HG Wells War of the Worlds sequel

[StuartBurchell]

Surprised old HG hasn't got his own page.

I read on Ceefax last night that there will be a sequel to arguably HG Wells most famous work.

It will be published in 2017 when the copyright expires on War of the Worlds. It will be written by Stephen Baxter and will be called The Massacre of Mankind.

I was surprised by this story as I had just opened my parcel for my copy of The Last Days of Thunder Child by CA Powell, a tale of the great duel in War of the Worlds that most film versions omit.

Unfamiliar with the author but have seen his books in the bookshops. Not keen on the title.

And not keen on the 'official sequel' tab either. I bought the 'official sequel' to Dracula, Dracula, the Un-dead, by Dacre Stoker and Ian Holt and was greatly disappointed by it, despite some truly great scenes.

 

[Brian G Turner]

I saw this mentioned on Twitter the other day, and had to fight down my inner cynic. It's difficult not to imagine this as a poor attempt to cash-in on a famous property. Yet Stephen Baxter is a successful author in his own right - so is it simply the case that he always dreamed of extending the HG Wells story??

 

[Gonk the Insane]

had to fight down my inner cynic

Trying... Really, really hard.... Nope, failed.
I hope someone can prove me wrong, but I have yet to find a series continued by a different author to the creator where the newer installments are even close to being on par with the original author's work.

difficult not to imagine this as a poor attempt to cash-in

I've avoided the recent James Bond novels for that very reason.

 

[Vladd67]

Didn't Stephen Baxter do a sequel to The Time Machine as well? This won't be his first sequel of a classic.

 

[BAYLOR]

A man by the name of Garret Serviss wrote a sequel to War of the Words in 1898 Edison's Conquest of Mars

 

[BAYLOR]

Didn't Stephen Baxter do a sequel to The Time Machine as well? This won't be his first sequel of a classic.

The Time Ships and it's quite good.

 

[ralphkern]

I second the motion on the Time Ships. It makes for an excellent read - he manages to capture the tone of the original very well yet also make it somewhat more readable for a modern audience.

Personally, I'm quite excited at the prospect of what SB will do with a War of the Worlds sequel.

 

[tinkerdan]

In a roundabout way there has already been a sequel of some sort.

Garrett P. Serviss
Edison's Conquest of Mars, 1898 novel (written on commission from The Boston Post as a sequel to "Fighters from Mars", an un-authorized and heavily altered version of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds)

 

[BAYLOR]

In a roundabout way there has already been a sequel of some sort.

Garrett P. Serviss
Edison's Conquest of Mars, 1898 novel (written on commission from The Boston Post as a sequel to "Fighters from Mars", an un-authorized and heavily altered version of H. G. Wells' The War of the Worlds)

Ive a copy of it . I wouldn't call it great, but it is entertaining.

 

[BAYLOR]

The best film version of War of the Worlds is the still 1953 film .

 

[Edward M. Grant]

I've avoided the recent James Bond novels for that very reason.

I read one of them recently, and was surprised that it was actually pretty good. Not sure I'd go out of my way to read them, but I preferred it to the recent movies.

As to War Of The Worlds sequels, there have been several. For example, the Edison's Conquest book mentioned, which I've read about half-way through, and there was a graphic novel a few years ago. Crimson something, I think.

I've written a novel set a few years after a Martian invasion in the Victorian era, but it doesn't have much in common with the Wells version. I really need to finish rewriting it soon .

 

[Pedro Del Mar]

I read on Ceefax last night

Ceefax? Thought that had stopped long ago??

Must admit I'd be interested to read a sequel, never read anything by Stephen Baxter but will probably pick this up if the reviews are decent and I might also look out for The Time Ships

 

[StuartBurchell]

The ITV/Channel 4 teletext services have stopped but Ceefax is still going, but likely to be scrapped to save the BBC pennies.

I usually read the Entertainment News on page 501. And the lottery on 555.

 

[Pedro Del Mar]

I'm just over halfway through The Massacre of Mankind. It's well written in that Baxter definitely seems to have successfully captured the tone and style of the original yet for me it feels a little flat. I'm not finding myself with any feeling for any of the characters, yet the well written plot is driving me forwards and I'm finding myself more interested in finding out what happens and how the Martian problem is resolved. I recently finished Lonesome Dove which is incredibly character driven so maybe coming to this from that wasn't such a good idea. If Baxter had written the characters with the same high amount of skill with which he'd crafted the plot then it would be a fabulous read indeed.