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Battleship
YOU SANK THE WRONG BATTLESHIP During a routine naval drill at Pearl Harbor, American forces detect a ship of unknown origins that’s crashed in the Pacific Ocean. Lieutenant Alex Hopper, an officer aboard the USS John Paul Jones, is ordered to investigate the ominous-looking vessel—which turns out to be part of an armada of ships that are stronger and faster than any on Earth. And that’s when the Navy’s radar goes down. Ambushed by a ravenous enemy they cannot see, a small U.S. fleet makes their last stand on the open ocean, armed with little more than their instincts, to defend their lives—and the world as we know it. The official novel of the blockbuster film! Based on the screenplay by Erich Hoeber and Jon HoeberFrom the Paperback edition.
272 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 2012
54 people are currently reading
232 people want to read
About the author
Peter David
3,567 books1,364 followersaka David Peters
Peter Allen David, often abbreviated PAD, was an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films, and video games. His notable comic book work includes an award-winning 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk, as well as runs on Aquaman, Young Justice, SpyBoy, Supergirl, Fallen Angel, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Captain Marvel, and X-Factor.
His Star Trek work included comic books and novels such as the New Frontier book series. His other novels included film adaptations, media tie-ins, and original works, such as the Apropos of Nothing and Knight Life series. His television work includes series such as Babylon 5, Young Justice, Ben 10: Alien Force and Nickelodeon's Space Cases, which he co-created with Bill Mumy.
David often jokingly described his occupation as "Writer of Stuff", and he was noted for his prolific writing, characterized by its mingling of real-world issues with humor and references to popular culture, as well as elements of metafiction and self-reference.
David earned multiple awards for his work, including a 1992 Eisner Award, a 1993 Wizard Fan Award, a 1996 Haxtur Award, a 2007 Julie Award and a 2011 GLAAD Media Award.
Peter Allen David, often abbreviated PAD, was an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films, and video games. His notable comic book work includes an award-winning 12-year run on The Incredible Hulk, as well as runs on Aquaman, Young Justice, SpyBoy, Supergirl, Fallen Angel, Spider-Man, Spider-Man 2099, Captain Marvel, and X-Factor.
His Star Trek work included comic books and novels such as the New Frontier book series. His other novels included film adaptations, media tie-ins, and original works, such as the Apropos of Nothing and Knight Life series. His television work includes series such as Babylon 5, Young Justice, Ben 10: Alien Force and Nickelodeon's Space Cases, which he co-created with Bill Mumy.
David often jokingly described his occupation as "Writer of Stuff", and he was noted for his prolific writing, characterized by its mingling of real-world issues with humor and references to popular culture, as well as elements of metafiction and self-reference.
David earned multiple awards for his work, including a 1992 Eisner Award, a 1993 Wizard Fan Award, a 1996 Haxtur Award, a 2007 Julie Award and a 2011 GLAAD Media Award.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
June 17, 2012
It might be silly, but this is actually such a fun idea for a movie, and Peter David is such a good writer, that he truly did a great job fleshing out the story and characters. If you like military SF or stories about alien invasions, this is your kind of story. I'll admit I'm biased, having worked with Peter on this novelization, but I had a great time with it, and I think you'll find it an enjoyable summer read.
June 9, 2024
Here, it looks like we have an adaptation...of...
A BOARD GAME?!?!
