Jupiter Jet and the Forgotten Radio - Volume 2 of the Jupiter Jet Graphic Novels

When I read the first Jupiter Jet comic book mini-series by Jason Inman and Ashley Victoria Robinson, I assumed that was it.  A lot of independent comics come out and hint at more stories to come, but they never materialize.  That first mini-series was a great read, with thoroughly enjoyable characters and beautiful art by Ben Matsuya, and so when Action Lab comics offered up a graphic novel containing a second story with 17-year old Jacky Johnson and her jet-pack, I snatched it up right away.

Jupiter Jet and the Forgotten Radio picks up about a year after the end of the first story, in which Jacky found a jet pack her father had built and used to it to become the hero, Jupiter Jet.  With the help of her younger brother, Chuck, and her uncle Gabriel (her father's brother), she defeated the Praetor that was maliciously using the people of this planet.  And, oh yeah - most of those people think they are still living on Earth, but as Jacky finds out, they are not!  They are on a moon of Jupiter (hence, the name Jupiter Jet).  So now, a  year later, Jacky (or Jupiter Jet) has advanced her suit so she can fly in space, and as the story opens, she is fending off a robot menace on the edges of the atmosphere.  But what starts as a a minor little mission is only a harbinger of the strange things to come...

Inman and Robinson give readers another fantastical tale of adventure and mystery, starting off with the totally unexpected arrival of Jacky and Chuck's mother!  Readers learn pretty much nothing about their mother in the first story, so her appearance here makes for a great surprise - but, as with any good tale, nothing is as it truly seems.  When Jacky takes off with her mother into space (without so much as a word to her brother or uncle), she is over the moon (literally and figuratively!) to be heading out into the unknown with the woman who has been absent for most of her life.  But upon arrival at the spaceship to which her mother is taking her, Jacky is shocked to find a Praetor waiting for them!  Is this one friend or foe?  Her mother tells her the other woman is a friend - but can Jacky ever really trust an alien whose race has kept her people enslaved for so long?

Something really enjoyable about this story is that not only do we get to see Jacky grow into her role as Jupiter Jet and what that means, but we also see little Chuck realize his dream to be Jupiter Jet's sidekick (in a rather humorous way) when he takes on the role of Saturn Scout!  He has the help of his friend Neil, as well as a long-forgotten radio that he and Neil find in his father's invisible lab (and which radio happens to be programmed with its own artificial intelligence and a voice that sounds remarkably like Jacky and Chuck's father), and he manages to stop a jewel thief named Squeak.  

Meanwhile, Jacky is learning more about her mother when they land on a planet named Justus, which has been the home of Jacky's mother for a number of of years (and which also happens to be over 800 million miles away from Jacky's home world of Europa).  It is here that Jacky's true strength as a hero comes to light, for she must choose between helping the enslaved people of the planet or side with her mother, who seems to have fallen in line with the Praetors.  No matter what choice she makes, someone is going to lose - and when the Praetor her mother has been helping decides to head back to Europa to gather those people for her own use, Jacky must find a way to return to her own world that is so far away!

There's plenty of action, plenty of adventure, and plenty of heart-warming moments throughout the tale, making it one heck of a great read.  Inman and Robinson definitely know how to tell a story with lots of heart, because no matter how many grand space adventures there are, this is still a story about family and exactly what that means for each of the characters.  Oh, and there are definitely some indications that there are more stories yet to be told - the fact that Earth itself is barren, yet someone with a glowing blue arm remains on Earth and knows he and Jupiter Jet will come face to face one day ... the fact that Chuck is still holding onto that radio that his father had instilled with an artificial intelligence ... the fact that the female Praetor is still out there somewhere ... and, oh yeah, the fact that the last page features four preview panels and a blurb saying "Jacky Johnson Will Return in Jupiter Jet Volume 3!"

So, what are you waiting for - get out there and get this book already!

RATING:  9 old potato pancake recipes out of 10 for keeping comic books exactly what they should be - FUN!

