Tony Attwood (2) (1947–)

This book has had a right bagging over the years from Blake's 7 fans. Perhaps I'm ludicrously easy to please (I do like the odd trashy novelisation) but I found this fairly pleasant. Avon was always my favourite--the handsome, sarcastic, cold-hearted, sexy devil--so getting to spend a bit of reading time in his company was a joy. Vila, the spineless little twerp, was, as usual, welcome comic relief.

Blake's 7 became so convoluted by the last season or two that I never really understood, or show more clearly remembered, what actually *happened* at the end. I'm still not entirely sure, but this book does, to my mind successfully, bring about some kind of conclusion. Sort of. For the most part.

I particularly enjoyed the references to Servalan's ridiculously impractical outfits. I always wondered, with the amount of time that woman must have spent putting on make-up and dressing how exactly did she have time to rule the galaxy? show less

One of three books in the "Companions of Doctor Who" series. This was a weird book, but enjoyable. The writing is clunky, but the plot is twisty enough that I stayed interested -- I genuinely didn't see where it was going until the very end. In fact, I'll probably reread it at some point to see if following the plot is any less like trying to trace a single noodle in a plate of spaghetti.

"Afterlife" continues the "Blake's 7" story after final TV season, which ended on the extremely bleak scene of Avon killing Blake, and the rest of the crew being shot by Federation guards.

The core of the book rightly focuses on Avon and Villa. Villa is as inventively and comicly craven and lazy as he always was, but his relationship with Avon is even more dysfunctional -- balanced against the events of the TV series (Avon deciding to throw Villa out of an airlock; Avon shooting Blake), is show more Villa's recognition that Avon finds him useful to keep alive. Avon himself is paranoid and fixated on the idea that his actions weren't his own, and his icy arrogance and insular self-reliance are at a finer pitch than ever, driving him ever onwards.

The new character Korell is a welcome, enigmatic ingredient that stirs up both characters; and there's cameos from a few of the past crew and some fun new computer characters.

There are some unsatisfying notes -- some "Star Trek"-like adventures in space and alternative worlds that are perhaps too much for a short book such as this. There are also some characters which have unsatisfying conclusions to their particular "arcs".

Overall, for all it's flaws, I enjoyed this book, mostly for the interactions of the main characters, and some of the ideas from the TV series. It's not great, but it's not bad. The ending could have been bleak, however it is rescued by a reassuring "classic" moment from Avon, letting us know that this is not the end, just another anticipated problem to solve. show less

Great story with Turlough proving he can take center stage if needed. Provides insight into both Trion and into the importance of Earth in the grand scheme of things.