Review of "Batman Dark Angel 1: The Fall"

Review of

Batman Dark Angel 1: The Fall

Four out of five stars

 Bruce Wayne has been seriously injured while battling Bane and is in a wheelchair while he recuperates. Jean Paul has taken over the Batman role and he is even more of a loner than the original. He is also more brutal in his dealings with his opponents and has frozen Robin and Nightwing out. Jean Paul has also created a new costume that is sleeker and much more deadly looking.

 The new Batman confronts Bane in a titanic struggle where Robin provides surreptitious assistance. When Batman does not succumb to his baser instincts when he is victorious, Robin breathes a sigh of relief and knows that Batman truly still lives in a different body.

 This is generally a dark story, as Jean Paul is a much more violent personality, subject to fits of rage and seems willing to be Machiavellian when battling the criminals. Yet, the forces of evil in the hero are beaten back along with Bane and the story concludes with good winning out over evil. Unlike the comics published under the old code, people die violent deaths in this one.

Review of "Robert B. Parker’s Wonderland," by Ace Atkins

Review of

Robert B. Parker’s Wonderland, by Ace Atkins ISBN 9780399161575

Three out of five stars

While this book stars the popular detective Spenser, it is much weaker than the other books in the series. Hawk is mentioned, but never appears and Susan Silverman is generally away, so most of the interaction between Spenser and Susan is by phone. The new Spenser sidekick is Zebulon (Z) Sixkill and he is at best a work in progress, nothing like the powerful Hawk.

 The premise is that Henry Cimoli comes to Spenser asking for his aid when there is an aggressive attempt to buy out the condominium where he lives. When some second-rate thugs try to rough Henry up, Spenser is all in. Gambling has recently been legalized in Massachusetts and there is a dispute over a gaming license in the Boston area. The local crime bosses oppose a casino in the area as it will cut into their business.

 When Las Vegas mobsters try to become local players, the situation becomes confusing to Spenser, the local and state police and even to local mobster Gino Fish. When there are brutal murders, Spenser is forced to protect a woman that is clearly playing both sides, even though the danger is real.

 Atkins tries to emulate the snappy and humorous dialog so characteristic of the Spenser novels, but does not succeed. It comes across as forced and artificial, made even worse by the absence of Hawk. In the long tradition of the hero/sidekick genre, there are none better than Spenser/Hawk. Even though neither one is the secondary player. The insertion of Z as the partner of Spenser was not a success.

Review of "Football Genius," by Tim Green

Review of

Football Genius, by Tim Green ISBN 9780061122736

Four out of five stars

 This book of adolescent sports fiction uses an interesting and non-traditional premise. Troy White is a good youth football player, he plays quarterback, but even though he is the best one on the team, he is the backup to the coach’s son. His female friend Tate also loves football and is the kicker on their team.

 However, Troy’s real skill is in predicting what play a pro offense is going to run based on the circumstances and formation. It takes him a few plays in order to get into the flow of the game, but once he is on, he very rarely fails. His favorite team is the local Atlanta Falcons and he is desperate to speak to the coaches so that he can show them his skills.

 Through some subterfuge, he is able to meet Falcons linebacker Seth Halloway and demonstrate his skills in prediction. After some initial failures that includes an assistant coach that would rather lose games than admit his errors, Troy becomes a valuable addition to the Falcons’ staff and finds a new man in his mother’s life. There is a big game at the end,  but there is no lengthy, tense buildup to the climax.

 The problem with this book is that it portrays some of the coaches as rather ignorant and foolishly self-serving. One of the coaches of the Falcons openly admits to players that he wants the team to do poorly and the coach of the junior league team will not consider replacing his son as quarterback, even though Troy is clearly superior. While such things happen, they are not the best messages for young people in sports.