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Knights Club: The Bands of Bravery – Shuky

This middle-grade graphic novel series makes YOU the valiant hero of a fantasy quest—pick your panel, find items, gain abilities, solve puzzles, and play through new storylines again and again!

The year is 1012 in the kingdom of the good king Louis the Little. Three brothers dream of joining the fearless Knights of the Royal Order—and one of these brothers is you! On your adventure you will journey through snowy mountains, mysterious lakes, and haunted forests in search of the coveted bracelets of bravery. You must solve riddles, discover hidden passages, and gather magical objects. Success depends on the choices you make, because the hero is none other than you!

My thanks to Quirk Books for a review copy which I received through Netgalley

A book where you control the story. Decisions have to be made by the reader and this will dictate how the tale unfolds. Multiple possibilities so numerous potential story paths and this means the reader can play their way through Knights Club many, many times.

Yes I did say “play their way” as this book is more about playing the adventure than seeing how the author wants the tale to unfold. Knights Club is aimed at Middle Grade readers so I would suggest readers from age 8 to 12 will probably get the most fun here.

The story features a challenge…you are one of three brothers who want to become a knight. Take your chosen hero through a series of challenges and puzzles to make his dream come true.

I had a digital copy so I sat my eldest bookworm (11 years old) down. Handed him my laptop at the first page of the book and let him work out the story for himself. A great way to ensure a few hours of peace and quiet folks!

I got updates as he played. There were lots of giggles and snickering laughs. A few perplexed sighs as he tried to predict the decision he thought he SHOULD take to get the right solution (rather than the obvious path he WANTED to take). That’s not how these books work though!

The first read took about 30 mins and then he seemed to have messed up as the story ended (unsuccessfully). Straight back in for another go and son lasted longer and seemed to have a very different tale the second time around. NB he did later confirm he deliberately took different choices as he had failed the first read…

Knights Club kept him entertained for several evenings before I prompted him for some feedback to help with this review. “Great pictures” was noted and I agreed, the artwork is perfect for the target age and have lots of visual humour to support the story. “Fun to flick back and forward to keep the story going” was another observation. Clearly the unusual approach to reading was a hit. To clarify: The story begins at part 1 but may then direct you to page 74, choose between 142 or 44 and then from there you go to page 91. Some of the choices the reader faces are drawn into the artwork so a crossroads sign may give two visual clues where the story leads next.

All good fun and it kept my son highly entertained.

Not due to be released until September but this places it nicely into the “out in time for Christmas” category. Knights Club would make an excellent and unexpected pick-up idea for a reader who may want a bit more input into their latest read.

Knights Club is published by Quirk Books and releases on 4 September 2018 in paperback and digital format. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Knights-Club-Bands-Bravery-Quests/dp/1683690559/ref=tmm_pap_swatch_0?_encoding=UTF8&qid=1532813899&sr=1-1

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June 17

Rise of the Superheroes – David Tosh

They Could Be Heroes

Rise of the Superheroes–Greatest Silver Age Comic Books and Characters is a visual and entertaining adventure exploring one of the most popular and significant eras of comic book history. From 1956 to 1970, the era gave us Spider-Man, The Avengers, X-Men, The Incredible Hulk, Iron Man and a flurry of other unforgettable and formidable characters.

The Silver Age redefined and immortalized superheroes as the massive pop culture titans they are today.

Lavishly illustrated with comic book covers and original art, the book chronicles:

The new frontier of DC Comics, with a revamped Batman, Superman and Wonder Woman, and new characters including Hawkman
Marvel’s new comics featuring Thor and The Fantastic Four
The pop art years that saw Batman’s “new look” and the TV series
Independent characters, including Fat Fury and T.H.U.N.D.E.R. Agents
Spotlights new and re-imagined superheroes, like Wonder Woman, who have become central to modern pop culture
Includes values of these comics, which are popular with collectors

Thanks to the Silver Age, superheroes are bigger and badder than ever.

My thanks to Quirk Books for the chance to review this book.

It seems that Superheroes are cool again. Marvel comics have set a high bar in our cinemas over the last 10 years as they build up a cinematic universe beyond the wildest dreams of the more mature comic book fan.

DC Comics may not have fared quite so well in the cinema (though Wonder Woman was a notable exception), however, they are ruling the small screen. From Smallville to The Flash, Arrow and Supergirl they are showing the way forward at producing hours of fan pleasing content which keeps the comic book readers hooked.

