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Marvel Aconyte Novels
Domino: Strays: A Marvel Heroines Novel
Sharp-witted, luck-wrangling mercenary Domino takes on both a dangerous cult and her own dark past, in this explosive introduction to the new series of Marvel prose novels
The job: infiltrate a Chicago conman’s cult to liberate some brainwashed twins. For former X-Force operative Domino, that’s a “hell no”. Fanatics are bad news. She still has nightmares about Project Armageddon, the super-soldier program that wrecked her life and destroyed her family. If only she’d had someone to help her back then, someone… like her. It’s a total pain in the ass, but maybe it is time to finally face those demons. With her probability manipulating superpowers she can turn even the worst of situations to her advantage.
The job: infiltrate a Chicago conman’s cult to liberate some brainwashed twins. For former X-Force operative Domino, that’s a “hell no”. Fanatics are bad news. She still has nightmares about Project Armageddon, the super-soldier program that wrecked her life and destroyed her family. If only she’d had someone to help her back then, someone… like her. It’s a total pain in the ass, but maybe it is time to finally face those demons. With her probability manipulating superpowers she can turn even the worst of situations to her advantage.
336 pages, Paperback
First published October 6, 2020
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314 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 38 reviews
June 23, 2021
This pulls from the Gail Simone era of Domino from the last couple of years. Domino has her all female team of mercenaries she works with, The Hotshots. They are hired to get a brother and sister out of a cult. There are also two parallel stories, one of her childhood (which Gail Simone already covered) and the other, six years in Domino's past when she met her mother.
The parallel story lines are where the problems lie. Just when the main story is gathering momentum, Palmgren undercuts it by switching to one of the other stories. The end of the book gets very confusing as the stories blend together, switching every few paragraphs with no transition. With each paragraph I grew more frustrated as I had to figure out which timeline this paragraph was for.
It's a shame. I did enjoy the story at times. But the poor storytelling device killed any enthusiasm I had for this book.
Received a review copy from Aconyte and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
#Marvel #MarvelEnt #Aconytebooks #review
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
The parallel story lines are where the problems lie. Just when the main story is gathering momentum, Palmgren undercuts it by switching to one of the other stories. The end of the book gets very confusing as the stories blend together, switching every few paragraphs with no transition. With each paragraph I grew more frustrated as I had to figure out which timeline this paragraph was for.
It's a shame. I did enjoy the story at times. But the poor storytelling device killed any enthusiasm I had for this book.
Received a review copy from Aconyte and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
#Marvel #MarvelEnt #Aconytebooks #review
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
October 29, 2021
I'm not a huge movie watcher nor a comic book fan by any means so I'd missed the band wagon with Marvel. However I've seen a few novels with a marvel theme and decided to try and give a few of them ago. This is my first try. An decent read and with an interesting set of characters. Although I think it's more enjoyable for those who is more knowledge about the marvel universe and Donino
February 1, 2021
This is a pretty good prose novel featuring Neeena Thurman, Domino, and her Hot Shot team created by Gail Simone. Their mission is to extricate a pair of young people from the clutches of a fanatical (is there any other kind?) cult leader in Chicago, Neena's old stomping ground. There are a couple of other storylines interspersed with the current one, one fourteen years in the past with Neena as a child and one with her six years in the past investigating her origin. It's all pretty well done for the majority of the book, but unfortunately in the final section the narratives fade in and out with no explanation and it becomes quite confusing. There's a bit with marshmallows that's over used, and despite the series title (Marvel Heroines), Neena keeps saying she's a mercenary, not a hero. I did her enjoy her character development, snarky footnotes, and thought all six of the ladies were pretty well portrayed. I enjoyed it, but wish it had been more carefully structured. Excelsior!
October 6, 2020
Overall, multiple story-lines can bring down the enjoyment, but Domino shines in this story.
Spoiler-free Review: https://amberinoface.wordpress.com/20...
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
Spoiler-free Review: https://amberinoface.wordpress.com/20...
I received an ecopy of this book via Netgalley; however, my opinions are my own.
August 13, 2021
As a long time Marvel fan, I'm quite intrigued by the ideas of having novels set in the universe focusing on lesser known characters.
As Domino is a personal favorite, of course this one was the first novel I wanted to pick up.
The two most prominent things to take note of with Domino Strays are its structure and the footnotes.
The book is told in first person solo pov chapters set within three different timelines. We're following a present story line where Neena is hired to get two young adults out of a cult.
For this mission she enlists the help of her team, the Hotshots. In this case Outlaw and Diamondback (another favorite of mine since the Captain America/Serpent Society archs) are more prominently featured. Other characters like Black Widow or White Fox are barely used and mostly do off-screen things. It's fine, because this novel is about Domino, but it was still weird how little screentime they got.
This timeline interchanges chapters with two other timelines from Neena's past. All three storylines play off each other and I think the author accomplishes what they were out to achieve by using this structure.
Alas, I personally needed a lot of time to get invested into the two past storylines and would have preferred a larger focus on the present day story and more relationship work with the current crew, but this is more my issue than the book's fault.
The author, Tristan Palmgren, also uses roughly 90 footnotes during the novel, with some more or less funny remarks by Domino. Personally, with knowing some over-the-top humor from Domino and a lot of very funny banter, I was a little bit disappointed with the content of the footnotes and the humor in general.
Overall, I found this one to be a solid read with some few highlights, but I really struggled with getting invested into all three timelines and expected something else from the book. So, from a personal enjoyment point, it lands on 3 stars for me.
As Domino is a personal favorite, of course this one was the first novel I wanted to pick up.
The two most prominent things to take note of with Domino Strays are its structure and the footnotes.
The book is told in first person solo pov chapters set within three different timelines. We're following a present story line where Neena is hired to get two young adults out of a cult.
For this mission she enlists the help of her team, the Hotshots. In this case Outlaw and Diamondback (another favorite of mine since the Captain America/Serpent Society archs) are more prominently featured. Other characters like Black Widow or White Fox are barely used and mostly do off-screen things. It's fine, because this novel is about Domino, but it was still weird how little screentime they got.
This timeline interchanges chapters with two other timelines from Neena's past. All three storylines play off each other and I think the author accomplishes what they were out to achieve by using this structure.
Alas, I personally needed a lot of time to get invested into the two past storylines and would have preferred a larger focus on the present day story and more relationship work with the current crew, but this is more my issue than the book's fault.
