting to decrease.
August 25, 2019
La primera mitad del libro es levemente decepcionante, demasiado síndrome de comunidad del anillo. Lo que hace repuntar la historia es que cuando uno espera que se repita el tópico del viaje del héroe a la usanza de Tolkien, Card nos involucra en temas religiosos e históricos que por lo menos a mí me dejaron pensativo. Lo resumo con un diálogo que marqué porque es una realidad vigente.
"—Acabo de encontrar la prueba que necesito para demostrar que estás equivocado. A la gente no le gusta cómo funcionan los juicios de brujos. A la gente no le gusta la injusticia. Derriba esas leyes y nadie las echará de menos.
Alvin sacudió la cabeza.
—La buena gente no las echará de menos. Pero no fue la buena gente quien las creó en primer lugar. Fue la gente asustada. El mundo no es firme. Suceden cosas malas aunque hayas tenido cuidado y no has hecho ningún mal. La gente buena, la gente fuerte, lo acepta, pero si está asustada y es débil quiere echarle la culpa a alguien. La buena gente pensará que han acabado con los juicios de brujos, pero la siguiente generación pensará lo contrario y allá estaremos de nuevo, llevando un sombrero distinto, llamándolos por un nombre diferente, pero con juicios de brujos igualmente, en los que importará más hacer que castiguen a alguien que su culpabilidad.
—Entonces volveremos a atacar —dijo Verily.
Alvin se encogió de hombros.
—Claro que lo haremos, en cuanto sepamos qué es qué y quién es quién. Tal vez la próxima vez los cazadores de brujos vayan detrás de gente con opiniones que no les gusten, o gente que rece de otra forma o en el lugar distinto, o gente que sea fea o hable raro, o gente que no sea lo bastante amable o que lleve ropa extraña. Algún día puede que hagan juicios de brujos para condenar a la gente por ser puritana."
Da para mucho en tiempos en que un solo comentario en RRSS puede sepultar toda la vida de una persona incluso antes de que se piense en considerar acciones legales. Solo por este giro salvo el libro. Ahora dentro del contexto de la saga creo que es un paso atrás.
"—Acabo de encontrar la prueba que necesito para demostrar que estás equivocado. A la gente no le gusta cómo funcionan los juicios de brujos. A la gente no le gusta la injusticia. Derriba esas leyes y nadie las echará de menos.
Alvin sacudió la cabeza.
—La buena gente no las echará de menos. Pero no fue la buena gente quien las creó en primer lugar. Fue la gente asustada. El mundo no es firme. Suceden cosas malas aunque hayas tenido cuidado y no has hecho ningún mal. La gente buena, la gente fuerte, lo acepta, pero si está asustada y es débil quiere echarle la culpa a alguien. La buena gente pensará que han acabado con los juicios de brujos, pero la siguiente generación pensará lo contrario y allá estaremos de nuevo, llevando un sombrero distinto, llamándolos por un nombre diferente, pero con juicios de brujos igualmente, en los que importará más hacer que castiguen a alguien que su culpabilidad.
—Entonces volveremos a atacar —dijo Verily.
Alvin se encogió de hombros.
—Claro que lo haremos, en cuanto sepamos qué es qué y quién es quién. Tal vez la próxima vez los cazadores de brujos vayan detrás de gente con opiniones que no les gusten, o gente que rece de otra forma o en el lugar distinto, o gente que sea fea o hable raro, o gente que no sea lo bastante amable o que lleve ropa extraña. Algún día puede que hagan juicios de brujos para condenar a la gente por ser puritana."
Da para mucho en tiempos en que un solo comentario en RRSS puede sepultar toda la vida de una persona incluso antes de que se piense en considerar acciones legales. Solo por este giro salvo el libro. Ahora dentro del contexto de la saga creo que es un paso atrás.
July 19, 2022
Heartfire the fifth book in the Seventh Son series is a fun read, but it does has some downfalls. The book starts off with our companions on their quest to build the crystal city, but quickly get side tracked by a new character named Purity. To save you from spoilers, I will skate around details. This is where our first hitch in the road comes from.
As soon as we meet Purity, we know that the Crystal City will once again be put on the backburner and we are going to spend the entire book with her and her problems. On the other end of this story, is Alvin's wife, as she and Alvin's brother, Calvin, are running into problems of their own. If you have read other reviews of this book, a big complaint, is we are once again, finding our characters in court, rather than out in the wild.
When I read these complaints, I found myself dreading reading this book. However; I found myself excited for Alvin's chapters, and being bored of Margret's (Alvin's wife). That's not to say all of Margert's story is boring, quite the opposite. There are many twists and turns but it takes awhile to get to the action of her tale.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book. When the action gets going, you really get sucked into the story. Card does a great job of story telling in this fantasy America. However; there are lulls in the books which can sometimes make it feel like chore to get through.
