I’m lucky enough to be friends with upcoming author Sara Ella! Sara wrote a book called Unblemished which is set to be published October 11th of this year & will be published by Thomas Nelson which is a part of Harper Collins!
Sara was kind enough to put me on the list to reacieve an ARC, that’s right folks, an Advanced Readers Copy! Whoop Whoop!
Below is me sharing my excitement with all of you over receiving the book!
Make sure to add this to your TBR!
Happy Reading,
ALY
CBR is reporting that DC Entertainment will be doing an 8-hour Live stream on their DC All Access YouTube channel. The event is in honour of DC All Access hitting the 1 million subscriber milestone.
Tiffany Smith and Jason Inman will be hosting the live event, which will include interviews with comic book writers, insider information, news updates and much much more.
Paul Malmont, DC’s director of digital marketing content, said “Now, more than ever, we’re committed to bringing unique, entertaining stories about all things DC to our fans. The first-ever DC All Access all-day live stream event is a thank you to our fans for their support,”
Fire up your PC or download the free DC All Access app to watch the stream that is taking place September 2nd, 2016 at 9 a.m. PST.
Andie Walker always had her life planned to the tiniest second. As the daughter of a man in congress, she has no time for errors or impromptu plan changes. But when a scandal forced her father to step down and her internship plans to fall through, Andie will have to think on her feet to tackle the unexpected.
The Unexpected Everything is the absolute perfect summer read – it’s light, fun and full of teen romance, but is also very deep, emotional and realistic.
The standalone story focuses mostly on Alexandra Walker, aka Andie, as she tries to navigate an unexpected summer spent with her distant and work-a-holic father, her three best friends, and her spontaneous new job as a dog walker.
The actual story in this book is surprisingly emotional and deep – I found myself getting misty eyed more than I anticipated! The main point of Andie and her fathers friction is the refusal to talk about her mother, who has passed away five years prior. The story deals with the grief well – her loss is still known well, and is still a painful point, but it’s not ignored or the complete and utter forefront. It’s handled very realistically, and I found myself feeling really pained for Andie.
Andie herself is a character that is very relatable, perhaps minus the political figure father line. But she’s so wary of life straying outside the plan she’s mapped out, out of her circle of friends and committing to romantic relationships as they could shake that plan up. So understandably, a lot of the book is her trying get herself to stray from her strict lines and rules of life, and explore outside of her comfort zones. It’s a lot of fun watching her react to certain situations, especially when they’re so new to her.
The supporting characters in this book are all great, and all very individual characters – you do feel as if you know these people well, and inspite of their teen drama, they’re all incredibly likeable, especially Andies close unit of friends. Whilst at times their drama and talking points can be so eye-rollingly over the top, just think back to when you were seventeen – these are all perfectly reasonable things that high school friends would discuss and get excited or upset about. It’s an emotional and volatile time, and the author not only understands it, but respects it a great deal. The characters are never framed as over the top tropes or as bad people, they’re just teenagers with drama, drama you can easily invest in and thus get emotionally attached to.
The romance in this book is also very sweet – the strains, anxieties and awkward moments are showcased just as much, if not more, with the honeymoon period of teen romance.
Alongside the romantic relationship, other relationships are valued just as much, if not more. There’s a wonderful balance so the entire book isn’t hammering romance at you – friendships are held to just as high an issue in this book, and Matson wonderfully handles their love for each other, their in-jokes and the way they talk to each other. This book presents that friends are just as important to have as anything else in the world, and the issues that friendships can come up against.
Andie’s relationship with her father is also a pleasant surprise. Most readers will assume from the beginning that it won’t be until the end of the book that their relationship even begins to resemble a father and daughter trying to reconnect – and they’d all be wrong. From fairly early on, her father and Andie begin to try and work out their issues. It’s awkward, but it’s very sweet, with a joint effort from both of them. Andies father turns out to be an incredibly charming and delightful character.
