A noir fantasy—part adventure, part love story, all the way spectacularly creepy.
In an attempt at self-improvement, Amparo makes a deal with a talking cat.
After being suspended for pulling the fire alarm at school, Amparo Uribe struck out with their crush, Iolanthe. When a mysterious talking cat appears in their bedroom window promising magical assistance, they make a deal. In exchange for a drop of Amparo’s blood and their name, the cat promises to make them a better person. But instead of assisting Amparo the way they expected, the cat becomes Amparo, and Amparo is sucked into the Bright World. Amparo tries to avoid being eaten by a number of creatures (including their new master), hold tight to their memories (which are of high value in the Bright World), and figure out how to get home. The worldbuilding is magnificent; the Bright World is appropriately rich in color and full of macabre and creative details. The characters are fully developed and intriguing, some complex and full of secrets, others that appear to be the creatures of nightmares. Readers also get glimpses of Queens, where the cat has almost everyone fooled that they are the improved version of Amparo. The pacing is well done, with the mysteries of Bright World slowly revealing themselves, and the cliffhanger ending will leave readers clamoring for the sequel. Amparo is nonbinary, queer, and is cued as Latinx; Iolanthe reads as Black.
A noir fantasy—part adventure, part love story, all the way spectacularly creepy. (Graphic fiction. 14-adult)Pub Date: March 30, 2021
ISBN: 978-1-62010-857-4
Page Count: 272
Publisher: Oni Press
Review Posted Online: Dec. 21, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2021
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth.
Superman confronts racism and learns to accept himself with the help of new friends.
In this graphic-novel adaptation of the 1940s storyline entitled “The Clan of the Fiery Cross” from The Adventures of Superman radio show, readers are reintroduced to the hero who regularly saves the day but is unsure of himself and his origins. The story also focuses on Roberta Lee, a young Chinese girl. She and her family have just moved from Chinatown to Metropolis proper, and mixed feelings abound. Jimmy Olsen, Lois Lane’s colleague from the Daily Planet, takes a larger role here, befriending his new neighbors, the Lees. An altercation following racial slurs directed at Roberta’s brother after he joins the local baseball team escalates into an act of terrorism by the Klan of the Fiery Kross. What starts off as a run-of-the-mill superhero story then becomes a nuanced and personal exploration of the immigrant experience and blatant and internalized racism. Other main characters are White, but Black police inspector William Henderson fights his own battles against prejudice. Clean lines, less-saturated coloring, and character designs reminiscent of vintage comics help set the tone of this period piece while the varied panel cuts and action scenes give it a more modern sensibility. Cantonese dialogue is indicated through red speech bubbles; alien speech is in green.
A clever and timely conversation on reclaiming identity and acknowledging one’s full worth. (author’s note, bibliography) (Graphic fiction. 13-adult)Pub Date: May 12, 2020
ISBN: 978-1-77950-421-0
Page Count: 240
Publisher: DC
Review Posted Online: Feb. 29, 2020
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 15, 2020
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter.
After a Nigerian British girl goes off to an exclusive boarding school that seems to prey on less-privileged students, she discovers there might be some truth behind an urban legend.
Ife Adebola joins the Urban Achievers scholarship program at pricey, high-pressure Nithercott School, arriving shortly after a student called Leon mysteriously disappeared. Gossip says he’s a victim of the glowing-eyed Changing Man who targets the lonely, leaving them changed. Ife doesn’t believe in the myth, but amid the stresses of Nithercott’s competitive, privileged, majority-white environment, where she is constantly reminded of her state school background, she does miss her friends and family. When Malika, a fellow Black scholarship student, disappears and then returns, acting strangely devoid of personality, Ife worries the Changing Man is real—and that she’s next. Ife joins forces with classmate Bijal and Benny, Leon’s younger brother, to uncover the truth about who the Changing Man is and what he wants. Culminating in a detailed, gory, and extended climactic battle, this verbose thriller tempts readers with a nefarious mystery involving racial and class-based violence but never quite lives up to its potential and peters out thematically by its explosive finale. However, this debut offers highly visually evocative and eerie descriptions of characters and events and will appeal to fans of creature horror, social commentary, and dark academia.
A descriptive and atmospheric paranormal social thriller that could be a bit tighter. (Thriller. 14-18)Pub Date: Sept. 26, 2023
ISBN: 9781250868138
Page Count: 384
Publisher: Feiwel & Friends
Review Posted Online: June 8, 2023
Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 1, 2023
BOOK REVIEW
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