Customer Reviews

Blood and Fog (Buffy the Vampire Slayer)

5 star:		(28)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(7)
2 star:		(5)
1 star:		(13)

 

 

"Blood and Fog" starts very slow, and when you finally manages to get into the storyline, you stumble across some mistakes and annoyances concerning the portrayal of Spike that keep you wondering which will be the next thing that will make you hit the ceiling.

It's very disappointing when you buy a book hoping to enjoy a good story with your favorite character and ends up finding out that the author haven't even bothered to do some research about him, and therefore avoided making such primary mistakes like portraying Spike as a "white-haired lad" in the flashbacks (did he use to bleach his hair in 1888, already?), showing him lighting up his cigs with matches (haven't you been introduced to Spike's lighter, Mrs. Holder?), or worst of all, affirm that Spike's chip does work on Buffy (and implying if it didn't, he would kill her in a heart beat), when even the casual viewer who watched season 6 should know that the chip haven't worked on Buffy since she came back from the dead - and never did cross Spike's mind to bite the Slayer. However, through the book, you keep getting references to Spike as "serial killer", "the loser vampire of all time", "evil", "every human's enemy", "bloody thirsty killer", "murderer", "thing", "predatory animal". Want more? Spike, besides evil, is a moron; at least one time, he doesn't get what Buffy says (making him, besides dead, brain dead, as Buffy points out), and is bad at math. Towards the end, the author concedes a little bit, and Spike is shown as not soooo evil - but then, too little, too late. I, for one, was already very angry and disgusted.

The flashbacks with Angelus, Darla, Spike and Dru are just correct. And we are given some news - Angelus killed Slayers! Not according to what we've learned on the small screen, at all. To my understanding, Spike was the one who used to seek and fight Slayers, not Angel's evil self.

And the Buffy/Angel nonsense? "She drooped inside, wishing for it to be Angel who was downstairs"... So, of course, we don't get any Spuffy love (or sex, whatever). ***Please, let this to B/A novels, for B/A fans to buy; there's no Angel on season 6, he's been GONE for years, Spike is the PRESENT in Buffy's and viewers' lives.***

And Wicca (shouldn't be Wiccan?) Willow... is the junkie Willow, who has seizures, and throws up in the toilet. If it was necessary to put the poor character in a "bad place", it would have been much more fun to read about her evil side (Dark Willow), than about the magick addicted witch.

And if all of this weren't enough, many dialogues on "Blood and Fog" are quite dull, like the parts with Xander, Anya (who, according to the book, has "demon blood") and Tara in the car; just words that go on endlessly without getting anywhere. And you get just bored with the numerous descriptions of how "cold and how scared people are in Sunnydale", besides confused about the final battle. The plot itself - Jack The Ripper, the Fomhóire, and the Tuatha (no mention of First Evil - well, just once, but he/it is soon forgotten - or Doc or agendas, by the way) - isn't that bad, but doesn't compensate the bad things, either.

So Fox, if Spike is one of the main characters of a novel set from season 5 on, please, don't give me things like "Blood and Fog"; "These Our Actors" and "Little Things" are good examples of respect for what it was shown on TV - and what I enjoyed. I do want books with Spike (and/or Spuffy), but I don't appreciate him portrayed as being evil to the core.

I think that with a little judicious editing, and a more careful eye to detail, this book could have been a lot better. There are canon inaccuracies in the book that make it very distracting (for example, on the show in season 6, Spike could hurt Buffy even in with his chip in; the author of the book maintains otherwise.) There is also some very sloppy printing, in that the wrong title is printed on some of the header pages. (Hopefully this will be corrected if the book goes into a second printing.)

My impression is that the author is not a Spike fan, but did the very best she could within the constraints that Fox has put on writers that the Spike character must never be portrayed as having good intentions (even though that isn't what we saw onscreen.) At least Holder does maintain the wonderful relationship Spike once had with Dawn and which was lost in the atrocity that was canon season 6.

Spike loved/loves Buffy, genuinely and sincerely; I've come away from this book not entirely convinced that the author recognizes that, which is why my opinions are so lukewarm.

With such a vibrant, passionate, *alive* character to work with, the book should have been so much better.

This book was okay. I brought it because I am a fan of Spike, and seeing Spike and Buffy on the cover made me finally believe that we would get some decent Spike characterisation. My feelings having read the book are mixed. There was a lot of positive Spike/Dawn interaction which is always welcome. Also the Buffy/Spike sex was very erotic and worth a read.

