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Buffyverse Novels #5
Buffy the Vampire Slayer: Spike and Dru - Pretty Maids All in a Row
"You got Slayer problems? You know what I find works real good with Slayers? Killing them." -- Spike It's 1940, and Europe is ravaged by World War II -- an ideal environment for demon paramours Spike and Drusilla. The anniversary of Dru's resurrection as a vamp impends, and Spike wants to celebrate. What better gift than Freya's Strand -- a powerful necklace rumored to allow its wearer to shape-shift at will? Spike learns of a demon named Skrymir, who claims to possess the bauble and is willing to trade. Spike's task is to infiltrate the Watcher's Council headquarters and get his hands on the list of young women in training to take over as Slayer should they be called. In exchange for Freya's Strand, Spike must kill the reining Slayer, a brazen young woman named Sophie, as well as the Slayers-in-Waiting. And if he succeeds, it could mean the end of the Chosen One -- all of the Chosen Ones -- forever....
368 pages, Paperback
First published October 1, 2000
About the author
Christopher Golden
695 books2,551 followersCHRISTOPHER GOLDEN is the New York Times bestselling, Bram Stoker Award-winning author of such novels as Road of Bones, Ararat, Snowblind, Of Saints and Shadows, and Red Hands. With Mike Mignola, he is the co-creator of the Outerverse comic book universe, including such series as Baltimore, Joe Golem: Occult Detective, and Lady Baltimore. As an editor, he has worked on the short story anthologies Seize the Night, Dark Cities, and The New Dead, among others, and he has also written and co-written comic books, video games, screenplays, and a network television pilot. Golden co-hosts the podcast Defenders Dialogue with horror author Brian Keene. In 2015 he founded the popular Merrimack Valley Halloween Book Festival. He was born and raised in Massachusetts, where he still lives with his family. His work has been nominated for the British Fantasy Award, the Eisner Award, and multiple Shirley Jackson Awards. For the Bram Stoker Awards, Golden has been nominated ten times in eight different categories. His original novels have been published in more than fifteen languages in countries around the world. Please visit him at www.christophergolden.com
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 82 reviews
October 16, 2012
Being a huge fan of the Spike&Dru relationship from the first time I watched season two of the TV series "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", this was a book I just HAD to own! Taking place rougly sixty years before the vampire couple turns up in Sunnydale, this is a must-have for fans who want to know more about the previous doings of the two.
Dru's anniversary as a vampire is drawing near and Spike wants to give her a present worthy of her charm, and so, he decides to find the necklace Freya's Strand. However, this turns out to be a more difficult task than he had imagined as the necklace is currently in the possession of an ancient demon named Skrymyr who strikes them a deal: If Spike and Dru kill all the potential Slayers in the world, he will give them Freya's Strand - a bargain interesting enough for them to take on.
Meanwhile, we hear about the current Slayer (the Danish girl Sophie) and the Watchers' Council, fighting this new threat.
I loved the parts about Spike and Dru, and being Danish, I liked how the other main character was a Danish Slayer. The story is good, the book is well-written, and you don't miss the main cast of the show at all. However, I found Sophie's Watcher a both boring and irrelevant character whom I could have easily been without.
In general, though, this book is definitely a must-read for every Spike&Dru fan.
Dru's anniversary as a vampire is drawing near and Spike wants to give her a present worthy of her charm, and so, he decides to find the necklace Freya's Strand. However, this turns out to be a more difficult task than he had imagined as the necklace is currently in the possession of an ancient demon named Skrymyr who strikes them a deal: If Spike and Dru kill all the potential Slayers in the world, he will give them Freya's Strand - a bargain interesting enough for them to take on.
Meanwhile, we hear about the current Slayer (the Danish girl Sophie) and the Watchers' Council, fighting this new threat.
I loved the parts about Spike and Dru, and being Danish, I liked how the other main character was a Danish Slayer. The story is good, the book is well-written, and you don't miss the main cast of the show at all. However, I found Sophie's Watcher a both boring and irrelevant character whom I could have easily been without.
In general, though, this book is definitely a must-read for every Spike&Dru fan.
