Cleopatra in Space - GN Book Three - Secret of the Time Tablets

The time-traveling future Egyptian queen of the past (and if that doesn’t confuse you, I don’t know what will!) is back in her third adventure. Writer/artist Mike Maihack continues the tale of young Cleopatra (“Cleo”) and her friends, Akila, Brian, Zaid, and Khensu, are on their way to a distant planet of thieves in the hopes of finding the mysterious time tablets that could give Cleo a clue as to her fate and why she was really brought into the future.  But, as with any good space saga, things don’t go quite as planned.  Octavian is hot on their tail, and Cleo, Akila, and Brian end up getting separated from Khensu and Zaid.  Stranded on a dangerous planet of thieves, they sneak into the city, and come face to face with the thief that stole the sword from them in the previous book – and ultimately team up with the thief in order to fight their way out of a spectacular bar brawl.  Meanwhile, Khensu and Zaid find themselves on the same planet, and Khensu leads Zaid to a secret facility where his old mentor, Harkhebi, is trying to protect younglings from being drawn into the war Octavian is creating.  As their paths draw closer together, so does that of Octavian, who arrives in search of not only the time tablets, but Cleopatra as well …

Maihack moves the story forward at a pretty hectic pace, but not so fast that it loses any of its cinematic experience.  Reading panel after panel, page after page, it really is like watching a big screen movie.  The action, the emotional moments, the character building, the quiet moments right before the storm, and the tragedy – there is no doubt that Maihack knows how to perfectly meld the story and art to create an experience well worth the read.  While the art in the first chapter does not feel quite as refined as the rest of the book, it in no way detracts from the overall enjoyment of the tale.

And the title, Secret of the Time Tablets, is definitely apt, as quite a few secrets are revealed in this book.  The secret behind Cleo’s time travel … the secret about that thief of the sword … the secret that Khensu has been keeping from Cleo … and the biggest secret of all, Octavian’s real identity and his connection to Cleo – by the end of this book, the reader is left with his jaw dropped to the floor, wondering how Maihack can possibly top this one.  (Plus, Maihak throws a few more tidbits of romance into the mix – Brian and Akila, as well as Cleo and a certain thief.)

I have the immense pleasure of actually knowing the creator, Mike Maihack, having met him at a number of comic conventions over the years, and I know how enthusiastic he is about this series.  I was thrilled when it got picked up by Scholastic to be published and marketed in bookstores and other outlets, and it’s even more exciting to know that Cleo has her very own cartoon now (although I have yet to see it!).  This story, this character, this creator – they all deserve the limelight they are currently receiving, and even if I didn’t know Maihack personally, I would still be recommending this series.

RATING:  10 mugs of Osirian fire water out of 10 for expanding the world of Cleopatra and providing more depth to the characters and overarching story so as to leave readers wanting for more!