Saturday, August 19, 2017

Review: THE BONE TREE (Natchez Burning Series)

THE BONE TREE
HARPERCOLLINS/William Morrow – @HarperCollins @WmMorrowBks

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

AUTHOR: Greg Iles
ISBN: 978-0-06-231113-9; mass market paperback (February 23, 2016)
878pp, B&W, $9.99 U.S., $12.50 CAN

The Bone Tree is a novel written by author Greg Iles.  Originally published in hardcover in April 2015, the novel was published in a mass market paperback edition in March 2016 (the edition in which I read this novel).  The Bone Tree is a sequel to Iles' 2014 novel, Natchez Burning, the first novel in the Natchez Burning trilogy.

Like the first novel, The Bone Tree covers a wide variety of genres and sub-genres, including mystery, thriller, suspense, crime, and family and local history.  The Natchez Burning trilogy centers on Mayor Penn Cage (the star of several Iles novels and currently the mayor of Natchez, Mississippi).  Cage has been trying to discover the truth about his father who is accused of murdering a former employee who was also once his lover.  The Bone Tree centers on a legendary killing site that may hold the answers to many mysteries and also the remains of uncounted victims of savage murder.

As The Bone Tree opens, Penn is caught in a terrible and dark maelstrom.  He and his fiance, Caitlin Masters (the editor-in-chief of the Natchez Examiner newspaper), have just escaped certain death at the hands of one of the most evil and vile men in the South, Brody Royal, the architect of some of the most notorious racially motivated murders of the 1960s.  Penn's troubles all started when he tried to clear his elderly father, Dr. Tom Cage, of murder charges.  Tom was accused of allegedly being involved in the “mercy killing” of Viola Turner, the African-American woman who was once one of Dr. Cage's nurses and who was also his lover in the 1960s.

Now, the incidents depicted in Natchez Burning have started a war between Penn Cage and a deadly offshoot of the KKK, the Double Eagles.  The ostensibly leader, Forrest Knox, the son of the Eagles' founder (the late Frank Knox), is a high-ranking officer in the Louisiana State Police, and is poised to take over the LSP.  Tom Cage's alleged crimes and his status as a wanted fugitive have put Knox's plans in jeopardy, and have also forced a spotlight on America's most shameful history.  From New Orleans, to Natchez, to Vidalia and Ferriday, Louisiana, the FBI is digging into the hidden figures and secrets of the assassination of President John F. Kennedy, the Bay of Pigs, the Mafia, the unsolved murder of Black men involved in the Civil Rights movement, and more.

It all leads to the Bone Tree, a legendary killing site that holds things and people forgotten and not-so-forgotten.  And some players in this fiery drama won't survive this round.

I wrote in my review of Natchez Burning that it was probably the best 862-page novel that I had ever read.  The Bone Tree is probably the best almost-900-pages-long novel that I have read to date and may ever read.

There is a blurb on the paperback cover of Natchez Burning.  It contains two lines of praise from bestselling author Stephen King.  They declare that Natchez Burning is “Extraordinarily entertaining and fiendishly suspenseful. I defy you to start it and find a way to put it down.”  One can say the same for The Bone Tree.

In fact, the back cover of The Bone Tree has this quote from a “starred review” by Booklist:  “Absolutely compelling... A beautifully constructed story [and] some extremely fine writing.”  That's all true.  The Bone Tree is the work of a natural born novelist who also works really hard at what he does.  Greg Iles has the prose-writing talent of an artist, and he tells a complicated story with the skill of a superior story craftsman.  Greg Iles is a storytelling technician building prose ziggurats on foundations that can support his monsters-of-rock narratives

But at the end of the day, dear reader, you are wondering if The Bone Tree is a good read for you.  To that I'll say “Yeah!” like rapper-producer Li'l Jon says it.

The Bone Tree, like its predecessor, Natchez Burning is our dark, racist, Jim Crow, segregation, church-bombing, political assassination, and black man-killing past turned into the proverbial must-read, potboiler novel.  The Bone Tree is the second Greg Iles, Southern-fried humdinger that John Grisham wishes he could write.

