I do not think that there can ever be enough books about anything and I say that knowing that some of them are going to be about Pilates.The more knowledge the better seems like a solid rule of thumb, even though I have watched enough science fiction films to accept that humanity’s unchecked pursuit of learning will end with robots taking over the world.-Sarah Vowell

Friday, May 29, 2020

Locke and Key Vol. 3 Crown of Shadows by Joe Hill (Written), Gabriel Rodriguez (Artist), Jay Fotos (Colorist), Robbie Robbins (Letterer)


In the previous comic, Zach a new kid at school makes friends with Ty, but one of the teachers recognizes him as the kid who went missing years ago named Luke.  Zach is staying with his "Aunt" Emily who has a mentally challenged kid.  Her mind is being controlled by Zach through the use of one of those keys.  Duncan knows who Zach really is and knows he must warn Ty, but Zach gets to him first with a key that Bode has discovered that allows you to take out or put in anything into your brain.  Ty uses it to put inside his school books and Kinsey uses it to put all her fears and tears into a glass jar. It is also keeping her from being warned off of Zach.  Zach uses it to sneak off to where Duncan is teaching an art class in another city to take out his memories of Luke.  Zach also kills off the teacher who remembers him making it look like a suicide.

This comic focuses on Kinsey who kept her younger brother alive by going up onto the roof.   Now she has changed her appearance from the wild dreadlocked crazy clothes chick to a more conservative look that blends in and doesn't get noticed.  She joins the track and field and a girl there makes overtures of friendship and offers to go running with her in the morning but Kinsey shuts her down.  On top of that the man who was responsible for her father's death and for their moving into Key House has escaped prison and is heading right for them. 

Kinsey is a difficult character in that while she was able to do her sisterly duty and protect her brother she still feels guilty and to blame for what happened, hence the changing of the clothes and the hair.  She refuses to get close to anyone for fear of getting them in danger.   She lives in constant fear and she's worried about her younger brother.  I don't know that I would have liked her in her previous life but she's changed and learned something from the incident and I really feel for her now.  I give this book five out of five stars.

Listed On Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Locke-Key-Vol-Crown-Shadows/dp/1600109535/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=3FA7P253UYFJF&dchild=1&keywords=locke+and+key+volume+3&qid=1590776816&sprefix=locke+an%2Caps%2C199&sr=8-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyV1NUQjdCUklYNlE2JmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwNzQ3ODE1MVJOVVlGNVhJRTJVUiZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwMjY3NTQ5T0VISVI3WVlMS1c1JndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

Wednesday, May 27, 2020

Murder in the Mystery Suite by Ellery Adams


Set in the mountains of Virginia, this mystery series takes place at Storyton Hall an estate that was moved from England at some point and turned into a hotel for readers.  While they have activities to do there and a lively village to visit the main activity engaged in is reading and you can choose from the many books on site they have.  The owners are Octavia and Aloysius Steward.  Their grandniece, Jane, who has twin boys named Hemingway and Fitzgerald, and is a widow,  is the general manager;

Jane came up with the idea of a Murder and Mayhem week where guests would dress as their favorite detective and there would be different activities including a ball.  For the first activity a book entitled Lost Letters by Alice Hart that contains letters she found written by the famous mystery writer Adela Dundee, was given away for the treasure hunt.  Felix Hampden, the guest who came dressed exactly like her detective right down to his underwear, won the contest with the help of the twins.  Octavia collapsed and had a stroke due to her diabetes and told Jane that the wrong copy of the book had been given away. That her personal copy had been given away and must at all costs be gotten back.

That night she knocks on Felix's door but there is no answer so she puts it off till the morning.  But of course the housekeeper finds him dead in his room the next day.  The book is missing too.  The previous night two people had tried to buy the book from Felix.  And the staff can't be ruled out.  What was so special about that copy of that book that Octavia couldn't tell Jane that night?  Her uncle and aunt think that it's time she is made guardian of the hotel and all that that entails which is quite a lot and means holding some awfully big secrets and being able to physically defend it.