Before I wrap this up, I wanted to leave this remark. Almost every negative review of this series is based off the comparison of the Mormon religion. Does Card borrow from their religion? Sure. Is it enough to ruin the series? Not even close to it. I think people just enjoy to bash others religion at any chance they get. Take the story at face value, and stop trying to find all the comparisons, and I promise you, you will love this series.
4 and a half stars out of 5.
As soon as we meet Purity, we know that the Crystal City will once again be put on the backburner and we are going to spend the entire book with her and her problems. On the other end of this story, is Alvin's wife, as she and Alvin's brother, Calvin, are running into problems of their own. If you have read other reviews of this book, a big complaint, is we are once again, finding our characters in court, rather than out in the wild.
When I read these complaints, I found myself dreading reading this book. However; I found myself excited for Alvin's chapters, and being bored of Margret's (Alvin's wife). That's not to say all of Margert's story is boring, quite the opposite. There are many twists and turns but it takes awhile to get to the action of her tale.
Overall, I really enjoyed the book. When the action gets going, you really get sucked into the story. Card does a great job of story telling in this fantasy America. However; there are lulls in the books which can sometimes make it feel like chore to get through.
Before I wrap this up, I wanted to leave this remark. Almost every negative review of this series is based off the comparison of the Mormon religion. Does Card borrow from their religion? Sure. Is it enough to ruin the series? Not even close to it. I think people just enjoy to bash others religion at any chance they get. Take the story at face value, and stop trying to find all the comparisons, and I promise you, you will love this series.
4 and a half stars out of 5.
May 28, 2023
While the quality of almost all series tends to dip by book 5, I do think the Alvin Maker books are mostly holding up, though this one is the part of the series I've like the least so far.
With the other books, I think there was a lot more of Alvin exploring the nature of magic in the Alvin Maker world, whereas this book (and to some extent the previous book) is more OSC exploring the different cultures that have grown up in this magical world. For some reason I liked that a lot when it was the Temeraire series, but I don't care that much about it here. Possibly it's the fact that he's not exploring widely enough. The puritanical New Englanders have banned witchcraft, so we get another book where Alvin lets himself sit around in jail most of the time. The slaves in one part of the South have used a specific kind of magic to help them endure their captivity, but that makes them basically non-agents, and we don't see them exploring the African style magic too much.
Calvin has started on something of a redemption arc, which is nice, but
3.5 of 5 stars
With the other books, I think there was a lot more of Alvin exploring the nature of magic in the Alvin Maker world, whereas this book (and to some extent the previous book) is more OSC exploring the different cultures that have grown up in this magical world. For some reason I liked that a lot when it was the Temeraire series, but I don't care that much about it here. Possibly it's the fact that he's not exploring widely enough. The puritanical New Englanders have banned witchcraft, so we get another book where Alvin lets himself sit around in jail most of the time. The slaves in one part of the South have used a specific kind of magic to help them endure their captivity, but that makes them basically non-agents, and we don't see them exploring the African style magic too much.
Calvin has started on something of a redemption arc, which is nice, but
3.5 of 5 stars
February 20, 2023
I love the Alvin Maker series. I think it is especially rich in many ways – good characters, excellent plotting that effectively complicate our expectations, rich themes, all the good stuff. Card is especially good at thinking about his characters and what they want so that they generate the plot rather than the plot dragging the characters along. The stories feel natural and exciting.
However, this is the weakest in the series so far. There are a few things that I think cause this to happen.
To Card’s credit, this book only has two plot lines. Many fantasy series on their fifth volume will have eight or nine threads going simultaneously and will dedicate a portion of a volume to each of those threads. And it’s impressive how much Card can get out of just a few hundred pages, rather than needing close to a thousand.
And yet, I felt that one of these threads (the one with Margaret and Calvin in the Crown Colonies) was extremely frustrating. Last time I read the series I really enjoyed Calvin’s banter with Balzac, but this time it just annoyed me. I feel like Card didn’t go deep enough into Calvin to really convince me that he’s nuanced rather than petulant. But I had a really hard time getting invested in that part of the story until the ending of that storyline.
