I'll admit, my expectations weren't high, as in my experience books based on TV shows are mediocre at best, but Border Princes still managed to fall short of them. The story moved at a snail's pace, and character development was nonexistent. In addition, the new character, James, was ridiculously Mary-Sue-like: faster, stronger, smarter than everyone else, attractive, and well-liked by everyone. And because the author was so intently focused on making his new character more awesome than everyone else, his depiction of the other characters suffered. I'm not sure who these people are, but they certainly aren't the team I know and love. Owen's snarky comments and cynical outlook are absent, Jack seems to do nothing but sit back and watch admiringly as James takes charge, Tosh is suddenly outgoing, Ianto is barely mentioned, and don't even get me started on Gwen. The presence of the Torchwood characters felt secondary to James' story, which was annoying and disappointing. I felt more like I was reading a bad fanfiction than a published novel.