Series: DC Icons #2
Audience: +16
Genre: Young Adult, Fantasy, Superheroes
Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers
Release Date: January 2nd 2018
My Rating: 5 Cups
Source: Penguin Random House
Blurb (from Goodreads):
Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.*Disclaimer: I received an ARC of this book from Penguin Random House in exchange for an honest review. This does not influence my rating or the content of my review in any way.
The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.
One by one, the city's elites are being executed as their mansions' security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family's fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he's forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city's most brutal criminals.
Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce's only hope.
In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.
While I wasn't always a big comic book reader, I've always wished for a written version of the superheroes. I was super excited to hear that some very famous superheroes were getting their own books and I jumped at the chance to read one of these stories.
One of my biggest expectations was to have a glimpse into the life of the person behind the superhero mask. And I was very happy when I realized that that's what I was getting. I knew of Batman, but never of Bruce Wayne. Bruce has always been a mystery to me. This book allowed me to understand the man underneath the Batman costume a little bit more. We meet Bruce when he's about to turn eighteen, and the Bruce I met at the beginning of this book was a boy with big dreams, one that is still suffering after the loss of his parents, but one that still holds a small thread of innocence inside of him, the idealism of someone so young. He decides to take it upon himself to help out the police, which doesn't get him any "thank yous", but instead lands him some community service time at the Arkham Asylum. And in that environment you can see his idealism and the innocence I was talking about, because he thinks he can not only help the police, but also help redeem one of the prisoners there. By the end of the novel though I got to see a glimpse of the Batman I've always known of, from the animated show, movies and even the occasional comic books. Bruce starts to realize that some people can't be redeemed, that some people don't just need another chance, and while it's a tough lesson for him to learn, it's one that he needed. He also learned that sometimes you have to do some really risky things in order to save the people he cares about.
Another thing that Bruce learns is how to deal with some tough love from people who don't know him beyond him being the rich orphan, heir to the Wayne empire. The police officer who came up with his punishment represents something that Bruce hasn't had in a very long time: a mother figure. I know he's always had Alfred, but this was different. It was interesting to see Bruce faced with expectations from someone who doesn't care about the fact that he lost his parents, but who at the same time is trying to teach him a valuable lesson. The added element of the lesson coming from an authority figure adds a seriousness to that lesson, and it doesn't allow Bruce to charm his way out things. While Bruce is a smart young man, one who is pretty mature for his age, he also knows how to charm the people around him. And while he accepts that he needs to be punished for what he did, I don't think he really believes the punishment will be that harsh.
The novel uses a lot of mind games, and it's probably the reason why I enjoyed it so much. Madeleine, the inmate that befriends Bruce, is very smart, and she knows just what to say and how to say it to make Bruce take her side, without Bruce even realizing it. While Madeleine isn't one of the good guys, I found myself rooting for her. She's certainly smart, and she certainly shares with Bruce some form of truth, some reality mixed in with the mind games meant to have things play out the way they're supposed to, and I myself didn't really see through it from the very beginning. But the tiny truth that Madeleine shares is heartbreaking and you can see how Bruce could have ended in Arkham himself had he taken different choices, had Alfred not been there for him. That parallel between Bruce and Madeleine hit me harder I think than I expected, and I liked seeing that Bruce himself wasn't immune to Madeleine's tales.
The other thing I enjoyed seeing was the little Easter eggs that Lu masterfully snuck inside the story. I won't go into them, because I want you to discover them, but let's just say that there were a few details and characters in this book that were familiar and that had the nerd in me do a little wiggle.
The ending of the book was interesting and surprising. While I anticipated a few of the things that happened, the ending surprised me, and I'm curious to see if it will somehow reflect in the Catwoman book. All in all, I really enjoyed this story and I am very excited for more superheroes to get their stories told.
“Ever feel like you’re screwed no matter what you do?” Owen’s question comes out of nowhere.
All the time. Part of me wants to say it out loud. “Once in a while.” “Any advice?” He gives me a half smile.
I don’t know this guy, but he seems nice—and unhappy. I can relate.
He’s waiting for me to respond. I shrug. “Sometimes life only gives you two options. Bad or worse. So you go with bad.”