A
9 out of 10

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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Friday, August 18, 2017

Graphic Novel Review: HER BARK & HER BITE

HER BARK & HER BITE - OGN
TOP SHELF PRODUCTIONS/IDW – @topshelfcomix

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

CARTOONIST: James Albon
EDITOR: Chris Staros
ISBN: 978-1-60309-407-8; softcover with French flaps – 5 4/5 x 8 1/3 (April 25, 2017)
72pp, Color, $9.99 U.S.

Ages 16 and up

Her Bark & Her Bite is a comic book from award-winning Scottish illustrator James Albon.  Published by Top Shelf Productions, this 2017, full-color graphic novel is the story of young painter, her charismatic lover, and the ugly dog that comes between them.

Her Bark & Her Bite opens shortly after Rebecca, a budding young painter, arrives in the big city.  She movies in with her cousin who does not like it when Rebecca paints.  Rebecca meets a charismatic young man named Victor Koenig.  Although he is initially standoffish with Rebecca, he eventually embraces her.  The two fall madly in love, and Victor plunges Rebecca into a socialite world filled with glamorous parties where Victor is the center of attention.

Soon, being with Victor pays off, and Rebecca has a studio where she can a paint.  Life among the layabout debutantes and dilettantes means meeting people who allow Rebecca to show off her work at exhibitions and in galleries.  Eventually, however, something comes between Rebecca and Victor and threatens to upend their relationship – a pug named “Princess.”

I often wondered what it would be like if someone who was a cartoonist for The New Yorker (or for a comparable publication) produced a comic book or graphic novel.  I found something like that a few years ago with the illustrated short novel, After the Fall, by Victoria Roberts.  I found something closer with the new short graphic novel, Her Bark & Her Bite.

Her Bark & Her Bite's creator James Albon is certainly on the level of a New Yorker cartoonist, having produced work for newspapers such as The Guardian and the Wall Street Journal.  Albon's artistic educational credentials are certainly impressive.  Her Bark & Her Bite is his graphic novel debut, and is impressive; it certainly makes me think of cartoons found in high-end and high brow periodicals.  I think Charles Addams, had he produced a comic book, would have created something not that far from James Albon's lively graphical storytelling in Her Bark & Her Bite.

I am not sure what color medium Albon uses to produce the art for Her Bark & Her Bite – color markers, color pencils, pastels?  The result is scintillating and quicksilver, as the art is not so much drawn on art board as it is something that seems to dance on the page.  The art crackles with energy and the result is a story that seems like a recollection of a real event rather than something the author contrived.  The characters cannot help but be engaging; they pulse with the verve of life.  The story cannot help but capture the reader's attention; it snaps, crackles, and pops.

I cannot imagine that readers who like to experience the breath and width of alternative comics and the modern graphic novel would not want to read this.  It's bark is flashy, but its bite is substantial.  Her Bark & Her Bite is an exceptional debut.

A
9 out of 10

www.jamesalbon.com
www.topshelfcomix.com

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2017 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog or site for syndication rights and fees.

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Thursday, August 17, 2017

Review: SCOOBY APOCALYPSE #1

SCOOBY APOCALYPSE No. 1
DC COMICS – @DCComic

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

PLOT/BREAKDOWNS:  Keith Giffen
DIALOGUE: J.M. DeMatteis
ARTIST: Howard Porter
COLORS: Hi-Fi
LETTERS: Nick J. Napolitano; Travis Lanham
COVER: Jim Lee with Alex Sinclair
VARIANT COVERS: Howard Porter with Hi-Fi;Dan Panosian; Neal Adams with Alex Sinclair; Joelle Jones with Nick Filardi; Ben Caldwell
40pp, Color, $3.99 U.S. (July 2016)

Rated “T” for “Teen”

“Waiting for the End of the World”

Based on a concept by Jim Lee; Scooby-Doo created by Joe Ruby and Ken Spears and Iwao Takamoto

Scooby-Doo is a media franchise that began with the animated, Saturday-morning, television series, “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” in 1969, which was produced by American animation studio, Hanna-Barbera Production.  The series featured four teenagers:  Fred Jones, Daphne Blake, Velma Dinkley, and Norville "Shaggy" Rogers and Scooby-Doo, a talking Great Dane-ish dog.  Together, they solved mysteries involving supernatural creatures that usually turned out to be frauds.

