Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen

This is a book that I debated about getting for several months before I finally took the plunge and bought it.  As I've said in other posts, I am a huge fan of series books, so I very rarely pick up a "one-off" book that is not a part of a new series.  This book, however, caught my eye for several reasons: (1) it featured a young female lead that is forced to solve a mystery; (2) it was set in 1914, well before cell phones, computers, and other technology that makes solving crimes that much easier; and (3) the main character is an actress in silent film serials of the early 20th century.  "Cliffhanger" style stories, whether in book form or on television or film, have always piqued my interest, so after haggling with myself for a number of weeks, I finally picked it up.

Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen features young Darleen Darling, a perky little silent film star of a series of cliffhanger-style serials in the early 1900s when moving pictures were the newest big thing.  As a younger child, she was known as "Darling Darleen," but as she grows close to her teenage years, the format of the films changed, and "Darling" was changed to "Daring," as Darleen began to do a lot of stunts that left movie-goers gasping with each weekly installment of her adventures.  Her father helps develop and edit the film strips, and her mother ... well, her mother was a former circus star, dancing on tightropes, who gave up the high life to settle down once she had Darleen.  When her mother died, Darleen promised her father to always keep her feet on the ground, so she would not be taken away like her mother was ... except the life of a movie star, particularly one in cliffhanger serials, does not always lend itself to keeping one's feet on the ground.

Particularly when she is supposed to be kidnapped as a publicity stunt, but instead, she is mistaken for an orphaned heiress and kidnapped for real!

Author Anne Nesbet, a professor at the University of California (Berkley) who teaches film history, clearly has the knowledge of the world of silent films.  Her descriptions of the filming process, the sets, the production, the actors, the directors, and everything else so vividly brings to life the story and truly takes the reader into the world of Darleen Darling.  And she tells a whirlwind adventure of a twelve-year old actress who is thrust into a desperate situation where not only must she save herself, but she must help an orphaned girl her own age who is being taken advantage of by her supposed distant cousins who have been caring for her.  Both girls are kidnapped - Victorine Berryman on purpose (she's the heiress) and Darleen by accident - and the must make a (dare I say it?) daring escape if they hope to make their get-away from the kidnappers who intend on throwing them into the river!  Darleen suddenly becomes a star of her own cliffhanger story in "real life," and she must not only break her promise to her father by taking some very dangerous chances, but she must also figure out a way to rescue Victorine from her dastardly cousins and restore the young girl's fortune before the cousins steal it away from her!

The mystery is superbly plotted, and there are some definitely surprising twists when it comes to the kidnappers and the cousins (not the same people, by the way).  And while there are a few hair-raising moments when Darleen and Victorine must escape the apartment where they are being held captive and, later, when Darleen is trapped in a runaway hot air balloon - but honestly, I was hoping that with the book based upon the whole serial silent film gimmick, that each chapter (or at the very least, every other chapter) would end in some death-defying cliffhanger that would force the reader to keep reading to find out how our brave young hero would survive whatever challenge is thrown her way.  Instead, we get very few real cliffhangers, and many of the chapter endings are rather lackluster.  Now, don't get me wrong - the story is still very engaging, the characters extremely likable, and the mystery not overly easy to solve.  I still enjoyed the read and am hoping for more adventures of Daring Darleen in the future - but the lack of real "cliffhangers" kind of left me feeling like the book was missing a little something.

Nevertheless, Daring Darleen, Queen of the Screen is definitely a book I recommend, and I'll be keeping my eye on Anne Nesbet in the hopes she provides readers with more stories of this new sleuth in the future!

RATING:  9 matches, cigarettes, and cigars out of 10 for bringing merging the worlds of girl sleuths and silent film serials to create a fun new way to enjoy mysteries!