This book is what you would call a cozy mystery.  It was really good and kept me guessing all the way to the end.  Jame must find a way to cover up more than one murder in the hotel because she's worried the guests will all check out and never come back.  I liked Jane and can't wait to see how things progress between her and her best friend's brother, who is tall dark and mysterious.  Also, to see how her training is coming along.  I myself would love to stay at the Storyton Hotel. It sounds like this book lover's dream.  The next book will be Romance Writers Week and I look forward to what she does with that. I give this book five out of five stars

Quotes
You’re a librarian. To me that makes you a bigger hero than Saint George, Sir William Wallace, and all the Knights of the Round Table put together.
-Ellery Adams (Murder in the Mystery Suite p 6)

Imagination is more important than knowledge.
-Albert Einstein

Perfection cannot be rushed. It must be coaxed forth.
-Ellery Adams (Murder in the Mystery Suite p 49)

“You’re the best” “So my customers tell me. But I’d really like to hear those words spoken by a gorgeous single man.  One who reads, has impeccable manners, and can watch Masterpiece Theater without dozing off.
-Ellery Adams (Murder in the Mystery Suite p 69-70)

After a good dinner, one can forgive anybody, even one’s own relations.
-Oscar Wilde

Once upon a time, I had a muffin top.  Seems like I’ve got the whole bakery now.
-Ellery Adams (Murder in the Mystery Suite p 115)

Motherhood provides a type of mental toughness that many a soldier fails to achieve.
  

Monday, May 25, 2020

Seine and Storm by Leigh Bardugo


In the previous book, Alina was a cartographer for the First Army and the man she had grown up with was a tracker.  They were assigned to the Fold with the First Army where nothing grows and volcra attack you and kill you.   Their skift gets attacked by the volcra and Mal saves Alica's life by shooting one of them then Mal gets hurt and Alina covers his body with hers and a bright light shines out.  It turns out that Alina is a Sun Summoner and that she would be able to heal the Fold and reunite Ravka. The Apparat, or religious leader, has taken to calling her Saint Alina and the people have taken to worshipping her.  The Darkling is in charge of the Second Army of Grisha and he takes Alina to the Little Palace to train but he wants her to have a special amplifier that comes from Morovo's stag, a mythical beast.  Soon, however, Alina becomes disenchanted with the Darkling, especially after talking to Bhangra his mother who says there has only been one Darkling and that he created the Fold. So she and Mal escape the palace and head toward the Zemeni frontier.

Since Alina isn't using her power she is weak again, though she insists on working in a Jurda factory.   Mal gets some work too and soon they'll have enough to disappear into the wilds of the country.  But before that can happen, the Darkling finds them and attacks them with dark monsters that cost him to create.  Alina cuts them down until they overtake her and one bites her.

They go back on a whaler ship captained by the famous privateer Sturmhond and his crew of secret Grisha.  The Darkling is keeping Mal alive not just to keep her in line but because he needs Mal's tracking abilities to find the Rusalye, the sea whip. Alina looks at the book the Apparat gave her had a picture of one of the saints that had the stag, the sea whip, and the firebird.  The Darkling wants het to wear all three when its been a common practice to only wear one amplifier.   On top of that Genya is there and it turns out that she has lied to her the whole time.  Genya was her only friend other than Mal and when Mal wasn't there she was a comfort.

Once the Rusalye is speared, Sturmhond makes his move with his other ship there he kidnaps Alina and Mal and takes the Rusalye for Alina to use.  He tells Alina she is free to go wherever she wants to go but first he wants her to meet someone and hear what he has to say.   If she doesn't like it he will take her anywhere but she should consider the fact that she has no powerful allies.  Tonya and Tolya, twins become her bodyguards.

This was a fabulous book.  The relationship between Mal and Alina is tested to its limit.  Especially when Alina begins to see the Darkling everywhere.  And Alina is beginning to act differently with the two power amplifiers.  How will she act with a third?  But how will she defeat the Darkling without it?  This is a great series and I can't wait to see how it ends.  I give this book five out of five stars. 

