oakes's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
pjonsson's review
3.0
Alex Hunter is back. I definitely like it better when Alex is part of the HAWC team instead of being on the run. Well, as you might guess from the book blurb the book starts of while he is still on the run but he is quickly brought back. At the same time a treasure hunter releases what is to be the main subject of the books story.
In general the book starts of fairly well. There are plenty of wtf/wow moments when then monster ravages the countryside on its way to its destination. The re-integration of Alex into the HAWC’s and the subsequent visits to the HAWC equipment lab is quite enjoyable reading as well. Borshov the Beast makes a re-appearance as well which, as usual, results in a fair amount of action and rather sadistic violence. In my opinion Borshov has outstayed his welcome in these books. It is beginning to get a bit tiresome having this jerk screwing up things for Alex all the time.
So far so god. Unfortunately it kind of goes downhill the further into the book we come. The characters are as good as always, so are the action. It is the scientific aspect that irks me. I am sure a lot of people do not agree or do not care but the author tries to put a scientific spin on the monster that Alex & Co are facing and, quite frankly, I would have been happier if he had stayed with something purely mythological and supernatural. Such things simply do not have to be explained.
Be warned that there are spoilers ahead!
The monster can, obviously, turn people into stone, or some calcified stone like substance. Fair enough. But by looking at an electronic transmission of the monster? Sorry, that is just to far-fetched for me. I was waiting to get some scientific explanation to this but none was really delivered.
Then we have the final, and not so surprising since it was pretty clear fairly early where the author was going, moments where they discover that they are really dealing with aliens. They discover a spaceship, the greatest scientific discovery since fire, and they simply decide to blow it up. What the f…? That is the kind of rubbish that you expect to find in a TV-show or a crappy SyFy horror movie.
If another Alex Hunter book comes out I will probably get it because they are reasonably fun entertainment but this one was far from the best one in the series.
In general the book starts of fairly well. There are plenty of wtf/wow moments when then monster ravages the countryside on its way to its destination. The re-integration of Alex into the HAWC’s and the subsequent visits to the HAWC equipment lab is quite enjoyable reading as well. Borshov the Beast makes a re-appearance as well which, as usual, results in a fair amount of action and rather sadistic violence. In my opinion Borshov has outstayed his welcome in these books. It is beginning to get a bit tiresome having this jerk screwing up things for Alex all the time.
So far so god. Unfortunately it kind of goes downhill the further into the book we come. The characters are as good as always, so are the action. It is the scientific aspect that irks me. I am sure a lot of people do not agree or do not care but the author tries to put a scientific spin on the monster that Alex & Co are facing and, quite frankly, I would have been happier if he had stayed with something purely mythological and supernatural. Such things simply do not have to be explained.
Be warned that there are spoilers ahead!
The monster can, obviously, turn people into stone, or some calcified stone like substance. Fair enough. But by looking at an electronic transmission of the monster? Sorry, that is just to far-fetched for me. I was waiting to get some scientific explanation to this but none was really delivered.
Then we have the final, and not so surprising since it was pretty clear fairly early where the author was going, moments where they discover that they are really dealing with aliens. They discover a spaceship, the greatest scientific discovery since fire, and they simply decide to blow it up. What the f…? That is the kind of rubbish that you expect to find in a TV-show or a crappy SyFy horror movie.
If another Alex Hunter book comes out I will probably get it because they are reasonably fun entertainment but this one was far from the best one in the series.
renila's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
imzadirose's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyable again. Good story and no crappy characters and as a bonus, fit perfectly into a challenge I did, so yay for that. :)
bethwhite's review
3.0
I will preface this review by saying the Alex Hunter series is fast becoming one of my favourite book series which is high praise. For the character development and getting to continue following Alex’s journey and that of his colleagues and friends I will be giving this book a 3 star review. None of that was lost in this continuation of his story. Unfortunately the overall mission that this was wrapped around was unbelievable at best and groan worthy at worst.
You might be surprised to learn that the reason for the unbelievability of this story did not lie in the fact that we are talking about the Gorgon myth. In fact I could deal with that part. Greig Beck is a genius in writing about mythological beings and far fetched ideas and aligning them with science and fact to make the reader think “ok, maybe!” Which is part of what makes his books so enjoyable. The believability of this does, however, depend on the surrounding scenarios around the unbelievable that we are being asked to believe being in themselves true to reality. Unfortunately this addition to the Alex Hunter series fails to do that. Where over 50% of the book is spent watching people turned to stone in a way totally unexplainable and that it seems to happen when people look upon the creature that has been unleashed from a 5000 year old prison by an architect/treasure hunter…even without the book title I doubt many people would be able to avoid mentioning Medusa or the Gorgons…even in joke? So the fact that this isn’t even raised as a possibility for such a long time meant that my brain disengaged, despite the heavy action of the book, and meant by the time things got back to the usual brilliance I expect from Greig Beck I was honestly a bit too far gone down the boredom route.
I feel so sad to write that and as I said in my first sentence of this review I still love the Alex Hunter series and will for sure be continuing despite the slight disappointment of this novel.
