In Review: Crusade - Simoun Dja

Crusade, written by Jean Dufaux and illustrated by Philippe Xavier, is a new series of Franco-Belgian bandes dessinee albums that Cinebook is translating into English for the first time. The first book, Simoun Dja, was originally published in French in 2007 and the series currently runs to four books that Cinebook intend to publish over the next twelve months. Set in the Middle East at the start of the second millennium, it tells of a crusade to the Holy Land that has been left out of the history books.

The holy city of Hierus Halem is controlled by Sultan Abdul Razim and a Christian crusader army led by Gregoire of Arcos has been raised to take it back. Gregoire's power hungry daughter Elenore and Robert, Duke of Taranto, persuade him to lead his army against the Muslims across the desert at the time of the Simoun Dja windstorm. Elenore's husband Gauthier and Gregoire's other daughter Syria realise the futility of attacking during this time but are overruled. Meanwhile Razim uses the powers of the Mufti of Alkar to give his men supernatural protection against the oncoming storm and, as the two armies clash and the storm begins, all does not go well for the Christians.

The book begins with two pages of text outlining the historical reality of the Crusades which takes in rather more that just Richard the Lionheart and Saladin. With this factual grounding writer Jean Dufaux then weaves a complex web of spirits and demons around the Christian and Muslim armies as they battle for control of Hierus Halem/Jerusalem. The political intrigue on the Christian side vies with the supernatural intrigue on the Muslim side as much as the two armies vie with each other on the battlefield and yet, as more and more characters and situations are introduced, you realise that, other than the initial battle, nothing is going to be resolved here, that most of the questions that the story raises are going to be left unanswered.

Philippe Xavier's art is clear and detailed, with his female characters appearing very much in the style of early John Bolton, while his layouts can be remarkably striking. His battle scenes are particularly well laid out with short fast vertical scenes differentiating the chaos of combat from the horizontal and more languid scenes of the battle's aftermath.


Crusade - Simoun Dja seems to be somewhat of a prequel to a bigger story that will happen in the rest of the books of the series and so, despite the complex storyline and excellent art, in itself it feels a little lacking. Yet with any luck this series will blossom as the story continues straight into the second book due to be published in February 2011. It certainly appears on its first outing to be a series worth watching.

• The are more details of Crusade - Simoun Dja on the Cinebook website.

• There are more details of the original Croisade books on Le Lombard website (in French).

In Review: XIII - All The Tears Of Hell

Who is XIII? Presidential assassin? Special forces soldier? Psychotic killer? The questions continue in the third part of the XIII saga, All The Tears Of Hell, written by Jean Van Hamme and illustrated by William Vance.

Amnesiac XIII spent the previous book being told by everyone that he was soldier Steve Rowlands before being framed for the murder of two of Rowlands' family. All The Tears Of Hell sees XIII imprisoned in a high security mental prison for the crime while the American establishment try to discover exactly who he is and why he assassinated the President. However prison may not be the safest place for XIII as the prison doctor attempts to break him with electro-convulsive therapy while the man known as the Mongoose, who XIII believes is out to kill him, threatens him with death by someone on the inside. In the meantime the mysterious Lt Jones has infiltrated the prison hospital...

Only three books into the nineteen book series and the plot threads are already getting convoluted with many of the characters from the previous two books making fleeting reappearances here. After a book as Steve Rowlands, XIII's identity is back to being a mystery to both himself and virtually everyone else while the main plot element, a jail break, could so easily have let the book down it is to Van Hamme's credit that it does not. While the ending to the jail break make be just a little too convenient, it sets the scene for yet another change of identity with, finally, potential allies for XIII to work with.

This is the last of the XIII series that had been translated into English by other publishers previous to Cinebook getting the rights to the books. From now on Cinebook are pushing into uncharted territory with XIII, in English at least. All The Tears Of Hell shows that the XIII story continues to be both thrilling and fascinating and that those 'new' stories really can't come quickly enough.


There are more details of the English language XIII books on the Cinebook website.

