Firefly Book One
Nancy Holder
James Lovegrove
Joss Whedon
Titan Books
ISBN 9781785658266
eISBN 9781785658273
ASIN B07HR2LCDM
This book is the first in a new series of official Firefly novels. They are endorsed by Josh Whedon and planned and coordinated by Nancy Holder. And this specific novel is written by James Lovegrove. So, in a manner these are official Firefly Canon. The dedication of this book states:
“This novel is respectfully dedicated to the supremely talented artists, technicians and craftspeople who created the ’verse, peopled it with such memorable characters, and left us wanting more.”
And that would be a fact. I believe we are long past the time of getting the gang together and doing more TV shows or even another movie. But The characters, the people, the places, and even the ship, Serenity, can live on in this and other stories. This is a first book in a series, and as such it sets a tone. As such it is hard to write a review of this book.
I read this book in three sittings. But I paused about a third of the way through and read two other books. When I came back to it I seriously considered leaving it in my ‘did not finish’ pile. But decided to give it another chance. I am glad I did. Buy the ends of the book I was very thankful that I stuck it out. And it ended up being a great story. But it begins slow, and with the flipping back and forth in time, with Mal remembering back to his youth, it starts off slow or at least unfocused. For fans of the series this will be a good read. For those who like the space western genre it will be entertaining.
The Good:
Some great back Story information on Malcolm Reynolds.
More info on Preacher Book’s back story.
Seeing Zoë step up and take the lead.
Some good ideas from Jayne Cobb.
The Bad:
The story is very slow at some points.
It took a long time to really buy into it.
Wincing as Zoë plods along on a wrecked leg.
The Ugly:
Zoë and Wash pretending to be adopted siblings.
Wash wanting to turn that into a game in the bedroom.
Overall, I give the book a 4/5 stars. I debated 3 but by the end was entertained and enjoyed the way all the plot elements were wrapped up. I enjoyed the book enough that when I finished it, I added the next volume ‘The Magnificent Nine’ to my wish list to pick up once it is released. Looking forward to seeing where the story goes in this initial trilogy.
Sometimes it is hard with books about characters you know and love. It doesn’t matter if it is Star Trek, Star Wars, and now Firefly. You come to expect the characters to interact in a certain way, we know their personalities, and also their story. New authors coming in and writing with these characters need to be careful. They stray too far, and we lose the continuity of the characters. They stay to close to home, and they are just retelling old stories. This book finds a good middle ground. I especially like learning more about Book.
A good science fiction story worth the read.
Other Firefly Books:
Firefly Series:
Big Damn Hero
The Magnificent Nine
Generations
Other Firefly Books:
My Own Kind of Freedom – Steven Brust
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