UGH! Lt. Alex Hopper is a weapons officer aboard the destroyer USS John Paul Jones, while his older brother, Stone, is the commanding officer of the USS Sampson. Unknown to Alex, Stone or the rest of America's Navy, alien invaders have arrived on Earth...with plans...to steal Earth's resources?! When a confrontation with the invaders knocks out the Navy's radar capability, American and Japanese forces must work together to find a way to save the planet...no, no, wait a minute...American AND Japanese forces, working in co-op?! WTF ALREADY?! I always thought the Japanese were the worst enemy of America ever because of their aggressive assault on Pearl Harbor. Why couldn't they allow other allied forces such as the British or the Canadians or even the Chinese or even the Russians to work co-op here? Anyway, first of all, let's move the bull elephant out of the living room: this adaptation has no specific necessary reason to exist mostly because the original board game has no actual story or characters, so what would there have been to adapt? Just look at Risk, Monopoly, Life, and all the other board games. Imagine if those games ever got their own adaptations with their own characters! Okay, as for the characters, their introductions are clunkier than The Forever War (and don't even get me started on THAT stupid piece of garbage), particularly with the protagonist, Alex Hopper (who, by the way, never really comes across as anything but a jackass who gets lucky) having an excessively long moment of him...trying to...steal a burrito from a gas station...to IMPRESS THE LOVE INTEREST?! IS THIS SUPPOSED TO BE A ROMANTIC COMEDY OR AN ACTION THRILLER OR WHAT?! 'CAUSE IT SURE AS HELL CANNOT BE BOTH! This garbage is excessively long for its content: the first many pages, in particular, are completely unnecessary as everything in them is summarized again right afterwards. The plot is incredibly formulaic: it's an account of a loose cannon military officer whose refusal to do things by the book (no, not this book, but another one, I suppose) does not sit well with his superiors but turns out to be the EXACT thing needed in an unusual situation. This thing feels like it was written by at least three baboons trained to be writers, one of whom had created an interesting story about a war with aliens that comes about as a result of a series of misunderstandings, and the other two a pair of stoners who just got a new bong. The attempts to integrate elements from the board game, such as the alien ships firing "peg-like" projectiles, come across as very artificial and, more importantly, ludicrously out-of-place. There are also lots of aggressively stupid tactics are used by everyone involved, such as the trick of performing a handbrake turn using the Missouri's anchor, which would actually rip off the ship's bow, and there is no way to remotely sever a ship's anchor chain in that way indicated. As for some specific moments: that one moment that tries to be like the board game doesn't really succeed, since the destroyer crew can actually tell where their target is; and, the moment where the veterans are shown emerging from hiding on the USS Missouri makes them look like some kind of lost tribe who were living on the ship. Speaking of which, the titular battleship, USS Missouri, is only actually in the final battle: all of the other naval battles only involve destroyers.
Alright, now that I am done trashing the outline and the book, I'll continue to the review of the film itself, a "Bayformers" film that isn't even directed by Michael Bay himself and is apparently "named after" the board game. As I've said earlier, an idea of a film "named after" Battleship, the board game, is not a good one and it doesn't like an interesting idea at all, as there aren't that many clever concepts that you could over the game, as it never relied on characters and setting and plot, since the game itself was just a guessing board game without any characters or story, what more could you get out of a film about that? The film is more or less a huge-budget Asylum Film version of itself (not that this stopped them making one too) and is the same kind of daft fun as their movies typically are. The movie contributed significantly to funds to preserve the USS Missouri. The alien culture seems kind of interesting, and it would have been nice to see whatever script it was gutted out of in order to shove it into this one. The visual effects are impressive. The acting is poor, especially with the protagonist, who brings no personality to his role and is just kind of there, and his love interest, who doesn't even do a good job. In fact, a lot, if not all, of the cast were military veterans rather than actors. While all due respect should be given to them for their service, it is very obvious that some of them were not particularly skilled when it comes to acting; however, there were a few who give quite decent performances despite their lack of acting experience. One particular example is the double-amputee character, LT. Col. Mick Canales, who is played by Col. Gregory D. Gadson, a veteran who actually lost his legs in combat! It's a shame his talent had to be wasted in a film such as this. The film is much more consistent than any of the Transformers films, with a clear tone: it is thus possible to enjoy it for the big, over-the-top action movie it is, without being distracted by random horrible character deaths or awkward humor. The battle scenes are also well-shot, without the excessive close-ups and shaky-cam that characterizes Bay films. Some parts of the film, however, rip off the Transformers movies, such as the alien ships, which are Michael Bay-style CGI creations with far too many details and moving parts and have a very similar art style, and having the same composer as Transformers really doesn't help with the feeling of similarity; however, the score, despite being similar to those awesome films, is pretty good. I'm also sorta a Transformers fan myself. From its announcement, the film was widely mocked for the absurdity of its subject matter. The film was a GODDAMN disappointment at the box office, grossing $303 million worldwide on a budget of $209-220 million! The reception was usually negative. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the film "may offer energetic escapism for less demanding filmgoers, but Battleship is too loud, poorly written, and formulaic to justify its expense -- and a lot less fun than its source material." Worse still, it was even nommed for six Golden Raspberry awards, winning only one for "Worst Supporting Actress."
