Chaos Bleeds

Rating:
Summary: An entertaining book.
Review: I have read many "Buffy," books, and is deffinatly one of the best, along with the books by Chris Golden. I think a 6th star is needed for writing up a video game. Which is somthing I know I couldn't do without having to ramble.
"Chaos Bleeds," fits in well with the show, and characters. It's a delight to read each characters point of veiw because they're surprisingly accurate.

Rating:
Summary: I applaude James A. Moore!
Review: I have to say that I can not understand why this book has gotten so many bad reviews. It's based on a video game for crying out loud! If you expected something as epic as the Lord of the Rings then you should have picked up Tolkien instead. Yes, this book is fight intensive, but that's because the game is also fight intensive. Give James Moore some credit here people, he *IS* working with the storyline of video game. I think he did an excellent job of elaborating on the basic storyline of the game. He managed to capture the essence of every character and the descriptions of the carnage and demons were just fantastic. I was not disappointed in the least in this book. It felt like I was reading a lost episode of Buffy and I loved it!

Rating:
Summary: I applaude James A. Moore!
Review: I have to say that I can not understand why this book has gotten so many bad reviews. It's based on a video game for crying out loud! If you expected something as epic as the Lord of the Rings then you should have picked up Tolkien instead. Yes, this book is fight intensive, but that's because the game is also fight intensive. Give James Moore some credit here people, he *IS* working with the storyline of video game. I think he did an excellent job of elaborating on the basic storyline of the game. He managed to capture the essence of every character and the descriptions of the carnage and demons were just fantastic. I was not disappointed in the least in this book. It felt like I was reading a lost episode of Buffy and I loved it!

Rating:
Summary: A Lost Story That Blends In With the Show
Review: In a story that takes place exactly between episodes Forever and Intervention Buffy, Xander, Willow, and Spike get ambushed by a large amount of vampires including one that Buffy witnessed already die. As the story progresses Buffy comes to understand that realities are merging together due to the work of another old enemy Ethan Raine. Unfortunately Ethan has nominated Buffy(Slayer), Willow(Witch), Spike(Vampire), Xander(Stand In) and Faith(Slayer) who returns to Sunnydale, to go up against the mother of all evil, the First. The five chosen one's most enter different realities and conquer over all the odds the First has stacked against them. Despite the fact that the fights scenes are dragged on just a little to long this is an excellent book. Even though this story takes place during Season Five, Dawn doesn't appear in this book which was kind of nice, giving the book that old Buffy feeling. Although the fifth season was great it would've been better if this was a Season Eight story, witch was what this was rumored to be at first. A great book for any Buffy fan, but don't read it if you've already played the game.

Rating:
Summary: *A Truly Chaotic Book*
Review: In a wry reversal of literary tradition (remember the days when the book was written first and the film second) Chaos Bleeds is a book based on a console game that is based on a television series. Given this wierd architecture I'm not sure what precise definition of 'successful' should be applied. Is the novel a good extension of the show, a fair representation of the game, or, last but not least, is it a good novel on its own.

Set in the Spike-just-got-his-chip era, the book opens with a short attempt to set the scene, followed by a battle, and then followed by a battle, and then a short cut scene, and then another battle... You get the picture - the primary purpose of Chaos Bleeds the novel is to provide a virtual reality version of Chaos Bleeds the game. If a novel could ever be considered a 'virtual reality' experience.

So while there really is a story arc, there is nothing so complicated as a plot. Is this a bad? Not really, Moore does concentrate a bit on character development, so personalities come through in a way that the game simply cannot do. And it is genuinely interesting to learn the motivations behind some of the madness of the game itself. And Moore writes as well as could be expected, given the literary constraints.

As a general rule, story telling games like the Shadowrun series translate into novels best. I think this is the first time an action game has attempted the transition, and it is almost a success from a pure readibility viewpoint. Unfortunately, the hectic pace of the game is less engaging when replayed in text. The book is hard to put down not because it is a fascinating story, but because the reader is provided with very few logical breaks in the action. So I find the book likeable, but I'm not at all sure that I would want to repeat the experience. Any more than I would look forward to the Playstation version of War and Peace.

Rating:
Summary: Now That You've Played the...
Review: In a wry reversal of literary tradition (remember the days when the book was written first and the film second) Chaos Bleeds is a book based on a console game that is based on a television series. Given this wierd architecture I'm not sure what precise definition of 'successful' should be applied. Is the novel a good extension of the show, a fair representation of the game, or, last but not least, is it a good novel on its own.

Set in the Spike-just-got-his-chip era, the book opens with a short attempt to set the scene, followed by a battle, and then followed by a battle, and then a short cut scene, and then another battle... You get the picture - the primary purpose of Chaos Bleeds the novel is to provide a virtual reality version of Chaos Bleeds the game. If a novel could ever be considered a 'virtual reality' experience.

So while there really is a story arc, there is nothing so complicated as a plot. Is this a bad? Not really, Moore does concentrate a bit on character development, so personalities come through in a way that the game simply cannot do. And it is genuinely interesting to learn the motivations behind some of the madness of the game itself. And Moore writes as well as could be expected, given the literary constraints.

As a general rule, story telling games like the Shadowrun series translate into novels best. I think this is the first time an action game has attempted the transition, and it is almost a success from a pure readibility viewpoint. Unfortunately, the hectic pace of the game is less engaging when replayed in text. The book is hard to put down not because it is a fascinating story, but because the reader is provided with very few logical breaks in the action. So I find the book likeable, but I'm not at all sure that I would want to repeat the experience. Any more than I would look forward to the Playstation version of War and Peace.

Rating:
Summary: Battle Book
Review: Read "The Lost Slayer" or "Monster Island" even "Little Things" but stay away from this one it is not worth the money. One reviewer stated "The bulk of the book is made up of very boring fight scenes that go on for far too long. What little plot the book contains is completely ridiculous and would severely mess with the continuity of season seven." I agree 100%!!! Play the game, but don't be bored to tears while someone gets paid to describe it to you fight scene by fight scene in novel style.

Rating:
Summary: Thoughts on the novel and responding to the Spike issue.
Review: The novel was pretty good considering that it was designed as a written adaptation based on the original out line of the video game Chaos Bleeds. As for the depiction of Spike, I think the main problem is that Spike fans are pretty fed up with novels that try to bash it over the readers heads that Spike is evil violent and murderous. I personally don't mind a reminder or two about Spike's capacity for evil or his love of violence, hell I loved seeing Spike get really violent and happy in both Lovers Walk and Get it Done, it is a part of his character.

But, being hit over the head with Spike's love of violence, evilness, and viciousness has really [ticked] many Spike fans off, which including myself of course. I understand writers have to comply with Fox's book rules that Spike is evil, which was enacted more because Fox has for many years wanted to keep Spike as a foil for Angel and to protect Angel's specialness since he is the head of a Fox franchise. Which I find kind of funny since the only thing that saved Angel from being pulled was James Marsters signing on as a regular for next season.

But, in spite of that I thought that Mel Odom had the greatest success of any novel writer in his book Crossings at showing Spike's capacity for brutality and violence without it feeling like I am being bludgeoned over the head with it, simply by having Spike violently kill a number of demon bikers in the beginning of his book set in mid season 5, after that there was only maybe one or two references to Spike's capacity for evil. The novel Little Things written by Rebecca Moesta also does a good job with showing Spike as caring but mostly amoral. Chaos Bleeds the novel had simply too many references to Spike love of violence, the joy he takes in mass murder, and his desire to hurt people, which [ticked] off a number of Spike fans including myself.

But, its saving grace was that it at least was depicting Spike's love of violence and murderous impulses in a way that keeps with what I know of Spike's feelings and capacity for evil especially before Intervention and before he decided to get his soul back. Even though I very much didn't like being bashed over the head with it, in my opinion it was a lot better then Nancy Holder's recent Buffy novel where as with Chaos Bleeds she bashes it over the audience head that Spike is evil and murderous, but she did it in a way that was totally against canon by having Spike tell Buffy in a seriously way, in a time that is supposed to be post Smashed, that the second he gets his chip out he will tear her throat out.

Any Buffy fan even casual fan would tell you that there is no way in hell that he would say that to Buffy in that time period, and that he could kill her at any time anyway because the chip didn't work on her and Spike and Buffy both knew it. Thankfully, Chaos Bleeds avoids such a blatant and irritating breech of canon, yet the book still falls victim to having far to many references that clearly are designed to hammer it into the readers heads that Spike is evil, Spike is murderous, Spike wants to hurt people, etc.

On the plus side the writer did show a lot Buffy nicer to Spike then she was to him most of the time during pre Intervention season 5, the second half of season 6, and the first half of season 7. However, Buffy's feelings for Spike bounced around so much that it has been impossible even the writers of the show to agree what Buffy felt toward Spike at any given time so it wasn't a big deal, the only thing that I felt was kind of funny is that I got a definite pre-Crushed vibe out of Buffy, it didn't feel from her end like he had told her he loves her, but according to canon he should have by then, but considering her bipolar feelings about him it may have been for the best.

Also, the Scooby Gang for the most part never liked Spike or accepted him as one of their own in season 5, 6, or 7, soul or no soul, however they were always pretty content to use his abilities to their advantage. So, James Moore did get this part of it right in his book, but it is irritating nonetheless, and on the show it was torturous taking into account that the only friend Spike has was Dawn in season 5 and very early season 6 and then their entire friendship was dropped like a sack of potatoes. And, I have never considered him Buffy's friend they were a lot of things, but friends weren't one of them. I just wonder if the writers guessed that it would counter productive to basically leave Spike without any real friends for two seasons after they dumped the Dawn/Spike friendship early in season 6. But, that is a criticism of the show itself not the book. I didn't have much of a problem with Spike's interaction with the Scoobies in the book even though it was very minimal.

Overall, I will say Chaos Bleeds was a somewhat entertaining book that would probably be hard to follow for really casual fans. I suggest that you should buy the book if you are into Buffy books or you plan on buying Chaos Bleeds the video game that is set to come out on Xbox, PS2, and Gamecube.

Rating:
Summary: Just Play The Game
Review: The story that was developed for the game was an interesting one. As a big fan of the game I found myself unable to resist buying the book as well. However, I was absolutely disappointed with the book. I thought it was written very poorly and lacked the "flow" of many of the other buffy or angel centered books I have read. After a few chapers I tossed it at the bottom of my locker and never finished it. Perhaps it gets better if you can get past the first quarter of the book, but in my opinion if you are looking for the story just play the game.

Rating:
Summary: A little REASON, shall we?
Review: To Susan Guberman-Garcia: I have not read this book. I do know that it's based on a computer game. That means that the author had little choice in plot for the book, and it's a good bet he's not a big Buffy fan. If I were you, and anyone else reading this review, I would run to the library and get practically any Buffy Book by Christopher Golden or Nancy Holder, or both. Try the excellent "GateKeeper" trilogy for grownups, or "The Lost Slayer" for the younger set. There were times while reading those books that I could actually hear the actors speaking the dialog, it was so dead-on. Don't judge all Buffy books by this one!!