Alien: Sea of Sorrows by James A Moore is the second in a new trilogy of books set in the Alien universe. While set 200 years after the events of Alien: Out of the Shadows by Tim Lebbon, it is very much a direct sequel to that novel, incorporating what happened during those events in more ways than one.
From the publisher:
As a deputy commissioner for the ICC, Alan Decker’s job is to make sure the settlements on LV178 follow all the rules, keeping the colonists safe. But the planet known as New Galveston holds secrets, lurking deep beneath the toxic sands dubbed the Sea of Sorrows.
The Weyland-Yutani Corporation has secrets of its own, as Decker discovers when he is forced to join a team of mercenaries sent to investigate an ancient excavation. Somewhere in that long-forgotten dig lies the thing the company wants most in the universe—a living Xenomorph.
Decker doesn’t understand why they need him, until his own past comes back to haunt him. Centuries ago, his ancestor fought the Aliens, launching a bloody vendetta that was never satisfied. That was when the creatures swore revenge on the Destroyer… Ellen Ripley.
The events of Out of the Shadows took place on LV178 many years before the planet was colonised and terraformed. It’s this past that rears its ugly head as mining on the planet comes across the remnants of an ancient civilisation, as well as evidence that this isn’t the first mining operation to take place here. When Ripley escaped the planet over 200 years ago, the Xenomorphs were left to hibernate, waiting until visitors once again returned to their lair.
It’s really difficult to read an Alien novel like this without thinking about the films. It’s even more difficult when these books take those films as a blueprint to follow. Out of the Shadows was easily comparable to Alien with its alien spaceship, ruins, and dark confines. Sea of Sorrows treads a path more than a little reminiscent of Aliens. We’ve got everything you’d expect – a mercenary squad, ruthless company representative, and someone with a history tied to the Xenomorphs. Other than the fact that Alan Decker is mildly empathic, plus the discovery of an ancient city buried beneath the sands of LV178, there’s not much new here. In fact, the only aspect of these that is explored in any depth is Decker’s empathy, and that is more about how he’s affected by the Xenomorphs because of it.
Speaking of Alan Decker, Moore really does do an excellent job at building his character. From the early parts of this novel it’s clear to see that there is more to Decker than a simple company worker. As his empathy is explored further, and his psyche is assaulted by unknown aggression and fury, we discover more about him, and about the Xenomorphs. To be honest, and despite how well written Decker is, the whole ‘blood feud’ against Ripley’s bloodline doesn’t seem to fit right with me, nor does the fact that we get some small sections from the Xenomorphs perspective, limited though it may be. For me, the Xenomorphs represent that pure evil, they do what they do and there is no explanation for them being as they are. By adding anything further about them you take away the unknown, and to me that makes them less terrifying.
Despite there being a ruined city of an alien culture, we don’t get to learn much about it. Yes, we found out something about them in Out of the Shadows, but this could have been ripe for exploration and discovery. The Xenomorphs take away this avenue pretty much immediately, for the danger they pose to the group under the surface are much too great to allow a side plot of this magnitude to be investigated. It’s a shame, but it did add to the history and world building present.
Sea of Sorrows is well paced and enjoyable enough, but there is the constant feeling of déjà vu while reading. It may not be identical to what has come before, but it’s close enough to feel more like reimagining rather than a completely new story. Moore has tried to raise the story above the generic, but he has ultimately failed. Sea of Sorrows is well written with some nice touches, though nothing to write home about.
Publisher: http://titanbooks.com
Author: http://www.jamesamoorebooks.com
July 2014, 320 Pages
Paperback, ISBN: 9781783292851
Review from a purchased copy
© 2014 Mark Chitty
