Predator Forever Midnight - John Shirley

...however this simply isn't a PREDATOR book. I got the feeling John Shirley may have looked a picture of a Predator, but carried out no other research at all which means that many of his ideas go completely against the registered lore of the species.

Firstly it seems the Predators are sexually dimorphous and so depending on their 'cycle' they can be male or female. I don't rememeber this even being hinted at before and actively goes ...
...The book is readable but not for Predator fans who will probably hate it. The attempt at bringing something new to the species fails totally and rather than evolve and give back story this book contradicts and will probably be largely ignored when other stories / films come out.   ... more

This book was produced post-AVP film and I bought it hoping it would build on the success of the earlier novels which have proved to be an excellent cross-over.

Forever Midnight concerntrates solely on the 'Predator' franchise. The story is set far into the future when humans have spread out across the galaxy and colonised many planets. One of these is 'Midnight' a planet locked in perpetual daylight due to the gravity exherted by several nearby moons.

The principal character is Randall Ness an ex-marine who now commands a security force which has been sent to Midnight to protect geologists while they carry out studies there. Ness also has an alternative agenda as his ex-wife and child are living in the colony on Midnight and he hopes to rekindle the family unit.

However things don't go according to plan and shortly before landing the security ship is attacked and neutralised by a mysterious ship carrying alien warriors - it seems the Predators have been using Midnight for hundreds of years as a safari planet. The few survivors of the security craft are forced to crash land in the hostile jungle 100s of miles from Midnight and then run the gauntlet of Alien hunters and local wildlife in order to reach the colony, while at the same time the Predators are planning to hunt in the self same colony.

The action in the story is fast paced and in a way the premise of the film is good, however this simply isn't a PREDATOR book. I got the feeling John Shirley may have looked a picture of a Predator, but carried out no other research at all which means that many of his ideas go completely against the registered lore of the species.

Firstly it seems the Predators are sexually dimorphous and so depending on their 'cycle' they can be male or female. I don't rememeber this even being hinted at before and actively goes against what he have read. It also make some scene cringleworthy imagining two supposedly great warriors flirting with each other. The author also seems to turn these big game hunters into something from 1984 by having them use mind control devises and slave species to work their technology.

From my previous understanding the species lived for the hunt and the honour or killing a dangerous enemy with little armour or weapons. In the book they operate human zombies with a joy stick and use plasm weapons left right and centre.

The other alien species and characters are musch better drawn out and Shirley seems to enjoy totally creating another world, complete with dangers. I was left with the feeling that this might have been a better book if the primary enemy were an un-named enemy - rather than a franchise I enjoy.

The human characters are ok, although allegiances seem to swap far too often and several actions - especially in the finale are totally out of character.

The book is readable but not for Predator fans who will probably hate it. The attempt at bringing something new to the species fails totally and rather than evolve and give back story this book contradicts and will probably be largely ignored when other stories / films come out.  

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