April 10, 2016
*Book source ~ Library
Drusilla’s 80th birthday (of becoming a vampire) is approaching and Spike wants to get her something especially nice. For the first time Dru has actually asked for a specific item, so he sets out to find it. As WWII breaks out in Europe, Spike and Dru travel to Norway to seek out a myth, a legend, the ancient Skrymir. They’re surprised he’s actually alive and even more surprised when he strikes a deal with them: kill the Slayers-in-training and then the Slayer and he’ll give them Freyja’s Strand, a magical necklace that allows the wearer to shapeshift. Since that sounds like quite a fun time, Spike and Drusilla agree and set their killing spree in motion.
The current Slayer and her Watcher are called to London when the Council realizes what Spike and Drusilla are doing. Determined to stop the murderous fiends before the line of Slayers is lost, Sophie and Yanna head back to Europe to put an end to their trail of bloodshed. But events are working against them and hope is fading. Will this be the end of the Chosen Ones?
Any fan of the show, and of Spike and Drusilla in particular, will love this story. Happening from March to September in 1940, long before they make their way to Sunnydale, this is the evil duo who revels in slaughter. And make no mistake, it’s creatively gory. Well-written and told from several POVs I think Christopher Golden hit Spike and Drusilla’s personalities and dialogue on the head. I had no problem picturing them in full technicolor, as if this were several episodes of the show. I particularly liked Sophie. It’s nice to get in the head of a Slayer other than Buffy or Faith. My only complaint is one that irks me, extremely so. There is a detail towards the end, and I will not spoil it here, that is off from the show in a big way. Not.Happy. I really hate when media tie-ins don’t match the show in fundamental and important details. It may not bother others, but I took off a whole bite for it, hence a 4 instead of 5. However, this was an entertaining read even with that disappointment. I would definitely check out more of Golden’s work.
Drusilla’s 80th birthday (of becoming a vampire) is approaching and Spike wants to get her something especially nice. For the first time Dru has actually asked for a specific item, so he sets out to find it. As WWII breaks out in Europe, Spike and Dru travel to Norway to seek out a myth, a legend, the ancient Skrymir. They’re surprised he’s actually alive and even more surprised when he strikes a deal with them: kill the Slayers-in-training and then the Slayer and he’ll give them Freyja’s Strand, a magical necklace that allows the wearer to shapeshift. Since that sounds like quite a fun time, Spike and Drusilla agree and set their killing spree in motion.
The current Slayer and her Watcher are called to London when the Council realizes what Spike and Drusilla are doing. Determined to stop the murderous fiends before the line of Slayers is lost, Sophie and Yanna head back to Europe to put an end to their trail of bloodshed. But events are working against them and hope is fading. Will this be the end of the Chosen Ones?
Any fan of the show, and of Spike and Drusilla in particular, will love this story. Happening from March to September in 1940, long before they make their way to Sunnydale, this is the evil duo who revels in slaughter. And make no mistake, it’s creatively gory. Well-written and told from several POVs I think Christopher Golden hit Spike and Drusilla’s personalities and dialogue on the head. I had no problem picturing them in full technicolor, as if this were several episodes of the show. I particularly liked Sophie. It’s nice to get in the head of a Slayer other than Buffy or Faith. My only complaint is one that irks me, extremely so. There is a detail towards the end, and I will not spoil it here, that is off from the show in a big way. Not.Happy. I really hate when media tie-ins don’t match the show in fundamental and important details. It may not bother others, but I took off a whole bite for it, hence a 4 instead of 5. However, this was an entertaining read even with that disappointment. I would definitely check out more of Golden’s work.
Want to read
April 10, 2024[Thoughts as I read // contains spoilers]
- Okay, this is the second Spike/Drusilla romance I've read this month and both have absolutely nailed their personalities and relationship. Love it. I also love that the plot of both books revolves around Spike trying to impress Drusilla and make her happy by finding a supernatural object. I will say Spike is more ruthless in this one than in Bloody Fool for Love.
- The prose is especially nice.
- Drusilla's characterisation is a delight. Swimming in the ocean naked and swimming around happily in their compartment while everyone else abandons ship? Oh, Dru.