There are more details of the original French XIII albums on the official XIII website (in French).

In Review: The Amulet of Samarkand

By Jonathan Stroud and Andrew Donkin (script), Lee Sullivan (art) and Nicolas Chapuis (colour)
Publisher: Corgi Children's (UK, paperback) Disney Hyperion (US, hardcover)
Out: Now (hardcover) 3rd February 2011 (paperback)

The Book: The first volume in the brilliant, bestselling Bartimaeus sequence, now adapted into a stunning graphic novel format - this is Bartimaeus as you've never seen him before!

Nathaniel, a young magician’s apprentice, has revenge on his mind. Desperate to defy his master and take on more challenging spells, he secretly summons the 5000-year-old djinni, Bartimaeus. But Bartimaeus’s task is not an easy one – he must steal the powerful Amulet of Samarkand from Simon Lovelace, a master magician of unrivalled ruthlessness and ambition. Before long, Bartimaeus and Nathaniel are caught up in a terrifying flood of intrigue, rebellion and murder.

Set in modern-day London controlled by magicians, this brilliant adaptation of Jonathan Stroud’s bestselling novel will enthral readers of all ages.

The Review: I had better declare my allegiances before you continue reading this review: I worked with script writer Andrew Donkin while editing Doctor Who Magazine - I believe his co-authored story, Train Flight, was one of his first professional commissions. Lee Sullivan is a superb artist but someone I have also worked with many times on Doctor Who (if you need Daleks drawing, he's your man...). So you can imagine I might be a little biased in my comments.

Reviewed here is the paperback edition of a hardcover edition released last year by Disney Hyperion, based on story in the world famous Bartimaeus Trilogy by Stroud, consisting of The Amulet of Samarkand, The Golem’s Eye and Ptolemy’s Gate. Stroud says these are his most popular books, published in 38 countries worldwide, so it's perhaps no surprize the first has now been adapted into graphic novel form - and a very enjoyable adaptation, too.

The story itself is superb – centring as it does on the exploits of the devious djinni, Bartimaeus,  summoned by a young apprentice, Nathaniel, and directed to steal the Amulet of Samarkand from the powerful magician, Simon Lovelace. (At first, Nathaniel's motive is pure revenge for the way Lovelace has treated him – but as the story develops, it quickly turns out that the older magician deserves everything he gets).

Set in an alternate Britain where magician defend the realm (a tradition begun by Liberal Prime Minister William Gladstone, it seems), Lee Sullivan - who describes the most intensive comic work he's ever produced – brings Stroud's glorious fantasy novel to life with aplomb, and Stroud and Donkin's script makes good use of the different narratives in the story, with Bartimaeus telling his side and Nathaniel his.

Of course, even at 144 pages, it's some challenge to bring the full depth of Stroud's story to life and I'd have to say that with a higher page count the team might have been able to make more of some of the action sequences; and the final publication size of the book is a disappointment. This is a production crying out for the print equivalent of wide screen, in my opinion.

Despite this, Lee's art is stunning, especially his realization of alternate London, which includes Crystal Palace and overviews of the House of Commons and more. His character work is great, particularly Bartimaeus, the various fantasy creatures such as letter-delivering imps and magician-guarding sentries. He also brings some real wamrth to scenes between Natahnie and the kind-hearted Mrs Underwood, the only person who shows the young boy any decency. Chapuis' colouring more than does the work justice: although a more subtle palette might also have suited some older readers, the target audience will enjoy the brighter colour choices, especially when things explode and demons manifest.

All in all, a terrific adaptation of a great novel (and one I'll now be hunting down to read in original form).

