ngallegos87's review
5.0
Started out a little slow but when it picked up steam, yes! Loved the links between Vasquez, Vickers, and Yutani and Castro perfectly described the horror of the Xenomorphs. Made my skin crawl. A must read for anyone who is a fan of the Alien series.
gingerreader99's review
4.0
This was completely not at all what I was expecting. I am not sure what I expected but I certainly didn't think I would get something so culturally rich, filled with dark machinations and a kick-ass Aliens sequence across the finale of the novel to appeal to my love for the Aliens movie.
Perhaps I should have known there would be Weyland-Yutani shenanigans (that's a light way of putting it) going on in the background but I more so expected there to be a lot more of the Marine bad assery, death and blood.
I think overall I'm just glad this novel really broke down my expectations of what an Aliens novel can be and I hope in the future this author or others write stories like this one that come with action but also substance.
Perhaps I should have known there would be Weyland-Yutani shenanigans (that's a light way of putting it) going on in the background but I more so expected there to be a lot more of the Marine bad assery, death and blood.
I think overall I'm just glad this novel really broke down my expectations of what an Aliens novel can be and I hope in the future this author or others write stories like this one that come with action but also substance.
alehahandrita's review
adventurous
dark
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
3.25
kingjason's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.0
I'm a big fan of the Alien movies and one of my favourite characters was Vasquez, she seemed so small but man she was hard as nails and the way she stood up to the big macho guys like Hudson always made me smile. V. Castro is one of my favourite authors and when I saw she had written this book I said "Hell yeah I'm reading this!" It doesn't disappoint, it kicks ass as much as you'd expect from Vasquez.
Castro does a great job creating this history for Vasquez, from a teen full of swagger and attitude, to ending up in trouble and joining the marines to become the fighting machine she was destined to be. The setting for this future is very similar to what it is today, the treatment and reduced rights of those who don't have money and power is hard hitting and Castro uses all this to give her characters that extra level of strength. Inevitably Vasquez's story comes to an end, I was disappointed by this, I don't know why as having seen the movie I knew what was coming but was still hoping deep down that Castro would find a way to save her....alas she didn't and the book then follows her children as they continue the Vasquez name.
It is now that the book really comes to life, we have dumbass humans carrying out experiments on the aliens/Xenomorphs, ignoring all sensible warnings as it all comes undone. The scenes with the Xenomorphs were spot on, so easy to picture them and their rage at what the humans were doing to them and knowing it was only a matter of time before they got their chance. The final 50 pages or so just whizzed by, such superb writing it was as if I was actually watching the scenes unfold, proper on the edge of your seat storytelling. Loved it. One of my favourite parts of this book was how Castro has stayed on course with the movies, there are so many little easter eggs to find and this made me aware of just how vast these movies were, something you don't experience from watching the movies.
If you're a fan of the movie franchise then give this book a go but be warned as Titan books have a lot of books in this series needing to be read. I'm off now to re-watch Aliens...no idea why haha.
Castro does a great job creating this history for Vasquez, from a teen full of swagger and attitude, to ending up in trouble and joining the marines to become the fighting machine she was destined to be. The setting for this future is very similar to what it is today, the treatment and reduced rights of those who don't have money and power is hard hitting and Castro uses all this to give her characters that extra level of strength. Inevitably Vasquez's story comes to an end, I was disappointed by this, I don't know why as having seen the movie I knew what was coming but was still hoping deep down that Castro would find a way to save her....alas she didn't and the book then follows her children as they continue the Vasquez name.
It is now that the book really comes to life, we have dumbass humans carrying out experiments on the aliens/Xenomorphs, ignoring all sensible warnings as it all comes undone. The scenes with the Xenomorphs were spot on, so easy to picture them and their rage at what the humans were doing to them and knowing it was only a matter of time before they got their chance. The final 50 pages or so just whizzed by, such superb writing it was as if I was actually watching the scenes unfold, proper on the edge of your seat storytelling. Loved it. One of my favourite parts of this book was how Castro has stayed on course with the movies, there are so many little easter eggs to find and this made me aware of just how vast these movies were, something you don't experience from watching the movies.
If you're a fan of the movie franchise then give this book a go but be warned as Titan books have a lot of books in this series needing to be read. I'm off now to re-watch Aliens...no idea why haha.
itcamefromthepage's review
4.0
This is for the most part an extremely strong book. This is actually my first V. Castro book but it will by no means be my last.
We get some outstanding background to the life of Vasquez in the first 80 pages of this book and it really makes a strong character study. In the film Aliens the character is written by a white man and portrayed by a woman in brownface, as such Castro manages to transform a caricature into a fully fleshed out character.
Once we get into the life of her kids it gets even better. Castro delves into the Alien universe in a deeper, more compelling way than the usual snapshots we get. It reminded me a lot of one of my favourite Alien books 'Alien: Covenant - Origins' which delved into the universe in such a rich way without having a single Alien in it.
Therein lies the problem with the last 60 pages, this feels like two books shoved together with an entire typical Alien story crammed into the last portion of the book. We didn't need the Xenomorphs to really appear at all in this story and while there are a few cool portions of action, it all starts to feel super rushed.
Make no mistake I LOVE the vast majority of this book, it's just a shame at how rushed the finale feels.
We get some outstanding background to the life of Vasquez in the first 80 pages of this book and it really makes a strong character study. In the film Aliens the character is written by a white man and portrayed by a woman in brownface, as such Castro manages to transform a caricature into a fully fleshed out character.
Once we get into the life of her kids it gets even better. Castro delves into the Alien universe in a deeper, more compelling way than the usual snapshots we get. It reminded me a lot of one of my favourite Alien books 'Alien: Covenant - Origins' which delved into the universe in such a rich way without having a single Alien in it.
Therein lies the problem with the last 60 pages, this feels like two books shoved together with an entire typical Alien story crammed into the last portion of the book. We didn't need the Xenomorphs to really appear at all in this story and while there are a few cool portions of action, it all starts to feel super rushed.
Make no mistake I LOVE the vast majority of this book, it's just a shame at how rushed the finale feels.
dankolar's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
tense
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.5
poisoned_icecream's review against another edition
adventurous
reflective
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
monagle's review
adventurous
dark
mysterious
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.5
It took me a moment to get into this one - the first few chapters are a retelling of the life of the original Vasquez character from James Cameron's Aliens, and with any novelization of a movie character, it can read a little bit like fan-fiction. But Castro quickly uses this as a jumping-off point for two new characters - Vasquez's children, who carry the weight of both her mysterious death and a legacy of family military history that dates back centuries. From there, the book really hits its stride, and we are treated to another blue collar soldier story that makes the Aliens universe so much fun.
inky_cap's review
adventurous
dark
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