I did enjoy the stuff with Alvin on trial for witchcraft in Massachusetts, which illuminated another part of the storyworld, namely New England, which is still under control of the British government. Drawing upon the mythos of American Puritan culture, Card has designed his New England to be completely anti-magic and so anyone with a discernible knack is instantly an outlaw. However, it turns out that the witch trial begins, not because Alvin is brash with his powers, but because he openly proclaims himself in a gambit to save a scared girl who is targeted by the overly eager witchers. I enjoy Alvin’s nobility and how unusual of a hero he is. Take something like the Wheel of Time, wherein the heroic progression is about applying endlessly mounting pressure upon the hero and hardening them. Alvin faces pressures from unusual angles, such as a witch trial that he doesn’t have to undergo, but must choose. And the whole time he’s at it, Alvin is relatively free of anxiety. The stakes are not about life or death, of even the plot, necessarily, but about being a Maker and thus making change.
Ultimately, this section is not as good as earlier parts of the series, and it is a bit odd that Alvin goes on trial two books in a row. And, if I’m being honest, the witch trial isn’t as interesting as the one in Alvin Journeyman. It felt like Card was mostly trying to make an argument about how Puritanism is still very much a part of American culture and exposing the weaponized rhetoric that Puritanism employs. This book was published during the time of Bill Clinton’s impeachment and the height of Newt Gingrich’s time as Speaker of the House of Representatives, as the Religious Right continued to rage in the United States, and I feel like Card is trying to respond to that in his own way. (Card has become increasingly reactionary in recent years, but as I understand it, he was more progressive in the 1980s and 90s; this novel certainly is, relatively speaking.) This is all worthwhile material, but it lacks the same degree of inner propulsion that the earlier books demonstrated. This felt a lot more didactic, the character’s words and actions barely concealing the essay Card wanted to argue. And, in fairness, one way to understand stories is as narrative-based arguments playing out through the characters. This just felt less natural than the preceding books.
Perhaps the weirdest thing for me to notice is that the series really is stronger when Card is reimagining and subverting and channeling the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The past novels have done an amazing job intertwining, reworking, revising, and in other ways making use of Church history and folklore and American history and folklore to create a truly amazing alternate history. Church history is pretty much absent from this volume and it’s all USA history, including a cameo by Ralph Waldo Emerson, and a key appearance by John Adams. But for some reason, the mythic undertones of this book just weren’t as compelling, and the lack of Mormon lore did seem to actually work against the book and that surprises me.
Also, I have to ask: Why is there so much nudity and body humor in this book? Card has often used these. Sometimes he takes a Lewis Carroll/Williams Blake approach to bespeak a sense of innocence. When it works it’s ok, but this book made me cringe more than once. It just seemed really juvenile. I just don’t understand why it’s there in such quantity and discussed so much. It’s just so silly.
Still, the stuff that works does well enough, and the weaknesses, while present, stand out most because they hobble this book whereas the previous ones could freewheel. Now on to a reread of Crystal City.
However, this is the weakest in the series so far. There are a few things that I think cause this to happen.
To Card’s credit, this book only has two plot lines. Many fantasy series on their fifth volume will have eight or nine threads going simultaneously and will dedicate a portion of a volume to each of those threads. And it’s impressive how much Card can get out of just a few hundred pages, rather than needing close to a thousand.
And yet, I felt that one of these threads (the one with Margaret and Calvin in the Crown Colonies) was extremely frustrating. Last time I read the series I really enjoyed Calvin’s banter with Balzac, but this time it just annoyed me. I feel like Card didn’t go deep enough into Calvin to really convince me that he’s nuanced rather than petulant. But I had a really hard time getting invested in that part of the story until the ending of that storyline.
I did enjoy the stuff with Alvin on trial for witchcraft in Massachusetts, which illuminated another part of the storyworld, namely New England, which is still under control of the British government. Drawing upon the mythos of American Puritan culture, Card has designed his New England to be completely anti-magic and so anyone with a discernible knack is instantly an outlaw. However, it turns out that the witch trial begins, not because Alvin is brash with his powers, but because he openly proclaims himself in a gambit to save a scared girl who is targeted by the overly eager witchers. I enjoy Alvin’s nobility and how unusual of a hero he is. Take something like the Wheel of Time, wherein the heroic progression is about applying endlessly mounting pressure upon the hero and hardening them. Alvin faces pressures from unusual angles, such as a witch trial that he doesn’t have to undergo, but must choose. And the whole time he’s at it, Alvin is relatively free of anxiety. The stakes are not about life or death, of even the plot, necessarily, but about being a Maker and thus making change.
