Review – Lady Mechanika: La Dama de la Muerte

Lady Mechanika: La Dama de la Muerte TP
By: Joe Benitez
Website: http://www.joebenitez.com/
Release Date: September 26, 2017
Publisher: Benitez Productions
Series: Lady Mechanika
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


In my quest to read more graphic novels and not only manga I stumbled onto the Lady Mechanika series by Joe Benitez, a steampunk action series with beautiful character designs and gorgeous artwork. Lady Mechanika is a graphic novel series that I’ve been following for almost half a year now. The series is a steampunk, action packed story that follows the Lady Mechanika, a woman with mechanical limbs with no recollection of her past who solves problems that other people can’t. Lady Mechanika La Dama de la Muerte is a prequel of sorts, occurring before the start of the first volume of the graphic novel between the as yet unexplained origin. With breathtaking art and a story that is keeps you hooked, La Dama de la Muerte is another great addition to the series.

Review: Changes (The Dresden Files #12)

Changes (The Dresden Files #12)
By: Jim Butcher
Website: http://www.jim-butcher.com/
Release Date: April 6th, 2010
Publisher: Roc Books
Series: The Dresden Files
Rating:


Twelve books in. If you’re this far then let’s be clear, this title, more than any other in the series so far, is very fitting. This is the first book in the series that I will not be calling a “Throwback” as, well it was published and 2010 so, technically within the last decade. (Weirdly enough, when I think ten years ago I think of the late 1990s/early 2000s…anyone else?) 

Review – Carnivalesque by Neil Jordan

Carnivalesque
By: Neil Jordan
Release Date: June 6, 2017
Publisher: Bloomsbury USA
Rating:


Carnivalesque by Neil Jordan is a story about a boy named Andy who finds himself sucked through a mirror in a carnival’s house of mirrors. His reflection enters the real world and goes home with his parents, leaving Andy stuck and alone on the other side of the glass. He is not alone here, for this is the world of the Carnies, the carnival people, a place where magic is real. Meanwhile Andy’s mother watches the Not-Andy living with her family, wondering if this is merely Andy growing up or if this is something else, something more sinister.

Review – A.D.: After Death by Scott Snyder & Jeff Lemire

A.D.: After Death
By: Scott Snyder & Jeff Lemire
Release Date: July 4, 2017
Publisher: Image Comics
Rating:


The graphic novel A.D.: After Death by Scott Snyder and Jeff Lemire is an ambitious beast. Combining prose and graphics, this is a wonderful graphic novel which explores death, its cure, and what it all means for a man named Jonah, who was there to witness it all.

Review – Exit West by Moshin Hamid

Exit West
By: Moshin Hamid
Website: http://www.mohsinhamid.com/home.html
Release Date: March 7, 2017
Publisher: Riverhead
Award: Man Booker Prize Nominee for Longlist (2017)
Rating:


Exit West by Mohsin Hamid is a short book involving a new love, brewing war, and magical doors. Longlisted for the Man Booker Prize this year, this is a book that begs to be read.

The story is about two people, Nadia and Saeed, as they meet and fall in love in the days just before civil war breaks out in an unnamed country. Nadia and Saeed are thrown together, not just for love but for survival in an ever changing, increasingly dangerous world. Then the rumors of the doors start – doors that open to other places. Sometimes it’s a bedroom, a bathroom, an office building, but the important part was that it was not Here, somewhere not torn apart by war. Their goal? To go through one of these doors.

Review: Notes from the Internet Apocalypse by Wayne Gladstone

Notes from the Internet Apocalypse
By: Wayne Gladstone
Release Date: March 4, 2014
Publisher: Thomas Dunne Books
Series: Internet Apocalypse #1
Rating:


The novel Notes from the Internet Apocalypse by Wayne Gladstone is something I have had my eye on since its release. After three years I’ve finally read through the book.

Review – The Castoffs Vol. 1: Mage Against the Machine by MK Reed and Brian Smith

The Castoffs Vol 1: Mage Against the Machine
By: MK Reed; Brian Smith
Release Date: April 12, 2017
Publisher: Lion Forge Comics
Series: The Castoffs #1
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


I received a copy of The Castoffs Vol. 1: Mage Against the Machine by MK Reed and Brian Smith from the publisher quite unexpectedly. This is a fun, engaging graphic novel with great characters who grow immensely throughout the story.

Review – Trigun Omnibus by Yasuhiro Nightow

Trigun Omnibus
By: Yasuhiro Nightow
Translator: Justin Burns
Release Date: October 22, 2013
Publisher: Dark Horse Manga
Series: Trigun
Rating:


One of the first anime I ever watched was Trigun. Soon after I bought a few volumes of Trigun Maximum, which have been sitting on my shelf for close to ten years. Of course, Trigun Maximum is not the start of the series, something I hadn’t realized at the time. Finally, finally, I’ve read the actual beginning of the series: Trigun Omnibus by Yasuhiro Nightow. It took long enough, I know. And I am very happy I finally got around to reading this.

Review – Space Battle Lunchtime Vol 1: Lights Camera Snacktion

Space Battle Lunchtime Vol 1: Lights Camera Snacktion
By: Natalie Riess
Release Date: 2016
Publisher: Oni Press
Series: Space Battle Lunchtime #1
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


Here’s a little known fact. I watch a probably unhealthy amount of cooking shows. Not the ones where they actually show you how to make a dish. Nope. I know I can’t cook without the supervision of my mother, even nearing thirty. (Sorry Mom). I watch all the cooking competition shows. Because, well, everyone has a not quite so guilty pleasure, right? Space Battle Lunchtime, Vol 1: Lights, Camera, Snacktion! by Natalie Riess is everything I never knew I needed in a graphic novel. It’s fun, it’s cute, it’s in outer space, and it’s a cooking showdown.

Review – Killing is My Business by Adam Christopher

Killing is My Business
By: Adam Christopher
Release Date: July 25, 2017
Publisher: Tor
Series: Ray Electromatic Mysteries
Received From: Publisher
(All reviews are our own, honest opinions.)
Rating:


It may not be immediately obvious from the SFF theme of this blog, but I love a good mystery story. The Ray Electromatic Mysteries by Adam Christopher scratches both itches. Killing is my Business is the second book in this series. It is set in a 1960s noir Los Angeles, features a robot assassin nee private detective, and is more fun than it has any right to be.

What can I say? Robots are cool, damn it, and there should be more stories with them. Or maybe it’s my twelve year old self talking. Either way, I love this concept. I love this series. And more people should be talking about it.