The author, Tristan Palmgren, also uses roughly 90 footnotes during the novel, with some more or less funny remarks by Domino. Personally, with knowing some over-the-top humor from Domino and a lot of very funny banter, I was a little bit disappointed with the content of the footnotes and the humor in general.
Overall, I found this one to be a solid read with some few highlights, but I really struggled with getting invested into all three timelines and expected something else from the book. So, from a personal enjoyment point, it lands on 3 stars for me.
October 3, 2021
Wer den zweiten Deadpool-Film gesehen hat oder hin und wieder ein paar Marvel-Comics liest, dem dürfte der Name Domino etwas sagen. Wem nicht, dem sei gesagt, dass Neena Thurman eine Mutantin ist, welcher das Glück gewogen ist. Wer jetzt meint, dass sie deswegen die glücklichste Person auf der Erde wäre, der irrt leider, denn Dominos Glück ist situationsabhängig und hilft ihr meist nur in brenzligen Situationen. Wem das immer noch nicht reicht, der erfuhr im ersten Band der Marvel-Heldinnen nur wie Dominos Alltag aussah, sondern auch was sie in ihrer Vergangenheit alles erlebte.
Der Band spaltete sich dabei in 3 Teile. Im ersten Abschnitt befanden wir uns in Dominos Gegenwart, in welcher sie dafür beauftragt wurde Zwillinge aus den Klauen eines Sektenanführers zu holen. Die beiden Anderen bezogen sich auf ihre Kindheit und eine Mission, welche mit ihrer Kindheit zutun hatte. Was hier vielleicht nach sehr viel klingen mag und vielleicht sogar verwirrend klingt, fühlte sich am Ende aber zu einer tollen Gesamtstory zusammen.
Tatsächlich bot der Band wirklich alles. Von Emotionen bis hin zu purer Action lieferte Domino alles ab und ließ dabei sehr tief in ihre Seele blicken. Tristan Palmgren schaffte es Domino stark wirken zu lassen, obwohl sie mehrere Traumata erlebte und gerade im sozialen Miteinander unglaublich große Probleme aufwies. Man durfte erleben, wie aus einem gefangenen Kind eine Söldnerin wurde, die sich und ihre Fähigkeiten immer besser kennenlernte und sie zu ihren Gunsten nutzte. Dies war nicht nur eindrucksvoll inszeniert, sondern war auch sehr emotional, da es neben unglaublich vielen gefährlichen Charakteren in diesem Buch eben auch die gab, welcher selbst Domino voll und ganz vertraute.
Da ich allerdings bisher keinen Comic mit Domino gelesen hatte, sagten mir Diamantback, Outlaw, Shoon`kwa und White Fox erstmal nichts. Eine kleine Internetsuche später war ich schlauer und konnte den Band vollends genießen, da ich nun die wichtigsten Merkmale der Damen kannte. Was mir persönlich, in Bezug auf Domino jedoch fehlte, war eine genaue Erklärung wie zu dem Mal um ihr Auge kam. Hier hätte ich mir eine detailliertere Beschreibung gewünscht.
Doch auch die Gegenseite beeindruckte mich sehr, was vor allem daran lag, dass der Autor die Vorgehensweisen der meisten Sektenführer mithilfe von Domino erklärte. Somit bekam der wirklich sehr actiongeladene Band auch einen gewissen Thrill-Faktor der zumindest mich schon ein wenig beängstigte. Was mich jedoch störte, waren die zusätzlichen Gedankengänge, welche als Fußnoten zu finden waren. Ich hätte dieser lieber im Text wiedergefunden, denn so rissen sie mich jedes Mal aus der Handlung. Aufhören zu lesen konnte ich jedoch trotzdem nicht, denn der Schreibstil war wie aus einem Guss und fesselte mich einfach.
Fazit:
Besser hätte der Start der Marvel Heldinnen nicht beginnen können. Domino´s Geschichte fesselte mich ab der ersten Seite und zeigte eindrucksvoll was die Söldnerin mit dem Glück an ihrer Seite alles bereits erlebt hat und bewerkstelligen kann. Zwar hatte das Buch 2 kleine Makel, aber die machte der packende und tiefgehende Schreibstil locker wieder wett.
Der Band spaltete sich dabei in 3 Teile. Im ersten Abschnitt befanden wir uns in Dominos Gegenwart, in welcher sie dafür beauftragt wurde Zwillinge aus den Klauen eines Sektenanführers zu holen. Die beiden Anderen bezogen sich auf ihre Kindheit und eine Mission, welche mit ihrer Kindheit zutun hatte. Was hier vielleicht nach sehr viel klingen mag und vielleicht sogar verwirrend klingt, fühlte sich am Ende aber zu einer tollen Gesamtstory zusammen.
Tatsächlich bot der Band wirklich alles. Von Emotionen bis hin zu purer Action lieferte Domino alles ab und ließ dabei sehr tief in ihre Seele blicken. Tristan Palmgren schaffte es Domino stark wirken zu lassen, obwohl sie mehrere Traumata erlebte und gerade im sozialen Miteinander unglaublich große Probleme aufwies. Man durfte erleben, wie aus einem gefangenen Kind eine Söldnerin wurde, die sich und ihre Fähigkeiten immer besser kennenlernte und sie zu ihren Gunsten nutzte. Dies war nicht nur eindrucksvoll inszeniert, sondern war auch sehr emotional, da es neben unglaublich vielen gefährlichen Charakteren in diesem Buch eben auch die gab, welcher selbst Domino voll und ganz vertraute.
Da ich allerdings bisher keinen Comic mit Domino gelesen hatte, sagten mir Diamantback, Outlaw, Shoon`kwa und White Fox erstmal nichts. Eine kleine Internetsuche später war ich schlauer und konnte den Band vollends genießen, da ich nun die wichtigsten Merkmale der Damen kannte. Was mir persönlich, in Bezug auf Domino jedoch fehlte, war eine genaue Erklärung wie zu dem Mal um ihr Auge kam. Hier hätte ich mir eine detailliertere Beschreibung gewünscht.
Doch auch die Gegenseite beeindruckte mich sehr, was vor allem daran lag, dass der Autor die Vorgehensweisen der meisten Sektenführer mithilfe von Domino erklärte. Somit bekam der wirklich sehr actiongeladene Band auch einen gewissen Thrill-Faktor der zumindest mich schon ein wenig beängstigte. Was mich jedoch störte, waren die zusätzlichen Gedankengänge, welche als Fußnoten zu finden waren. Ich hätte dieser lieber im Text wiedergefunden, denn so rissen sie mich jedes Mal aus der Handlung. Aufhören zu lesen konnte ich jedoch trotzdem nicht, denn der Schreibstil war wie aus einem Guss und fesselte mich einfach.