Long-Lived Comic Series #1 - Warlord (DC Comics)

Okay, when I started this blog, I never intended to use it to review an actual on-going comic book series. Sure, I reviewed a number of short-lived series - comic book series that usually lasted 10-issues or less, as well as graphic novels and hard cover collections.  But with this pandemic having interrupted the publication of current comic book series for a bit, lessening the number of comic being published, and me not having the ability or opportunity to go out and do all the conventions, trips, and any number of other things I used to do that kept me busy, I found I had more free time on my hands - so, I finally sat down to read DC Comics' original run of Warlord.  David and I bought the entire run for only $35 at a Tampa Bay Comic Book Convention quite a number of years ago (back when they were still being held in the Double Tree Hotel near I-275 and Dale Mabry Highway), and while David dug into them and read the entire series some time ago, they have sat boxed under my computer desk for quite a while waiting for me to read them.  Well, I started reading them last summer and have finally reached the end of that original run.

Created by Mike Grell (famous not only for his Warlord run, but also for his work on Green Arrow for DC, Starslayer for Pacific and First, Jon Sable for First, among others), the character of Warlord made his first appearance in First Issue Special #8 (cover dated November 1975) - an American pilot, Travis Morgan, while trying to escape an attack during a reconnaissance mission in 1969, somehow gets transported to the land of Skartaris, where the sunlight is eternal, dinosaurs still roam the land, technology is a contradiction of past and future, and the people who live there are primitive yet brave and fierce.  It is there he meets the beautiful but battle-worthy Tara, with whom he ultimately falls in love, as well as the deadly Deimos, who becomes Morgan's mortal enemy.  As time passes, Morgan gains impressive skills in hand-to-hand combat using knives and a sword, as well as sheds his military clothes for a loincloth and belt.  He keeps his gun, however, and it proves to be quite useful in a world that has never seen such a thing.

The character quickly graduated to his own series, with issue #1 published with a February 1976 cover date (meaning that it is likely the character was already approved for an on-going series before his first appearance in First Issue Special #8 ever hit the stands).  The logo, "Enter the Lost World of The Warlord," enticed readers to join Travis Morgan on his journey through this lost world of adventure, sword, sorcery, and untold dangers.  Mike Grell was both writer and artist for the series in the beginning, and the series was set completely apart from the regular DC universe - meaning there were no super heroes, no super villains, no earth-shattering disasters, etc.  Grell and the books editors in the early issues made it clear that Skartaris, located in the center of the Earth, was not set on any Earth that contained super heroes.  (Interestingly enough, there were comments made by the editors in the early issues of The Warlord that stated in no uncertain terms that time ran differently between Skartaris and the outside Earth, and there were even stories that dealt with that issue - which explained why Morgan went back into the world above and discovered it to be a number of years later than when he disappeared into Skartaris, but nowhere near that much time had passed for him.  There was a promise made in the letter column that Grell would eventually explain why that is, but much later in the series, well after Grell left, it was stated that time ran concurrently in Skartaris with the outside world, and as such, there was nothing to explain.  This, of course, contradicted things that happened in the earlier stories, including how Morgan's daughter could come to Skartaris as a full grown adult, when Morgan remembered her as a girl when he first came to Skartaris.)

Grell told some truly interesting, very character-driven stories in those early years of the book involving Morgan and Tara's budding romance; his friendship with Shakira, the woman who could shapeshift into a cat; his friendship with the mighty King Machiste, who was forced to replace his hand with an iron mace; and the Russian archaeologist Mariah, who stumbles into Skartaris and chooses to stay, developing a relationship with Machiste.  There are plenty of sword and sorcery battles against slave traders, pirates, and other dastardly villains, but a large part of those early stories feature the evil Deimos, who is determined to destroy Travis Morgan and his friends.  Deimos is killed, but comes back several times, before finally being vanquished once and for all after losing all of his powers.  Grell, and those creators who came after him, remained faithful to the fact that Deimos was truly dead, and although mentioned from time to time, he never came back to life to fight Morgan (at least, not in this original run).

