Lazarus

Imagine that the world has been divided into 16 territories, each ruled by a family that must constantly enforce its will and prepare for invasion if it is to maintain its power. This is the backdrop of the new book from the veteran team of Rucka (Gotham Central, Queen & Country) and Lark (Batman, Terminal City). Lazarus tells the story of Forever Carlyle, the genetically enhanced and virtually unkillable youngest daughter of the Carlyle family, who is not exactly who she thinks she is. Forever must deal with internal and external threats to her family, in a world that has suffered economic collapse and now faces extreme wealth disparity. What makes this graphic novel stand out is the fascinating complexity of the protagonist, complete with a backstory that details how she has been carefully honed into a Lazarus-a weapon the family can use to protect its interests. Lark's artwork is fabulous, capturing both the scenes of violence and those of introspection, in which Forever tries to accept who she is and how she feels about it. It's top-notch SF worldbuilding. With an introduction by Warren Ellis. (Nov.) © Copyright PWxyz, LLC. All rights reserved.

Here is the beginning to a very compelling epic. In the dystopian future, the world is divided up and ruled by families. These families are tasked with providing people with clean air, food, water, and resources. Of course, the people pay with serfdom, and the families are at war with one another. It's not unlike Game of Thrones meets The Godfather. At the center of the book is Forever Carlyle, the Carlyle family's Lazarus. An android made to believe she's truly part of the clan, Forever must navigate her stern "father's" orders, her scientist maker's concerns, and her "sibling" twins' duplicity while simultaneously protecting them all from the other families and a terrorist cell's plot to destroy the Carlyles. Rucka's writing is sparse yet powerful and realistic, and Lark and Arcas's art shows the grittiness of the dystopian landscape. The action scenes are very fluid. Verdict A fantastic novel that will make the reader impatient for the next volume. For fans of dystopian fiction and the works of Philip K. Dick. -Ryan Claringbole, Coll. Lib. at the Univ. of Wisconsin-Madison (c) Copyright 2015. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.