Woooah this chapter was insanely short! Not at all what I'd expected. Like I said yesterday, I thought there'd at least be some kind of de-briefing from MI6, but there was nothing of the sort. Not that we witness anyway.
The whole thing is from Jack's point of view and is of when she goes to visit Alex in hospital back in England. She meets Mrs Jones outside his room and for the umpteenth time tells her that Alex cannot be treated like this any more. This involvement has GOT to stop. She must feel so useless: she knows she has no power over MI6, that they have few qualms about using Alex again and again, and Jones outright says that she can't guarantee that Alex won't be used. She does give the assurance that she hopes he never is used again, but we know from past books that her reservations have never stopped Blunt. In the past he has used Alex against Mrs Jones's will, but now I'm wondering if he will do this again. That one admission earlier in the book that he wanted Alex safe is, I feel, very significant. This man hardly ever shows concern for anything and for him to say that he's worried about Alex seems to be his way of saying that he is perhaps fond of him. So now I wonder if he will be prepared to leave Alex alone.
Jack gets Alex's room number and is told that it's the same room as the one he was in at the beginning of Ark Angel. She is about to enter the room when she recognises the nurse leaving it as the same one from Ark Angel. I'm still trying to work out the significance of these details. Is it a kind of foreshadowing for the plot of the final book? Is one of the charcter from a previous mission (namely the one in AA) going to return? Or is it some way of suggesting that working in MI6 is like running in a circle: you always end up in the same place. In this case it's hospital, and maybe it's saying that if Alex doesn't get out soon, he could end up in a much worse condition. I don't know, but I'm sure this is more than coincidence - Blunt said in one of the books that, "I don't believe in coincidence", so now I'm suspicious...
When Jack sees Alex she can tell he's in a terrible state. Although he's awake and sitting up, his burns are bad and he's been taken off painkillers so that he doesn't get addicted. They talk and I was pleased to see that Jack wasn't cross with him: she knows that none of this is Alex's fault but sometimes she gets cross because she's so worried. Alex really needs her full support now, and we can tell how badly damaged he is on the inside. I don't think he's ever going to recover.
Jack then reminds Alex of something that made me slightly worried. She reminds him that it's his birthday next week - something he'd completely forgotten - and he's going to be fifteen. Now, I once read an interview with Horowitz saying that to finish the series Alex would either die or turn fifteen. So obviously he's fifteen in a few days, so if Horowitz stuck to his guns Alex's final mission will take place in the next few days... which could be seriously damaging for him because of his fragile state; but I am now worried that he may actually have a very real chance of dying here. This really is the last book and what's to stop Horowitz doing the 'easy' thing and killing him? JK Rowling once said that by bringing Harry back to life in Deathly Hallows she was making him to the harder, more heroic thing: he;d faced death, then had the chance to go on to exist peacefully but instead went back to the pain and uncertainty of living. He had to rebuild his and others' lives and live with the horrors of what he had seen and the guilt of all those people dying for him. That has to be the harder, more heroic option.
Crocodile Tears ends here, and with only one book to go I really don't know what is going to happen. The next book is called Scorpia Rising and this is evidently the worst thing that could happen because Scorpia are terrifyingly ruthless and awful and have Alex as Undesirable Number 1.
What I do know however is that I LOVE THESE BOOKS and I really need to savour this last one, because it's not this often that I get to read a series as thrilling and captivating as this for the first time.
(Extra note: I may not have time to do a poston wednesday because I have to go to Uni to sort out the house I'm living in next year and it takes ages to get there and back and I won't have internet, but I'll do my best!!)
Sunday 31 July 2011
Saturday 30 July 2011
Crocodile Tears - Chapter 24: Unhappy Landing
I just realised that I didn't do a review for Chapter 22 - I obviously read it and never reviewed it! I don't know how many of you have read the book already and know what happens, but basically Alex leaves Rahim, taking his bomb and planning to put it at the base of this huge dam in the hope of the leaking water flooding the infected field. He then is cornered by a load of McCain's men who want to kill him, and that's where Chapter 23 started.
But this post is for Chapter 24 and I can safely say I was not expecting this. I assumed that because there were only two chapters left we would see Alex back in London being debriefed by Blunt and Jones, see him with Jack and see her being worried about the damage done to him by his latest mission and then there would be some kind of concluding thing that leads up to the next, and final, book.
Was I wrong or was I wrong???
I never imagined that things would still be bursting out at me like the water from the exploded dam, but oh yeah, they are. I can imagine Anthony Horowitz sitting back in his chair right now, cackling evilly at my state of innocence. Yes, right now, because of course he knows exactly when I am reading his book. Sort of. Anyway, yeah, pretty much terrified and worked up by this chapter.