 

The original series, including that First Issue Special, the 133-issue run, and the six annuals, was comprised of a whopping total of 140 issues, which is pretty impressive for a sword and sorcery title like that, particularly during the '70s and '80s, when the super hero comics permeated the market.  The horror titles, the war titles, and so many non-super hero titles went by the wayside, but Warlord managed to hang on for quite a while.   Yes, there were a few bumps - after only the first two issues, there was an eight-month gap between issues 2 and 3 of the ongoing series, but after that, the series eventually attained monthly status (although, as it neared the end, it returned to its original bi-monthly status due to low sales, ultimately leading to its cancellation in 1988 with issue 133).  That's quite a lot of stories to tell about Travis Morgan and this lost world of the Warlord.  And I have to give Grell a lot of credit here - he both wrote AND drew the comic for the first 52 issues - that's more than four years straight of writing and drawing a bi-monthly, then monthly comic.  And although I am not really a fan of sword and sorcery type tales, I was easily sucked into this lost world with Morgan and his comrades.  The book, while showcasing wizards and sword fights and massive battles, dealt heavily with the relationships among the cast - giving it an almost-soap opera type feel to the book.  Which made me forget the genre and focus on the stories and characters.  Plus, while many sword and sorcery tales seem to offer up countless scantily clad women with the male characters completely covered, Grell broke the stereotype by offering his main character - a MALE lead - in nothing but a loin cloth and helmet!  (Although, truth be told, I have to wonder how Morgan always managed to keep that loin cloth covering the goods throughout all the fights he had - I guess the fact this was still an all-ages comic is the reason for that...)  After issue 52, Grell gave up the art chores and, although his name still showed in the credits as the writer, it turns out his wife, Sharon, actually ghost-wrote the next 19 issues (53 - 71).

After Grell and his wife completely left the title, Cary Burkett took over the writing chores, followed by Michael Fleisher.  I'm not going to knock these two writers, as they have both written other comics that I enjoyed, I will say that the direction of the book and the stories took a drastic turn.  The stories started to feature more and more technology, and when the "Crisis" hit in 1985, suddenly Skartaris became a part of the DC Universe proper, opening up crossovers with the New Gods and even Power Girl (who, at that time, was thought to be the descendant of Arion), who became friends with Morgan's daughter, Jennifer, and fought some battles with her.  I think the inclusion of these DC Universe characters did not sit well with readers, because Power Girl's adventures in Skartaris ended rather abruptly and she was sent away, as was DeSaad (who was being made out to be a big baddie in the Warlord world), and the last year or so's worth of issues tried to bring the book back to its roots with sorcery and character quests.  Unfortunately, it was too little, too late.   Plus, the characters were no longer recognizable at this point - Machiste had become weak-willed; Mariah was no longer self-sufficient and seemed dependent on men; Shakira became a (for the lack of a better term) slut who was chasing after any man to satiate her sexual desire; Tara was barely seen; and Morgan, himself, seemed to meander with no direction or purpose.  Grell somehow breathed amazing life into Travis Morgan and the stories he told that could not be matched, and while Burkett and Fleisher did their best, there was a clearly distinct difference in the stories.

A number of artists worked on this title over the 13 years of its run.  Grell obviously set the standard high, with his beautifully rendered male and female forms and superb layouts (NOTE - every issue of Warlord, including the annuals, with the exception of one issue, had a two-page splash spread on pages 2 and 3 as a means of introducing the story for that issue - for me, this gave the opening of the stories a huge lead-in that made you feel like you were a part of Morgan's world.  Mark Texeria, Dan Jurgens, Rich Buckler, Ron Randall, Art Thibert, Pablos Marcos, and Jan Duursema (among others) provided the interior art once Grell took his leave, and while most of it was pretty good, I don't think any captured the strength and masculinity of Travis Morgan as Grell did.  Some artists added clothing to his ensemble, while others drew him overly-muscular.  But, again, none of it was truly bad or so horrific that it detracted from my reading enjoyment, so I simply write it off as different artist interpretations.  But let's face reality - no artist can draw a near-naked man like Mike Grell can!

