PrevPrev Go to previous topic
NextNext Go to next topic
Last Post 3/1/2014 11:41 PM by  twinsrule26
Deathlands 114 -Siren Song
 26 Replies
Sort:
You are not authorized to post a reply.
Page 1 of 212 > >>
Author Messages
Ron Miles
Website Owner
Commander In Chief
Commander In Chief
Posts:864


--
7/1/2013 7:05 AM

    This is the official thread for comments on Deathlands #114- Siren Song

    The bibliography page is located HERE

    You can submit your own review HERE

    Be warned, this thread may contain spoilers for the book.

    "Sadly then I knew the answer. All her life she was a dancer, but no one ever played the song she knew." - The Residents
    silentalbino
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:742


    --
    1/24/2014 7:39 AM
    ===++++++Spoiler Alert++++++=========
    My copy has finally turned up. One thing that is bothering me though is why they didn't just send the bomb through the Mat Trans.
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    1/24/2014 9:54 AM
    There were problems in this book starting from the 1st chapter. The author had yet another good concept, with his heart in the right area, but just didn't work for me.
    )3az )3aziah
    British Bloke
    Veteran Member
    Veteran Member
    Posts:1060


    --
    1/31/2014 5:59 PM
    ************** SPOILERS *********************










    Again I'm struggling to read this one, it just hasn't grabbed me like some of the recent other books have.

    Why is J.B's shotgun described as being "open" as he hasn't had time to reload (p16) Its a pump action not a break action gun.

    Ricky's De Lisle is said to boom with each shot (p17) Its a weapon designed from the outset to be silent, you cant remove the silencer its an integral part of the rifle.

    The whole bomb in the Mat Trans is just plain stupid and goes against all we know of how they work. If the door was opened to place the bomb and then closed afterwards then the jump cycle would have been initiated and the bomb transported to another gateway. If the door was left open to avoid this then the gateway would not have received the group and they would have been shunted to another gateway. Simply exiting the gateway and closing the door would have started another cycle and the bomb would have been sent elsewhere. Anyway you look at this it would fail and just shows a lack of background knowledge on the part of the writer and, more so, the editors who should have picked up this error and never allowed it to get into print.

    This one is going to have to pick up real quick or become yet another DL where I skip 90% of it and go direct to the final chapter after 70 or so pages.

    Jim
    ===============================
    Billy Fish: He wants to know if we are gods.
    Peachy Carnehan: Not gods - Englishmen. The next best thing.


    Please check out my FLICKR photos
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/1/2014 8:45 AM

    Can't agree with you more Jim.

     All valid points, and I have numerous other reasons to add on to that for my dislike of this latest DL fare.

    I don't wanna read a DL book where Krysty is reduced to babysitting and Ryan is now a house builder. How would a baron's son turned DL warrior learn to all the sudden build quality homes?

    DL fans don't want mundane, we want blazing action with solid stories of travels to new and interesting environments. Beekeeping? How is that interesting in a world chock-full of much more mutated strains of beings, or creepy bioweps that have been either already introduced, or waiting to be created by an awesome writer.

    I feel that this Rik Hoskin, although trying his best, with his heart in the right place, just is not suited for this genre. He has proven to be a good writer at times, but it seems his writing - in both series - seems rushed and not well thought out. Maybe not writing so many books at a time would help? Maybe that is what makes Helfers and Rogers' books that much more superior. They don't throw out just anything to be published. Hoskin needs to pay attention to detail. Perhaps slow down a bit, cultivate that awesome story that I know he is more than capable to write.

    And don't become a Andy Boot or one of those other writers of the past we have all lambasted.

    )3az )3aziah
    British Bloke
    Veteran Member
    Veteran Member
    Posts:1060


    --
    2/2/2014 3:26 AM
    I agree with you also.
    Although this is doing nothing for me I've got to keep reading to get to the Ryan becomes a barrat homes designer!!

    Jim
    ===============================
    Billy Fish: He wants to know if we are gods.
    Peachy Carnehan: Not gods - Englishmen. The next best thing.


