Return to Chaos (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) [Mass Market Paperback]

Craig Shaw Gardner (Author)

Book Description

Series: Buffy the Vampire Slayer (Pocket Paperback Unnumbered) | Publication Date: November 1, 1998

Old Magic, New Problem

The Hellmouth (a.k.a. Sunnydale, CA) has drawn vampires, witches, and other demons to its powerful vortex. Now it has also drawn the attention of an ancient set of Druids -- allies in Buffy Summers' battle against the Undead.

Clocked in Darkness, wrapped in mystery, the Druids descend on Sunnydale ready to perform new rituals to summon forth a new world order, free from the evil that shapes Buffy's nights.

But the Slayer's concerns are more immediate -- someone is stalking her friends. Cordelia, Xander, and Oz -- all are falling victim to this spell. And now it's up to Willow and Giles to find the cause, while Buffy stands between the Mouth of Hell and the New Dawn.

Product Details

• Mass Market Paperback: 304 pages
• Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment (November 1, 1998)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0671021362
• ISBN-13: 978-0671021368
• Product Dimensions: 6.7 x 4.2 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 0.8 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 2.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (32 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,617,358 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars mixed feelings, again!, August 14, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Return to Chaos (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (Mass Market Paperback)

This was the second buffy book I read and I bought this one for it's thickness, I got into it for the first couple of chapters, but after a while could not be bothered to read it, and did not go back to it and finish for about a month. The reason for this is I feel they could of made out a better story from bringing in newcomers instead it's just the usual story, and to be honest most btvs are not interested in buffys love unless it's angel, it had to be said, but if you are still a pretty big buffy fan then I would buy this book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Mixed feelings, July 7, 2003

By 

Marcus Bailey "Marc 'grailwolf' Bailey" (Darnestown, MD) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Return to Chaos (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (Mass Market Paperback)

Ordinarily I enjoy what I read by Craig Shaw Gardner, but I think he just missed the mark with this one. The story idea is good, and the idea of Druids in Sunnydale is very interesting. I think, though, that Gardner is not quite as familiar with the show as he should be to write a novel about it. His vampires consistantly exhibit powers that other vamps in the Buffyverse do not have and there is no explanation for this (or none that satisfies). Characters do not speak or act anything like they do in the show.
One other thing that bugged me was the fact that the red herrings were obvious at several feet and there was virtually no suspense. I was quite aware of what was going on through much of the book and was getting frustrated that the characters were taking so long to figure it out.
Also, my usual complaint. Don't tell me, show me!

Basically, I'd love to see more from Mr. Gardner, but I'd recommend that he watch the series a bit more carefully first.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Not great in the least {try to save your money on this one}, January 18, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Return to Chaos (Buffy the Vampire Slayer) (Mass Market Paperback)

Well, I have to say that I love the show, the characters, and the actors and actresses, but this book really sucked. I mean, it didn't capture the character's personalities as they would be on the show. It focused too much on Cordelia. I'm not saying that I don't like her character, but this is supposed to be a BUFFY book. Get it, Buffy, not Cordelia, Buffy. It was also really dissapointing that the author didn't catch the relationship battles between the character couples, {Willow/Oz, Buffy/Angel, and Xander/Cordelia.} The witiness meter {on a scale of 1 to 10} would be a -1. This book is not funny, and does not catch the wit of the characters. The author tried to use the "cool" lingo he thought was used in the show, but he overused it, making the characters sound so unlike they do on t.v. {Example: Cordelia: Like, pathetic much?} The authors of the other Buffy books are so much better at writing them that ths author. {Nancy Holder, and Christopher Golden are the regular authors.} I'm not saying that the author is a bad writer, it's just that he really sucks at writing Buffy books. Oz sounded the worst in this Buffy novel. His personality was really unlike him onscreen. Cordelia was too valley girl. Buffy used slang too much. Angel was too peppy. Willow wasn't innocent sounding enough. Xander wasn't witty enough. You get the picture. Well, the only reason it even gets one star, is that it was a Buffy book, and the show is really awesome. In my opinion, Child of the Hunt is soooo much better. It has a better plot, and captures the character's personalities well. Read that one, and save your money on Return to Chaos. I'm serious, I really like the book series, but this one was really bad. Final verdict: no way.