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I’ve been dying for this trade paperback to come out
since I heard about it from Bryan Talbot at San Diego
last year. I literally jumped up and down in my comic
shop when the guy behind the counter handed me this
with our subscription. Yes, I looked like an idiot as
because of this book. Was it worth it? Oh. you’d
better believe it.
This story takes place in the same universe as
Talbot’s earlier work The Adventures of Luther
Arkwright , which was the first British graphic
novel. I’d recommend that you pick it up if you
haven’t already. Bryan Talbot is a brilliant
gentleman. His stories are an intricate weaving of
history, science fiction, and fantasy. His art is
unbelievably beautiful.
After reading The Adventures of Luther Arkwright,
I was curious how Talbot was going to make a
sequel. Arkwright is fully capable of standing
on its own. I trusted Bryan Talbot’s ability to come
up with a completely new story line, and I wasn’t
disappointed.
The story in Heart of Empire follows Luther
Arkwright’s daughter with Queen Anne. The Puritan
power that was overthrown in The Adventures of
Luther Arkwright has been gone for many years.
What replaced the Puritans, however, isn’t much
better, and there are several political movements to
overthrow the monarchy. The Princess, Arkwright’s
daughter, has horrible migraine headaches and can’t
leave London b/c of her frail condition. As it turns
out, she’s the victim of a psychic assault and the
world has seven days until cataclysm. The political
twists and turns are elaborate, and fully believable.
This book is not a carbon copy of the last one. The
art is slightly different and in color this time. Sex
is very much in the foreground of this book. I’m not
complaining; it’s well done, but I got some funny
looks from the girl sitting next to me in Chemistry
lab when I was reading it before lab. * blush * What..
you never seen a graphic novel before? *sheesh* This
book is much more linear than The Adventures of
Luther Arkwright, and is a lot easier to
understand. This is a GREAT book with a terrific
story and amazing art. If you like a good read, I
would recommend that you go pick up Heart of
Empire immediately. Awwww - forget that... go pick
it up anyway; it’s a great book!
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