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Final Fantasy: The Spirits Within
Earth, 2065 Destruction and confusion are everywhere. Cities are deserted, the population is decimated, and the few humans who remain struggle to survive against an insidious alien presence that is consuming the very life energy of this wounded world. The presence is spreading across the planet, infecting everything in its path, killing the Earth one life at a time. Only Dr. Aki Ross, a brilliant young woman haunted by dreams of death, may hold the key to saving the world.But her plan is not without its risks, and a rogue general commanding the most technologically sophisticated army in history will storm heaven itself to stop her if he has to. He has plans of his own to stop the alien life force in one decisive stroke...plans that will stab at the very heart of Nature itself unless Aki's quest succeeds.
240 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published January 1, 2001
3 people are currently reading
139 people want to read
About the author
Dean Wesley Smith
822 books176 followersPen Names
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley
Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.
With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.
Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.
Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.
Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.
Edward Taft
Dee W. Schofield
Sandy Schofield
Kathryn Wesley
Dean Wesley Smith is the bestselling author of over ninety novels under many names and well over 100 published short stories. He has over eight million copies of his books in print and has books published in nine different countries. He has written many original novels in science fiction, fantasy, mystery, thriller, and romance as well as books for television, movies, games, and comics. He is also known for writing quality work very quickly and has written a large number of novels as a ghost writer or under house names.
With Kristine Kathryn Rusch, he is the coauthor of The Tenth Planet trilogy and The 10th Kingdom. The following is a list of novels under the Dean Wesley Smith name, plus a number of pen names that are open knowledge. Many ghost and pen name books are not on this list because he is under contractual obligations not to disclose that he wrote them. Many of Dean’s original novels are also under hidden pen names for marketing reasons.
Dean has also written books and comics for all three major comic book companies, Marvel, DC, and Dark Horse, and has done scripts for Hollywood. One movie was actually made.
Over his career he has also been an editor and publisher, first at Pulphouse Publishing, then for VB Tech Journal, then for Pocket Books.
Currently, he is writing thrillers and mystery novels under another name.
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Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
May 8, 2016
This book was as soulless as the movie and a worse experience because you have to sit there reading such dreck as every female character being described as a "thin, beautiful woman" and every experience of Aki's being "Aki felt ____" and "Aki was _____".
I wasn't expecting much, honestly, I mean, I bought this book from the library's donation shelf for 25 cents, and in the end, I'm just glad I supported my local library because this movie novelization had nothing going for it. I had secretly hoped that it might expand upon certain elements (Aki's personal history, how the hell Sid came up with the Gaia theory and why is this a political issue, etc.) or explain things in the movie that were never revealed or resolved (why exactly the spirits were certain creatures and not others, WTF was up with the history of the Phantoms, etc.) but there was nothing. It was like sitting and watching the movie all over again, except it took longer to read than to watch and I had to wade through poorly-written, awkwardly-phrased, badly-paced non-scene after non-scene.
All in all, I'd rather watch the movie than read the book. At least the movie was kind of pretty in some aspects and I didn't have to endure how mind-bogglingly two-dimensional the characters were. We literally get no backstory or history of any of the characters except for the evil general whose name I can't even be bothered to recall, which was given to us in one infodump late in the book as motivation for him being an otherwise inexplicable asshat. His grandiose plan had so many giant gaping illogical holes I just, I can't, and he had a whole coterie of loyal supporters literally manifested out of nowhere who existed simply to .
Ah well. I donated 25 cents to my library. At least some good came of this.
I wasn't expecting much, honestly, I mean, I bought this book from the library's donation shelf for 25 cents, and in the end, I'm just glad I supported my local library because this movie novelization had nothing going for it. I had secretly hoped that it might expand upon certain elements (Aki's personal history, how the hell Sid came up with the Gaia theory and why is this a political issue, etc.) or explain things in the movie that were never revealed or resolved (why exactly the spirits were certain creatures and not others, WTF was up with the history of the Phantoms, etc.) but there was nothing. It was like sitting and watching the movie all over again, except it took longer to read than to watch and I had to wade through poorly-written, awkwardly-phrased, badly-paced non-scene after non-scene.