Newbury & Hobbes: The Undying - a Titan Comics mini-series

Newbury & Hobbes
"The Undying"
Publisher: Titan Comics
Publication Date (Sept. 2018 - Dec. 2018)
ISBN - 9781782760399**
**For Trade Paperback, Release Date April 2019
96 pages of story and arg

For those who remember the old Crossgen comic book series, Ruse, well, let me tell you - this is the series for you! And what surprised me about this series was that, while this is the first comic book mini-series about these characters, it is by far not the first story about them! Apparently author George Mann has used this opportunity to bring his fictional characters to life in comic form - but prior to this, Sir Maurice Newbury and Veronica Hobbes have been solving crime in the steampunk world in five different novels! So, if this small taste of their world isn't enough, you can go to B&N, Books-A-Million, or Amazon and find more of their adventures...

Newbury is a single-minded detective in a steampunk London, while Hobbes is his capable, beautiful, and patient assistant who is anything but a damsel in distress. Where Newbury goes, Hobbes goes, even if that means right into the heart of danger. "The Undying" opens with Newbury and Hobbes fighting a group of men wearing skull masks; but, upon defeating them, they discover the villains are not fully men - they are cyborgs, part-man and part-machine. Leaving the killing machines to the police, Newbury and Hobbes return home to discover a new case awaits them.

Chief Inspector Charles Bainbridge, one of Newbury's dearest friends, is waiting for them. It seems one Professor Archibald Angelchrist has discovered a rather unusual cadaver that requires Newbury's expertise. And thus begins this latest adventure for the daring duo, who find that the cadaver is a monstrous experiment of the late Dr. Aubrey Knox - a villain that Newbury and Hobbes have faced before, but eventually saw his demise. Or did they?

The men(?) in skull masks who sit silently in their jail cell suddenly start ticking, and within seconds, they explode, taking about a portion of the prison, as well as the prisoners and policemen therein.  Meanwhile, Newbury, Hobbes, Bainbridge, and the rest find a secret laboratory belonging to Knox that not only leads them to discover that the one cadaver was not his only experiment, but to find an entire village of those creatures living in the bowels of the sewer system and tunnels beneath London!

The story begins to pick up speed at this point, as Newbury is taken to a meeting with the Queen, who is not only aware of Knox's vile experiments, but it turns out she was a part of the scheme. And now, her involvement is threatened to be exposed, so she demands that Newbury find Knox, if he's still alive, and put an end to his plans once and for all before the truth is revealed. Having no choice, Newbury and Hobbes set out to locate Knox - and when a group of people throughout London suddenly re-appear with bombs embedded in their chests, the race against time (literally!) begins.

Mann knows how to write a really good mystery, and artist Dan Boultwood's art definitely compliments the story. The characters are unique and fun, the villain dastardly, and the supporting cast anything but stereotypical. The world in which these characters are set is not overly mechanical (as some steampunk tales seem to go), and while it is dark and seedy (what with vile doctors conducting horrific experiments on people, monster living under the streets, half-man / half-mechanical henchmen, and a queen who is not quite as innocent as she should be), Mann manages to interject enough natural humor into the characters' dialogue and situations that it keeps the tale from becoming brooding.

I bought the series because of its clear comparison with Crossgen's Ruse, and because I love a good mystery; however, the writing and the characters definitely have me interested in checking out some of Mann's novels the next time I'm at Barnes & Noble. I hope Titan Comics and Mann have plans to offer up more mini-series with these characters, as I will be first in line to buy them if they do!

RATING:  10 boarded-up theaters out of 10 for piquing, then keeping, my interest with a steampunk mystery that is well-written and perfectly drawn.

Finishing School, Book the Fourth - Manners & Mutiny

The girls of Mademoiselle Geraldine's floating finishing school have reached their final year of lessons, and what a year it is!

Having survived tech week for the play I was directing, I finally have the chance to settle down and read some more, and this is one I've been waiting to read.  It's bittersweet, as it is the last in the series, so it's hard to pick it up knowing once I finish it, there won't be any more - yet, at the same time, I couldn't wait to pick it up, because I wanted to see how everything would reach a conclusion.  Author Gail Carriger certainly did not disappoint!