That first series basically gave birth to numerous follow-up Scooby-Doo animated cartoon series that used the original as a pattern to one extent or another.  DC Comics recently launched a Scooby-Doo comic book that takes the characters introduced in “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” but largely reinvents the character relationships, personalities, histories, and their mission.  Entitled Scooby Apocalypse, the new comic book is based on a concept created by Jim Lee.  The comic book is written by Keith Giffen (plot) and J.M. DeMatteis (dialogue); drawn by Howard Porter; colored by Hi-Fi; and lettered by Nick J. Napolitano.

Scooby Apocalypse #1 (“Waiting for the End of the World”) finds Daphne and Fred at “The Blazing Man Festival.”  Daphne is the host of a once-popular television series, “Daphne Blake's Mysterious Mysteries.”  She hopes that an informant that she is supposed to meet at the festival will provide the lead to a story that will return the show to the big time.  Fred, her long-suffering cameraman, thinks that he and Daphne should move on to bigger things.

Nearby is Shaggy, a dog-trainer at a secret facility, and his trainee, Scooby-Doo.  A misunderstanding forces an encounter between Shaggy and Scooby and Fred and Daphne.  Now, both parties are about to hear an amazing story from Dr. Velma Dinkley who works for a secret government program, the Elysium Project.  What she tells them will change their lives.

I would not call myself a Scooby-Doo purist, but I probably am.  I am not crazy about anything that strays too far from “Scooby-Doo, Where Are You!” (1969-1970) and the follow-up series, “The New Scooby-Doo Mysteries” (1972-1973)  Thus, I am inclined to not like Scooby Apocalypse, and I had planned on not reading it.  However, word that some of the early issues were selling-out in various places piqued my interests.  I picked up some copies at a my local comic shop and turned to eBay for the ones I could not find there.

After reading the first ten pages, I was disgusted and even insulted, as a Scooby-Doo fan.  Then, I found myself intrigued by the goings-on inside the Project Elysium facility, and then, I bought in to this comic book.

I'd be lying if I called it great, but I really want to see where this goes.  I have the first four issues, and I think that will be enough to decide if I want to keep reading.  Honestly, I would recommend this first issue to any adult who is or was a fan of Scooby-Doo, reading it as a lark or out of curiosity.  Considering the creative team behind this, Scooby Apocalypse could be good.  The bonus story, “When Shaggy Met Scooby!” about the first meeting between fiction's greediest boy-and-his-dog combo is a novel spin on the classic animated cartoon comedy duo.

I'll review a future issue, dear reader, and I promise to keep it real, one way or the other.

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Wednesday, August 16, 2017

Review: SWAMP THING #1

SWAMP THING No. 1 (2016)
DC COMICS – @DCComics

[This review was originally posted on Patreon.]

STORY: Len Wein
ART: Kelley Jones
COLORS: Michelle Madsen
LETTERS: Rob Leigh
COVER: Kelley Jones with Chris Sotomayor
32pp, Color, $2.99 U.S. (March 2016)

Rated “T” for Teen

Swamp Thing created by Len Wein and Bernie Wrightson

“The Dead Don't Sleep!”

Swamp Thing is a horror comic book character from DC Comics, of which there have been different versions.  Swamp Thing is a plant elemental and a sentient, walking mass of plant matter.  Created by writer Len Wein and artist Berni Wrightson, Swamp Thing first appeared in House of Secrets #92 (cover dated July 1971).