Quotes
 You two have a bad habit of acitng like fools and calling it heroic.
-Leigh Bardugo (Siege and Storm p 32)

Ivan scowled. “I don’t think—” “Clearly. So why start now.”
-Leigh Bardugo (Siege and Storm p 36)

Fear is a powerful ally. And loyal.
-Leigh Bardugo (Siege and Storm p 51)

Anything worth doing always starts with a bad idea.
-Leigh Bardugo (Siege and Storm p 101)

Perfect night for tearing a hole in the universe, no?
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 101)

“I’m more of a weed,” I said dryly.  “I like weeds,” she said. “They’re survivors.”
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 111)

“Were you always this much trouble?” “I like to think of myself as delightfully complex.”
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 116)

When people say impossible, they usually mean improbable.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Strom p 120)

The less you say the more your words will carry.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 187)

Weakness is a guise.  Wear it when they need to know you’re human, but never when you feel it.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 187)

Being a leader means someone is always watching you.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 187)

Get them to follow the little orders and they’ll follow the big ones
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 187)

Scars make good reminders.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 236)

 “Watch yourself, Nikolai,” Mal said softly. “Princes bleed just like other men.”
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 249)

I’d rather fight a traitor than a zealot.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 264)

Fearless is another word for stupid.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 302)

David looked at me then, the regret plain on his face.  No matter what I said, we both knew the hard truth. We do our best. We try, And usually, it makes no difference at all.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 334)

You know the problem with heroes and saints, NikolaixCZV? They always end up dead.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 388)

I have loved you all my life, Mal. There is no end to our story.
-Leigh Bardugo (Seige and Storm p 417)

Friday, May 22, 2020

Spider-Woman Vol2: Civil War II by Dennis Hopeless (Writer), Javier Rodriguez (Pencier, Inker), Alvaro Lopez (Inker), Veronica Fish (Penciler), Rachelle Rosenberg (Colorist), VC's Travis Lanham (Letterer)


In the previous comic, Spider-Woman, aka Jessica Drew, is pregnant and working with Porcupine and Ulrich, the reporter.  Her best friend is Captain Marvel.  Now its a month before the baby is due and she is taking some time off and is bored to death.  Carol, Captain Marvel, has recommended an alien hospital as being the best hospital to have her baby in and that she should check it out. So Jess goes one day to do just that. When she finds the maternity ward, some Skrulls take it over and Jess is forced to fight back even though she promised her friends and her baby that she would take it easy.  She destroys the two Skrull soldiers and wins the adoration of her fellow pregnant aliens.  She gets ahold of Carol who is on her way, but she knows that more soldiers are on their way.  She enlists the help of the pregnant aliens and they all take care of the soldiers.  With the help of Carol and the hospital staff talking them through it, they get to a secure place but someone needs to go and talk to a doctor's head kept in storage to get the doors open in order for Carol and the help to get in and get them out.  Jess does this but the head says it could take six hours to get the doors open.  Meanwhile, Carol lets slip that the Skrull are after a thirteen-year-old prince so Jess decides to rescue the prince even in her condition.  Unfortunately, she goes into labor while she is rescuing him. They barricade themselves into a room with a doctor who performs a c-section on Jess who is determined to fight back after the surgery.

Now Jess, with the help of reporter Ben Ulrich goes after the bad guys while balancing being a mother and a partner to Porcupine.  This time she's after Fin boy whose home address Ulrich gives her is uptown and inside has sea monsters. The two fight and wind up going over the side of the building when Jess gets a call from Roger wanting to know what PJ's to put on their son.  Of course she doesn't stop working to take the call and Roger reminds her once again that she isn't supposed to do that.  Will she catch the Fin boy amid all the sea monsters?

Roger and Jess go to Canada where Roger insists that the Wendigo lives.  All it takes to create a Wendigo is to eat human flesh and the cook, it turns out is a Wndingo who intends to feed everyone human flesh.  Meanwhile, Jess is ignoring Carol's call because she doesn't want to be dragged into the Civil War.  So Carol shows up in Canada to convince her of the justness of her cause, but Jess won't hear it.  But when Carol says that all she wants is for Jess to verify an Inhuman kid's predictions and she would be paid a government salary for it.  As she goes along she finds that the predictions are turning out to be true.  But Bruce Banner is killed as a preventive measure and Jess refuses to talk to Carol and goes up against her.

The last comic in this book has the family going to the beach and running into Sandman.  This is a great comic that explores Jess and her new family life while she fights the bad guys as does her husband. Jess is such a great character.  I love how she doesn't want to take sides in a Civil War but finds herself taking a side when someone she cares about is murdered.  I give this book five out of five stars.