Fazit:
Besser hätte der Start der Marvel Heldinnen nicht beginnen können. Domino´s Geschichte fesselte mich ab der ersten Seite und zeigte eindrucksvoll was die Söldnerin mit dem Glück an ihrer Seite alles bereits erlebt hat und bewerkstelligen kann. Zwar hatte das Buch 2 kleine Makel, aber die machte der packende und tiefgehende Schreibstil locker wieder wett.
September 3, 2020
I received an advance copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.
I have to admit to being a little disappointed when I realised this was an actual novel rather than a graphic novel. It had been filed as a graphic novel on netgalley and I was looking forward to my first reading of a Domino comic. However, once I started this disappointment evaporated. This is a wonderfully told and thrilling, charming book.
The story switches from different times through Domino's life so is very much an origin story. We have when Domino was growing up in a variation of Wolverine's Weapon X programme, as Project Armageddon sought to create the perfect soldier. Domino was one output from that programme, as she developed the mutant ability to have luck on her side. Then we have her time in an orphanage, having escaped the programme. Then her mission to track down the person who might have been responsible for her upbringing and finally her present mission, to rescue two adolescents who have been brainwashed by a cult leader. These different time periods are covered throughout the book, layering up her back story as we follow her on her current mission. This is superbly woven together, and we have almost parallel storylines near the end, her infiltrating Project Armageddon and her sneaking into the cult's base. A few times this got a little muddled in my head, but served to wonderfully draw a parallel between her upbringing and that of the non-mutant, more traditional cult.
Domino is accompanied on her later mission by Black Widow amongst others (the characters' real names are generally used, so it was fun to try and track down which Marvel characters they actually were), but she is very much the leader of her merc crew.
The storyline is good, combining plenty of backstory and exciting missions, with excellently narrated action sequences. I don't tend to like first person books as much as third person, but this angle gave Domino a much more likable personality, having a fair chunk of her friend Deadpool's humour, mixed with Rogue's childhood trauma and Wolverine's anger at experimentation.
As noted in Deadpool 2, having luck on your side isn't a superpower, and it isn't very cinematic. Domino's power is not overly laboured in the book, and it isn't used to make her seen completely invulnerable to injury. She uses it sparingly because luck going her way in a fight (bullets being deflected etc) can have adverse consequences for those around her. It was used when absolutely needed, but she has so many capabilities that she barely did.
This is a really great book that gives so much more backstory to a lesser-known Marvel character than could have been achieved in a graphic novel. A very strong female cast of role models.
The only downside was the overuse of footnotes which didn't tend to add much to the story, other than witty asides, and are quite frustrating on a kindle.
I have to admit to being a little disappointed when I realised this was an actual novel rather than a graphic novel. It had been filed as a graphic novel on netgalley and I was looking forward to my first reading of a Domino comic. However, once I started this disappointment evaporated. This is a wonderfully told and thrilling, charming book.
The story switches from different times through Domino's life so is very much an origin story. We have when Domino was growing up in a variation of Wolverine's Weapon X programme, as Project Armageddon sought to create the perfect soldier. Domino was one output from that programme, as she developed the mutant ability to have luck on her side. Then we have her time in an orphanage, having escaped the programme. Then her mission to track down the person who might have been responsible for her upbringing and finally her present mission, to rescue two adolescents who have been brainwashed by a cult leader. These different time periods are covered throughout the book, layering up her back story as we follow her on her current mission. This is superbly woven together, and we have almost parallel storylines near the end, her infiltrating Project Armageddon and her sneaking into the cult's base. A few times this got a little muddled in my head, but served to wonderfully draw a parallel between her upbringing and that of the non-mutant, more traditional cult.
Domino is accompanied on her later mission by Black Widow amongst others (the characters' real names are generally used, so it was fun to try and track down which Marvel characters they actually were), but she is very much the leader of her merc crew.
The storyline is good, combining plenty of backstory and exciting missions, with excellently narrated action sequences. I don't tend to like first person books as much as third person, but this angle gave Domino a much more likable personality, having a fair chunk of her friend Deadpool's humour, mixed with Rogue's childhood trauma and Wolverine's anger at experimentation.
As noted in Deadpool 2, having luck on your side isn't a superpower, and it isn't very cinematic. Domino's power is not overly laboured in the book, and it isn't used to make her seen completely invulnerable to injury. She uses it sparingly because luck going her way in a fight (bullets being deflected etc) can have adverse consequences for those around her. It was used when absolutely needed, but she has so many capabilities that she barely did.
This is a really great book that gives so much more backstory to a lesser-known Marvel character than could have been achieved in a graphic novel. A very strong female cast of role models.
The only downside was the overuse of footnotes which didn't tend to add much to the story, other than witty asides, and are quite frustrating on a kindle.
June 1, 2023
Buchtitel: Marvel | Heldinnen – Domino auf Abwegen
Autor/in: Tristan Palmgren
Verlag: Cross Cult
ISBN: 9783966584043
Ausgabe: Ebook
Erscheinungsdatum: 05.04.2021
Inhalt:
Die scharfsinnige, glücksmanipulierende Söldnerin Domino stellt sich in diesem explosiven Roman sowohl einem gefährlichen Kult als auch ihrer dunklen Vergangenheit.
Der Auftrag: Die Sekte eines Chicagoer Hochstaplers infiltrieren und ein gehirngewaschenes Zwillingspaar befreien. Die Antwort der ehemaligen X-Force-Agentin Domino: Nein. Fanatiker bedeuten bloß Ärger. Sie hat noch immer Albträume wegen Projekt Armageddon, das Supersoldatenprogramm, das ihr Leben und ihre Familien zerstört hat. Wenn sie doch damals nur jemanden gehabt hätte, der ihr geholfen hätte, jemanden … wie sie. Vielleicht wird es Zeit, sich den Dämonen zu stellen. Mit ihren wahrscheinlichkeitsmanipulierenden Superkräften sollte sich doch alles zum Guten wenden lassen."
Meinung:
Zuerst möchte ich mich bei NetGalley, dem Verlag und dem Autor herzlich für das Bereitstellen dieses Rezensionsexemplares bedanken!
Allgemein bin ich ja ein ziemlicher Marvel und generell Superhelden/Superheldinnen Fan. Dementsprechend war dieses Buch hier für mich ein absolutes Muss!
Allein das Cover spricht mich bereits total an. Es strahlt Macht und einfach diese typische Marvel-Atmosphäre aus.
