Skywise has always been the companion to the hero, Cutter Kinseeker. But now Cutter is gone, his body part of the reborn Father Tree, his spirit free to roam. Life goes on for the stargazer; he now has a daughter, the amazing and gifted Jink, who lives to see her father happy. But a shocking secret lies concealed beneath the beautiful facade of Skywise's tranquil life. What happens if he learns the one thing that could shatter his—and his loving daughter's—world? How far would he go—how far would they both go—to regain what might be lost?
Richard Pini is one-half of a husband and wife team with Wendy Pini that created, most notably, the Elfquest series.
He was raised in Orange, Connecticut with his three siblings. Richard began writing science fiction stories early in his childhood.
In 1972, Richard and Wendy were married after a courtship of four years. He graduated from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1973 with a degree in Astrophysics. He worked at the Hayden Planetarium at the Museum of Science in Boston until 1975 and Taunton High School until 1979 when he began his career at IBM.
In 1977, Richard and Wendy established a publishing company called Warp Graphics to publish their first Elfquest comic. Richard is credited as co-writer and editor on Elfquest, as well as handling all of the publishing and business aspects of Warp Graphics.
Elfquest was self-published for 25 years and in 2003, licensed to DC Comics. The comic series has won several awards, including the Ed Aprill Award for Best Independent Comic, two Alley Awards, the Fantasy Festival Comic Book Awards for Best Alternative Comic, and the Golden Pen Award.
Richard has also contributed writing for Worldpool, Futurequest, Rogue's Curse, and two Windkin stories.
He has received the Small Press Writers and Artists Organization Award for Best Editor, the San Diego Comic Convention Inkpot Award, and the New York State Jaycees Distinguished Service Award.
Richard and his wife currently reside in Poughkeepsie, New York.
Without spoilers, I felt it was a touch rushed, and generally the ending was lackluster. I've loved ElfQuest for nearly 20 years so this was a disappointment.