[Hotsauce45acp]

I will not but anything Jay Bonansinga writes ever again after "destroy them all".

[The Walking Shooter]

I will not but anything Jay Bonansinga writes ever again after "destroy them all".

Nah that was easy to change. I just read it as "Kill them all".

The biggest offender though was Tyreese being so religious. After Julie didn't he say something to Rick that he didn't believe in the afterlife? And of course "PHILIP BLAKE LIVES ON", after getting his brains blown apart wasn't exactly the most realistic moves.

[marsyao]

Here is first a few pages of the "Descent"

 

https://www.facebook...lkingdeadnovels

[SuperNeos2]

Am I the only one who doesn't understand the whole "Phillip Blake lives on" line. I don't see how that makes any sense.

[The Walking Shooter]

Am I the only one who doesn't understand the whole "Phillip Blake lives on" line. I don't see how that makes any sense.

Trust me, between that and Tyreese suddenly being an extremely devoted religious man as well as "Destroy them all" just make me want to vomit. Extremely.

Lilly shoots good old Governor in the head, yet he has thirty seconds of thinking he is living on before shouting it out. Not only does that completely go against basic death, (he had his brains blown out for crying out loud) but in no way does he say that in the comics. We see his last moments getting devoured with no words slipping out.

[Hotsauce45acp]

I didn't understand that part either. It was like he was just making it up as he wrote it or something......he should have read the comics before writing a novel that try's to connect the dots

[The Walking Shooter]

I didn't understand that part either. It was like he was just making it up as he wrote it or something......he should have read the comics before writing a novel that try's to connect the dots

I think he did read the comics, but that was probably ages ago before he wrote the books. I assumed he only remembered parts of it, and as such didn't t properly do his research when writing the books. It's a shame because the only highlights in the book were the comic moments, which is kinda sad in it's own way.

[Salvatoor]

I hated all the parts that contradicted the comic too, I can't think of a reason to write a whole novel about just what the comics already told us, and on top of that, changing it, but in my opinion, that's the good thing about Descent, it won't contradict anything, because Woodbury's fate it is never mentioned in the comics. anything that happens there could have happened (As long as he doesn't keep screwing the timeline, like when he insists that the outbreak was 2 years prior)

[The Walking Shooter]

I thought it would have been interesting hearing about the Governor's side of things during the prison battle, but it all came about Mary-Sue Lilly who could do no wrong.

And to top it all off, the contradictions. Oh god the contradictions.

[slimymeteor]

I tried to support Jay B. all along during the course of the four novels, but when he changed "Kill them all!" to "Destroy them all, now!" I nearly threw the book up into the air.  He seriously couldn't even be bothered to look at the comic panels for reference and flubbed one of the most iconic lines from the franchise.

[The Walking Shooter]

At least now he can't damage any moments from the comic since he's onto new material.

[marsyao]

Out of the ashes of its dark past, Woodbury, Georgia, becomes an oasis of safety amidst the plague of the walking dead – a town reborn in the wake of its former tyrannical leader, Philip Blake, aka The Governor.

Blake’s legacy of madness haunts every nook and cranny of this little walled community, but Lilly Caul and a small ragtag band of survivors are determined to overcome their traumatic past… despite the fact that a super-herd is closing in on them.

This vast stampede of walkers, driven by inexorable hunger and aimed directly at Woodbury, becomes their first true test. But Lilly and company refuse to succumb, and in a stunning counteroffensive, the beleaguered townspeople save themselves by joining forces with a mysterious religious sect fresh from the wilderness.

Led by an enigmatic preacher named Jeremiah, this rogue church group seems tailor made for Woodbury and Lilly’s dream of a democratic, family-friendly future. The two factions meld into one, the town prospers, and everything seems hopeful for the first time since the plague broke out.
 
But things – especially in the world of the walking dead – are often not what they seem. Jeremiah and his followers harbor a dark secret, the evidence of which very gradually begins to unravel.

In a stunning and horrifying finale, the world for Lilly and her close friends is turned upside down, and it is solely up to Lilly Caul to cleanse the town once and for all of its poisonous fate.