Again we start almost exactly where we left off, Alex is in the plane with Rahim having just climbed up the rope, using the very last scraps of strength left. I'll say it again, but I really admire him for his strength and determination and the fact that he never gives up and forces himself to go on (yes, I know he's a fictional character, just go with it). Horowitz tells us how much pain Alex is in and you just want to wrap him up in bubblewrap and feed him hot chocolate :((
Rahim begins to land the plane in an ordinary airstrip which is occupied by a few tourists etc, and at this point my main concern was their reaction to these two people who must look like they've been beaten up - but how very wrong I was. Rahim begins to shout at Alex for the damage he's done, by being stupid and not thinking through his actions (btw I swear all adults seem to blame Alex when things go wrong... links back to what I was saying yesterday about the relationship between child and adult: they just don't seem to be able to accept that maybe he was right all along.) Admittedly Alex has done a lot of damage which will likely have huge ramifications on the Kenyan and British governments, but I can't see this affecting the final book. Anyway, just as Rahim is shouting at Alex there's this huge bamg and he is shot. Looking past the spattering of blood, Alex spots Desmond McCain.
Know what? In the chaos of the last couple of chapters I had forgotten about him completely. I knew he wasn't dead, but I just forgot that he would be a tad peeved at Alex for messing up his *super evil plan*... Well done Horowitz, well played. Erm so McCain is obviously crazy, and he demands that Alex come down from the plane, KNEEL infront of him and let him shoot him.
There's something about the fact that he wants him to kneel down that is so awful. Obviously there's the whole power thing: Alex, this young boy has beated Desmond McCain, one of the most powerful men in Britian (and the world?), and to be able to look down, to physically stand above him would be satisfying. But also, I thought that this act of being above him kind of puts him in the position of God. We know that McCain is a converted Christian so religious imagery is very important to him, and I imagine he'd relish the chance to play God. Of course, this idea combined with the act of killing a child is some kind of perverse twist and just highlights the madness within him. Finally, Alex's kneeling position mirrors that of when a person prays, and this is probably seen by McCain as a prayer for mercy, begging McCain not to kill him, which only makes the whole set-up more humiliating because we know that Alex would never grovel to a man like this.
Can you tell I'm an English student..?
Onward! Alex manages to distract McCain by spraying something in his face, then jumps out of the plane, landing badly and twisting his ankle. PLEASE ALEX COULD YOU JUST BE A BIT MORE CAREFUL I AM ALMOST CRYING IN SUSPENSE HERE!!! He hobbles off to hide behind some fuel tanks, but McCain is following. Alex knocks one over and slowly rolls it toward McCain who stops it with his foot. At this point I knew that Alex was unable to run away and knew that he was weak, but couldn't understand why he just stood there and watched McCain. And then the explosion went off.
Horowitx points out that Alex's stuck his last remaining gadget from Smithers, the pen, WHICH I HAD COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN ABOUT - BRAVO - to the side of the fuel tank. Petrol is highly flammable, obvs, so when the pen exploded the petrol did too, taking McCain with it.
The description of him catching fire is particularly haunting and fitting:
Alex runs from the explosion, though catches fire as he's still too close. That was something I've always hated (people being burned alive) and I'm very glad that Horowitz didn't let it go further than that, or I would have had nightmares for a week. Alex is passing out from exhaustion but registers being picked up and put on a stretcher, so he's FINALLY being taken care of, and the chapter ends.
Final chapter tomorrow guys!!
But this post is for Chapter 24 and I can safely say I was not expecting this. I assumed that because there were only two chapters left we would see Alex back in London being debriefed by Blunt and Jones, see him with Jack and see her being worried about the damage done to him by his latest mission and then there would be some kind of concluding thing that leads up to the next, and final, book.
Was I wrong or was I wrong???
I never imagined that things would still be bursting out at me like the water from the exploded dam, but oh yeah, they are. I can imagine Anthony Horowitz sitting back in his chair right now, cackling evilly at my state of innocence. Yes, right now, because of course he knows exactly when I am reading his book. Sort of. Anyway, yeah, pretty much terrified and worked up by this chapter.
