The second installment to the greatest story ever told, DANNY 2, The Revenant, has arrived. The finest written characters in literature are back, and they're as good as they ever have been.
As the characters (and readers) are still reeling from the events in book 1, each character has continued in their own private lives - some more surprisingly than others. However, much as they may think they have grown, when they come back together the spell is cast again.
Book 2 can be seen from two very different angles, hence the two covers, and both are completely accurate at the same time. Danny's return is like a fox rampaging through a house full of chickens. Danny finds his admirers again, along with some new ones, lures them in and enslaves them but, as always, he's setting them up for the kill. Even though they know they're playing with a huge ball of fire, they just can't resist Danny's own special brand of magic. It's the readers' job to work out what's actually going on - as it always is. We get the chance to play pyschological detective again.
However, at the same time, in book 2, Danny is walking the world with his guts hanging out while the vultures circle him, waiting to swoop when he falls. This may not sound appealing, but imagine the sexiest walking dead, with the most attractive vultures around, and the devouring is indeed a metaphor for what they'll do when they get their hands on him.
As in DANNY 1, we see personal strength of psychotic proportions, personal survival above all else, and the reader delves ever deeper into the characters' past, unveiling some new mysteries, appearing to conclude others and concreting some assumptions made in book 1.
When talking about the DANNY series, you can't help but be visceral - the book is too raw and honest to receive any less a reaction. The same terms come to mind: see, taste, smell, feel. No-one just reads DANNY, you live it, and book 2 is no different. When you open the book, you enter their world, your surroundings fade away. It's the ultimate in escapism. Engrossing isn't the word for it - there are no words for it. After reading the first book, the DANNY world is a necessity, so get yourself a ticket to the return of the greatest show in town. As for the big twist (actually the author described it best - the big shiny present), you'd better glue your socks on. -
Jodie Rhodes
Write a
review
Enlarge