Overall, The Unexpected Everything is genuinely a lot of fun. Although predictable at points, it’s mature and intelligent with respect for the characters and their relationships, whilst still being a light summer read. With all the above, plus a healthy dose of sci-fi references and a massive nod to George R. R. Martins A Song of Ice and Fire series, it’s the ideal book for anyone who’s looking for a few laughs, some drama and summer romance. Plus, dogs.
Chip Zdarsky (Artist of Sex Criminals and writer of Howard The Duck) announced today via Twitter/Tumblr his own convention called Zdarscon. It will be happening Saturday, September 3rd 11am-6pm at a secret location somewhere in downtown Toronto Ontario Canada. The location will be revealed the Saturday morning.
Chip will be bringing some of his friends along this time such as The Unbeatable Squirrel Girl writer Ryan North and Scott Pilgrim creator Byan Lee O’Malley. Chip also states on his con banner ‘special surprise guests’. Considering Chips connections and friendships in the industry could we possibly see Matt Fraction and Kelly Sue DeConnick? That Chip sure knows how to draw a crowd.
Chip held a one man “convention” featuring himself directly across from Fanexpo, signing and selling comics and sketch covers back in 2014.
Zdarscon will be taking place the same weekend as Fanexpo Canada (at the convention centre in downtown Toronto). If you can’t afford to go to Fanexpo this year and are going to be in the Toronto area, Zdarscon seems like it will be an excellent alternative.
CBR is reporting that The Walking Dead Creator Robert Kirkman has announced the end of his superhero comic Invincible at Image Comics.
Synopsis for Invincible provided by Image Comics:
Mark Grayson is teenage superhero Invincible. He was a normal high school senior with a normal part-time job and otherwise normal life, except his father Nolan is the superhero Omni-Man, the most powerful superhero on the planet. At the age of 17, Mark begins to display superpowers, which come from his father being a member of the Viltrumite race, who, according to Nolan, pioneer the galaxy on a mission of benevolence and enlightenment. As Invincible, Mark begins working as a superhero, with his father acting as his mentor, and meeting other heroes. Mark worked occasionally with a superhero team called the Teen Team (consisting of Robot, Rex Plode, Dupli-Kate and Atom Eve), from there discovering that his Physics teacher has been turning his students into human bombs. He stops his teacher with the help of the heroine, Atom Eve. He also foils a plan to make an army of robots, created by the Mauler Twins. Meanwhile, Omni-Man is kidnapped by aliens, taken to another dimension, but returns after what seems to be only a few days, but was actually eight months to him.
Invincible first appeared inTech Jacket #1 in November 2002. His own solo series debuted in January 2003, the same year Kirkman released The Walking Dead comic. Invincible was co-created with artist Cory Walker who did the covers and interiors for the first 7 issues. Ryan Ottley took over pencilling duties at issue 8.
The 12-story arc conclusion will begin this November with issue #133 and will finish with issue #144.
Kirkman sent a letter to media outlets explaining his reason for ending the 13-year comic series.
“My greatest hope in life is to one day, when I’m much older, be reading an INVINCIBLE comic book by younger creators I haven’t met, who are doing a book that I hate.”
I’ve been asked many times over the thirteen years of writing INVINCIBLE how long I think this book will go. Some form of that statement has always been my answer. I always thought it would be a great honor to see Invincible rise to the level of Superman or Spider-Man in the pantheon of comic book superheroes. Characters who far outlived their original stories and eventually transformed into story engines that sort of tell the same story (to a certain extent) in perpetuity for generation after generation.
It wasn’t until recently that I realized that goes against everything INVINCIBLE, as a series, has stood for since the very beginning. When Cory Walker and I created him, and with Ryan Ottley, since he joined the team with issue 8, the point of this series has always been to celebrate what we love about superhero comics, but always put our own spin on it. To play with the tropes of the genre, but twist them into something new, at all times, no matter what.