As the series reached its end, I do want to give credit to Michael Fleisher for wrapping up the book with a nice, tight ending.  Storylines were resolved (except one, which I will get to in a moment), characters were reunited and somewhat returned to their original status, and Skartaris was in a place that the reader could believe was looking forward to a bright future.  The only story, though, that seemed to have been dropped to the wayside (and perhaps there were plans for it had the book continued) was the story of Tinder, who was actually Morgan and Tara's son, Joshua.  Early in the series, during Grell's work on the book, Morgan and Tara had a son; however, Deimos stole the boy, through sorcery and science made a duplicate of the boy, and tricked Morgan into fighting, and ultimately killing, what he believed to be his own son!  (Of course, readers knew the real Joshua had been stashed away and given to a poor family to raise.)   Warlord and Tara never knew their son survived, although Jennifer later learned that the thief known as Tinder was actually Joshua.  That subplot showed up time and again throughout the series, and there were moments were Morgan and Joshua came in contact with one another, but did not realize who the other was.  The last year or so featured no mention of Tinder/Joshua, and the book ended without Morgan ever finding his son.   (NOTE - after the cancellation of this series, Warlord did return for a 6-issue mini-series in 1992, following by a 10-issue series in 2006, and more recently, a 16-issue series in 2009 - so hopefully the story of Joshua gets resolved in one of those series...)

The one constant that remained throughout the entire series, regardless of writer or artist, was the fact that Skartaris was a world of many unexplored areas, and as such, the reader never knew what could happen next.  Grell created a blurb that appeared on that two-page spread of each issue next to the title logo which read:

In the savage world of Skartaris, life is a constant struggle for survival.  Here, beneath an unblinking orb of eternal sunlight, one simple law prevails: if you let your guard down for an instant you will soon be very dead.

No truer words were spoken, and I can say that the unexpected nature of the book, the stories, and the characters definitely made the book, overall, an enjoyable read from beginning to end.  Did some inconsistencies and contradictions arise along the way (i.e., the time variations, the location of Skartaris changing from inside the Earth to being in another dimension post-Crisis, etc.)?  Sure, but, hey! This is comics, after all, and they are meant to be an escape, a way to completely enjoy another world outside of our own.  It is fantasy, after all, not reality, so just enjoy the ride, I say!  And this one was most certainly well worth the read.

RATING:  8 .44 automag pistols out of 10 for making a sword and sorcery series interesting and enjoyable to a comic fan who has never liked such tales before!

 

The Fourth Veronica Speedwell Mystery - A Dangerous Collaboration

Time to catch back up with everyone's favorite lepidopterist, Veronica Speedwell, and her cohort and fellow crime solving partner, Revelstoke Templeton-Vane (although he goes simply by Stoker - I mean, seriously, with a name like Revelstoke, I think I'd prefer Stoker, too!).  It's been a while since I read A Treacherous Curse, and the fifth book has just come out in paperback, so I figured it was time to read the fourth mystery in this series and see where Veronica and Stoker find their latest murder to solve.  And this time, author Deanna Raybourn finally plays heavily on Veronica's chosen vocation of studying and collecting butterflies (I mean, you did know what a lepidopterist was, didn't you?).

A Dangerous Collaboration opens with Veronica and Stoker having a difficult time facing the fact they almost revealed their true feelings to one another. As usual, though, their ability to express themselves gets thrust to the back-burner when the latest adventures falls into their laps. Or, rather, into Veronica's lap. Lord Tiberius Templeton-Vane, Stoker's brother, shows up at their doorstep with an invitation to Veronica that she simply cannot refuse - a trip to a secluded island with a castle to visit one of Lord Templeton-Vane's old friends - a friend who just so happens to have a garden where the once-thought-extinct Romilly Glasswing butterfly still flourishes and who is willing to allow Veronica bring back some larvae for her own vivarium in London.  How could she possibly say no?  Plus, this will give her the opportunity to be away from Stoker and sort out her feelings regarding the man.  Stoker, of course, is none-too-thrilled with the idea of Veronica taking off to a secluded isle with his duplicitous brother, but Veronica chooses to go and nothing can change her mind.  Not even learning, on the train, that Lord Templeton-Vane has announced to his old friend that Veronica is his fiance!