☆ Book Reviews | Bluesky | Twitter | Threads ☆
- Okay, this is the second Spike/Drusilla romance I've read this month and both have absolutely nailed their personalities and relationship. Love it. I also love that the plot of both books revolves around Spike trying to impress Drusilla and make her happy by finding a supernatural object. I will say Spike is more ruthless in this one than in Bloody Fool for Love.
- The prose is especially nice.
- Drusilla's characterisation is a delight. Swimming in the ocean naked and swimming around happily in their compartment while everyone else abandons ship? Oh, Dru.
☆ Book Reviews | Bluesky | Twitter | Threads ☆
August 3, 2011
This was the first novel I read by Christopher Golden, and I enjoyed it so much that I was inspired to search out his original fiction (which is also excellent). Like so many, I loved the Buffy the Vampire Slayer TV show; Spike was my favorite character. So, when I saw this book I decided to delve into the Buffy novels. I have read several books in the Buffyverse, but I think this is by far the best. First, Golden perfectly captured the spirit of Spike and Dru as portrayed by James Marsters and Juliet Landau. While reading, I could easily envision the two actors carrying out the story. Their dialog, actions and thoughts were spot on - and the cover is fantastic. Second, the story was believable as part of the Buffy canon, especially taking place decades before the show's time line. Spike and Dru set about killing all the "slayers-in-waiting" (those next in line for the power should the current slayer be killed) who are being hidden and trained by the Watchers. The idea that, eventually, a new slayer would arise who doesn't know what she is, and so would be easy to kill and so on. The novel is fast paced, with lots of action, as the two vampires track and kill their targets, all the while moving toward a showdown with the current slayer. The book is a little gory at times, but the action and the final battle are exciting and kept me turning the pages
(Minor spoiler) Astute Buffy fans will note that the novel contradicts a fact from the show - namely the number of slayers Spike has killed. I heard the author discuss this and it turns out the novel was mostly complete before that fact was revealed in the show. I didn't feel this was an issue at all. Buffy learns about Spike from the Watchers, and it's entirely credible that they didn't know everything he had been up to.
Though readers not familiar with Buffy could read and enjoy this, they would miss a lot of material aimed at show fans. Overall, I thought this was excellent and highly recommend it.
(Minor spoiler) Astute Buffy fans will note that the novel contradicts a fact from the show - namely the number of slayers Spike has killed. I heard the author discuss this and it turns out the novel was mostly complete before that fact was revealed in the show. I didn't feel this was an issue at all. Buffy learns about Spike from the Watchers, and it's entirely credible that they didn't know everything he had been up to.
Though readers not familiar with Buffy could read and enjoy this, they would miss a lot of material aimed at show fans. Overall, I thought this was excellent and highly recommend it.
December 17, 2022
I'll give this book a 5 outta 5 stars rating as this story was able to hold its own without the titular slayer Buffy Summers being front and present which is awesome :) plus who doesn't love Spike and Dru?
My Review
Recently, I've been re-reading my Buffy novels that I'd collected years ago (and I still haven't got them all, eventually one day lol) and while I was re-reading Spike and Dru: Pretty Maids All in a Row was a fun distraction :)
Christopher Golden is one of my top fave Buffy authors as I really enjoy his writing style. How he captures the character's personalities, quirks, and mannerisms from the TV series but even better we get a little insight into the characters' minds.
Spike's task is to infiltrate the Watcher's Council headquarters and get his hands on the list of young women in training to take over as Slayer should they be called. In exchange for Freya's Strand, Spike must kill the reining Slayer, a brazen young woman named Sophie, as well as the Slayers-in-Waiting. And if he succeeds, it could mean the end of the Chosen One — all of the Chosen Ones — forever…
Sound familiar? Let's not forget that this tactic was used later on by The First Evil in Btvs S7 to try and eliminate the Slayer line and then eventually Buffy and Faith, so a little foreshadowing there.