That is why villains sometimes win, and heroes give up… and eventually stop being heroes altogether… and change happens, and sticks, and characters die, and never come back… no matter how popular they are (we maybe should have kept Conquest alive).
So then, it stands to reason, that if most superhero comics continue forever with no end in sight and over their runs do not, in any way, tell a cohesive story that holds together to form a singular narrative… shouldn’t INVINCIBLE do the exact opposite?
It’s been many years now that Ryan Ottley and myself, with occasional help from co-creator Cory Walker (issue 130 in stores soon!) have been chronicling the adventures of Mark Grayson and the many characters that orbit his life. As I began plotting out the issues that lay ahead of us over this next year, I started to realize I was reaching a… conclusion. The big Viltrumite epic, which began with Nolan Grayson going to Earth and fathering Mark, and kicked off with their confrontation all those years ago in issue 11… was coming to an end. Everything was converging in this one story, and looking back, I realized I’d been working toward this the whole time. In talking it over with Ryan I learned, much to my surprise, that the idea of drawing something other than INVINCIBLE someday… and not being stuck in this monthly grind we’ve been in for well over a decade… appealed to him. So it was clear, I was writing to a conclusion and Ryan was also drawing to one.
So that led to the question of what comes next?
I briefly considered bringing on another team, starting that eventual march to that book I’d read in my old age and throw across the room saying, “This isn’t INVINCIBLE!” And while I did consider some really cool options that would have led to some really cool issues of INVINCIBLE… more and more as I thought about it, I realized ending the series was the right thing to do.
So that’s what we’re doing! Issue 144, the conclusion of the 12-part epic THE END OF ALL THINGS, will be the final issue of Invincible. I’m sure when it’s all said and done, I’ll be sad, and I know I will miss these characters, but for the time being, I’m excited. Ryan will be coming back to the book with issue 133 in November, and we’re going to hit the ground running. We’ve got a wild ride in store for the fans where we’re going to touch every corner of the Invincible Universe, and in the end, tie things up in a really cool and unexpected way.
So we’ve got a little over a year to go, and it’s going to be one hell of a year! So please join us for our swan song, thirteen years in the making! We couldn’t have done it without you, the fans, so lets all cross the finish line together!
Robert Kirkman
Backwoods, CA
2016
Here on the weekly Bookette we LOVE indie books and we love to talk about them just as much!
So without further ado, here are the indie titles that caught our attention this month. [Read more…]
The Comic Mint is a website based out of Stamford, Connecticut USA that offers a commission-free marketplace for sellers and buyers of comics. They also have a pretty awesome deal going on right in honour of the relaunch of their site.
The Comic Mint offers 12 different themed boxes of comics:
1.All number Ones: 10 different number one issues across all publishing lines (DC, MARVEL, IMAGE and other independents)
2: All things X: 10 different mutant related issues
3.Anything Goes: A true mixed grab bag of 10 books across all lines and themes. For the person who likes surprises.
4. Batman: 10 different issues that feature the Dark Knight.
5. DC Superheroes: 10 different DC superhero issues. May include individual character titles or team books.
6. Independents: 10 different books from independent publishers (Image, Valiant, Dark Horse, etc.)
7. Marvel Superheroes: 10 different Marvel superhero issues. May include individual character titles or team books.
8. Punisher: 10 different books that feature the Punisher.
9. Spiderman: 10 different books that feature the web-slinger.
10. Superheroines: 10 different books that feature female superheroes.
11. Superman: 10 different books that feature the man of steel.
12. Wolverine: 10 different books that feature Wolverine.
Each box cost $19.95 USD and $5.00 Shipping per box. International orders are accepted. Each box you order comes with a very limited free Harley Quinn Rebirth #1 Variant (3000 printed) by artist Francis Manapul. If you just want the variant issue, it’s $19.99.