Alright, now that I am done trashing the outline and the book, I'll continue to the review of the film itself, a "Bayformers" film that isn't even directed by Michael Bay himself and is apparently "named after" the board game. As I've said earlier, an idea of a film "named after" Battleship, the board game, is not a good one and it doesn't like an interesting idea at all, as there aren't that many clever concepts that you could over the game, as it never relied on characters and setting and plot, since the game itself was just a guessing board game without any characters or story, what more could you get out of a film about that? The film is more or less a huge-budget Asylum Film version of itself (not that this stopped them making one too) and is the same kind of daft fun as their movies typically are. The movie contributed significantly to funds to preserve the USS Missouri. The alien culture seems kind of interesting, and it would have been nice to see whatever script it was gutted out of in order to shove it into this one. The visual effects are impressive. The acting is poor, especially with the protagonist, who brings no personality to his role and is just kind of there, and his love interest, who doesn't even do a good job. In fact, a lot, if not all, of the cast were military veterans rather than actors. While all due respect should be given to them for their service, it is very obvious that some of them were not particularly skilled when it comes to acting; however, there were a few who give quite decent performances despite their lack of acting experience. One particular example is the double-amputee character, LT. Col. Mick Canales, who is played by Col. Gregory D. Gadson, a veteran who actually lost his legs in combat! It's a shame his talent had to be wasted in a film such as this. The film is much more consistent than any of the Transformers films, with a clear tone: it is thus possible to enjoy it for the big, over-the-top action movie it is, without being distracted by random horrible character deaths or awkward humor. The battle scenes are also well-shot, without the excessive close-ups and shaky-cam that characterizes Bay films. Some parts of the film, however, rip off the Transformers movies, such as the alien ships, which are Michael Bay-style CGI creations with far too many details and moving parts and have a very similar art style, and having the same composer as Transformers really doesn't help with the feeling of similarity; however, the score, despite being similar to those awesome films, is pretty good. I'm also sorta a Transformers fan myself. From its announcement, the film was widely mocked for the absurdity of its subject matter. The film was a GODDAMN disappointment at the box office, grossing $303 million worldwide on a budget of $209-220 million! The reception was usually negative. According to Rotten Tomatoes, the film "may offer energetic escapism for less demanding filmgoers, but Battleship is too loud, poorly written, and formulaic to justify its expense -- and a lot less fun than its source material." Worse still, it was even nommed for six Golden Raspberry awards, winning only one for "Worst Supporting Actress."
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
June 25, 2012
0 Stars.
This has got to be the worst book I've read in years. Thank GOD I didn't go watch the movie, because if this book is representative of it, it sucks. For an action movie, it sure lacked action. The aliens were like a really bad extraterrestrial commie stand-in. Pure ebiiiil.
The main players involve some alien "Stingers" (their equivalent of submarines/surface ships) that got wiped by conventional weapons. Apparently extremely advanced alien shield tech can be overcome by 50 calibre bullets. Big WOW there. It's so mindbogglingly mindblowing (lol@redundancy) that I actually had to put the book down to digest the concept. Bloody hell. Supersonic projectiles can overwhelm shields able to stop space debris travelling at a fraction of c (light speed for those of not well-versed in sci-fi). That makes sense. If those humans were firing, I dunno, rail guns at near c I'd totally understand. But this is your conventional machine gun. Barely stone age tech compared to the Regents (the aliens) who have can travel ftl and manipulate the molecules in water to form solid impenetrable walls. It makes no sense.
Then there's the sub-par dialogue full of cliché after cliché. It makes you wonder whether Hopper the character, was aware the entire time that there's an audience watching/reading about him and that he's pandering to them instead of being a "real" character in his own fictional little world.
Then there's his fiance/semi-fiance. She comes out as extremely shallow and "girly" despite being the so called "badass" daughter of a fleet admiral. The entire time I was reading her scenes, I kept feeling sorry for Brooklyn Decker for having to play this character in the movie. She whines, bitches and cries when faced with danger. She nearly got everyone killed when she couldn't stop hyperventilating and screaming after seeing an alien up close.
Now back to the main character Hopper. This is your average caveman. He thinks like one, acts like it and only follows his baser instincts when confronting a challenge. Someone pisses him off? Punch the dude and start a fight in the bathroom. Court-martial afterwards? Ooops I didn't think of that. I'm in it for the short-term. Aliens then pop up and kill his brother. Oh geez, I'm now in charge of two ships and the lives of their crew. Let's go kamikaze on those aliens despite the fact that it didn't work before. "You guys killed my brother. Imma revenge him! Oh shit, our ships got blown up and hundreds of people died because of me. I should have thought of that before but my foresight and planning only goes up to 5 minutes in the future!" Totally flat, 2 dimensional character. It would have been more entertaining if they had replaced him with a sock-puppet.
