Book Review
Wolverine: Old Man Logan
This is not a review. If you came looking for a review, what you’ve found is a gushing love fest for a story I just read. Sorry. You can avoid the lengthy monologue below if you’re not into comics. If you are into comics, all you really need to know is BUY THIS BOOK TODAY!! You’ve been warned…
My love of storytelling came from comic books. As a kid, I wanted to be a comic book artist. Teensy problem: I couldn’t draw. Seeing that as a huge hurdle on my path to art superstardom, I decided to focus on the other part of the medium, the writing.
But I never lost my affinity for the realm of 4 Colors. I’d spend weeks going hungry at school so I could take my accumulated lunch money to the local comic book store and give it to the social malcontents who ran it (another story for another time). Me and my friends would engage in serious bartering sessions to get rare, prized issues of this title or that title. You would’ve thought we were trading Fortune 500 stocks.
I still have boxes of those very same books that came into my possession during various 5th, 6th, and 7th grade lunchroom sessions. I admit, with no shame at all, that I was a comic book geek.
Sadly, as an adult, I have not been able to engage in the hobby like I used to. Mainly because of inflation (a single issue of any given book is now roughly equal to 1 gallon of gas). Also, what was groundbreaking and heartwrenching to a a kid in the 90’s, is cliche to an adult in 2011. (Captain America is dead?!? Oh, wait, he died in ’07, but he’s going to come back just in time for the release of the Captain America film this summer. Whaaatttt? Didn’t see that coming…)
Occasionally, I’ll peruse the Graphic Novels section of my local B&N, and I might run across a compilation of some particular storyline that I’ll pick up just for kics. Usually, I end up disappointed. It’s all stuff I’ve seen before.
Until I read Wolverine: Old Man Logan by Mark Millar with art by Steve McNiven.
Wow. I can’t give this book enough praise. No spoilers here, but I can honestly say it’s THE most satisfying superhero story I’ve read in the last decade (keep in mind, I haven’t necessarily been paying attention, so if you know of something as good or better than this book, please point me to it so I can spend some hard earned money).
Wolverine, the biggest badass in the Marvel Universe, is an old, pacifist farmer with a wife and two kids 50 years after the supervillains defeated the heroes and took over America. Strapped for cash, her reluctantly goes on a road trip with his old buddy Hawkeye (now blind, but still likes to drive), to get the rent money he owes his landlords, the Incredible Hulk’s Hillbilly (“Green” Neck) grandchildren.
I felt like crying tears of joy after I read the first page. And the 50th page. And the last page. A true masterpiece…
Storytelling like that makes me simultaneously thankful I have eyes and jealous that I may never, ever come up with a concept THAT good.
If you ever picked up a comic book in your life, I highly recommend this book.
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Comics, Marvel Comics, Old Man Logan, WolverineIndie Spotlight: Piety and Murder
This week I’m featuring a taut thriller by a former Green Beret. Yes, I do make some interesting discoveries deep in the Indie Publishing Rabbit Hole. The book is Piety and Murder by Thomas Rowe Drinkard. Available in the following formats: Kindle | Nook.
Description: Mack Brinson has two major problems. He is trying to recover from the long trauma of losing the love of his life—his wife Song. Now, his only family, Song’s mother Huong, is being systematically, and legally, bilked by a sleazy televangelist’s organization.
When Brinson goes to the smarmy preacher’s headquarters in an attempt to stop the thievery, he is physically threatened.
Brinson is a former Green Beret and isn’t intimidated. He goes after the preacher in an attempt to gather embarrassing information. When he gets too close, someone tries to murder him in a running gunfight on the Lake Ponchartrain Bridge.
Along the way, Brinson meets a woman, Pattie, who finally begins to dissolve the emotional walls he has erected. He begins to learn how to love again.
There is an unseen hand behind the preacher’s organization. The face of the antagonist is unclear, but when Huong is kidnapped, Brinson has to call on his old Special Operations contacts to find the kidnapper and rescue her.
