What do you think?
Rate this book
Shadowrun Novels #56
Shadowrun: Hong Kong
THE SHADOWS ARE EVEN DARKER ON THE OTHER SIDE OF THE SIXTH WORLD…
Based on Harebrained Schemes latest installment for their Shadowrun Returns game and written by long-time Shadowrun author Mel Odom, Hong Kong is a wild ride into the seamy underbelly of on of the Sixth World’s most legendary cities.
On a mission to find the mentor who saved you from the streets of Seattle years ago, this epic quest leads to a world of criminal syndicates, corporate machinations, darkest magic, and a plot set in motion decades ago that is about to be completed—and if it isn’t stopped in time, it could spell the destruction of Hong Kong itself…and the rest of the Sixth World soon after…
Based on Harebrained Schemes latest installment for their Shadowrun Returns game and written by long-time Shadowrun author Mel Odom, Hong Kong is a wild ride into the seamy underbelly of on of the Sixth World’s most legendary cities.
On a mission to find the mentor who saved you from the streets of Seattle years ago, this epic quest leads to a world of criminal syndicates, corporate machinations, darkest magic, and a plot set in motion decades ago that is about to be completed—and if it isn’t stopped in time, it could spell the destruction of Hong Kong itself…and the rest of the Sixth World soon after…
516 pages, Kindle Edition
Published August 30, 2016
22 people are currently reading
44 people want to read
About the author
Mel Odom
281 books273 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.
aka Jordan Gray
Mel Odom is a bestselling writer for hire for Wizards of the Coast's Forgotten Realms, Gold Eagle's Mack Bolan, and Pocket's Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel book lines. His debut SF novel Lethal Interface made the Locus recommended list . The Rover was an Alyx Award winner. He has also written a scientific adventure of the high seas set in the 19th century entitled Hunters of the Dark Sea. He lives in Oklahoma.
aka Jordan Gray
Mel Odom is a bestselling writer for hire for Wizards of the Coast's Forgotten Realms, Gold Eagle's Mack Bolan, and Pocket's Buffy the Vampire Slayer and Angel book lines. His debut SF novel Lethal Interface made the Locus recommended list . The Rover was an Alyx Award winner. He has also written a scientific adventure of the high seas set in the 19th century entitled Hunters of the Dark Sea. He lives in Oklahoma.
Ratings & Reviews
Friends & Following
Create a free account to discover what your friends think of this book!
Community Reviews
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews
September 13, 2022
To było dość rozczarowujące.
Książka rzuca odrobinę światła na przeszłość Duncana i MC (main character) w Seattle i kilka innych spraw. Ma jednak kilka sporych minusów.
MC to postać totalnie nijaka. Nic nie umie, żadnych specjalnych umiejetności, charyzmy czy inteligencji. Po graniu magiem z wymaksowaną charyzmą czytanie z perspektywy tak żadnej postaci jest frustrujące. Dialogi są ograniczone, często rozmowy przejmowane są przez innych członków drużyny, a MC pozostaje w roli obserwatora, runy kończą się w dziwny sposób. Trudno powiedzieć, dlaczego MC został wybrany na lidera grupy, bo jego wypowiedzi są często po prostu głupie. Dziwne, że tak wiele uchodzi mu na sucho.
Druga rzecz, po co przyjmować do drużyny zajebistego ghoula samuraja i riggera z psychologicznym twistem, skoro potem spycha się ich w niepamięć? Racter dochodzi tylko przy misji związanej z jego wątkiem osobistym (który jest potraktowany tu mocno pretekstowo), kiedy w poprzedniej "wygodnie" Is0bel zostaje ranna. Gaichu nie pojawia się niemal w ogóle.
Wątek Yama Kings? Nie istnieje. Na koniec Is0bel mówi zdanie na ich temat, jakby wiedziała o tym od zawsze, ale... no.
Czy było warto? Nie, niekoniecznie.
Książka rzuca odrobinę światła na przeszłość Duncana i MC (main character) w Seattle i kilka innych spraw. Ma jednak kilka sporych minusów.
MC to postać totalnie nijaka. Nic nie umie, żadnych specjalnych umiejetności, charyzmy czy inteligencji. Po graniu magiem z wymaksowaną charyzmą czytanie z perspektywy tak żadnej postaci jest frustrujące. Dialogi są ograniczone, często rozmowy przejmowane są przez innych członków drużyny, a MC pozostaje w roli obserwatora, runy kończą się w dziwny sposób. Trudno powiedzieć, dlaczego MC został wybrany na lidera grupy, bo jego wypowiedzi są często po prostu głupie. Dziwne, że tak wiele uchodzi mu na sucho.
Druga rzecz, po co przyjmować do drużyny zajebistego ghoula samuraja i riggera z psychologicznym twistem, skoro potem spycha się ich w niepamięć? Racter dochodzi tylko przy misji związanej z jego wątkiem osobistym (który jest potraktowany tu mocno pretekstowo), kiedy w poprzedniej "wygodnie" Is0bel zostaje ranna. Gaichu nie pojawia się niemal w ogóle.
Wątek Yama Kings? Nie istnieje. Na koniec Is0bel mówi zdanie na ich temat, jakby wiedziała o tym od zawsze, ale... no.
Czy było warto? Nie, niekoniecznie.
July 9, 2023
Well, did I expect a literary masterpiece? No, of course not, this is a freaking video game adaptation. But still three things ruined this for me:
1) The "blank main character" thing just doesn't click with me in a novel. I know it's supposed to be "you" but I don't know man, you end up with a faceless, talentless, empty husk.
2) Racter and Gaichu get very little screen time. I mean they're taken along on what...one run? They aren't fleshed out, you don't get to know them, while in game I used to have endless conversations with Racter on posthumanism and his alleged mental disorder.
3) Towards the ending it all seemed very rushed. The actual ending itself is ridiculous.
So no, I don't think it adds much to the (amazing) video game to read this.
1) The "blank main character" thing just doesn't click with me in a novel. I know it's supposed to be "you" but I don't know man, you end up with a faceless, talentless, empty husk.
2) Racter and Gaichu get very little screen time. I mean they're taken along on what...one run? They aren't fleshed out, you don't get to know them, while in game I used to have endless conversations with Racter on posthumanism and his alleged mental disorder.
3) Towards the ending it all seemed very rushed. The actual ending itself is ridiculous.
So no, I don't think it adds much to the (amazing) video game to read this.
January 7, 2020
Meh Ok, novelization of a decent video game
August 27, 2023
The actual game was written so well that I am baffled how badly the book sucks. Boring and featureless.
October 11, 2016
Long drawn out jumble
This book was like a kiddie rollercoaster of minor runner jobs and the only constant thought was, "find Raymond Black; Dad." With minor character building you didn't get to know any of them. The brothers were the cliche with one being a rebel without a cause, one was a cop, one was a shaman and the other a decker. Secondary characters were mech builder and samurai ghoul. Found their father in the last 30 pages who wasn't who they thought he was, then found themselves fighting a demon?? Wha..? Sacrifice was made and everyone lives happily ever after. And compared to the other so-so shadowrun books, this in my opinion made no sense what do ever. You can stop reading when you become bored, go read another book then return and start where you left off, and it doesn't matter cuz it is one big jumble of mediocre jobs, one after another, till the last "story" which isn't quite related to anything.
Mel Odom had written some other really great books, but this wasn't one of them. It's the "commercial" in-between looking for your next good book.
This book was like a kiddie rollercoaster of minor runner jobs and the only constant thought was, "find Raymond Black; Dad." With minor character building you didn't get to know any of them. The brothers were the cliche with one being a rebel without a cause, one was a cop, one was a shaman and the other a decker. Secondary characters were mech builder and samurai ghoul. Found their father in the last 30 pages who wasn't who they thought he was, then found themselves fighting a demon?? Wha..? Sacrifice was made and everyone lives happily ever after. And compared to the other so-so shadowrun books, this in my opinion made no sense what do ever. You can stop reading when you become bored, go read another book then return and start where you left off, and it doesn't matter cuz it is one big jumble of mediocre jobs, one after another, till the last "story" which isn't quite related to anything.
Mel Odom had written some other really great books, but this wasn't one of them. It's the "commercial" in-between looking for your next good book.
April 5, 2016
The primary character felt far too faceless. There was some attempt to fill out the backstory of the protagonist, but without a name, race, gender, or street name, the resulting character failed to form.
In addition, some characters were introduced but then ignored and there was little meaningful interaction between the protagonist and the other characters, leaving them with less of a personality than the game provides.
The end result was generally well written for any given scene, but far too bland as a whole.
I'm also somewhat bothered by the use without comment of ASIST early on in the Whampoa chapter, but having it be a term that Is0bel is unfamiliar with and needing to look up when it appears again later.
In addition, some characters were introduced but then ignored and there was little meaningful interaction between the protagonist and the other characters, leaving them with less of a personality than the game provides.
The end result was generally well written for any given scene, but far too bland as a whole.
I'm also somewhat bothered by the use without comment of ASIST early on in the Whampoa chapter, but having it be a term that Is0bel is unfamiliar with and needing to look up when it appears again later.
September 21, 2016
Hong Kong Redux
A take on the game that keeps a consistent storyline that facilitates the telling of it. Gives us a great window into the personalities of the characters through their actions and subtly shows their progression to hardcore members of the Hong Kong shadows. Keeps you in the moment with detailed action that doesn't put the brakes on the plot. Brings you closer to the characters through the empathy of the narrator with the other characters and the world around them. I hope to see spin offs of the other runners back stories. Thank you to the author.
A take on the game that keeps a consistent storyline that facilitates the telling of it. Gives us a great window into the personalities of the characters through their actions and subtly shows their progression to hardcore members of the Hong Kong shadows. Keeps you in the moment with detailed action that doesn't put the brakes on the plot. Brings you closer to the characters through the empathy of the narrator with the other characters and the world around them. I hope to see spin offs of the other runners back stories. Thank you to the author.
June 15, 2016
2 stars might be q bit harsh, but it's almost identical to the game, the introduction with some history for your character (who is never named) and a handful of moments on between missions are not enough to keep the interest, you might get more out of it if you've not played the game, but I wouldn't read it if you have played the game..
May 31, 2016
Since this is a novelization of the video game, the protagonist's qualities are all very, very vague, so that you can project as wide a range of characters as possible. The book was well written, and the individual setpieces were all interesting, but the fact that the main character was so very, very blank took a bit away from it for me.
Displaying 1 - 9 of 9 reviews