Was mich hierbei besonders begeistert hat, war die Tatsache, dass man die Protagonistin Domino nicht nur auf ihren derzeitigen Auftrag begleitet und ihr zusieht, wie sie ihre Geschwister aus einer Sekte befreit, sondern auch in ihre Vergangenheit katapultiert wird. Man lernt sie als Kind kennen, aber auch einen ihrer vorherigen Aufträge. So bekommt man einen ziemlich guten Einblick in ihr Leben. Schließlich weisen alle drei Geschichten dieselben Merkmale auf, obwohl sie aus unterschiedlichen Zeiten stammen. Man lernt die Protagonistin zu verstehen. Doch dies geschieht auch zusätzlich mit den Fußnoten, welche einen in die Gedankenwelt von Domino eintreten lassen. Man wird dadurch zu ihrem Begleiter, oder regelrecht Freund. Aber, was mich besonders gefreut hat, nicht nur Domino tritt in Erscheinung, auch bekannte Namen und Gesichter aus der Marvel-Welt sind in dem Buch wieder zu finden.
Die Protagonistin finde ich ja, wie schon erwähnt, wirklich klasse. Sie strahlt Frauenpower aus und durch dieses Buch bekommt man Zugang zu einer bislang weniger bekannten Marvel-Heldin.
Fazit:
Alles in allem ist das Buch also perfekt für jeden Marvel-Fan, Superhelden/Superheldinnen-Fan oder Fan von Action! Von mir gibt es an der Stelle eine dicke Empfehlung!
Autor/in: Tristan Palmgren
Verlag: Cross Cult
ISBN: 9783966584043
Ausgabe: Ebook
Erscheinungsdatum: 05.04.2021
Inhalt:
Die scharfsinnige, glücksmanipulierende Söldnerin Domino stellt sich in diesem explosiven Roman sowohl einem gefährlichen Kult als auch ihrer dunklen Vergangenheit.
Der Auftrag: Die Sekte eines Chicagoer Hochstaplers infiltrieren und ein gehirngewaschenes Zwillingspaar befreien. Die Antwort der ehemaligen X-Force-Agentin Domino: Nein. Fanatiker bedeuten bloß Ärger. Sie hat noch immer Albträume wegen Projekt Armageddon, das Supersoldatenprogramm, das ihr Leben und ihre Familien zerstört hat. Wenn sie doch damals nur jemanden gehabt hätte, der ihr geholfen hätte, jemanden … wie sie. Vielleicht wird es Zeit, sich den Dämonen zu stellen. Mit ihren wahrscheinlichkeitsmanipulierenden Superkräften sollte sich doch alles zum Guten wenden lassen."
Meinung:
Zuerst möchte ich mich bei NetGalley, dem Verlag und dem Autor herzlich für das Bereitstellen dieses Rezensionsexemplares bedanken!
Allgemein bin ich ja ein ziemlicher Marvel und generell Superhelden/Superheldinnen Fan. Dementsprechend war dieses Buch hier für mich ein absolutes Muss!
Allein das Cover spricht mich bereits total an. Es strahlt Macht und einfach diese typische Marvel-Atmosphäre aus.
Was mich hierbei besonders begeistert hat, war die Tatsache, dass man die Protagonistin Domino nicht nur auf ihren derzeitigen Auftrag begleitet und ihr zusieht, wie sie ihre Geschwister aus einer Sekte befreit, sondern auch in ihre Vergangenheit katapultiert wird. Man lernt sie als Kind kennen, aber auch einen ihrer vorherigen Aufträge. So bekommt man einen ziemlich guten Einblick in ihr Leben. Schließlich weisen alle drei Geschichten dieselben Merkmale auf, obwohl sie aus unterschiedlichen Zeiten stammen. Man lernt die Protagonistin zu verstehen. Doch dies geschieht auch zusätzlich mit den Fußnoten, welche einen in die Gedankenwelt von Domino eintreten lassen. Man wird dadurch zu ihrem Begleiter, oder regelrecht Freund. Aber, was mich besonders gefreut hat, nicht nur Domino tritt in Erscheinung, auch bekannte Namen und Gesichter aus der Marvel-Welt sind in dem Buch wieder zu finden.
Die Protagonistin finde ich ja, wie schon erwähnt, wirklich klasse. Sie strahlt Frauenpower aus und durch dieses Buch bekommt man Zugang zu einer bislang weniger bekannten Marvel-Heldin.
Fazit:
Alles in allem ist das Buch also perfekt für jeden Marvel-Fan, Superhelden/Superheldinnen-Fan oder Fan von Action! Von mir gibt es an der Stelle eine dicke Empfehlung!
July 29, 2021
Domino: Strays by Tristan Palmgren is a dark superhero tale from the life of Mutant mercenary Neena Thurman, aka Domino. The book explores Domino’s origins (often unknown to even her), as well as a present-day run-in with a sinister doomsday cult. Palmgren really leans in to the darkness in their story. Anyone expecting the action-comedy vibe of the MCU movies/tv is in for a shock when they encounter a thriller with some deeply psychological elements.
In terms of the wider Marvel continuity, the Prose Marvel books seem to exist in their own universe but, for Domino: Strays Palmgren has produced a story that stands well on its own. there’s certainly no need to read the comics in order to enjoy Strays.
The story in Strays is carefully woven through three main plots: the first narrating Domino’s childhood, the second recalling a botched mission six years ago, and the last one detailing a present-day rescue operation. Domino speaks directly to the reader, which can feel a bit confused at first, but gradually settles into a rhythm that gives you a nice insight into her frame of mind as well as her actions.
The story kicks off with Domino talking about her mother – an imperfectly remembered figure, clearly someone who was absent for much of Domino’s life. Domino tells you right at the start that her mother was a woman of anger and rage: a fanatic and a killer. With an opening like this, it’s no big surprise when, a bare chapter or two into the novel, Domino casually mentions that she had to kill her own mother! However, whilst Palmgren shows you the ending of that one little strand of the plot early on, the book is far more about the journey than the destination.
Whilst the middle strand of the story focuses around Domino’s search for her mother, it is preceded and followed by accounts of other sections of her life: the story of a miserable childhood in a research facility, followed by a slightly-less-miserable time as a teenager in a Chicago orphanage, under the care of over-worked Priest Father Boschelli. The third, “present day” strand involves Domino’s attempt to rescue a client’s grown-up children from a doomsday cult who have convinced them to lock themselves away from family and all other outsiders in the compound set up by the ‘father’ of the church. It’s no accident that each of the 3 time-lines has a “mother” or “father” figure in a key role, and Strays has a lot to say on the subjects of family and friendship, forcing Domino to really consider who she can trust, who she can rely on, and who is going to be able to forgive her for doing the things that need to be done.
