Customer Reviews

Goblins (The X-Files, Bk. 1)

5 star:		(7)
4 star:		(4)
3 star:		(8)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

I was pleasantly surprised by this book. While it's not entirely terrific, it is in fact a mildly amusing read if solely due to its creativity and stealthy plot twists. I was also surprised by Grant's writing style, which is marginally better than what I expected, given the harsh reviews I've read in the past. GOBLINS is extremely easy to read, but at the same time does not insult the reader's intelligence by assaulting him with a barrage of simplistic discourse. I read the book in its entirety through the course of a day, off and on at a leisurely pace. Charles Grant holds the reader's attention, while not chaining him to the plot. In short, I rather enjoyed GOBLINS and I would definitely read more.

The ambience of GOBLINS is rather refreshing, painting a haunting backdrop for the story. Grant effectively uses rainstorms, dimly lit rooms, hidden government bunkers and quaint, small town charm to achieve the perfect setting. The environment of GOBLINS exudes "X-Files" and works wonderfully with the characters and their interplay.

Now, for what is wrong with the book. The characterization is a bit off, but not as off as Kevin Anderson's "GROUND ZERO"(Please, don't get me started on that one). I have to concur with other reviewers on the issue of Scully's compliance to Mulder's ideas. While it is a welcome change, it just isn't quite believable. Equally unbelievable are the new characters Grant introduces as "compliments" to Mulder and Scully's case. They seem to be nothing more than outlets for creative expression, a chance for Grant to showcase his descriptive talents. These two background characters create weak points in the story, especially when Grant tries to write them into the action.

As deft and entertaining as the plot twists and "dual action story line" are, cohesion becomes a problem. I believe Grant errs by keeping the reader in the dark for so long. Had I known what was going on in the adjacent story line, I might have been a bit more interested, rather than becoming distracted by too many unresolved situations. While the overall freedom of the plot is a virtue, it also serves as a curse, tethering the reader too loosely to the story.

There are a few more things that don't float my boat, but I won't nit-pick because I actually enjoyed this book. Grant does a nice job of pulling it all together, despite some shortcomings in fluency. While Goblins is no night on the town, it's infinitely better than a TV dinner and Nick at Nite.

Published in 1994, Goblins was the very first novel based on The X-Files television series, which at that time was relatively new, original, and growing in popularity. The action, in this case, takes place not long after the X-Files had been shut down and then reopened by the FBI (which basically puts it somewhere in the second season time period). This is a book that has its good points and its bad points. It is not a bad story in and of itself, but it doesn't fully capture the X-Files spirit; its primary weakness is the addition of two unknown agents working beside Mulder and Scully on the case at hand: Hank Webber, a gung-ho agent of the annoying type, and Licia Andrews, a cold and disagreeable person who certainly doesn't seem to be made of FBI material. Webber's association with Mulder's new supervisor Arlen Douglas (who is not Mulder's biggest fan) is used to cast a suspicious backdrop to the story, but this little subplot doesn't go very far.

The case that forms the framework of this novel consists of a series of brutal murders by an "invisible man" of sorts - witnesses, none of which are completely trustworthy, report seeing a hand and blade come out of nowhere and then disappear once the deed is done. An old reporter friend asks Mulder to investigate the first murder because the victim was his cousin's boyfriend, but Mulder has no real interest in the matter until Douglas sends him to New Jersey (alongside Scully, Webber, and Andrews) to investigate that very case; they soon meet with unexpected danger. There is basically a lot of running around talking to the locals, working with the local sheriff, and sniffing out the truth of a mysterious Department of Defense project associated with a nearby military base. Mulder comes up with his wild theory, Scully argues against it, etc. - the same drill you typically saw on the television series. Grant's characterization of Mulder and Scully is actually pretty commendable, but the other two agents are simply annoying, unrealistic, and a source of constant frustration for both Mulder and myself. Grant does keep the level of suspense at a nice level throughout the novel, largely by keeping the reader in the dark when it comes to the identity of the "goblin," and I think this makes the story much more entertaining than it would be otherwise. Looking back on the novel as a whole, the plot does hold together, but there are definitely some frayed ends and other imperfections evident in the craftsmanship. Goblins isn't likely to win The X-Files any new fans, but it makes for a fairly interesting diversion for those of us already devoted to the show and its characters.

For some reason I read book two (Whirlwind) before Goblins. I have to say that I preferred Goblins to Whirlwind, although I note that I am in the minority according to the Amazon reviews for both books. Goblins is a bumpy read, and by that I mean that there are parts of it that are interesting, well written and very descriptive. For instance, I loved the old lady with her spray cans of orange paint going Goblin hunting and I felt there were some good Mulder and Scully moments. The idea behind Goblins is something I could easily have seen in an episode of the X Files in the early years of its run, which was when this book was written.

