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Sci-Fi Month: Science-Fiction Graphic Novels/Comics

Posted on November 2, 2016 by Lorraine Posted in Recommended, Sci-Fi Month .

Welcome to my first post for Sci-Fi Month 🙂 I’m a massive fan of comics of almost every type – one of the ongoing disappointments in my life at the moment is that I don’t have enough disposable income to have a regular pull list – and I’m also a massive sci-fi fan, obviously. So it makes my heart sing when these two interests collide. Looking to get into comics with a sci-fi theme? Let me give you some pointers.

Five 'Weird Science' Titles

Black Science – Rick Remender, Matteo Scalera & Dean White. A little bit alternate realities, a little bit military sci-fi, and a lot ‘none of this is happening the way we planned’. Travel through alternate version of Earth with Grant MacKay and his team. Particularly recommended to fans of Dark Matter by Blake Crouch.
Clone – David Schulner & Juan Jose Ryp. So there you are, living your life, going about your business when you find out you’re actually part of a military experiment that created one hundred clones of the same man. Damn. Particularly recommended to fans of Orphan Black (duh).
FBP: Federal Bureau of Physics – Simon Oliver & Robbi Rodriguez. When the laws of physics break down, the FBP is all that stands between normal people and the power of science. Yay! Particularly recommended to fans of The X-Files and A Town Called (Eureka).
The Manhattan Projects – Jonathan Hickman & Nick Pitarra. An alternative history set in the 1940s, involving some of the best scientists the world has ever seen. Besides building an atom bomb, what on earth could the greatest minds of our time be up to? Spoiler: lots of things involving aliens and lots of things that definitely break the law. Particularly recommended to fans of Dark Skies (the television programme that I might be the only person in the world to remember, not the more recent movie).
Nowhere Men – Eric Stephenson, Nate Bellegard, Jordie Bellaire & Fonografiks. Science is the new rock and roll. Sounds totally legit. A group of scientists change the world for the better, and are loved for it, but their fall from grace is all but inevitable. Particularly recommended to fans of Fringe.

Four 'Military/Political' Titles

Bitch Planet – Kelly Sue DeConnick, Valentine De Landro & Robert Wilson IV. In a future where women who don’t maintain the status quo are labelled ‘non-compliant’, we follow the happenings on the penal colony the worst offenders are sent to. Particularly recommended to people who enjoy being awesome. Seriously.
Lazarus – Greg Rucka, Michael Lark & Santiago Arcas. I don’t even have the words for how much I love this violent look at a dystopian future where the world is owned by ‘families’ each of whom has their own protector, raised to defend them at all costs. Particularly recommended to fans of Queen and Country (also) by Greg Rucka and Point Of No Return/The Assassin/La Femme Nikita.
Transmetropolitan – Warren Ellis & Darick Robertson. No matter how corrupt a government gets, no matter how marginalised and side-lined citizens become, there is always someone willing to stand up and tell the truth. Unfortunately for the 23rd Century, that person is Spider Jerusalem, confirmed dirtbag. Particularly recommended to fans of Hunter S. Thompson.
We Stand On Guard – Brian K. Vaughan & Steve Skroce. When clean water becomes a life-or-death matter, the USA invades an unsuspecting Canada. An ever-shrinking band of independence fighters attempts to repel the invaders, but who really started this war? Particularly recommended to fans of Escape From New York.

Three 'Aliens Amongst Us' Titles

Paper Girls – Brian K. Vaughan & Cliff Chiang. Being a girl in the 80s isn’t always the easiest thing, but this gang of bicycle-riding newspaper-delivering super-cool girls isn’t about to let a silly thing like an alien spaceship get in the way of them defying the patriarchy. Particularly recommended to fans of Strange Things.
Saucer Country – Paul Cornell & Ryan Kelly. Arcadia Alvarado has a lot on her plate – she’s on track to become the Democratic nominee for President of the USA, her ex-husband refuses to go away, and she was abducted by aliens. Wait, what? Particularly recommended to fans of The X-Files.
Trees – Warren Ellis & Jason Howard. Alien objects, nicknamed ‘trees’, land all over Earth and do nothing. Towns rebuild around them, people live in their shadow, complacency sets in. Are the trees as benign as they seem? Particularly recommended to fans of Sleeping Giants by Sylvain Neuvel.

