Friday, May 19, 2017

Booknote: Divinity III: Stalinverse

Matt Kindt and Trevor Hairsine, Divinity III: Stalinverse. New York, NY: Valiant Entertainment, 2017.  ISBN: 9781682151914.

Genre: comics and graphic novels
Subgenre: science fiction, alternative history, superhero comics
Format: e-book galley
Source: NetGalley


If I recall, this may be my first experience with Valiant Comics; it certainly is my first experience reading their Divinity series. While this particular issue may require a bit of prior knowledge, you still get enough information in the narrative to get what is happening and enjoy the story.

From the book's description:

"Earth has a new god. The world you know is gone. Welcome to the Stalinverse, comrade.

Welcome to the year 2017…where the Soviet Union has spent decades as the world’s reigning superpower and the Iron Curtain now encircles a planet riddled with war, strife, and oppression. Freedom is a thing of the past in the Stalinverse… So why can’t Russian intelligence officer Colin King shake the feeling that something has gone terribly wrong? He’ll put his freedom and life on the line to uncover the truth… Even if that means finding out whatever happened to the long-missing cosmonaut Abram Adams – the one man who just might hold the key to unraveling the dystopian world of today." 

The world is now ruled by a very strong and very much alive Soviet Union. Now that they rule the world, they are setting their eyes on the stars to spread the glory of Mother Russia. Colin King is a loyal intelligence officer with access to high places, but he knows something is not right about this timeline, and he works to gradually make others aware as well. You will have to read to find out how things got to this point and how things turn out.

I can say that this is a good story, entertaining and intriguing. If you enjoy alternative history, you will get a good dose of it here. If you enjoy plots and intrigue, you will get some of that here as well. And if you enjoy action and super powered beings fighting out for the fate of the world, you get that here too. The series offers a lot to readers. I found the pacing good, and once I started it, I just kept on going wanting to learn more. The art is pretty good overall too. As I mentioned, I was not very familiar with this series, but it was a pleasant discovery, and I look forward to reading more titles.

4 out of 5 stars.

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Book qualifies for these 2017 Reading Challenges:







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