I felt this book fell short in Spike saying if he ever got the chip out he would hurt and kill Buffy. That confused me as it is not true at all. Maybe the auther missed some season 6 episodes as it was well established that Spike can hurt Buffy because his chip no longer recognises her as human since she was ressureceted. It was a major plot point in Smashed with the two beating each other up before their first time, I was surprised the auther missed that. I also was surprised at the suggestion that Spike could ever hurt Dawn. In Intervention he is willing to die to protect her secret (partly because of Buffy and partly for Dawn). He babysat Dawn for an entire summer, telling her to go to school etc. He was a protective big brother, I felt it was sloppy writing having the slightest hint that Spike would betray those he loved. In season 6 he was not above hurting strangers, or having the odd sneaky deal. But the implication that he would kill Buffy if give the chance is frankly ridiculous. He got a soul for Buffy!

Overall those niggling moments I mentioned do stand out. But perhaps the bad points are being exagerated by frustrated Spike fans? I for one did find the book enjoyable overall. Spike fans get such little choice in the buffy range with far to much concentration on Buffy/Angel for the teens (I am looking at you Christopher Golden). I prefered These Our Actors but this book was fine I personally felt. Only next time the auther should make sure she watches all episodes so she has the facts straight in her mind. Spike talking of wanting the chip out so he could hurt Buffy really did stand out.

I've been a Buffy/Spike shipper since the end of season two and have suffered through the highs and lows of their relationship. I'm also a redemptionista and have been driven to despair at times with the trials Spike was put through before he gained his soul. So, I was prepared to hate Blood And Fog because advance word was very negative about the way Nancy Holder portrayed Spike.

I was very pleasantly surprised. Yes, there are a oouple of things that maddened me and Holder makes one big whopper of a mistake (completely ignoring something very important that happened in Smashed)but overall, Spike is written with depth and perception. He's by far the most complex character in the book. I love how it's made clear Spike truly cares about Dawn, that he has real feelings for her.

The best thing is it's the most "erotic" and adult book the series has ever produced. It's very apparent Buffy is deeply attracted to Spike and longs for his physical presence. Holder makes the book very sexy, all things considered.

So, I recommend it to all Spike and Spuffy fans. It's a much friendlier book to Spike than any ...Christopher Golden has produced (which I advise all Spikelovers to avoid like SARS).

Whoa, what is this? I read this book hoping to gain some insight into one of the best characters I've encountered on popular television. The redemption arc of Spike: the big, bad master vamp turned anti-hero, has been a very compelling story. It seems to have been sacrificed here for some unknown reason...perhaps to further the heroine? I really don't understand the writer's choice here. I cannot express how disappointed I am by the character assassination in 'Blood and Fog.' I guarantee I won't be buying anymore until I'm shown the Spike I've come to love. Or, at the very least, a Spike that is consistent with what's been portrayed on the show. This book just left me scratching my head.

I bought this book because the premise, I thought, sounded kind of cool. Plus, it seemed to be one of the all-too-few Buffy the Vampire Slayer spin-off novels that focused (more or less) on Spike, who I often found to be the most interesting character in the series. Unfortunately, it quickly became evident, as I began to read the book, that the blurb was an almost entirely false summary of the book's actual content. Added to the sum, the characterisations were off and the writing sub-par. I don't generally have very high hopes for the Buffy novels, most of them are pretty awful as literature goes, and very few of them hold a candle to the writing on the actual show, but I did have some high hopes for this one. Sadly, yet again, they were pretty much dashed.
I guess the book could've been worse, but for the most part it was nonsensical, badly written, badly researched, and dredged up (and unimaginatively rehashed) some of the stupidest parts of the television show.
I wouldn't recommend this book. I do wish there were more Spike-centric BtVS novels out there, though. He was a fascinating character.

Nancy Holder, a long time Buffy writer, pits Jack the Ripper against Buffy in a complete reinvention of the Whitechapel horror, conveniently uprooted to Sunnydale. The timing is pre evil Willow post Xander engagement. This should have been an interesting story, including as it does a host of mythical nasties, the Buffy and Spike relationship, and the entire scooby gang, old and new. But is just doesn't come together the way it should.

