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annashiv's review
2.0
Disappointing. I don't think an editor went over it at all. It was lazy writing, or at the very least odd word choices were made, and it was often repetitive, probably to reach some word count. And we're supposed to believe Bruce is 14 when the show picks up? I don't think so.
lordroose's review
challenging
dark
emotional
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
mischiefphantom's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.75
almostlikequake's review
adventurous
dark
emotional
funny
mysterious
sad
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
_egg_wash's review against another edition
2.0
This book is a novel based on the television series "Gotham", which is a re-interpretation of Batman's childhood. This novel doesn't tell the story of Bruce Wayne as it's a prequel to the series, so the book ends where the first episode of season one begins.
I am a huge fan of the series so was delighted when I found this book in my local library, but the delight was short lived.
The good:
This reminds you of past events of you haven't watched the show in a long time. It has some brief mentions of some characters (e.g. Jerome, Cobblepot, etc.) that you wouldn't expect to encounter.
The bad:
The story was boring and predictable. If you have watched Gotham then you already know almost everything that's going to happen, anything you don't know is just filler and is not important.
Every female character was written in the same way - great body, really sexy, delicious hips, etc. and with a completely crazy personality, so there was no variation between the "slutty" news reporter, Harvey Bullock's partner, Fish Mooney, or Martha Wayne.
The editing was terrible. Some sentences made no sense whatsoever, the grammar was sloppy at parts (confusing who and whom, ending sentences in a preposition, etc.).
Some of the characters don't keep to their characters, and there are other inconsistencies. For example, Bruce Wayne was very well written throughout the book only to then comment on how he thought the movie was "kinda lame" at the very end. This is not the way he speaks. He is very well spoken and eloquent for the first 99% of the book, there is no other occurrence of him speaking like this and no reason for him to do so. Leslie Thomkins is mentioned in the book briefly and is called a psychiatrist, in the series she works in Arkham Asylum but she is a medical doctor in the female ward, not any sort of therapist. In the series all of the mobile phones are old chunky phones as it is set in the mid-90's or so (a year is never specified), in the novel people use smart phones despite it being set before the series.
I give this book 2/5 stars as I didn't give up on it, but I would not recommend it to anyone. If you're a fan of the show you are not missing anything by not reading this.
I am a huge fan of the series so was delighted when I found this book in my local library, but the delight was short lived.
The good:
This reminds you of past events of you haven't watched the show in a long time. It has some brief mentions of some characters (e.g. Jerome, Cobblepot, etc.) that you wouldn't expect to encounter.
The bad:
The story was boring and predictable. If you have watched Gotham then you already know almost everything that's going to happen, anything you don't know is just filler and is not important.
Every female character was written in the same way - great body, really sexy, delicious hips, etc. and with a completely crazy personality, so there was no variation between the "slutty" news reporter, Harvey Bullock's partner, Fish Mooney, or Martha Wayne.
The editing was terrible. Some sentences made no sense whatsoever, the grammar was sloppy at parts (confusing who and whom, ending sentences in a preposition, etc.).
Some of the characters don't keep to their characters, and there are other inconsistencies. For example, Bruce Wayne was very well written throughout the book only to then comment on how he thought the movie was "kinda lame" at the very end. This is not the way he speaks. He is very well spoken and eloquent for the first 99% of the book, there is no other occurrence of him speaking like this and no reason for him to do so. Leslie Thomkins is mentioned in the book briefly and is called a psychiatrist, in the series she works in Arkham Asylum but she is a medical doctor in the female ward, not any sort of therapist. In the series all of the mobile phones are old chunky phones as it is set in the mid-90's or so (a year is never specified), in the novel people use smart phones despite it being set before the series.
I give this book 2/5 stars as I didn't give up on it, but I would not recommend it to anyone. If you're a fan of the show you are not missing anything by not reading this.
phantompansy's review
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.75
amothersmusings1's review
5.0
I've been an avid fan of Batman now since the early 1970's with the TV series starring Adam West (I'm showing my age here) and absolutely love the more recent fantastic, dark and twisted 'Gotham'. When I found out there was a book "Gotham - Dawn of Darkness" written by Jason Starr and is the official prelude based on this latest TV series then I just had to read it.
As soon as you start reading this straight away you can hear the voices of the fantastic actors in the show - it's impossible not to - but for me this seriously adds to the reading enjoyment. It's like reading but watching the story unfold in your head with such clarity and imagery. The author has captured these characters spot on perfect - my favourite Harvey Bullock is just first class - a laid back, womanising mans man with classic banter. Another character that is written perfect is the Wayne's butler Alfred whose British mannerisms are just brilliant.
All the regular characters are here, Bruce, Nygma, Cobblepot, Fish, Hugo Strange.........all adding to an exciting and thrilling book. 5 huge stars!!