Though some continuity errors, for example, it's explicitly stated that in this timeline Spike had only killed two slayers in his lifetime - Xin Rong in the Boxer's Rebellion in 1900 and Nikki Wood in New York 1977, but in this story, he kills his third Slayer Sophie Carstensen which contradicts EVERYTHING that occurred from Buffy Season 2 onwards.
So to me, this story takes place in an alternative parallel universe to the Buffy canon universe lol
It was awesome to see some familiar characters that will make an appearance in future novels and even on the show and that I knew who they were, couldn't help but geek out lol :D
It was fun to have some historical details in this story but obviously with a creative spin to suit the narrative:
- The vampire Gorm refers to Gorm the Old, the first historically recognized ruler of Denmark.
- The novel uses the character Skrymir and magical artifacts Brísingamen and Draupnir, from Norse mythology
-In the novel, the historical figure of Rasputin is revealed to be a demon.
-The dwarf-warriors Nidavellir refers to Niðavellir, home of the Dwarves in Norse mythology.
I really liked Sophie's character and I don't know if it was intentional or not but the parallels between her and Buffy were strongly hinted at throughout the novel. Similar physical resemblance was noted and both slayers' eventual distrust and disgust of the Council's politics and the way they run things and treat the Potentials and the current Slayer is a nod towards Buffy's own dealings with the Council decades later.
Not only that, Sophie, has a motherly-daughter bond with her Watcher Yanna Narvik (reminds you of the bond between Giles/Buffy) who is also a seer.
One of my favourite moments is when she slaps a member of the Watcher's Council across the face for questioning her Watcher's bravery. Not only do you think he and other Watchers would've learned by now not to piss off a vampire slayer? But it was a nice nod to for Sophie to show them who really held the true power in the room!
I definitely think Buffy would have been really proud of Sophie and definitely would've respected her. It was also fun to get inside Sophie's head on how she feels being a Slayer during WWII.
Things that could've been done better?
Continuity by far - make it more ambiguous if Spike DID kill Sophie or not but leaving it open for speculation but keeping the timeline intact.
Wish Yanna's storyline was explored better since it was mentioned she was a seer and every time she uses her abilities she loses her sanity and control of reality bit by bit. For one thing, seers really get a bad rep when it comes to using their abilities, look at Cordelia and Drusilla, but it would be nice to see more exploration there unfold.
My Review
Recently, I've been re-reading my Buffy novels that I'd collected years ago (and I still haven't got them all, eventually one day lol) and while I was re-reading Spike and Dru: Pretty Maids All in a Row was a fun distraction :)
Christopher Golden is one of my top fave Buffy authors as I really enjoy his writing style. How he captures the character's personalities, quirks, and mannerisms from the TV series but even better we get a little insight into the characters' minds.
Spike's task is to infiltrate the Watcher's Council headquarters and get his hands on the list of young women in training to take over as Slayer should they be called. In exchange for Freya's Strand, Spike must kill the reining Slayer, a brazen young woman named Sophie, as well as the Slayers-in-Waiting. And if he succeeds, it could mean the end of the Chosen One — all of the Chosen Ones — forever…
Sound familiar? Let's not forget that this tactic was used later on by The First Evil in Btvs S7 to try and eliminate the Slayer line and then eventually Buffy and Faith, so a little foreshadowing there.
Though some continuity errors, for example, it's explicitly stated that in this timeline Spike had only killed two slayers in his lifetime - Xin Rong in the Boxer's Rebellion in 1900 and Nikki Wood in New York 1977, but in this story, he kills his third Slayer Sophie Carstensen which contradicts EVERYTHING that occurred from Buffy Season 2 onwards.
So to me, this story takes place in an alternative parallel universe to the Buffy canon universe lol
It was awesome to see some familiar characters that will make an appearance in future novels and even on the show and that I knew who they were, couldn't help but geek out lol :D
It was fun to have some historical details in this story but obviously with a creative spin to suit the narrative:
- The vampire Gorm refers to Gorm the Old, the first historically recognized ruler of Denmark.
- The novel uses the character Skrymir and magical artifacts Brísingamen and Draupnir, from Norse mythology
-In the novel, the historical figure of Rasputin is revealed to be a demon.
