I have seen the Mid-Year Book Tag floating around the internet, both on blogs and YouTube videos. I wanted to shake it up because this year I have read so many comics. Having a pull list has created an obligation to go to a comic book store at least twice a month. This is my take on the “Mid-Year Book Tag” except with comics instead.

Best Comic I’ve Read So Far in 2021

Earlier in 2021, Marvel had launched their King in Black crossover event. This teams up the Marvel heroes to battle Knull, the god of the symbiotes. I had several series I was interested in, but none captured my attention like Black Cat. Each issue was equally entertaining and action-packed. Black Cat has quickly become one of my favorite Marvel heroes to follow. This was so good and quite possibly might be my favorite issue I have read in 2021.

Best Comic Sequel I’ve Read in 2021

Witchblood is another comic series that I’m thoroughly enjoying. On the cover is the main protagonist, Yonna. She is a witch traveling in the Western United States. While traveling, her motorcycle breaks down, and she stumbles upon a group of vampires. These vampires are hunting for an artifact that belongs to Yonna’s mentor. Yonna realizes she can’t let these vampires collect the artifact, and now she’s on an adventure to stop them.

Witchblood is a comic I would recommend for anyone new to comics.

New Release I Haven’t Read Yet

I backed the third volume of For Goodness Sake by K. Lynn Smith. Additionally, I was able to pick up the second volume, too. I believe it technically will be released this year? or sent to me in the mail this year, so I thought it counted.

For Goodness Sake tells the story of Rayne, a young woman traveling throughout the US in her makeshift camper. She stumbles upon Thatcher. Thatcher was cursed, and now he appears as a relative of the devil. Rayne is determined to rid Thatcher of his curse and find who cursed him in the first place. Rayne and Thatcher’s friendship is adorable to read about.

Biggest Disappointment

Hollywood Trash #1 was probably the worst comic I have read this year. I’m a big fan of Mad Cave Studios; however, this series wasn’t for me. The story was hard to follow, and I didn’t find it that interesting.

Newest Favorite Character

Logan McBride is a character I thought was intriguing to follow. She’s one of the main characters in Destiny NY by Pat Shand. I like reading about Logan because her actions seem realistic. She is going through a bad breakup and calls out her ex for treating her badly. She takes comfort in working at a coffee shop and petting her kitty. She also fulfilled her destiny at a young age and now struggles to find what’s next for her. She’s a young woman who doesn’t know who she is yet. I think that struggle reminds me of me a couple of years ago.

Destiny NY is another great comic series I would recommend.

Book That Made Me Happy + Beautiful Book I’ve Bought

Aquicorn Cove is such a lovely story about family, loss, and ocean preservation. Aquicorn Cove takes place in the same world as Tea Dragon Society, both written and illustrated by Katie O’Neill. Aquicorn Cove centers on Lana, who visits her aunt by the sea. Lana’s mother passed away when Lana was young, and she finds the sea has awakened memories of her and her mother. As storms constantly rock the land, Lana finds an Aquicorn that’s been impacted by the pollution in the lake. This prompts Lana’s aunt to revisit why she does the things she does and how her actions have caused damage to the ocean.

This is such a beautiful story. Katie O’Neill has a way of telling a story about heavy topics while still making this light-hearted. I want to save these books for my children and read these stories to them.

Currently, I have read 63 books and/or comics this year. I have surpassed my goal, and I’m excited to see what my reading number will be at the end of 2021. What comics have you read this year that you have loved? Let me know in the comments below.

CW: Abuse / Specifically Abuse of a Young Girl

**I won’t discuss this in my recap of the book, but if you choose to read this book, the content warning is needed**

Last month, I primarily read mysteries and thrillers. I found a used copy of Then She Was Gone at my local bookstore. I have heard raving reviews for Lisa Jewell’s books, so I figured I’d give this a shot. This was such a fast-paced, dark thriller to read.

Laurel Mack has been without her daughter, Ellie, for almost a decade since her disappearance. The grief of losing her daughter and not knowing what happened to her has kept Laurel from moving on. As Laurel goes about her routine, she meets a man in a cafe with whom she begins a relationship. She meets his daughter, Poppy, who is identical to Ellie. This leads Laurel into a harrowing investigation of Ellie and what happened to her all those years ago.

I loved Laurel as a character. She starts to see the cracks in her relationship early on. Instead of being consumed by this new romance, she continues to investigate Ellie’s disappearance and whether someone Ellie knew could have played a role in her vanishing. Laurel is intelligent, kind, and imperfect, and was a character I enjoyed reading about. The way she handled her grief seemed realistic, especially with putting her other daughter, Hanna, on a pedestal to replace Ellie. Laurel has her flaws, but she’s also a genuinely good person.

