Hart's Hope

Lore & Background

The gods arrange for Palicrovol to father a bastard son, Orem, who is a 'Sink'—a person in whose presence magic has no power. Orem travels to Inwit, studies under the wizard Gallowglass, and is eventually taken prisoner by Queen Beauty. She takes him to husband and conceives a son, Youth. When Queen Beauty plans to kill Youth to sustain her power, Orem hijacks the ritual, causing Beauty to destroy herself. The narrator, revealed to be the restored Enziquelvinisensee, writes a letter to Palicrovol asking him to choose whether to kill Orem or end the bloodshed; the ending is left ambiguous.

Reader's Guide

Hart's Hope is significant as an early work by Orson Scott Card, exploring dark fantasy themes with a unique magic system and a complex narrative structure. The novel's use of a narrator who addresses a character directly and withholds its identity adds a layer of metafictional intrigue. The setting's blood-magic and the city's gate restrictions create a gritty, rule-bound world. The story's ambiguous ending, where the reader must decide Palicrovol's choice, invites active interpretation. The novel also engages with religious themes through the conflict among the Hart, the Sweet Sisters, and the god named God, reflecting Card's interest in moral and theological questions. Though not as widely known as Card's science fiction, Hart's Hope remains a notable entry in his bibliography for its inventive world-building and its unflinching portrayal of cruelty and redemption.

Did You Know?

• All magic in Burland must be paid for in blood; the larger or stronger the animal, the more powerful its blood.
• The city of Hart's Hope was renamed Inwit after Queen Beauty took power.
• The narrator of the story is revealed at the end to be the restored Flower Princess, Enziquelvinisensee Evelvenin.
• The god named God is jealous of his worship and encourages his followers to disbelieve the Hart and the Sweet Sisters.