Two years in a row I have gone to it with my former college roommate. Heard lots of familiar music once more. So we had to navigate through snow and traffic to get to it. All the same it can be said to be worth it with some faces to put to music we have heard before. Such as this beautiful lady who sings part of the one of those mesmerizing pieces in Assassin's Creed II. I actually started replaying the game just so I could hear her singing again.

Likewise relations of mine who had gone to Rome and Venice this past week came back with a mask or masque that resembles that of the harlequin. Someone else gave me a novelization of Assassin's Creed Brotherhood. I choose to ignore the connections there... but yes it feels a tad coincidental to me. Kind of coincidences I can be cool with.

Previous novel by the same author wrote about several events that were either in AC2's DLC or in flashbacks in AC:B - in the novelization of AC2 called Assassin's Creed Renaissance. This new novel is called Assassin's Creed Brotherhood just like the game. Mostly it plays out the game though there are moments I don't recall seeing in the game during the siege and escape from the ruins of the town and villa. Still its been interesting to read a different version and like the previous novel there's actual tie to the present day events.

The only passive reference to at least Desmond is when Minerva says the message is intended to be pased through Ezio to the future, to someone else. Another switch is that it appears that Rodrigo tries to poison himself or so it appears yet once Ezio left the Vault... he can't find Rodrigo's body. So at least to avoid conflicting continuities between novels and games Bowen apparently has him vanishing. As for what precedes throughout the game, it felt at times predictable or at least I felt quite sure who they would pit Ezio against in the end yet who Ezio would go through to get to that last person who was most responsible for the death, damage, and destruction at the village and villa... well he had it coming.

Ezio's one act of mercy... could have easily been his total undoing. Just the same I wonder who exactly passes on Ezio's genetic memory into the future so that Desmond and Subject 16 will have it. Maybe the novel will answer that or maybe we'll never know. Plus there's still the matter of what happens after the end scene of AC:B. That was by far like as sad to me as Ezio being unable to stop his father's and brothers' execution.

Anyway... VGL great fun again... thanks for the invite my friend.