All in all, I'd rather watch the movie than read the book. At least the movie was kind of pretty in some aspects and I didn't have to endure how mind-bogglingly two-dimensional the characters were. We literally get no backstory or history of any of the characters except for the evil general whose name I can't even be bothered to recall, which was given to us in one infodump late in the book as motivation for him being an otherwise inexplicable asshat. His grandiose plan had so many giant gaping illogical holes I just, I can't, and he had a whole coterie of loyal supporters literally manifested out of nowhere who existed simply to .
Ah well. I donated 25 cents to my library. At least some good came of this.
January 5, 2022
Interesting concepts, but lacking the depth and background it deserves. Best suited for those with nostalgia for the movie and games.
It is the near future and the Earth is besieged by an alien invader. Dr Aki Ross, a scientist, along with Dr Sid, Gray and the rest of the Deep eyes must work together to combat this presence if humanity is to have any chance at survival. Pursuing his own method to stop the extraterrestrial takeover, General Hein will do whatever he deems necessary. Regardless of what that means for Aki in the process.
Recently I'd been curious to read a few movie novelisations and I'd picked this up as part of a bulk purchase. I've always had a fondness for the Final Fantasy series having sunk countless hours into the games and seen the movie years ago. It has been over 20 years since this movie came out, so I was curious to see what hidden backstory and gems the novel might hold. The movie would surely win on spectacle and atmosphere, but surely the novel would have insights into character motivations and world building?
Sadly I was a little let down on that front. Overall the novel is more or less identical to the movie, to the point where I was hearing the voice actors as I read the dialog. I've re-watched the movie to compare and apart from a few changes to some scenes and lines, the plot is unchanged. The three scenes I felt the novel did better were the dream sequences, the gondola and the ending. In these cases the descriptions from the novel filled in a few gaps and made slightly more sense. Yet these weren't dramatic and had no real impact on the story.
The Good
* The concept ofthe lifestream spirit energy is a favourite of mine and similar to that in the games 7 and 10. I haven't seen too many other stories which use a similar idea, but it is a great theory to base a story around.
* The pacing in the novel felt a more natural than the movie, (or maybe that was just my reading of it). The movie feels slightly too fast with the witty comebacks flying before you've had time to enjoy what's going on.
The Bad
* I think the setting is a little off for the plot. While I understand most settings are constructed purely to further the story, this one feels like it needed a little more thought. I think it could have benefitted from not being based on Earth.
* General Hein (the villain of the story) has a reasonably sound arc in the novel. However, some of the decisions he makes are questionable and not challenged.
* There were a few minor grammar or word choices which were strange.
Overall, it is an average sci fi story with some plot holes that I'd love to understand the reasoning behind. Having the Final Fantasy brand attached is what brought it on my radar and though I'm definitely nostalgic, would give it a rating of 3/5 (Reasonable, but left me with lot of questions).
It is the near future and the Earth is besieged by an alien invader. Dr Aki Ross, a scientist, along with Dr Sid, Gray and the rest of the Deep eyes must work together to combat this presence if humanity is to have any chance at survival. Pursuing his own method to stop the extraterrestrial takeover, General Hein will do whatever he deems necessary. Regardless of what that means for Aki in the process.
Recently I'd been curious to read a few movie novelisations and I'd picked this up as part of a bulk purchase. I've always had a fondness for the Final Fantasy series having sunk countless hours into the games and seen the movie years ago. It has been over 20 years since this movie came out, so I was curious to see what hidden backstory and gems the novel might hold. The movie would surely win on spectacle and atmosphere, but surely the novel would have insights into character motivations and world building?
Sadly I was a little let down on that front. Overall the novel is more or less identical to the movie, to the point where I was hearing the voice actors as I read the dialog. I've re-watched the movie to compare and apart from a few changes to some scenes and lines, the plot is unchanged. The three scenes I felt the novel did better were the dream sequences, the gondola and the ending. In these cases the descriptions from the novel filled in a few gaps and made slightly more sense. Yet these weren't dramatic and had no real impact on the story.
