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3.59 AVERAGE
3.59 AVERAGE
Not a bad entry in the series. Overall, I think these Audible versions work because no matter how shaky the story is, the performances are great. The tension and terror are perfectly captured, so it’s an enjoyable listening experience.
If Out of the Shadows was as out of left field as Aliens 3, Sea Of Sorrows is as batshit crazy as Alien Resurrection (although less of the fun kind of batshit). 300 years after Ripley made a detour between Alien and Aliens to visit LV-128 (and subsequently have a convenient memory erasure of the whole event), the remnants of the xenomorphs she encountered attempt to take revenge on her empathic descendant, who has a psychic link with the xenomorphs. No really, stop laughing.
The only really cool part about it is that often Decker channels the inner thoughts of the xenomorphs. They predictably think about eating people, but it’s creepy nonetheless. So yeah the story is a big mess but it had some good action and scary scenes. I kind of knew that going in from the reviews on Audible so it didn’t really surprise me. Not a must-read but an okay listen.
If Out of the Shadows was as out of left field as Aliens 3, Sea Of Sorrows is as batshit crazy as Alien Resurrection (although less of the fun kind of batshit). 300 years after Ripley made a detour between Alien and Aliens to visit LV-128 (and subsequently have a convenient memory erasure of the whole event), the remnants of the xenomorphs she encountered attempt to take revenge on her empathic descendant, who has a psychic link with the xenomorphs. No really, stop laughing.
The only really cool part about it is that often Decker channels the inner thoughts of the xenomorphs. They predictably think about eating people, but it’s creepy nonetheless. So yeah the story is a big mess but it had some good action and scary scenes. I kind of knew that going in from the reviews on Audible so it didn’t really surprise me. Not a must-read but an okay listen.
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Loveable characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Even though I love following Ripley through an Alien story I surprisingly still loved this book overall.
It isn't my favourite in the trilogy but I definitely enjoyed the storyline and the new protagonist, Alan Decker, especially the paranormal aspects to his character.
The way the narrative ties in with the other books, the detailed environment, new characters and dramatic elements of the story really make this piece a pleasure to read.
As an avid Alien franchise fanatic and sci-fi lover I am biased but I really enjoyed this one. I would fully recommend it to someone like minded.
It isn't my favourite in the trilogy but I definitely enjoyed the storyline and the new protagonist, Alan Decker, especially the paranormal aspects to his character.
The way the narrative ties in with the other books, the detailed environment, new characters and dramatic elements of the story really make this piece a pleasure to read.
As an avid Alien franchise fanatic and sci-fi lover I am biased but I really enjoyed this one. I would fully recommend it to someone like minded.
Alan is an interesting main character. I love the fact that he’s basically a bureaucrat. He doesn’t have the physical skills of an Ellen Ripley, nor those of a space marine, but he’s going up against a hive full of Xenomorphs. They became aware of him when he was injured and his blood spilled deep into the sands, and while he can sense them, they can also sense him. Some of the mercenaries going in with him are also interesting–both the men and the women are tough and capable; it isn’t their fault the aliens are killing machines. There’s an Andrea Rollins who makes a great company bad guy; she’s cold as ice and feels no shame about threatening Decker’s family. She provides enough incentive that even Decker doesn’t want to fail to bring back a live specimen, no matter how much he realizes that this could be a very, very bad thing.
There’s plenty of action to be had! There’s an alien ship (from the previous book) that provides a whole lot of alien territory for the good guys to get chased around in. There’s an entire mine to hide out in. There are scientists still on the surface in addition to the mercenaries sent in. Things get quite tense and exciting, and there’s a huge area–that’s remarkably claustrophobic in its construction–to make things interesting.
I absolutely enjoyed this book. This is probably obvious, but, content note for gore and violence.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2020/01/review-alien-sea-of-sorrows-james-moore/
There’s plenty of action to be had! There’s an alien ship (from the previous book) that provides a whole lot of alien territory for the good guys to get chased around in. There’s an entire mine to hide out in. There are scientists still on the surface in addition to the mercenaries sent in. Things get quite tense and exciting, and there’s a huge area–that’s remarkably claustrophobic in its construction–to make things interesting.
I absolutely enjoyed this book. This is probably obvious, but, content note for gore and violence.
Original review posted on my blog: http://www.errantdreams.com/2020/01/review-alien-sea-of-sorrows-james-moore/
Vastly superior to the last 3 Alien films, even if a bit thin as a story.