I discovered The Comic Mint by following Francis Manapul (@FrancisManapul) on Twitter. He posted a link and once I saw the cover and the deal, I had to order a couple of boxes. I choose the Batman and Wolverine. The site assures you that you’re not going to get any garbage comics in the boxes. They understand and take pride in choosing quality titles that they have for each box. I can assure you as well that the comics I received ranged from decent to surprising! Here are some of the highlights from boxes I received.
The other comics were cool short story arcs I’ve not had a chance to read yet, but I am looking forward to reading them. Overall I was very pleased with my purchase; boxes arrived in a reasonable amount of time, and the condition of each comic is shockingly excellent. Also, all the number one’s are all first prints as far as I can tell. So great value for your dollar and you get a free copy of an excellent Harley Quinn variant. If you want the variant, I suggest you order ASAP.
This is a one time order, not a monthly subscription
Check out The Comic Mint’s website Here
Twitter: @comic_mint
The man has done it again! Stan Lee has created another super-being for the world to love, and his name is Nitron. This new character is from an intelligent alien race that secretly lives among the humans of Earth. The franchise will come complete with film, TV and digital life. Plus there will be comics, (*EEEEK* ) that will be released this January as a 6 volume series with more issues to follow monthly.
Stan Lee has partnered up with Keya Morgan and Michael Benaroya on the new life of Nitron. The comic book will be the source of the material for the movie, as it should be, and has secured a whopping $50 million in funding to finance the development and production. (ok, is anyone else’s heart pounding right now???)
Stan Lee, seriously this man is a god. I mean wow. Having created all that he has, from X-Men, Avengers, all the Marvel comics, and so much more, he now decided to create a new life for us to fawn over! Wow, this man never seizes to amaze me… I mean, he still is doing so much at his age and still places his remaining time into creating a new hero. My goodness, when does he sleep? Well, that is why we respect one as amazing as Stan Lee, he not only is the creator of the heroes we all aspired to be when we were growing up, but he is one. The Man is a hero to all of us in some way, and I know I personally hope to still be taking the world by storm when I am 93 years old. ^_^
In this day and age of comics, it’s tough being an independent publisher. There are so many currently producing content all working hard to keep doing what they love while still trying to maintain a business. While trying just to keep business steady, it’s even more challenging to grow and expand. For an independent company regardless of industry to make it ten years is quite the accomplishment.
2016 marks the tenth anniversary of Alterna Comics. In honour of the milestone achievement, Alterna is releasing 432 page black and white anthology that highlights some of the best stories and characters from the Alterna universe.
Anytime you’re considering investing in an indie comic/publisher there is always a fair amount of uncertainty. Is this purchase going to be worth my money and time? Am I going to be able to get these issues or trades easily? Do they have a regular or consistent release schedule?
This anthology is an excellent way to answer some of those questions and get introduced to a new indie publisher. It gives you a taste of their variety of content and allows you to find out what’s currently available from them. Some stories are even seeing physical print for the first time. I would love to see more publishers release anthologies like Alterna’s (those who can). $20.00 USD for 432 pages is a great value even if you only like a couple of stories out of the whole anthology it’s well worth the investment.
Here is a preview of some of the 432 pages
I can’t stress the importance of supporting indie content, especially if you’re a fan of a particular book or series. In the age of pirating and tough economic times, I understand it’s easy to give in to the temptation. Comics though whether indie or mainstream is a tuff business, with small profit margins. Many creators do this as a passion and are trying to turn it into a living, while still working a usually crappy day job. These men and women go through a lot to create entertainment for us on a regular basis, so please support and encourage the people who create the entertainment you enjoy so they can continue to produce more of it.
You can pre-order the AnniverSERIES at you local comic shop. Code is AUG161118
If you don’t have a local comic shop you can also pre-order on Amazon
Check out Alterna’s website for more information here
AnniverSERIES is set for an October 2016 release.
In the tradition of the Bookette’s weekly themed articles, today we bring you some of our favorite books that will release during the month of August 2016. So without further ado, here is our list! [Read more…]
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