Teaser

Earth stands on the brink of annihilation. The Formics have landed in their thousands, and their orbiting mothership repels all attacks. The fate of humanity lies in the hands of a scattered few . . .

Review

And so we come to the end of the first stage of the Enderverse. Not in terms of publication, of course, but in chronological terms, the first step towards Ender’s Game has now been completed. There are two ways to look at a book like this. the most obvious is to take it as presented. A book telling a story. Is it a good one? But I’m going to tackle the other question first.

What does this book contribute to the legacy of Ender’s Game? Well, the first thing it does is keep the original book, and its author, in the social memory. Publication is a fickle beast, and it never hurts to remind the public that you’re still around. People will see this book, read it, and in all likelihood go on to read Ender’s Game, if they haven’t already. I know that’s the boat I’m in. So on that front, the book is an unmitigated success.

However, Ender’s Game is a classic of the genre. It is widely regarded as one of the most important science fiction novels of all time. It is used in educational contexts by both schools and the military. That’s quite a legacy to uphold, and on that front, I can’t help but feel Earth Awakens falls flat more often than it rises to the challenge.

Strip away the foundation-laying, the foreshadowing, and the recognisable characters, and you’re left with a novel that’s perfectly functional, but ever so slightly bland. It’s not that it’s doing anything wrong, it’s that it isn’t doing anything new. It doesn’t push the envelope the way you’d expect a novel of this pedigree to do. As an alien invasion narrative, it’s good. It has a real sense of global scale, and I can’t quite shake the Earth Defence Force vibes I get from the human-on-Formic action. that’s a good thing. It’s a good book. But it lives in the shadow of a great one.

Earth Awakens closes off the trilogy in the same way as the earlier volumes. It misses the opportunity to break free of the mould, largely by resolutely sticking to what has already been determined for the universe. Strong characters and lively action scenes can never quite live up to the expectations set by Card’s most famous work. There’s nothing wrong with this trilogy, but that doesn’t mean it gets everything right.

Deeper Dive: Series Bloat

This book is the last in the First Formic War trilogy, but it ends on a massive cliff-hanger, with the immediate threat of a second, even larger invasion. That’s right folks. This prequel series doesn’t set up Ender’s Game. It sets up the Second Formic War, a trilogy that currently has two books published, with no word as yet on a third. At this stage, Dune fans might be getting a sense of deja vu, as this is a sure sign of a universe filling up with extra prequels that nobody really asked for.

Now, that is not to speak to the quality of these books. A good book is a good book, whether you ask for it or not. But there is a problem with popular series getting spin-offs that fill in every little gap. It leaves little room for the imagination of the individual reader, for a start. More than that, it runs the risk of franchise fatigue. In any given universe, there are only so many stories you can tell before you start covering old ground. I’m sure that by the end of the Enderverse, family trees will connect every little branch of the story.

There’s also an unspoken danger with bloated series. Authors can grow comfortable in what they know. They’ll stop trying new things. And while the books will still be good, we might never know what we’re missing out on.

Book Stats

• The First Formic War(#3)
• Published in 2014
• Published by Tor
• Military SF
• 468 pages