 

Stoker, of course, is not one to be left behind on any adventure, so, sure enough, he shows up at the boat that is set to take Veronica and Lord Templeton-Vane over to the Romillys' island paradise and joins his irritated brother and his faux fiance. It doesn't take long after their arrival to realize that something is amiss, and that Malcolm Romilly has an ulterior motive for inviting his oldest friend to the island.  It seems that three years prior, Malcolm's bride disappeared without a trace on their wedding day, only moments after saying their vows! Rumors abound on the small island, and Malcolm has spent the last three years in turmoil, never knowing what really happened to his bride.  There are secrets everywhere within the Romilly castle homestead, and despite their confused feelings for one another, Veronica and Stoker must work together to uncover all of the secrets and figure out once and for all what really happened to Rosamund Romilly!

It's a fantastically written mystery, and like a good Agatha Christie tale, each one of the cast has a secret that could spell disaster if revealed, and many of them have strong motive for wanting Rosamund out of the way!  Malcolm's sister, who wants her son to inherit the Romilly fortune ... Malcolm's nephew, who needs that family fortune to support his dreams of being on stage ... Malcolm's sister, whose garden of deadly plants was going to be taken away by Rosamund ... Malcolm himself, who has a bad temper that can flare at any time ... and Lord Templeton-Vane seems to be harboring some deep secrets of his own that could hold the key to uncovering the truth of it all!

 

The ultimate revelation of who was behind Rosamund's disappearance may come as quite a surprise! I had my suspicions about this person early on, but it wasn't until nearly three-fourths of the way through the book that I was able to confirm my suspicion as reality.  Raybourn gives readers plenty of suspects and motives to keep you guessing right up until the end, and I think the only reason I was able to make the educated guess that I did is because from all the mysteries I have read over the years, I have learned that it is usually the least-likely person who turns out to be the culprit (although often-times it is the reasoning behind the crime that comes as a surprise!).

Raybourn provides a superbly-plotted tale that not only tells a creative mystery set in a spooky, hidden passage-filled castle, but also continues the budding relationship between Veronica and Stoker - will they? won't they? are they just friends? are they more than friends? There's a strong passion between those characters that reminds me of Remington Steele, Moonlighting, and other female/male detective stories where the sexual/romantic tension adds some intensity to the stories.  Where will this passion lead?  I am guessing Raybourn will keep teasing us with each book that comes out!

RATING:  10 crystal dishes of rose sorbet out of 10 for crafting a 19th century mystery filled with all the excitement, passion, and twists of a present-day crime!

Nancy Drew Diaries, No. 21 - Danger at the Iron Dragon

Without a doubt, this entry into the Nancy Drew Diaries series could very well be the best one yet. While the Diaries series has definitely been a few steps above the previous incarnation of Nancy Drew (Nancy Drew, Girl Detective), the stories have been a bit hit-or-miss. There have been some really great plots, but the execution has not necessarily been the best.  But it seems Simon & Schuster is moving away from the "sabotage" trope that permeated the series for so long, and its authors have been giving us some varied types of mysteries that definitely make reading the books that much more interesting.  Plus, the length of the books have continued to be considerably more pages than when this series started, allowing the authors much more space with which to develop both the characters and the mysteries.

Danger at the Iron Dragon find Nancy, Bess, and George caught up in the between two Jiu-Jitsu academies in River Heights. When Nancy is rescued from a mugger by a young lady who just finished up at her Jiu-Jitsu class, she invites Nancy to join her the next night and learn self-defense.  Nancy is a bit reluctant, but at her father's encouraging, she takes Bess and George with her to the Iron Dragon academy, where her savior, Carly Griffith, is one of the star pupils. But it may be that her former teacher and friends at the previous academy don't like the idea of her entering competitions on behalf of a new academy.  Someone spray paints the word "TRAITOR" on the wall behind the receptionist desk and leaves a dead rat on the desk.  One of the students convinces Carly to tell Nancy the whole story about how she left the prior academy after learning it was not on the up-and-up.  Nancy agrees to investigate, not realizing that nothing in this mystery is what it seems!

