3.5
Alien: Isolation
ByPublisher Description
The action-packed official adaptation of Alien: Isolation and a revealing look into the lives of Ellen Ripley and her daughter, Amanda Ripley.
THE OFFICIAL VIDEO GAME ADAPTATION--AND MUCH MORE!
From birth, Amanda Ripley's life is riddled with hardship. Her parents live on the edge of poverty, so her mother--Ellen Ripley--seeks off-world contracts that lead to a position aboard the commercial hauler Nostromo. Then when the deep-space vessel disappears, Amanda passes into adulthood focused on discovering one thing.
WHAT HAPPENED TO ELLEN RIPLEY?
Amanda's quest pulls her into the underbelly of society, where few can be trusted. On Luna she meets someone who seems the exception--Private Zula Hendricks of the Colonial Marines but their relationship is short-lived. Just as Amanda appears to hit rock bottom... a lead appears.
To follow it, she must travel to the remote Sevastopol Station. There she hopes to find the answers she seeks. But the station is in ruins, and death stalks the corridors in the form of a deadly alien the likes of which she never could have imagined.
THE OFFICIAL VIDEO GAME ADAPTATION--AND MUCH MORE!
From birth, Amanda Ripley's life is riddled with hardship. Her parents live on the edge of poverty, so her mother--Ellen Ripley--seeks off-world contracts that lead to a position aboard the commercial hauler Nostromo. Then when the deep-space vessel disappears, Amanda passes into adulthood focused on discovering one thing.
WHAT HAPPENED TO ELLEN RIPLEY?
Amanda's quest pulls her into the underbelly of society, where few can be trusted. On Luna she meets someone who seems the exception--Private Zula Hendricks of the Colonial Marines but their relationship is short-lived. Just as Amanda appears to hit rock bottom... a lead appears.
To follow it, she must travel to the remote Sevastopol Station. There she hopes to find the answers she seeks. But the station is in ruins, and death stalks the corridors in the form of a deadly alien the likes of which she never could have imagined.
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Meet readers like you in the Fable For You feed, designed to build bookish communitiesAlien: Isolation Reviews
3.5
“I enjoyed it, but it felt like something was missing. Was intresting to read after playing the game”
“Alien:Isolation was decent overall, very good in parts.
It reads like a novelization of a video game, primarily because this book is a novelization of a video game. But it really leans into it.
Many sections of the book are simply narrative versions of various fetch quests: head to the breaker room and restore power. Go to the clinic and get a first aid kit. Find the main reactor and initiate the purge.
I could’ve sworn I saw a phantom XBOX controller appear in front of me as I progressed chapter to chapter.
I haven’t played the video game, but after reading the book I feel like I have. The good news is that based on my reading, the game must be fun as hell.
Lots of action, an engaging story, and elements of the established “Alien” franchise woven in cleverly enough to be rad without be too “fan servicey.”
The “video game” feeling isn’t too much of a knock against the book overall, there are just places where it’s very obvious and unfortunately sucked me out of the story.
The place where the book really shines is in the backstory flashbacks. I’m not sure if those parts were adapted from the game or if they were original additions by the author.
Either way, I found the flashbacks deep, immersive, and well-written. Without giving spoilers, I found the flashbacks a perfect bridge between the nostalgia and familiarity of the original Alien film and the narrative action of the “present tense” setting of the book’s story.
Plot: great. Character(s): great.
The main character is a little on the trope-y side, leaning hard into that beloved Sci-Fi stereotype of the main character’s motivation being driven by mommy or daddy issues.
Again, not a huge knock against this book, and the main character of Ripley finds herself in the good company of Luke Skywalker, Anakin Skywalker, Spock, Data, Worf, Eleven, Kylo Ren, and nearly every primary character from the Mass Effect series.
When done well, this type of trope isn’t a barrier to enjoying the material, and the author succeeds well enough here.
Overall, this is a good, well-constructed and well-written novel. Worth the read or listen.
Now I need to see about picking up a copy of the video game to torch some aliens.
Spoiler alert: there’s a flamethrower.”
About Keith R.A. DeCandido
Author of popular Supernatural tie-ins Bone Key and Nevermore, international bestselling writer Keith R.A. DeCandido was born, raised, educated, and still lives in the Bronx. Keith has published over thirty novels, most of them in the realm of media tie-ins. Several of his Star Trek novels have hit the USA Today bestseller list, and received critical acclaim from all over the map, both online and in print. He has also written in the worlds of Blizzard Games, Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Command and Conquer, CSI, Doctor Who, Farscape, Gene Roddenberry's Andromeda, Marvel Comics, Young Hercules, and many more.
Other books by Keith R.A. DeCandido
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