    Please check out my FLICKR photos
    Kerrick
    Basic Member
    Basic Member
    Posts:322


    --
    2/4/2014 12:38 AM
    I just finished this one. Trust me - there's a good reason for what happens. This was actually pretty good, once you got past the first few chapters (as noted above, Rik has no idea how the mat-trans works...). It definitey harkened back to the old Deathlands novels, something I've been sorely missing lately.

    It does, however, rely on a lot of deus ex machinas and suspension of disbelief. Such as:
    * The bomb was powerful enough to shatter armaglass, but not totally obliterate the mat-trans?
    * Redoubt doors slide up into the ceiling, not into the wall, and they're nearly impossible to force open (or keep open - they weigh several dozen tons). Granted, this could be one of those oddball ones, but there's nothing to suggest it - the companions act like it's completely normal. 

    * And speaking of... the doors are vanadium steel, not titanium. And... if "someone had gone to a lot of trouble to bend the thick titanium door so that it would not snap back", how did they get it closed again?
    * Krysty summoning her Gaia power almost instantly (and repeatedly).
    * The companions didn't do anything to prevent anyone else from using the mat-trans after they left, beyond closing the door (the door, I might add, that the locals forced open in the first place...). I figured they were going to use the LD button and send a bomb back, but I guess not.

    And a couple other things:
    * It was noted that JB kept the safety on Jak's Python, which is a revolver. Revolvers don't have safeties.
    * Krysty's pistol is mentioned (twice) as having .158-grain slugs. Those must be really tiny bullets...

    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/4/2014 2:01 AM

    But Kerrick, you just demonstrated illustriously, i might add, why we had so many issues with this latest fare.

    You mentioning numerous other solid points is why we should not have to trudge through so much sludge to find a diamond in the rough. For me, though, there never appeared a diamond. 

     

    If any given author doesn't know his stuff about DL's weaponry, or how the characters act, then they need to study the better written books for the right answers.

    Kerrick
    Basic Member
    Basic Member
    Posts:322


    --
    2/4/2014 10:02 AM

    True. The idea behind plot was good, but yeah... it needed some work. I mean, the Regina could have used a bit of development - who was she? Did she know about the honey, or was she a dupe like the rest? Was she a mutie (seems like she had some kind of empathy)? He could've spent more time on this and less on the mundane stuff. I say it was "good" because I actually read the whole thing. There were some definite "WTF?? moments, and a few places were I just laughed out loud, but it was entertaining.

    )3az )3aziah
    British Bloke
    Veteran Member
    Veteran Member
    Posts:1060


    --
    2/4/2014 11:15 AM
    I'm going to take it back with this one, I'm about half way through and its growing on me. It has the feel of an old LJ book but is just "missing" something that I cant put my finger on yet. Rik could do with reading some of the early books -or for that matter just read the bloody wikki on here its as good as any DL encyclopedia you could get, if he did then I'm sure he could turn out some good books.

    Yes it has a good few mistakes and yes I've had some moments where I've just thought "WHAT!!" but over all now its starting to hold me, in some ways it reminds me of Deep Empire and Genesis Echo combined.

    Jim
    ===============================
    Billy Fish: He wants to know if we are gods.
    Peachy Carnehan: Not gods - Englishmen. The next best thing.


    Please check out my FLICKR photos
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/4/2014 11:37 AM

    I am currently over halfway through Larry Correia's Monster Hunter Alpha, the 3rd book in his series.

    If you haven't read this author, then you are truly missing out. Like James Axler books, Larry writes action-packed sci-fi/horror/fantasy books, replete with detailed weaponry like the Axler books always have. The author KNOWS his guns! Perhaps it is superior authors like this that KNOW how weapons work, feel, etc...that make the writing much more believable, with engaging characters of different types.

    This author would make a great addition to ANY of the Axler series. Yeah, it ain't gonna happen, but I can see through his books that he has a mix of Magistrate-like Monster Hunters who hunt and kill monsters that come across as solid muties at times, instead of the typical vampire and werewolves.

    What i am trying to say is, when you read bestselling authors like this, then try to read certain cover authors in these series, I can't help but hope and expect that level of writing in them. Paying attention to detail, having the DL companions and/or the Cerberus group ACT like the original authors created them to be.