That's the typical plotline of the story. It's not worth the paper it was printed on. The biggest beef I'd had with the whole affair was the dumbing down of the aliens. It just wasn't needed, but then again, if the aliens weren't nerfed, the humans would never have a chance at all. This wouldn't have been a typical Hollywood happily ever ending. Instead of creating an awesome sci-fi thriller, the movie studios sought to pander to the unwashed masses by trying to let the good guys win, regardless of how idiotic the outcome turned out to be. This might explain why the movie tanked at the theaters.
Verdict: DO NOT READ.
This has got to be the worst book I've read in years. Thank GOD I didn't go watch the movie, because if this book is representative of it, it sucks. For an action movie, it sure lacked action. The aliens were like a really bad extraterrestrial commie stand-in. Pure ebiiiil.
The main players involve some alien "Stingers" (their equivalent of submarines/surface ships) that got wiped by conventional weapons. Apparently extremely advanced alien shield tech can be overcome by 50 calibre bullets. Big WOW there. It's so mindbogglingly mindblowing (lol@redundancy) that I actually had to put the book down to digest the concept. Bloody hell. Supersonic projectiles can overwhelm shields able to stop space debris travelling at a fraction of c (light speed for those of not well-versed in sci-fi). That makes sense. If those humans were firing, I dunno, rail guns at near c I'd totally understand. But this is your conventional machine gun. Barely stone age tech compared to the Regents (the aliens) who have can travel ftl and manipulate the molecules in water to form solid impenetrable walls. It makes no sense.
Then there's the sub-par dialogue full of cliché after cliché. It makes you wonder whether Hopper the character, was aware the entire time that there's an audience watching/reading about him and that he's pandering to them instead of being a "real" character in his own fictional little world.
Then there's his fiance/semi-fiance. She comes out as extremely shallow and "girly" despite being the so called "badass" daughter of a fleet admiral. The entire time I was reading her scenes, I kept feeling sorry for Brooklyn Decker for having to play this character in the movie. She whines, bitches and cries when faced with danger. She nearly got everyone killed when she couldn't stop hyperventilating and screaming after seeing an alien up close.
Now back to the main character Hopper. This is your average caveman. He thinks like one, acts like it and only follows his baser instincts when confronting a challenge. Someone pisses him off? Punch the dude and start a fight in the bathroom. Court-martial afterwards? Ooops I didn't think of that. I'm in it for the short-term. Aliens then pop up and kill his brother. Oh geez, I'm now in charge of two ships and the lives of their crew. Let's go kamikaze on those aliens despite the fact that it didn't work before. "You guys killed my brother. Imma revenge him! Oh shit, our ships got blown up and hundreds of people died because of me. I should have thought of that before but my foresight and planning only goes up to 5 minutes in the future!" Totally flat, 2 dimensional character. It would have been more entertaining if they had replaced him with a sock-puppet.
That's the typical plotline of the story. It's not worth the paper it was printed on. The biggest beef I'd had with the whole affair was the dumbing down of the aliens. It just wasn't needed, but then again, if the aliens weren't nerfed, the humans would never have a chance at all. This wouldn't have been a typical Hollywood happily ever ending. Instead of creating an awesome sci-fi thriller, the movie studios sought to pander to the unwashed masses by trying to let the good guys win, regardless of how idiotic the outcome turned out to be. This might explain why the movie tanked at the theaters.
Verdict: DO NOT READ.
April 1, 2019
Obviously when I picked up the novelization of a movie based on a children's board game I wasn't expecting the next great American novel. I did, however, expect Peter David to make it work. I figured reading the novel first would make the movie more enjoyable, because it would provide the opportunity round out flat characters and add a little depth. Well, Peter David has let me down. It was a dull, melodramatic story with cliched characters and no drive. The dialogue was filled with odd pop-culture references and a really lame attempt at Sorkinesque banter. Not good. The movie would almost have to be better. But sadly, I'm sure it isn't.
Listen in to hear about some of my favorite novelizations: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/ep...
