Umbrella Conspiracy: No.1 (Resident Evil)

As a huge fan of the original Resident Evil video-game franchise (before Capcom decided to derail the franchise by replacing the iconic zombies with lame mutants). I found the urge to revisit the original Resident Evil storylines through S.D Perry's series of Resident evil book adaptions too tempting, and I am glad that I did! This book along with the other titles in the series are very well written and accurate in every sense to the original game storyline. I myself have played all of the originals (Resident Evil 1, 2 & 3) at least 4 or 5 times each and thoroughly enjoyed every second, it is nice to be able to relive something so accurate and true to the originals that you can actually follow the book chapter by chapter and directly link it to sections of the game, I am afraid that I do not have any time for any adaption that essentially re-writes the original storyline and changes the underlying theme, the Resident Evil movies are a good example of how adaptions can go terribly wrong! I personally applaud S.D Perry for her excellent transition from game to novel, she clearly must have studied the franchise and storyline from the individual titles extensively. It is true that some of the scenes and events from the original games are either not present in the books or more commonly not as focussed on as it maybe was in the original game, but the way in which S.D Perry describes in detail the gory zombies and mutants, the lavish surroundings of the mansion, the characters and even the mind numbing puzzles- for which Resident Evil was famed for is a fantastic reminder of how imaginative the original Resident Evil's were. The books also include a lot off additional information/content that are not present in the game like the first 2 chapters from this book which effectively introduces Jill Valentine and the other members of S.T.A.R.S with background information and stories from the past, this extra content will also pop up from time to time throughout the story which helps to bridge some of the gaps in the storyline that were present in the original games. I would 100% recommend the Resident Evil book series to any Resident Evil fan, a much better alternative to watching the shockingly rubbish so called movie adaptions!

Il admit it, i was never a fan of the resident evil games back when they first came out, i found them too challenging, the item management and save system was punishing and unforgiving. However as i got older i persevered with them and today its my favourite video game series of all time. However when i found out there were books of the games, i wasnt too excited. I thought they were just going to be a quick cash grab because of the popularity of the series. I was totally wrong, they are very good reads. Im sure everyones familiar with the story of the first game but if your not, the book is set in the fictional american suburb called raccoon city. Raccoon city is based at the bottom of expansive woodland called the Arklay Mountains, it is these woods that many people have gone missing. Eventually bodies start turning up in pieces, ripped to shreds and mutilated and people begin to report seeing strange dog like creatures. With they city under panic, the Raccoon police department call in their version of a swat team called STARS ( special tatics and rescue force) in to investigate and put a stop to these murders. Thats the basic jist of it. However as these are books they can explore a lot more and provide more backstory than a game can. They flesh out the characters and give them personalitys that the games cant, for example this book begins with jill valentine rushing out of the house because shes late to a meeting. This makes us relate to the characters more as thats something we can all relate to, being late to work. The entire series of books are enjoyable but i decided to focus on the first one because Resident Evil 1 was always my favourite of the bunch. In short, if you enjoy the games, you'll love these books, if you've never touched the games before, you'll still enjoy them and their a great introduction to the world of Resident Evil

The Umbrella Conspiracy retells the story of the first Resident Evil game, following the story of a team of mercenaries fighting for their lives as well as answers amidst a deadly zombie outbreak. As a fan of the game, I thoroughly enjoyed this, as it gives a fresh perspective to the story, splitting the narrative between multiple characters to give a level of depth the game lacked. As a story in it's own right, it was still pretty enjoyable.

I would like to say first of all i'm a massive fan of everything about resident evil. I watched the movies and played the games on the computer but i did not know there was a book (i know i'm shocked to). When i finally found there was a book i got it once in my hands I started to read.... Book one follows the first computer game (not the movie) I was really glad that it follow the game because when you playing it you did feel that lots was left unseen. The story starts just people are turning up dead the STARS members are finally called in to find out what going on...Is it wild animals or a bunch of crazy serial killers when STARS loss contacted with the first team they go into the wood to find out what's going on. From there the book takes on this cool creepy feel the team land in the wood by helicopter only to be attacked by strange dogs that seemed to have been skinned and mad into monsters that are hunger and will hunt anything that moves. It's not long before the team are in a creepy mansion that's owned by umbrella (which was meant to be closed up and unused big fat lie). Now stuck in this house they must find another safe way out but the house is like a massive puzzle someone in the team is a traitor. Zombies walk the halls but trust me when i say there are a lot worse waiting for them. I simply loved the book and if you are a fan of zombies you will love this book. Its action pack with guns fighting and puzzles you are dying to see what happens next and most of all you get new shocks around every corner. It's brilliant you also start to like some characters more than others and before long you have fallen into this amazing book and you need to get to the end. I loved everything about the book so I give the book 5 stars

Perry is a master at turning the survival horror experience of Resident Evil into an enthralling hands-off story, being able to drAw the reader into the setting perfectly while also making the more outlandish aspects of the resident evil universe seem believable. The authors ability to weave the familiar aspects of the source game into a non-interactive medium by not only referencing elements of the game we all remember (such as the puzzles) but dealing with said elements in a way which didn't have the book focussing entirely on the search for an individual item that sections of the game can focus on easily, but would drag on for a novel, is fantastic, and the subtle changes to the story make this novel an interesting read even for seasoned Resi fans. She manages to tweak the story just enough to make it interesting even for those of us who have played the game many times over, without messing with established canon. Overall a great novel for a very talented writer, and one which fans old and new will love.

I'm a big fan of the Resident Evil series and thought I'd check out the books by S D Perry. The beginning and first few chapters were really good and had me wanting to read more but as the book went on the level of 'excitement' dropped for me. It is possible that because I've played the original Resident Evil and that I knew what was going to happen, it may have dulled the experience for me. I did feel however that the storyline was well paced and really interesting for the first half of the book before everything started happening so quickly nearer the end. It was as if they were running out of pages and just crammed in whatever they could in order to finish it off. This is certainly not a book that I would recommend to anyone, but it's not a book I'd warn them off either. As I said before though, my opinion is coming from someone who has played the game that this book is based off.

I love Resident Evil (except 6, obviously, I have standards) - games, rubbish live action films, insane animated films, unwatchably terrible TV shows made just endurable by the late great master Lance Reddick. These books blow all of them out of the water for story - I wish Capcom had got S.D. Perry on the phone to script more of their games. The characters are fun but still engaging and have depth. Monsters are scary but also - people have the common decency to recognise zombies and shoot them in the dang head. Absolutely great - so fun, almost like playing the game

This is in effect a novelisation of the very first Resident Evil game. In Raccoon City, some people have disappeared or have been found, but dead and horribly mutilated. Two squads of STARS are sent into an old mansion to investigate and what they find is horrific. Add to that the complication that there is a traitor in their midst. The survivors have to use their skills to solve puzzles and overcome obstacles and enemies to not only escape but find out what is going on. The novel is true to the game and a fine read.