The story proceeds in parallel grooves, one about Elizabeth, the Slayer doomed to meet up with Jack in Whitechapel, and the other about modern times, where Buffy has to discover how to close a portal for the umpteenth time. The common personality is Spike who was lurking about with Drusilla when Jack made his debut performance. Other than this link the stories have little in common, and Holder never quite succeeds in blending them together.

I have no clue why Holder siezed on the word Banshee, the word for woman fairy, to use as the name of the king of the Tuatha de Danann. It is one of those little distractions that can mar the effect of a story, and Holder creates several in this one volume. Redefining Jack the Ripper as a dark elf cross-breed doesn't rings false, since it creates the need for one distortion after another in both British history or legend. This is a shame, since there is nothing wrong with the basic plot idea of having Buffy meet a historical monster. Nor should there be anything wrong with a story that lands her in the midst of at ancient conflict between the Fay races. but the two together just don't gel.

Holder tries to anticipate the events to come in the TV series, but only succeeds in drawing an excruciating picture of Willow's inner turmoil and anguish at her seperation from Tara. While this isn't really Holder's fault, Willows degeneration into a weepy, miserable personality is totally out of character from her start as a competent, intelligent woman. I would like someone to write a story that doesn't make her out to be a complete sap during this period, but my Watcher sense tells me that it will be a long wait.

Quite a mix of reviews about this book, and so I had to add my two cents worth. The truth is, I think Nancy Holder did not do enough research concerning the season she was writing about (6).
Lots of inaccurcies, as has already been pointed out. Holder has a nice style of writing and I think is a skilled enough story teller, but when you're working with a tv show, it's important to fans to get the background correct. (Such as that blasted chip not working on Buffy.) Also problems with the flashbacks; go back and watch Fool For Love and Darla, Nancy.

I had to laugh at the reviewer who said that Spike wasn't a knight in shining armour in season 6. He was a soulless vampire who was desperately lovesick, being used and abused by the show's glum, martyred, put-upon, shallow, suicidal "hero" of the show. Most fans are able to relate to unrequieted love; few of us (hopefully) can relate to not wanting to live. Ergo, sympathy for Spike and not so much for Buffy. It's a pity that writers cannot see this. There's a great story to to be told there.

All in all, Blood and Fog isn't a horrible book, but just like all the others, where Spike is irredeemably bad (heh, he proved otherwise in season 7) and Buffy is just the poor widdle victim (in her mind only.) It gets tiresome, the same old thing after awhile. And I think the author could have watched some of the shows and made the book a bit better. Why write about a tv show if you're not going to take canon into account?

I recommend These Our Actors in the Buffy genre instead.

Neither the First, Doc or Rack appear in this book and I never found an evil agenda either.
The novel doesn't present a redeemed Spike but rather one that is reminiscent of the Spike at the end of Season 2. He fights to save the world as it is because he likes it that way as much as he does for the love of Buffy. If you are a rabid Pro Spike fan don't be put off by Buffy's musings at the beginning of the book. She thinks of him as everything evil but this is not typical of the book. If you are a rabid Anti Spike don't be put off either. There are lots of flashbacks of evil Spike and he is shown to enjoy chaos and violence. Overall, if you have enjoyed other books by Nancy Holder you should enjoy this one.

Being a Buffy fan (and a Spike fan, for those who wish to know), I quite naturally looked forward to the first book from the BtVS series that promised to feature the pair together.

I was to be disappointed. Not because "Spike is evil"; the book is set mid-Season 6 and most of the Buffy/Spike interaction is told from Buffy's POV where she has very mixed feelings about him. No, my disappointment lies in the fact that the book is bland. There's little in the story to reach out and make me want to finish it. Over the course of my reading, I put it down several times because I simply wasn't interested enough to continue at the moment. The characterizations were generally one-note, with no real exploration of motivations.

And therein lies the difficulty with most TV tie-in novels; bound by dictates from the studio that own the characters, the authors often find their hands tied from tackling stories with any true meat. Characters cannot grow or change in any meaningful way because that's reserved for the screen. There are moments when an author might hint at complexity (here, Nancy Holder strikes an interesting note in the last scene between Buffy and Spike), but they are only hints and quickly pass.

I didn't expect much because I never expect much from this type of book; I stopped reading the Star Trek novels years ago because it was often the same thing over and over, with few notable exceptions (Peter David). The studios who license the books aren't interested in a good story; they're interested in further profits on their property and this is reflected in the stories that they allow to be told.

I'd class it as a beach or bathtub book; one you're not going to be upset if you get sand in it or accidentally drop it in the water.