Listen in to hear about some of my favorite novelizations: https://soundcloud.com/allthebooks/ep...
May 29, 2012
This book was so boring, I couldn't think of a better thing to do after finishing it than taking a nap. Honestly if the movie is this boring there is no way I'm going to see this, or even watching it on disc. Reviewing a book like this is hard, not simply because it is media-to-book plot (after all I have reviewed books such as Star Wars: The Force Unleashed) , but rather because it left no lasting impression upon me. To review something you have to at least remember part of the plot. I just finished and the only thing I can remember is that I was vaguely amused by certain things. That is all.
April 11, 2021
When the Beacon Project sends a signal into deep space, the scientists have no idea they're sending an invitation for an invasion...
Turning a board-game into a movie doesn't sound like a very good idea. And the movie, though entertaining, proved it.
Contrary to the movie, its screenplay novelization reads like a blockbuster with fully fleshed-out characters, expanded motivations, humor, and relationships and edge-of-the-seat action. The story is expanded, focusing more on the characters than the alien invasion and action, making it much more relatable.
And the cliffhanger in the end is a sure signal they were hoping to make a sequel. If the movie was more like the novel, I'd welcome it. With the movie as is was (is)...No thanks.
Turning a board-game into a movie doesn't sound like a very good idea. And the movie, though entertaining, proved it.
Contrary to the movie, its screenplay novelization reads like a blockbuster with fully fleshed-out characters, expanded motivations, humor, and relationships and edge-of-the-seat action. The story is expanded, focusing more on the characters than the alien invasion and action, making it much more relatable.
And the cliffhanger in the end is a sure signal they were hoping to make a sequel. If the movie was more like the novel, I'd welcome it. With the movie as is was (is)...No thanks.
April 29, 2014
Very good adaptation. Definitely works better when reading it than watching it sometimes. This movie was regarded as a box office bomb because of its connection with the board game. Nobody had the notion of a board game movie since Clue. Still as far as an action movie goes its pretty good. Its not perfect. I described the movie to my father as a delicious cheeseburger served with rotten bread. The bread of course being the acting and the story, the beef and cheese being the action. The book is loads better getting insight into the mindset of the alien invaders, as well as the human beings which was better than I thought. B-
May 10, 2017
Good story poorly written or researched
First off an enlisted man from E2 to E9 would never address any officer by his given name. A Senior Officer NEVER salutes a junior officer first. The characters other than Hopper are all Petty Officers or Chief Petty Officer and as such are never saluted or called Sir. An RHIB is not a ship it is a boat. The premise of the story is decent. Naval protocols should have been researched a tad. One last thing, There is no way in the world that Hopper could have made Lt Cmdr in 5 years that rank is an O4. Especially since he was a Mustang. ( Look it up)
First off an enlisted man from E2 to E9 would never address any officer by his given name. A Senior Officer NEVER salutes a junior officer first. The characters other than Hopper are all Petty Officers or Chief Petty Officer and as such are never saluted or called Sir. An RHIB is not a ship it is a boat. The premise of the story is decent. Naval protocols should have been researched a tad. One last thing, There is no way in the world that Hopper could have made Lt Cmdr in 5 years that rank is an O4. Especially since he was a Mustang. ( Look it up)
September 30, 2012
A tad less action-packed than the movie but hey, it's not easy to put actions into words. After all, one action is equivalent to a thousand words. So it fits the movie. Although I suppose one is better off watching than reading. What makes Battleship cool was the action and the visuals. And since the action couldn't be described perfectly and you can't see the visuals in books unless it's a moving one like in the Disney's version of Treasure Island, it's just not as good. Kudos to the author for trying though and his attempt is commendable.
February 10, 2015
Definitely one of the better movie novelizations that I have read. It was a little slow at the beginning, but picked up and the action scenes didn't get tedious. It was definitely better than the movie since it included what was going on in the characters heads (including the aliens) which the actors don't always do a good job of portraying in the movie. It almost included the line, "you sank my battleship." It cut off before the work "battleship" in the book and I don't remember the line at all in the movie.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
October 23, 2015
Alex Hopperis a sailor and he has getting into a lot of fights. And he gets into a fight with a commander he gets court martialed, but he is sent on one last voyage to find out what it was that crashed near Hawaii. When him and some other ships find the vessel it turns out to be and alien ship. After lots of fighting it they destroy them before they can use a satellite dish to launch a message to their home planet. And when they find an alien in England they know that they will come back to rescue it.