Two 'Robots' Titles

Alex + Ada – Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn. Alex doesn’t want an android companion, but when his grandmother buys him one, he is forced to question everything he knows about what it means to be human. Particularly recommended to fans of every what-is-sentience piece of sci-fi ever. Things like Humans and I, Robot by Isaac Asimov.
Descender – Jeff Lemire & Dustin Nguyen. Although this deals with similar themes to Alex + Ada, Descender differs in that it isn’t set on Earth. Instead, events happen to the vast backdrop of an alliance of alien planets and species. It’s also, in my opinion, the superior title of the two. Particularly recommended to fans of every what-is-sentience piece of sci-fi ever, but also to fans of Mass Effect, for the political shenanigans happening in the background.

One 'Environmental Disaster' Title

The Massive – Brian Wood, Kristian Donaldson, Garry Brown & Dave Stewart. In the post-apocalyptic tale, climate change has led to extensive flooding. With society breaking down as resources become scare, we follow the crew of The Kapital, who are searching for their missing sister ship, The Massive. As befits a post-apocalyptic story though, nobody aboard The Kapital is quite what they seem. Particularly recommended to… pretty much everyone. This one covers sci-fi, mystery, environmentalism, horror, military fiction, spy fiction with a touch of the supernatural.

And there we have it, fifteen recommendations if you’re looking to read some sci-fi comics. I have more comics I can recommend in almost all of these categories, and also for some titles that didn’t fit neatly into the structure I chose, so let me know if you’re looking for more!

2015 Wrap Up

Posted on May 27, 2016 by Lorraine Posted in Yearly Wrap Up .

In 2015 I read a total of 211 books. 204 of these books were fiction, and a mere 7 were non-fiction. A whopping 117 books were graphic novels. All in all, 127 of the books were written by men and only 85 were written by women. I’m surprised at how many graphic novels I read, but not at all surprised that I read more books by men than women. Which is not to say that I’m not disappointed, but graphic novels in particular are still dominated by male creators.

Favourite Books of 2015 01

Non-Fiction: Honourable Friends? Parliament and the Fight for Change – Caroline Lucas.

This is a frustrating read because the current political system in the UK does not work, and it’s upsetting to see that spelled out so clearly by someone trying to do their best for the constituents. It’s brilliant though, offering a really good overview of how the houses of parliament actually work, and highlighting those who are attempting to make a difference.

Fiction: My Real Children – Jo Walton / The Language of Dying – Sarah Pinborough.

My Real Children was just wonderful. I was underwhelmed by Walton’s Among Others which had received rave reviews – I liked it, I just didn’t love it. So although I thought I’d enjoy My Real Children, I never thought it would end up being one of my favourite books of the year. I’m a sucker for Sliding Doors-type narratives, and this one is perfect. The two lives that Patricia leads are beautiful and heart-breaking and real, but that’s just it – are either of them actually real at all?

The Language of Dying won me over with its cover. I had seen it for several months in my local library before I finally caved and picked it up. I wasn’t sure what to expect but I was blown away. This little novel covers life, death and the wonder of the world in prose that grips you and doesn’t let go.

Favourite Books of 2015 02

Fiction (Translated): The Dirty Dust – Máirtín Ó Cadhain.

I’ll acknowledge right off the bat that this book, and the style in which it’s written, will not be for everyone, but I really enjoyed it. It’s dark but it’s funny, and it’s so, so Irish. I requested that my local library buy this in and I’m so glad that they did. I just hope that some other readers pick it up now that it’s available (according to their online catalogue, it’s on loan at the moment – yay!).

Graphic Novel (Fiction): The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 1: The Faust Act – Kieron Gillen and Jamie McKelvie / Bitch Planet, Volume 1: Extraordinary Machine – Kelly Sue DeConnick and Valentine De Landro.

I can’t remember what drew my attention to The Wicked + The Divine. Every few months I do a catalogue search for graphic novels that have been added to the library catalogue (this whole post is basically a love letter to public libraries), and I think I might have ordered it just because it popped up there. Since I’ve read it, I’ve seen lots of positive reviews for it and they are all right. The story is awesome, the characters are awesome, the artwork is awesome and when it finished, I wanted the next volume immediately.