But before the heroes had their rise to fame on our homes and in movie theatres they first had to Rise from anonymity in the original comic books. Why should Spider-Man, The Flash and Thor have been the successful stories while Luke Cage, Cloak and Dagger or Hawkman maybe just didn’t capture the public imagination in the same way?

In the gorgeously illustrated Rise of the Superheroes David Tosh looks at the Silver Age of comic books and charts how the action heroes of their day became the megastar crowd pullers that they are today. By focusing on the events of the time, the stories which became character defining and by drawing on his own observations a story is built around the names we know so well.

I have been reading comic books since I was about 8 or 9 years old – that is over 30 years of being a Spidey fan (long before it was cool to be a comic nerd). I love a book which will tell the back stories, look at pivotal moments in the evolution of characters and (one day) I may even understand why there are so many different X-men groups and factions! This book is very much aimed at readers like me – fans who want to read more about their favourite characters and possibly even learn about the heroes which feature in comics I don’t read.

Let’s face it – there are just too many comics out there to try to read them all. Some just don’t get an opportunity to shine and some titles just don’t get picked up by readers for reasons which will seem ridiculous to other readers. For example I have never read a Green Lantern comic, nor have I ever been a fan of Iron Man. Hulk is great (but not when he is in space) and the X-Men are just too complicated to know where to start. But I still claim to love comic books and I use books like Rise of the Superheroes to try to make me WANT to read Iron Man or Green Lantern.

David Tosh has done a good job of making his book very accessible. I was surprised that it was not 100% factual and that some of her personal opinions and observations creep in – unusual for this type of reference book. But his writing style is easy to pick up and put down (we are in coffee-table book country here) and I loved the time I spent pouring over the pages.

If you are discovering comics through the recent influx of film and tv shows then books like Rise of the Superheroes are a great way to understand better where the characters first found their feet. Seasoned readers may find this one a little light on new information, but that does not stop it being a fun read.

Rise of the Superheroes is published by Quirk Books and you can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Rise-Superheroes-Greatest-Silver-Characters/dp/1440248168/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1529270776&sr=8-1&keywords=rise+of+the+superheroes

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May 20

Paperbacks From Hell: The Twisted History of ’70s and ’80s Horror Fiction – Grady Hendrix

An affectionate, nostalgic, and unflinchingly funny celebration of the horror fiction boom of the 1970s and ’80s

Take a tour through the horror paperback novels of two iconic decades . . . if you dare.

Page through dozens and dozens of amazing book covers featuring well-dressed skeletons, evil dolls, and knife-wielding killer crabs! Read shocking plot summaries that invoke devil worship, satanic children, and haunted real estate!

Horror author and vintage paperback book collector Grady Hendrix offers killer commentary and witty insight on these trashy thrillers that tried so hard to be the next Exorcist or Rosemary’s Baby. Complete with story summaries and artist and author profiles, this unforgettable volume dishes on familiar authors like V. C. Andrews and R. L. Stine, plus many more who’ve faded into obscurity.

Also included are recommendations for which of these forgotten treasures are well worth your reading time and which should stay buried.

My thanks to Quirk Books for my review copy which I received through Netgalley

It is 2018 and if you were asked to name a few horror writers then it is likely that the name Stephen King would quickly be mentioned, perhaps James Herbert, Ramsey Campbell, Clive Barker and Richard Laymon – authors with healthy catalogues of work which fill the shelves in the Horror section of your local bookshop.

If you were to take a trip to a good second-hand bookshop and look for the Horror books then you are likely to find shelves packed with virtually unknown names. Book covers would feature inventive pictures of blood, fangs, monsters and demons, churches and spooky houses and each would be trying to give the impression that each is more terrifying than the last. For a horror fan this could be the chance for a little shelf-browsing fun. For Grady Hendrix I get the impression it would be one of the best ways to spend a day.

Paperbacks From Hell will take readers on a journey of discovery through the 1970’s and 1980’s as Grady Hendrix tracks the books, the authors and publishers and the stories which would shape horror writing for decades. Although the focus is very much on the 70’s and 80’s there is discussion around earlier books and as the book draws to a close there is a sign of where the genre was heading as the 90’s approached.

Readers will be familiar with many of the more popular titles: for example, reading about Rosemary’s Baby was fun – discovering how it gave life (no pun intended) to swathes of other imaginative tales was utterly fascinating.