[The Walking Shooter]

Out of the ashes of its dark past, Woodbury, Georgia, becomes an oasis of safety amidst the plague of the walking dead – a town reborn in the wake of its former tyrannical leader, Philip Blake, aka The Governor.
Blake’s legacy of madness haunts every nook and cranny of this little walled community, but Lilly Caul and a small ragtag band of survivors are determined to overcome their traumatic past… despite the fact that a super-herd is closing in on them.
This vast stampede of walkers, driven by inexorable hunger and aimed directly at Woodbury, becomes their first true test. But Lilly and company refuse to succumb, and in a stunning counteroffensive, the beleaguered townspeople save themselves by joining forces with a mysterious religious sect fresh from the wilderness.
Led by an enigmatic preacher named Jeremiah, this rogue church group seems tailor made for Woodbury and Lilly’s dream of a democratic, family-friendly future. The two factions meld into one, the town prospers, and everything seems hopeful for the first time since the plague broke out.
 
But things – especially in the world of the walking dead – are often not what they seem. Jeremiah and his followers harbor a dark secret, the evidence of which very gradually begins to unravel.
In a stunning and horrifying finale, the world for Lilly and her close friends is turned upside down, and it is solely up to Lilly Caul to cleanse the town once and for all of its poisonous fate.

Is this the summary? If so, I must admit I'm quite looking forward to it.

This would be the first time we'll have a religious cult at all, and I wonder if this is the conclusion to Lilly and Woodbury?

[Gravelord]

I cannot for the life of me read these novels. 'Rise of The Governor' was the only one that could be considered good. 'The Road to Woodbury' was boring and I hated that Kirkman used that version of Lilly over the one established in the video game. 'The Fall of The Governor' was just horrendous, nearly every part of the book made me facepalm somehow (the biggest offenders certainly being "Destroy them all, now!" and the Philip Blake lives on part). Maybe this will be better because it is a new storyline, but got damn, I ain't buying it day one.  

[The Walking Shooter]

I cannot for the life of me read these novels. 'Rise of The Governor' was the only one that could be considered good. 'The Road to Woodbury' was boring and I hated that Kirkman used that version of Lilly over the one established in the video game. 'The Fall of The Governor' was just horrendous, nearly every part of the book made me facepalm somehow (the biggest offenders certainly being "Destroy them all, now!" and the Philip Blake lives on part). Maybe this will be better because it is a new storyline, but got damn, I ain't buying it day one.

Rise of the Governor was an Ok read, nothing special. Road to Woodbury was a drag, but I was determined to finish. Fall of the Governor Part I was decent, at least it was consistent with the comics. But the second part was horrendous. I had taken to skimming pages just to hurry up and finish the book. Honestly, I hope the writer improves next time, but I've been saying that since Rise.

[Gravelord]

Rise of the Governor was an Ok read, nothing special. Road to Woodbury was a drag, but I was determined to finish. Fall of the Governor Part I was decent, at least it was consistent with the comics. But the second part was horrendous. I had taken to skimming pages just to hurry up and finish the book. Honestly, I hope the writer improves next time, but I've been saying that since Rise.

Bonansinga's writing is not the best, I doubt it will get better too. The novels sold quite well I believe, so he will have no intention to change how he writes. I suppose I consider 'Rise' good in comparison to the others, which are all mediocre or poor novels. 

[The Walking Shooter]

Bonansinga's writing is not the best, I doubt it will get better too. The novels sold quite well I believe, so he will have no intention to change how he writes. I suppose I consider 'Rise' good in comparison to the others, which are all mediocre or poor novels.

I think he could improve when he's doing his own thing. Fall I and II were in most part rewrites of the comics (with some jarring exceptions) and it was boring to see the same thing happen from a different POV. And it shouldn't be, because I love that kind of stuff. But he made the characters of the Governor and Lilly extremely boring, and how do you make the Governor boring? Rise had a good backstory for him and I could see what made Brian Blake tick and then break, becoming the Governor. He just couldn't handle the actual character of the Governor, so I'm glad he's out of the way and onto new things that haven't been explored.

And this doesn't even include the endless descriptions that feel like he is trying to pass over a word count for his essay or short story.

[FearTheHunters]

the endless descriptions that feel like he is trying to pass over a word count for his essay or short story.

this

[The Walking Shooter]

this

Yeah it's ridiculous. I know he is doing it as well, trust me. I've done it plenty of times when I couldn't be bothered with my English classes. It doesn't make for easy reading though.

[slimymeteor]

As much as we can criticize Jay B.'s writing, the books sell pretty well and he will probably continue writing them in his way as long as people keep buying them. It seems that he has adopted Lilly as his own lead character for a spin-off series of novels. He's also said in interviews that Robert Kirkman has basically backed off at this point and left Jay B. to his own devices, while he originally was pretty hands-on (which is probably why Rise is the best of the bunch). It's looking like we're just getting started with Lilly's adventures, post-prison.