You might be surprised to learn that the reason for the unbelievability of this story did not lie in the fact that we are talking about the Gorgon myth. In fact I could deal with that part. Greig Beck is a genius in writing about mythological beings and far fetched ideas and aligning them with science and fact to make the reader think “ok, maybe!” Which is part of what makes his books so enjoyable. The believability of this does, however, depend on the surrounding scenarios around the unbelievable that we are being asked to believe being in themselves true to reality. Unfortunately this addition to the Alex Hunter series fails to do that. Where over 50% of the book is spent watching people turned to stone in a way totally unexplainable and that it seems to happen when people look upon the creature that has been unleashed from a 5000 year old prison by an architect/treasure hunter…even without the book title I doubt many people would be able to avoid mentioning Medusa or the Gorgons…even in joke? So the fact that this isn’t even raised as a possibility for such a long time meant that my brain disengaged, despite the heavy action of the book, and meant by the time things got back to the usual brilliance I expect from Greig Beck I was honestly a bit too far gone down the boredom route.
I feel so sad to write that and as I said in my first sentence of this review I still love the Alex Hunter series and will for sure be continuing despite the slight disappointment of this novel.
melsbookshelf's review against another edition
4.0
I must admit, the Alex Hunter series is fast becoming one of my favourite series of all time, absolutely my favourite adventure/action series. I love the characters, I love the story and I LOVE the narrator of the audio versions Sean Mangan! Even though it wasn’t my favourite of the series so far, I still enjoyed the action-packed Gorgon!
Alex Hunter is back… He has had enough of wandering the country, and contacts Jack, who convinces him to come back to work for the Hawc’s. Meanwhile over in Istanbul, a creature that was hidden in an ancient chamber has escaped and is turning thousands of people to stone. What is this creature? And how can the Hawc’s stop it before it reaches a NATO base?
Like any Alex Hunter book, it was filled with action from start to finish. Beck takes you on a wild ride with each novel and it doesn’t let up until the very last word. This was probably more action packed than the last few novels actually, and that’s saying something. However I felt it was all action and I missed Aimee, I missed Adira, and I missed a bit of the whole romantic/sexual attraction element from the previous novels. Although I love the twist in the story that we find out right at the beginning…
However, nobody can say that Gorgon wasn’t exciting! Action packed. I also LOVED the subtle teasing about where the story is going to go next…? Perhaps bringing Aimee and her family back into it in future novels. I know its not over!!!
I enjoyed that the Hawc’s were back together. I enjoy Sam and Casey’s adventures, and I love that Sam is up and running again!
I loved the audio version of Gorgon. As always, Mangan does a fantastic job narrating. Nobody else could portray Alex Hunter as well as he does. I have enjoyed listening to his narration of this whole series.
Would I recommend Gorgon?
Absolutely! Action, adventure, thrills, violence, mystery, blood, guts, gore, creatures, aliens… What more do you need in a book?
However, I absolutely advise you read the earlier books. Even though this one can be read as a stand alone, you will miss a lot of the story, characters and feel of the story without reading the previous ones.
For more reviews visit my blog
www.booksbabiesbeing.com
Twitter
www.twitter.com/BBB_Mel
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/booksbabiesbeing
Alex Hunter is back… He has had enough of wandering the country, and contacts Jack, who convinces him to come back to work for the Hawc’s. Meanwhile over in Istanbul, a creature that was hidden in an ancient chamber has escaped and is turning thousands of people to stone. What is this creature? And how can the Hawc’s stop it before it reaches a NATO base?
Like any Alex Hunter book, it was filled with action from start to finish. Beck takes you on a wild ride with each novel and it doesn’t let up until the very last word. This was probably more action packed than the last few novels actually, and that’s saying something. However I felt it was all action and I missed Aimee, I missed Adira, and I missed a bit of the whole romantic/sexual attraction element from the previous novels. Although I love the twist in the story that we find out right at the beginning…
However, nobody can say that Gorgon wasn’t exciting! Action packed. I also LOVED the subtle teasing about where the story is going to go next…? Perhaps bringing Aimee and her family back into it in future novels. I know its not over!!!
I enjoyed that the Hawc’s were back together. I enjoy Sam and Casey’s adventures, and I love that Sam is up and running again!
I loved the audio version of Gorgon. As always, Mangan does a fantastic job narrating. Nobody else could portray Alex Hunter as well as he does. I have enjoyed listening to his narration of this whole series.
Would I recommend Gorgon?
Absolutely! Action, adventure, thrills, violence, mystery, blood, guts, gore, creatures, aliens… What more do you need in a book?
However, I absolutely advise you read the earlier books. Even though this one can be read as a stand alone, you will miss a lot of the story, characters and feel of the story without reading the previous ones.
For more reviews visit my blog
www.booksbabiesbeing.com
www.twitter.com/BBB_Mel
Facebook:
www.facebook.com/booksbabiesbeing
imzadirose's review against another edition
4.0
Enjoyable again. Good story and no crappy characters and as a bonus, fit perfectly into a challenge I did, so yay for that. :)
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