Title: The Walking Dead: Rise of the Governor
Author: Robert Kirkman and Jay Bonansinga
Published by: Thomas DUNNE Books an imprint of St. Martin's Press
Released: 2011
Summary: The Walking Dead has conquered comics, enraptured television audiences, and now makes its way into novel format. Have you ever wondered the origins of The Governor? What makes him tick and how he became the recognizable, bloodthirsty villain he is today? If you have wondered that very thing, then this book is for you. Meet the Governor before he became The Governor, when he was just Phillip Blake, a man trying to survive the zombie apocalypse with his daughter, brother, and two friends. Find out how Phillip Blake got to Woodbury and what changed him into The Governor!
My Thoughts: This book was a decent read that had its edge-of-your seat moments. Finding out how Phillip Blake became the Governor was really fascinating and interesting, and learning his backstory was all the more heart rending because we, the readers, know how it ends. A very enjoyable origins story that I would recommend as a supplement for all Walking Dead fans.
I did have my issues with the book. I'm going to try not to rant and rave, but I did feel there were some disappointments and greatly missed opportunities. My first one being how this book, like all the other works, starts after the first outbreak of the zombies has already occurred. This book had the prime opportunity to start with the outbreak of the plague, the beginnings of it, but instead chose to start 3 days into it. That was just disappointing and felt like a massively lost opportunity.
Also, knowing that Phillip Blake was going to become the Governor from the start, hindered my ability to sympathize or like him as a character. Sure bad stuff happened to him and his descent into madness was understandable, but I still didn't like the choices he made or the person he became.
I also wasn't too impressed with brother Brian Blake. He didn't feel like an older brother at all and his transformation at the end of the story didn't feel entirely believable or true to his character. I'm was just disappointed in his uselessness throughout the majority of the story and then who he became at the end of it.
One other little meager detail that took away from the appreciation of the book were all the weird similes and metaphors used. There were just some odd comparisons made that just hindered the flow of the story. And also, the countless descriptions of zombies' grey marble eyes and cranial fluids just got repetitive and a tad annoying. I already have a corpse picture in my head and the same details don't need to be repeated again and again.
I'm sorry for my ranting.
Overall, I did enjoy this book and thought it was great supplemental material for fans that want to know more about the Walking Dead and its side characters. It did have its problems and issues, but in the end turned out to be an okay book. I would recommend this to all Walking Dead fans and tell them to watch out for the major twist at the end. I will be continuing with this series by reading The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury.
I did have my issues with the book. I'm going to try not to rant and rave, but I did feel there were some disappointments and greatly missed opportunities. My first one being how this book, like all the other works, starts after the first outbreak of the zombies has already occurred. This book had the prime opportunity to start with the outbreak of the plague, the beginnings of it, but instead chose to start 3 days into it. That was just disappointing and felt like a massively lost opportunity.
Also, knowing that Phillip Blake was going to become the Governor from the start, hindered my ability to sympathize or like him as a character. Sure bad stuff happened to him and his descent into madness was understandable, but I still didn't like the choices he made or the person he became.
I also wasn't too impressed with brother Brian Blake. He didn't feel like an older brother at all and his transformation at the end of the story didn't feel entirely believable or true to his character. I'm was just disappointed in his uselessness throughout the majority of the story and then who he became at the end of it.
One other little meager detail that took away from the appreciation of the book were all the weird similes and metaphors used. There were just some odd comparisons made that just hindered the flow of the story. And also, the countless descriptions of zombies' grey marble eyes and cranial fluids just got repetitive and a tad annoying. I already have a corpse picture in my head and the same details don't need to be repeated again and again.
I'm sorry for my ranting.
Overall, I did enjoy this book and thought it was great supplemental material for fans that want to know more about the Walking Dead and its side characters. It did have its problems and issues, but in the end turned out to be an okay book. I would recommend this to all Walking Dead fans and tell them to watch out for the major twist at the end. I will be continuing with this series by reading The Walking Dead: The Road to Woodbury.
BOOKCITEMENT LEVEL 3.5/5
Phillip Blake's story: Crazy, Sad, and zombie-riffic!
No comments:
Post a Comment