The biggest benefit here is that he will no longer be able to butcher the source material as we are now completely past the Governor and the prison.

However, I don't think Jay's going to get anymore money from me. I'm still going to read Descent, of course, because it's TWD and I'm obsessed. But I'm thinking it's going to be a library rental.

[The Walking Shooter]

As much as we can criticize Jay B.'s writing, the books sell pretty well and he will probably continue writing them in his way as long as people keep buying them. It seems that he has adopted Lilly as his own lead character for a spin-off series of novels. He's also said in interviews that Robert Kirkman has basically backed off at this point and left Jay B. to his own devices, while he originally was pretty hands-on (which is probably why Rise is the best of the bunch). It's looking like we're just getting started with Lilly's adventures, post-prison.
The biggest benefit here is that he will no longer be able to butcher the source material as we are now completely past the Governor and the prison.
However, I don't think Jay's going to get anymore money from me. I'm still going to read Descent, of course, because it's TWD and I'm obsessed. But I'm thinking it's going to be a library rental.

I completely agree, and I do think it will interesting to see what happened to Woodbury after the prison massacre. But no matter the high number of books he sells, just remember how popular the books Twilight are. Shit sells it seems as long as it's popular.

He could still potentially ruin the entire universe if he has Lilly or Bob running into a cure, but if that ever happened the books would be burnt and I would no longer count it as part of the comics.

[marsyao]

Guys, you need to notice one thing, thre is a difference between these four new book and the previous ones, from now on, Jay Bonansinga's name is put before Robert Kirkman, now these four new books would be his baby now, Mr Kirkman would more or less sit on the back seat.

[The Walking Shooter]

Guys, you need to notice one thing, thre is a difference between these four new book and the previous ones, from now on, Jay Bonansinga's name is put before Robert Kirkman, now these four new books would be his baby now, Mr Kirkman would more or less sit on the back seat.

We have noticed. But like Telltale, he is still restricted in certain things. He can't have the zombies be wiped out in a matter of the next few weeks, or have them discover a cure. Kirkman more or less has the rights to it, so if Jay in any way mucked up the basic rules of the universe it could be possible that he would be "told" to stop writing them or the books won't be counted as part of the universe anymore (a bit like how game!Lilly turned out to not be comic!Lilly)

That said, I'm interested in seeing where things go from here.

[slouvahkey]

We have noticed. But like Telltale, he is still restricted in certain things. He can't have the zombies be wiped out in a matter of the next few weeks, or have them discover a cure. Kirkman more or less has the rights to it, so if Jay in any way mucked up the basic rules of the universe it could be possible that he would be "told" to stop writing them or the books won't be counted as part of the universe anymore (a bit like how game!Lilly turned out to not be comic!Lilly)
That said, I'm interested in seeing where things go from here.

yeah, fuck that, I disagree with Kirkman telltale's Lilly is the comic Lilly at least telltale kept all the consistencies of the TWD universe.

[slimymeteor]

If it were up to me, Telltale Lilly is the same Lilly as Comic Lilly. Considering all of the inconsistencies the novels brought forth, it makes much more sense continuity-wise as well not to count the novels as being canon with the comics. I certainly like Telltale Lilly's backstory better than Lilly Caul from the novels. It would have been cool if everybody had been on the same page and Road to Woodbury had been able to incorporate Telltale Lilly's backstory into the book, tying all three mediums together, but it was just not to be. It's like Jay B. just wanted the character all to himself, and thought he could do better job writing a story for her (spoiler: he didn't).

I still haven't read through Descent. I plan on giving it a go soon, simply because I've made it through all four novels so far and I might as well keep going (for the same reason I keep watching the Child's Play movies when they come out, even though they just keep getting worse). I'm finding it much more difficult to find the motivation to pick it up, after being disappointed with the previous entries.

It's sad, because I did really like Rise of the Governor and considered it an essential read for any TWD comic fan. I thought that book had an amazing story and was hard to put down, despite the writing style hiccups. But that was also the book that Robert Kirkman himself was most involved with, story-wise, and Jay B. really started mucking things up once left to his own devices. I guess I'm still pretty irritated with him over changing the Governor's most iconic line from the comics to something different! Just look at the panel, dude-- there's no excuse for changing it if it's supposed to be canon.