Assassin's Creed : Brotherhood

ASSASSIN'S CREED : BROTHERHOOD

Book 2 of Assassin's Creed

ISBN - 978-0-241-95171-2
FIRST PUBLISHED - 2010
PAGES - 538
PUBLISHERS - Penguin
GENRE - Adventure/Action
BINDING - Mass Paperback
SOURCE - Secret Santa

AUTHOR - Oliver Bowden

SYNOPSIS - [From the back cover]

‘I will journey to the black heart of a corrupt Empire to root out my foes. But Rome wasn’t built in a day and it won’t be restored by a lone assassin. I am Ezio Auditore da Firenze. This is my brotherhood.’

Rome, once mighty, lies in ruins. The city swarms with suffering and degradation, her citizens living in the shadow of the ruthless Borgia family. Only one man can free the people from the Borgia tyranny – Ezio Auditore, the Master Assassin.

Ezio’s quest will test him to his limits. Cesare Borgia, a man more villainous and dangerous than his father the Pope, will not rest until he has conquered Italy. And in such treacherous times, conspiracy is everywhere, even within the ranks of the brotherhood itself…

FL Speak - The verdict is : the game is much better than the book. Seriously disappointed by Mr. Bowden.

The story is what you expect in the game. Since its a game to book adaptation, the story more or less runs true. But what fails is the writing. It feels you're reading the game, without actually feeling it. Character development is zilch. Nada. I don't blame the author much, especially since its the second book of the series and I haven't read the first. But no harm done, as of now. Nevertheless, world building could have been a tad more better.

The action is awesome as usual. Ezio has performed the famous "leap of faith" quite a number of times in the book and every time I come upon that phrase, I picture Ezio in the game flinging himself gracefully from the rooftops. Coming back to the story, for those of you, who haven't played the game - 

Ezio is an assassin. An awesome assassin for the Brotherhood. Ezio made a fatal error in the last book by showing mercy to the head of the Borgia family. Now his son and daughter are after his blood. And they managed to kill the head of the Brotherhood, Ezio's uncle Mario. Swearing vengeance and his duty for the Brotherhood, Ezio now travels to Rome which is slowly coming under the influence of the Borgias.

Lovers of the game will love this book as this will give them a chance to revisit their memories. This is where his sister Claudia formally joins the Brotherhood ranks. Her actions and strategies are applaudable. I loved her role. Claudia is superb. But this is not her book. As in the game, this is Ezio's story and he's in every page.

What I didn't like about the book was how it was written. The continuity and flow is depressing. In one page Ezio is planning to rile up the peasants. In the next page, the story fast forwards to 6 months later. What was Ezio doing in that time frame? Mr. Bowden, you can do better. 

I don't know if I should complete this series. I never leave a series unfinished. But disappointment is a strong motivation to not continue. Only time will tell.

My Rating - 3/5 stars

PRICE - INR 350/-

Requiescat in Pace