Listed On Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Spider-Woman-Shifting-Gears-Civil-2015-2017-ebook/dp/B01MYZ44M4/ref=sr_1_5?dchild=1&keywords=spider-woman+vol.+2&qid=1590168259&sr=8-5
 
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

Monday, May 18, 2020

Moon Knight Legacy Vol 1: Crazy Runs in the Family by Max Bemis (Writer), Jacen Burrows (Penciler, Inker), Guillermo Ortego (Inker(, Mat Lopes ( Colorist). VC's Cory Petit (Letterer)


The comic opens with Dr. Everett interviewing a patient who was in the army and burned his unit.  She gets the idea of how to treat him by how she treated Marc Spector who shares the personalities of Steven Grant and Jake Lockley and became this way when he died under the statue of Khonshu in Egypt as a mercenary.  Now he's a superhero, Moon Knight, as well as a banker who donates his money to a good cause.  She's taken inspiration in Egyptian mythology especially Aman Ra who is the father of Khonshu.  The patient becomes obsessed with Marc Spector and decides to break out by setting the place on fire including Dr. Emmett who survives.

Aman Ra goes to Marc Spector's old girlfriend's Marlene's house and finds a surprise there that Marc doesn't know about.  Aman Ra kidnaps Marlene and Marc must watch after someone else and figure out how to save Marlene from Aman Ra and his followers.  This was a bizarre book that was written in a bizarre way.   But I guess that is to be expected when the main hero has multiple personality disorder and half of the action takes place in a mental asylum.  That being said it was an interesting book and left me wanting to read the next one.   Marc Spector is an intriguing character(s) and one I can relate to.  I give this book four out of five stars.

Listed on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Moon-Knight-Legacy-Family-2017-2018-ebook/dp/B07C757LBN/ref=sr_1_1?crid=1VMTWNI4IFPTB&dchild=1&keywords=moon+knight+vol+1+crazy+runs+in+the+family&qid=1589804302&sprefix=Moon+knight+cra%2Caps%2C182&sr=8-1

Friday, May 15, 2020

Chronicles of the One Book Three: The Rise of Magicks by Nora Roberts


In the previous book, for two years Fallon Swift will train with Mallick and it will be hard.  He will offer her an indoor bathroom if she completes three tasks: get the apple from the owl Taibhse, get the golden collar from the wolf Faol Ban, and find the horse Laoch with the golden saddle.  Each of these a seemingly impossible task, but ones that she figures out. Before the two years will have come to a close, she will have found the Book of Spells and taken the knowledge into herself and lifted the shield and sword. But she is not yet ready to lead and stays on to train a while longer until her two years are up before going home.  Once home she talks to her parents and they train the boys, but that isn't enough. She must start building her army and with the help of her dad, she goes through the town and begins a training program.  Soon, though, she must leave and begin training programs throughout the land on the way to New Hope in order to begin at New Hope what was started so long ago.  She has a crystal ball that she can see things in and step through and go to places via it.  When she sees during her training that the New Hope rescue team, who is out to rescue magicals from a government lab, is walking into a trap she steps through and warns them and offers an alternative plan and helps them with it.  It is here that she finally meets Duncan, one of the twins, whom she has been dreaming about and his twin Tonia, two people who will be important to her in the future in helping her.

In this book, Fallon has become The One and is leading the people of New Hope.  But she has grand plans of taking a new installation in Utah, the one at the beach in South Carolina, and the huge one at Arlington all in one night.  It's an ambitious plan that will take careful timing and planning.  Meanwhile, she sees Duncan for the first time in almost two years in a flash dream where they meet up and make out a bit. Neither one wants to be bound to the other as it is fated basically because it is fated.

Next will come to D.C. where they are experimenting on magicals and have been for over twenty years.  They've also been impregnating the women in order to get more magicals to experiment on.  And they've been gathering up the nation's wealth and hoarding it.  D.C. will be a place to keep prisoners--not a place to live or govern out of anymore.  The big fight will be New York, though it won't be the last fight. That will take place in Scotland where the whole thing started.  Fallon will still have to face Allegra and Petra who has a mighty evil dragon.

