Oh, if only Spike had sired Joey, he might have finished that magnum opus punk opera after all.

peacemonger | June 15, 07:05 CET

I got oddly excited when reading about this. I don't know why. Maybe it's my love of Spike and The Ramones combined! Mmm, unholy love.

escapist_dream | June 15, 07:30 CET

This was without a doubt the best line of the whole chapter...

"Chinese ain't bad--best meal of my life was in China, matter of fact." Spike lit a fresh cigarette. "But I was hoping for something more local tonight."

I just went nuts after I read that line. I can't wait for the book.

SpikeBad | June 15, 08:32 CET

Let's hear it for krad!! I'm snapping up this one as soon as I find it! And it doesn't sound like the YA type of book we've been getting. Thank god. (Those are as bland as cheap vanilla ice cream.) (Not that there's anything wrong with that!) Please tell me it isn't? (YA, that is.)

Also, did anyone notice the blurb at the top:

"All rights reserved. All lefts, too."

The Big Bad is back. I can't wait! Thank you, krad, for giving me more Spike.

SangChaud | June 15, 09:16 CET

I'm sitting here under a poster of Joey Ramone. And I love Spike. I'm definitely getting this book. Be my first Buffy novel.

alpha5099 | June 15, 10:53 CET

Ramones?? I allways figured him a The Clash type of bloke.

Jonas | June 15, 16:42 CET

Jonas - this exchange from BtVS S5e14 Crush gives a clue, I feel.

catalyst2 | June 15, 19:04 CET

Thanks everyone!

SpikeBad: Yeah, I was proud of that line, though I'm more proud of the "British fag" exchange. *tee hee*

SangChaud: You're welcome, and no, I didn't really write it as a YA book, nor do I believe it'll be marketed as such.

Jonas: As stated above, Spike's love for the Ramones was established onscreen in "Crush." For that matter, his love for Sid Vicious was made clear in "Lovers Walk." So it's not like I pulled that out of my ass. *grin*

[ edited by krad on 2006-06-15 17:07 ]

krad | June 15, 19:06 CET

Mmmm, this looks like fun! Thanks KRAD! Looking forward to it.

punkinpuss | June 15, 19:27 CET

I'd like to see him meet up in England with William Michael Albert Broad before he dyed his hair platinum blond and started a band called Generation X.

Very good stuff, by the way.

[ edited by Chris inVirginia on 2006-06-15 17:42 ]

[ edited by Chris inVirginia on 2006-06-15 17:42 ]

Chris inVirginia | June 15, 19:41 CET

Hey, ho, let's go! ;-)

er, who's William Michael Albert Broad?

billz | June 15, 19:50 CET

This guy:

http://www.livemusicindiana.com/concert%20pics/pictures/2005/BillyIdol/imgs/billy%20idol%2005%201.jpg

Chris inVirginia | June 15, 19:55 CET

And there's the comment in Sleeper about Billy Idol stealing his look from Spike... Not that Billy Idol was really all that much of a punk compared to Sid or The Ramones, and not that anything was said about Spike actually liking him musically... Just another random contemporary music link, actually.

jclemens | June 15, 21:23 CET

Wow, this sounds like a pretty awsome book. Plus, pure evil Spike at his best. Like Peter David, this guy seems to have a beat on his Spike. Now, what about an Angelus, Darla, Spike and Dru book in their hayday before Angelus got his soul back? That would be NIFTY.

(This seems like its going to be like "Pretty Maids All In a Row", which was RATHER dark and Spike centric.)

Elf | June 16, 05:37 CET

Just to be clear, Spike's not the protagonist in this book, he's the main antagonist. The protagonist is Nikki Wood, the Slayer. I picked this chapter as the excerpt (and Spike is on the cover) because Spike is arguably the most popular character in the franchise, and I know where my bread is buttered, as it were.

But this won't be like Pretty Maids..., because that was a Spike and Dru book. This is, in essence, a Nikki the Vampire Slayer novel, where she fights Spike and Dru. *grin*

And believe me, I'd love to write a novel that dealt with the Awesome Foursome between 1880 and 1898, as they cut a swath through Europe.....

krad | June 16, 07:21 CET

Spike may be the antagonist in this book, but that doesn't mean I won't be rooting for him. I love Evil Spike.

Go and kill that Slayer for Dru Spike! You Rock!

SpikeBad | June 16, 08:20 CET

*laughs* Fair enough.....

krad | June 16, 08:58 CET

Don't get me wrong. I mean, the Slayer is the ultimate source of good in the buffyverse and should always be cheered, but...it's Spike for god's sake! You could call him the Slayer of Slayers if you will. If it weren't for one pissed off axe-wielding mother he would have killed three Slayers instead of just two!

And he's just absolutely the complete definition of the word cool. How can you not root for the guy!?

SpikeBad | June 16, 10:16 CET

Hard it may be, and yet somehow I manage . . . :) Each to his or her own, naturally.

SoddingNancyTribe | June 16, 10:21 CET

I guess that's just one of my quarks. I always find myself rooting for the bad guy. Well, the cool bad guys anyway. And they're always the ones who later turn to the light side like Spike from Buffy, Vegeta from Dragonball Z, and Cole from Charmed. And I really hope that Ba'al from Stargate SG1 turns good as well. He's got that cool factor that Spike has as well.

SpikeBad | June 16, 10:26 CET

Hey, krad, I hope you check back in to this thread again. 'Cause I gotta know--how much would you love to write the Awesome Foursome book?? After reading the sample chapter for Blackout, I think I'd like to see your take on the other, too. And, just in general, what else are you gonna pull outta your, er . . . uh . . . hat? (That's hat, people. *Hat*!)

