A niche market

A niche [nee-sh]: an area or position that is exactly suitable for a small group of the same type. This book is definitely in its own niche. The Ultimate guide to the Avengers from Marvels comic books! I’m about to make you mad: I don’t read comics. I know, I know. I just need them to be in a bind up to enjoy them (they’re too short otherwise) and I can’t really afford to read them!

I picked this book up from The Works (a discount shop in the UK) because I really love the MCU and I wanted to learn more about the world in the comics because I know it is so different. Whilst this isn’t going to be my new favourite book, I am really glad that I picked it up. I learnt quite a bit about both old and new (to me of course) characters and I found that I recognised a surprising number of them! Sadly for comic lovers, I recognise them from the Lego game on the PS4…. Sorry?

Overall, this could be a great gift for a young or old fan of Marvel comics and as someone who was interested in learning a little more about the background that the MCU was based on I did find it really interesting. I would love to read the comics one day, but it’s just not a big priority for me right now.

My first ever comic experience: Punisher, a review

This was my first ever foray into the comic genre! It ended up being both a good and bad experience, so let’s get into that.

Firstly the good, I liked the art style. I personally think that it really fits the genre of the book, with dark colouring and harsh lines. It adds another dimension to the atmosphere of the plot. I also enjoyed the plotline, even though this is the second comic in this story (I know, I know, but I couldn’t find the first one!) I didn’t feel too lost and was able to catch myself up pretty quickly, as well as being interested in what was going on.

The “bad” is more my fault than anything else, I hadn’t been expecting there to be so little story contained in one issue. I’m used to a whole story contained within one book, or in graphic novels, there is at least one arc of the story in one collection. However, there was barely any of the story within this tiny little comic and it felt like it ended very abruptly. Like I said this is my fault, I’m not familiar with comics so I didn’t know what to expect and it felt very odd to have so little of the story. I think if I was to continue with these I would have to try and find a bind up of the comics all together so that I can get a larger amount of the plot at once.

Basically, don’t go in as blind as I did! Comics are really great and the artwork is beautiful, but you’re not going to get a lot of story in one go so if that’s what you’re looking for then maybe head for a bind up or a graphic novel.

July Wrap Up! Hella late but better than never!!| 2018

So this is ridiculously late (just wait until I pop my August TBR up!) but surely it’s better late than never?! Okay, shush just let me get on with it! If you’d rather see this in a video format, then click here for the link to my YouTube July wrap up, which was actually posted within a reasonable time frame! Shocker, I know.

Who-Ology by Cavan Scott    4/5*

This is a fun read which covers the whole history of the show and goes into details about all the doctors, companions, villains and more! As a whovian it was fun to read about some episodes I’ve not been able to get to and have some more depth to the show.

In The Shadow of Hitler by Richard Vaughan-Davies     3/5*

Find my full review here! This was an interesting read, but it didn’t quite hit the mark. Certain aspects were interesting, however, they couldn’t quite make up for the rest of the story to increase my rating.

 

Hit Squad by Sophie McKenzie    4/5*

Find my full review of Hit Squad here! I am so glad I finally finished up this series, this ended the Medusa Project in a really satisfying way, as well as leaving it open enough that it could be picked up in the future! I would absolutely love that, but seeing as it was published in 2012 I doubt Sophie McKenzie is going to write any more in the series. I can always hope though!

Being Nikki by Meg Cabot     4/5*

I’ve been really enjoying this series. Contemporary with a fun twist that really adds another dimension to the story, the ending of this book was really shocking and left me on such a cliffhanger!

 

Othello by William Shakespear    1/5*

Oh my god, I HATED this!!! I just could not get through it and ended up DNFing it! Maybe one day I’ll pick it back up again, and I’d like to watch an adaptation seeing as it is supposed to be performed. But for now, I’m leaving it be.

 

Fractured by Teri Terry     4/5*

This is the second installment in the Slated trilogy and I really enjoyed it! It has been years since I read Slated (around 5!) so I’m really happy that I still love this series and I’m excited for Shattered!