• Buy The Amulet of Samarkand from amazon.co.uk

• Buy the hardcover edition from amazon.co.uk



• Buy The Amulet of Samarkand from amazon.com


• Buy the hardcover edition from amazon.com

• The official Bartimaeus website

Creator Web Links

• Jonathan Stroud


• Andrew Donkin


• Lee Sullivan
View production work and some final pages from the book here on his site



• Nicolas Chapuis

• There will be a signing and Q&A by Jonathan Stroud to promote this book, plus live art by Andrew Donkin and Lee Sullivan at the Forbidden Planet Megastore, 179 Shaftesbury Avenue, London, WC2H 8JR, on Thursday 24th February 6 – 7.00pm. More info on the Forbidden Planet web site

Comics @ Aye Write! Glasgow's Book Festival

Hot on the heels of the Glasgow Film Festival with its impressive comics strand comes Aye Write! Glasgow's Book Festival with an equally impressive selection of comics names appearing over the course of the festival's nine days.

After his appearances at the Edinburgh International Book Festival last year, political cartoonist Steve Bell returns to Scotland to talk about his own work while no Glasgow festival these days would be complete without an appearance by writer Mark Millar. The last Saturday of the festival is busiest with DC Thomson writer and editor David Donaldson returning to Aye Write with his popular Broons and Oor Wullie team quiz, cartoonist David Shrigley talking about his work and, perhaps the highlight of the comics events, Asterix translator Anthea Bell will be talking about fifty years of the famous Gaul.

All the Aye Write! events take place in the Mitchell Library near Glasgow's city centre. Tickets for each event are £8 for adults (£6 for concessions) and more details and booking instructions are on the Aye Write! website.

Steve Bell
Saturday 5 March
1400-1500
In a talk illustrated by his brilliant cartoons he covers politics from the death of New Labour to the arrival of the ConLibDemolition. Steve Bell is our funniest cartoonist on politics, media and life. In a talk illustrated by his brilliant cartoons he covers politics from the death of New Labour to the arrival of the ConLibDemolition. Marvel at Gordon Brown’s progress from saviour of the world to the Rochdale disaster, ogle Silvio Berlusconi’s false breasts, celebrate the end of Dubya and cheer as Obama bounds on stage, thrill at the three party leaders’ hairstyles and gasp as Nick Clegg is buried beneath a humping heap of toads.​

Mark Millar
Monday 7 March
1930-2030
Multi award-winning writer Mark Millar has revamped the X-Men, launched a number one Spider-Man title, brought Captain America into the 21st century and made Superman a communist. He is the writer of the US industry’s biggest-selling comic book of the past decade, Marvel’s Civil War. His comic series Wanted and Kick-Ass were sold as movies before the first issues hit the stands. He talks about his work and takes questions from the audience.

The Broons and Oor Wullie: 75th Birthday
Saturday 12 March
1030-1130
Since 1936 The Broons and Oor Wullie have kept Scottish readers laughing at home and abroad. Now in the second quiz to be held at Aye Write!, (open to all the family) come and test your knowledge about our much loved characters, led by David Donaldson, scriptwriter of the The Broons and Oor Wullie for over three decades. Free and open to teams of no more than six. Prizes for the winners. Free tickets for this event are limited and only available from The Mitchell Library in person (Monday to Thursday 9am-8pm and Friday and Saturday 9am-5pm).

David Shrigley
Saturday 12 March
1700-1800
Harry Hill said ‘If you’re looking for a humour/art crossover, then David Shrigley’s stuff is spot on’. In What the Hell are You Doing?, Shrigley provides a beautifully designed and darkly comic collection of work, bringing together the best of his work, old and new. He talks about this work in a celebration of the surreal world of one of our finest contemporary artists, now living and working in Glasgow.

A Tribute To Asterix
Saturday 12 March
1700-1830
Asterix the Gaul is over 50 years old in 2011. All 34 books remain immensely popular across Europe and have been made into films and television series. Anthea Bell, translator of the Asterix books, provides a tour of the work, joined by Rob Shearman, author of the 2005 Doctor Who episode Dalek and huge fan and (another fan) Stuart Kelly of Scotland on Sunday. So, come and join Asterix, Obelix, Dogmatix and others for ninety minutes of fun.

More details and booking instructions for all the events are on the Aye Write! website.