Hunter's Planet (Aliens Vs. Predator, Book 2) by David Bischoff, Randy Stradley
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Book Reviews of Hunter's Planet (Aliens Vs. Predator, Book 2)
Book Review: Nasars thought
Summary: 4 Stars
A thrilling and compelling story about two alien monsters battling it out with Machiko noguchi, veteran of war, cought in the middle. An awesome read full of action and twists. If you liked Aliens vs Predator; war , you'll love this.Book Review: I Thought it was a very good sequel!This is a good Buy!
Summary: 4 Stars
The Plot was good and the storyline was excellent but they need another sequel to this action-packed sequel!This was a great bookBook Review: Ok...
Summary: 4 Stars
It was ok, shows a bit Predator, and more storyline than the prequel(AvP: Prey). However, there is also less action in this one.Book Review: So-so
Summary: 3 Stars
This series contains 3 books: Prey, Hunter's Planet, and War. The first and third are absolutely spectacular. The writing is fantastic--beautifully descriptive, with believable characters, and most importantly, they fit seamlessly with both the Alien and Predator universes. The second is a different story--Hunter's Planet certainly isn't the worst book I've ever read, but it's far inferior to the other two in this series. It is an enormous let-down, both in terms of writing quality and just plain fun. It makes all Machiko's adventures in Prey seem meaningless, and the behavior of both the Aliens and Predators just doesn't feel right, doesn't feel like things they would actually do. (Note that the first and third have the same author; the second is different.)
This is going to sound peculiar, but I recommend reading the first and third and skipping the second, and not just because of the differing quality of the novels. The events of War actually take place between Prey and Hunter's Planet, and War is perfectly readable without reading Hunter's Planet. In fact, several scenes that were told in flashback in Hunter's Planet are RETOLD in War, only told far more descriptively, and even with important events completely altered! If I had the chance to start over, I would skip Hunter's Planet entirely.
I have read many science-fiction novels, and I rank Prey and War among my absolute favorites, worthy members of the Aliens and Predator franchise. On the one hand, it's like getting more of the movies--more terrifying bugs, more awesome Predators, more battles, more excitement--and on the other, there is a lot of fascinating new information about the culture of the Predators, things I always wanted to know but never thought I would. I love the star character, and appreciated the fact that she wasn't the typical mindless sci-fi babe. If you love Aliens and Predator, you might find Hunter's Planet mildly interesting.
(As a side note, the AvP movie borrowed a LOT from these books :)
Book Review: Doesn't live up to Prey
Summary: 3 Stars
I think this is the first book by David Bischoff I've read, and so I don't know how it matches the quality of his other work, but this overall was passable but not up to my expectations after having read Prey. The only really good scenes are involving the Yautja, such as the opening scene, the Pack flashbacks, and the final fifty or so pages of climax. In between it does get rather boring.
I enjoyed the character of Atilla, I rather like the human characters, though they're written a bit broad (Dick Daniels, especially), Machiko is well-characterized, and the Yautja characters are well written as well, although they do tend to blend together and Bischoff actually calls them by the wrong names a few times.
Bischoff's style can get old fast. He's fond of cliched expressions and repeats himself, a lot. His dialogue isn't the most realistic I've read, either.
I also didn't like the inclusion of a love interest for Machiko. I wasn't interested in reading romance in a Predator novel, but if it must be done, I would prefer that it wasn't so thrown together and contrived. Fortunately it only takes up a few pages and is easily skipped if you don't like it.
I have to wonder why this is the second book in the trilogy, instead of the third, since I understand that the story that was glossed over in this novel will be described in detail in "War". The whole novel made me a little frustrated with the way Bischoff kept referring to the events at the mining colony but never elaborating on them. I'm off to read War and I really hope for a return to Prey-like greatness.