 

The Girl in the Blue Coat by Monica Hesse    4/5*

I listened to this book via audiobook (thank you library) and sadly I think this might’ve made me less emotionally attached to the characters, and with a book like this, I personally feel that this is an important part. So maybe this could’ve gotten 5* if I’d read a physical copy, or maybe it was the writing. Either way, I still recommend this read!

The Eye of the North by Sinéad O’Hart    4/5*

I absolutely fell in love with these beautifully written characters and the world building was fantastic. I genuinely felt sad that the story was over and hope that there could be a sequel in the future! A great 8-12 read and I’ll be keeping an eye out for more from Sinéad O’Hart in the future!

That Old Black Magic by Cathi Unsworth     4/5*

Find my full review here! This was a really really odd book, but don’t let that stop you from reading it! Magical, dark and intense, this book has the potential to suck you in and only spit you out hours later.

Next up, the 7in7Readathon reads! Find my wrap up and reading vlog here!

The Punisher    3/5*

I enjoyed this comic, however, this was my first experience with this format and I had been expecting to get more of the story within the issue. Therefore I finished it feeling slightly disappointed, but I still enjoyed the story arc and may finish it up in a bind up in the future.

Norse Mythology by Neal Gaiman    4.5/5*

I really enjoyed Gaiman’s take on the Norse God’s and their antics! The short stories all lead on beautifully to the next and come together at the end to create one larger overall story. I definitely recommend this one!

 

The Essential Spike Milligan   3/5*

I think I could’ve given this 4/5* if I wasn’t reading it for a readathon. It made me read through this a lot faster than I would’ve liked and took away some of the impacts. I want to reread this at some point and see how I feel then.

Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell    4/5*

I can’t believe this took me so long to read! I’m so happy that I give contemporaries a chance nowadays. This is a deep book that follows Cath through her discovering college and being introduced to adult life, slowly but surely.

After Anna by Alex Lake    4.5/5*

This book fucked me up so bad. I 100% recommend! Even though I could tell all of the “twists” I was still completely hooked and couldn’t put it down. Total mind fuck! (a great compliment for a thriller!)

Now into the BookTubeAThon reads! Find my wrap up here in blog format and here in video format!

I Used to Know That Geography by Will Williams    4/5*

This is a great little geography book and written in a way that keeps you interested (rather than feeling like it’s a textbook!). Great for those wanting to recap the subject or be introduced to the GCSE (14-16 yo) standard of the subject

Anne of Green Gables by L. M. Montgomery    4/5*

Although I found the middle section of this book (before Anne turns 12/13) quite tedious, after finishing I absolutely adore Anne and can’t wait to read more following this young girls life! Definitely very invested haha.

 

And that is my wrap up! I read loads this month and took a loooong time to recover after it! Hence this really late post haha, but I’m getting myself back on track now… before I go and leave for uni. So hopefully I can stay this way! I don’t think I’ll keep this level of reading up but I’m really glad I got through what I did.

Ghosts of Marvel? Will this be unique?

This comic was not what I had expected from the cover, although seeing as this is only volume 1 it may develop into what I expected in the future. I’ll definitely be finding out as I am 100% continuing with this series! Jeremy Corbin’s (the direct contrast between this character and Jeremy Corbin the MP in Britain makes me laugh!) life is suddenly turned upside down when he is told that his father has passed away, and what he had believed was his fathers’ life story is shown to be false. Suddenly he is involved with the CIA, Nazis and his life is in almost constant danger. I’m liking the mixture of the current day and the past, with WWII being my favourite time in history to learn about. There is a Steve Rodgers aspect to this, very much getting a little bit of Hydra feels, but not in a bad way. I’m enjoying the plotline and looking forward to seeing how it develops in the future, really hoping that it will be a unique storyline which will just make this comic series so much better. Fingers crossed! Thanks to NetGalley for an eCopy of this comic in return for an honest review.