Perfect Dark Second Front

I found this book at the Used Bookstore the other day when I was taking stuff in for store credit.  I was aware of their being a follow up book after the first called Perfect Dark Initial Vector.  I really liked that book and found a graphic novel, Perfect Dark Janus Tears, which I have written about on the Blog.  So to find the continuation of Joanna Dark's adventures was a great surprise the other day.  I read it in about a day and a half.  I guess you could say I devoured the book.

That is a luxury you have when you are poor and part time in your job.  You have little money or time for many avenues of entertainment and long periods where you can just read.  The adventures in a world of hypercorporations is scary when you stop and think how close we are in the world to this type of reality.  Sci Fi has always been close to the truth of reality.  Into this world of computer and monetary connectedness stride Joanna Dark.  She was trained by her father to be the best weapon ever.  Now she is caught in between corporate heads and the children of the man she killed after the death of her father.  Vengeance and manipulation is an undercurrent that constantly moves this book.

The reader is always wondering if the allies Joanna has are really people she can trust as she moves ever forward.  Still, she walks her own line as other think they are guiding her actions.  There is gunfire and battles like nothing one would ever really think possible when you are dealing with corporate dealings.  The battle at the end is insane in more ways than one.  I wish there was a third book.  The book has unanswered questions about Joanna and her dad, her connection to the world she is loose in.  There is more than is being seen about her that would be nice to have a resolution to as a reader.

These books are great and entertaining reads.  One should seek them out.  Greg Rucka is one great novelist, maybe even better novelist than comicbook writer.

BDS

Perfect Dark: Janus' Tears

            Would the name Joanna Dark mean anything to you?  What about the name Perfect Dark?  The Gamers out there probably know that this is a video game.  I have never played it nor have I ever seen it played.  Still, I like the character of Joanna Dark who is the main person of this video game.  The interesting thing is that Greg Rucka did a novelization of the world of Perfect Dark and added flesh and blood to the heroine of the title.  I found the book for a $1 in a local thrift type store.  It is really great.  I loved the way we just step into the life of Joanna and then get a look at a possible future of America and the World.  The scary thing is that our real world is slowly becoming the corporation controlled place of Joanna’s reality.

            When at the Hickory Comic Con I made two purchases before leaving that were the highest single monies I spent that day.  Mainly I bought six dollar’s worth of fifty cent comics at a time.  The find that fits here is the purchase of a Perfect Dark Trade Paperback by Prima Games.  Ten bucks for what originally sold for $19.99 plus tax and I had a continuation of this character to read.  The story is by Eric Trautmann & Jason Carl.  Cold Fuzion Studios handled the art chores.  The complete title is “Perfect Dark:  Janus’ Tears” and the book came out in 2007.  Thanks to the sidebar I also know Greg Rucka wrote a second novel to be on the lookout for in the days ahead.

            This is a fast paced story that is filled with explosions and fighting galore.  Joanna is no shrinking violet and makes the television espionage characters of the past few years look tame.  She is a corporate agent for the Carrington Institute.  From what has been revealed so far in the mythology, they are the one corporation trying to keep the world safe from the others.  Joanna had been a bounty hunter trained by her father, a former cop.  He drilled a strong mindset of training that keeps her alive.  The only rule she has broken is the one about trust and getting close to people.

            She strives to be perfect.  Her level of expertise with all manner of weapons and stuff is staggering.  The artwork here is a good view of the detail placed on her character.  She tries to do what is right during a mission, but she will not hesitate to get down in the gutter if the need arises.  Still, here sense of decency always shines through.  The world she inhabits is accessible here for those aware of the entire back story and to those in the dark.

            I was thrilled to find this Trade and have read the story.  I still have the intro by Greg Rucka and the extras at the end to read.  I am glad I was able to get this book and hope some of you might get the chance to find it one day in your local library or for sale like I did.  Used bookstores would probably be the best place to start.  Good luck.

BDS