The face of the man behind the televangelist finally becomes clear and shocking. Vengeance: slow and awful lies ahead.
My take: This suspenseful thriller, written with prescisely detailed prose, and cast with unique characters, delves into a phase of life rarely covered in other books featuring protagonists that boast membership in the Special Forces. Mack Brinson is retired, Post Mid-life, and shares a Southern home with his dog and dead wife’s mother. Rambo this guy is not, and that’s the strength in this tale of duty and vengeance. While Brinson’s days of parachuting into some jungle warzone may be behind him, there’s still plenty to fight for when a smarmy televangelist threatens what’s near and dear. Timely and telling, Piety and Murder is a nice addition to your eReader of choice.
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eReader, Indie Spotlight, Kindle, NookIndie Spotlight: COVENANT
Back again, folks. I’ve been super busy with promotion for my eBooks and new writing, but I realized I’ve neglected the blog for too long. So, in my constant effort to find a sustainable angle that lets me get info out to you all in a timely manner, I’ve decided to feature some of the great books I stumble upon as I go deeper into the Indie Publishing Rabbit Hole.
First up, COVENANT by Brandon Massey. Available in the following formats: Paperback | Kindle | Nook
DISCLAIMER: If you know me, then you realize Brandon’s work isn’t something I just discovered. I’m a long-time fan, and he’s a friend. He is also an Indie Author, so COVENANT does fit the criteria here.
DESCRIPTION: On a golden summer morning, fifteen-year-old Anthony Thorne is on a fishing boat with his father, rods cast into the lake, when the crack of a rifle shatters the silence. His father slumps forward, blood leaking from his chest. Horrified, Anthony spins in the direction of the gunfire, and sees a shadowy figure race away from the shore and vanish in the cover of the trees–a vision that will haunt him for years to come . . .
Anthony pulls his dad into his arms, but he is beyond help. He dies in Anthony’s embrace, Anthony’s scream of anguish echoing across the still waters.
Fifteen years later, a happily married Marine veteran and author of a bestselling series of crime novels, Anthony has achieved a measure of success. But the past still haunts him-—in spite of his eyewitness testimony, his father’s murder was declared a hunting accident, and no one was ever brought to justice.
On the anniversary of his father’s death, a mysterious message arrives from an unknown sender that promises to lead Anthony to the truth. But is Anthony’s helper the angel he’d been waiting for–or a devil in disguise?
Determined to find answers, Anthony and his wife soon find themselves hunted by a team of assassins dispatched by a powerful organization with frightening technological resources. The killers pursuing them are as fanatical in their beliefs as they are well-equipped–loyal followers of a charismatic leader who might be the most dangerous man in America . . .
My Take: Massey cranks up the thrills with a fast paced combination of chases, gunplay, and mega conspiracy that is sure to please fans of the Harlan Coben style novel. Thorne is a natural action hero who I’d like to see more of in the future. I don’t know if there are plans to make him a series character, but I’d certainly enjoy another outing with Thorne.
If you like thrillers and reasonable prices, do yourself a favor and check out Covenant.
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ebooks, ePublishing, eReader, RacialThe Mockingbirds: A must read
When you’re an adult that enjoys YA a curious thing happens from time to time…you find that the reading is a bit like time traveling. Not so much in the time frames and settings that you read about, but in the emotions and memories. Quite often, I can read work by my peers and vividly recall the best and worst experiences of my high school days. I’m most attracted to books that lend to stronger recall. I want to read books about me.
Admittedly, I didn’t know if I’d get such an experience when I purchased The Mockingbirds by Daisy Whitney.
DISCLAIMER: Daisy is a friend. I will read and support her work no matter what. Not that she needed my help. The book had been building buzz for some time, and since its debut less than two months ago, has appeared on several ‘best of’ lists for 2010. The Mockingbirds did not require a charity read.