-The dwarf-warriors Nidavellir refers to Niðavellir, home of the Dwarves in Norse mythology.
I really liked Sophie's character and I don't know if it was intentional or not but the parallels between her and Buffy were strongly hinted at throughout the novel. Similar physical resemblance was noted and both slayers' eventual distrust and disgust of the Council's politics and the way they run things and treat the Potentials and the current Slayer is a nod towards Buffy's own dealings with the Council decades later.
Not only that, Sophie, has a motherly-daughter bond with her Watcher Yanna Narvik (reminds you of the bond between Giles/Buffy) who is also a seer.
One of my favourite moments is when she slaps a member of the Watcher's Council across the face for questioning her Watcher's bravery. Not only do you think he and other Watchers would've learned by now not to piss off a vampire slayer? But it was a nice nod to for Sophie to show them who really held the true power in the room!
I definitely think Buffy would have been really proud of Sophie and definitely would've respected her. It was also fun to get inside Sophie's head on how she feels being a Slayer during WWII.
Things that could've been done better?
Continuity by far - make it more ambiguous if Spike DID kill Sophie or not but leaving it open for speculation but keeping the timeline intact.
Wish Yanna's storyline was explored better since it was mentioned she was a seer and every time she uses her abilities she loses her sanity and control of reality bit by bit. For one thing, seers really get a bad rep when it comes to using their abilities, look at Cordelia and Drusilla, but it would be nice to see more exploration there unfold.
June 3, 2022
Caveat: another book that I read so long ago that a real assessment is no longer possible. It gets four 💫's because I recall liking it.
August 28, 2015
OMG! This book is so awesome. I can't believe the levels of depravity that Spike and Druscilla's love reached in this story. I knew Druscilla was was bent because of Angel's treatment to her before and after transformation to vampirism, but to read it in a love story concept with Spike was extremely exciting. There was a great deal of love making and fighting and I found self wondering why Spike would ever be satisfied with Buffy. Tremendous adventure across sea and land. Must read!
July 9, 2008
I loved everything about this book. I loved spike and Dru, i loved the slayer and her watcher, (not buffy and Giles), i loved the villain of the piece, and i loved learning about the slayers to be waiting for their time.
Skrymir Rocked as a villain. Both Entertaining, action packed, chilling, horrific and suspenseful.
Skrymir Rocked as a villain. Both Entertaining, action packed, chilling, horrific and suspenseful.
Shelved as 'put-down-for-now'
July 26, 2020I stopped reading this book a few days before the pandemic begin and I never picked it back up. This is my third attempt and I just can't get through it for some reason. I love Spike & Dru and I do wanna read more about them and their adventures before they came to Sunnydale but there's something with the writing or I don't quite know what that makes me have a hard time getting into the story. I'll have to try again another time.
April 14, 2020
In the ages of 12-14, I collected every single Buffy book that came out. However, after Buffy ended and I moved on to other fandoms, I had let my collecting of this massive series of tie-in books fall to the wayside. Well, over the last couple of years, I went through and either recollected new copies of old books in the series that had fallen apart over the years and through various moves from house to house, and I bought all the novels that I had not bothered to collect in the near 20 years since I moved on from my Buffy hyperfixation. They all now sit in universal chronological order on my shelf and that's how I've decided to read through them. So, over the next few months, you'll see reviews for books I'm reading through again for the first time in over a decade and some that I've never read at all. It'll be fun!
So, I have a long history with Buffy novels, and some of the earliest ones written (and that I read, naturally) were by Christopher Golden. Therefore, I knew right from the off that this book was going to at least be a three star rating because he wrote some of my all time favorites back in the day. Added to that is the fact that this book is an adventure with Spike & Drusilla, and I knew I would have a lot of fun reading this work.
And, as I got into the story, I realized that this book introduces two main characters from his short story submission to Tales of the Slayer, Volume 3. We not only get to see the journey of a Danish Slayer at the onset of WWII, but we also get to meet future Slayer and Watcher, Eleanor Boudreau and Marie-Christine Fontaine. Not gonna lie: when they popped up, I had a complete nerd moment where I went, "Hey, I know these people!" Eleanor's story was one of my faves from TotS 3, so it was a lot of fun to see her pop up again, as well as some of the other potential Slayers.
