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anieeereads's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.75
yaminosenshi's review
3.0
A novelization of the first part of the webcomic Girl Genius. It doesn't add anything to the story, but it does make it a little easier to keep tracking of what happened and to whom. It obviously suffers from being the first part of many. If you're a fan of the series, it might be worth picking up. Anyone else can just read the comics online for free.
drowsyreaper's review
5.0
I started reading the comic series over ten years ago and loved it. This is a great retelling of the first three volumes with a lot of additional context and expanded details.
maggpiebymoonlight's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
4.5
inger70's review
4.0
Slow starter, but picked up and I enjoyed it. Will definitely read more of this series!
conifrancese's review
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
2.25
philipf's review against another edition
4.0
Phil & Kaja Foglio have turned their webcomic into a novel. I quite enjoyed reading this, and having it in prose format gives them the room to explain a few things in better detail, but overall, I think the story is better served in comics where we can see the wonderful, cartoony art.
onceandfuturelaura's review
4.0
Kaja Foglio and I were dorm neighbors for several years. She was a hoot. With *fascinating* friends. Who sometimes would end up in my dorm room. I sometimes think I see shadows of some of these people in her books.
I haven't read the first comics for years, but I remember it took me a while to catch on to the fact that the uber-ruler guy wasn't really the bad guy. He's doing everything he can to make a space for civilization. And Agatha, for better or for worse, is a destabilizing force. His reaction to that drives a lot more of this story than I first realized. Maybe I'm just getting old, but I am increasingly finding him the second most sympathetic character.
Re-reading this book, I'm delighted about how it plays with the monomyth. Agatha is Moses, raised by loving surrogate parents trying to protect her from her parents' pasts. She literally rises to the call of adventure. Oh boy does she fight threshold guardians.
I like the graphic novel better, but it is much easier to see the structure in the prose. Also easier to carry on the bus.
Well worth the time.
I haven't read the first comics for years, but I remember it took me a while to catch on to the fact that the uber-ruler guy wasn't really the bad guy. He's doing everything he can to make a space for civilization. And Agatha, for better or for worse, is a destabilizing force. His reaction to that drives a lot more of this story than I first realized. Maybe I'm just getting old, but I am increasingly finding him the second most sympathetic character.
Re-reading this book, I'm delighted about how it plays with the monomyth. Agatha is Moses, raised by loving surrogate parents trying to protect her from her parents' pasts. She literally rises to the call of adventure. Oh boy does she fight threshold guardians.
I like the graphic novel better, but it is much easier to see the structure in the prose. Also easier to carry on the bus.
Well worth the time.
tmpowers's review
5.0
I started to read the webcomic for this a couple times over the years and wasn't able to get into it. I've never really been into the steampunk thing and I wasn't crazy about the art. Eventually I picked up this novelization of the story after repeatedly seeing the series pop up in my circles and feeds and such. The novel hooked me real good. I ate it up and in no time I was reading through the webcomic and the novels at the same time. That way, I could see the story the way the writers/artists envisioned it as well as the added perspective of the novel version that originally pulled me in. In the last three weeks I have read through all fourteen+ volumes of the comic and these three novelizations. I'm a fan. Now, I just have to reconcile with the fact that because I've caught up to the present on the website, I just get three pages a week.
windchime79's review
5.0
This is Phil and Kaja Foglio's novelisation of their ongoing Girl Genius webcomic (or rather, the first three volumes of it). The webcomic promises 'Adventure, Romance, Mad Science!' - and that's exactly what you get in this book. It's a lighthearted, fun romp through a world shaped by mad geniuses (those with 'the Spark') and their crazy inventions.
If you already read and love the webcomic, the book won't offer any surprises in terms of plot, but what it does is flesh out the characters and offer more details, along with some backstory. I heartily recommend it.
If you don't already read the webcomic, but you're into steampunk (or as Kaja Foglio prefers to call it, gaslamp fantasy), then I recommend both webcomic and book. Both tell the same story, so pick your preferred medium. Or do as I did, and read both!
If you already read and love the webcomic, the book won't offer any surprises in terms of plot, but what it does is flesh out the characters and offer more details, along with some backstory. I heartily recommend it.
If you don't already read the webcomic, but you're into steampunk (or as Kaja Foglio prefers to call it, gaslamp fantasy), then I recommend both webcomic and book. Both tell the same story, so pick your preferred medium. Or do as I did, and read both!