And, quite frankly, that's what I love about this story.  At first, it appears someone is out to scare Carly into back out of the upcoming competition.  The likely suspect is the teacher from her previous academy, or perhaps her former friend from that academy, against whom she is going to have to compete in the upcoming tournament.  But the more Nancy digs into the mystery, the more things don't make sense.  Like the fact that the former teacher and friend have solid alibis for when the incident happens.  And when someone wearing a jacket with the logo from that other academy sets fire to the Iron Dragon, Nancy can't make sense of who it could be.  And then she discovers that another student's locker at the Iron Dragon is broken into - the locker right next to Carly's.  How did they make that mistake? What were they looking for?  With some help from an unexpected source at The River Heights Bugle (and no, it's not Ned), Nancy uncovers some clues which point her in an entirely different direction - one that connects directly with the old case her father is currently working on!

The book has more of a feel of one of the classic stories than any of the Diaries books thus far. Nancy's relationship with her father ... the fact that her mystery ultimately ties in to one that her father is working on ... the technical explanation of Jiu-Jitsu moves and history of the defensive form ... Nancy getting conked on the head (and the admission that she has been knocked out numerous times in the past!) ... the recognition that Nancy is a well-known amateur detective in River Heights that has solved countless mysteries ... it's so easy to get lost in this story, reading page after page, waiting for Nancy to see some of the things you, as the reader, have already figured out. How will Nancy get there? When will she realize who the culprit is?  And the excitement of watching her put those final clues together to solve the case!

The author does take a bit of liberty with Bess and George, and pretty much "flips" their characters.  In this story, Bess becomes completely enthralled with Jiu-Jitsu, taking more and more classes, while George decides it's not for her at all.  For fans who are used to the athletic George and the more timid Bess, this might be a bit jarring - for me, however, it was a nice change of pace to see Bess step up and show some strength, while George shows a bit of weakness.  (At least we didn't get the complete overhaul of characterization for George that the author of the previous book threw our way!)  However, both characters stay true to Nancy Drew, helping her to ferret out clues in their own ways.

And I do like the introduction of "Z" - Zhuang Ha, a young man about Nancy's age (which is still never defined in the books) with light brown skin, black hair, and a goatee, and who happens to be a junior reporter for The River Heights Bugle.  At first, you don't know what to make of him, as he pegs Nancy as Nancy Drew right away, even though she is trying to work undercover - will he reveal her true identity?  Will he betray her later in the story?  SPOILER ALERT - he doesn't betray her, and ultimately, he helps her uncover the last clue she needs by going through boxes of old newspapers - some real, old-fashioned detective work!  I honestly wouldn't mind if they keep this character around and make him a regular part of the cast, right along with Bess, George, Carson, Hannah, and Ned.

This book is definitely a further step in the right direction for Simon & Schuster, and I hope they keep the books of this caliber - if so, then perhaps we will start seeing an increase in sales and an increase in the popularity of our favorite sleuth!  (Although, on a sad note, a friend told me that this book was not offered in audio CD format as all previous books in this series have been, and that future books listed on Amazon and elsewhere do not show any audio book editions - which hopefully does not reflect the status of sales overall, and merely reflects the audio sales.)

 

One last thing - I do wonder if this story was written based on the recent success of the Cobra Kai series on Netflix (spun-off from the old Karate Kid films).   Although the mystery turns out to be completely unrelated to the two sparring academies, I did get a sense of the whole Cobra Kai competing dojos while reading this book, and have to wonder if the author was a fan of the TV show.  Just a curious question...

RATING:  9 broken padlocks out of 10 for taking Nancy Drew back to her roots with a great, old-fashioned mystery solved with lots of legwork and hands-on investigation!

Daisy Blackwood, Pilot for Hire - Vol. 2 - The Stolen Socialite

That spunky pilot Daisy Blackwood returns for a second pulp-style adventure in Ryan Howe's latest graphic novel collection, The Stolen Socialite.  Pulled from Howe's website for his high-flying heroine, https://www.daisyblackwood.com/, this second story finds Daisy searching for a friend who gets kidnapped right in front of her!  Having thoroughly enjoyed the first graphic novel, I went into this one with high expectations - and Howe certainly didn't disappoint!