This isn’t the type of thriller where there’s a plot twist towards the end of the book. It’s revealed early on what happened to Ellie through flashbacks. The reason Then She Was Gone was so engaging was the tension of seeing the full story and how Laurel was going to uncover what happened. I tend to prefer thrillers where there is a plot twist at the end; however, the way Jewell wrote the book felt more like a countdown to when Laurel would figure out the truth.

Then She Was Gone was a well-written thriller about a mother desperate for answers and how Ellie’s disappearance has put a dark cloud over the Mack family. This was one of the darkest thrillers I have read. With the content warning, I can fully understand why some readers would avoid this book. However, Then She Was Gone is well worth the read.

Every Sunday, Heather at Just Geeking By creates a blog prompt with various themed questions. I pre-schedule my posts, so I always end up missing out on participating. My writing routine has been a bit off-kilter, which allowed me to participate in this entry. This Sunday’s theme is comics.

What was my first comic book?

My first comic book wasn’t a comic book, but a comic strip. My dad used to get the newspaper, and I would read the comic pages once he was done reading them. I always read Garfield, Dennis the Menace, and The Peanuts. From there, I started reading Calvin & Hobbes. I still have a couple of Calvin & Hobbes books on my shelf. I credit them for building interest in comics at a young age.

Which comic did you read recently?

The last graphic novel I read was Space Battle Lunchtime by Natalie Riess. For single issues, I’m reading all of Marvel’s King in Black crossover, along with DC’s Future State Yara Flor and Wonder Woman.

Which Comic Series Would I Recommend to Someone Just Starting to Read Comics?

This is the beauty of comics: there’s something for everyone. Before I would recommend anything, I’d ask basic questions about their interests or what they liked to read. From there, I could specify a comic recommendation that I think they would like. For general recommendations, Snotgirl, Saga, and Paper Girls are generally well-regarded comic series to start with. I think it’s important to start with graphic novels and then start picking up single issues. It helps to have a full story first, versus coming into the middle of a story.

Comic Series on My TBR?

My comic TBR is divided between single issues and graphic novels. Since starting a pull list earlier this year, I seem to never be able to catch up on my TBR. In my single issues stack, I have Marvel’s King in Black, DC’s Future State, Critical Role Vox Machina Series III issue #2, Witchblood Issue #1 and #2, and so much more. In my graphic novels stack, I have the first volume of Dredd, Aquicorn Cove by Katie O’Neill, and a few other Oni Press titles I’m not remembering.

My Favorite Books / Series

I love Sex Criminals by Chip Zdarsky and Matt Fraction. Based on the title, there’s a lot of sex scenes, nudity, and shenanigans. Additionally, Nailbiter is one of my favorite horror comics. I’m also enjoying Paper Girls. There are many series I love, but those stick out to me the most.

Favorite Comic Artists/Writers, etc.

I like artists who have their own unique styles. I could look at any comic in my local comic book store and know that the comic was illustrated by that person. Some of these include Jen Bartel, Liana Kangas, and K Lynn Smith. For writers, I like Jed MacKay, Chip Zdarsky, and Matt Fraction.

Seriously Geeky Sundays are hosted by Heather at Just Geeking By. You can find this Sunday’s questions here

When I was in college, I went through a reading slump. With all of the studying and textbook reading I had to do, the last thing I wanted to do was read for fun. I pulled myself out of my reading slump thanks to friends and rediscovering what I liked to read. One of the books I credit for pulling me out of this was Fangirl by Rainbow Rowell. Fangirl had been on my list to re-read for a while, and it seemed like every time I wanted to start the book, something would get in my way. Since this is a re-read post, I won’t be covering the plot of Fangirl; however, you can read my original review here: https://bizarrebrunette.com/2015/04/03/fangirl-review/

Fangirl will always be a five-star book for me; however, I had a couple of critiques this time around with this book. I think Fangirl is a bit too long. The first half of the book tells the reader about Cath’s routine at college. She locates her classes, she’s writing a fiction story in the library, and she’s too afraid to go to the dining hall. I found this part of the book to be boring to read. There could have been sections taken out without the book’s plot suffering. Fangirl is 433 pages, and it felt long to read. The second half of Fangirl does pick up, but the first half took me a long time to finish.

When I read Fangirl, I loved Cath as a character. I felt like I identified with her being introverted and her love of fandom. This time, I started to notice how judgmental Cath is. She makes negative comments about how much Wren likes to party. Now, Wren was a bit out of control in some ways, but it felt to Cath that if Wren was living her life differently from her, it was wrong. Additionally, Cath seems to have a pretentious attitude because of her scholarship. This can be seen in her relationship with Levi, who struggles academically and finds it challenging to read a physical book. I think Cath grows up a bit towards the end of the book, but I was surprised at how some of her statements made me resent her.