Spike and Dru have a lot of fun creating chaos together, and Golden's voice for Dru is 100% on point. I could just picture Juliet Landau's over the top hand gestures and her thousand yard stare. The only voice in the whole story that I sometimes could not gel with the television counterpart was Spike's. To be fair, however, I don't think that really had to do with the writing, but has more to do with the different time period. When we meet Spike on Buffy, it's the late 1990s and he very much has the vernacular of that time period; this is 5 decades before, so there are certain terminologies that I'm used to for Spike that simply don't exist yet in this story. So, it's jarring for me as a reader who is used to the character that so quintessentially encapsulates the jargon of a certain decade... to have them speak so differently throws me a bit. Not to mention, I know that he wasn't wearing the leather coat yet because he got that from Nikki Wood in 1977 and I saw plenty of flashbacks to his days as William and then his early days as a vampire where he obviously doesn't wear the leather. Despite that knowledge, I still have problems picturing him without it. But those are my faults and not the writing or the story.
As to the story, it's just a fun romp all around. You've got a lot of POVs, though they're all through third person; some of those POVs don't last very long though, if you get what I'm saying. Also, characters get from one place to another way too fast in some parts, I think. I really don't think you could get from London to Mykonos, Greece in three days during the main part of WWII. Even if you do use connections from the Watcher's Council. Also, I was left a bit confused about what happened to the Viking vampire and his minions in the Norwegian fjords in the 9th century. I guess they...died? But...who killed them exactly? Are we supposed to think it was Skrymir, but if it was him then why didn't he take the Brising's Necklace then instead of leaving it on boat? If it wasn't him, then who did kill the Vikings? Is it a legend from Norse mythology that I'm just supposed to know already? Cos I don't... and I've read Norse mythologies so something was lost there.
The only real negative is that it breaks from the show's visual canon on one very important point:
In terms of amazing pros: we have a great Slayer in this story -- Sophie, whose main weapon is a sword and who is devoted to her Watcher Yanna Narvik, who is also a seer. Sophie is such an interesting character to explore because she's idealistic, but not blinded by said beliefs. She even slaps a member of the Watcher's Council across the face for questioning her Watcher's bravery. I love her and I think Buffy would have really respected her. (OH! WE ALSO GET TO SEE GILES' GRANDMOTHER!)
Honestly, this book wasn't perfect, but it was so much fun and it proved that Spike & Dru do not need Buffy included in their story to make it interesting. They're such strong characters all on their own, and just the mythology of Slayers and Watchers and the war with the demonic world has infinite stories that can be told all throughout the world's history. I highly recommend it.
So, I have a long history with Buffy novels, and some of the earliest ones written (and that I read, naturally) were by Christopher Golden. Therefore, I knew right from the off that this book was going to at least be a three star rating because he wrote some of my all time favorites back in the day. Added to that is the fact that this book is an adventure with Spike & Drusilla, and I knew I would have a lot of fun reading this work.
And, as I got into the story, I realized that this book introduces two main characters from his short story submission to Tales of the Slayer, Volume 3. We not only get to see the journey of a Danish Slayer at the onset of WWII, but we also get to meet future Slayer and Watcher, Eleanor Boudreau and Marie-Christine Fontaine. Not gonna lie: when they popped up, I had a complete nerd moment where I went, "Hey, I know these people!" Eleanor's story was one of my faves from TotS 3, so it was a lot of fun to see her pop up again, as well as some of the other potential Slayers.
Spike and Dru have a lot of fun creating chaos together, and Golden's voice for Dru is 100% on point. I could just picture Juliet Landau's over the top hand gestures and her thousand yard stare. The only voice in the whole story that I sometimes could not gel with the television counterpart was Spike's. To be fair, however, I don't think that really had to do with the writing, but has more to do with the different time period. When we meet Spike on Buffy, it's the late 1990s and he very much has the vernacular of that time period; this is 5 decades before, so there are certain terminologies that I'm used to for Spike that simply don't exist yet in this story. So, it's jarring for me as a reader who is used to the character that so quintessentially encapsulates the jargon of a certain decade... to have them speak so differently throws me a bit. Not to mention, I know that he wasn't wearing the leather coat yet because he got that from Nikki Wood in 1977 and I saw plenty of flashbacks to his days as William and then his early days as a vampire where he obviously doesn't wear the leather. Despite that knowledge, I still have problems picturing him without it. But those are my faults and not the writing or the story.