From the very first page, the anticipation of things to come builds.  A woman traveling the interstate.  Mysterious men keeping watch, reporting to someone unknown. The arrival at a stately mansion. With no captions one word balloon, and four panels, Howe manages to convey an entire set-up for this latest adventure, and whets the reader's appetite to rush and get to the next page. And the next page. And the page after that. And the next ... well, you get the idea.  It's a non-stop roller coaster ride of shopping, kidnapping, car chasing, police fighting, brother arguing, high-flying fun that only Daisy Blackwood can provide.

 

Someone has kidnapped Daisy's friend, Laura Lin - and right in broad daylight.  Just as the police prepare to look for her, there are reports of numerous banks being robbed.  With the police's attention divided, Daisy realizes it will be up to her to save her friend.  And when the air pirate, Gummel, appears on the scene, well, Daisy does what she does best - hops in an airplane and takes flight to chase after the airship on which her friend is being held hostage.  A daring jump lands Daisy right on the airship (in mid-air!), and soon enough, she's fighting henchmen, freeing her friend, and facing off against the dastardly Gummel.  And just when things seem dire for our heroine, Daisy (and readers) find out that Laura is not exactly a helpless damsel in distress (which is good news for Daisy!).

Howe has an amazing style of storytelling that works so beautifully. Each page reads like a Sunday newspaper strip.  With anywhere from 3 to 5 panels, each page has a beginning, middle, and end that leads directly into the next page/strip, flowing so smoothly, it reads with ease.  And the story itself makes for a fantastically cinematic tale - I could easily see this character and these stories up on the big screen, a Saturday afternoon cliffhanger-style serial that brings you back week after week to see more.  And the art - ooooo, la-la! - while I would not call it "simplistic" (check out all four panels on page 4 to see the amount of detail Howe puts into his work), it is simple and pure, so that the reader does not get so distracted by the "pretty art" as to miss the story.  Rather, the story and art compliment each other nicely to make for an enjoyable read.  And the way he draws expression! Check out poor Officer Simms on page 30 to see what I mean!

This is a series of graphic novels that should not be missed.  Whether you are a fan of comics or just a fan of great stories, you will thoroughly enjoy Howe's brand of adventure here.  Anxiously looking forward to book three!

 

***Oh, and just for your added enjoyment, Howe throws in a special bonus short story, "Follow That Bird!"  A wealthy tycoon calls in a favor and has Daisy chasing after his bird, Polly, who flew the coup (no pun intended). The bird has overheard every deal the tycoon ever made and could be worth a lot of money to the wrong people. So, it's up to Daisy to keep that bird from falling into the wrong hands.  Easier said than done, when that bird takes her on a chase through the city, fighting off every pirate out to get their hands on the pretty bird.  From roof tops, to flag poles, to the tops of trolley cars, it's an all-out crazy chase that eventually comes to an end when they run into (literally!) a rather large cop.  The question is - whose side is he on?  It's a fun-filled romp that will definitely make you smile.

RATING:  10 pairs of comfortable shoes for shopping out of 10 for taking readers on another exciting adventure

Blackwater, Part III: The House

No matter how horrifying the events unfolding in Perdido, Alabama are, one can't help but get drawn back into the web of lies and bitter betrayals that permeate the Caskey family in the Blackwater series. Elinor Dammert made her appearance after the flood - she married Oscar Caskey and insinuated herself into the family over the wishes of Oscar's mother, Mary-Love. She bored him two children - Miriam was given to Mary-Love in exchange for ownership of the house that she gave them for their marriage, and young Frances was kept by Oscar and Elinor. James mourned the death of his wife, Genevieve, who died in that tragic car accident (or was it?) and cherished his young daughter Grace all the more.  Young John Robert DeBordenave went missing, even though Elinor knew what really happened to him just before the cornerstone was laid for the new levee. Sister married Early Haskew and moved off to Chattanooga.  Queenie saw the return of her ex-con husband, who raped her and left her with child. Despite Mary-Love's best efforts to keep utter control of her family, ever since the arrival of Elinor, the Caskey family and anyone within their reach seemed to be coming apart at the seams...