Seriously, though, I do have a spoiler question. Are there going to be any monsters in Blackout? I mean, besides Spike and Dru? Because I've come to think of monsters as one of the reasons most of the Buffy novels are either YA, or YA-ish.

Okay. That was clear as mud. I'm still trying to refine this idea. But most of the 'verse novels I've read either bore me or drive me nuts--thoughI couldn't really explain why, even given the fact that most are YA. But then I finally started thinking about this. In the series, yes, the monsters were literal (and with incredible special effects, etc.), but we knew that they were metaphors nonetheless. And I think the books never treated them as such. Most of them (the [YA/YA-ish] books) seem caught up in intricate, detailed and loving descriptions of monsters and goo and venom and ichor and swords and battles, etc. Oh, yeah, and big, scary teeth and scales and kung-fu moves. . . .

There are other problems, of course. But I always wind up skipping all those parts. And some well-known writer, whose name escapes me, said that you should always cut the parts that readers skip over. Or words to that effect. Spang on. /rant. :^}

Sorry. Regardless. I'm planning on getting your book. Thanks, krad, for more Spike, whether protagonist, antagonist, pain in the butt or hero. He's my favorite and I will miss him the rest of my days.

SangChaud | June 16, 10:38 CET

While there are multiple references to past battles Nikki has had in her career, which include all kinds of entertaining monsters, the mainline story sticks with vampires for the bad guys.

And honestly, what got me interested in writing the Awesome Foursome was a) the re-watching I did of the Spike-focused episodes in prep for writing the book and b) writing Spike's recollections and and Crowley's descriptions of their exploits. We shall see if it's feasible....

krad | June 16, 11:11 CET

Okay! I'll cross my fingers on the Awesome Foursome and wait for the current one to fall into my eager little hands, as it sounds really, really good. And what are you doing up so late?? Or is it so *early*? Ah, for the writer's life. . . .

Thanks for all the feedback. As I've said in other posts, sitting out here in the middle of the Pacific, I sort of wind up doing the last post in a thread, and tend to feel pretty out of the loop. So I truly appreciate "hearing" another "voice" from out of the void. I also appreciate a writer who's willing to take time to do stuff like that and to share. It's cool. Mahalo and aloha.

SangChaud | June 16, 11:54 CET

Man, Pretty Maids in a Row was an awesome book. There should more of that type out there. Mind you, I haven't picked up a Buffy 'verse book in a year and a half now. Before that I was gobbling them up as quickly as my library put them on the shelves (I think I got them to buy about fifty different books).

escapist_dream | June 16, 12:33 CET

Krad, thanks for the heads up that this is mainly a book about Nikki. I have no interest in her story and not that much interest in reading about Spike's pre-Sunnydale days, so I'll probably give the book a pass.

Hopefully there will be a novel before too long that has plenty of Spike bits and is set in the 5th, 6th or 7th seasons of BtVS.

Reddygirl | June 16, 15:22 CET

I enjoyed the excerpt and will be buying the book now.

TwisTz | June 16, 16:28 CET

SpikeBad: You must have loved Crais and Scorpius on Farscape.... *chuckle*

SangChaud: I've always been a night owl, and being a freelancer means I can live that life. *grin*

escapist_dream: Well, I hope Blackout gets you back on the horse, as it were. (And I'd recommend Don't Ask Malice, also...)

Reddygirl: Well, there is a framing sequence in Blackout that takes place during the sixth season, and I think you're selling Nikki short, but whatever.

TwisTz: Thanks!

krad | June 16, 20:23 CET

There are so few books published these days I'm always disappointed when a novel isn't about the main characters on the shows.

If Buffy was still on the air when the Nikki book came out, I might be more interested but this book just won't satisfy my craving for more Buffyverse stuff.

Reddygirl | June 16, 20:49 CET

Krad, Just wanted to let you know I appreciate the information on the book. The excerpt was interesting. Although Nikki never peeked my interest much, I could say that about a lot of things that I enjoyed when I gave them a chance. It will all be in what you were able to do with her story.

BTW, Dru was in NYC when Spike was stalking Nikki(?) or did I misunderstand?

Good luck on the success of the book.

newcj | June 17, 01:19 CET

Yes, Dru's in NYC, also. I'd rather not say more -- I'd rather you just, y'know, read the book.... *laughs*

krad | June 17, 01:51 CET

To catalyst2 & Crad -
Oh, I do remember that Ramones reference now that I read that. (The Sex Pistols references have been plenty, my favorite is when he sings "I did it my way"...Yes, I know it was a cover and they could not even use the Pistols version and went with the "Sid & Nancy" soundtrack)

I do agree with several posters that it would be funny to have some kind of Generation X thing happening. "Billy Idol" comes from Middlesex and Spike's accent is supposed to sound north London...so...

But speaking of punk and Spike. Am I the only one who thinks Spike's rockabilly influenced punk image do sings of The Clash?? (Not saying he can't enjoy Ramones, Sex Pistols or King Kurt too)

Jonas | June 17, 03:17 CET

Oh, I'm sure Spike's a Clash fan, too, though I don't have him specifically mention it. The only Brit band I mentioned was the Sex Pistols, but they were particularly hot stuff in '77, as Sid Vicious had just joined a few months earlier. The only other contemporary bands I mentioned were the Dead Boys, who were also playing CBGB's a lot in '77. (In fact, one of their '77 concerts at CB's is on DVD. It was from that show that I got CB's owner Hilly Krystal's wardrobe in the excerpt.)

krad | June 17, 03:28 CET