Finally, I noticed Rainbow Rowell makes some weird comments about race in her books. There are examples from both Cath and Wren regarding how they comment on race. Wren comments later in the book that she doesn’t realize a certain race lives on one part of campus. I’m not sure if Rowell wants to hammer into readers how Cath and Wren grew up in a diverse area, but the statements come off more cringey than anything else. There has been some controversy surrounding Rainbow Rowell and how she writes characters from a different race, specifically in her book Eleanor and Park. It’s interesting reading Fangirl and noticing some of these comments, even though this controversy is with a different book.

Fangirl will always have a special place in my heart. I read this book at a time when I was struggling at the time. Reading about Cath helped me accept myself for who I am. I can understand why other readers rated this lower than I did. I’d love to hear any additional thoughts regarding Fangirl. Let me know in the comments section below.

With starting a pull list, I have been reading more single-issue comics than trades. When I first began reading comics, I heavily relied on trades to continue in a series. The latest trade paperback I read was Space Battle Lunch Time, by Natalie Riess. Imagine if Top Chef took place in space, and that’s the synopsis of Space Battle Lunchtime. This had such a fun premise and left off on a big cliffhanger.

Space Battle Lunchtime is an intergalactic hit! It’s a reality cooking competition featuring chefs from a variety of different galaxies. Peony, a human from Earth, is in the right place at the right time when she is zapped from her bakery to appear on the show. Peony is replacing another contestant who disappeared under mysterious circumstances. Peony has never used galactic cooking ingredients, which puts her at a serious disadvantage compared to her previous opponents. Will Peony fall under the pressure? Or can she cook up to the competition?

This graphic novel was such a lighthearted read. I liked reading about their challenges and how Peony has to quickly adapt. While Peony is the main character, I would say I liked both Neptunia and Aris. Neptunia is a fellow contestant and has to work with Peony on a cooking challenge. There’s a budding friendship between the two, and I liked seeing it unfold. Aris is a cameraman on the show, and he’s always in Peony’s corner, wishing her good luck. Both characters added to Peony’s journey throughout the show.

The art in this graphic novel complements the story perfectly. I liked how the beginning of each issue had a recap page, which felt in line with other reality TV shows or cooking shows. I also liked the logo of Space Battle Lunchtime with the pink spatula and the star.

I have nothing bad to say about Space Battle Lunchtime. It was a fun departure from other graphic novels I tend to read. This is the first graphic novel I read from Natalie Riess, and it won’t be the last. Space Battle Lunchtime can be purchased directly from Oni Press’s website or through your local comic book store.

I consider indie comics to be anything other than Marvel or DC. With Image and Dark Horse becoming more prominent comic publishers, are they still considered indie? Despite the lack of conventions I have attended, I have been reading more comics than ever before! It helps to have weekly trips to my local comic book store. I wanted to highlight a couple of indie comics I read that I thoroughly enjoyed.

By The Horns Issue #1 Naso, Muhr, and Tabacaru

By the Horns is published by Scout Comics, which I had never heard of before purchasing this issue. By the Horns follows Elodie, a monster hunter who is fueled by revenge after her husband, Shintaro, was murdered by a unicorn. Elodie is so consumed by rage that she’s asked to leave her town after they feel she’s abandoned them. Accompanied by her animal sidekick, Saijen, she adventures through various cities in search of unicorns.

By The Horns was a fully fleshed-out first issue. I liked Elodie as the main character. I felt the way she was designed, with her white, rogue jacket and blue face paint, gave her a look that was memorable to me. Elodie feels like a character I would play as in a Dungeons & Dragons campaign. Saijen is Elodie’s fox companion. Elodie and Saijen have this close bond, and I’m interested to see more of their battles together.

By the Horns issue #2 will be released in May, while issue #1 is available for purchase. I rated By the Horns issue #1 five stars.

Home Sick Pilots Issue #1 Watters, Wijngaard, Bidikar, and Muller

Home Sick Pilots is published by Image whom I’m a huge fan of. Home Sick Pilots follows the band of the same name. To be competitive with a rival band, Ami suggests to both Buzz and Rip to perform at a haunted house. Both Buzz and Rip are terrified because of the rumors they have heard. Ami ventures in on her own and finds that this is more than a haunted house.

I love anything spooky and Home Sick Pilots gives off this feeling. I liked the art in this issue a lot. The blues/purples of the haunted house along with the ethereal look of Ami as she enters the house. There’s a panel showing both the Home Sick Pilots and rival band Nuclear Bastards as they are both exploring the house at the same time. There was so much to look at that I found myself staring at the page way after reading the panels.

Home Sick Pilots has been releasing weekly issues and should all be available at your local comic book store. I rated Home Sick Pilots issue #1 four stars.

Critical Role Vox Machina Origins Series III #1 Mercer, Houser, Samson, Msassyk, and Maher.

