Spark and Burn

by Diana G. Gallagher

Book Overview

When Riley Finn and the Initiative plant a chip in Spike, making him unable to harm humans, he learns to cope and falls in love with Buffy.

• Format: Mass Market Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 141690056X
• ISBN13: 9781416900566
• Release Date: July 2005
• Publisher: Simon Spotlight Entertainment
• Length: 239 Pages
• Weight: 0.32 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.7" x 4.7" x 6.9"
• Age Range: 16 to 18 years
• Grade Range: Grade 11 to Postsecondary

Customer Reviews

It's Spike! Perfect Book for Spike Fans!

As a long-standing Spike fan myself, I can say with confidence that "Spark and Burn" is an awesome book for fellow fans. "Buffy the Vampire Slayer", despite it's cheesy show title, is one of the greatest shows of all time, and Spike is probably one of the best characters, next to Buffy herself. "Spark and Burn" takes you on a journey through certain events on "Buffy", especially during season 2 when Spike and Drusilla first crashed through that 'Welcome to Sunnydale' sign. It jumps back and forth from past events (when Spike was first sired by Drusilla, and the years following his birth as a vampire and his subsequent terrorizing of Europe with Drusilla, Darla, and Angelus) that help illustrate how Spike grew to be the vampire he is today, and current events (which for this book 'current' meant season 2, the first season Spike appeared as a character on Buffy). The book is told entirely from Spike's point of view, which is unique in that most of the Buffy novels that contain Spike use him as a peripheral character. I've always wanted a Buffy novel that was all about Spike, and here it is! What I loved most, besides Spike, was that the story took you through well-known Buffy episodes (mostly in season 2) and retold them while giving you a whole different perspective on things. It illustrates how Spike first viewed the Slayer, and how his initial animalistic attraction to her (despite the fact that he still intended to kill her), slowly transformed into grudging respect for her skills as a warrior, and eventually grew into a sort of burning need for her (hence the title of the book). Being able to (as a reader) get into Spike's head and really experience the inner workings of this bleached-blonde care bear with fangs is a real trip! It's an incredible journey, and I'd love to see more books like this one! By the time you finish the book, you're left wishing they had gone further with it, because you are so entranced that you don't want it to end! (at least *I* didn't want it to end). Spike fans, and especially Spike/Buffy fans, will truly get a kick out of this book! Those who aren't necessarily Spike fans might become one after reading this! Bottom line, it's an awesome book, and I plan to read it several times!

A journey into Spike's mind.

I thoroghly enjoyed this book from cover to cover. True, it does rehash events we've already seen in the show and I can see why some readers were disappointed, but I enjoyed hearing those events told from Spike's point of view. It made his madness in Lessons understandable and even, at some points, sorta rational. His love for Buffy really shines through in this book, and while I'm more of a Buffy/Angel fan, I found it heartening and touching. This book is well written and wonderfully descriptive. Spike is an awesome character with a lot of depth and history, and he deserved his own book. The author brings him to life in this story. If you're a Spike fan, curl up with it. It brings the reader as close to the blond vampire as a fan can hope to get. A great read!

happy surprise, hope for more

Knowing ahead of time that there was no "new" story, I wondered if I should even buy this. I have been disappointed by the portrayal of "Spike by other authors in the "official" novel line. I have to say this was a wonderful gift to fans of Spike's journey! The "old" story was presented with new insights and many "fill in the blank" moments. I was in no way bored and it did not read as a rerun. Spike is fairly represented as an evil vampire when proper and the changing vampire he became. I only hope this author writes more and is assigned all Spike books.

A look at what made Spike Spike

This is a must read for Spike fans. It is written from the point of view of Spike and talks about his physiological roller coaster ride from the human William, to Spike the big bad, to Spike the champion. The book expands on many of the Spike centric episodes of BtVS. Readers are privy to Spikes thoughts and feelings as well as his conclusions about himself from what he has learned from his experiences.

great book for Spike fans

Spark and Burn is a great 'Buffy' book. Most of the story takes place during the episode 'Lessons' when Spike is insane in the school basement. I liked that the entire book is told from Spike's point-of-view. Spark and Burn has a lot of flashbacks from early season two in it. I liked that Spike was spying on the Scoobies during the episodes 'Inca Mummy Girl' and 'Reptile Boy';it was really interesting to see what he thought of Buffy, Xander, Willow, Angel, and Giles back then. This book also tells you the story of how Spike ended up on the submarine with Angel in 1943. Diana G. Gallagher has a really good understanding of all the characters and the history of the show, and that helps make this book great. I highly recommend Spark and Burn to everyone who likes Spike or just a good book.