|
Buffy has enough problems in her everyday life (Ring Day is
coming up and she can't even afford one of the less expensive
silver bands). Then she discovers that the stars are properly
aligned for an attempt to resurrect a long-dead evil sorcerer.
A little investigating leads Buffy and the gang to the necromancer
who killed the sorcerer long ago - an immortal of Russian
descent named Yulia Dryanushka, who can control vampires -
and who just happens to live in an ordinary split-level house
in Sunnydale, California. When Buffy and the crew pay Yulia
a visit, she assures them that, with Willow's help, she is
powerful enough to kill the sorcerer for a second time, should
he be successfully revived. Both Buffy and Willow are uncomfortable
with aligning themselves with a necromancer, and are unsure
if they can trust their new ally. But they have no choice
when, twenty-four hours later, the vampires of Sunnydale start
behaving strangely, and evil is awakening rather sooner than
they expect...
The
Deathless
is Keith R. A. DeCandido's latest addition to the Buffy
range of books. The plot takes place between the TV episodes
The Zeppo and Bad Girls from Buffy's
third season.
DeCandido
should be ashamed of himself for the pun revolving around
the fact that Buffy's arm in a sling: "Sling of the past"
is just a terrible, terrible gag - which had me grinning like
a fool for quite some time.
I
wasn't so sure about Yulia Dryanushka's (or Baba Yaga as she
is quickly discovered to be) protection spell which meant
that she is able to go about her business without being harmed
by a Slayer. Also Bulat the Brave is equally unable to be
harmed (as he is immortal). The problem with this is that
it means that (without spoiling any of the plot) if either
or both of these characters turn out to be evil then Buffy
and Faith have their work cut out for them. And if the slayers
can kill either of them then it makes a mockery of the whole
set-up.
Thankfully
DeCandido gets around this rather well, but surely a protection
spell should not have been introduced - this means that any
old vampire could get their hands on the spell and be invulnerable
to a Slayer attack. The consequence would be that we could
have a situation where the Slayer can not kill any demons
because they all know about the spell (which I'm surprised
has managed to remain a secret for so long).
There
are few surprises here. The
Deathless is
a pretty run-of-the-mill, paint-by-numbers affair that offers
nothing in the way of surprises. Having said that, it's still
an enjoyable read.
Amber
Leigh
Buy
this item online
We
compare prices online so you get the cheapest
deal! Click on the logo of the desired store
below to purchase this item.
|
|
|
£3.99
(Amazon.co.uk) |
| |
|
|
|
£4.19
(Waterstones.com) |
| |
|
|
|
£6.99
(WHSmith.co.uk) |
| |
|
|
|
£5.59
(Countrybookshop.co.uk) |
| |
|
|
|
$6.99
(Amazon.com) |
All prices correct at time of going to press.
|
|