Some of the titles which are discussed sound absolutely bonkers and kudos to the author for sticking with them! There are dozens and dozens of books referenced in Paperbacks From Hell. Grady Hendrix writes with humour and obvious affection for the source material. He will provide plot synopsis and make observational judgements on whether the “surprise” horrific developments in these horror tales can carry the story.

Pages are filled with pictures of book covers. The subtle, the shocking, the classics and the over-the-top. Hendrix does not just focus on the stories and their authors but the artists get to share the limelight and we see their body of work. Also under discussion are the publishers who determined which books would fill the shelves and display stands across the lands. The social commentary of these decades shows how the narrative in horror tales changed and evolved over 20 years.

If you consider yourself a fan of horror stories then this is a brilliant read. Not only do you see how the books you loved have come to be but you will also identify books you will feel you must track down to read. Really enjoyed the time I spent with Paperbacks From Hell and the paperback (which I spotted in my local bookshop last week) is gorgeous.

Paperbacks From Hell is published by Quirk Books and available in Paperback, Audio and Digital versions. You can order a copy here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Paperbacks-Hell-Twisted-History-Fiction-ebook/dp/B01NBO5GIH/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1526808922&sr=8-2&keywords=paperbacks+from+hell

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June 1

The Legion of Regrettable Super Villains – Jon Morris

Every hero needs a villain. But not all villains are dangerous some are incompetent, comical, or just weird. In his follow-up to The League of Regrettable Superheroes, author Jon Morris presents over a hundred of the strangest, most stupefying supervillains to ever see print in comics. Meet D-list rogues like Brickbat (choice of weapon: poisonous bricks), Robbing Hood (steals from the poor to give to the rich), Swarm (a crook made of bees; Nazi bees), and many more. Drawing on the entire history of the medium, The Legion of Regrettable Supervillains affectionately and hilariously profiles oddball criminals from the history of comics.

My thanks to Jamie at Quirk Books for my review copy.

Factual books talking about fictional stories are brilliant distractions. I have shelves of books which break down all 36 seasons of Doctor Who. Star Trek is also well represented as are volumes on Spider-man characters, every hero ever to be an Avenger, Batman through the years and even a Thunderbirds anthology. So when Quirk Books kindly let me review The Legion of Regrettable Super Villains I was like a kid in a sweet shop (or a reader locked in a bookshop).

Jon Morris has trawled the archives of comic book history to find us some of the more obscure villains to grace the pages of comic books. Spanning tales from the Golden Age (where there were a plethora of characters I confess I had never heard of). To modern times where there were signs some creative teams were rushing toward deadline and the inspiration-fairy had left them in the lurch. There are some weird and wonderful characters to read about and you can decide for yourself if you feel that some may be due a revival.

As with any of these collections I was instinctively drawn to the characters and stories that I recognised (and there were several). By comparing my own opinion on some of the Regrettable Villains against that of the author I could benchmark how fairly, or not, they are being treated. Overall I was very pleased with the outcome of that experiment as I seemed to be quite aligned to the author’s way of thinking for the most part.

Each Villain gets introduced, some of their history explained or the reason for their appearance outlined and we hear who they were pitted against. There are some dark and twisted creative minds at work in the comic book world, some of these crooks are seriously disturbed and I am not sure some of the stories would be agreed by editors these days.

Regrettable Super Villains isn’t the type of book I can sit and pour through in a single sitting or two. It was enjoyed over a few weeks as I dipped in and out of it and jumped from section to section. For a comic book fan it was sheer browsing pleasure, we need more books like this…these oddball weirdos must never be forgotten.

The Legion of Regrettable Super Villains is published by Quirk Books and is available now in gorgeous hardback and a digital version too. Copies ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Legion-Regrettable-Supervillains-Oddball-Criminals/dp/1594749329/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1495404300&sr=1-1&keywords=league+of+regrettable+supervillains

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December 11

Grady Hendrix: Why The 80’s Were The Best Decade Ever

WHY THE 80’S WERE THE BEST DECADE EVER

I’m sorry if you were born after 1987, but you have to accept facts: the Eighties were the best decade to grow up in, period. If you refuse to take my word for it, suck on these factoids, spazmoid.

METAL WAS FUN – Metallica came along in the middle of the decade and sowed the seeds for heavy metal to get ugly and self-important, but if you can ignore their baleful influence then you’ve got a decade when bands like Bon Jovi were “Livin’ on a Prayer,” Van Halen were “Hot for Teacher,” and Guns n’ Roses were living in “Paradise City.” No one wanted to change the world, save the children, or whine about their heartbreak, they just wanted to get drunk and party.