Bitch Planet, on the other hand, was on my radar before the first issue was even published. I don’t have a regular comic pull list anymore (though I’ve been thinking about setting one up again), so I waited not very patiently until the trade paperback was released and then requested that my library system buy it in. Luckily they did, and I absolutely loved every second of it. Bitch Planet is actually set in a terrifying future where women can be incarcerated at the drop of the hat. Women who don’t fit into the stereotype that men have established for them are labelled non-compliant, and, frankly, we could all stand to be a little more non-compliant.

Graphic Novel (Non-Fiction): Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? – Roz Chast.

Can’t We Talk About Something More Pleasant? was in a ‘Best of 2014’ display at my local library. It’s an unflinching account of the deterioration of Roz Chast’s parents in their old age. It’s funny and sad and thought-provoking, and deserved to win every single literary prize it was nominated for.

Favourite Books of 2015 03

Young Adult: Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda – Becky Albertalli / Magonia – Maria Dahvana Headley.

I think I had heard rumblings about Simon vs the Homo Sapiens Agenda before I picked it up, but it was the LGBT element that attracted me. From the looks of it, I knew I’d enjoy it, but I wasn’t expecting to absolutely love it. First of all, it’s really fucking funny, like proper, proper funny. The characters are all wonderful and you really can’t help but root for them all, and the romance is lovely but it’s also believable (which can be a bit rare in YA fiction!).

I picked up Magonia totally blind, being attracted to both the cover and the blurb. It’s also the second book on this list that has a recommendation from Neil Gaiman on its cover (the other being The Language of Dying by Sarah Pinborough) and I have to say he’s only ever let me down once (with Heart-Shaped Box by Joe Hill). The early chapters of this focus on Aza, whose illness is killing her, and those chapters are so well done. Terminal illness is a difficult subject but Magonia never crosses the line into mawkishness, Aza herself is too determined and too cool for that. When the fantasy twist comes, even though you know it’s coming, it’s brilliant. The new world Aza finds herself in is completely the same but completely different, and I found it enthralling. Can’t wait for the sequel.

Children’s Fiction: The Nowhere Emporium – Ross MacKenzie / The Hundred and One Dalmations – Dodie Smith.

The Nowhere Emporium has a surprisingly high amount of negative reviews on Goodreads, but I really, really enjoyed it. Yes, the concept isn’t the most original in the world, but it becomes original through the characters and the writing. I always enjoy finding good new books by Scottish authors, and this one definitely ticked that box.

I had absolutely no idea that The Hundred and One Dalmatians would be such a charming read. It’s ridiculous how cute it is, especially the version I read which was illustrated by Alex T. Smith. I like the Disney version, but the original book is so much better.

Ferney by James Long

Ferney – James Long.

I really struggled to finish this one, finding it an incredibly dry read. Add to that the fact that I didn’t really enjoy the characters and no, I don’t think this is the original and better version of The Time Traveler’s Wife.

Rat Queens, Volume 1: Sass and Sorcery – Kurtis J. Wiebe & Roc Upchurch

Rat Queens, Volume 1: Sass and Sorcery – Kurtis J. Wiebe & Roc Upchurch.

Before picking this up, I’d heard amazing things about it, but it just didn’t live up to expectations for me. I liked the setting, I liked the characters, I even, despite Roc Upchurch being a total scumbag, liked the art, but I just didn’t feel it, if you know what I mean. The total experience was a bit of a meh, which was disappointing.

The Magicians by Lev Grossman

The Magicians – Lev Grossman.

I hate Quentin, the main character in this, with a passion that scares me. He’s such a dick. I love the world that this is set in, and the way magic works, and the idea of Brakebills, but I hate Quentin and the execution of Brakebills, so that made it all a bit tricky. Something else that annoyed me, which is not the book’s fault, is how many reviews of this start with ‘oh, I totally thought this was going to be a Harry Potter rip-off’. The idea of a school for people who can do magic is not unique to Harry Potter, people! Anyway, despite all of that I did pick up the sequel, and enjoyed it a lot more.

Todd, the Ugliest Kid on Earth, Volume 1 – M.K. Perker & Ken Kristensen.

Surprising because, from the cover and the blurb, it looked rubbish but it was actually really fun. Poor Todd. He’s the nicest kid in the world, but he’s so ugly that his own parents make him wear a paper bag over his head, and everyone hates him. An oddly appealing concept 😀

How Music Got Free by Stephen Witt

How Music Got Free – Stephen Witt.

