Rating: Summary: Juvenile...very juvenile. Review: I got Alias Recruited for free when I bought the DVD locally, but I must say that I'm glad I didn't actually shell out any money to buy it. The novel is written at what has to be an elementary-school reading level, yet it still contains some material that are aimed more towards middle-school or junior high kids. The older you are, the more you are going to roll your eyes. The book itself wasn't THAT bad. It's a very fast read. I read it in an hour, personally. True, it is fun for Alias fans to read, but it does have some plot inconsistencies with the show, which makes me wonder just how much effort was put into researching or writing this thing. It's not terrible, but I suggest that you check the book out at the library before deciding whether to buy it or not. I guess it depends. Personally, I think the show would do a lot better if they tried to market books for older readers. Frankly, I have found that Alias fans tend to be much more intelligent than what this book is aiming for. Your call...
Rating: Summary: Juvenile...very juvenile. Review: I got Alias Recruited for free when I bought the DVD locally, but I must say that I'm glad I didn't actually shell out any money to buy it. The novel is written at what has to be an elementary-school reading level, yet it still contains some material that are aimed more towards middle-school or junior high kids. The older you are, the more you are going to roll your eyes. The book itself wasn't THAT bad. It's a very fast read. I read it in an hour, personally. True, it is fun for Alias fans to read, but it does have some plot inconsistencies with the show, which makes me wonder just how much effort was put into researching or writing this thing. It's not terrible, but I suggest that you check the book out at the library before deciding whether to buy it or not. I guess it depends. Personally, I think the show would do a lot better if they tried to market books for older readers. Frankly, I have found that Alias fans tend to be much more intelligent than what this book is aiming for. Your call...
Rating: Summary: Only good if you're a pre-teen girl Review: I happen to love the Alias TV show, so much that sometimes it borders on obsession. So I added this book to my wish list and a friend bought it for my birthday. I didn't get past page 12. The writing is like something out of a cheap romance novel (Sydney's unpierced navel is discussed) and the characters dialog doesn't match their style in the show. Overall I would pass unless you're a pre-teen girl.
Rating: Summary: Not much substance... Review: I love the show Alias and had hoped the books would fill in some holes about Sydney's past, her recruitment, etc. The books do provide some details but the books stay pretty general. It's obvious they cannot provide too much detail or it might conflict with the writing for the show (which frequently draws from the past to explain the present) The books focus on getting to know Sloane, her strained relationship with her dad, etc. The writing is pretty bland--this is one situation where the show is BETTER than the book. My final irritation with the books (and I've read several) is that they tend make Sydney look dumb and naive. She will "save the day" and then we the reader see the final "secret email" proving she helped the bad guy, etc. She comes off looking really dumb. Read the books if you must but get them from the library....
Rating: Summary: This book is AMAZING! Review: I love this book. I got it yesterday when it came out and I just started reading it. It is so great! You can actually see it being an episode of the wonderful show!
Rating: Summary: Interesting idea, but writing is meh (2.5 stars) Review: I must admit, I went into these books knowing they would not be of any superior quality. They are a YA series coming out fairly frequently which basically equates to average or less than average writing. Sadly, that did not stop me from reading them. I fear I just needed more of Sydney to keep my weekdays livable.Seriously, the whole concept was great. If more care was made with the writing quality, then these could have been awesome to all Alias fans. The storylines are intriguing, the characters as we loved them, especially Francie, are there in full force, and we can get an idea of Sydney's original mindset working for what she thought was Uncle Sam. BUT, and I say but because this really ruined the books for me; the timeline is so far off I couldn't bear to read some of it. It puts Sydney's first year talking about dot-com millionaires losing money, which is totally insane as the show started in 2001, when Sydney had been in SD-6 for several years. Dot-com millionaires would not have been much talk over 5 years before, since there weren't any. There were other time problems as well, which set the book at least in the very late 90's. So, if you are obsessed with Alias, want a backstory, and don't mind poor writing and skewed timelines, then read the books. Otherwise, just don't. But buying them is not really worth it. Get them out from the library; it won't cost you anything, and if you don't like them, you won't have wasted your money.
Rating: Summary: Interesting idea, but writing is meh (2.5 stars) Review: I must admit, I went into these books knowing they would not be of any superior quality. They are a YA series coming out fairly frequently which basically equates to average or less than average writing. Sadly, that did not stop me from reading them. I fear I just needed more of Sydney to keep my weekdays livable. Seriously, the whole concept was great. If more care was made with the writing quality, then these could have been awesome to all Alias fans. The storylines are intriguing, the characters as we loved them, especially Francie, are there in full force, and we can get an idea of Sydney's original mindset working for what she thought was Uncle Sam. BUT, and I say but because this really ruined the books for me; the timeline is so far off I couldn't bear to read some of it. It puts Sydney's first year talking about dot-com millionaires losing money, which is totally insane as the show started in 2001, when Sydney had been in SD-6 for several years. Dot-com millionaires would not have been much talk over 5 years before, since there weren't any. There were other time problems as well, which set the book at least in the very late 90's. So, if you are obsessed with Alias, want a backstory, and don't mind poor writing and skewed timelines, then read the books. Otherwise, just don't. But buying them is not really worth it. Get them out from the library; it won't cost you anything, and if you don't like them, you won't have wasted your money.
Rating: Summary: Recruited: An Alias Prequel Review: I think that this book was SO awesome! If you love the show, then reading about it makes the experience more real than other books because you can imagine the places and faces from the show. You might think, "Oh, great. A TV show book." Well, that's kind of like what I would think if I saw a book like that. It doesn't matter, though, because there are more details and it lasts longer than watching the show, and there aren't any ads. This is a great book, and even if you haven't seen the show, it all makes sense!
Rating: Summary: a little thin but, not bad at all Review: I was a little confused about how this is considered "young adult" as Alias is geared more towards adults and is more than a little dark at times on TV. (If you haven't watched, you're missing out) The story was a little plain for about the first half and maybe a little too easy to read (i.e. young adult) but, I kept going and everything takes a more serious tone once Syd is contacted and enlisted into SD-6. There after the book picks up and becomes fairly close to what you see on Sundays. All together not a bad start for a book series and I did enjoy the references to the show and "seeing" where Sydney came from.
Rating: Summary: okay, but definitely not excellent Review: I wasn't originally sure if I was going to read this book, since I don't usually like books based on tv shows. However, I really like Alias, so I thought I'd try this out. It was an incredibly quick read for me and, for the most part, enjoyable, even if nothing much happened. The first half of the book consisted of Sydney being shy, wanting a job, and wanting a boyfriend. It isn't until the second half of the book that she actually becomes part of what she thinks is the CIA, and only in the last quarter of the book is there any action. It was interesting to see the shyer and more insecure side of Sydney, but I got a little tired of it after a while. There's only so much "I'm not really all that special" and "That guy is cute but I'm too shy to talk to him" that I can stand. I found myself wishing that this book had either been written as something meant for adults, or even that it had been written under the assumption that the intended audience (young adults, which seems, to me, to cover a huge range of ages) is capable ofcontinuing to read a book with a more complex plot and less heavy-handed characterization.
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