book reviews – Kristen Brand

Turn Back the Pages: The Infinity Gauntlet

Turn Back the Pages is a biweekly feature where I spotlight a comic that is not fresh and new. It may have come out a few months ago or even a few years ago. Maybe it was hyped and popular, or maybe it was an underappreciated gem. Whatever the case, it’ll be a great comic that’s well worth a read.

You may have heard about a little movie called Avengers: Infinity War. Or maybe not. There hasn’t been much advertisement or hype for it. 😉

As we endure the tortuous wait for opening night, let’s talk about the comic it’s based on: The Infinity Gauntlet. (No, not Infinity War, ironically enough. That’s the sequel comic.) Having read bits and pieces of the storyline, I finally got the chance to read the entire graphic novel from start to finish, and it’s fascinating.

It’s also nothing like the movie is going to be. Continue reading Turn Back the Pages: The Infinity Gauntlet

Book Review: Cold Stone & Ivy

You know that feeling when you finish reading a certain book? When you just have to tell everybody how awesome and amazing it was? You’re a reader, so you know what I mean

I finished Cold Stone & Ivy: The Ghost Club by H. Leighton Dickson a little while ago. I was in a bit of a reading slump beforehand, and boy, did this novel shake me out of it. Take a look:

Book Description

Jack the Ripper gave her his heart. Now he wants it back.

The year is 1888, the clockwork British Empire is crumbling and young writer Ivy Savage has literally received a heart in the post. Terrified, her father sends her north to a strange sanitarium in Lancashire where the brilliant but unpredictable “Mad Lord of Lasingstoke” makes his home. Continue reading Book Review: Cold Stone & Ivy

Turn Back the Pages: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl

Life is rough.

I get it. There are bills piling up, work deadlines to meet, and God only knows what’s going on in politics. Sometimes, you just need a break. Sometimes, you need something silly and fun to distract you. Sometimes, you need Squirrel Girl.

I feel like if Marvel had tried to make Squirrel Girl relevant a decade ago, they would have given her a grim and gritty reboot complete with a traumatic backstory and skimpy costume. But that’s not the case with The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl by Ryan North and Erica Henderson. It doesn’t just take the silliness of her premise and run with it—it straps on rocket-powered boots and blasts off with it at supersonic speeds. Continue reading Turn Back the Pages: The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl

Last Week in Superhero Fiction (3/23/18)

The cover for Heroine’s Journey, the third book in Sarah Kuhn’s Heroine Complex series, has been revealed at SyFy.com, and it might just be the coolest thing I’ve ever seen in my life. Am I exaggerating? Check it out and decide for yourself!

You can get a free copy of Fuse: Origin by David Neth at Instafreebie by signing up for his newsletter. I haven’t read this one yet and would love to hear opinions from those of you who have.

The first chapter of Arena, the latest book in Ian Thomas Healy’s long-running Just Cause Universe, is up for preview at Local Hero Press.

If you don’t follow Sean Stansell on Twitter, you missed the first ever excerpt from Killing Andromeda, the second book in his Mr. Wonder series. I love the cover and think the title is super intriguing.

For you CW superhero show fans out there, SuperheroNovels.com has a review of Arrow: Fatal Legacies. Sara Lance AKA White Canary is their favorite character, so they definitely know what they’re talking about 😉

Any news I missed? What superhero fiction are you currently reading? Let me know in the comments!

Turn Back the Pages: Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant

I seem to be reading and writing a lot about ladies with swords lately. That’s not a problem, just an observation.

The latest swordswoman I want to share with you is Delilah Dirk, early 19^th century adventurer and troublemaker. She’s been traveling the world from a young age, learning all sorts of useful skills like archery, acrobatics, and no less than 47 sword-fighting techniques. When our story begins, she finds herself in Constantinople, and that’s where she meets the Turkish lieutenant, Erdemoglu Selim: Continue reading Turn Back the Pages: Delilah Dirk and the Turkish Lieutenant

Turn Back the Pages: Girl Genius

Adventure! Romance! Mad Science!

That’s the tagline of Girl Genius, and the comic doesn’t fail to deliver. Read it, and you’ll get heroine Agatha Heterodyne’s adventures through a strange and dangerous alternate version of Europe where steampunk technology has run wild. She encounters a cast of quirky, memorable characters (half of whom are mad scientists or creations of mad scientists, and most of whom want to kill and/or use her) and finds romance along the way, though all of her relationships are “complicated,” to say the least.

By Phil and Kaja Foglio, Girl Genius describes itself as a gaslamp fantasy, but I’m pretty sure that’s just because it’s been around since before steampunk was a thing. You don’t get more steampunk than this. It’s got everything from clockwork ladies…

To airship cities… Continue reading Turn Back the Pages: Girl Genius

Last Week in Superhero Fiction (2/15/18)

The Pen and Cape Society’s superhero fiction podcast, Throwing the Gun, came out with a new episode earlier this month discussing the endings of some major superhero fiction series.

Toren Chenault has been talking about his upcoming superhero novel, Mystic Man, on Twitter, and it sounds awesome. Read his tweets and get hyped.

Karen Diem posted a cool cut scene from Power, the third book in her Arca series, on her blog. But if you haven’t read the series yet, you should start with the first chapter of book 1 here. It has one of the best first lines I’ve seen in a while.

If you’re looking for some transmedia superhero fiction, Project Indigo sounds fun and original. It follows “disgraced former superhero Margo ‘Indigo’ Mason’s efforts to rehabilitate her terrible public image via the Internet after her roommate accidentally blows her cover.” You can check out the website or watch the story unfold on social media like Margo’s Twitter account.

If you’ve been thinking of reading Renegades by Marissa Meyer, Emily Talks About Books just posted a review.

Any news I missed? What superhero books have you been reading lately? Let me know in the comment!