Graphic Novel Review: The Divided Earth

The Divided Earth by Faith Erin Hicks

The Divided Earth (The Nameless City, #3)
by Faith Erin Hicks (Goodreads Author)

5 out of 5 stars

In this final book of the graphic novel trilogy, Kaidu and Rat are trying to recover the lost secret weapon of the ancient people of the Nameless City – a formula for exploding fire. They think it will be easy to sneak into the palace and steal back the book containing the formula; after all, they have snuck in and out of the palace many times before. But their only route past the walls has been demolished, and they will have to find some other way to get past the guards and into the inner library. Meanwhile Kaidu’s father is trying to reach the other nations and gather military support to take back the city from the traitors among the Dao.

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Graphic Novel: The Stone Heart

The Stone Heart by Faith Erin Hicks

The Stone Heart (The Nameless City, #2)
by  Faith Erin Hicks (Goodreads Author), Jordie Bellaire (Colorist)

5 out of 5 stars

In this second book of the graphic novel trilogy, Kaidu and Rat are doing everything they can to protect the monks of the Stone Heart. The monks are the keepers of knowledge in the Nameless City, but the Dao military leaders think they must be hiding the secret weapon that the ancient peoples used to blast through the rock of the mountains. Kaidu and his father are loyal to the Dao general, but they are forced to choose between their loyalties or the truth.

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Graphic Novel Review: The Nameless City

The Nameless City by Faith Erin Hicks

The Nameless City (The Nameless City, #1)
by Faith Erin Hicks (Goodreads Author), Jordie Bellaire (Contributor)

5 out of 5 stars

Kaidu moves to the city to visit his dad and attend soldier training along with other young students. His people, the Dao, conquered the Nameless City thirty years before, but tensions still run high between the Dao and the native people. He begins to explore the city and befriends a native girl who calls herself Rat. They uncover some secrets about the city and their loyalties are tested. Kaidu’s father is a counselor to the ruling General of the city, and Kaidu and Rat get involved in the shifting politics of the Dao.

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Graphic Novel Review: Outpost Zero

Outpost Zero by Sean McKeever

Outpost Zero: The Complete Collection
by  Sean McKeever, Alexandre Tefenkgi (Illustrator), Jean-François Beaulieu (Illustrator)

3 out of 5 stars

Alea has grown up in the Outpost, a massive spaceship that crash-landed on a frozen planet generations ago. So much time has passed that Alea’s generation has forgotten how to use most of the technology their ancestors had, and much of the spaceship is inaccessible because it’s buried underground. Alea believes that her society needs to push themselves to do more than just survive in the frozen wastelands of the planet. She wants to explore and find new innovations so that society can thrive. But people are afraid. Alea’s friends are struggling too. Some have given up, seeing no hope in the future. When one of Alea’s friends commits suicide, she knows she has to find out the truth about the Outpost.

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Graphic Novel Review: The Ballad of Ronan

The Ballad of Ronan by John Walsh

The Ballad of Ronan: Part One
by John Walsh, Jim Walsh, Remy Jackson (Artist), Vito Delsante (Goodreads Author) (Editor)

3 out of 5 stars

Aisling is an orphan with no idea who her parents are. She runs away from the orphanage and meets Ronan, who can’t even remember who is he or where he is from. They both seem to have some strange connection to magical energy that they can’t explain. The priest from the orphanage is involved with a secret society, and he seems to know something about the strange creatures Aisling has seen.

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Graphic Novel Review: Fetch: The Journey

Fetch Book One by Mike Sizemore

Fetch Book One: The Journey
by Mike Sizemore, Dave Kennedy (Illustrator), Pete Kennedy (Illustrator)

4 out of 5 stars

Danni is devastated when her beloved dog Pirate dies. She reads in a book about the entrance to the underworld where Hades rules over the dead. She sets out on a quest to bring her dog back from the dead, but her little brother Sammy follows her into the land of the dead! Danni and her brother encounter Cerberus, cross the River Styx, and enlist the help of a legendary hero.

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Graphic Novel Review: New Masters

New Masters by Shobo Coker

New Masters
by Shobo Coker,Shof Coker (Illustrator), Francesco Segala (Colorist), Harrison Yinfaowei (Colorist)

3.5 out of 5 stars
Ola is a young teen determined to find scraps of obsidium to sell on the black market. She explores the dangerous ruins of crashed spaceships in the wilderness looking for obsidium. She hopes to make a better life for her family. Her parents have other ideas about how to make a better life; they lead a crew of thieves and conmen who steal from the rich, but they also try to assist the poor by finding inventive ways to provide water and power for poor neighborhoods.

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Graphic Novel Review: Dreams Factory

Dreams Factory by Jérôme Hamon

Dreams Factory
by Jérôme Hamon,Suheb Zako (Illustrator), Lena Sayaphoum (Colorist), Jeremy Melloul (Translator)

2 out of 5 stars

A young girl works in a mine, but when she is sick her little brother tries to take her place. He is too young to work down in the mines, but he is offered a job in the Dreams Factory. He disappears and his sister tries desperately to find him. She sneaks into the Dreams Factory to look for him, and discovers that the factory hides a deadly secret.

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Manga Review: Josee, the Tiger, and the Fish

Josee, the Tiger and the Fish by Seiko Tanabe

Josee, the Tiger and the Fish (manga)
by Seiko Tanabe (Original Author), Nao Emoto (Artist)

5 out of 5 stars

Tsuneo dreams about studying the ocean in Mexico, and he works all the time so he can save enough money to go. He takes a part-time job helping Josee, a girl in a wheelchair. However, he finds the job more difficult than he had imagined. She is angry and grumpy and mean. Tsuneo tries to be patient with her, and when they discover their shared love for the beauties of the ocean, they begin to connect.

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Book Review: Scurry

Scurry by Mac Smith

Scurry
by Mac Smith

4 out of 5 stars

A little mouse named Wix is scouting through an abandoned human neighborhood, looking for food for his colony of mice. Back home at the colony, Pict cares for her ailing father, and worries that some of the mice might be planning some kind of betrayal against the council. While Wix faces danger outside from cats and other predators, Pict wonders if there is also danger from within the colony.

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