This book wasn't as good as the other two.  It dragged on at the end and I felt could have ended sooner.  It was still a great book and a fine ending to the series.  I think I related to Duncan a bit too much who was always rushing things and got irritated with her cutting him off when she goes away for a while.  Fallon was a stellar character who was amazing to watch evolve, even if sometimes you wanted to throttle her.  I give this book four out of five stars.

Quotes
“Your ancestors slaughtered mine, sole their land, brought them disease and starvarion.” “Maybe. My mother’s people came from Scotland. The English slaughtered out people, stole their land, burned their homes. But if some English dude’s ready to fight with me against the PW’s, the DUs, and the rest of the guckers, I don’t give a rat’s ass about what his ancestors did to mine. This is now.”
-Nora Roberts (Chronicles of the One Book Three: The Rise of Magicks p 162)

“A coward shoots in the back.” “Or an opportunist.”
-Nora Roberts (Chronicles of the One Book Three: The Rise of Magicks p 184)

Listed on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Rise-Magicks-Chronicles-One-Book-ebook/dp/B07L2QR5WD/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1AN3TQHO84Z8D&dchild=1&keywords=the+chronicles+of+the+one+book+three&qid=1589551686&sprefix=the+chroncilces+of+the+one%2Caps%2C176&sr=8-3

Wednesday, May 13, 2020

Doctor Strange/Punisher: Magic Bullets by John Barber (Writer). Jason Muher (Storyboard), Andrea Broccardo (Artist), Dominike "Somo" Stanton (Artist), Andres Mossa (Colorist), Andrea Cressley (Coloroest(, VC"s Clayton Cowles (Letterer(


When I picked up this comic I thought "Doctor Strange and Thunisher! What a fantastic combination."  I'd like to say that I wasn't wrong, but this comic wasn' it. When the Punisher sense otherworldly beings in the building he just shot up with the Fusilli brother and sister duos he goes to Doctor Strange for help not knowing that Strange doesn't have the access to the magic he once had due to events that occurred in Doctor Strange comics. He needs magical artifacts to use magic.  Otherwise, he uses his ax to slaughter demons.

They go to the restaurant and the Punisher handles the humans while Strange handles the demons whom he notices came here against their will.  Strange would like to send them back through the portal that is in the restaurant.  The Fusilli siblings have someone working for them to build them an army of monsters to take out their competition. His name is Mangrove and he can control the monsters.  He hopes to have the power over all things, especially since when he brought forth the monsters he turned the Fusili siblings into monsters themselves.  

Doctor Strange takes the Punisher to a special place to pick up a magical object to use against the monsters and the Fusili siblings.  Can they defeat Mangrove who is so well protected and get the monsters back to their dimensions?  Can they stop the Fusili siblings from taking out their competition?  The art is not good at all. It's more of a rough sketch than actual art.  The plot is dumb and Doctor Strange doesn't act the way he normally does.  Neither does the Punisher. I feel the author failed to capture the characters or provide a likable story.  I give this book two stars out of five.


Monday, May 11, 2020

Captain Marvel Vol 1: Re-Entry by Kelly Thomson (Writer), Carmen Carnero (Artist), Tamra Bonvillain (Colorist), VC's Clayton Cowles (Letterer)


Carol has had a rough year with her brother suffering a life-threatening injury that caused her to step down from Avengers and the Space Defense Program Alpha Flight to take care of him. Then Kree assassins killed her mother who had been hiding as a Kree warrior this whole time.  Her brother recovered and Carol had decided it is time to get back out there.

Carol is friends with Jess, Spider-Woman and they take down a giant monster that Tony Stark takes away with a group of Iron Men. The two agree to meet up later after Carol has a meeting with Tony where he "lays down the law" with her and insists that she does an interview for public perception since she's been in space all this time and no one could see what heroic deeds she was doing.  Carol gives in on the interview.  But Tony also wants her to play mentor to Jennifer Takeda, aka Hazmat, who needed a new suit and came to Tony for one.   She leaks nuclear chemicals.  She goes for a touristy walk.