And now we come to third installment in the Blackwater series - The House.

Author Michael McDowell delves deeper into the familial relations of the Caskeys as the grow older and tensions are pulled tighter. McDowell also raises the ante on the underlying horror that is Elinor Caskey, as her true nature becomes more and more apparent.  While the main story comes across as a family drama from the Depression Era, there is a continuation of the undercurrent of dark horror connected with the Perdido River and how it is used by Elinor to perpetrate unspeakable horrors on those who dare to get in her way.  McDowell opens this book with a look at the youngest of the Caskeys - Miriam and Frances Caskey.  They may be sisters, and they may be close in age, but they could not be any more different.  Raised by the matriarch, Mary-Love, Miriam has become a mirror image of her grandmother and has adapted to her grandmother's hatred of Elinor and resentment towards Frances.  Frances, on the other hand, remains frail and meek - a young girl who only seeks the lover of her sister and grandmother, which, sadly, she will never have.  Of course, Frances has one thing going for her that Miriam and Mary-Love do not - a mother who has a supernatural connection to the mighty river that flows behind their homes.

There is a lot that takes place in the 121-pages of story this book offers up. Sister returns home for a visit, and we learn more things about her relationship with Early Haskew (which, as those who read The Levee know, was not exactly founded on the most loving of relations). Carl returns to Perdido, having been released from prison, and settles in with his wife, Queenie and their three children - which, of course, causes a lot of stress for Queenie, who ultimately turns her youngest son, Danjo, over to James to raise (since his daughter, Grace, has gone off to college) to protect him from Carl.  The Depression hits America, and it eventually makes its way to Perdido, where its affects are felt when the bank calls in the loan given to Oscar to buy all that land in the previous book - and Oscar proves he has more smarts than he is given credit for when he turns to his mother for help in paying off the loan so he can keep the property, but she turns him down out of her hatred for Elinor (something Oscar anticipated, because he already planned to get the money from James, who co-signed the loan and who was just as responsible for the debt - but his test proved to Oscar once and for all that his mother would turn her back on him just to spite his wife).  And when Queenie is nearly killed by Carl, she moves in with Elinor and Oscar to recuperate - which begins the spiral path that leads the Caskey to a major loss that will forever change the dynamic of the family...

Now, where is the horror, you may ask? Well, for starters, there is that strange closet in the front room of the second story of Oscar and Elinor's house. When Frances is made to stay in that room while Queenie recovers, Frances sees the ghost of John Robert DeBordenave, who appears alongside a strange white light that illuminates the entire room.  And when Carl takes action to try and retrieve his wife or see her die for leaving him, Elinor steps in and sees that Carl never harms anyone ever again (and in a very gruesome manner!).  Finally, when Frances becomes ill following the Carl incident, it is up to her mother to nurse her back to health using water from the Perdido River that flows just behind their house.  The same water that Elinor later uses to show Mary-Love once and for all who has the true power in the Caskey family.

The Flood may have been the introduction, and The Levee was the first act, The House definitely hits what can be described as the crescendo of this tale.  What started out as a bit slow-moving has definitely increased in intensity, as the characters evolve and continue building towards the ultimate climax of what is to come.  By this point, it's pretty clear that Elinor has a goal in mind - what's not so clear is whether she is the villain or the Caskeys are the villains.  As in real life, humanity can often be the real monster.  Carl definitely showed that, first by raping his own wife in the last book, and then by his hateful, murderous actions in this book. That is why, when he meets his fate, the reader doesn't have one ounce of sympathy for the man - quite frankly, he gets what he deserves.  But what is going to happen to the innocents of this series?  Django?  Frances? Oscar? James? Sister? Queenie?  Grace?  With three books left in the series, I am definitely getting more and more interested in where this story will ultimately take these characters.

McDowell is a mastermind with the subtle horror and suspense, and I'm honestly glad I waited until I was older to read this series, as I may not have enjoyed it as much as a teenager (when this originally came out).  

RATING:  9 glasses of cold nectar out of 10 for developing the characters in this story in such a way that the reader can't help but get drawn into their drama, both human and otherwise!