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With war on the horizon—a war no one wants to stop—whose side will Maika choose? That of her friends, or her family?

32 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 31, 2019

2 people are currently reading
124 people want to read

About the author

Marjorie M. Liu

322 books4,300 followers
New York Times bestselling and award-winning writer Marjorie Liu is best known for her fiction and comic books. She teaches comic book writing at MIT, and she leads a class on Popular Fiction at the Voices of Our Nation (VONA) workshop.

Ms. Liu is a highly celebrated comic book writer. Her extensive work with Marvel includes the bestselling Dark Wolverine series, NYX: No Way Home, X-23, and Black Widow: The Name of the Rose. She received national media attention for Astonishing X-Men, which featured the gay wedding of X-Man Northstar and was subsequently nominated for a GLAAD Media Award for outstanding media images of the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender community. Ms. Liu also wrote the story for the animated film, Avengers Confidential: Black Widow and Punisher, which was produced by Marvel, Sony Pictures Entertainment (Japan) Inc., and Madhouse Inc.

Her newest work is MONSTRESS, an original, creator-owned comic book series with Japanese artist (and X-23 collaborator) Sana Takeda. Published by Image in Fall 2015, MONSTRESS is set in an alternate, matriarchal 1920’s Asia and follows a girl’s struggle to survive the trauma of war. With a cast of girls and monsters and set against a richly imagined aesthetic of art deco-inflected steam punk, MONSTRESS #1 debuted to critical praise. The Hollywood Reporter remarked that the longer than typical first issue was “world-building on a scale rare in mainstream comics.”

Ms. Liu is also the author of more than 19 novels, most notably the urban fantasy series, Hunter Kiss, and the paranormal romance series, Dirk & Steele. Her novels have also been bestsellers on USA Today, which described Liu “as imaginative as she is prolific.” Her critically praised fiction has twice received the Romantic Times Reviewers’ Choice Award, for THE MORTAL BONE (Hunter Kiss #6), and TIGER EYE (Dirk & Steele #1). TIGER EYE was the basis for a bestselling paranormal romance video game called Tiger Eye: Curse of the Riddle Box.

Liu has appeared on MSNBC, CNN, MTV, and been profiled in the Wall Street Journal.com, Hollywood Reporter, and USA Today. She is a frequent lecturer and guest speaker, appearing on panels at San Diego Comic Con, the Tokyo Literary Festival, the New York Times Public Lecture series, Geeks Out; and the Asian American Writers Workshop. Her work has been published internationally, including Germany, France, Japan, Poland, and the United Kingdom.

Ms. Liu was born in Philadelphia, and has lived in numerous cities in the Midwest and Beijing. Prior to writing full-time, she was a lawyer. She currently resides in Boston.

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5 stars
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59 (37%)
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Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews
Profile Image for Mitticus.
1,163 reviews241 followers
August 12, 2019
At the end of the current Monstress's argumentative arc we find a lot of action. Zinn seems still confused and hurt by the Lord Doctor, Maika's father, but still she manages to meet with former allies or frenemies. But the war seems to have started. Meanwhile, the intrigues of courts, elders and warlords, including Baroness and Maika's aunt, still seem to be undermined. The only voice of reason seems to belong to the little fox, Kippa.



The art is fantastic.

I can't wait for the next one...in january??

2019-8-11-Monstress-Issue-24


Profile Image for tammy.
432 reviews177 followers
August 10, 2019
actual rating: 3.5
well guess we’re waiting till JANUARY??3?3!!!3!? for another issue haha g r e a t. let’s c if i’m still interested by then.
Profile Image for Victor Ahumada.
166 reviews4 followers
October 10, 2020
No avanza, todo es dar vueltas y complicar más una trama de por sí compleja.
Profile Image for Skeptic Hecate.
359 reviews15 followers
July 22, 2020
I cannot believe what happened, these people cannot get one day to themselves, it is quite sad, so much death and treachery. However, I do like how the relationship between characters grows, it shows the dents of the hardships but also the weariness of the entire situation.
I am not a fan of the illustrations though, Sana Takeda gave us a pretty high standard, and after that an airbrush falls flat.
Profile Image for Su.
310 reviews23 followers
September 14, 2019
A Good Move Forward

I appreciated this issue a lot more than the last. The pacing was so much better and the forward progression of the narrative was much clearer. It was a good issue overall.
Profile Image for Rita.
22 reviews18 followers
September 29, 2019
Marjorie Liu and Sana Takeda have done it again!
Tensions are building, backstories are developing, and there is impending war. After all these issues, it feels like the real story hasn't even begun yet. I'd love to see where they'll take this in the future.

Until then, the long wait till the next issue is going to be excruciating.
Profile Image for dathomira.
236 reviews
Read
August 3, 2019
i have SO MANY POINTS TO MAKE: first of all marjorie and sana are teh HORNIEST and i love it i respect no one more than them.
Profile Image for Zian B..
2,314 reviews34 followers
April 14, 2023
Everything is about to be even more chaotic since war is coming extremely fast. However, I will not be continuing this comic series (at all, since prior i took a multiple month hiatus).
Kippa and Maika finally reunited and while everything is about to get much worse for them, at least they have each other for the time being and I want to remember their interactions in this issue as decently positive ones.
Profile Image for Vyshakh Aravindan.
1,235 reviews11 followers
July 2, 2025
A calm before the storm. On the surface, not much happens—but beneath the stillness is emotional unease. Maika, Ren, Tuya, and Kippa regroup, but it doesn’t feel like unity. Everyone is withholding, everyone is watching. Kippa, in particular, seems desperate to hold things together with kindness. The tension builds through glances, silence, and hesitation. We feel the weight of what’s coming. A slower chapter, but an essential emotional setup for what’s about to fracture.

Profile Image for M. Ashraf.
2,399 reviews131 followers
February 18, 2025
Monstress
Issue#24
Volume#04
The Chosen
Marjorie M. Liu

It is like a shift forward from the last volume,
We met Maika's father 3:) a scarry Silkroad figure :p
New creatures the Dracul
The gift of the little fox awakened
A War is coming!
The artwork is still amazing!!
Do not know when is the next volume :( But I will be waiting!
Profile Image for Judy.
59 reviews
October 6, 2019
I just can't keep up with the different warring factions and shifting hierarchies anymore so I give up after this set.
Profile Image for Andy Hickman.
7,396 reviews51 followers
March 11, 2021
Issue#24
“Your futures are not written. But they WILL be… either to great benediction … or even GREATER tribulation.” – Mother to young Maika.
Displaying 1 - 18 of 18 reviews

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