So I didn’t feel bad going into it with an I’ll-give-it-a-shot attitude. I know Daisy is good at what she does, and the whole “Secret Society doling out justice at a boarding school” angle sounded really cool. My apprehension came from the other part…
*(hardly a) Spoiler Alert*
…the date rape.
I never heard about that sort of thing when I was growing up. That didn’t happen where I was from. Was I going to get anything out of a book so far removed from what I knew about life as a teenager?
Silly, silly me.
Like I said, it’s all about the recall. The skilled writer can take a reader to a place of relevancy, a time when their experiences link to those of the character’s like adjoining puzzle pieces. And, I as I read about Alex, a girl who had too much to drink and was violated in the worst way, I recalled some things.
I recalled overheard conversations in the boys locker room that I wouldn’t repeat in polite company. I recalled once vibrant girls disappearing from the social landscape as if they never were. I recalled the meanness, the taking sides, the believing things that were wrong were really right because such notions were simply cooler.
I recalled that in my high school there was no real justice. Just endurance. A secret society of do-gooders would’ve been welcome.
The Mockingbirds is as good as (and possibly more important than) the hot dystopian thriller, or cute girly-girl dramedy. If this book can make me–a guy 15 years removed from his last day in a high school hallway–recall the hidden atrocities children endure, what can it do for those still in the midst of class changes and cafeteria drama?
Buy this book if you’re a teen. If you’re not a teen, buy 2 copies. One for yourself, and one for a teen you know.
Books like this have the ability to transcend from the “great story” category to “modern day parable”. They teach. And, once something is learned, it can’t be unlearned. The lesson here: Silence isn’t golden.
I wish I could recall learning it then instead of now.
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ReviewDraculas (yes, plural): a review
There’s something you need to know right now: I don’t like my vampires sparkly.
Neither do Crouch, Kilborn, Strand, or Wilson…the authors responsible for DRACULAS, a new horror novel collaboration available exclusively through eReader devices like the Amazon Kindle. Lately, there’s been a lot of talk about story medium (particularly surrounding Kilborn AKA JA Konrath), the digital revolution, and the future of publishing. This tag-team match of high octane thriller-horror writers may very well stir that pot once again, but I’m not here to talk about that.
I want to talk about sweet red candy. Blood. Particularly the RIVERS of it running through this tale.
The premise is simple enough. Terminally-ill billionaire Mortimer Moorecock purchases what tabloids call a “Dracula skull”, supposedly the fossilized skull of the Count himself (or one of his cousins). The goal: immortality. Upon pressing this skull’s crocodile-like fangs into his own neck, Moorecock succumbs to vicious seizures. His caretakers rush him to the hospital where things go horribly wrong. The infection changing Moorecock into a blood-crazed predator spreads quickly and what should’ve been a quick trip to the ER turns into a battle for every single person in the hospital to survive the night.
And what a battle it is.
I haven’t read a book like this in…well, ever. The mix of comedy, gore, and horror combine for cycles of laughter, wincing, and heartbreak. When you consider that four different authors put the words together, it seems like a miracle that the story is even coherent. They pull it off though, with seamless transitions between characters and voice. As an added bonus, this book comes with DVD-like extras that pull the curtain back on the process that birthed this beautifully bloody gorefest.
Some may call DRACULAS a throw-back to blood-soaked vampires who didn’t shop at Banana Republic and romance brooding teenage girls. On well level, I agree, but I would simply add this type of vampire probably should’ve been the standard all along.
If you feel the same, then this is a must-read.
Sidenote: Did Sam Raimi ever make a vampire movie? One of his old-school, guerilla style horror films that’s gained cult status but has somehow escaped my memory? If not, and if I ever have an audience with the man, I would beg him to adapt this. There’d be very little for him to do. Hire great actors. Hand out Kindles. Let the cameras roll. I may start a petition. And if you read DRACULAS, I think you’d be happy to sign it.