Hollywood Dead by Richard Kadrey: I’ve read 9 or 10 of these Sandman Slim books now. Super enjoyable in the same way that eating popcorn is. Salty and greasy and delicious! If you like supernatural, LA noir stories about a flawed hero making his way in the world and fighting monsters and such, you should check this series out. Pretty sure you could read them in any old order, because I quickly lose track of the plots of these. It doesn’t seem to matter too much. Super quick read. My only curiosity is why these haven’t been optioned for a movie series before now. Seems perfect for that kind of adaptation.
The Wicked & The Divine by Kieron Gillen: A bunch of music superstars actually get turned into gods. They only get to live a couple years, though. The art (by Jamie McKelvie) in this comic is beautiful. It’s pretty tough to feel sympathetic for any of these characters, but then I kind of feel similarly re. real world pop superstars. I have no idea where this comic is going and the latest had a (for me, Mr. “I didn’t see that coming!”) pretty unexpected twist.
Battle Angel Alita (Deluxe Edition v1) by Yukito Kushiro: I picked this one up to re-read because my kid saw the trailer for the movie that’s coming out soon. It’s funny what a decade will do, because I enjoyed this comic a lot more when I read it the first time. If you want to read it, definitely get this deluxe edition. The art is pretty incredible. Hugo’s trenchcoat is still as goofy as I remember.
The Green Hand and Other Stories by Nicole Claveloux: Wild, surreal comics from the 1970s. Claveloux is a French comics artist. Her work is super strange, but in a deeply charming sort of way.
The Nine by Tracy Townsend: I had this book checked out for so long that I couldn’t remember why I’d checked it out in the first place. And then I remembered. The central plot point was inspired by Borges’ book Dictionary of Imaginary Creatures–a fantastic book–and I’ll read anything by a Borges enthusiast. It’s less of a heist story than I was expecting based on what I’d read about it (cover jacket) but I liked it pretty well. I’ll probably read the sequel when it comes out.