Carol meets up with Rhodey and has dinner with him.  They catch up and wonder what if? Then the woman from the magazine shows up to do the interview and Carol is trying to reschedule it when she gets blasted by Nuclear Man.  Rhodey calls in backup which at first seems ridiculous, but then Nuclear Man rebounds and grabs the reporter and takes her through a portal in the street.  Carol follows them through. When she arrives on the other side, there are Jess and Jennifer and other women. She punches Nuclear Man clean to the other side of the island.  The Avenger men try to get through the portal but it knocks them back.  While time is moving fast on the island it is moving slowly back on the other side of the portal. 

Some of the women don't have their powers for some reason, like Hazmat and Spider-Woman is missing some of her powers.  Echo has been running things down there and they have one man rescued from the group of men who are loved ones of the women.  Som, the man, provides intel on what goes on back at the base and how to defeat them.  But Carol doesn't completely trust Som. She thinks he's hiding something and she's right. 

Jen, She-Hulk breaks through the barrier but her powers don't work.  Still, she's a welcome sight.  Nuclear Man has something special in store for Carol that she might not be able to handle.  Will the women are able to find a way to break down the portal and get free and break Nuclear Man's hold on the island?  There are a lot of great characters in this comic and it's very female-centric which I enjoyed.  This was a fabulous book and I give it five out of five stars.

Listed On Amazon: https://www.amazon.com/Captain-Marvel-Vol-Re-Entry-2019-ebook/dp/B07T4SWQPQ/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=captain+marvel+reentry&qid=1589215794&sr=8-1

Friday, May 8, 2020

Spider-Man/Dead Pool Vol 2: Side Pieces by Scott Aukerman (Writer), Gerry Duggan (Writer, Penn Jillette (Writer), Nick Giovannetti (Writer), Paul Scheer (Writer)), Joshua Corin (Writer), Kelly Brown ({Penciler), Scott Koblish (Penciler, Inker)< Todd Nauck (Penciler, Inker, Tigh Walker (Penciler.Inker). Rick Magyar (Inker), Le Beau Underwood (Inker), Scott Hanna (Inker). Jason Keith (Colorist). Val Staples (Colorist). Guri-tFX (Colorist), Rachelle Rosenberg (Colorist), VC's Joe Sabino (Letterer)


This book does not pick up where the last book left off. Instead, it contains a bunch of random comics that don't connect to each other but seem to be the artists trying to get rid of a backlog;  In one of the comics, Penn Teller guest writes and Penn and Teller guest show for the comic.  Penn plays poker with Deadpool and makes a wager that if he wins Deadpool has to be Teller in his show.  He of course loses and plays the dummy to Penn's straight man.  Meanwhile, Teller is dressed up as Deadpool and is in New York City with Spider-Man hanging out looking for bad guys when they come across a psychic who turns out to be Marie-Ange Colbert the Tarot card Queen who has let loose a tarot card alive. Spider-Man goes to fight it expecting Deadpool to help but he oddly doesn't.  Instead, he becomes fascinated with her deck of cards and goes down to see if he can play with them.  Colbert picks them up and deals them for Spider-Man and draws the Death Card.  Can anything save Spider-Man from his fate?  And what will happen to the real Deadpool?  This was written rather well for someone who doesn't write comic books.  It was also interesting to bring back a villain who hasn't been used in a long while.

In the last comic, a wave of giant monsters called Leviathans has been raining from the sky and wreaking havoc all over the world.  It's up to all the superheroes to deal with this menace.  In an all-girls school in Toronto, a coven of witches summons forth Deadpool in the hopes that his blood will lead them to his wife Shiklah who would make the perfect vessel for their dying headmistress. Only when they call forth Deadpool's heartmate Spider-Man shows up and starts to absorb the headmistress.  Suddenly, a Leviathan appears outside and Spider-Man and Deadpool must fight it.  Deadpool gets eaten by it and can't get out.  Spider-Man has trouble fighting the monster when his body is fighting him.  The witches help him as much as they can but they can't reverse the spell.  Pretty soon Deadpool has company in the belly of the beast--a human company that he has to save and Spider-Man is quickly losing control of his body to an evil witch who wants to take the power of the monster for herself. I really loved this comic.  It contained some of the best wordplays between Spider-man and Deadpool and it was an interesting story of possession and a giant monster falling from the sky.

