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pbraue13's review
4.0
A perfect companion to the 1981 film, adding a few little touches that bring the film more into focus and fill in possible plot holes. It's quite fun!
vikingwolf's review
3.0
Michael Myers has been on a murder spree in Haddonfield and now he has followed his one surviving victim Laurie to the local hospital, where he brings death and horror to the staff members on the night shift. The book begins with Loomis keeping watch at the Myers house and then discovering the stolen car on a nearby street and saving Laurie from Michael. I found the inner thoughts of Loomis verging on psychotic himself as he plots to kill his patient and there are inner ramblings that are a bit on the stupid side as he gives his opinion on the town cops and other things.
The action moves to the hospital and sticks pretty close to what we see in the film. The problem is that Laurie's inner ramblings are just as dull and repetitive as Loomis as she obsesses about her family issues and the danger she is in. There are also mistakes in the names of characters from the film and the constant telling that Michael killed two people in 1963 which is not true. The actual language used in the book was annoying-ordinary items were described in weird ways and the over descriptive waffle just wasn't needed. For example as Michael patrols the corridors we get gems like this 'and so it was now, one more rerun on the late, late, very late show on Halloween night in this particular town, acting out the last reels of its relentless stalking of the heart of the American Dream.' Or this one to describe the emergency lighting in the hospital 'The dimmed out interstices of the hospital's once bright and optimistic asepsis.' What??? It was weird and did nothing to help the tension build up in the book. It was very offputting! The book itself is ok for fans of the film but nothing spectacular.
2.5 stars?
The action moves to the hospital and sticks pretty close to what we see in the film. The problem is that Laurie's inner ramblings are just as dull and repetitive as Loomis as she obsesses about her family issues and the danger she is in. There are also mistakes in the names of characters from the film and the constant telling that Michael killed two people in 1963 which is not true. The actual language used in the book was annoying-ordinary items were described in weird ways and the over descriptive waffle just wasn't needed. For example as Michael patrols the corridors we get gems like this 'and so it was now, one more rerun on the late, late, very late show on Halloween night in this particular town, acting out the last reels of its relentless stalking of the heart of the American Dream.' Or this one to describe the emergency lighting in the hospital 'The dimmed out interstices of the hospital's once bright and optimistic asepsis.' What??? It was weird and did nothing to help the tension build up in the book. It was very offputting! The book itself is ok for fans of the film but nothing spectacular.
2.5 stars?
struanhenderson's review
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.25
literatetexan's review
4.0
Movie novelizations aren't supposed to be this well-written, but Jack Martin is a pen name for Dennis Etchison, who is a master of the genre. The high points of the novel are the inner dialogues of the two main characters, Dr. Sam Loomis and Laurie Strode. Also, Etchison seems to get the archetypal good versus evil struggle here, which is an aspect of the movies that Rob Zombie seemed to miss. If you're a fan of the movies, this is worth a read.
michaelrcalkins's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.25
itcamefromthepage's review
dark
funny
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
This was a pretty straight retelling of Halloween 2 but the descriptions in this book are TOP notch and the little character beats made this such a joy to experience.
jamietherebelliousreader's review
4.0
4 stars. A very slow start but then again, the film has a slow start as well so I won’t harp on that too much. This one wasn’t as good as the first one which was to be expected but I still enjoyed. Even though I will say that I wasn’t too crazy about this author’s writing. It just wasn’t my favorite but it wasn’t terrible or anything. Again, this book fills in a lot of missing details and scenes from the movie which is interesting. I’m having a lot of fun reading these.
{Challenges completed:
✔The Lost Challenges: Hidden Homes Semi-Annual Challenge
✔For Love of a Book: I Went to the Zoo Challenge
✔For Love of a Book: Baking Challenge}
{Challenges completed:
✔The Lost Challenges: Hidden Homes Semi-Annual Challenge
✔For Love of a Book: I Went to the Zoo Challenge
✔For Love of a Book: Baking Challenge}
cyanide_latte's review against another edition
dark
reflective
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.75
Once again, as with other horror movie novelizations I've gone through, I've got to offer huge thanks to The 80s Slasher Librarian on YouTube for posting a fan-recorded audiobook for this one. It's the only way I was able to read through this novelization, via listening.
Halloween II is one of those movies that while I've seen it and it's not anywhere up in my favorites, it's one that I do have a soft spot for. It's one of those that's just bonkers (unsurprising, considering how Carpenter was allegedly drunk as a skunk when he wrote the script for the movie) and I am okay with that. I think that Jack Martin did a decent job with the way he wrote this and I especially enjoyed his characterization of Dr. Loomis. I do, however, dislike his characterization of Laurie and cannot stand how he handled the angle of her having memories about being related to Michael and being adopted. It got to a point of being overdramatic, and was the worst part of the book for me.
Halloween II is one of those movies that while I've seen it and it's not anywhere up in my favorites, it's one that I do have a soft spot for. It's one of those that's just bonkers (unsurprising, considering how Carpenter was allegedly drunk as a skunk when he wrote the script for the movie) and I am okay with that. I think that Jack Martin did a decent job with the way he wrote this and I especially enjoyed his characterization of Dr. Loomis. I do, however, dislike his characterization of Laurie and cannot stand how he handled the angle of her having memories about being related to Michael and being adopted. It got to a point of being overdramatic, and was the worst part of the book for me.
shane's review
4.0
Very good novelisation, if a little over-the-top with Laurie's thought processes at times. Jack Martin(Dennis Etchison) is very good at the 'show, don't tell' bit.
Enjoyed it very much.
Enjoyed it very much.
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