Sophronia and her friends, Dimity and Agatha, are back in school, but the changes are obvious.  Their fourth conspirator, Sighead, has left the school to pursue a future in her clan back in Scotland.  And Soap - - the young sootie who seems to always be in Sophronia's heart and mind - - is now living as a werewolf after having nearly died at the end of the last book.  But there is no time for wistful thoughts or heart-felt longings in Manners & Mutiny, for there is a New Year's ball to attend!  The school is all aflutter over the fact that they will be mixing it up with the boys from Bunson and Lacroix's Polytechnique.  Only, this once a year event turns into a catalyst that leads Sophronia and her friends on their final confrontation with the ever-increasing threat of the Picklemen.

The action in this novel builds slowly, with the first third of the book focused more on reminding readers that you can't always trust everyone, and that those you thought you can't trust might not be everything they seem.  It's not until the Picklemen's ultimate plan is revealed (SPOILER - they intend to take over the dirigible that hosts Mademoiselle Geraldine's school!) that the action intensifies.  Sophronia and her friends must part ways in order to effectively stop the machinations of this evil group, who are hell-bent on overtaking the government and using the mechanicals to do it.  How the finishing school fits into that plan is something else entirely, and Sophronia finds herself on a lone wolf mission to stop them before it's too late!

While Soap does not appear much in the book, fans of this lovable character will be pleased with the ultimate outcome of his storyline.  Sophronia's nemesis, Monique, returns as well, although not quite as expected.  In fact, there are several characters who will surprise readers in this finale, and while it may be somewhat cheesy, I absolutely loved the ending - it was everything I could have hoped for in this series and wrapped up the loose ends, while leaving room for more stories if Carriger ever decides to return to tell more.

I may not be a huge steampunk fan, I can honestly say that this series gave me something to think about when it comes to that genre.  Would definitely recommend this series for anyone who enjoys the supernatural or steampunk or a bit of espionage games (or all three!).

RATING:  8 exploding chickens out of 10 for finishing these girls off in style!

Finishing School, Book the Third - Waistcoats & Weaponry

I never imagined how much I could like a book that is deemed "steampunk," but this series literally has me turning page after page, not wanting to put the book down, yet, at the same time, not wanting it to end.  The first two books in the Finishing School series were good, and they firmly established these lively, adventurous characters - Sophronia, Dimity, Sidheag, Soap, and so many others.  The author, Gail Carriger, creates such vibrant personalities for each one, that they are all unforgettable.

Waistcoats & Weaponry picks up some time after the conclusion of the previous book.  Lessons continue on Mademoiselle Geraldine's floating finishing school.  Only, this time around, the school only plays a very small portion of the story, as Sighead and her family (or should I say, "pack") take centerstage.  The Kingair pack is in trouble, having committed treason to the British empire.  Sidheag is afraid of what will happen to her pack, and although she is not a werewolf, these are her uncles, and she can't leave them to their fate.  Sophronia, our ever true heroine, along with her trusty sidekick Dimity, as well as that sly little sootie, Soap, and the brazen Lord Mersey, set off to help her get to Scotland to be with her family.

In true steampunk/supernatural style, the gang not only has to keep up the facade for the engagement party of Sophronia's brother, but they deal with the surprise visit of Sighead and her two werewolf protectors, malfunctioning mechanicals, a suspiciously empty train, and a dirigible of Picklemen that keeps appearing for unknown reasons.  Then, there's the ever-present plot involving those pesky transmitters - are they part of a villainous plot of the vampires?  Or are they part of something even grander and more sinister that could spell doom not just for the upper class of society, but for all of Europe?

