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Alias Prequel #12
Shadowed
SOPHOMORE YEAR. HARDER classes. Nicer dorms. Stronger friendships. And Sydney Bristow’s biggest mission yet: retrieve top-secret KGB research in Berlin. But someone else is on the job. Someone people keep confusing with Sydney.
186 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published November 9, 2004
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
November 20, 2020
1.5 stars
the final entry into this prequel series was a disappointment. The whole ordeal felt... strange. This didn’t read like Sydney at all. And what’s worse is that the ending was pretty trash, too. So many loose ends 🤢🤦🏾♂️
the final entry into this prequel series was a disappointment. The whole ordeal felt... strange. This didn’t read like Sydney at all. And what’s worse is that the ending was pretty trash, too. So many loose ends 🤢🤦🏾♂️
July 22, 2017
I'm going to go ahead and leave my review for the entirety of the prequel book series with this final one. On the whole, it was fun to revisit this book series again (almost 15 years after the first time reading through.) I bought myself the APO book series recently (which I had never read on their initial release) and, despite the fact that very little story line is shared between the two book series, I wanted to review Sydney's SD-6 adventures before reading her APO ones.
There were, naturally, some drawbacks to reading these books years later. First was that much of what happened in the early books of the series was redacted and made non-canonical by the show's visual canon. Also, it was hard to get into certain plot lines of the books because of a lack of connection with characters. For instance, there's no Marshall anywhere, but instead there is a Graham Flinkman who shares a lot of Marshall's quirks. While this is interesting, it mainly interests me only insofar as making me wonder when Marshall joined the group and was he recruited to SD-6 through Graham? Marcus Dixon is only mentioned in passing, and while I can understand why he and Sydney weren't partnered off the bat, I would like to have seen more of him. There is, of course, no Will Tippin anywhere and Jack is more mentioned than seen (with the exception of one book.) We do get two Vaughn centered novels in the middle of the series (where we learn he interacted with Sydney once in a fight against SD-6, but not look enough for him to have recognized her years later), but the plot lines of those two books are rather contrived and predictable. Also, I was mainly left to wonder when he met Weiss -- that was the question I really wanted answered, and sadly, it never was.
On the plus side, we get a LOT of Francie and Sydney interaction (one of my favourite parts of the first two series of the show) and we see how that relationship developed in their early college days. The negative side of this is that I was left wondering why they were still friends 7 years later (when the show starts) because Sydney was a TERRIBLE friend to Francie. She was always abandoning plans at the last minute and would get mad if Francie raised issue with it. BUT it did make Francie's anger at Sydney in season 1 and her annoyance with Sydney's "stupid bank job" have a bit more credence.
My main issue with the books (minus the mis-matched continuity with the visual canon) was that Sydney came across as way too clingy and girly when it comes to Noah Hicks. Granted, I understand that she was 18 at the start of the series and Noah was her first "great love," but I found it irksome. In the show, what I loved about Sydney was her strength and how she was unwilling to let her life be ruled over by men. In the prequel books, she lets Noah walk all over her and plays second fiddle to his mercurial moods. This fact, coupled with my dislike of Noah's speaking voice in the show (he always spoke as though he was speaking through a mouth full of spit) made the huge amount of Noah's presence unbearable.
What I will love the prequel series for forever having though is the introduction to K-Directorate, the first interaction with Anna Espinosa ("Infiltration" was easily the best book in the series), the backstory of Sydney's father/daughter relationships with Wilson, Jack, and Sloane, and stories of Sydney finding moles from "enemy agencies" for SD-6. That made her own future double agent status all the more interesting.
There were, naturally, some drawbacks to reading these books years later. First was that much of what happened in the early books of the series was redacted and made non-canonical by the show's visual canon. Also, it was hard to get into certain plot lines of the books because of a lack of connection with characters. For instance, there's no Marshall anywhere, but instead there is a Graham Flinkman who shares a lot of Marshall's quirks. While this is interesting, it mainly interests me only insofar as making me wonder when Marshall joined the group and was he recruited to SD-6 through Graham? Marcus Dixon is only mentioned in passing, and while I can understand why he and Sydney weren't partnered off the bat, I would like to have seen more of him. There is, of course, no Will Tippin anywhere and Jack is more mentioned than seen (with the exception of one book.) We do get two Vaughn centered novels in the middle of the series (where we learn he interacted with Sydney once in a fight against SD-6, but not look enough for him to have recognized her years later), but the plot lines of those two books are rather contrived and predictable. Also, I was mainly left to wonder when he met Weiss -- that was the question I really wanted answered, and sadly, it never was.
On the plus side, we get a LOT of Francie and Sydney interaction (one of my favourite parts of the first two series of the show) and we see how that relationship developed in their early college days. The negative side of this is that I was left wondering why they were still friends 7 years later (when the show starts) because Sydney was a TERRIBLE friend to Francie. She was always abandoning plans at the last minute and would get mad if Francie raised issue with it. BUT it did make Francie's anger at Sydney in season 1 and her annoyance with Sydney's "stupid bank job" have a bit more credence.
My main issue with the books (minus the mis-matched continuity with the visual canon) was that Sydney came across as way too clingy and girly when it comes to Noah Hicks. Granted, I understand that she was 18 at the start of the series and Noah was her first "great love," but I found it irksome. In the show, what I loved about Sydney was her strength and how she was unwilling to let her life be ruled over by men. In the prequel books, she lets Noah walk all over her and plays second fiddle to his mercurial moods. This fact, coupled with my dislike of Noah's speaking voice in the show (he always spoke as though he was speaking through a mouth full of spit) made the huge amount of Noah's presence unbearable.
What I will love the prequel series for forever having though is the introduction to K-Directorate, the first interaction with Anna Espinosa ("Infiltration" was easily the best book in the series), the backstory of Sydney's father/daughter relationships with Wilson, Jack, and Sloane, and stories of Sydney finding moles from "enemy agencies" for SD-6. That made her own future double agent status all the more interesting.
September 22, 2011
After reading the entire Alias prequel series I was a bit disappointed with this final book. Even though this was a quick read, like the other books, it just was not as engaging for me. I also was disappointed that some things were not tied up or revealed, like is the character Graham Flinkman in the books the same or related to the character Marshall Flinkman in the TV series? Overall I would say if you have read the other books then this is still worth the read.
April 15, 2019
This story was so much better than the previous book in the series. Sydney still tries to balance her college life and spy work. All may come to a end when a mission takes a turn for the worse causing Sydney's loyalty to be questioned.
March 11, 2020
This is the only book in the series that I have read. I saw it on the free shelf at the library and grabbed in. I might watch the tv series now. Good read about a colege student who is a secret agent on the side. Quick, fun read, but not very detailed thus the 3 stars.
August 3, 2017
A fitting end to the series.
December 29, 2021
The 12th book in the Alias Prequel series. Fun, fast-paced, and enjoyable.
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February 24, 2010F ALI
Based on J.J. Abrams' television series, Alias.
Based on J.J. Abrams' television series, Alias.
August 10, 2018
good, not my favorite
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews