JULES VERNE'S LIGHTHOUSE - graphic novel


 Maria Vasquez prefers to be alone and currently has a dream job managing a lighthouse. It is the year 2717 and the Lighthouse is a supercomputer beacon that helps spaceships navigate through a turbulent area of space filled with wormholes. Maria oversees the lighthouse, along with her robot sidekick, Moses.

When a ship arrives unexpectedly Maria is quickly on edge - and rightfully so.  A pirate ship has arrived and they hijack the lighthouse station. Fortunately, Maria knows a few ways in and out of her space and is able to stay ahead of the pirates. But the pirates aren't there just to take control of the Lighthouse.  They are there awaiting the arrival of another ship which they plan to send in the wrong wormhole.

But Maria's past comes back to haunt her when she is recognized by the pirates.  Her military history has a dark side which she would rather forget.

I am not familiar with Jules Verne's The Lighthouse at the End of the World but it's good bet it doesn't take place hundreds of years in the future. (It does, however, share themes of survival in a distant wilderness and piracy.)

The story was exciting and adventurous - pretty much what you might want from space opera. There were moments that felt out of place - a one-on-one showdown inside battle-bot suits, for instance - which definitely make this feel more like a series of comic books than a graphic novel. It's a decent story but it's a not a page-turner.

The artwork is mostly fine.  There are two female characters who look a lot alike and it's sometimes hard to tell which character we're following just by looking through the art panels.

The role of the robot was a little over-the-top for me. It was constantly being protective which made it appear almost superhuman and frankly that's a bit boring in a space opera.  We need character flaws and conflict.

Looking for a good book? Jules Verne's Lighthouse is a graphic novel that is generally an enjoyable space opera read, but it isn't a standout in a crowded graphic novel field.

I received a temporary digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.

3 stars

* * * * * *

Jules Verne's Lighthouse

author: David Hine

artist: Brian Haberlin

publisher: Image Comics

ISBN: 153431993X 

paperback, 144 pages

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

VINYL RESTING PLACE - Olivia Blacke

Image
 Juni Jessup and her two sister, Tansy and Maggie, have gone into business together in their hometown of Cedar River, Texas, opening a combination record store and coffee shop. Vinyl LPs are making a comeback after all, despite critics thinking the medium was dead.  But speaking of 'dead' ... finding a dead body in the supply closet just as they are looking to have a grand opening is not part of the plan.  Juni's life gets more complicated when their uncle, Calvin, already a suspect in the murder, disappears. And the police officer leading the investigation is Juni's EX-boyfriend (who passive-aggressively keeps putting himself back into her life). Convinced that her uncle would never murder anyone, Juni sets out to prove his innocence - which isn't easy since he's making himself look guilty - because Calvin is family and family is EVERYthing to Juni. As readers of my blog know, I'm not a big fan of most cozy mysteries, but the setting caught my eye and my in...
Read more

THE WALLED CITY - Ryan Graudin

Image
  Jin and her sister, Mei Yee, were taken and sold and then sent to the lawless Walled City to serve as prostitutes or slaves to anyone willing to pay. Jin managed to escape her captivity, but not the Walled City and she now lurks about, disguised as a boy and is trying to track down the brothel where her sister is still captive. Jin will work odd delivery jobs to earn a small bit of money and hopefully have a legitimate means of coming in contact with her sister's captors.  This is how she meets up with Dai, a mysterious boy who has somehow managed to avoid running with any of the gangs in the city but he seems to have his own unusual connections, which Jon could desperately use if she has any hope of finding Mei Yee. But Dai has his own desperate needs.  The story is told from the different perspectives of each character and we do bounce around quite a bit as the chapters are generally short. This never bothered me, which is slightly unusual as often I find this techni...
Read more

THE RAVEN THIEF - Gigi Pandian

Image
 With Tempest Raj now a member of the company, Secret Staircase Construction (a company who, as their title suggests, builds mystery-themed, secret rooms inside homes) has finished their first job. Their client now wants to celebrate to kick off her new beginning - new home and new life now that she's divorced from her cheating ex-husband, famous mystery author Corbin Colt. First up, a mock séance to remove any trace of Corbin from the property, led by Tempest's friend, Sanjay.   But during that séance, while all those gathered sat in a dark room holding hands, Corbin's dead body crashes the party, falling across the table in front of everyone. There were eight people in the room, and they were all holding hands, but all the evidence points to one of them being the murderer.  Suspicions point to Ash, Tempest's grandfather, because he was the only one with Corbin's blood on him. Of course, as a doctor, he was also the only one who checked on the body - ...
Read more