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Daylight
When a massive explosion rips through the Manhattan commuter tunnel, trapping dozens of people in the thinning air under the Hudson river, EMS search and rescue tech Kit Latura launches a bold rescue plan. Original. Movie tie-in.
- GenresFiction
193 pages, Mass Market Paperback
First published December 1, 1996
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About the author
Max Allan Collins
802 books1,321 followersReceived the Shamus Award, "The Eye" (Lifetime achievment award) in 2006.
He has also published under the name Patrick Culhane. He and his wife, Barbara Collins, have written several books together. Some of them are published under the name Barbara Allan.
Book Awards
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1984) : True Detective
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1992) : Stolen Away
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1995) : Carnal Hours
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1997) : Damned in Paradise
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1999) : Flying Blind: A Novel about Amelia Earhart
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (2002) : Angel in Black
Japanese: マックス・アラン・コリンズ
or マックス・アラン コリンズ
He has also published under the name Patrick Culhane. He and his wife, Barbara Collins, have written several books together. Some of them are published under the name Barbara Allan.
Book Awards
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1984) : True Detective
Shamus Awards Best Novel winner (1992) : Stolen Away
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1995) : Carnal Hours
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1997) : Damned in Paradise
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (1999) : Flying Blind: A Novel about Amelia Earhart
Shamus Awards Best Novel nominee (2002) : Angel in Black
Japanese: マックス・アラン・コリンズ
or マックス・アラン コリンズ
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Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews
August 6, 2012
There's always something about novelisations that I find gripping. Whether it is seeing the film in a whole new light, or seeing the film how it was originally written, from the screenplay, they can put a whole new spin on the story, or just repeat the film. Sometimes they can be a bit hit or miss. I've never read one that was absolutely brilliant yet, but I live in hope. There's still quite a few on my wishlist that I need to get.
Daylight falls right in the middle. The cover is simply captivating and immediately draws your attention. But it's told in a completely different way to the movie. As the prologue describes it, it is a "documentary-in-prose". That sounds weird, right? It actually works. Although not brilliantly, it does work, strange as it may sound. The 'narrator' interviews the survivors, and they each tell their own story. It is quite hard to keep track of each individual person, a couple I muddled up more than once. But if you've seen the film already (it's excellent), you'll find it easier to keep track of the characters. And the film sticks pretty closely to what is described in this book, apart from the documentary-in-prose.
The book just doesn't have the same tension as the film did, which is one of my favourites. Yes, if you haven't already seen the film, you might feel the tension a bit more, although you may find it irritating the way the book darts back and forth between the characters. But whereas during the film, my mouth was dry at times and yes, I did cry at one point, the book just doesn't deliver. It's an enjoyable read, and definitely makes me want to see the film again.
Max Allan Collins, much like Alan Dean Foster, is one of the elite when it comes to writing movie novelisations. I have read a couple of his books now, like the novelisations of The Mummy movies and he has also written a couple of books about the Titanic.
I do have a bit of a thing for Sylvester Stallone, I will admit. Funny how I didn't like him until I got introduced to Rocky and Rambo. I would be very interested in reading the Rocky novelisations, as they are based on screenplays that he actually wrote. And his casting is near enough perfect in this film, as you can tell from the book. Kit is described as having "hooded eyes with a mournful cast". Doesn't that describe Sylvester Stallone to a T?
An enjoyable novelisation, if you can excuse the strange way of telling the story and the lack of tension.
Daylight falls right in the middle. The cover is simply captivating and immediately draws your attention. But it's told in a completely different way to the movie. As the prologue describes it, it is a "documentary-in-prose". That sounds weird, right? It actually works. Although not brilliantly, it does work, strange as it may sound. The 'narrator' interviews the survivors, and they each tell their own story. It is quite hard to keep track of each individual person, a couple I muddled up more than once. But if you've seen the film already (it's excellent), you'll find it easier to keep track of the characters. And the film sticks pretty closely to what is described in this book, apart from the documentary-in-prose.
The book just doesn't have the same tension as the film did, which is one of my favourites. Yes, if you haven't already seen the film, you might feel the tension a bit more, although you may find it irritating the way the book darts back and forth between the characters. But whereas during the film, my mouth was dry at times and yes, I did cry at one point, the book just doesn't deliver. It's an enjoyable read, and definitely makes me want to see the film again.
Max Allan Collins, much like Alan Dean Foster, is one of the elite when it comes to writing movie novelisations. I have read a couple of his books now, like the novelisations of The Mummy movies and he has also written a couple of books about the Titanic.
I do have a bit of a thing for Sylvester Stallone, I will admit. Funny how I didn't like him until I got introduced to Rocky and Rambo. I would be very interested in reading the Rocky novelisations, as they are based on screenplays that he actually wrote. And his casting is near enough perfect in this film, as you can tell from the book. Kit is described as having "hooded eyes with a mournful cast". Doesn't that describe Sylvester Stallone to a T?
An enjoyable novelisation, if you can excuse the strange way of telling the story and the lack of tension.
April 9, 2020
This is a semi hard to find movie adaptation of the movie by the same name starring Sylvester Stallone. Disgraced FDNY EMS Chief Kit Latura volunteers for a one way trip to try to save some people trapped in the Manhattan tunnel when an explosion seals both ends. The book far and away outstrips the movie. The story is told by the people involved and even gives a little hint as to the outcome of Kit after his redemption.
January 15, 2015
It's always weird reading a book that was written after the movie. This was a fairly enjoyable, easy read, but most likely a book that only fans of the movie would enjoy.
Displaying 1 - 3 of 3 reviews