The Rage War: A three part Alien / Predator epic by Tim Lebbon

[Ultramorph]

194 pages in now, and I'm really enjoying it. The pace is nice and quick, and it doesn't suffer from having too many characters like some of the other novels. The action is pretty well-done, as well.

Spoiler

I'm also digging The Rage. It's neat to see the results of humans' unfettered exierimentation with alien tech. Coupled with the couple little references we've gotten to Weyland's "there's nothing" line, I sort of imagine that this is what Weyland would have done/become had he actually succeeded on LV-223.

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[The Alien Predator]

Agreed, Ultramorph, completely agree with you on everything there. This is easily my most favourite novel I've read so far, out of everything I've read.

[Ultramorph]

I'm about 280 pages in now, and things have ramped up fast.

Spoiler

I appreciate the restraint Lebbon has exercised as far as showing the xenos, and te stuff between Hashori and Liliya was well-executed. I loved when Palant and McIlveen were listening to the two predators before they attacked.

Like I've said before, I can't wait to see what craziness we have in store in the next two books.

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[The Alien Predator]

Nice!

I'm glad you're enjoying it. I can't wait until the next book either. I wonder if Tim's started it or is half way through writing it.

[Corporal Hicks]

I believe he's commented he's already working on it. 

Yep...

Hey, Hicks. (Ultramorph, please avoid the spoiler as I want you to enjoy what happens  )

Spoiler

What did you think of the twist? Did you like what happened to the Aaron-Percival?

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XD

I am the bringer of doom! Haha. I liked it.

[Corporal Hicks]

Tim has agreed to answer our questions. Please get any questions you have in before Sunday as I'd like to send them over then.

[HuDaFuK]

You guys will have to think up some good ones because I still haven't got around to getting this, and doubt I will any time soon as I just have a backlog of too many books to read!

That said, I'd be interested to hear more about the alterations he had to make, although I understand (and expect) he won't be able to say much lest he give away details about the proposed film.

[The Alien Predator]

Will Tim be featuring other aliens such as the Arcturians? The book mentions humans meeting some friendly aliens, will they offer help to them and the Yautja? If so, I wonder how they'd react to the Yautja if they've been hunted by them. This could create some interesting moral choices of "should we help them or not?"

Also, why do humans call them Yautja if the Predators don't call themselves this? I am curious as to how they got to calling them this. I can understand in the old EU as Machiko called them "Yautja" when the Colonial Marines consulted with her and this was what the Predators called themselves in the older stuff.

That's all I could think of at the moment.

[Corporal Hicks]

Nice!

I'm glad you're enjoying it. I can't wait until the next book either. I wonder if Tim's started it or is half way through writing it.

He's just told me handed in book 2 yesterday.

Thanks for the questions so far guys.

[The Alien Predator]

I am happy to hear that, Hicks, cheers. I am really looking forward to book two.

[Corporal Hicks]

Rightio - I've got all my questions down. Just need to select through the ones suggested here and then I'll get them sent off.

[RakaiThwei]

1) You used the Yautja term to described the Predators in this novel but they appear to be a different culture and interpretation from the Perry's original concept. Since you mentioned that you didn't look at the original EU material, was this mandated by Fox?

2) Were you aware that there were two different interpretations of the Predators such as the Yautja, which the Perry's introduced, and John Shirley's Hish'que-ten versions of the Predators?

3) The Robert Rodriguez PREDATORS movie introduced a cousin race to the Predators we know and love. If we will be seeing these creatures, will you be giving them a different species name that isn't Yautja and different culture as well?

4) This one is kind of important to me.. In a passing quote or narration in your book, you had off-handed mentioned a multiverse when it was mentioned that the Founders were experimenting with quantum physics and "balancing the multiverse". Is this a hint that there is a multiverse (alternate universes philosophy/many-worlds interpretation) or is this a reference more to dimensional spatial layering?

[The Alien Predator]

I'm curious about the Hish-qu-Ten bit, did Fox kinda quietly decide to forget about them and focus on Yautja? (this is a question for us as I'm wondering what you lot think.)

[RakaiThwei]

I'm curious about the Hish-qu-Ten bit, did Fox kinda quietly decide to forget about them and focus on Yautja? (this is a question for us as I'm wondering what you lot think.)

I would think that Fox outright had dropped the Hish as being indisputably being non-canon. The concept was REALLY unpopular, at least with Yautja fans anyway... Then Fox told Dark Horse and other licensees to stick with the Yautja idea.

But then... there is Mortal Kombat X... which... is an unusual case which uses both Yautja and Hish terms, although these are meant for movesets and variations. Yautja Strike and Yautja Slam are used in the Warrior variation, where as Hish-qu'ten is it's own variation.

But if the Hish do come back, I think they should be applied to the Super Predators... or Rodrigators as I'm going to call them.

[Ultramorph]

A few questions, even if I haven't finished just quite yet.

1. What was your inspiration for The Rage?
2. What was the most fun aspect of all the world-building you do in the novel?
3. Is the research that Liliya steals in the prologue the result of W-Y capturing the xenos in Sea of Sorrows, or is it another team altogether?