May 25, 2012
I enjoyed this book. It was more entertaining than I expected a novelization of a movie sponsored by a board game to be, quite frankly. It was riveting enough for me to read it all the way through without stopping. However, I will say that I found the premise of aliens so formulaic in their outlook on life that they are too stupid to take precautions a little bit silly. Summery: good, quick read, nothing to write home about.
May 4, 2017
Well written book version
Enjoyed the movie, and enjoyed the book. Yeah, it's easy reading and not going down as a literary classic... but a fun read with likeable characters. Worth the .99 cents I paid to get through a boring night at work.
Enjoyed the movie, and enjoyed the book. Yeah, it's easy reading and not going down as a literary classic... but a fun read with likeable characters. Worth the .99 cents I paid to get through a boring night at work.
July 2, 2018
Aliens vs the U.S. Navy
Having not seen the movie, I wanted to read the book. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it. I'm a big sci-fi fan and this book was a lot of fun. Now I just need the next book...
Having not seen the movie, I wanted to read the book. I enjoyed the book and would recommend it. I'm a big sci-fi fan and this book was a lot of fun. Now I just need the next book...
July 6, 2022
I love the movie and the book is very well done! Especially fun (for me) since I watched the movie, yet again, the day before I started reading it. I find it very enjoyable to read a book (from a movie) because I see the expressions on the faces of the characters in the book. Happy happy!
May 17, 2012
Great read all the way to the end. I don't really understand how it's based on the game though. They really could have done without the line "You sank my..."!
March 15, 2017
A decent enough novelization of a mediocre movie.
May 29, 2012
This was an quick and easy read and was an enjoyable way to spend a Summer day. If you don't expect a lot, it will not disappoint!
May 16, 2017
So-so
Standard story, not very griping
Wouldn't waste time reading, just not worth the time. A a a a a a
Standard story, not very griping
Wouldn't waste time reading, just not worth the time. A a a a a a
August 8, 2017
Page Turner
Sometimes old is better than new! As was proven by the crew of the John Paul Jones. Very compelling adventure!
Sometimes old is better than new! As was proven by the crew of the John Paul Jones. Very compelling adventure!
March 2, 2022
I enjoyed this book and it gave me lots to think about. the courage of the sailors who fought real wars became clear to me and I thank them.
August 31, 2025
I liked this one a lot. It's like an extended version of the movie, giving us more info on the characters and a few extra scenes that explain how we got to certain events.
I would have liked the movie to be like the book, but it would probably take about two more hours to add all the extra stuff.
A very entertaining read, perfect to relax and enjoy the action.
I would have liked the movie to be like the book, but it would probably take about two more hours to add all the extra stuff.
A very entertaining read, perfect to relax and enjoy the action.
May 8, 2017
BattleByShip, loved it, better than the movie
Read it in two days, fast reading, very riveting, the end is the best. Read it and enjoy it, forever
Read it in two days, fast reading, very riveting, the end is the best. Read it and enjoy it, forever
December 9, 2014
"Battleship" is the story of two brothers who join the US Navy, one, Stone Hopper, who chooses to follow in his father's footsteps, and then there's Alex Hopper, or simply addressed as Hopper because, "When asked, he would cavalierly explain that "Alex" was a lame-assed name compared to "Stone", joins simply for a girl.
The story is setup with Stone, the older and more mature brother, of the two is always looking out for his wayward little brother. Hopper winds up getting into a confrontation with a Japanese officer, Nagata, his arch rival for reasons never fully fleshed out, during the beginning of the War Games which has Hopper on the end of a court martial - once the games are over, of course. The only regret Hopper feels is that now he can't marry "the girl", Sam, who also happens to be Admiral's daughter.
Aliens show up and it's up to Hopper and company to stop the aliens from taking over.
The storyline is decent and, honestly, I grabbed this book from the library on a whim boy realizing this was an adaptation on the screenplay. By the way, I've not seen the movie yet. The story kept my interest but was confused by some of the descriptions used or lack thereof. The aliens are only described as "ugly" most times. And at one point "Beast" is a giant that "although the water came up to Hopper's chest, that was less of an issue for Beast, for whom it was barely waist high". The story is movie predictable and oft times I was left wondering how clueless people can be? The island is surrounded by a wall of water and yet, one character is only focused on getting to a PTA meeting so she can take notes. Hopper describes seeing locals and tourists at the beach to see the sun and surf while there has been a battle raging for the last day!! That part annoyed me as I have had the pleasure of visiting the Hawaiian islands and a giant wall of water would be noticeable.