Overall these stories were alright, but some were not up to snuff.  There was one about them making a Deadpool movie only there's a villain on site trying to kill Deadpool.   But luckily Spider-Man is there to help save the day.  It's a little cheesy, but that seems to suit the pair sometimes when they get together.  Another one takes you back to the comics of 1968 and Mysterio is in this one along with some crooked humans trying to fix an election.  It's okay but I miss the saucy banter between Spider-Man and Deadpool that is absent because they are staying true to the time period.  But it is a neat look back at a forgotten time. Another one has Saturn come down to rein down thunder because people are worshiping Santa and not celebrating his Christmas. It's up to Spider-Man and Deadpool to show him the meaning of Christmas.  That one was pretty good with lots of good gab between Spider-Man and Deadpool that is really funny.  Overall this was a great book and I give it a four out of five stars. 

Listed on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Spider-Man-Deadpool-Vol-Pieces-2016-ebook/dp/B071VKMD5R/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=Spider-Man+and+Deadpool+vol+2+side+pieces&qid=1588938858&sr=8-2

Wednesday, May 6, 2020

Cloak and Dagger: Shades of Grey by Dennis Hopeless (Writer, David Messina (PEnciler), Franceso Manno (Penciler), Gianda Marchisio (Colorist), and VC"s Travis Lanham (Letterer)


Cloak and Dagger, Tandy and Tyson, have broken up and Tyson hasn't accepted it, while Tandy felt the need to move on.  They still meet to allow Tyson to let off some of the Darkforce.  Tandy is working with the police on raids and Tyson is working for a rapper as a bodyguard.  When Tandy goes on a raid and discovers a body that has been sucked grey it brings back a memory of another body in her teen years with Tyson who used his power to do that to someone they knew.  Detective Ikeda comes over to her house demanding answers that she can't give.  While she keeps him at arm's length, she has feelings for him. He tells her there have been more bodies over the past few months. She doesn't know what to make of this.

Tyson has been trying to get in touch with Tandy for three days to relieve his Darkforce but she won't return his calls because she can't face him thinking he killed all those people.  We see back to when Tandy and Tyson were teens to when one day on the subway when they met Grey a guy filled with smoke who calmed an edgy Tyson.  The three were inseparable.  Grey had the ability to fog people's minds and get away with stealing things.  Then Tyson killed Grey and left a grey husk.

But it's not Tyson leaving these dead bodies as Tandy accuses him of when he breaks into her house in order to get her help with the Darkforce and confront her with why she's been ghosting him.  It's Grey.  He didn't actually die and now he's back for revenge and to take their lifeforce.  He's after Tandy trying to trap her in his dreamscape, but Tandy can see through his dreamscape and she's wondering where Tyson is.  Tyson figures out it\s Grey and go looking for him.  He and Tandy manage to get free, but they must figure out a way to trap Grey and destroy him for good.

This comic is different than the other incarnations of Cloak and Dagger in that it broke up the couple.  It's an interesting approach that I really enjoyed.  It's hard watching Tyson pine away for Tandy while Tandy goes on with her life.  It will be interesting to see where this story goes in the next comic.  I give it five out of five stars.

Listed On Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Cloak-Dagger-Shades-Marvel-Comics/dp/1302911619/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2VI3Z33YZBQM9&dchild=1&keywords=cloak+and+dagger+shades+of+grey&qid=1588776777&sprefix=cloak+and+dagger+sha%2Caps%2C172&sr=8-1 



Monday, May 4, 2020

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Battle of the Labyrinth by Rick Riordan


Its right before camp and Percy is going to orientation for a new school that his mother's boyfriend works at and he is accosted by flaming cheerleaders with vampire powers.  With the help of Rachel Elizabeth Dare, he fights them off but not before they warn him that the camp is going to be attacked.  He met Rachel in the last book at a National Park and she can see through the Mist and be able to help him then too.  Annabeth shows up and is upset with Percy for telling Rachel about their world., but really she's just jealous that Percy may have feelings for Rachel.