Surprising because the way that the music industry operates is mental, but the story of the people who leaked most of the music available online is even more mental. This is actually a really readable, enjoyable book, even if you do spend the whole thing thinking ‘what the fuck??’

I recommended, and continue to recommend, so many books that I read last year to so many people, for so many different reasons.

2015 Books I Recommend 01

For a twist on a fairy tale: The Sleeper and the Spindle – Neil Gaiman & Chris Riddell.

For a twist on a vampire story: The Moth Diaries – Rachel Klein.

For a twist on a boarding school story: The Scandalous Sisterhood of Prickwillow Place – Julie Berry.

For a magical read by a Scottish author: The Nowhere Emporium – Ross MacKenzie.

2015 Books I Recommend 02

For an excellent political read: Honourable Friends? Parliament and the Fight for Change – Caroline Lucas.

For an awesome graphic novel: The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 1: The Faust Act – Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie.

For an original fantasy read: Magonia – Maria Dahvana Headley.

2015 Books I Recommend 03

For a very darkly comedic read: The Dirty Dust – Máirtín Ó Cadhain.

For an uplifting YA read: Simon vs The Homo Sapiens Agenda – Becky Albertalli.

For a ‘fuck yeah, feminism!’ read: Bitch Planet, Volume 1: Extraordinary Machine – Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro.

No book series this year (although I did continue to read Ben Aaronovich’s Rivers of London series, Robin Stevens’ Murder Most Unladylike series, Jacqueline Harvey’s Alice-Miranda series, Holly Black’s Curse Workers series, Teri Terry’s Slated series, Maggie Stiefvater’s Wolves of Mercy Falls series, Pat Barker’s Life Class series, and Jennifer Lynn Barnes’ Raised By Wolves series), but I was introduced to some many brilliant comic book series in 2015 (and continued to read Jim McCann’s Mind the Gap, Scott Snyder’s American Vampire, John Layman’s Chew, Brian K. Vaughan’s Saga, and Greg Rucka’s Lazarus).

Best Series of 2015 01

Ms Marvel, Volume 1: No Normal – G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona.

Morning Glories Deluxe Collection, Volume 1 – Nick Spencer, Joe Eisman & Rodin Esquejo.

The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 1: The Faust Act – Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie.

Best Series of 2015 02

Alex + Ada, Volume 1 – Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn.

Bitch Planet, Volume 1: Extraordinary Machine – Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro.

I would have to say Sarah Pinborough and Maria Dahvana Headley, both of whom create magical worlds, though in very different ways. I’ll definitely be picking up more books by them both.

Happily, they were both excellent and worth waiting for.

Most Anticipated of 2015

The Sleeper and the Spindle – Neil Gaiman & Chris Riddell

Bitch Planet, Volume 1: Extraordinary Machine – Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro

Patricia from My Real Children by Jo Walton, who made me want to be the best possible version of myself that I can be. Lucifer aka ‘Lucy’ from The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 1: The Faust Act by Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie who made me want to enjoy myself and dress sharply. Kamala from Ms Marvel, Volume 1: No Normal by G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona who made me want to be true to myself, no matter what obstacles are put in my way.

The Hundred and One Dalmations by Dodie Smith

The Hundred and One Dalmations – Dodie Smith.

Why did no one tell me how good this was before now? To my shame, I’ve never read Dodie Smith, despite I Capture the Castle popping up in libraries, charity shops and bookshops all the time, mocking me.

The Luninaries – Eleanor Catton. When I went to Thailand in October, I thought this would be the perfect read for the long plane journey. Sadly, for me, the best laid plans of mice and men often go awry. I slogged my way through roughly half of it, not giving a shit about any of the characters or anything that was happening, before my aunt-in-law finally told me to just stop. I have weird guilt about not finishing a book, but I took her advice.

Walking the Dog by David Hughes

Walking the Dog – David Hughes. I just couldn’t get into this ‘landmark book in the field of graphic literature’. The memoir of a man in his 40s, it just didn’t appeal to me. I quite enjoyed the art style, but realised after about twenty pages that the story just wasn’t for me as I didn’t care about the narrator, and I didn’t care about his dog.

Based solely on my 2015 reading list, I’m looking forward to quite a few titles.

Looking Forward To in 2016 01

The Hanging Tree – Ben Aaronovitch. The sixth entry in the Rivers of London series.

