Dark Times

http://nwhyte.livejournal.com/2513777.html

Set in early Season Four (Xander and Anya are together, so are Oz and Willow), this has Buffy yanked forward to an alternative future in which Giles has been turned vampire by the ancient demon Camazotz (I'd always thought that was just the evil planet of A Wrinkle in Time, but it turns out that it's also the name of an Aztec god of bats). This gives Golden licence to kill off many characters both new and old, before returning Buffy to our time line where everything is almost as before. It's well enough written, with reflections on how the other characters would have developed in five years where they had continued the fight without Buffy.

I'm troubled, though, as I was in the other book I read show more by this author, that the story ends up on the wrong side of colonialism - Camazotz, who is after all a native American entity, is rapidly outsmarted by vampire Giles who takes charge of his realm and allows the indigenous inhabitants only as much licence as he finds amusing; and this is presented as a natural development. So I may cast my reading of Buffy a bit wider, but I think I will try other writers next. show less

It may be because I haven't read the first part or it may be because this novel is just plain bad, but I simply couldn't believe how disjointed and jumbled the plot is. There's no point talking about the characters - their psychology is so basic it's laughable, but even the plot with its miscellaneous monsters and villains can't focus. I'm sure it makes a great visual (it's obviously written for television) but as a story it doesn't stand up and I detest this mixing of mythologies and cheap tricks.

**SPOILER ALERT: Do NOT read this review if you have not read Prophecies, the first Lost Slayer novel.**
Buffy's spirit is transported into the body of her future self, who is being held captive by Camazotz in a slayer-proof cell. Another slayer named August is put in the cell with her and unfortunately thinks that the best way to get a slayer back on the job protecting everyone outside is that one of them has to die so a new one can be called. Of course, August has decided it should be Buffy. They fight. Guess who wins that one? Buffy escapes and tries to find out what happened to her friends and her world, while also keeping away from Camazotz's followers,the Kakchiquels. Another shocking thing happens at the end, keeping us on show more tenterhooks for the next one.
Can someone please explain to me why people keep saying that if Buffy dies a new slayer is called? This bothered me in Season 7 as well, when the potentials were told that for one of them to be Slayer, Buffy would have to die. Isn't the slayer line Buffy-->Kendra (after Buffy dies in Prophecy Girl)-->Faith-->New Slayer? There isn't a new slayer called when Buffy dies again at the end of Season 5, as far as I know. Seriously, if someone can explain this and point to an in-canon example, that would be great.
Anyhow, aside from that little continuity issue, I am really liking this series. As I said in my review of Prophecies, Golden has a really good ear for the dialogue. It reads just like an episode of the show. Now that I think about it though, it does feel more like a dramatization of a TV episode than an actual book. I suppose that since I didn't notice that until I'm getting all analytical about it, it's not too much of a detraction. I would recommend this to any fan of the Buffyverse. show less