Percy and Annabeth had to camp immediately. where they accidentally find an entrance to the labyrinth on the grounds.  This means that the Titans can sneak into camp without bothering with the barrier.  But the labyrinth can drive a man insane trying to navigate it's so huge and there are so many monsters and traps along the way.  You need the string that Ariadne had. and gave it to Theseus to navigate the labyrinth.

Annabeth wants to lead this Quest to find Daedulss's workshop where the string will be kept and make sure that Luke and the Titans don't get it.  The Oracle tells her You shall delve in the darkness of the endless maze, The Dead, the traitor, and the lost one raise, You shall rise or fall by the ghost king's hand, And the child of Athena's final stand, Destroy with a hero's final breath.  Percy knows there's another line after that but she won't tell him what it is.  She decides to take Percy, Grover, who has one week left to find Pan or lose his license for good, and Tyson, even though Chiron advises against it saying that three is a magical number and that all quests have three in them.  But she needs these three people and she'll use others besides them.

This book was the best out of the four so far.  It contained so many myths as well as the prevailing myth of the labyrinth.  It also introduces another girl into the picture mudding up the waters with the Percy/Annabeth thing. This time the campers will actually have to fight and die for the camp but help will come in the unlikeliest places.  I can't wait to see what the fifth and final book has in store.  I give this book five out of five stars.

Quotes

People are more difficult to work with than machines.  And when you break a person, he can’t be fixed.
-Rick Riordon (The Battle of the Labyrinth p 221)
Listed on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Battle-Labyrinth-Percy-Jackson-Olympians-ebook/dp/B00280LYIM/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2XATE6AETNJN2&dchild=1&keywords=the+battle+of+the+labyrinth+percy+jackson&qid=1588607830&sprefix=the+battle+of+the+%2Caps%2C179&sr=8-1

Friday, May 1, 2020

Hawkeye Vol 1: My Life As a Weapon by Matt Fraction (Writer). David Aja (Artist). Matt Hollingsworth (Colorist). Chris Eliopoulos (Letterer), Alan Davis (Penciler), Mark Farmer (Inker), Paul Mounts (Colorist), VC's Cory Petit (Letterer)


Kate Bishop, also Hawkeye is working with Clint Barton, aka Hawkeye on a case where Clint has seen signs around town that he recognizes from his carnie days that warned others that if you can't stand the heat stay away because criminals were coming in to work and soon the cops would sweep down and terrorize the city.  They go to a high-class circus at the Luxury and with Kate's social glasses they can see that the swordsman, whom Clint recognizes as having trained under the same man as he did, he is taking the jewelry and belongings of the crowd by hypnotizing them. Clint and Kate go after them and Clint gets caught.  Will they make it out alive?

S..H.I.E.L.D. "kidnaps' Clint in order to tell him that the tape of  Operation Eucritta is out there and about to be auctioned off to the highest bidder at Madiripor.  S.H.I.E.L.D. has given him a black card with no limit on it so he can bid for it and get it back.  All the bad guys know is that it has an Avenger on it killing someone.  Kate wants to come with him but he insists that she stay.  Clint will run into trouble immediately and get kidnapped by Madame Masque,  one of the bidders.  She uses his black card to buy the tape.  What will become of Clint and the tape?

This was a fabulous comic. I always liked Hawkeye from the movies but I've never read one of the comics before and I find him cool and fun to read.  That second story I wrote about has a real twist of an ending. There are three other stories in the book and they are also great.  The last one is the Young Avengers #6 and it's pretty interesting though not as good as the other stories.  Clint Barton is a great character and so is Kate Bishop his kind of part-time side sick.  I really loved the art in this book too  There' s a page where Clint is shooting arrows over several blocks and there are these fourteen squares with Kate's face on them in black and white going across the page in two strips between the pictures of Clint shooting arrows. Underneath the picture s of her face is a letter spelling out That's Cool with her face making the movement of showing that she thought that was cool.   This was a great book and I give it five out of five stars.

Listed on Amazon:https://www.amazon.com/Hawkeye-Vol-My-Life-Weapon-ebook/dp/B00EAROZ1O/ref=sr_1_1?crid=26WM1WLSYBROQ&dchild=1&keywords=hawkeye+my+life+as+a+weapon&qid=1588339427&sprefix=hawkeye++my+lif%2Caps%2C173&sr=8-1