Earth Unaware

By: Orson Scott Card, Aaron Johnston

Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki, Stephen Hoye, Arthur Morey, Vikas Adam, Emily Janice Card, Gabrielle de Cuir, Roxanne Hernandez

Length: 13 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

A hundred years before Ender's Game, humans thought they were alone in the galaxy. Humanity was slowly making their way out from Earth to the planets and asteroids of the Solar System, exploring and mining and founding colonies.

The mining ship El Cavador is far out from Earth, in the deeps of the Kuiper Belt, beyond Pluto. Other mining ships, and the families that live on them, are few and far between this far out. So when El Cavador's telescopes pick up a fast-moving object coming in-system, it's hard to know what to make of it. It's massive and moving at a significant fraction of the speed of light.

But the ship has other problems. Their systems are old and failing. The family is getting too big. There are claim-jumping corporates bringing Asteroid Belt tactics to the Kuiper Belt. Worrying about a distant object that might or might not be an alien ship seems…not important.

They're wrong. It's the most important thing that has happened to the human race in a million years. This is humanity's first contact with an alien race. The First Formic War is about to begin.
Earth Unaware is the first novel in The First Formic War series by Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston.

©2012 Orson Scott Card and Aaron Johnston (P)2012 Macmillan Audio

Critic reviews

“The somber basso voice of Stefan Rudnicki and two well-chosen players march through the story, with a young man's voice particularly effective in segments featuring the angst-ridden teenager. This is an outstanding job, with more to come.” —AudioFile Magazine

“As the narration passes from character to character, the talented cast... easily keeps listeners intrigued with skillful characterizations that feature unique voices, accents, and dialects. And by the time the huge alien ship arrives and the story kicks into high gear, listeners will be utterly captivated by this exciting adventure.” —Publishers Weekly

good

started out slow but then picked up and took off. love this series of booked.

A prequel worth reading!

if you enjoyed any part of the enderverse it's worth coming back (chronologically) and starting at the beginning. I would still recommend reading Ender's game first and maybe even speaker for the dead before returning to the beginning. Not that you need to read them first I just think you would appreciate this more if you have.

Great Audible Book

I have read all of the Ender books. I enjoyed all of them. This book (and 2 more) are the prequel to Enders Game. This first book sets the stage for the Formic war and Razor Macum.

The beginning- or a plot filler

Earth unaware is a prequel to the Ender series and I guess the listener/ reader could begin with this series and then move on to Ender Games; but having already listened to the entire Orson Scott Card’s series, listening to Earth Unaware gave me such an Ominous sense of foreboding; and, even though I know what was coming, it kept my ears glued to the story.
I believe it fills a void that was missing from “Ender Games.” It gives us a more detailed background story about earth and the characters that will play a major part in the war, before the Formic, or “Buggers” attack.
This is not a standalone book, of course, and there are many sub-plots left hanging for the next book in the series, but O.S.C. is such a polished and professional writer that it was a satisfying start. His character development is superior; and, as he eludes to in his authors notes, he writes each segment of the book as if it were a scene in a play making the dialogue come to life.
A word about the narration; I’m not usually a fan of an assembled cast, preferring one talented narrator, but I thought they all did a superb job.

Amazing

Every chapter felt more and more fulfilling. I could barely bring myself to stop listening; always wanting to know what will happen next. The story shifted from character to character making me sympathize and understand the thinking behind every one; making the experience even more fun.

If you like enders game you will love this

this is a beautiful tie in to one of my favorite book series of all time.

Very good audio book

Have a MAJOR problem with a homophobic author! Liked the book and details that went into it. But Mr. Card moral authority concerning my life and love has forced me not to put another penny in his pocket. Haters must be faced down at every opportunity. To do less, stregthens the hater and his hate speech.

A Very Good Expansion in the Ender Verse

What did you love best about Earth Unaware?

It provided more depth to an existing character (Mazor) then adds new personalities to fill in the storyline.

What did you like best about this story?

The continued continuity in this universe.

What about the narrators’s performance did you like?

I really enjoy the multi-narrator usage here. There have been other audio books where the actor couldn't pull off the "voice" of an opposite-sex character. Not a problem here.

Any additional comments?

If there was one downside for me, it was the inability of several characters to make that jump that this enemy isn't human.

Best book in a long time.

This is a great story for any science fiction fan. Orson Scott Card does a fantastic job and the voice acting is amazing. Great story however it does end on a bit of a cliffhanger. So watch out. Your going to want to buy the second book in the series.

Superb Sci Fi for Ender Virgins or Veterans

The Formic War trilogy, being the final part of the Ender timeline books left for me to read, is going to be held to a higher standard. That being said, first time readers of Card, or sci fi in general, will find plenty to enjoy here.

The voice acting was superb. I thought Lem Jukes was perhaps overdone at times, as was 'Chubs', but Wit O'Toole was spot on (stern, focused and measured) as were most of the voice actors' performances. The story was action packed and avoided painful cliches expected in a 'first contact' story (for example, inexplicable desire to assume peaceful intent; think crowd on top of building in Independence Day), while also adhering to realistic guidelines (such as general disbelief by population en masse with the exception of a thoughtful few).

I would love to know how much of the action comes from Aaron Johnston, simply bc as fans of the Enders Saga know, Card doesn't generally spend much effort on hand to hand, bloody fights as he does on dialogue and thought provoking inner monologue from his subjects.

Overall, very well executed. Refreshing in style, and entertaining.