Now for the bad news. The writing in some parts is pretty rough. For some reason Charles Grant felt the need to refer to Scully as Dana every so often and it seemed awkward and not quite right. I had a tough time following some of the twists and turns which seemed, quite frankly, to be put there for the amusement of the writers and didn't add much to the story. The last minute resolution could definitely be seen as lazy storytelling which is annoying, given that things looked quite promising up to that point. The two extra FBI agents the author felt compelled to tie down Mulder and Scully with did nothing but muddy the waters of the story. Since when, in the entire run of the X Files, did Mulder and Scully get stuck with two extra agents? Maybe that one episode where they're off to that conference to improve communication skills, but that only lasted a few minutes. It was annoying to have the two agents messing up the Mulder and Scully dynamic.

Ultimately I wouldn't really bother with this book. It is an okay read, and I imagine it would have been a better book if it were read in the early days of the X Files hype simply because people couldn't get enough of Mulder and Scully back then. But even then, remove the hype and you have a pretty ordinary book.

I thought that this book was a good book to read. Even though i am not the sci-fi type, I found this book to be easy to read. My favorite part of the book that most people would enjoy was the twist at the end. The whole mystery was fun to read and play along with.

This book is great for anybody with a good imagination. This is a book for really anybody if you think about it. The X-files goblins book is a must read, and be warned, when you pick it up, it will be fairly hard to put it down.

This is the first X-Files novel I have read. Overall I reccomend it. However the begining is not the best. It gets confusing. However the middle and end are real good. Things start to clear up about 3/4 of the way through. One major complaint is the two other agents with Mulder and Scully, why were they included?! But it was still good enough to reccomend.

Perhaps the greatest obstacle Charles Grant faced in writing this book was how to take Mulder and Scully and transport them from screen to print. On TV the director can show us Mulder cogitating for a couple seconds and then present his latest "out there" theory. Grant has the opportunity to let us inside Mulder's brain, but he also has the responsibility to keep us hooked once we get in there - what if Mulder doesn't think like we think he thinks? What if the story starts dragging? What if there's nothing there? Fortunately, Grant did a pretty good job of it, although Scully occasionally seemed a little flighty.

The story, I thought, got off to a bit of a shaky start. With the first two victims being drunks, I was afraid the story was going to be a one-note moral symphony like X-Files: Ground Zero. The good news is that it doesn't. Unfortunately, the story lacks any clear Alien/Supernatural X-File connection. Human chameleons are an interesting story element, but there should at least be a suggestion of the use of "Area 42 Alien Technology (TM)". If we're to accept that it's just military research gone amok, there should be a wide range of chameleon mice, rats, dogs and monkeys. It may be the vogue thing to paint the military as pure evil, but beginning research with human test subjects is more poor science than it is sheer evilness.

The book tries to be as sexy as the TV show, but never really generates any heat. Sure we get a shower scene with Scully (let your minds ponder that for a moment, lads), and Dr. Elkhorn has some kissy moments, but although rookie agent Licia Andrews is described sexily, her character never really goes anywhere with it. Not that the novel needs to get smutty, but it seems a conscious decision was made in describing her and nothing (either flirtyness or frigidity) comes of it. And, ladies, you just got a raw deal when Mulder slept in his suit; I feel for you. Maybe it's just that there are just some things you can do on Fox TV that publisher HarperPrism can't.

Like any episode of The X-Files we're left with questions at the end of the book. Unfortunately, it doesn't appear we'll ever get answers to them. Pretty much everything that took place at the Jefferson Memorial remained unclear to me throughout the book. The Louisiana connection offered late in the book seemed sketchy to me, especially since it was never backed up from the military side.

As this is the first novelization for the series, I can cut the author some slack (hence three stars instead of two). If it seems I expected a bit much of the first outing, it's only because I like(d) the series so much. Grant, in my opinion, certainly did a better job of this than did the author of Ground Zero. When you wear out your Season 9 DVDs and are looking for another adventure before the next theatrical release, this isn't a bad choice. It's not perfect, but it's definitely not worse than any of the more muddled TV episodes.

Charles Grant combines all the elements that made the show so great during its creative peak years - lots of spooky atmosphere, conspiracies everywhere, and Mulder and Scully in a respectful partnership (ie NO "relationship"). This premiere novel in the tie-in series (like those gazillion or so Star Trek and Star Wars books clogging the sci-fi section) is filled with promise for the future volumes. A great weekend read. Recommended.

I thought the way that Charles Grant wrote this was great! The beginning of this book just pulls you in. It feels like your right there. The murders just keep you pulled in and I couldn't put it down. It was very easy to read it made me think that I was watching the show instead of reading the book. It keeps you guessing down to the last few chapters. The Goblin is a true X-FILE to the very end. And of course someone almost gets killed in our favorite team but I'm not telling.

I was surprised about the previous comments about profanity. I don't recall it bothering me that much. I thought there were some uneven aspects to the pace and plot but overall, it was enjoyable, though certainly not the best x files book. If you're not a fan, then this book will bore you, but even if you are an avid watcher, you might be disappointed in the depictions of Mulder and Scully. However, this is an OK read if you're stuck at an airport or have a long plane flight ahead of you...

I must admit, I bought this book because of the zeal of an X-File book. I had high expectations because from Kevin J. Anderson's books, I knew what was happening. Here, I found myself confused by the twising plot. Plot twists add to the excitement, but with too many, it looks like a "good" movie reduced to "horrible" because of too much editing.