Ms. Marvel, Volume 3: Crushed – G. Willow Wilson, Takeshi Miyazawa & Elmo Bondoc.

Ms. Marvel, Volume 4: Last Days – G. Willow Wilson & Adrian Alphona.

Chew, Volume 11: The Last Suppers – John Layman & Rob Guillory. The second last volume in the series, I think.

Looking Forward To in 2016

Jolly Foul Play – Robin Stevens. The fourth Murder Most Unladylike mystery.

Lazarus, Volume 4: Poison – Greg Rucka & Michael Lark. Not enough people are talking about this awesome sci-fi comic.

The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 3: Commercial Suicide – Kieron Gillen & Jamie McKelvie.

Aerie – Maria Dahvana Headley. The sequel to Magonia.

Looking Forward To in 2016

Bitch Planet, Volume 2: President Bitch – Kelly Sue DeConnick & Taki Soma.

The Magicians Land – Lev Grossman. The Magician King was much better than The Magicians, so I’m hopeful for the last title in the trilogy.

Read in November 2015 (Catch Up Post!)

Posted on May 18, 2016 by Lorraine Posted in Read This Month .

Read in November 01

Alex + Ada, Volume 1 – Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn. I really enjoyed this tale of Alex whose Grandmother buys him a robotic companion that he doesn’t want. From quite a simple concept it looks at what makes us human in a really compelling way. Recommended!
Alex + Ada, Volume 2 – Jonathan Luna & Sarah Vaughn. See above.
Wolverines, Volume 4: Destiny – Charles Soule et. al. Utter nonsense.
Hawkeye vs Deadpool – Gerry Duggan, Matteo Lolli & Jacopo Camagni. Absolutely loved this. I really don’t know anything about Hawkeye but he was fab in this. His dynamic with Deadpool is hilariously antagonistic and I would read more of this if they made it!

Read in November 02

Captain Marvel, Volume 3: Alis Volat Propriis – Kelly Sue DeConnick, Warren Ellis & David Lopez. I’ve not read any of the issues leading up to this volume, but I was able to jump right in and really enjoyed it. Hurrah for Captain Marvel!
Mrs Bradshaw’s Handbook – Terry Pratchett. I wasn’t expecting much from this but it was a lovely little addition to the Discworld.
The Wicked + The Divine, Volume 2: Fandemonium – Kieron Gillen et. al. I still love EVERYTHING about this. Check it out as soon as you can, people!
The Massive, Volume 5: Ragnarok – Brian Wood, Garry Brown & Jordie Bellaire. A satisfying conclusion to this very decent environmental sci-fi comic.

Read in November 03

The Fade Out, Volume 1: Act One – Ed Brubaker & Sean Phillips. Hey look, it’s a story that only exists because someone murdered a woman. Fun! (It’s not fun. I’m tired of this trope now.)
Injection, Volume 1 – Warren Ellis, Declan Shalvey & Jordie Bellaire. A bit of a confusing read, but the sci-fi elements were enough to keep me reading. I’d pick another one up out of curiosity, but I wouldn’t go out of my way to find it.
Roche Limit, Volume 1: Anomalies – Michael Moreci & Vic Malhotra. I enjoyed the gritty sci-fi element of this. It’s similar to a LOT of sci-fi out there, but it was a well done version.
Postal, Volume 1 – Matt Hawkins et. al. Eden is a town populated by criminals where crime is strictly forbidden. But nothing is quite as it seems, as we discover when a woman is murdered. The narrator in this is an outsider in two ways – he’s not a criminal, and he has aspergers – which gives this an interest it wouldn’t have otherwise.

Read in November 04

Trees, Volume 1: In Shadow: Warren Ellis & Jason Howard. I really enjoyed this. Ten years ago, alien artefacts that are referred to as trees, landed all over the Earth and have just sat there being mysterious and doing nothing, until now. What is their purpose and who sent them?
Low, Volume 1: The Delirium of Hope – Rick Remender & Greg Tocchini. In a future where humans have been forced to abandon the land and live underwater, their time is running out. The art in this was beautiful, and I liked the core of the story, but I just couldn’t get into it as much as I wanted. Okay, but not great.
Bitch Planet, Volume 1: Extraordinary Machine – Kelly Sue DeConnick & Valentine De Landro. Right, this is AMAZING (like, it’s a terrifying version of the future where women are controlled and kept down, but it’s amazing). Read it immediately and be proud to be non-compliant.
Nailbiter, Volume 1: There Will Be Blood – Joshua Williamson et. al. This was an interesting horror-crime comic, a genre I don’t dip into too often. Buckaroo, Oregon is the birthplace of some of the worst serial killers the USA has ever seen, but why? Dun, dun, DDDUUUUNNN!! 😉