“Makes sense.” He studies me like he’s taking inventory, checking off boxes on a mental list. The competitor in me wonders how I’m scoring. What if I’m giving him advice about his girlfriend, possibly a delightful friend of April’s?
The faint sound of laughter from the party floats through the air.
“Why did you come to Black Water?” Owen asks. “I’m guessing itwasn’t for the social scene.”
I tap on my brace. “I tore my PCL, the ligament that runs behind my knee. My doctor said I’ll need a lot of physical therapy to get my knee back in shape, and I only have four months to do it.”
“What happens in four months?”
“I’m a soccer player. I need to get back on the field in March, when the season starts.”
“What if you need more time to recover?” It sounds like he actually cares about the answer.
“If I work hard enough, it will heal by then.” I hope.
Losing my spot at UNC isn’t an option. I practiced soccer drills with Dad every day after school and on weekends—and it paid off. I’m not letting Reed destroy my dreams.
“Don’t they have physical therapists where you’re from?” he asks.
“In Washington, DC? Sure.”
“You left Washington, DC, to come here? Why?” Owen is smart and nosy. Not the best combination when I’m trying to keep certain parts of my life private. But he does have an amazing smile.
“Why not?” I counter.
“How about because Washington, DC, is a major city with museums and concerts and the subway, and Black Water is . . . Black Water.”
“In DC, we call it the Metro, not the subway.”
He smiles at me again. “In Black Water we don’t call it anything, because we don’t have one.”
“That’s the point. There are no distractions here.”
“How did you hurt your knee?”
I didn’t.
“I fell down a flight of stairs.” It’s the truth, but for some reason leaving out the details makes me feel like I’m trapped in a room that’s too small and could get smaller any minute. “I’m a klutz when I’m not on the soccer field.”
“That sucks. I’m sorry.” Owen looks me in the eye and says it, like he really means it.
“It could be worse.” But with my scholarship hanging in the balance, it doesn’t feel that way.
“It still sucks.”
Why am I letting Owen ask me so many questions? I’ve known him for fifteen minutes. The incident with Reed taught me how easy it is to misjudge someone. I thought he was the kind of athlete who would never resort to doping and cheating.
I’ve always relied on my gut instincts about people—the little voice in the back of my head. But I don’t trust it anymore.
Owen cocks his head to the side and grins. “So do you still want to know if I have a girlfriend?”
Heat crawls up the back of my neck. “I never asked you that.”
“When I got off the phone, you asked if I was fighting with mygirlfriend.”
“I was making conversation, not fishing.” Okay, I sort of was. “I’m not hunting for a boyfriend if that’s what you think.”
“Your cousins made that pretty clear.”
I’m going to strangle those two. “What did they say?” So I know how much salt to dump in their breakfast tomorrow.
Owen leans back against the bales. “I saw them coming out of the locker room after the game and I mentioned that we met, and they said you don’t date.”
The Twins are dead.
They made it sound like I’m joining a convent after graduation. The heat spreads from my neck to my cheeks. I should ditch Owen and go back to the party before this conversation gets more embarrassing.
But I want to stay.
The last three weeks have been full of lies and accusations, surgery and doctors’ appointments, threats and depressing calls from an ex who won’t stop calling me and a best friend who never wants to speak to me again. My conversation with Owen makes me feel normal. It’s one of the few I’ve had in weeks that didn’t revolve around my injury or Reed.
I want it to last a little longer.
I also don’t want Owen thinking I’m convent-bound. “For the record, I do date. I’m just not interested in dating right now. There’s a difference.”
Owen holds up his hands in surrender. “I’m just telling you what I heard. Is that the reason you’re back here instead of hanging out at the party?”
“No. I’m just antisocial.”
His eyes flicker to my mouth. “I don’t believe that.”
I pull my hair back in a ponytail and secure it with the elastic around my wrist. Anything to keep from making eye contact with him. “You don’t even know me.”
Owen leans forward and rests his elbows on his knees. His arm grazes mine and he looks over at me. “Not yet.”
The door to the women’s room slammed open. Abby practically jumped, ready to beg whoever was walking through to give her some privacy. Jack filled the doorway with his presence.
