With the exception of the vast expanded universe of Star Wars and Star Trek, probably no other sci-fi property has branched out in as many exciting ways as the Alien universe. Every new tie-in novel consistently has been packed with suspense and innovative takes on Weyland-Yutani and its influence years before, during, and after the events of Ridley Scott’s original Alien movie. Each year fans of Alien celebrate April 26 as Alien Day, reflecting not a specific day in the history of the franchise, but the designation of the moon in the film Aliens: LV426.
No book or film has portrayed the people behind the Weyland-Yutani Corporation as more vile and despicable as author Alex White has envisioned them in his new novel released for Alien Day 2018, Alien: The Cold Forge, a sequel to the second film in the franchise, James Cameron’s Aliens. The Company is proceeding to fulfill one of its initial ideas, to weaponize the Xenomorphs for military use. Alien: The Cold Forge is Aliens as if written by Michael Crichton, a blend of Congo and Jurassic Park with aspects of the modern Planet of the Apes trilogy tie-ins and Project X. Never before in the Alien stories will readers want to see a corporate rep get his just desserts as the brutal, psychopathic corporate exec Dorian Sudler, embarking on a resource slashing audit of the experimental science station RB-323. A dying woman must carry out her own secret gene research project among the layers of secret projects within Weyland-Yutani–if she is to survive. Exciting? Yes. Suspenseful? Definitely. Readers will also learn the true name of the Xenomorphs, and encounter an entirely new use of the Weyland-Yutani borgs (like Bishop and David) that we haven’t seen before. Order your copy of Alien: The Cold Forge now, here at Amazon.
Coming later this year is Alien Covenant: David’s Drawings by Dane Hallett & Matt Hatton. This boxed edition contains two books, providing readers an insight into the most intriguing character from the Alien prequels. The in-universe sketchbook contains more than 200 illustrations from the set and will take you inside the mind of David. Plus Developing the Art of an Android provides an interview with Hallett and Hatton, the artists behind the sketchwork.
In the vein of fun tie-in books like A Die Hard Christmas, get ready for Jonesy: Nine Lives on the Nostromo by Rory Lucey. In space, no one can hear you meow. Aboard the USCSS Nostromo, Jonesy leads a simple life enjoying The Company cat food and chasing space rodents. Until one day his cryostasis catnap is rudely interrupted. The humans have a new pet and it’s definitely not house trained. This full-color illustrated book offers a cat’s eye view of all the action from the movie Alien.
While you’re at it, check out these Alien tie-ins previously reviewed here at borg.com:
The Book of Alien: Augmented Reality Survival Manual, by Owen Williams
Alien Covenant: Origins, by Alan Dean Foster
The Art and Making of Alien Covenant, by Simon Ward
Aliens: Bug Hunt, anthology
Alien: The Weyland-Yutani Report, by S.D. Perry
Aliens: The 30th Anniversary Edition
Cinema Alchemist: Designing Star Wars and Alien, by Roger Christian
Aliens: The Set Photography, by Simon Ward
The borg.com interview with Alien universe author Tim Lebbon
Alien: Out of the Shadows, by Tim Lebbon
The Movie Art of Syd Mead, Visual Futurist
Need to resupply your collection of Alien toys? At Entertainment Earth check out NECA’s Xenomorph Queen, the Eaglemoss Xenomorph statue, the Takayuki Takeya Alien figure, the Aliens Hadley’s Hope two-pack, the Alien Resurrection Ripley figure, the Alien 8-bit Pop! vinyl figure, the USC Aliens weapons pack, and the Aliens facehugger plush (and more!).
And if you need a quick fix, today each of the Alien films will be available for just $4.99 on 20th Century Fox Home Entertainment’s “Movie of the Day” app. They are even less at Amazon, especially with Amazon Prime or HBO access:
Game over!
C.J. Bunce
Editor
borg.com
