Post by richardvasseur on Feb 15, 2018 21:52:49 GMT
Graphic Novel title: Intro to Alien Invasion
Authors: Owen King and Mark Jude Poirier
Artist: Nancy Ahn
Publication: 2015
Publisher: Scribner an imprint of Simon and Schuster, Inc.
Cost: 17.99 U.S.A./ 22.99 Canada
ISBN: 978-1-4767-6340-8
Reviewed by: Allen Klingelhoets
The story is about an alien invasion at Fenton College. A liberal arts college in the hills of Vermont. A hurricane downs power lines and wipes out cell phone reception. Stacey a brilliant astro-biology major and friends at collage become stranded with no way to communicate with others during Spring Break. Three months earlier scientist Profvessor Evans) from school had been on expedition to Russia. He collected soil samples in cold area of Siberia. He than brought them back to Fenton College. There was dormant lady bug like creature that was dormant in dirt sample. They stayed dormant when in cold air of Siberia. The warm air at College brought them out of dormancy. In 1923 a meteor made a massive crater in Siberia. Cold air put them lady bug like with blue tint creatures into dormancy. They than were in frozen specimen section in Astrobiology Research Center. Professor Evans warmed up samples to much. He brought creatures out of dormancy. Now with cut off communications for all at Fenton College alien invasion happens. The lady bug like creatures begin to burrow into students and staff. Maybe going up nose or mouth by flight or ate in food from cafeteria. This cased them to grow in people as used people as host to hold eggs to grow more alien creatures. It is story showing isolation of Fenton College. This was perfect setting to have alien start to conquer people. Story showed all types of students effected by alien creatures. I saw that when effected hosts grew very large and would have hard time getting through single door ways like in library at Fenton College. It did not seem like to very long like hours for alien creatures to take over host body. There were thousands of them. They had to find host quickly when lady bug like creature or they would die. Finding host allowed species to survive and create more of their kind. They also were not against killing if not able to obtain host body. There was a little of human personality when host. This is a story how a group of students banded together to prevent the infestation from spreading. Some of ways mature creature were terminated was rather vile and sickening.
I enjoyed this story told in present time. Story mixes lots of horror and mystery from old classic movies, books in scary version or even horror comic books.
This is one of stories got feel for Owen King as writer. He and Mark Owen Poirier created rather spooky story. I think about 200 pages in graphic novel. The art in graphic novel was in black and white. I think artist Nancy Ahn did great job on art. It did not need the art of John Bryne, or other high profile artists. This is a story about friends in college put into dire situation to save planet from alien invasion. I liked how Nancy Ahn's images seemed to convey "Intro to Alien Invasion" story.
I think teen to adult story.
This also gave me feel how Owen King generated some of ideas for his next book with his father Stephen called "Sleeping Beauties."
I read graphic novel in only couple of hours.
A little info about creative cast.
Owen King is the author of the novel Double Feature. He is son of Stephen King and brother to novelist Joe (Hill) King. He also wrote We're All in This Together: A Novella and Stories, and the co-editor of Who Can Save Us Now? Brand New Superheroes and Their (Amazing) Short Stories.
Mark Jude Poirier is the author of two story collections and the screenwriter of Hateship Loveship, a 2013 film starring Christian Wiig. He holds a Briggs-Copeland lectureship in the creative writing faculty at Harvard.
Nancy Ahn studied painting and writing at Bennington College.
I got my copy of "Intro to Alien Invasion through inter-library loan.
I did notice a special edition is being published trough Cemetery Dance Publications
www.cemeterydance.com/intro-to-alien-invasion.html
Allen Klingelhoets