     Hey, everybody has their opinion and tastes.  

    Kerrick
    Basic Member
    Basic Member
    Posts:322


    --
    2/6/2014 8:22 PM
    Eh. You gotta remember, these guys are getting paid peanuts for their books. Go read that thread by AP sometime - it's a real eye-opener.

    One thing I forgot to mention... take a look at the inside back cover. It took me a minute to figure out what was going on there, but I got a good laugh out of it.
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/8/2014 9:47 AM
    The Good writers are working for peanuts too. The fact of the matter is, if you're burned out, like AP said he was, then like AP , get out. John Helfers & Chuck Rogers maybe just don't overwrite.
    Perhaps the name of the game is just write 2 Good books a year, instead of pumping out half-time stories.
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/8/2014 9:48 AM
    The Good writers are working for peanuts too. The fact of the matter is, if you're burned out, like AP said he was, then like AP , get out. John Helfers & Chuck Rogers maybe just don't overwrite.
    Perhaps the name of the game is just write 2 Good books a year, instead of pumping out half-time stories.
    RPGjunkie
    New Member
    New Member
    Posts:35


    --
    2/8/2014 11:00 PM
    Okay, in the back of my copy there's an ad for "The Executioner: Hanging Judge". Does anyone else's copy contain this mistake?
    )3az )3aziah
    British Bloke
    Veteran Member
    Veteran Member
    Posts:1060


    --
    2/9/2014 6:17 AM
    Yeah, mine is the same, as is Kerricks by reading his post above.

    I wonder if Kathy can shed some light if she is still about?

    Jim
    ===============================
    Billy Fish: He wants to know if we are gods.
    Peachy Carnehan: Not gods - Englishmen. The next best thing.


    Please check out my FLICKR photos
    )3az )3aziah
    British Bloke
    Veteran Member
    Veteran Member
    Posts:1060


    --
    2/9/2014 6:25 AM
    Rik,
    NO, NO, NO...

    you cant fix a Mat-trans chamber with panels taken from redoubt walls, they are dedicated components to the unit.

    Jim
    ===============================
    Billy Fish: He wants to know if we are gods.
    Peachy Carnehan: Not gods - Englishmen. The next best thing.


    Please check out my FLICKR photos
    Maximus
    Advanced Member
    Advanced Member
    Posts:518


    --
    2/9/2014 12:13 PM

    That's right, Jim. You cannot.

     

    And yes, as soon as I got my copy, I did notice right away the major typo in back to wrong book, wrong series.

     

    Just shows you how much GE pays attention to detail out there.

    The Phantom
    Basic Member
    Basic Member
    Posts:219


    --
    2/9/2014 1:18 PM
    Posted By Maximus on 2/9/2014 12:13:34 PM

    And yes, as soon as I got my copy, I did notice right away the major typo in back to wrong book, wrong series.

     

    Just shows you how much GE pays attention to detail out there.



    There is something funky going on there that's for sure. In the back of Hanging Judge a panel showing the list of  series GE has includes Room 59 with the word "new" in front of it. That series came and went long ago.

     

    Kerrick
    Basic Member
    Basic Member
    Posts:322


    --
    2/9/2014 3:52 PM
    Jim: They didn't replace the panels... they patched them back together (which, in my mind, is the worse offense). I still can't believe that bomb was somehow powerful enough to shatter armaglass without completely obliterating the chamber itself.
    You are not authorized to post a reply.
    Page 1 of 212 > >>


    Who's Online

    Membership Membership:
    Latest New User Latest: Automatic Jack
    Past 24 Hours Past 24 Hours: 0
    Prev. 24 Hours Prev. 24 Hours: 0
    User Count Overall: 2341

    People Online People Online:
    Visitors Visitors: 171
    Members Members: 0
    Total Total: 171

    Online Now Online Now:

    Copyright

    DEATHLANDS, OUTLANDERS, EARTH BLOOD, ROGUE ANGEL, ALEX ARCHER, and JAMES AXLER are all the property of GOLD EAGLE/Graphic Audio LLC, a division of RBmedia, and are used strictly under Fair use guidelines.