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Title:
Skin Game Author:
Max Allan Collins Hardback: 272 pages Publisher: Del Rey
(February 2003) Amazon: Instant Look Up Appraising Eyeballs: |
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Title:
After the Dark Author:
Max Allan Collins Hardback: 272 pages Publisher: Del Rey
(June 2003) Amazon: Instant Look Up Appraising Eyeballs: |
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About Skin Game: Someone is killing normal humans in the fog-enshrouded city of As the killings escalate, Joshua comes to Max with a dire
suspicion: the killer may be one of their own. Tensions are high
between normal humans and transgenics, and many
inside the protected City would just as soon let the humans fend for
themselves. Yet Max and her inner circle know they must investigate the
crimes and stop the bloodshed. Doing nothing would simply give the normals more reasons to hate. But what they discover will shock even the most jaded among
them—and expose a sinister agenda that leads to an old, nefarious foe.... |
About After the Dark: In a chaotic world where the lines between good and evil often
blur, and violent anarchy and brutal repression become commonplace, secrets
can be deadly. So when Max discovers a shattering truth that Yet when But the search will also lead her into wholly unexpected
territory. Locked in the fight of her life, Max will discover a captive
of the cult who can provide her with the one thing that has haunted her ever
since she escaped from Manticore.... |
Bruce’s Appraisal: The
strongest element of this novel is the way it picks up with the ending of the
Dark Angel series finale. The initial set up provides a near-complete
written edition of the finale’s last scenes, so replete with detail that
those who watched the series may find it redundant. Nevertheless, those who read the story,
especially now that the series has been off the air for so long, will not
have any difficulty following Max and her transgenic friends into the heart
of the action. This
book and its sequel served as my introduction to Max Allan Collins, and I
have to admit that I liked what I found.
His style is direct and straightforward, giving enough details to seed
the story with clues, but making a puzzle with enough pieces that it cannot be
fitted together easily. In particular
the climax left me stunned. With five
pages to go, I was wondering how Collins could wrap up the whole novel, and
in the last paragraphs my jaw hit the floor, hard. Collins
nails the characters’ mannerisms and dialogue, providing a wonderful treat to
fans of the series. I could easily
hear Jessica Alba, Jensen Ackles, and Michael Weatherly
delivering the lines in my imagination.
The unique diction and pacing of Dark
Angel comes across clearly and without missing a beat. Possibly more impressively, even Joshua’s
character makes the transition from screen to paperback. If
there is a fault with Skin Game, it
lies within the lean style of the prose.
For a world so infused with nuance and multiple storylines, the
setting of Dark Angel screams for a
novel twice as long, full of anecdotes, sidebars, and subplots. In Skin
Game, there is strictly only what is necessary, nothing more. While a strength of Collins’ style, the
many ongoing relationships surrounding Max and Logan could have benefited
from more attention and development. Dark Angel didn’t get its third
season, but this novel provides the premier that never made it onto
television. From the “Previously on Dark Angel” prologue to the brief
glimpses of every character that would be revisited as the season continued, Skin Game gives a solid episode, even
a two-parter.
It’s interesting, and precise in terms of which plots are
advanced. For those looking for
closure more than that brought in the series finale, this book is not the
answer. It does, however, flow
smoothly into the second volume, which brings closure aplenty. Quite good. |
Bruce’s Appraisal: As the third volume in a trilogy, After the Dark does not work without Skin Game.
I gave the first book in the series (Before the Dawn) a pass, and was gratified by the synopsis
delivered early on in this story. The
events in that first book are integral to the story told in After the Dark, but everything the
reader needs to enjoy the latter book is included. Again, Collins’ style delivers
exactly what is necessary to continue to the plot, weaving the pieces of a
masterfully arranged puzzle so that the end picture is elusively just beyond
the reader’s grasp until the time is right for everything to fall
together. In After the Dark the story returns to one of my least favorite
themes of the series. Logan is taken
away and Max must go get him. Fortunately, the getting bears the
characteristic flare of every other rescue operation mounted in Dark Angel, complete with comedic
banter, tense escapes, even more tense twists and the possibility for
ultimate victory held tantalizingly close…yet always one chapter away. The character of Alec shines in
this episode, and Max gets more screen time, as well. Whereas her role was nearly that of a
secondary character in Skin Game, she
is once again the star of the series in this third and final
installment. Her own wit and sometimes
bitingly frank view of events around her amuse as they amaze. Even though Jessica Alba never uttered a
line of this dialogue, nor read a piece of voice over, my ears heard her
delivery of nearly every line.
Likewise with the other characters, and a line from Alec in the
culminating chapter forced me to close the book and laugh out loud,
envisioning Jensen Ackles shouting back and forth
to Jessica Alba as the world listed towards hell underfoot. This book promises closure, and it
delivers. Fans of the series ought to
walk away wearing a satisfied smile.
Folks looking for a neat end to the series, though, may be just a tad
disappointed. An old loose end is
brought to the fore once again, and while I thoroughly enjoyed it, there was
a small part of me bemoaning the fact that the stories hinted at would never
be pursued. For better or worse, this
is likely the end of Dark Angel. It is a glorious end to a dream
that—like most good dreams—could not have lasted long enough. Delightful. |