This is adventure in grand style, and with Carriger's typical humor, fine manners, and deadly fights (all the while maintaining all lady-like modesty), it is a true treat to read.  The story moves fast, so the 298 pages was almost like nothing.  As the characters age in the story, they also mature and change.  Sophronia fights to figure out her feelings for both Lord Mersey and Soap - the first insufferable but of equal class, the second more understanding yet beneath her station.  Dimity struggles to overcome her fear of the world of spies and intelligencers into which she has been thrust, still wanting more than anything to marry well and settle down.  Soap takes chance after chance in not only letting his feelings for Sophronia be known, but also revealing his desire to move up in station and put himself in a position where he could win Sophronia's heart in normal society.  And Lord Mersey - - well, let's just say that some people just can't help but be who and what they are.

Since the book is written for young adults, Carriger maintains a certain level of modesty - for when the werewolves shift back to human, as can be expected, they are naked.  But the author never deals in much detail (although there is certainly plenty of innuendo and insinuation).  And while there is certainly some violence (gun fights, hand-to-hand combat, train destruction), the gruesome details are kept to a minimum - and a certain werewolf situation at the end occurs off-screen (as the main characters do not witness it, so neither does the reader).

This is definitely a series I would recommend - it's not a mystery, per se, but it is filled with intrigue, mystery, and some soap opera elements mixed with humor that will hold a reader's interest and make a reader smile.

RATING:  9 steel-bladed fans out of 10 for proving that fashion accessories can be useful, as well as deadly.

Finishing School, Book the Second - Curtsies & Conspiracies

Vampires...werewolves...mechanical creatures...intrigue and machinations...

Gail Carriger brings Sophronia Temminnick back for a second adventure in the next book of the Finishing School series, Curtsies & Conspiracies.  I picked up this series some time ago because of its setting (19th century Europe), its characters (c'mon, that's a given - werewolves and vampires!), and its premise (a girls' finishing school that is secretly training its students to become spies).  This combination certainly piqued my interest, and now having finished the second book, I am definitely glad I bought them.

Carriger has created some delightful characters in this series.  Sophronia is a curious, strong-willed Nancy Drew-style young lady who never forgets her manners or modesty, even when climbing along the balconies on the outside of the massive airship that houses the school or facing down a hive of vampires. Dimity is her roommate and friend, who is timid (from which her name is undoubtedly derived) and very Bess Marvin-like in nature - she's unsure of the whole spy business, but she's definitely up for a new dress or sparkling accessories.  There's Sidheag, a tall, gangly Scot who is very tomboyish and dislikes all manner of femininity.  And there's Agatha, the follower who manages to keep all of the others in check.

And what would any good series be without a good foil?  Well, this one has a doozy in Monique de Pelouse, the belle of the ball (or so she thinks).  She has been held back at the school and demoted to the first class - - yet, she holds her head high and maintains an air of superiority over all those around her.  Sophronia sees through the phoniness, but in this book, she discovers that Monique is a lot more than what she seems.

In this steampunk world, there are conspiracies everywhere, and Sophronia stumbles upon one involving a crystalline guidance valve that could be used to allow ships to fly higher into the aetherosphere.  It seems there a number of groups after the valve - the vampires, the picklemen, as well as others.  What Sophronia can't figure out is how her school is drawn into this and why they are suddenly taking a trip to London to see the latest in dirigibles, which the creator claims can climb into the aetherosphere and reach its destinations faster than any other ship.

And all the while, Sophronia must deal with classes, an ingenious test of all her learned skills to date, and the boarding of a group of boys from the rival school for evil male geniuses - one of whom takes a liking to Sophronia and won't take no for an answer.

This series really does have it all.  It's fun reading, it's fast paced, and it has tons of believable characters with real reactions and dialogue.  I would have to say by far, my favorite is the young sootie, "Soap," who works in the engine room and who has developed over these first two books a distinct crush on Sophronia.  Carringer is slowly building the relationship between these two, and it will be interesting to see where she ultimately takes it.

The series is definitely more about the intrigue and the espionage and conspiracies, but there is a certain element of mystery to it that would appeal to readers of that genre as well.  I hope Carriger keeps this series going for a while.

RATING:  9 dangerous plots out of 10 for proving that a book series about a world with vampires and werewolves does not have to be sparkly!