War for the Planet of the Apes: Revelations

Greg Keyes delivers yet another engrossing prequel novel to one of the Apes reboot films, and just like his last one, it is an amazing read, especially for a fan of the franchise. Revelations picks up mere days after the events of Dawn of the Planet of the Apes. Caesar and his troop are regrouping after all the commotion in preparation for the looming threat of the human soldiers that were contacted near the end of the second film. Unfortunately, that is not the only looming threat. Koba's influence is still very present, as his most loyal followers, who believe more in his view of things, begin plotting to overthrow Caesar, causing dissension amongst their own kind. We are introduced to the war hardened Colonel McCullough (played by Woody Harrelson in the upcoming third installment) and the way he is portrayed really solidifies his motivation for fighting the apes, ensuring humanity's survival, as established in the trailer for the third film. In many ways, he appears very much akin to Caesar, but militaristic in his ways, unlikely to pursue peace. Our central ape characters include Blue Eyes, Caesar's son, who is sent on a mission to find a safe area for the apes, only to encounter problems in the form of humans and the ape turncoats. Without his father to guide him, Blue Eyes must come into his own to get out of the situation, learning more about what being an heir entails. We also have the character of Ray, a young orangutan who accompanies Blue Eyes. Having a new orangutan character was quite refreshing, as they are actually not focussed on too much, the most prominent predecessors being Zaius and Virgil of the original films and Maurice of the more current ones. Ray's thoughts, like Maurice's wisdom and teaching beforehand, appear to be indicating toward the roles (or one role) of the orangutans in the original series, with insights on the philosophical side that are very interesting to see coming from the evolving ape. His journey turned out to be quite fascinating. Like in the last prequel novel, Caesar is very sparingly included, mostly because he has to deal with fighting back against the approaching humans, and that's perfectly fine. Focussing on Caesar is what the movies are for. But that's not to say he isn't used well. The moments he does have are quite good, including his assigning Blue Eyes on his mission, his fighting the humans, and his suspicions about Koba's followers. We also get a few sprinklings of other characters that are an interesting read as well. Including the ape dissenters, an albino gorilla named Winter trying to prove his worth, McCullough's son serving under his command, and even Caesar's mate Cornelia. Oh my god, Cornelia. I certainly hope the movie gives us a glimpse of the caring queen ape that is not to be messed with. This was a great book that I didn't want to stop reading and I definitely recommend it to Apes fans who want some more of the world presented by this new series of films. A fourth film is reportedly planned. I certainly hope Greg Keyes is brought in to write yet another great prequel for it.

I will admit, this book came off a bit on the 'fanfiction' side to me, who reads a lot that stuff. BUT, it's not bad in the slightest, its very good ( and honestly, a lot of novels for movie franchises fell this way, in my opinion ). The story is very nice in setting up for War For The Planet of The Apes, one obvious example Blue Eye's character, who is the main character here. Greg Keyes adds these little scenes and thoughts between plot points that not only advance the story, but gives us a better insight on characters, whether it be Cornelia's, Blue Eyes, Ray's, Caesar's, or The Colonel's POVs. What they think also gives us information on the other characters as well, and how their lives have been. Even minor characters we only see a glance of in the films, who may or may not even be mentioned in them no less, are given development in small ways that a lover of lore like myself enjoys; Rocket's wife, Tinker, is one. I sorely wish there had been more pages, more books, and all by Greg Keyes, because he really makes these characters feel real and human -- whether that be the truth, or they be ape. I think my favorite parts were Cornelia's, because we never got a enough of her in the movies, and how the female apes have bonded and helped in keeping their colony safe and running. Definitely a must read if you want to learn more on the apes and their society, Alpha Omega's soldiers and leader, and of what has happened to California since the outbreak in San Francisco.

If you are really enjoying the current movies, this book is a must read. I have not seen the War for the Planet of the Apes movie just yet. So I am interested to see where exactly they pick it up in the movie after reading Revelations!

This book is the prequel to the War for the Planet of the Apes film. It tells the interim story of Blue Eyes and Rocket's journey and of the division in the ape community following the death of Koba. The author, Greg Keyes wrote the prequel to the Dawn of the Planet of the Apes book, Firestorm as well. His characterizations are spot on and I appreciated learning about the women in the community as well. We also are introduced to the colonel and his son. The colonel features prominently in the film and you are given some background here, though I didn't feel like I really got to know him. There are twists and turns and it is a great suspenseful read. A must read for fans of the film, so you can meet some of the new apes you will encounter in the movie.

It adds so much more depth than the movie. Stays relatively close to movie storyline. Easy read

I bought it again for a friend. The only thing I'm not happy about this time is that I expected the new cover. It looked nice than the other. Use the true picture of the product, please.

Another fantastic Planet of the Apes novel based upon and featuring characters from the recent movies. I have read all of them so far, except for the next one which is a novelization of the latest movie in the series, War For The Planet of the Apes. Each novel has been excellent and truly enjoyable. I highly recommend them all!

This was a great book! If you’re a fan of the Planet of the Apes reboot, you need to read Revelations. This book does a great job of answering several questions I had after Dawn like: What happened to Malcolm? What was Blue Eyes and Rocket’s journey like? Would we get to see what Blue Eyes’ personality was like? While Firestorm had several human stories going on at once with the ape’s story, Revelations has several ape stories going on at once. You will meet several new Apes like Ray, Red, Tinker, and Fox. There is a lot of action and situations to let your imagination run away with.

An exciting 'Revelation' To the Planet of the Apes Novels thus far, an incredible insite to the events that occur between Dawn of the Planet of the Apes and War, It begins exactly where dawn left off with a new, terrifying threat on the horrizon and conflicts forming in the ape rants... I much enjoyed reading and would highly recommend it to any fan of the films this far and Firestorm which followed Rise. 5 Stars.

I am a lifelong Apes fan and a very hard sell and evil critic on Apes novels. Greg Keyes has crafted the perfect Apes novel, populated with living characters you truly empathise with--even the supposed bad guys.There are some new characters in here who immediately become Apes classics.I cannot recommend this wonderful novel highly enough. It will certainly enhance your viewing on War for the Planet of the Apes.

Great book - any story from this world is a story which plays a bigger part - would have loved more ceasar but none the less still a good read.

Just got this so still reading but so far is a good read but ill see how much like the movie it is but its a good little way to fill in the gaps witeen dawn & war

Not as good as the prequel novel for Dawn of the... but superior to the novelisation of War.