ODESSA

A bloody story of resilience and redemption in the middle of a post-apocalyptic gang war.

Eight years ago the earthquakes of the Great Disaster hadn’t yet reduced the world to rubble and Ginny’s mom, Odessa, hadn’t left their family. Now 17 and sick of holding her family together, Ginny sees the arrival of a mysterious package from Odessa as a sign that it’s time to leave home and find her mom. Ginny means to go solo, but her two squabbling younger brothers tag along. When the trio reaches their maternal uncle in San Francisco, pursued by a pissed-off motorcycle gang, they find a menacing, corrupt city rocked by a gang war. As Ginny searches, she’s caught in a web of murder and betrayal. Rendered in a deceptively innocent combination of black and bubble-gum pink, panels are expertly placed to use linework and sequencing to strengthen the emotion and humor of the story. Subtle and exaggerated facial expressions add nuance to the intricate plot that unwinds with each new, surprising piece of the puzzle. Snarky humor, mostly from the more cartoonishly rendered younger brothers, provides a counterpoint to the action-packed graphic violence and gore. This title leaves a pile of bloody bodies and unanswered questions as the siblings continue east looking for answers and safety. Ginny and her brothers are cued as biracial (Vietnamese and White); there is ethnic diversity in the supporting cast.

A gritty, raw page-turner.