The Good
* The concept of
* The pacing in the novel felt a more natural than the movie, (or maybe that was just my reading of it). The movie feels slightly too fast with the witty comebacks flying before you've had time to enjoy what's going on.
The Bad
* I think the setting is a little off for the plot. While I understand most settings are constructed purely to further the story, this one feels like it needed a little more thought. I think it could have benefitted from not being based on Earth.
* General Hein (the villain of the story) has a reasonably sound arc in the novel. However, some of the decisions he makes are questionable and not challenged.
* There were a few minor grammar or word choices which were strange.
Overall, it is an average sci fi story with some plot holes that I'd love to understand the reasoning behind. Having the Final Fantasy brand attached is what brought it on my radar and though I'm definitely nostalgic, would give it a rating of 3/5 (Reasonable, but left me with lot of questions).
March 4, 2023
"You've been trying to tell me from the first day we met that death isn't the end. Don't back out on me now."
2 stars only because i love the movie and i felt as if i was rewatching it through the pages of this book. however, the style lacks anything creative, there is literally nothing being added to the plot. the characters are literally the same, the dialogue is a perfect replica of the dialogue in the movie...
it is a pity, because the movie definitely leaves enough room for interpretation and development and i do believe that the author missed a great opportunity to expand the universe of Aki and Gray. moreover, because this novelization follows the movie's action in a mimetic style, everything feels rushed. i feel like the book should've allowed for a slower pacing of the plot.
this to me just makes the novel feel like an easy cash grab for the author, given how popular the movie was back in 2001. kinda sad that it brought nothing new for me, i really expected more. :(
2 stars only because i love the movie and i felt as if i was rewatching it through the pages of this book. however, the style lacks anything creative, there is literally nothing being added to the plot. the characters are literally the same, the dialogue is a perfect replica of the dialogue in the movie...
it is a pity, because the movie definitely leaves enough room for interpretation and development and i do believe that the author missed a great opportunity to expand the universe of Aki and Gray. moreover, because this novelization follows the movie's action in a mimetic style, everything feels rushed. i feel like the book should've allowed for a slower pacing of the plot.
this to me just makes the novel feel like an easy cash grab for the author, given how popular the movie was back in 2001. kinda sad that it brought nothing new for me, i really expected more. :(
October 24, 2014
The story...I read the juvenile version of the book so it was pretty much exactly like the movie. Though the movie is better. There isn't much imagery and the dialogue was fast-paced and flat without the verbal tone. Now that I'm an adult I feel like the book's less "Final Fantasy" than what I felt when I was younger.
February 22, 2022
"Every night, the same dream, the same strange planet. But why? What are they trying to tell me? It's been 34 years since they arrived on this planet. And not a day passes that the survivors, forced to live in barrier cities, do not live in fear. I have vowed to end that fear. I believe my dreams hold the key. [...] I'm convinced that these dreams are some form of communication. The message still eludes me, but they're coming faster now, and that can only mean one thing: the Phantoms inside me are beginning to win." (Aki)
June 1, 2023
I enjoyed this book. Back when the movie came out, I didn’t care for the story that much because is didn’t feel like Final Fantasy. But, if you were to just think of it as a science fiction story, it’s not that bad. It may be a bad Final Fantasy but it’s an ok sci-fi.
March 9, 2025
This is my favorite film of all time, so I thoroughly enjoyed the story. The writing was good but unfortunately let down by the editing.
July 31, 2013
I'm not really sure why I was expecting something from a movie novelization, but my small expectations were still crushed. The writing was very simple and plain, and was simply a vehicle to move the plot along. The author kept using really weird analogies to describe things to the reader, and they were so weird and out of place that I was laughing out loud. But the thing that really made me put the book down was the CONSTANT repetition of plot points. This author assumes that you are a freaking idiot, and also really forgetful. I couldn't stand it. This book received 2 stars simply because I love the plot, but if you want to know what happens, just watch the movie.
August 23, 2007
What the movie lacked was backstory and clarification on certain points; this novelization provides, to a point. The film's ending is ambiguous, as is the ending to the book - follows what is on the screen to the letter and does not speculate on unexplained elements...but that's the drawback to a novelization of a movie, I suppose.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews