#yassen has always been honest with alex and alex really appreciates that

[jenna-louise-jamie]

wait im unbelievably excited to see more of alex and yassen's interactions in alex rider season 3. yassen literally killed someone to protect alex.

we know from the books alex learned to appreciate yassen in some way because he died to save him, but this time around yassen lived but killed someone to save him. book!alex still thinks about yassen long after his death and chooses to keep the fact that yassen died for him to himself. he didn't even seem to hold a grudge that yassen's dying words to him ended up getting alex shot later on (possibly because he appreciated that yassen led him to the truth about his father, and he got to learn more about both of them).

different scenarios but they both led to alex succeeding in stopping damian cray. im curious to know if yassen was still out of it this time around, and he didn't actually want alex to go to scorpia. [insert that anthony horowitz tweet/tumblr post here]. very excited to find out. and also scared!

#someone hold my hand while we watch it together #yassen has always been honest with alex and alex really appreciates that #he's not even necessarily just being truthful to get something out of alex hes doing it because he cares for him and cared for hunter #we know how freaked out he got when he realized alex was involved with damian cray in the books and the tv show #so im delighted to see how worried he might get that he just led alex into the lion's den #also excited to find out how much truth yassen actually knows about hunter because the inconsistencies in the books slighly confuse me stil #im shaking and trembling and throwing up in excitement for season 3 and it's out next week sjjdjdjfjjfj #alex rider #yassen gregorovich #alex rider season 3 #alex rider tv #this is just a chaotic ramble that is not very coherent at all !!

[alexrideraddict]

HEY SOCKS: DO YOURSELF A FAVOR AND READ NIGHTSHADE!!!

[This is quite long but I believe this book deserves all this praise. Please read! There are NO SPOILERS!]

It BLEW MY MIND by how much it completely surpassed my expectations. Now I know most of us are most familiar and devoted to the early iconic AR novels, the ones with TONS of explosions and gunfire and witty puns and banter. In my opinion as the series went on some novels were more boring; it felt like the same thing each new book. (Crocodile Tears for example, I thought didn’t add much of substance.) I loved Scorpia but Scorpia Rising felt like scattered, leftover pieces of a storyline. I was super glad when Never Say Die came out, continuing the series chronologically, but the book was kind of a bummer for me because it felt formulaic, the same thing over again. It felt like AH was just dragging the storyline along. 

Don’t get me wrong, I love all the action scenes even if some seem repetitive in certain novels, but what I feel truly makes an AR book amazing is seeing Alex as a person, not just a spy. When you can feel Alex’s inner turmoil or sense of betrayal, like in Scorpia or even Snakehead with Ash, that’s what makes a novel great. Alex going over to Yassen at the end of Eagle Strike and accompanying him in his final moments spoke volumes about who he was as a person. The best Alex Rider books involve something personal to Alex where he shows his own character. 

Enter Nightshade. 

First off, we have a new criminal organization. I must say that Scorpia pales in comparison to Nightshade. (This isn’t a spoiler, it’s made clear from the beginning, even in the end of Never Say Die:) Nightshade uses children, which I think draws a stark comparison between them and MI6 with Alex. A huge tenet of the AR series is children being used in dark situations like spying, killing, etc. I think this new agency rings true to a this central topic of the series, all the more fitting for this agency to take hold in the storyline. Overall it’s like Scorpia but hitting closer to home for Alex because of the similar ages. 

This also means some of the main antagonists are Alex’s age. I won’t get too much into it here since many of you may not have read it yet but let’s just say that the dynamic between a teen spy and teen killer(s) is much different than one of a teen spy and power-hungry old guy who wants to take over the world (a.k.a. the main villain of basically every other AR novel lol). 

What I love most about this novel is that you see Alex’s character, his compassion even in the most unlikely circumstances, his care for people both close to him and even enemies. I don’t think any other novel illustrates this as much as Nightshade, not even close. And I think there’s a good reason earlier novels didn’t: when Alex first starts going on missions, he’s a little bit cocky and a smart-ass (all those iconic insults!). It’s not until much later in the series, especially Scorpia Rising, where we see the traumatizing toll his work has taken on him. Alex has grown up. Of course, there’s still some golden sassy one-liners in Nightshade, but my impression of Alex in Nightshade was one who was more cautious and careful, aware of repercussions, and thoughtful. There’s a hilarious chapter where he manages to cause a ton of chaos but overall, he wants to minimize who gets hurt. There’s definitely a shift in Alex that’s different from the most early novels, but I think it’s a good change that really shows his increased maturity and experience and takes the storyline to even greater heights. 

Second, the plot itself is paced superbly and you don’t want to put the book down. The plot is interesting and this novel really does a great job of putting in foreshadowing that doesn’t hit you until the moment it is used and you just go “wow so THAT’S what it was for!” There’s less explosions/fighting than previous novels, but I didn’t mind because it goes with how Alex wants to minimize chaos. I was literally holding my breath for certain scenes. What really makes this story pop is how in certain scenes, I didn’t really know what Alex was going to do next. Once again, he shows his own character by some of the decisions he makes. Overall, though, I believe the storyline in Nightshade is way more well-constructed than most of the books in the series. The foreshadowing is awesome, when Alex gets out of certain situations it’s never in a cheap, deus-ex-machina way. This novel is quintessentially Alex 100%. That’s what I love about it. 

Third, you get to learn so much about MI6. Granted, MI6 is much different in this novel compared to previous ones due to Smithers and Blunt leaving earlier, so it’s basically just Mrs. Jones and Crawley. But you get to see a much more human side of them and their personalities, and MI6′s weakness at times. You learn SO MUCH about Mrs. Jones, and I’m really glad her story is becoming much more prominent in the overall storyline as it really ties the constant key players from the start of the series together now as time has passed. Personally, I’ve always kind of loved Crawley and he really shines in this novel as he has a much more prominent role. Something new I learned this book was that Crawley has ATTITUDE(!!) and is overall, a badass. #stancrawley

Fourth, this book highlights Alex and Tom’s friendship better than any other novel, even Scorpia in my opinion. Tom is also a badass, that’s all I’m gonna say. (Jack is also a badass, but let’s be honest, we knew that already since Stormbreaker.) Nightshade also highlights Jack and Alex’s relationship and overall, the bonds between everyone in this series. (Not rly a spoiler since it doesn’t have anything to do with the plot but there’s not even a mention of Sabina in this book but honestly I breathed a sigh of relief at that. Thank god we’ve escaped from her at last.) 

Lastly, the book really does take a new direction for the overarching Alex Rider storyline. There’s the organization of Nightshade and a bunch of new characters introduced, mostly antagonists. BUT THEY’RE ALL HIGHLY INTERESTING GREAT CHARACTERS THAT YOU WANT TO READ MORE ABOUT!! Early AR novels gave us the icons Yassen Gregorovich and Julius Grief, now Nightshade has given us ****** ****. (<-- not trying to give spoilers so once you have finished the book, figure out the name that spells this. Hint: monkey toy) This character has filled the hole in my soul that Yassen and Julius left. If you’re looking for a new baddie to appreciate, look no further than that guy. (I rly do be shipping him with Alex...) 

Basically, this Nightshade book has given me newfound hope in the continuation of the series. (Never Say Die took away this hope big time but it’s all back now!) I have been reminded of why I love this series from reading this book. Nightshade has everything you want in an AR novel but with deeper meaning and connections between characters. Anthony Horowitz, I forgive you for the infamous crime of the Fox/Wolf identity mishap; you have proven yourself with this book. I am so excited for the future of this series after seeing how good this book turned out.  

IN CONCLUSION, IF YOU LOVE ALEX RIDER PLEASE READ NIGHTSHADE ASAP. IT WAS GOOD ENOUGH TO WARRANT ME WRITING A WHOLE ESSAY HERE ON WHY YOU SHOULD READ IT!! REBLOG AND SPREAD THE WORD, BUT MOST IMPORTANTLY, GO READ NIGHTSHADE!!!

#alex rider #alexrider #nightshade #anthony horowitz #alex rider tv #new book #new books #book review #review