It’s also worth thinking about the unique mutant power that makes Domino who she is: in layman’s terms, she can manipulate “luck” and alter probability, which has historically been used in a fairly vague way to do whatever the plot requires at that moment. Palmgrem does a good job with the unenviable task of trying to define these slippery qualities into something a little less nebulous. The end result is not only understandable for the reader, but it also enables an engaging narrative that undercuts the “it’ll be fine, somehow” vibe that can often creep into a Domino story.
Domino direct address to the reader provides a running commentary on how her luck is – or isn’t – able to help her in any given situation. One point she makes multiple times is that her luck might generally save her – at least in a life-or-death situation – but it certainly doesn’t care about anyone who isn’t Domino, a responsibility that falls entirely on Domino herself.
Whilst the characterisation of Domino herself is very well done, the supporting cast are a bit more variable. Father Boschelli, head of the orphanage where she lived as a teenager, provides some insightful moments , but Inez Temple (Outlaw) and Rachel Leighton (Diamondback) feel a little underused, reduced to little more than Muscle and Tech-Support for a major mission.
The main saving grace as far as the supporting cast go, is the lack of knowledge that you need to have of all things Marvel to make sense of the plot in Strays. There’s a brief Black Widow Cameo, and Wolverine, Cable, Deadpool, and the Avengers are all referenced, but provided you can grasp the basic concepts of Mutants (they exist, they have all sorts of powers, lots of people fear and/or hate them), then you aren’t going to be feeling too lost just because you didn’t have time to memorise a hundred or so back-issues of Marvel comics. Domino is primarily telling her own story and, to a lesser-extent those of her sisters-in-arms, and she tells you all you need to know about who they are to her, without burdening you with their place in the overall Marvel canon.
As the three plots of Domino’s story weave together, the result is something that is interesting, often compelling, a story that carefully keeps you on the hook whilst it segues off to another time-period, forcing you to read on, but fully knowing that by the time you return you’ll be just as reluctant to leave that plot-thread as you were in this.
My biggest relief when reading Strays, was that we get a satisfying ending. Domino is no Captain America or Iron Man she is not here to be a paragon of selflessness and virtue, she is a mercenary with a traumatised past. In embracing that reality, Palmgren is able to really dig into the question of what it means to be a hero – not just making physical sacrifices, but showing Domino willing to sacrifice how she appears in the eyes of others, if that’s what it takes to finish the job.
Overall, the ending for Strays is a bittersweet one, and it feels fitting for the characters we’ve seen, and the stories we’ve watched unfold. Domino’s life as a sometimes mercenary, sometimes hero doesn’t allow for “happily ever after,” but it shows a group of women making a difference, able to sleep at night, and move on to the next mission.
In terms of the wider Marvel continuity, the Prose Marvel books seem to exist in their own universe but, for Domino: Strays Palmgren has produced a story that stands well on its own. there’s certainly no need to read the comics in order to enjoy Strays.
The story in Strays is carefully woven through three main plots: the first narrating Domino’s childhood, the second recalling a botched mission six years ago, and the last one detailing a present-day rescue operation. Domino speaks directly to the reader, which can feel a bit confused at first, but gradually settles into a rhythm that gives you a nice insight into her frame of mind as well as her actions.
The story kicks off with Domino talking about her mother – an imperfectly remembered figure, clearly someone who was absent for much of Domino’s life. Domino tells you right at the start that her mother was a woman of anger and rage: a fanatic and a killer. With an opening like this, it’s no big surprise when, a bare chapter or two into the novel, Domino casually mentions that she had to kill her own mother! However, whilst Palmgren shows you the ending of that one little strand of the plot early on, the book is far more about the journey than the destination.
Whilst the middle strand of the story focuses around Domino’s search for her mother, it is preceded and followed by accounts of other sections of her life: the story of a miserable childhood in a research facility, followed by a slightly-less-miserable time as a teenager in a Chicago orphanage, under the care of over-worked Priest Father Boschelli. The third, “present day” strand involves Domino’s attempt to rescue a client’s grown-up children from a doomsday cult who have convinced them to lock themselves away from family and all other outsiders in the compound set up by the ‘father’ of the church. It’s no accident that each of the 3 time-lines has a “mother” or “father” figure in a key role, and Strays has a lot to say on the subjects of family and friendship, forcing Domino to really consider who she can trust, who she can rely on, and who is going to be able to forgive her for doing the things that need to be done.
It’s also worth thinking about the unique mutant power that makes Domino who she is: in layman’s terms, she can manipulate “luck” and alter probability, which has historically been used in a fairly vague way to do whatever the plot requires at that moment. Palmgrem does a good job with the unenviable task of trying to define these slippery qualities into something a little less nebulous. The end result is not only understandable for the reader, but it also enables an engaging narrative that undercuts the “it’ll be fine, somehow” vibe that can often creep into a Domino story.
Domino direct address to the reader provides a running commentary on how her luck is – or isn’t – able to help her in any given situation. One point she makes multiple times is that her luck might generally save her – at least in a life-or-death situation – but it certainly doesn’t care about anyone who isn’t Domino, a responsibility that falls entirely on Domino herself.
Whilst the characterisation of Domino herself is very well done, the supporting cast are a bit more variable. Father Boschelli, head of the orphanage where she lived as a teenager, provides some insightful moments , but Inez Temple (Outlaw) and Rachel Leighton (Diamondback) feel a little underused, reduced to little more than Muscle and Tech-Support for a major mission.
The main saving grace as far as the supporting cast go, is the lack of knowledge that you need to have of all things Marvel to make sense of the plot in Strays. There’s a brief Black Widow Cameo, and Wolverine, Cable, Deadpool, and the Avengers are all referenced, but provided you can grasp the basic concepts of Mutants (they exist, they have all sorts of powers, lots of people fear and/or hate them), then you aren’t going to be feeling too lost just because you didn’t have time to memorise a hundred or so back-issues of Marvel comics. Domino is primarily telling her own story and, to a lesser-extent those of her sisters-in-arms, and she tells you all you need to know about who they are to her, without burdening you with their place in the overall Marvel canon.
As the three plots of Domino’s story weave together, the result is something that is interesting, often compelling, a story that carefully keeps you on the hook whilst it segues off to another time-period, forcing you to read on, but fully knowing that by the time you return you’ll be just as reluctant to leave that plot-thread as you were in this.
My biggest relief when reading Strays, was that we get a satisfying ending. Domino is no Captain America or Iron Man she is not here to be a paragon of selflessness and virtue, she is a mercenary with a traumatised past. In embracing that reality, Palmgren is able to really dig into the question of what it means to be a hero – not just making physical sacrifices, but showing Domino willing to sacrifice how she appears in the eyes of others, if that’s what it takes to finish the job.
Overall, the ending for Strays is a bittersweet one, and it feels fitting for the characters we’ve seen, and the stories we’ve watched unfold. Domino’s life as a sometimes mercenary, sometimes hero doesn’t allow for “happily ever after,” but it shows a group of women making a difference, able to sleep at night, and move on to the next mission.
February 19, 2022
I was a Marvel comics reader back when Domino, created by Rob Liefeld, made her debut in 1991 in New Mutants and then X-Force. I was not as familiar with her 2003 series and the more recent 2018 series where she formed a team with other heroines, two sources that author Palmgren draws a lot for this novel.
While I like the character well enough, what kept throwing me off in reading this book was the narrative structure. With the story jumping between three time periods (present day, six years ago and fourteen years ago), I felt myself losing any momentum each time we jumped around. I get the reason for doing it - to tie events and characters from each time to the overall present day story - but it simply did not work for me.
While I like the character well enough, what kept throwing me off in reading this book was the narrative structure. With the story jumping between three time periods (present day, six years ago and fourteen years ago), I felt myself losing any momentum each time we jumped around. I get the reason for doing it - to tie events and characters from each time to the overall present day story - but it simply did not work for me.
November 4, 2020
I wasn't sure what to expect when I started reading this book, and I am still not sure about it after having finished it. Domino was never really one of my favorite "minor characters" in Marvel's "mutant pantheon" (although I loved how she was played and portrayed in the second Deadpool movie). I liked parts of the story, and some if it not so much. I don't know if it is the format (three parallel stories being told), the lack of character development, or the "villain" of the piece. There is plenty of action throughout the story, and plenty of violence (some of it "kinda-comic-book-violence" and some if it not so much). I read in the afterward that it does not take place in the "Marvel Universe" but is more of an "alternate universe story" that happens to have multiple various characters from the "regular" Marvel U. I did notice one typo towards the end of the book ("swo" instead of "sow"), but that was it.
The flow of the story was irregular; it started out slow as it built up steam, then it was moving along pretty good and I thought I might finish the book in one day. Then, BOOM!, I hit a weird "wall" and it was like the story lost focus and steam and took a bit before it got moving again. It was really weird, and it took me a bit longer to finish than I thought it would as a result.
It's actually a pretty brutal story, truth be told. For example, I had read Deadpool: Paws when it came out and, if I were to have compared the two before reading this one, I would have expected that story to be more violent and brutal than this one was. I was pretty shocked that was not the case.
This was a mixed-bag for me. I liked parts of it; other parts, I did not like. I liked it more than a 2-star but not as much as a 3-star. I would probably rate it 2.5-2.7 stars, but am rounding it down . Overall, though, I think the story did have promise in it, and I would probably take a chance and read another book about superheroes if the author were to write one (and I may check out the author's other books, at some time, and read those as well).
The flow of the story was irregular; it started out slow as it built up steam, then it was moving along pretty good and I thought I might finish the book in one day. Then, BOOM!, I hit a weird "wall" and it was like the story lost focus and steam and took a bit before it got moving again. It was really weird, and it took me a bit longer to finish than I thought it would as a result.
It's actually a pretty brutal story, truth be told. For example, I had read Deadpool: Paws when it came out and, if I were to have compared the two before reading this one, I would have expected that story to be more violent and brutal than this one was. I was pretty shocked that was not the case.
This was a mixed-bag for me. I liked parts of it; other parts, I did not like. I liked it more than a 2-star but not as much as a 3-star. I would probably rate it 2.5-2.7 stars, but am rounding it down . Overall, though, I think the story did have promise in it, and I would probably take a chance and read another book about superheroes if the author were to write one (and I may check out the author's other books, at some time, and read those as well).
September 6, 2020
Tristan Palmgren uses action-packed and clever prose to feature a unique Marvel character worthy of attention. Ideal for comics fans, and a totally enjoyable reading experience, complete with tart dialogue and enjoyable plot points. Now, I want to see Pagren take on other comics characters.
October 17, 2020
Full review on my blog from 26th October: https://inkandplasma.com/2020/10/26/d...
3.5 rounded up to 4 bc this was great fun
trigger warnings: human experimentation, othering (mutants seen as lesser), psychological and emotional abuse/torture, death, gore, mentions of mass suicide, religious cult control.
I loved this book and its entangled plots. There were three separate timelines running concurrently and while I absolutely adored the parallels between the timelines, and the way they interconnected, I would have liked to see them as two separate books. One with Domino's childhood and the Everglades storylines and one with the cult storyline. That's not even *slightly* a criticism of Domino: Strays, I just loved what Tristan Palmgren was doing so much that I wanted to read more of all of it instead of it being constrained to a third of the book. If Palmgren writes more Domino, I'm going to be on it in a heartbeat. Especially if it's in this timeline, where Domino raids the compound of a twisted cult with Black Widow and a squad of powerful superhero mercenaries. I liked Domino's character a lot, particularly the way that she was torn between mercenary and hero, 'good' and neutral and all the spaces in between. I've got a huge soft spot for morally grey characters and the way that they struggle with people's moral expectations on them. Getting a whole superhero team of characters on a scale from 'hero' to 'merc' is a lot of fun and made for interesting interactions.
I also loved the way Domino's luck was used in the narrative. It made sense, was surprisingly balanced and it never felt like a cheap deus ex machina to miraculously save the day. It had rules and constraints and meant that Domino was still the clever, creative mercenary survivor type - just with a little lucky advantage. It was well balanced, with the negative side of Domino's powers shown too. Not that those would stop me from taking her powers in a heart beat.
3.5 rounded up to 4 bc this was great fun
trigger warnings: human experimentation, othering (mutants seen as lesser), psychological and emotional abuse/torture, death, gore, mentions of mass suicide, religious cult control.
