batman – A Book & A Beer

Na na na na na na na BATMAN: Nightwalker by Marie Lu

Posted on June 27, 2018by J.W. Martin

BATMAN: NIGHT WALKER
by Marie Lu

Random House
Publication Date: January 2, 2018

From Goodreads:

Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.

The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.

One by one, the city’s elites are being executed as their mansions’ security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family’s fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he’s forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city’s most brutal criminals.

Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce’s only hope.

In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

This was my first introduction to Marie Lu, but I’ve read a ton of Batman comics over my lifetime. And I have to say, she kind of nailed it.

We known Batman. He’s dark, broods a lot, loves the colour black, enjoys gadgets and rocket-powered cars, hates crime, LOVES JUSTICE! But do we really know Bruce Wayne? Once Batman exists, Bruce Wayne becomes the mask. He’s Batman’s costume.

So writing from the perspective of a pre-Batman Bruce Wayne is a daunting task and a road less travelled.

Throughout Nightwalker, you can see the seeds of Batman, which were planted long ago, starting to sprout. Bruce’s desire of justice, his affinity for studying cases, the way he notices small details and deduces their meaning. We see him developing the tools.

We even get to see him whipping around the streets of Gotham in a kick-ass car. Though the car might be stepping on another icon’s toes… It’s an Aston Martin, which might not mean a lot to you, but that’s traditionally what James Bond has always driven. Look out, Bruce!

This book had the right amount of familiar characters to make me feel comfortable and the right amount of new characters to keep me intrigued and guessing. Will any of these characters turn out to be someone else?

The foremost among them, Madeleine. She was mysterious, and intriguing, and you get the sense that a small piece of her rubs off on Bruce and will stay with him as he transitions into the caped crusader.

My only issue was that it was a little too much, awkward-unsure-of-himself Bruce, and not enough kickass-almost-Batman Bruce. I know this is before it all, but certain Batman characteristics would have to be there a lifetime and can’t be learned in a few years.

Whether you’re a Batman fan or just a fan of good YA books, this is one to pick up!

Fun fact about this post: It’s way more fun if you read the whole thing in Batman’s voice. Not just any Batman voice, the Kevin Conroy, animated series Batman voice.

All First Impression Friday Memes

First Impression Friday | Batman: Nightwalker

Posted on June 15, 2018by J.W. Martin

Welcome to another First Impression Friday. In case this is your first time, here’s the rundown:

• Based on this sampling of your current read, give a few impressions and predict what you’ll think by the end.
• Did you think you’d love and ended up hating it? Or did you think you’d hate it and wound up loving it? Or were you exactly right?
• Link back to Storeys of Stories so I can enjoy reading all the First Impression Fridays out there!

Enough about rules! Let’s talk about Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu!

Despite the fact that I have Legend and Warcross in my possession, this is my first Marie Lu book. And so far, it’s awesome.

To be fair, this book had a real leg up from page one. I’ve been a Batman fan my entire life. There was no ‘getting to know you’ phase for this book. Familiar characters, familiar setting, the book even opens with Bruce Wayne tearing around the streets of Gotham in a badass car. COME ON!

What I’ve been digging though, is that there’s enough new stuff to with the old. Characters I’m meeting for the first time that are really intriguing.

My prediction:

4 stars. I’d say 5, but it’s a Bruce Wayne story, not a Batman story…

Fun fact about this post: My local library bought this book on my recommendation, so I was the first one to get to borrow it!

Book Tag

The Justice League Book Tag

Posted on November 7, 2017by J.W. Martin

With the Justice League movie coming out in a few weeks, I couldn’t resist doing this tag when I saw it. It was created by Angelica & Rosie @TheBookCoverGirls and it’s super fun for a comic book nerd like me!With the Justice League movie coming out in a few weeks, I couldn’t resist doing this tag when I saw it. It was created by Angelica & Rosie @TheBookCoverGirls and it’s super fun for a comic book nerd like me!

The Rules:

• Copy these rules onto your post
• Mention creators of the tag: Angelica and Rosie @TheBookCoverGirls and link to the original post
• Mention and thank the person who tagged you and link to their post
• Answer all the questions
• Since there were originally seven members in the Justice League, tag 7 people
• Also, you can use the images provided, but don’t have to if you don’t want to
• Have fun with it!

Batman: You favorite antihero

Favorite Anti-hero? Batman, obvs. Cheating, huh? Yeah, I guess. Fine. Kaz Brekker. They’re very similar. They both always have a plan, and a backup plan, and a back up to the backup plan. They both have a strange affinity for black flying creatures. They both lost their entire family and then built another one. They’re both fueled by revenge/justice. They both… eat. A stretch? I guess. But they do.

Aquaman: A book or character that turned out to be better than you expected (because let’s be real, we did not expect Khal Drogo to make Aquaman cool)

Wool by Hugh Howey. I thought it was going to be good, but then it just sucked me right in, sunk its teeth into me, and didn’t let go until the last chapter. And if you want to see a really fun version of Aquaman, make some time to check out Batman: The Brave and the Bold. Huzzah!

Wonder Woman: Most badass female character (not necessarily in a physical sense)

Hermione Granger. She might not be the first one to start punching people in the face (unless we’re talking about Malfoy) but she’s a total badass. Always has the answer whether it’s a spell, something from her magical bag, or just knowing what book to check in the library.

Cyborg: Favorite science fiction novel

Ready Player One by Ernest Cline. “Can’t you go one post without mentioning RPO?” I could… but I don’t wanna.

The Flash: A book you sped through

Illuminae by Kaufman and Kristoff. I couldn’t believe how fast I flew through this. Especially considering it was a 600-pager. Although, anyone who’s actually read it knows, there are entire stacks of pages that you get to turn as fast and your fingers can go. Pages with one word. Pages with ASCII artwork. Pages, and pages of names that really don’t have that much bearing on the story other to take notice that there are a lot of names.

Superman: Saddest character death (although we all know there’s no way Superman is going to stay dead)

Morning Star by Pierce Brown. For the sake of spoilers, I won’t say who it is I’m talking about. Anyone who’d read the book already knows exactly who I’m talking about.

Fun fact about this post: Comic books were the reason I started reading in the first place.

A to Z All Misc

J is for Joker

Posted on April 11, 2015by J.W. Martin

Each month, when DC publishes their titles, some are published with a variant cover. These covers have their own history, but I’m not looking to get into that today.

As of late, DC has been giving a theme to their variant covers. It’s usually something fun, sometimes goofy, even with the more serious titles. Last month’s variants, for example, were based off of famous movie posters.

This month, they’ve chose the Joker as the variant cover theme. 25 covers were designed, all influenced by the Clown Prince of Crime, who is probably the most famous comic book villain in all of history. Instead of blabbing on and on, I’m going to shut up and let you enjoy the covers.