Oh! And let's not also forget the frozen in time moment where Hopper, Beast and company carry a 16 inch shell up from the bowels of the ship to a working elevator a floor up and pathways down to mounted turret in less than a minute. They even have the luxury of dropping it and still succeeding.
Not my favorite read of the year but I was entertained while reading it.
The story is setup with Stone, the older and more mature brother, of the two is always looking out for his wayward little brother. Hopper winds up getting into a confrontation with a Japanese officer, Nagata, his arch rival for reasons never fully fleshed out, during the beginning of the War Games which has Hopper on the end of a court martial - once the games are over, of course. The only regret Hopper feels is that now he can't marry "the girl", Sam, who also happens to be Admiral's daughter.
Aliens show up and it's up to Hopper and company to stop the aliens from taking over.
The storyline is decent and, honestly, I grabbed this book from the library on a whim boy realizing this was an adaptation on the screenplay. By the way, I've not seen the movie yet. The story kept my interest but was confused by some of the descriptions used or lack thereof. The aliens are only described as "ugly" most times. And at one point "Beast" is a giant that "although the water came up to Hopper's chest, that was less of an issue for Beast, for whom it was barely waist high". The story is movie predictable and oft times I was left wondering how clueless people can be? The island is surrounded by a wall of water and yet, one character is only focused on getting to a PTA meeting so she can take notes. Hopper describes seeing locals and tourists at the beach to see the sun and surf while there has been a battle raging for the last day!! That part annoyed me as I have had the pleasure of visiting the Hawaiian islands and a giant wall of water would be noticeable.
Oh! And let's not also forget the frozen in time moment where Hopper, Beast and company carry a 16 inch shell up from the bowels of the ship to a working elevator a floor up and pathways down to mounted turret in less than a minute. They even have the luxury of dropping it and still succeeding.
Not my favorite read of the year but I was entertained while reading it.
February 13, 2015
Peter David tries, gosh darnit. He really tries.
I picked this one up because of the amazing job he did with the novelization of Batman Forever, taking a movie that warped and twisted interesting characters into a confused dayglo nightmare and turning it into something with thoughtfulness and depth. And he tries to do the same sort of thing here, delving into the characters' thoughts, filling out backstories, and trying to emphasize moments of pathos and tragedy. Unfortunately, none of it can save a script that's xenophobic, flat, and frankly, not even trying; there's precious little potential to tap.
He brings it up to "okay"; "readable but not an especially good return on one's time". Still, I appreciate the effort.
I picked this one up because of the amazing job he did with the novelization of Batman Forever, taking a movie that warped and twisted interesting characters into a confused dayglo nightmare and turning it into something with thoughtfulness and depth. And he tries to do the same sort of thing here, delving into the characters' thoughts, filling out backstories, and trying to emphasize moments of pathos and tragedy. Unfortunately, none of it can save a script that's xenophobic, flat, and frankly, not even trying; there's precious little potential to tap.
He brings it up to "okay"; "readable but not an especially good return on one's time". Still, I appreciate the effort.
March 8, 2017
Lt. Alex Hopper is a officer on the USS john Paul Jones. during the RIMPAC naval war games objects crash into the pacific ocean and admiral Shane sends 3 destroyers and they are separated and in need of reinforcements are forced to fight an unknown enemy when all 3 destroyers are destroyed they are forced to go into a last resort option. They have a battleship
This book is action packed and is one of my favorites of all time. It ties with the movie and gives the book a really good view of what is going on the book also tells the point of view of the aliens which the movie does not.
This book is action packed and is one of my favorites of all time. It ties with the movie and gives the book a really good view of what is going on the book also tells the point of view of the aliens which the movie does not.
July 4, 2014
good book. can't wait to see the movie, i feel prepared for it. Definitely set it up for a sequel.
June 18, 2012
Fast read really liked it. Movie is comeing out soon read before I watched it.
Read
July 19, 2012I miss his humor in this book.
August 17, 2012
Read exactly like the movie. Nothing new, no subtleness that a movie wouldn't be able to portray, it was... eh, ok. Pretty bland.
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