I loved this book and its entangled plots. There were three separate timelines running concurrently and while I absolutely adored the parallels between the timelines, and the way they interconnected, I would have liked to see them as two separate books. One with Domino's childhood and the Everglades storylines and one with the cult storyline. That's not even *slightly* a criticism of Domino: Strays, I just loved what Tristan Palmgren was doing so much that I wanted to read more of all of it instead of it being constrained to a third of the book. If Palmgren writes more Domino, I'm going to be on it in a heartbeat. Especially if it's in this timeline, where Domino raids the compound of a twisted cult with Black Widow and a squad of powerful superhero mercenaries. I liked Domino's character a lot, particularly the way that she was torn between mercenary and hero, 'good' and neutral and all the spaces in between. I've got a huge soft spot for morally grey characters and the way that they struggle with people's moral expectations on them. Getting a whole superhero team of characters on a scale from 'hero' to 'merc' is a lot of fun and made for interesting interactions.
I also loved the way Domino's luck was used in the narrative. It made sense, was surprisingly balanced and it never felt like a cheap deus ex machina to miraculously save the day. It had rules and constraints and meant that Domino was still the clever, creative mercenary survivor type - just with a little lucky advantage. It was well balanced, with the negative side of Domino's powers shown too. Not that those would stop me from taking her powers in a heart beat.
October 6, 2020
Comics are a great medium, they're designed to be easy to read and to be accessible to readers of all ages, and they've evolved over the years to become a storytelling medium that's hard to translate to other formats. You only need to look at how many comic book films have been less than good to see that. Whilst comic book movies have become big business, one of the mediums where comics rarely make the leap is in prose novels. I've seen some people argue that comic characters and their stories just wouldn't work as prose, and I've always disagreed with that; and now I'll be able to point to Domino: Strays as a perfect example of how these characters and their stories not only work in this format, but excel at it.
Domino: Strays follows the mutant mercenary Domino as she's hired to rescue a pair of twins from the clutches of a cult leader by their desperate mother. Initially unwilling to take on a mission that's not her normal kind of thing, Domino eventually agrees, and sets out to infiltrate the cult's facility in order to rescue them. Whilst this story alone is interesting enough, and it's very entertaining to see Domino and her team infiltrating this compound in the middle of Chicago, where the book really shines is the other stories that play into this.
The book is written from Domino's point of view, and she makes it clear to the reader early on that her writing style is a bit hectic, and will jump around the place a little. As such, we get two other narratives weaving into the story of her infiltrating the cult's compound. One is Domino's childhood being raised as a subject in part of some shady experiment, and her eventual escape to a Chicago orphanage; and the other is her travelling to the Florida Everglades to track down a woman who might be her mother.
Now, on the surface these three narratives don't really have very much in common, but as these stories unravel we learn that not only is Domino's mission to Florida deeply connected with her own traumatic past, and her time in the orphanage, but is also one of the reasons why she chooses to take on her current assignment in the first place. Over the course of the book we get to see her past, the way her mind works, and how she has a great deal of empathy for people trapped in a prison by authorities out to control them.
I have to admit, I've not read massive amounts of comics with Domino in them, so only have a basic understanding of the character (and also understand that this isn't the same continuity as the Marvel 616 universe) but I felt like this book taught me so much more about her than any comic could. This isn't just because it went deep into her history and showed the reader parts of Domino's past that most comics don't, but because the whole thing is narrated by her, and as such we get to understand these events through her eyes, and understand the impact it has upon her.
Tristan Palmgren seems to really know the character well, and they've put a lot of effort into humanising her in new and interesting ways. Domino isn't just a mercenary out to make money, spending her time between missions partying and living life to the extreme because she's a wild person, but because her actions are influenced by the trauma that she's lived through.
Palmgren also makes a point to make Domino's powers interesting in some new ways. Much like was made a joke of in Deadpool 2, luck isn't very cinematic, and Tristan seems to want to make this a point. They have Domino explain more than once that she doesn't control how her luck works, and whilst it can ultimately help her out of some sticky situations, it isn't perfect. She describes times where her luck powers have had her leap from a vehicle to safety, but crash into a wall and nearly knock herself out; how does that help her? Well, the person chasing her doesn't see her laying on the floor and runs past her. It got the job done, but it doesn't make her untouchable. There's lots of little moments like this peppered throughout the narrative, where Domino is able to use her luck to her advantage, but still comes out of her adventures battered and bruised.
Domino: Strays is a really inventive and engaging dive into the character, one that puts her personal journey and growth at the forefront of the narrative, and manages to weave three connected stories together in ways where the jumps in time not only feel natural, but play into each other well. I really hope that this won't be the only time that Tristan gets to write the character, as I'd love to see more of her explored in this way. If this is the last time Tristan writes a Domino book, I at least hope that they get to write more adventures set in the Marvel Universe.
Domino: Strays follows the mutant mercenary Domino as she's hired to rescue a pair of twins from the clutches of a cult leader by their desperate mother. Initially unwilling to take on a mission that's not her normal kind of thing, Domino eventually agrees, and sets out to infiltrate the cult's facility in order to rescue them. Whilst this story alone is interesting enough, and it's very entertaining to see Domino and her team infiltrating this compound in the middle of Chicago, where the book really shines is the other stories that play into this.
The book is written from Domino's point of view, and she makes it clear to the reader early on that her writing style is a bit hectic, and will jump around the place a little. As such, we get two other narratives weaving into the story of her infiltrating the cult's compound. One is Domino's childhood being raised as a subject in part of some shady experiment, and her eventual escape to a Chicago orphanage; and the other is her travelling to the Florida Everglades to track down a woman who might be her mother.
Now, on the surface these three narratives don't really have very much in common, but as these stories unravel we learn that not only is Domino's mission to Florida deeply connected with her own traumatic past, and her time in the orphanage, but is also one of the reasons why she chooses to take on her current assignment in the first place. Over the course of the book we get to see her past, the way her mind works, and how she has a great deal of empathy for people trapped in a prison by authorities out to control them.
I have to admit, I've not read massive amounts of comics with Domino in them, so only have a basic understanding of the character (and also understand that this isn't the same continuity as the Marvel 616 universe) but I felt like this book taught me so much more about her than any comic could. This isn't just because it went deep into her history and showed the reader parts of Domino's past that most comics don't, but because the whole thing is narrated by her, and as such we get to understand these events through her eyes, and understand the impact it has upon her.
Tristan Palmgren seems to really know the character well, and they've put a lot of effort into humanising her in new and interesting ways. Domino isn't just a mercenary out to make money, spending her time between missions partying and living life to the extreme because she's a wild person, but because her actions are influenced by the trauma that she's lived through.