Again we start almost exactly where we left off, Alex is in the plane with Rahim having just climbed up the rope, using the very last scraps of strength left. I'll say it again, but I really admire him for his strength and determination and the fact that he never gives up and forces himself to go on (yes, I know he's a fictional character, just go with it). Horowitz tells us how much pain Alex is in and you just want to wrap him up in bubblewrap and feed him hot chocolate :((
Rahim begins to land the plane in an ordinary airstrip which is occupied by a few tourists etc, and at this point my main concern was their reaction to these two people who must look like they've been beaten up - but how very wrong I was. Rahim begins to shout at Alex for the damage he's done, by being stupid and not thinking through his actions (btw I swear all adults seem to blame Alex when things go wrong... links back to what I was saying yesterday about the relationship between child and adult: they just don't seem to be able to accept that maybe he was right all along.) Admittedly Alex has done a lot of damage which will likely have huge ramifications on the Kenyan and British governments, but I can't see this affecting the final book. Anyway, just as Rahim is shouting at Alex there's this huge bamg and he is shot. Looking past the spattering of blood, Alex spots Desmond McCain.
Know what? In the chaos of the last couple of chapters I had forgotten about him completely. I knew he wasn't dead, but I just forgot that he would be a tad peeved at Alex for messing up his *super evil plan*... Well done Horowitz, well played. Erm so McCain is obviously crazy, and he demands that Alex come down from the plane, KNEEL infront of him and let him shoot him.
There's something about the fact that he wants him to kneel down that is so awful. Obviously there's the whole power thing: Alex, this young boy has beated Desmond McCain, one of the most powerful men in Britian (and the world?), and to be able to look down, to physically stand above him would be satisfying. But also, I thought that this act of being above him kind of puts him in the position of God. We know that McCain is a converted Christian so religious imagery is very important to him, and I imagine he'd relish the chance to play God. Of course, this idea combined with the act of killing a child is some kind of perverse twist and just highlights the madness within him. Finally, Alex's kneeling position mirrors that of when a person prays, and this is probably seen by McCain as a prayer for mercy, begging McCain not to kill him, which only makes the whole set-up more humiliating because we know that Alex would never grovel to a man like this.
Can you tell I'm an English student..?
Onward! Alex manages to distract McCain by spraying something in his face, then jumps out of the plane, landing badly and twisting his ankle. PLEASE ALEX COULD YOU JUST BE A BIT MORE CAREFUL I AM ALMOST CRYING IN SUSPENSE HERE!!! He hobbles off to hide behind some fuel tanks, but McCain is following. Alex knocks one over and slowly rolls it toward McCain who stops it with his foot. At this point I knew that Alex was unable to run away and knew that he was weak, but couldn't understand why he just stood there and watched McCain. And then the explosion went off.
Horowitx points out that Alex's stuck his last remaining gadget from Smithers, the pen, WHICH I HAD COMPLETELY FORGOTTEN ABOUT - BRAVO - to the side of the fuel tank. Petrol is highly flammable, obvs, so when the pen exploded the petrol did too, taking McCain with it.
The description of him catching fire is particularly haunting and fitting:
"One moment McCain was taking aim, the next he had disappeared in a pillar of flame that roared into the sky. It really was like a judgement from Heaven."Need I say more about the religious imagery there?
Alex runs from the explosion, though catches fire as he's still too close. That was something I've always hated (people being burned alive) and I'm very glad that Horowitz didn't let it go further than that, or I would have had nightmares for a week. Alex is passing out from exhaustion but registers being picked up and put on a stretcher, so he's FINALLY being taken care of, and the chapter ends.
Final chapter tomorrow guys!!
Friday 29 July 2011
SORRY AGAIN! And Crocodile Tears: Chapter 23 - The Third Day
Wow. I am so sorry. If anybody is still reading this and not given up hope!! I don't really have an excuse, I went on holiday and had lots of work, but recently I've not been doing much and I guess I've been getting lazy and haven't been bothered. BUT never fear, I'm back with gusto and ready to FINISH CROCODILE TEARS!! There are only three chapters left, but next is the final book in the Alex Rider series, so very excited for that one!
Ok, so heeeere we go...
Obviously, after that mahoosive break I didn't have the plot fresh in my mind, so it was like a bomb had dropped on me the minute I started reading. Some planes from the British govt. have been sent to bomb the fields containing the poisonous spores and we know from a few chapters ago that there is a likely chance that this will simply blow the spores into the air so they drift over to another field and the danger is still imminent. Horowitz's portrayal of authority (and a great many adult characters, for that matter) throughout the series has never been a positive one. I've often wondered if he's conveying some kind of anti-establishment sentiments, and then I was reading someone else's blog earlier today - someone who's reading The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman (http://markreads.net/reviews/) - and they were talking about how those books realy highlight that moment when children realise that adults lie. A lot. Sometimes it's genuinely for their own good, other times for malicious intent. The child realises that adults aren't all-knowing, that they do make mistakes and that they're not always good. Does this series highlight this as well? We all know how much MI6 have lied to Alex in the past to make him work for them, and now I'm thinking that Horowitz is more focusing on the relationship or comparison between child and adult rather than commenting on the corrupt workings of government.