As to the story, it's just a fun romp all around. You've got a lot of POVs, though they're all through third person; some of those POVs don't last very long though, if you get what I'm saying. Also, characters get from one place to another way too fast in some parts, I think. I really don't think you could get from London to Mykonos, Greece in three days during the main part of WWII. Even if you do use connections from the Watcher's Council. Also, I was left a bit confused about what happened to the Viking vampire and his minions in the Norwegian fjords in the 9th century. I guess they...died? But...who killed them exactly? Are we supposed to think it was Skrymir, but if it was him then why didn't he take the Brising's Necklace then instead of leaving it on boat? If it wasn't him, then who did kill the Vikings? Is it a legend from Norse mythology that I'm just supposed to know already? Cos I don't... and I've read Norse mythologies so something was lost there.
The only real negative is that it breaks from the show's visual canon on one very important point:
In terms of amazing pros: we have a great Slayer in this story -- Sophie, whose main weapon is a sword and who is devoted to her Watcher Yanna Narvik, who is also a seer. Sophie is such an interesting character to explore because she's idealistic, but not blinded by said beliefs. She even slaps a member of the Watcher's Council across the face for questioning her Watcher's bravery. I love her and I think Buffy would have really respected her. (OH! WE ALSO GET TO SEE GILES' GRANDMOTHER!)
Honestly, this book wasn't perfect, but it was so much fun and it proved that Spike & Dru do not need Buffy included in their story to make it interesting. They're such strong characters all on their own, and just the mythology of Slayers and Watchers and the war with the demonic world has infinite stories that can be told all throughout the world's history. I highly recommend it.
December 21, 2020
Relectura (la primera vez lo leí hace más de 10 años) y me ha gustado mucho. Tiene la esencia de Spike y Dru y la trama está bien construida. También he agradecido mucho que las peleas sean más sangrientas que en la serie.
February 11, 2010
Hardcover edition
July 31, 2019
Christopher Golden is my favorite author of all those who write novels for this series. His style and presentation are very engaging to me. I find it hard to put his books down. He gives The Buffyverse a much darker cast than the TV series or even the comics give it. His depiction of Spike and Dru make me wonder how I could have ever become attached to them. Very disturbing! Golden creates a memorable cast of characters among the big bads as well as potential slayers and The Watchers Council - including a young John Travers. If you like Buffy, you'll like this novel, but it's not canon, so if you're a stickler, you'll be put off by a major contradiction in this novel. Say no more!
January 8, 2020
I've read this book already but was at least 15 years ago and I recently saw it and added it to my xmas list. I couldn't remember any part of it so it felt like reading a new book anyway. Spike and Dru (especially Spike) were 2 of my favourite characters in Buffy and I loved that this is purely about them. Also nice to see characters with the surnames Travers and Giles tie into this. I haven't read a Buffy book in years and it was nice to go back to my teenage years as I haven't watched Buffy in a long time either.
October 23, 2020
I guess one of the problems with writing books like this while the series is still running is that they can't really predict future plot developments. I can't take any of this as canon, because too much happens that would have been mentioned in later seasons. This is a book I held on to from years ago, I'm guessing because I was impressed by the way it preceded and sort of predicted the events of season 7, but it turns out I don't care much about what Spike and Drusilla do together when they're not interacting with any of the other characters.
June 2, 2017
This is one of the more interesting of the Buffy spin-off novels, featuring our favorite vampire couple in 1940 and a birthday celebration for the ages. It gives a fresh viewpoint into the development of the characters, and an idea of just all of the things they experienced before fate brought them to Sunnydale. It's a good story, and one needn't be conversant with the tv show to appreciate it, though there is one vexing point made late in the book that contradicts the established continuity.