Read in November 05

Nailbiter, Volume 2: Bloody Hands – Joshua Williamson et. al. See above.
Nailbiter, Volume 3: Blood in the Water – Joshua Williamson et. al. See above.
Milly-Molly-Mandy’s School Days – Joyce Lankester Brisley. I picked this up primarily because Joyce Lankester Brisley is the sister of Nina K. Brisley, the illustrator of the early Chalet School books. It didn’t disappoint. The illustrations were sweet and the story was ridiculous but charming. I’ll definitely be reading more.
Chew, Volume 8: Family Recipes – John Layman & Rob Guillory. If you’re still not reading this, why? It’s fun and mad and clever and ridiculous and so, so readable. *draws lovehearts all around Toni*

Read in November 06

Chew, Volume 9: Chicken Tenders – John Layman & Rob Guillory. See above.
Noonday – Pat Barker. A wonderful World War II novel that continues Pat Barkers record of writing touching, though-provoking books that never wander into maudlin territory.
The Magicians – Lev Grossman. I absolutely hated Quentin. HATED him. I also wasn’t particularly into the idea that this school lets its students wander around the place largely unsupervised and almost always drunk. I enjoyed the magic itself, and the world building generally enough that I did pick up the sequel though.
Northern Lights: The Graphic Novel, Volume 1 – Philip Pullman, Stephane Melchior & Clement Oubrerie. I wasn’t a fan of this adaptation at all. The artwork was shoddy and the story was confusing.
First Class Murder – Robin Stevens. A brilliant addition to the Murder Most Unladylike series. This time our heroines are involved in hijinks on the Orient Express.

Read in February 2015 (Catch Up Post!)

Posted on March 16, 2016 by Lorraine Posted in Read This Month .

Avengers/X-Men: Bloodties – Bob Harras, Andy Kubert et. al. Meh. I mean, honestly, why do people like the Scarlet Witch? I don’t get it at all.
Uncanny X-Men, Volume 4: vs S.H.I.E.L.D. – Brian Michael Bendis & Chris Bachalo. Solid, but not particularly memorable. Can we take a minute to talk about Magik’s costume though? Why so insanely slutty?
The Wake – Scott Snyder & Sean Gordon Murphy. A fairly decent start but then it jumped forward in time and totally lost my interest.
Pretty Deadly, Volume 1 – Kelly Sue DeConnick, Jodie Bellair & Emma Rios. I wanted to like this story about Death’s daughter, I really did, but it didn’t float my boat at all.
Amazing X-Men, Volume 2: World War Wendigo – Kathryn Immonen et. al. A surprisingly fun read.

Ferney – James Long. I picked this up after seeing it referenced in The Guardian. The claim made was that it was a more inventive (and earlier) version of The Time Traveler’s Wife. I love The Time Traveler’s Wife so Ferney sounded amazing. Imagine my disappointment when I found myself having to slog through it. The central relationship between Ferney and Gally was okay, but I never became particularly invested in it. Most unfortunately of all, I found the flashbacks to their past lives pretty dull and my heart sank every time I had to read another one. The cover was pretty blah too, which is never a good sign.
X-Men: God Loves, Man Kills – Chris Claremont & Brent Anderson. A classic X-Men title that, slightly histrionic storytelling aside, more or less holds up today.
X-Treme X-Men, Volume 2: You Can’t Go Home Again – Greg Pak, Stephen Segovia & Raul Valdes. Still not a massive fan of dimension hopping, but an okay read.
Mind the Gap, Volume 2: Wish You Were Here – Jim McCann & Rodin Esquejo. This series continues to be a great read, with twists and turns galore. Still loving it.
Mind the Gap, Volume 3: Out of Bodies – Jim McCann & Rodin Esquejo. See above.