The narrative skips quickly back to Alex, where we left him, climbing up a ladder after setting off a bomb that should destroy the dam and flood the field, hopefully killing all the spores. But of course, life is never simple for Alex Rider. As the Kikuyu tribesmn close in he has no way of escape and, again, I didn't know how he would get out of it. Dun dun duuuuun. And then he sees one climbing down the lader from above. So he's pretty much screwed. And then he thinks about his funeral and it doesn't bode well for him (despite the fact that I know there's another book to come...) Seriously things keep coming at him, it's like a neverending avalanche of awfulness that is threatening to engulf him and he's just managing to keep his head above it. Will things ever be good again???
When another Kikuyu man throws a spear at Alex he grabs it and throws it at the man climbing down the ladder, injuring him, and THEN his bomb goes off, ripping apart the foundations of the dam and giving way to the phenomenal amount of pressure from all that water. It smashes the men on the ground to pieces instantly, and the force of the explosion shakes the whole damn, leading the injured tribesman to fall to his death. Fortunately Alex manages to hang on, and slowly continues to climb to the top of the dam to safety. Thinking about everything Alex has been through it reaslly is amazing how he keeps up the strength to carry on. I mean, he spent the night barely sleeping in the anticipation of his looming torture, he was then suspended over some hungry crocodiles, after finally being rescued he has had to run three miles to the damn over rocky terrain, fix a bomb in the right place and THEN escape from this bunch of men trying to kill him. Makes me feel like the biggest slob on the planet when I get tired after one session in the gym...
So then the weakness to the dam the explosion caused means that it starts to collapse, letting more water spurt out violently, and Alex's safety is again put to question. Seriously, can one person's life be in danger this many times in one day?? So glad I'm not Alex right now! Then he sees an aeroplane flying towards him trailing a rope which he catches onto, realising the plane is being flown by his ally Rahim, and he is flown to safety. Phew!
What really interested me was the last page or so. The narrative switches from Alex back to the Prime Minister's office. It was said earlier that this is a new PM and he evident;y isn't very well informed about everything that Alex has done and doesn't understand the sacrifices he's made for them. This bit brings back what I said earlier about the contrast between children and adults in this series. Alex acts so much older than his age, and so often the adults act like petty children. We've seen so many political officials be so stubborn and arrogant that they just can't accept that Alex is an exceptional person. They have to believe that, in the words of Miss Trunchbull from Matilda, "I'm big and you're small, I'm right and you're wrong, and there's nothing you can do about it!"
In this case the PM has recieved feedback from his planes, saying that they couldn't find any fields in the specified area, only a lake. A lake. They'd obviously got there too late and seen the effects of Alex's work. Now the Prime Minister believes that one of two things happened: either MI6's information was inaccurate, or Alex Rider was lying.
OH MY GOSH THESE PEOPLE INFURIATE ME SO MUCH!!!!
WHY CAN'T YOU JUST CURL UP IN YOUR SOCK DRAWER AND NEVER COME OUT AGAIN? Seriously? Why are these people so obtuse? ARRRRGH. No adult EVER believes Alex. It's NOT FAIR.
What the PM goes on to say after that is interesting though and I wonder how it will affect the final book. He's thinking about bringing Alan Blunt into question because he has concerns with his judgement, wondering whether they need a new Head of MI6. Now I don't like Alan Blunt, but I know that he is good at his job. Would anyone be able to do it better? I don't know, but for certain it could mean huge things for Alex: would they use him again? If they didn't maybe it would be a good thing, but if they did then we could be looking at someone doesn't appreciate what he's done, isn't prepared to protect him and thinks of him as disposable as a used tissue. Something we have learned in this book is that Blunt DEFINITELY does care for Alex and wants to keep him safe. He really appreciates what Alex has done and knows that they cannot use him again. He's really developed from the cold, grey statue we once knew him as, and I bet this will come to be significant in the final book.
That very lengthy review should hopefully make up for the long silence! I will review the penultimate chapter tomorrow!!
Ok, so heeeere we go...
