Angel: Endangered Species by Nancy Holder and Jeff Mariotte

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Angel: Endangered Species by Nancy Holder and Jeff Mariotte

Pub: Pocket Books/Simon and Schuster. 376 page hardback. Price: £12.99 (UK). ISBN: 0-7434-5070-1.

Check out website: www.simonsays.co.uk

Angel: Endangered Species by Nancy Holder and Jeff Mariotte I fell on this book like a thirsty vampire. It's a long wait on terrestrial TV for the third season of 'Angel'.

All I can say is if you are considering this book then save your money and buy the videos or DVDs. It's not bad but you might as well stick to the real thing.

The story is straightforward.

Cordelia's vision reveals Faith is in danger. There's a bad vampire in town and she's after a Slayer and Faith is handily packaged in prison waiting for the chance to be used in a sub-plot. There's a big game hunter with a sideline in mixed up demon-making and all the usual problems for the vampire Angel who does not tan well.

The plot has hints of Clive Barker, Star Trek, voodoo and a bit of Indiana Jones towards the end. It's set towards the beginning of Season 3 and has to find a role for an awful lot of characters. The Host is not used much because he suits the visual medium and of course no singing! Fred is someone to tell the back-story to.

She could have been locked in the cupboard for the whole book and you wouldn't notice.

Speaking of back-story, there is a lot of it in this book, adding substantially to the page count. It's a bit like saying 'and previously on Angel' every few pages, unnecessary unless the publishers genuinely believe people who don't watch the series are going to pick up this book. It feels like padding to get the word count up.

The series is smart and funny and has little idiosyncrasies that are more difficult in a book. This one has the funny lines missing in previous novels but an insubstantial plot after all, whatever happens it can't affect the series in any way.

I have a few niggles about the way things happen. Drusilla sires a new vampire in the Prologue and she rises straight away. The new vampire is called Mary Kelly the name of one of the victims of Jack the Ripper - of him however, not a mention.

The characters think in funny mode even when in extreme danger - what a neat skill that is. The series gets it wrong through the pressure of producing so many episodes but a novel should be more careful. Did I mention I don't like the use of the word 'magickal'?

Like cheap chocolate it promises much and delivers little.

Sue Davies

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