The author was cool enough to send me a copy of his second installment in the Fangbone series, The Egg of Misery, which is pretty cool since he just did this out of the blue, but what really made my day was that he signed and included a little sketch of Fangbone (just like last time), but with this little added inscription...
BOO-YA! You hear that, pople? I'm officially Fangbones first fan! Well, who knows if that is true, but if it is, I take the honor very seriously.
What is true is that I am definitely a fan. Much like I mentioned in my last review, I'm all about kids' fiction, like the Diary of a Wimpy Kid series and the How to Train a Dragon books. And Fanbone fits nicely along with these books with the added feature of their graphic novel format.
There's really not much I can say that I haven't already said about this series. I still love Rex's art style, simple yet deftly rendered. And the monotone coloring gives it a nice, warm feel.
The story this time around brings back the evil Lord Drool, who's still around trying to retrieve his lost big toe, so he can finally be whole again. Well, not so much him as his cronies, who are trying to bring back their glory days as an evil horde. This time, things get complicated when Fangbone receives an egg from his fellow clans people in his home dimension (it was supposed to be a bag of supplies, but it got switched out by Drool's minions), which Fangbone is tricked into believing is an egg of the legendary White Titan Razor Dragon.
I know, this all sounds pretty heavy, but luckily, Fangbone's best friend, Bill, breaks up the tension with moments like this...
Again, I don't want to spoil the story, so let's just say that it is equally, if not more so, packed full of as much rousing adventure as the first book.
I would, however, like to point out one of the coolest monsters I have ever seen in fantasy literature, the Flaming Ghost of Glor!
How does the author think of these things? I'm so tempted to somehow include this frightful specter in my next D&D game.
Another aspect of the Fangbone books that I love are the little stories within the story, told by Fangbone himself, that re-tell the legends of his people to his classmates here in our dimension. They smack of the actual legends that we have heard from our own ancient civilizations, yet push the envelope so much further and often include a healthy dose of silliness.
It was one of these legends that taught me that never, ever, ever washing your feet can be a potent weapon against a host of enemies.
In short; Mike Rex does it again. I'm forevermore a full-fledged Fangbone fan! I can't wait for the 3rd book!
If this looks like something up your alley, or you know the perfect kid who could use a shot of absurd fantasy in their lives, run out and pick up these books immediately! OR MAY DUNG TROLLS CAUSE HAIR TO GROW ON YOUR TONGUE!
