Monstress Volume 2: The Blood (MONSTRESS TP)

Second volume in the series of paperbacks that collects issues of the comic 'Monstress.' A mixture of science fiction, fantasy and steampunk.This contains issues seven to twelve of the series. You won't have a hope of getting into this if you've not read book one. So new readers go and do that. Regular readers, read on.As with volume one, this does contain strong language, violence, plus adult and gory moments, so is strictly for grown up readers.This volume picks up from the end of that one, and sees Maika plus her two travelling companions still on the run. With Maika struggling to contain the beast within her. She embarks on a quest to find the secrets of her late mother, in order to understand the beast more. This takes them on a sea voyage to the mysterious Island of Bones. Will she be prepared for what awaits? And what she will learn?This is on a par with everything volume one did. It contains stunning artwork and gorgeous colouring. You can't help but be entranced by the look and design of this world, which is amazingly original and beautifully brought to life. The supporting characters are superbly conveyed, and the way the artist draws their expression is entrancing.But there's also great character drama here. Maika remains a sympathetic lead, and you can feel for her given all that she faces. Her companions do have great moments as well, Kippa getting some very good development. And great facial expressions too.There's some really good solid story progression which does tell you more about the characters and the world. And as with book one, every issue ends with an information page filling in more background of the setting. These vary the format of such in a very nice way.The twelfth issue ends with some very ominous set up for what comes next. I can't wait. A brilliant second volume in a brilliant series.

Many of my comments on this one is going to be carrying on from the first volume. Again, we have the POC rep, the disabled rep and a lot of violence! Also, trigger warnings for suicidal thoughts.In this volume, I developed new love for the characters. I found I suddenly loved Kippa fiercely, especially her unswerving loyalty and her sense of innocence even though she lives in such a grim world. I also really liked Master Ren and some of the humour he inserts into the story with his parent-like attitude and deadpan statements.Again, I loved the speech bubbles and lettering. I find it to be so creative!I thought this book was similar to volume one as it gives us the perfect amount of answers to questions we have to keep us interested. But at the same time, it also leaves just enough unanswered that I want the sequel as soon as possible.Sometimes I got a little confused at times about whether we were in a flashback, in a dream or in real time because the scene transitions were quite sudden. But other than that minor detail, I loved it and cannot wait for volume 3!This review and others can be originally found on Olivia's Catastrophe.

It was the art that attracted me to this series, that plus the string of awards, and the positive quote from Neil Gaiman on the front cover. (Yup - listen to the man.) Beautiful, detailed, dark, the graphics and the story reveal the on-going adventures of Maika Halfwolf, the monster within her and their backstory. Supporting cast includes a childhood friend, an enchantingly innocent fox-child, and a two tailed necromancer cat. Throw in opposing 'fairy' courts, alien gods, witches and a war between humans and arcanes and you have a story of horror, intrigue and increasingly sympathy for the characters and the situations they fight to overcome. Lighter moments? Excerpts from 'a lecture from the esteemed Professor Tam Tam, former record-keeper of the Is'Hami temple and learned contemporary of Namron Black Claw'. What's not to love about a multi tailed cat teaching history to kittens.

This series is the best graphic novel series I've read. The world building is so complex and fascinating and better constructed than some in some novels I've read. And the characters are just as well crafted. Then there is the atmosphere, the plot and the intrigue, it is hard to find fault. The illustrations also are gorgeous and complete this dark story that is within the pages. You are thrown straight into the story and it is hard to keep track of everything at first, even once you get used to the details of the world for every answer that reveals itself more questions appear in it's place. If you're looking for a rich, diverse read then check Monstress out. I can't recommend it enough.

Good quality comic , engaging story and stunning artwork !

I received the first volume of Monstress as a gift and was immediately blown away by the art style and the dark mood to the story. A mix of traditional Japanese art, intermingled with Manga and western styles, the tale of a young girl with a mysterious bond to an unknown - and unwanted - ancient power had me captivated from page one of book one and I've already pre-ordered the next volume, coming out soon (I hope).For this review I'm not going to tell anymore of the story (why would I spoil it for potential readers?) and I suspect if you're looking at reviews for volume 2 you probably already know what you're in for with this. For purposes of review, however, I'll say that this story picks up from the first, now with developed characters, and takes you on a whirlwind adventure through the world created by Liu and Takeda. If you enjoyed book one, you'll love this.

Still coming learning to understand this world and it's setting, but the artwork is so gorgeous, it's easy to just marvel at that alone.

A really curious series here. Beautiful but also brutal art work. A fascinating world, but often difficult to keep up with the story as it seems incredibly drawn out rather than resolved. They should take a tip from Sandman and similar where at least each book should come to some sort of conclusion, even if there are still unanswered questions. The volumes seem a little arbitrary in their divisions.