ARCADES WERE THE ORIGINAL SOCIAL MEDIA – the internet has turned us into a nation of trolls, posting racist YouTube comments, clogging up Facebook with pictures of our cats, and Tweeting what we had for breakfast. We’re a bunch of shut-ins who overshare online but turn into stuttering, stammering trainwrecks when confronted with meatspace interaction. Even worse, online gaming allows drunk dudes in their boxer shorts to run up credit card debt playing video poker. In the Eighties, if you wanted to play games, you went to the arcade where you interacted with actual human beings, some of whom were real live girls. Also, you had to put on pants.

SO MANY LADIES WERE MAKING SO MUCH AWESOME MUSIC – yes, there are women in music today, but the Eighties spawned many more unique flavors of Pop Diva. Whether it was the butch k.d. lang, the androgynous Annie Lennox, the hard rocking Joan Jett, the nonsense-burbling Björk, hip hop soul sister Queen Latifah, or the Queen herself, Whitney Houston, there was someone for everyone. Are you a goth? Have Siouxsie Sioux. An art nerd? Try Laurie Anderson. You like to sit in your room and light candles and cry? Tracy Chapman has got you covered. And let’s not forget that Miley Cyrus, Britney Spears, and Lady Gaga are all just pale imitations of Madonna.

NO PHONES ALLOWED – every time I see some asshole walking down the street playing on his iPhone I pray that he’ll keep strolling right out into traffic, because mobile phones make us lame. But in the Eighties, no one ever knew what time it was because only dorks wore watches, and you could actually argue about ridiculous things for hours without some delicate flower whipping out their Steve Jobs ouija board and delivering an atmosphere-crushing answer from Wikipedia. Thanks for ruining our banter, jerkwad.

MAIL WAS BETTER THAN EMAIL – all email does is deliver herbal viagra ads and semi-literate, punctuation-free screeds from your dad faster than ever before. In the Eighties, the highlight of your day was when the mail arrived, bearing catalogues full of two-seater hovercrafts from Hammacher Schlemmer and the Sharper Image, mix tapes from your best friend, and, if you were lucky, actual love letters written with thought, care, and sometimes a lipstick coated kiss next to the signature. I’ll take that any day over LiVE Russian BRIDES WHo Want To MARYY Yoiu NOWWW.

NO ONE CARED WHERE YOU WERE – today’s children are tagged and tracked every second of their lives, with even the most laidback parents becoming OCD monsters possessed by a compulsive need to know where their offspring are at all times. Even though crime was higher in the Eighties, parents just didn’t have the energy to care where we were. Probably because they didn’t have mobile phones. When summer hit, our parents didn’t even want us in the house, turning us loose on the neighborhood at 10am and not expecting us home until sundown. To get around our ruse of wanting to get into the house for “just a quick drink of water” they would put a plastic jug on the front porch or hang a cup by the garden hose. The message was clear: we could go out and shoot fireworks at each other, break into storage sheds and play chainsaw tag, or hike up the train tracks to see a dead body. Just so long as we weren’t bothering them, we were free.

My Best Friend’s Exorcism by Grady Hendrix

Abby and Gretchen have been best friends since fifth grade, when they bonded over a shared love of E.T., roller-skating parties, and scratch-and-sniff stickers. But when they arrive at high school, things change. Gretchen begins to act different. And as the strange coincidences and bizarre behavior start to pile up, Abby realizes there’s only one possible explanation: Gretchen, her favourite person in the world, has a demon living inside her. And Abby is not about to let anyone or anything come between her and her best friend. With help from some unlikely allies, Abby embarks on a quest to save Gretchen. But is their friendship powerful enough to beat the devil

EXPLORE THE YEARBOOK: http://mybestfriendsexorcism.com/tagged/yearbook

My Best Friend’s Exorcism is published by Quirk Books and can be ordered here: https://www.amazon.co.uk/My-Best-Friends-Exorcism-Novel/dp/1594748624/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1463524916&sr=1-1&keywords=my+best+friend%27s+exorcism

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Knights Club: The Bands of Bravery – Shuky

Rise of the Superheroes – David Tosh

Paperbacks From Hell: The Twisted History of ’70s and ’80s Horror Fiction – Grady Hendrix

The Legion of Regrettable Super Villains – Jon Morris

Top Ten Reads of 2016

Grady Hendrix: Why The 80’s Were The Best Decade Ever