I love these multicast dramas. A little cheesy at times but the sound effects and Alien sounds make up for any bad dialogue.
While Tim Lebbon’s Alien: Out of the Shadows was a halfway decent stab at recreating one of the greatest SF horror franchises on the page, James A. Moore’s Alien: Sea of Sorrows is thoroughly disappointing.
Perhaps the keyword lies in the word ‘franchise’: it is clear that all of these authors, despite their credentials as accomplished horror writers in their own right, have produced these novels to some corporate plan (call it the Weyland-Yutani way) rather than being told to follow their writerly instincts and let rip on the Alien multiverse (call that the James Cameron way).
So what we end up with here is a perplexing and by-the-numbers rehash of Lebbon’s novel, only set in a much later timeframe. We also see main protagonist Decker nipping from LV178 to Earth and back again, as if it was a brief drive to the corner shop, with Moore riding as roughshod over the laws of physics, let alone logic, as the aliens do over human flesh.
The novel even has the same narrative hook of grunts-for-hire going in blind to some armpit of a planet and slowly being picked off by the creatures that they wholly underestimate. In this instance we have a direct descendant of Ellen Ripley fulfilling the role of the proverbial canary in the coal mine.
Decker shares a telepathic link with the alien creatures (whose grandeur and horror are sorely diminished by Moore constantly referring to them as ‘bugs’ and even ‘cockroaches’, which brings to mind a totally different movie, Paul Verhoeven’s Starship Troopers).
Neither the familial link, let alone the telepathy, are explored in any depth, and are therefore rather unconvincing. The ending sees Weyland-Yutani finally procure the live specimens they crave, which is a good set-up for the third novel. Let us hope that Christopher Golden was allowed enough creative control to take this saga in the new direction it deserves.
Perhaps the keyword lies in the word ‘franchise’: it is clear that all of these authors, despite their credentials as accomplished horror writers in their own right, have produced these novels to some corporate plan (call it the Weyland-Yutani way) rather than being told to follow their writerly instincts and let rip on the Alien multiverse (call that the James Cameron way).
So what we end up with here is a perplexing and by-the-numbers rehash of Lebbon’s novel, only set in a much later timeframe. We also see main protagonist Decker nipping from LV178 to Earth and back again, as if it was a brief drive to the corner shop, with Moore riding as roughshod over the laws of physics, let alone logic, as the aliens do over human flesh.
The novel even has the same narrative hook of grunts-for-hire going in blind to some armpit of a planet and slowly being picked off by the creatures that they wholly underestimate. In this instance we have a direct descendant of Ellen Ripley fulfilling the role of the proverbial canary in the coal mine.
Decker shares a telepathic link with the alien creatures (whose grandeur and horror are sorely diminished by Moore constantly referring to them as ‘bugs’ and even ‘cockroaches’, which brings to mind a totally different movie, Paul Verhoeven’s Starship Troopers).
Neither the familial link, let alone the telepathy, are explored in any depth, and are therefore rather unconvincing. The ending sees Weyland-Yutani finally procure the live specimens they crave, which is a good set-up for the third novel. Let us hope that Christopher Golden was allowed enough creative control to take this saga in the new direction it deserves.
As a Galvestonian, I really appreciate that this book is about a polluted wasteland full of aliens that is called New Galveston!
Also, it's a hoot and a half. It's got everything I could possibly want from anything alien-related. The formula isn't hard: have there be some aliens, have there be some colonial marines, and actually that is everything on the list. Cats are a bonus, but Jonesy appears in the other two of these as a fully-voiced character so I won't be too greedy.
If you're looking for a fun and genuinely quite good story, go for the first one of these. If you're looking for a fun and interesting look at what happened to Newt's family, get the third one. If you want a fun time with some super silly psychic links to aliens and colonial marine action, this is the one. I loved all three and I really hope there will be more.
Also, it's a hoot and a half. It's got everything I could possibly want from anything alien-related. The formula isn't hard: have there be some aliens, have there be some colonial marines, and actually that is everything on the list. Cats are a bonus, but Jonesy appears in the other two of these as a fully-voiced character so I won't be too greedy.
If you're looking for a fun and genuinely quite good story, go for the first one of these. If you're looking for a fun and interesting look at what happened to Newt's family, get the third one. If you want a fun time with some super silly psychic links to aliens and colonial marine action, this is the one. I loved all three and I really hope there will be more.