Ultimately, this section is not as good as earlier parts of the series, and it is a bit odd that Alvin goes on trial two books in a row. And, if I’m being honest, the witch trial isn’t as interesting as the one in Alvin Journeyman. It felt like Card was mostly trying to make an argument about how Puritanism is still very much a part of American culture and exposing the weaponized rhetoric that Puritanism employs. This book was published during the time of Bill Clinton’s impeachment and the height of Newt Gingrich’s time as Speaker of the House of Representatives, as the Religious Right continued to rage in the United States, and I feel like Card is trying to respond to that in his own way. (Card has become increasingly reactionary in recent years, but as I understand it, he was more progressive in the 1980s and 90s; this novel certainly is, relatively speaking.) This is all worthwhile material, but it lacks the same degree of inner propulsion that the earlier books demonstrated. This felt a lot more didactic, the character’s words and actions barely concealing the essay Card wanted to argue. And, in fairness, one way to understand stories is as narrative-based arguments playing out through the characters. This just felt less natural than the preceding books.
Perhaps the weirdest thing for me to notice is that the series really is stronger when Card is reimagining and subverting and channeling the history of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. The past novels have done an amazing job intertwining, reworking, revising, and in other ways making use of Church history and folklore and American history and folklore to create a truly amazing alternate history. Church history is pretty much absent from this volume and it’s all USA history, including a cameo by Ralph Waldo Emerson, and a key appearance by John Adams. But for some reason, the mythic undertones of this book just weren’t as compelling, and the lack of Mormon lore did seem to actually work against the book and that surprises me.
Also, I have to ask: Why is there so much nudity and body humor in this book? Card has often used these. Sometimes he takes a Lewis Carroll/Williams Blake approach to bespeak a sense of innocence. When it works it’s ok, but this book made me cringe more than once. It just seemed really juvenile. I just don’t understand why it’s there in such quantity and discussed so much. It’s just so silly.
Still, the stuff that works does well enough, and the weaknesses, while present, stand out most because they hobble this book whereas the previous ones could freewheel. Now on to a reread of Crystal City.
September 16, 2022
I'm very torn. This was my favorite book in middle school, but rereading it really made me realize that it kinda sucks. Don't get me wrong, it's fun to read. I got through all six books in the series in about two weeks. Speaking of which, is he ever going to finish it? Nearly 20 years have passed since the last book was punished, and the story is definitely unfinished.
Some parts of the book are thought-provoking and profound, and others seem like a recruiting drive for the LDS church. It's sort of like reading Ayn Rand-- the author's opinion is very prevalent and interesting to consider, but it's also wrong and totally obnoxious at times.
I think it deserves 2.5 stars, but I'll round it up to three because Purity and Verily were integral parts of my bi awakening. Kinda embarrassing to admit that I had the hots for two fictional Puritans, but it seems like poetic justice considering everything I know about Orson Scott Card.
Some parts of the book are thought-provoking and profound, and others seem like a recruiting drive for the LDS church. It's sort of like reading Ayn Rand-- the author's opinion is very prevalent and interesting to consider, but it's also wrong and totally obnoxious at times.
I think it deserves 2.5 stars, but I'll round it up to three because Purity and Verily were integral parts of my bi awakening. Kinda embarrassing to admit that I had the hots for two fictional Puritans, but it seems like poetic justice considering everything I know about Orson Scott Card.
September 8, 2025
Lo que más me ha gustado de esta quinta entrega es que se aprecia muy bien el poder de Margaret en acción, me encanta la conexión que tiene con Alvin y cómo pueden comunicarse aún estando en 2 continentes diferentes.
En esta novela Alvin sigue en búsqueda de pistas sobre cómo crear la famosa Ciudad de cristal, aunque las cosas toman un giro inesperado. Mientras Peggy se dirige a fomentar el antiesclavismo, que es el corazón del libro, una lucha contra la esclavitud y el racismo, que libera a los esclavos de Inglaterra del yugo y la sumisión a la que estaban sometidos.
Me gustan mucho los personajes secundarios de esta saga también, y los nuevos que se han sumado. Nuevamente Calvin recibe lecciones de humildad, aunque aquí se aprecia que tiene ciertas acciones positivas. Su odio hacia su hermano es su mayor problema y motor impulsor. Estoy ansiosa por ver cómo se comportará en la próxima novela.
En esta novela Alvin sigue en búsqueda de pistas sobre cómo crear la famosa Ciudad de cristal, aunque las cosas toman un giro inesperado. Mientras Peggy se dirige a fomentar el antiesclavismo, que es el corazón del libro, una lucha contra la esclavitud y el racismo, que libera a los esclavos de Inglaterra del yugo y la sumisión a la que estaban sometidos.
Me gustan mucho los personajes secundarios de esta saga también, y los nuevos que se han sumado. Nuevamente Calvin recibe lecciones de humildad, aunque aquí se aprecia que tiene ciertas acciones positivas. Su odio hacia su hermano es su mayor problema y motor impulsor. Estoy ansiosa por ver cómo se comportará en la próxima novela.
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