The best known version of Swamp Thing is Alec Holland (Swamp Thing #1, October/November 1972), a scientist who becomes Swamp Thing due to a complex process involving his death, a “bio-restorative formula,” and a bomb.  British comic book writer Alan Moore came to fame in the United States when he began writing the early 1980s Swamp Thing comic book, Saga of the Swamp Thing, with issue #20 (January 1984).  Moore re-invented the character with issue #21, and since then everyone who has written the Swamp Thing has worked in Moore's shadow...

That is except Len Wein, who is probably one of the most underrated writers and creators of comic books during the last five decades.  He is Swamp Thing's proud papa (or co-parent), defining the character with moody storytelling that blended EC Comics and weird fiction with a Gothic sensibility.  Everything done with Swamp Thing after him sprouted from the seeds Wein sowed.

Wein returned to Swamp Thing last year for a two-issue miniseries that was part of DC Comics' “Convergence” event.  Earlier this year, DC Comics published a six-issue miniseries, entitled Swamp Thing.  It was written by Wein; drawn by Kelley Jones; colored by Michelle Madsen; and lettered by Rob Leigh.

Swamp Thing #1 (“The Dead Don't Sleep!”) opens in the “Bayou Country” of Louisiana.  The Swamp Thing is doing his... swamp thing when The Phantom Stranger arrives to offer a few vague misgivings and omens and portents.  That conversation is interrupted by the clumsy arrival of Frank and Grace Wormwood, who are stumbling through the bayou because they are actually looking for the Swamp Thing.  They have come about their college student son, Lazlo, who is worse off than they could possible ever imagine.

I could call this Swamp Thing miniseries one of the best comics of 2016 after reading just one issue.  It's moody and suspenseful and downright scary, particularly because of the way the art brings Len Wein's story to life.  In artist, Kelley Jones, Len Wein has the perfect post-Berni Wrightson Swamp Thing collaborator.  For three decades, Jones has been doing the best Wrightson homage by creating his own unique style, which blends Wrightson's pen and ink influenced compositions with some graphical flourishes and graphic design sensibilities from Mike Mignola (Hellboy).

Jones' Swamp Thing is part muscular, hulking plant monster and part bodybuilder's physique.  In this static image, Jones infuses humor, sharp wit, and intelligence.  It's alive! for real.  The swamp setting is more expressionistic than representational, but that helps set the German expressionistic, Nosferatu-like atmosphere which turns the second half of this comic book into a fantastic horror comics pop confection.

Yeah, I'm recommending this.  Find the back issues or buy the trade paperback collection.  I can't wait to read more of Len Wein and Kelley Jones' fab return to Swamp Thing.

A

Reviewed by Leroy Douresseaux a.k.a. "I Reads You"


The text is copyright © 2016 Leroy Douresseaux. All Rights Reserved. Contact this blog for reprint and syndication rights and fees.

