REVIEW: "The Unwritten: Tommy Taylor and the Ship That Sank Twice" by Mike Carey

Disclaimer: I received an e-galley of this book in exchange for a fair and honest review.

Release Date: September 18, 2013

Type: Graphic Novel, Series, Origin Story, Meta, Writing, Magic, Babies, Oh my!

About the Book: This exciting, original graphic novel explores the world of the Tommy Taylor novels in a visceral and direct way and is a great entry point for new readers.

Twenty-five years ago Tom’s father, Wilson Taylor, devised his subversive literary masterpiece. Now the blueprint of how a father gave his son vast power in order to accomplish a greater scheme is revealed. Partly told through Wilson’s own journal entries, juxtaposed with Tommy’s swashbuckling deep sea adventures with his trusty companions Peter and Sue, the story is at once a prequel and a parallel story to the ongoing series. [From Goodreads.com]

My Review: This book made me have faith in the Unwritten series again. I loved the first couple volumes, then it seemed to fall in my esteem.. but the previous volume and this one really made me excited about the series. Stuff is happening again! And in this volume specifically, we get to know more about Tommy Taylor's beginnings - both the character and the man. And while Tommy Taylor (the man)'s beginnings were quite fascinating, the font style chosen was difficult to read, especially on an electronic copy, at least in my opinion. Also, I found Tommy Taylor (the character)'s origins to be much more enjoyable to read. And only part of that was because the font was a better choice.

The art was very well done in this volume - and you could definitely see a difference between the world of Tommy Taylor within the book series and Tommy Taylor in the real world. The book world was almost comforting, and the real world felt a bit more harsh - which I found to be an excellent choice and well played. Over all, I can't wait to continue with this series. I'm sad that I have caught up now, because that means I'll actually have to wait between volumes. Sigh.

Cover Lovin': I really liked this cover, and I think it fits in incredibly well with the rest of the series. It also has a Harry Potter-like feel, which definitely makes sense considering the subject matter and history of the series.

Recommendation: For fans of graphic novels. If you love graphic novels, meta fiction, and Harry Potter, you will definitely want to check out the Unwritten Series. Fantastical beasts and wonderous stories await you, if you're up to the challenge.

Final Rating: FOUR out of FIVE stars (4/5). Definitely worth a read, but only if you are already very familiar with the Unwritten series. As I mentioned above, this volume has done much to restore my faith in the Unwritten comics, and I cannot wait for the next volume to see what they come up with next!

Happy Reading!
~!~ Amanda ~!~

Review will be cross-posted to Goodreads.com and Netgalley.com.

Review of "Dead Men's Boots" by Mike Carey (Felix Castor series)

Well! I just finished "Dead Men's Boots" by Mike Carey, part of his Felix Castor series, and wow! This is definitely a book everyone interested in science fiction/fantasy should read. If you like Jim Butcher, you'll like him!

From the book jacket: " Castor's fellow exorcist John Gittings made several calls asking for help before his untimely demise, and if Castor had answered them, his friend might still be alive. So when a smooth -talking lawyer comes out of nowhere to claim the corpse, Castor owes it to John's unhappy ghost and even more miserable widow to help out. But life is rarely that simple for Felix Castor. A brutal murder in King's Cross bears all the hallmarks of a long-dead American serial killer, and it takes more good sense than Castor owns not to get involved. He's also fighting a losing battle for the body - if not the soul - of his demon-possessed friend, Rafi, and can't shake the feeling that his three problems might be related. With the help of the succubus Juliet and paranoid zombie data-fence Nicky Heath, Castor might have a chance of fitting the pieces together before someone drops him down an elevator shaft or rips his throat out. Or not... "

Well, there you go. Oh, you mean you wanted my thoughts on the book? Oh! Oh, okay, well then.. I quite enjoyed this book. But it's not the first book in the series, and if I hadn't been busy with school work, I would have gotten the others from the library and read those first. But despite it not being the first in the series, it was very easy to get into, and things were explained enough that I got it all fairly quickly. As for the book itself, Carey is very descriptive, and in fact, has problem the best description of a knee to a man's happy place I've ever read. "... I sidestepped it and kicked him in the crotch. He folded in on his pain, his universe shrinking to a few cubic inches of intimate agony" (73). As morbid as it may be, I couldn't help but snicker a little at that line.

The story itself has a very interesting premise - in the not-too-distant past, ghosts started rising in numbers people would never have guessed, and people with the exorcist gene, such as Castor, have their work cut out for them. As I said, Felix Castor is a very Harry Dresden-esque character, and he's someone you can connect with. And if not.. well, you want to know what trouble he gets into, and how he manages to get himself out of it, if he does. I loved the beginning hook, definitely caught my attention! "I don't do funerals all that often, and when I do, I prefer to be either falling-down drunk or dosed up on some herbal fuzz-bomb..." (1).

As for an official raiting, I would give this a FOUR out of FIVE. I liked it, I do recommend it, and I plan to find the other books in the series and give them a read as well.

Happy Reading everyone, and thank you to Marta Acosta for the book!!

Image courtesy of amazon.com