A longer review is coming when I'm on my computer. All I can say right now is thank gods that's over!Later:To be absolutely honest, the only reason I finished this book is because I paid for it, and it took me over three months to get through it. If it had been fanfic I came across on the web, I would have stopped reading it right after Dean came up with the bright idea to raise Sam from Hell using the Necronomicon. You know, that book mentioned by HP Lovecraft, the guy that Dean knew nothing about in aired canon? That might have been excused if there had been some reference to him hearing about it in some of the OTHER media that refer to the book, but there wasn't one.Now, keep in mind, I could be judging the author a little harshly because of the glowing forward written by Kripke (show creator) where he goes on about how much she knows about the show... However, considering that show facts (like Sam's birthday -- MAY, not March) are not the only thing she gets wrong, I'm not all that sure I'm off base here.First, there's the anachronisms. I sincerely doubt the colonists in Salem, MA would have been using the meter as a unit of measurement. Flintlock pistols require a bit more to fire than just picking one up, pointing, and pulling the trigger. And firing a "two-handed barrage" and a jammed gun mean entirely different things with flintlocks than they do with modern pistols! Ben's jammed gun would have probably blown his fingers off at best, and quite likely done much worse.Second, the writing is amateurish and flat. There's really nothing to connect you to the characters, to make you really worry about them or empathize with how they're supposed to be feeling. Lots of 'Dean did this, then he did this, then blah, blah, blah.' In addition, some additional characters are handled so badly that they're flimsier than cardboard cut-outs, and what should have at least been a slightly emotional scene at the end is blown off in about two paragraphs.Third, the author honestly seems to be more interested in writing historical accounts of other members of the Campbell family than she is in writing a real Supernatural book. This is the second tie-in novel of hers where more effort has been spent writing about the Campbells in the past, and this one had an even higher percentage of it than the last one did. If that's what she wants to write, that's what she should write. She's not doing herself a favour trying to write Sam and Dean if she can't get their voices or characterization right.And that's the thing that bothered me the most and that I've saved for last. I'm okay with soulless!Sam waterboarding a witch for information. It's something he would have done, and since the boys weren't fans of witches when he HAD a soul, I can see it. Though I honestly want to know how tiny this woman was if he could drag two chairs into the bathroom of a hotel at the same time, with her TIED TO ONE OF THEM. Really? I know Sam is abnormally tall and strong, but... really? But still not the worst thing. That, I reserve for her treatment of Dean. I can't really remember one sentence in the book where I actually felt like he was hurting because Sam is gone, or truly worried about Lise and Ben, and although show!Dean tries to hide his emotions, he feels them very deeply. This wasn't evident at all. And there is no way that someone who takes the risks he takes to protect the innocent would blow up a storefront using C4 as a distraction! Even if he COULD get some from Bobby, and even if he had some reason to bring it along on his 'get the Necronomicon to raise Sam from Hell vacation' he wouldn't be blowing up a store front! It took all of my willpower to keep from throwing the book across the room at that point.Do yourself a favour -- if you're a fan of quality writing, historical accuracy, or of the Supernatural characters you see on TV, avoid this book. You'll just end up with a headache if you don't.
This is the first of the series of Supernatural books I have read and I must say, I absolutely loved it. I was very impressed and even though I am a huge fan of the show, I dare to say it may be a little better than a couple of episodes. It was a very nice insight to the one whole year that Sam was hunting with his grandfather Samuel and I loved the fact that Lisa and Ben played their fair part throughout the book as well. I've always thought that they were two characters that, in my opinion, are easily loved because they have quite a strong connection with Dean at times and I honestly think it's a shame that they weren't included just a tiny bit more in a few of the episodes.On to the book. The main thing that made me fall hopelessly in love with this book was Nathaniel's diary extracts. I thought that was a very clever thing to include, it makes the reader feel like they are in Dean's place because you are reading exactly what he is reading, which is a helpful way for the reader to keep up with and try to figure out with him what is going on in Salem.About Perry, I thought it was kind of obvious from the start that she was bad news, mostly because of how up front she was about everything with Ben and how quickly she wanted to get him alone and lead him astray from Lisa and Dean. Besides, everyone knows that in Supernatural, nothing good ever comes from a very forward, pushy and way too comfortable around strangers character (especially because Perry was supposed to be only about fifteen).I loved the fact that even though Sam was following Dean everywhere, Dean never noticed. I thought that all the close encounters were quite a clever idea as it left me wondering every time when Dean would finally realise that his younger brother was free from Hell and was, for the most part, okay. As I was reading I was constantly wondering when they would bump into each other by accident because Sam might slip up and get caught out, but when I finished I couldn't believe it didn't happen. I always assumed that maybe there would be a minor plot twist instead and Sam would leave some sort of evidence behind by accident that Dean would find and he would figure out that or begin to wonder if Sam was actually back. But again, no. This made me a little sad, I was real looking forward to some sort of awkward reunion.One thing that I especially loved was that even after all of the crap that Dean went through in Salem, at the end he still kept his promise to Sam, that he wouldn't try to bring him back. And even though it didn't exactly say it, you knew just how badly he still wanted Sam back with him. This made me wonder, if the thing that went down with the witches had never actually happened, would Dean still have gone to all that trouble to bring his brother back even if he knew what awful things he would have to do just to make it happen?
Do You like book One Year Gone (2011)?
Well I am rating this in terms of other tv tie in type books, knowing full well that they are not literary masterpieces.This book could have been a 4 star if only the author did not put in so many unbelievable pop culture references. I just can't imagine Sam or Dean spouting all of those lines. I also think that the characterization of Lisa was way off. The one other thing that bothered me was the horrible editing job. There were words misspelled and added where they were not supposed to be.Otherwise, the story, going to Salem and running across the ancient coven of witches had its merit. I enjoyed the story. The differing perspectives were done well. I liked the story shown from the past, and seeing the lineage of the Winchesters expanded was a bonus too.
—Jen
Good. After the excellent novels that were set during the Apocalypse it feels a bit of a letdown to continue these novels in between seasons 5 and 6. It brings to life a line Dean says in the season 6 premiere when he mentions to soulless Sam that he tried to bust him out of Lucifer's cage despite his promise not to. Still this was a very interesting attempt by Dean in order to save Sam, unfortunately him almost freed Lucifer, unaware that Sam was already free although without his soul. Worse Dean attempted to do this under the guise of a vacation with his girlfriend Lisa and her son Ben, unknowingly putting them in danger.Nice history of Salem though. I enjoyed how they worked the story of the witch hunts just as Arthur Miller did in his classic tome The Crucible. This time some of the data is a little more factual but with the fictional in that Sam and Dean's ancestors, the legendary Campbells, to stop a coven of witches from using their power to raise Lucifer. Pretty good story though. Great work on behalf of writer Rebecca Dessertine for two great novels and her exceptional devotion in making this work in the same history of the show. C+
—Victor Orozco
The story of this one is rather weak. You'd think that someone who works for Eric Kripke and who has written for the show would be able to write a halfway decent book, but you'd be sadly disappointed. I'm not a fan of soulless Sam and having to read about him just slowed the story down too much. Also, I find it highly unlikely that Dean would take Lisa and Ben on a hunting trip that would potentially endanger them. The last book Dessertine wrote wasn't great, but it was better than this one. I recommend giving this one a pass, unless you're a hardcore fan of the show.
—Courtney