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Monday, August 14, 2017

DC Comics from Diamond Distributors for August 16, 2017

DC COMICS

JUN170415    AMERICAN WAY THOSE ABOVE AND BELOW #2 (OF 6) (MR)    $3.99
JUN170244    AQUAMAN #27    $3.99
JUN170245    AQUAMAN #27 VAR ED    $3.99
MAY170359    ASTRO CITY #46    $3.99
MAY170330    BATGIRL STEPHANIE BROWN TP VOL 01    $29.99
JUN170254    BATMAN #29    $2.99
JUN170255    BATMAN #29 VAR ED    $2.99
FEB170345    BATMAN BLACK & WHITE STATUE BY NORM BREYFOGLE    $80.00
MAY170334    BATMAN SUPERMAN TP VOL 06 UNIVERSES FINEST    $19.99
JUN170256    BATWOMAN #6    $3.99
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JUN170362    CAVE CARSON HAS A CYBERNETIC EYE #11 (MR)    $3.99
JUN170363    CAVE CARSON HAS A CYBERNETIC EYE #11 VAR ED (MR)    $3.99
JUN170232    DARK NIGHTS METAL #1 (OF 6)    $4.99
JUN170233    DARK NIGHTS METAL #1 (OF 6) KUBERT VAR ED    $4.99
JUN170234    DARK NIGHTS METAL #1 (OF 6) LEE VAR ED    $4.99
JUN170235    DARK NIGHTS METAL #1 (OF 6) ROMITA VAR ED    $4.99
JUN170348    DC COMICS BOMBSHELLS #33    $3.99
JUN170334    FUTURE QUEST PRESENTS #1    $3.99
JUN170335    FUTURE QUEST PRESENTS #1 VAR ED    $3.99
MAY178966    FUTURE QUEST SHOWCASE #1 BLANK VAR ED    $3.99
JUN170274    GREEN ARROW #29    $2.99
JUN170275    GREEN ARROW #29 VAR ED    $2.99
JUN170279    GREEN LANTERNS #29    $2.99
JUN170280    GREEN LANTERNS #29 VAR ED    $2.99
MAY170325    HAL JORDAN & THE GLC TP VOL 03 QUEST FOR HOPE (REBIRTH)    $19.99
JUN170350    INJUSTICE 2 #8    $2.99
JUN170293    JUSTICE LEAGUE #27    $2.99
JUN170294    JUSTICE LEAGUE #27 VAR ED    $2.99
JUN170358    MAD MAGAZINE #547    $5.99
JUN170303    NIGHTWING #27    $2.99
JUN170304    NIGHTWING #27 VAR ED    $2.99
JUN170372    SANDMAN SPECIAL #1    $4.99
MAY170349    SIXPACK & DOGWELDER HARD TRAVELIN HEROZ TP    $16.99
JUN170319    SUPER SONS #7    $3.99
JUN170320    SUPER SONS #7 VAR ED    $3.99
JUN170317    SUPERMAN #29    $2.99
JUN170318    SUPERMAN #29 VAR ED    $2.99
MAY170346    TEEN TITANS EARTH ONE TP VOL 02    $16.99
JUN170355    TEEN TITANS GO #23    $2.99
JUN170327    TRINITY #12    $3.99
JUN170328    TRINITY #12 VAR ED    $3.99
JUN170329    WONDER WOMAN #28    $2.99
JUN170330    WONDER WOMAN #28 VAR ED    $2.99

Marvel Comics from Diamond Distributors for August 16, 2017

MARVEL COMICS

JUN170974    ALL NEW GUARDIANS OF GALAXY #8    $3.99
JUN170941    AMAZING SPIDER-MAN RENEW YOUR VOWS #10    $3.99
JUN170983    ASTONISHING X-MEN #2    $3.99
MAY170981    AVENGERS INITIATIVE COMPLETE COLLECTION TP VOL 02    $34.99
JUN170966    BLACK PANTHER CREW #5    $3.99
MAY170969    DEADPOOL 2099 TP    $14.99
MAY178718    EDGE OF VENOMVERSE #1 (OF 5) 2ND PTG MATTINA VAR    $3.99
JUN170994    GENERATION X #5    $3.99
JUN170857    GENERATIONS WOLVERINE & ALL-NEW WOLVERINE #1    $4.99
JUN170858    GENERATIONS WOLVERINE & ALL-NEW WOLVERINE #1 COIPEL VAR    $4.99
JUN170965    GWENPOOL #19    $3.99
MAY170976    HEROES FOR HIRE ABNETT AND LANNING COMP COLL TP    $34.99
JUN170915    INVINCIBLE IRON MAN #10    $3.99
JUN170952    LUKE CAGE #4    $3.99
JUN170920    MARVELS THOR RAGNAROK PRELUDE #4 (OF 4)    $3.99
JUN170921    MIGHTY THOR #22    $3.99
JUN170945    MONSTERS UNLEASHED #5    $3.99
MAY170978    PUNISHER SUICIDE RUN TP    $34.99
JUN170946    ROYALS #6    $3.99
JUN170887    SECRET EMPIRE BRAVE NEW WORLD #5 (OF 5) SE    $3.99
MAY170890    SILVER SURFER #13    $3.99
MAY179019    SPIDER-MEN II #1 (OF 5) 2ND PTG PICHELLI VAR    $3.99
JUN170926    SPIDER-MEN II #2 (OF 5)    $3.99
JUN170928    SPIDER-MEN II #2 (OF 5) SAIZ CONNECTING VAR B    $3.99
JUN171015    STAR WARS #34    $3.99
JUN171021    STAR WARS POE DAMERON #18    $3.99
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JUN171033    TRUE BELIEVERS KIRBY 100TH CAPTAIN AMERICA #1    $1.00
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JUN170911    ULTIMATES 2 #100    $4.99
JUN170912    ULTIMATES 2 #100 BAGLEY VAR    $4.99
MAY170967    UNBELIEVABLE GWENPOOL TP VOL 03 TOTALLY IN CONTINUITY    $19.99
JUN170895    US AVENGERS #9 SE    $3.99
JUN170890    X-MEN BLUE #9 SE    $3.99