East of West, Volume 2: We Are All One – Jonathan Hickman & Nick Dragotta. Still no. So over the western genre in comics, even if it is supposed to be happening in a post-apocalyptic world.
Trigger Warning – Neil Gaiman. Zoomed through this one. I’m never really a fan of Gaiman’s poems, but I loved a lot of the short stories. (PS I still haven’t read The Ocean at the End of the Lane. Meep!)
Love Letters to the Dead – Ava Dellaira. I picked this up from an LGBT display I’d put together at work and ended up loving it. In trying to deal with her sister’s death, Laurel writes letters to dead celebrities, and they’re beautiful, and honest, and painful. Recommended for all YA fans.
Slaine: The Brutania Chronicles, Book One: A Simple Killing – Pat Mills & Simon Davis. Slaine is a series that I’ve always wanted to enjoy but I’m not sure if I’ve ever really managed it. I love the mythology, but I’m never particularly interested in the storylines, and this volume only confirmed that.
Little Boy Lost – Marghanita Laski. It’s probably naïve of me, but I never realised that there were so many displaced and unclaimed children at the end of World War II. This is the story of Hilary who returns to France after the war in search of his lost son, which is slightly harrowing in itself, but when Hilary finds a boy that might be his son, his struggle to decide whether or not the boy is his is heart-rending. The best thing about this book is that the emotional material is dealt with in almost dispassionate way. The writing is matter of fact rather than flowery, which serves the story really well.

Moone Boy: The Blunder Years – Chris O’Dowd & Nick V. Murphy. This was a fun little read, but I wanted to love it so much more than I did. Although it maintains the humour of the TV programme, and uses the same super cute illustrations, it doesn’t quite match up to it.
X-Men, Volume 3: Bloodline – Brian Wood & Matteo Buffagni. I always approve of Jubilee taking centre stage, even if the baby daddy from the future storyline was a bit ridiculous.
Wolverine and the X-Men, Volume 1: Tomorrow Never Learns – Jason Latour & Mahmud Asrar. Not as fun as the previous Wolverine and the X-Men run, but not the worst ever. Plus, the more I see of Doop, the more I like him.
Savage Wolverine: Kill Island – Frank Cho. Dear Shanna the She-Devil, doesn’t your torso get all scratched up when you run around the Savage Land half naked?
Sheltered, Volume 2 – Ed Brisson & John Christmas. A solid continuation, but not one that inspired me to pick up the next volume.

Todd, the Ugliest Kid on Earth, Volume 1 – M.K. Perker & Ken Kristensen. I picked this up from the library pretty much just because it was there (I’ll give pretty much anything in the graphic novel section a try). Happily, it was totally worth a read. Todd has to wear a paper bag over his face because he’s no ugly. For some reason, this makes everyone act like a total bastard to him, but Todd never lets it dampen his spirits. Off-beat and enjoyable.
The Language of Dying – Sarah Pinborough. A beautiful, haunting read that adds a slight supernatural edge to an exploration of how death affects everyone differently.
Pivot Point – Kasia West. I enjoyed the premise of this novel, as well as the more sci-fi elements, but I wasn’t overly taken by the story itself.
The Silver Darlings – Will Morris. A Scottish coming-of-age story with beautiful artwork.
Morning Glories Deluxe Collection, Volume 1 – Nick Spencer, Joe Eisman & Rodin Esquejo. Morning Glory Academy is an elite boarding school, it’s also weird as fuck. The storytelling style reminded me a bit of Lost, in that you have a basic premise that’s riddled with odd, inexplicable things, and characters who are never quite what they seem. In other words, it’s interesting and generally awesome.

Ultimate Comics X-Men, Volume 3 – Brian Wood & Alvaro Martinez. I’m a fan of evil Jean Grey, she’s pretty epic. And I really like the Ultimate Comics version of Kitty Pryde, who’s conflicted but spremely confident.
All-New X-Men, Volume 2: Here to Stay – Brian Michael Bendis & Stuart Immonen. And speaking of interesting versions of Kitty Pryde, Kitty Pryde as kick-ass mentor also works really well.
All-New X-Men, Volume 4: All-Different – Brian Michael Bendis & Stuart Immonen. I have never been a fan of X-23 and I am definitely not a fan of her addition to this title. Do I want to read a Cyclops/X-23 romance? No, I really, really do not.
Daredevil, Volume 1: Devil at Bay – Mark Waid & Chris Samnee. I didn’t find much to like in this, to be honest. Totally unremarkable.