July 3, 2018
Read this at library yonks ago and thrilled to see it on audio. Have listened to this last two nights. I've read numerous of this authors books and never disappointed. The narrator is American and does try to sound like Spike but not quite there. The plot is set at the start of World War 2 and Dru is still crazy and having premonitions and Spike besotted and lethal at the same time. It is a gripping adventure and lots of action. Very good book.
January 15, 2021
I've been a Buffy the Vampire Slayer fan for ages, so had to read this book for obvious reasons. Spike is my favourite character and reading his adventure was an absolute joy. That being said, I cannot really imagine anyone who is not into BtVS enjoying the book equally. Certain chapters about the watchers just did not add up to the story for me and slowed down my reading progress. Nevertheless, if you are into Buffyverse, you should definitely give this a go.
June 16, 2021
Any fans of BtVS, and these characters in particular should pick this one up.
I've recently discovered these tie-in novels were a thing and have totally fallen into this rabbit hole. So far, anything by Christopher Golden is the way to go. I read the Lost Slayer series last week and that was way too good for what's basically published AU fanfiction. This one didn't disappoint either, it's a hell of a lot darker, but a fun read nonetheless.
I've recently discovered these tie-in novels were a thing and have totally fallen into this rabbit hole. So far, anything by Christopher Golden is the way to go. I read the Lost Slayer series last week and that was way too good for what's basically published AU fanfiction. This one didn't disappoint either, it's a hell of a lot darker, but a fun read nonetheless.
May 19, 2019
Ik heb nog geen enkele aflevering van Buffy gezien, al schijnt het een goeie serie te zijn. Bovendien zijn boeken die gebaseerd zijn op tv series meestal zwak. Dus dit was een gokje. Maar het is best een goed boek. En de vampier en zijn tenminste echt monsterlijk en geen suffe fruiteters. Ik ga nu echt eens aan die serie beginnen.
June 11, 2021
I first read this in my teens, maybe 13-15, but as an adult I cannot seem to get through it. I remember enjoying it the first time but was just so bored the second time. I'm not sure if I was just so into Buffy I devoured anything related or if my focus has dwindled as an adult, but I rated it a 2 considering both times I read it.
December 27, 2022
It was a great read on a sick day. Read it all in one afternoon. I’ll admit, the first half was a little slow and was difficult to get into, but once the plots pick up more, I was hooked until the last page!
Loved all the deeper looks into Spike and Dru’s relationship, as they’re some of my favorite characters from the show!
Loved all the deeper looks into Spike and Dru’s relationship, as they’re some of my favorite characters from the show!
February 7, 2024
I liked this book and the idea of it but I found it hard to keep my attention to it. I love Spike & Dru so I thought it would be an interesting read. I really like the story behind it, however I feel like there was a lot going on. Towards the end though it all made sense to me and I enjoyed it. I like the history of the Watchers council, too.
February 27, 2024
If you looking for a book that is like the tv series, then this is not that book. This book is set in the 1940s with Dru and Spike killing their way around the globe, and making out whenever possible. A very dark and violent book. It you are hard core fans of Dru and Spike then this is probably the book for you. Very disappointed.
March 7, 2023
Une très bonne lecture pour ma part ! Un réel plaisir d'avoir retrouvé Spike et Drusilla. De plus, j'ai adoré voyager à travers l'Europe avec eux et constater que sa folie si particulière a été parfaitement retranscrite dans le roman.
May 15, 2017
Kinda dark, guys. I mean, I get it, Buffy, by its very nature is dark, but... wow. Hella good.
October 24, 2017
i really do need to get around to making a shelf for "its trashy but i'm reading/rating/enjoying it for its trashyness, ya feel?"
February 20, 2018
wow dru is so... wow just read it this is a great addition to the buffy universe omg i loved this book cause it really took me all the places i needed to be
December 18, 2019
SO much fun!
May 10, 2020
Reads like a Buffy episode. There are a few differences between the show and the book. Definitely shows the viciousness of Spike and Dru. Loved it.
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