I started Critical Role last month and I’m hooked! This issue follows the group from Critical Role’s first campaign: Grog, Keyleth, Vex, Vax, Trinket, Scanlan, Pike, and Percy as they find their next paid mission. They wander through the town, drinking ale, and deciding their next move.

I felt each character was written the way they were roleplayed. I read their voices in my head as I read their lines. Grog has his witty one-liners while Keyleth serves as the humanitarian of the group. It helps that Matthew Mercer, the DM for Critical Role, had a hand in writing the issue. Since starting Critical Role, I cannot get enough, so I’m happy with the addition of a comic series coinciding with their game.

Critical Role Vox Machina Series III Issue #1 can be found at your local comic book store. I rated this issue five stars.

Reading comics is so much more than superheroes. I find the easiest way to get into reading comics is to take your interests and find a comic series that’s similar. Let me know what indie comics you’re reading in the comments below.

I’m trying to broaden my horizon regarding the books I read. Almost all of my romances have been m/f, not because that’s what I necessarily enjoy reading, but it’s the most common type of romance. After browsing through Goodreads, I stumbled upon Meet Cute Club, a gay romance with a Southern small-town setting. Meet Cute Club was a great read.

Jordan Collins adores romance books! He runs the Meet Cute Club, a romance-themed book club. As he’s shopping for books, he meets Rex Bailey, who’s snarky and doesn’t understand Jordan’s passion for reading romance novels. Rex surprisingly shows up at Meet Cute Club and begins to help Jordan grow the club. Romance and a steamy hookup ensue, leaving Jordan and Rex in a daze about whether they belong together.

As far as the actual romance, Jordan and Rex are perfect together! I was rooting for them as I think they balance each other out. Jordan is passionate about his love for romance and breaks down Rex’s hard exterior. Rex grew up in a tumultuous family background with his philandering father, which caused him to be a bit stubborn about the idea of love. I thought these two had great chemistry together.

Meet Cute Club centers upon Jordan and Rex’s relationship, along with a dialogue regarding masculinity. In some ways, Jordan defies masculine stereotypes and has been bullied. Jordan felt pressure at a young age to sign up for sports, even though all Jordan wanted was to read romance. Although Rex appears as the “stereotypical masculine man”, even he abandoned some of this to show Jordan that he loved him. I thought that the core of this story was this discussion of masculinity and how men don’t have as much freedom to explore various hobbies or interests that women do.

Meet Cute Club was a jovial read as I was genuinely rooting for Jordan and Rex to get together. I rated Meet Cute Club as three and a half stars, rounded up to four on Goodreads.

Every Friday has been devoted to watching the latest episode of WandaVision. My fiancé and I have been hooked as each episode reveals a piece of the story leading to Wanda and Vision’s life in their sitcom. Since I’m loving the show, I wanted to find more comics that detail Vision and Wanda’s love story. I ended up purchasing The Vision Collection, written by Tom King, and the show is supposedly inspired by aspects of the graphic novel. The Vision Collection is an engaging, albeit dark, take on Vision’s life.

Vision is lonely. He was with Scarlet Witch, and they had a falling out. As a result, Vision created his wife, Virginia, and two kids, Vin and Viv. Vision’s family certainly resembles him, with pink skin, bright green hair, and a yellow stone on their forehead. The Vision family even adopted a robot dog! Vision was still an Avenger, and all was well, or was it?

The story was captivating! Tom King does such an amazing job painting Vision as someone with more depth. It’s easy to pass him off as being a robot; however, King can craft Vision as someone to empathize with, even though he’s not human. Vision has trouble relating to human emotions, yet he crafts this family because he wants this experience. He wants to be above what he was created for by Ultron, and while working with the Avengers satisfies this need, Vision wants more. This graphic novel felt like reading a version of WandaVision, except Vision is the star. I kept reading Vision’s dialogue with Paul Bettany’s voice in my head, which fits the character.

The art is phenomenal. I like the greens and pinks of Vision’s colors mixed with the panels. The covers of each issue gave off this eerie foreboding of something amiss in the suburbs of DC. One cover features a floating mailbox saying “The Visions” in cursive. There’s something about the cover that gives me chills. Their house is in the background, and it’s slightly blurred. I think it says a lot about the art of a graphic novel if I’m sitting and staring at the cover, analyzing why this cover is drawn the way it is.

Before the introduction of the Marvel Cinematic Universe, I didn’t think much of Vision. After watching WandaVision and reading The Vision Collection, I understand how complex Vision is. This is one of the best graphic novels I have ever read. I never considered Vision to be an interesting character; however, this novel made me think otherwise. I will say this novel doesn’t feature Scarlet Witch as much as I would have liked, since the focus is on Vision. I rated The Vision Collection by Tom King five stars on Goodreads.