Two Envelopes And A Phone > Recent Status Updates

Basically, they've released two Epic Collections in a row that just happen to feature two of my favourite periods of Spider-Man, and now Fantastic Four, both of which were written by Marv Wolfman. So this has been a bit of a treat for me. It has also allowed me to give my friend some graphic novels that contained some, but not all, of these comics. So he gets the cream of the crop, and I get more.

Intense reading. This book must have sat unread on my shelf for close to 10 years. I don't know why I left it so long - I guess just the size and the time commitment. I'm supposed to only read one book set mainly in the USA per month, and this will eat up a chunk of month - but that's okay, because it's riveting. I thought about reading it last month, but wanted Black authors for Black History Month picks.

The big questions are: is she being manipulated, essentially kept in this situation? is there a bad guy, have we met him or her? what, in fact, is actually reliable info, up to this point? what is the significance, in terms of any surprises coming up, of Doctor Nash remaining very separate from Ben? It seems like a very far-fetched scenario - hard for a writer to make work - but I'm enjoying it.

It’s a bit like a Michel Bussi novel - not the masterpiece, Black Water Lilies, but sort of like reading Time is a Killer, mixed with The Stone Boy by Sophie Loubiere, plus some of Mister Memory by Marcus Sedgwick. All of which means I like it a lot…but a final verdict is going to depend quite a bit on any big reveals up ahead…

The Sleep Police, by Jay Bonansinga, is the benchmark by which I judge and react to all Crime & Mystery novels with a wonky, bizarro premise. This one seems like it’s going to compete well with that sort of strangeness, while brewing up the same kind of suspense. I’m intrigued.

Going to find out what all the fuss was about, several years ago.

Okay. What a morning. That takes care of Amazing Spider-Man #s 186 to 200, some of my favourite non-subversive superhero comics ever. I always get misty-eyed at certain points in #200 - but #196 rocked me a bit too, again, after all these years. Mysterio, my fave Spidey villain, is on fire here, in #s 198-199 - and could the return of the man who killed Uncle Ben be handled any better? No.

I am fascinated by this novel, possibly captivated by it. It’s a bit like Gwyneth Jones mixed with Joanna Russ…but it seems the plot is about to take a turn that puts me in mind of a book I love, The Pursuit of William Abbey. Or not - I could be way off. Anyway, I love it.

I suspect there will be a lot to think about, all the time.

I'm allowing myself only one 'Epic Collection' per series...and I find I'm gravitating to the ones that contain comics I read years ago, as opposed to, say, parts of series that would be new to me. Ideally, this book would contain Amazing Spider-Man #s 182-202 - basically the Marv Wolfman run - but I get why we needed to stretch to #206, and thus clip out #s 182-185. #200 is perhaps my fave superhero comic.

Very enjoyable. I think only a few of Moyes's later efforts seemed a bit disappointing, but this one is a lot of fun. I sense I'm being tricked, even as a few things appear to become obvious.

I’m a cat person, and likely to pick up a cat-related Mystery, as long as it’s not too cosy-looking, and as long as the cat is not the one solving the crime. But, the used copy of this Moyes was in the best condition of what was on offer, and since I’d read anything by her, I’ll notch up the dog one now. Good start; Emmy made a ‘Third Man’ reference just after I saw the similarities (rumoured third dog/third man).

It's entertaining - but yes, it's lewd crude rude (sued?). There's no way this has been filmed as-is, for TV. I'll never know, I don't watch TV - not my logjam.