Obviously, after that mahoosive break I didn't have the plot fresh in my mind, so it was like a bomb had dropped on me the minute I started reading. Some planes from the British govt. have been sent to bomb the fields containing the poisonous spores and we know from a few chapters ago that there is a likely chance that this will simply blow the spores into the air so they drift over to another field and the danger is still imminent. Horowitz's portrayal of authority (and a great many adult characters, for that matter) throughout the series has never been a positive one. I've often wondered if he's conveying some kind of anti-establishment sentiments, and then I was reading someone else's blog earlier today - someone who's reading The Amber Spyglass by Philip Pullman (http://markreads.net/reviews/) - and they were talking about how those books realy highlight that moment when children realise that adults lie. A lot. Sometimes it's genuinely for their own good, other times for malicious intent. The child realises that adults aren't all-knowing, that they do make mistakes and that they're not always good. Does this series highlight this as well? We all know how much MI6 have lied to Alex in the past to make him work for them, and now I'm thinking that Horowitz is more focusing on the relationship or comparison between child and adult rather than commenting on the corrupt workings of government.
The narrative skips quickly back to Alex, where we left him, climbing up a ladder after setting off a bomb that should destroy the dam and flood the field, hopefully killing all the spores. But of course, life is never simple for Alex Rider. As the Kikuyu tribesmn close in he has no way of escape and, again, I didn't know how he would get out of it. Dun dun duuuuun. And then he sees one climbing down the lader from above. So he's pretty much screwed. And then he thinks about his funeral and it doesn't bode well for him (despite the fact that I know there's another book to come...) Seriously things keep coming at him, it's like a neverending avalanche of awfulness that is threatening to engulf him and he's just managing to keep his head above it. Will things ever be good again???
When another Kikuyu man throws a spear at Alex he grabs it and throws it at the man climbing down the ladder, injuring him, and THEN his bomb goes off, ripping apart the foundations of the dam and giving way to the phenomenal amount of pressure from all that water. It smashes the men on the ground to pieces instantly, and the force of the explosion shakes the whole damn, leading the injured tribesman to fall to his death. Fortunately Alex manages to hang on, and slowly continues to climb to the top of the dam to safety. Thinking about everything Alex has been through it reaslly is amazing how he keeps up the strength to carry on. I mean, he spent the night barely sleeping in the anticipation of his looming torture, he was then suspended over some hungry crocodiles, after finally being rescued he has had to run three miles to the damn over rocky terrain, fix a bomb in the right place and THEN escape from this bunch of men trying to kill him. Makes me feel like the biggest slob on the planet when I get tired after one session in the gym...
So then the weakness to the dam the explosion caused means that it starts to collapse, letting more water spurt out violently, and Alex's safety is again put to question. Seriously, can one person's life be in danger this many times in one day?? So glad I'm not Alex right now! Then he sees an aeroplane flying towards him trailing a rope which he catches onto, realising the plane is being flown by his ally Rahim, and he is flown to safety. Phew!
What really interested me was the last page or so. The narrative switches from Alex back to the Prime Minister's office. It was said earlier that this is a new PM and he evident;y isn't very well informed about everything that Alex has done and doesn't understand the sacrifices he's made for them. This bit brings back what I said earlier about the contrast between children and adults in this series. Alex acts so much older than his age, and so often the adults act like petty children. We've seen so many political officials be so stubborn and arrogant that they just can't accept that Alex is an exceptional person. They have to believe that, in the words of Miss Trunchbull from Matilda, "I'm big and you're small, I'm right and you're wrong, and there's nothing you can do about it!"
In this case the PM has recieved feedback from his planes, saying that they couldn't find any fields in the specified area, only a lake. A lake. They'd obviously got there too late and seen the effects of Alex's work. Now the Prime Minister believes that one of two things happened: either MI6's information was inaccurate, or Alex Rider was lying.
OH MY GOSH THESE PEOPLE INFURIATE ME SO MUCH!!!!
WHY CAN'T YOU JUST CURL UP IN YOUR SOCK DRAWER AND NEVER COME OUT AGAIN? Seriously? Why are these people so obtuse? ARRRRGH. No adult EVER believes Alex. It's NOT FAIR.
What the PM goes on to say after that is interesting though and I wonder how it will affect the final book. He's thinking about bringing Alan Blunt into question because he has concerns with his judgement, wondering whether they need a new Head of MI6. Now I don't like Alan Blunt, but I know that he is good at his job. Would anyone be able to do it better? I don't know, but for certain it could mean huge things for Alex: would they use him again? If they didn't maybe it would be a good thing, but if they did then we could be looking at someone doesn't appreciate what he's done, isn't prepared to protect him and thinks of him as disposable as a used tissue. Something we have learned in this book is that Blunt DEFINITELY does care for Alex and wants to keep him safe. He really appreciates what Alex has done and knows that they cannot use him again. He's really developed from the cold, grey statue we once knew him as, and I bet this will come to be significant in the final book.
That very lengthy review should hopefully make up for the long silence! I will review the penultimate chapter tomorrow!!
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