IDW Publishing from Diamond Distributors for August 16, 2017

IDW PUBLISHING

MAY170485    24 LEGACY RULES OF ENGAGEMENT #4 (OF 5) CVR A JEANTY    $3.99
MAY170486    24 LEGACY RULES OF ENGAGEMENT #4 (OF 5) CVR B PHOTO    $3.99
MAY170520    D4VE TP VOL 03 D4VEOCRACY    $17.99
MAR170591    DONALD DUCK TIMELESS TALES HC VOL 03    $29.99
JAN170466    DUNGEONS & DRAGONS FROST GIANTS FURY #4    $3.99
JAN170467    DUNGEONS & DRAGONS FROST GIANTS FURY #4 SUBSCRIPTION VAR    $3.99
JUN170549    GUMBALLS #3 CVR A NATIONS    $3.99
JUN170550    GUMBALLS #3 CVR B NATIONS    $3.99
JUN170560    HAUNTED HORROR #29    $4.99
MAY170559    JEM & THE HOLOGRAMS THE MISFITS TP    $19.99
MAY170508    LOCKE & KEY HEAVEN & EARTH DLX HC ED    $14.99
MAY170408    MICRONAUTS WRATH OF KARZA #4 (OF 5) CVR A RONALD    $3.99
MAY170409    MICRONAUTS WRATH OF KARZA #4 (OF 5) CVR B WHALEN    $3.99
MAY170523    NIGHT OWL SOCIETY TP    $17.99
APR170605    REVOLUTIONARIES #7    $3.99
APR170606    REVOLUTIONARIES #7 SUBSCRIPTION VAR A    $3.99
APR170607    REVOLUTIONARIES #7 SUBSCRIPTION VAR B    $3.99
APR170612    ROM #12    $3.99
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MAY170525    SH*T MY PRESIDENT SAYS ILLUSTRATED TWEETS OF DONALD TRUMP HC    $14.99
MAY170466    STAR TREK TNG MIRROR BROKEN #3 (OF 6) CVR A WOODWARD    $3.99
MAY170467    STAR TREK TNG MIRROR BROKEN #3 (OF 6) CVR B CALTSOUDAS    $3.99
JUN170575    TIME & VINE #2 CVR A ZAHLER    $4.99
JUN170576    TIME & VINE #2 CVR B ZAHLER    $4.99
JUN170485    TMNT DIMENSION X #3 CVR A PITARRA    $3.99
JUN170486    TMNT DIMENSION X #3 CVR B RANDOLF    $3.99
APR170670    TMNT SHADOWS OF THE PAST CASEY JONES HERO PACK    $17.99
JUN170616    TORRES GAME    $49.99
JUN170530    UNCLE SCROOGE #29 CVR A FRECCERO    $3.99
JUN170531    UNCLE SCROOGE #29 CVR B MASTANTUONO    $3.99