If you haven't watched the series this is still an outstanding book to read, easy to follow - I mean who doesn't know the Batman story? - an excellent storyline that keeps you hooked from the first page which is fast-paced, highly riveting and a absolute page turner. Like I mentioned this is the prelude to the series so you learn more about young Bruce, his parents, Wayne Enterprises and events running directly up to and including Thomas and Martha's murder.
Jason Starr is a very talented and imaginative writer and for Gotham/Batman fans this is the ultimate read! Highly recommended, this a huge 5 star book for me!!!
As soon as you start reading this straight away you can hear the voices of the fantastic actors in the show - it's impossible not to - but for me this seriously adds to the reading enjoyment. It's like reading but watching the story unfold in your head with such clarity and imagery. The author has captured these characters spot on perfect - my favourite Harvey Bullock is just first class - a laid back, womanising mans man with classic banter. Another character that is written perfect is the Wayne's butler Alfred whose British mannerisms are just brilliant.
All the regular characters are here, Bruce, Nygma, Cobblepot, Fish, Hugo Strange.........all adding to an exciting and thrilling book. 5 huge stars!!
If you haven't watched the series this is still an outstanding book to read, easy to follow - I mean who doesn't know the Batman story? - an excellent storyline that keeps you hooked from the first page which is fast-paced, highly riveting and a absolute page turner. Like I mentioned this is the prelude to the series so you learn more about young Bruce, his parents, Wayne Enterprises and events running directly up to and including Thomas and Martha's murder.
Jason Starr is a very talented and imaginative writer and for Gotham/Batman fans this is the ultimate read! Highly recommended, this a huge 5 star book for me!!!
theteenidol's review
4.0
I enjoyed all the Easter eggs, nods to the comics, and cameos from the characters on the show. However, I feel like this book would work better purely as a mystery/crime novel set outside the Gotham universe.
The characters were well written and sounded like the would in the show, but some of the dialogue seemed forced and repetitive. Some of the subplots get resolved with little to no consequence to the greater plot of the novel.
With that said, it was a fun read. My first couple sessions I read a few small chunks, but when I started to get into the heart of the book I couldn't put it down.
The characters were well written and sounded like the would in the show, but some of the dialogue seemed forced and repetitive. Some of the subplots get resolved with little to no consequence to the greater plot of the novel.
With that said, it was a fun read. My first couple sessions I read a few small chunks, but when I started to get into the heart of the book I couldn't put it down.
light_prophecy_28416's review
3.0
I found that I enjoyed this book most when read in large doses. If I committed myself at least half an hour to this book, I really got absorbed in the story and the characters but anything less than that and I found myself not really caring most of the time. This is a shame as certain characters, like Harvey, are loveable all of the time, then you get a POV chapter from someone like Thomas Wayne who, on his own, is incredible dreary and monotonous. This novel had to lose 1 star from me for that. A good story should not only make you want to read more, but should make you want to read more even if you only had time to read 1 chapter the night before.
I also had to drop a star for the bad editing. I don't know if this is just my edition of the book or if this is a recurring problem, but characters would quite often have their names changed mid-sentence (e.g. Jake would suddenly become Jack) and odd words would appear in the middle of sentences where they shouldn't have been. It also always seemed to happen at a really exciting time in the book, causing me to completely lose the narrative and flow of the story so I struggled to wrap my mind around what was going on.
I really wanted to love this novel as I am such a huge fan of the TV show and, for the most part, I did really enjoy it. There were just parts where it didn't really flow properly or I would read a page 3 times and not take a lot of it in because it felt so similar to something I read 20 pages before. There were times when the writing felt quite amateurish. Overall, 3 out of 5 stars for an enjoyable storyline (when a good chunk of it is read in a single sitting) and a very intriguing concept regarding the lead-up to Thomas and Martha Wayne's murders.
I also had to drop a star for the bad editing. I don't know if this is just my edition of the book or if this is a recurring problem, but characters would quite often have their names changed mid-sentence (e.g. Jake would suddenly become Jack) and odd words would appear in the middle of sentences where they shouldn't have been. It also always seemed to happen at a really exciting time in the book, causing me to completely lose the narrative and flow of the story so I struggled to wrap my mind around what was going on.
I really wanted to love this novel as I am such a huge fan of the TV show and, for the most part, I did really enjoy it. There were just parts where it didn't really flow properly or I would read a page 3 times and not take a lot of it in because it felt so similar to something I read 20 pages before. There were times when the writing felt quite amateurish. Overall, 3 out of 5 stars for an enjoyable storyline (when a good chunk of it is read in a single sitting) and a very intriguing concept regarding the lead-up to Thomas and Martha Wayne's murders.
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