Palmgren also makes a point to make Domino's powers interesting in some new ways. Much like was made a joke of in Deadpool 2, luck isn't very cinematic, and Tristan seems to want to make this a point. They have Domino explain more than once that she doesn't control how her luck works, and whilst it can ultimately help her out of some sticky situations, it isn't perfect. She describes times where her luck powers have had her leap from a vehicle to safety, but crash into a wall and nearly knock herself out; how does that help her? Well, the person chasing her doesn't see her laying on the floor and runs past her. It got the job done, but it doesn't make her untouchable. There's lots of little moments like this peppered throughout the narrative, where Domino is able to use her luck to her advantage, but still comes out of her adventures battered and bruised.
Domino: Strays is a really inventive and engaging dive into the character, one that puts her personal journey and growth at the forefront of the narrative, and manages to weave three connected stories together in ways where the jumps in time not only feel natural, but play into each other well. I really hope that this won't be the only time that Tristan gets to write the character, as I'd love to see more of her explored in this way. If this is the last time Tristan writes a Domino book, I at least hope that they get to write more adventures set in the Marvel Universe.
June 23, 2022
Very fun read.
March 22, 2024
Rep: korean minor side character, african minor side character (wakandan)
CW: violence, gun usage, references to sexual assault, loss of bodily autonomy, child abuse, child experimentation, child murder, cults, mass cult ‘suicide’, fantasy bigotry/othering
I didn’t hate my time reading this, which I’m aware doesn’t sound like a particularly thrilling endorsement. This book wasn’t bad by any means, and I’m sure that lots of people will love it! The action segments were well described and exciting, and the perspective of a character whose actions invariably end up being more heroic than she’s interested in being is always a fun time. The nods to the wider Marvel universe were also good, and for the most part they were minor enough that they didn’t feel like they were overtaking the story itself.
Unfortunately I was hoping for a lot more.
There are three timelines followed through this book. There’s Neena’s childhood, an incident from when she was ~21, and the present day when she’s ~27. I didn’t mind the switching between the three periods too much, but I did mind the overall effect this had, that being that none of the storylines or any of the characters had any real depth to them. Neena tells us that she had friends at first as a kid, but there’s no time for us to learn any of their names, let alone truly examine how Neena herself felt at the time. Neena tells us that she’s close with her teammates in the present, but all I can tell you about those teammates is their names and that one of them is also a mutant, they didn’t seem to have any personality for themselves. Neena’s own personality is pretty flimsy, too. She’s a typical snarky protagonist who tries to live in the moment but, despite herself, ends up helping other people, especially when children are involved. That’s it. There just wasn’t enough room to develop the plots and characters well and have three different timelines going at once. Something had to give, and it’s a shame that development and depth was sacrificed.
Also, footnotes in prose fiction are a tricky thing to get right. They’re rarely used because they rarely work. They don’t work here. There wasn’t a single time that a footnote was used where what was said couldn’t have just been put in the prose itself, and the book would’ve been better for it. In fact, at one point near the end Neena’s narration mentions that she’d told the reader something already, when that specific thing had only been mentioned in a footnote! I was making sure to read all the footnotes, which made reading this take longer than I would’ve liked it to, but there are definitely readers out there who will assume that there isn’t anything overly important in the footnotes and so won’t bother.
I was really looking forward to this, and I’m disappointed that it missed the mark. If you’re looking for a fast paced book full of action then there’s every possibility that you’ll enjoy this one! As someone who cares a lot about characters in what they read, it just didn’t end up being for me.
I received an e-arc through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
CW: violence, gun usage, references to sexual assault, loss of bodily autonomy, child abuse, child experimentation, child murder, cults, mass cult ‘suicide’, fantasy bigotry/othering
I didn’t hate my time reading this, which I’m aware doesn’t sound like a particularly thrilling endorsement. This book wasn’t bad by any means, and I’m sure that lots of people will love it! The action segments were well described and exciting, and the perspective of a character whose actions invariably end up being more heroic than she’s interested in being is always a fun time. The nods to the wider Marvel universe were also good, and for the most part they were minor enough that they didn’t feel like they were overtaking the story itself.
Unfortunately I was hoping for a lot more.
There are three timelines followed through this book. There’s Neena’s childhood, an incident from when she was ~21, and the present day when she’s ~27. I didn’t mind the switching between the three periods too much, but I did mind the overall effect this had, that being that none of the storylines or any of the characters had any real depth to them. Neena tells us that she had friends at first as a kid, but there’s no time for us to learn any of their names, let alone truly examine how Neena herself felt at the time. Neena tells us that she’s close with her teammates in the present, but all I can tell you about those teammates is their names and that one of them is also a mutant, they didn’t seem to have any personality for themselves. Neena’s own personality is pretty flimsy, too. She’s a typical snarky protagonist who tries to live in the moment but, despite herself, ends up helping other people, especially when children are involved. That’s it. There just wasn’t enough room to develop the plots and characters well and have three different timelines going at once. Something had to give, and it’s a shame that development and depth was sacrificed.
Also, footnotes in prose fiction are a tricky thing to get right. They’re rarely used because they rarely work. They don’t work here. There wasn’t a single time that a footnote was used where what was said couldn’t have just been put in the prose itself, and the book would’ve been better for it. In fact, at one point near the end Neena’s narration mentions that she’d told the reader something already, when that specific thing had only been mentioned in a footnote! I was making sure to read all the footnotes, which made reading this take longer than I would’ve liked it to, but there are definitely readers out there who will assume that there isn’t anything overly important in the footnotes and so won’t bother.
I was really looking forward to this, and I’m disappointed that it missed the mark. If you’re looking for a fast paced book full of action then there’s every possibility that you’ll enjoy this one! As someone who cares a lot about characters in what they read, it just didn’t end up being for me.
I received an e-arc through Netgalley in return for an honest review.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
December 22, 2020
*A Thank you to Netgalley for allowing me to read this. This is my honest review*
To be honest, at first I was not sure about this book, but as the story unfolded I found myself sucked in and wanting to know what the hell was happening. I don't think most people know who Domino is, and I was a little surprised to see that she got her own book, but I am glad she did. The book was a little hard to start as it felt like Domino mostly rambled on to me , but eventually I got used to Palmgren's Domino voice and story rhythm.
This book is like three stories in one. The stories are interconnected and adds alot to Domino as a character. While the story does jump around a lot there was never a moment for me, where I felt confused but rather it kep me reading like breadcrumbs leading me to the ending. I do wish we got to see more od Fomino interacting with her team. Despite this being a standalone, it reads like a second book in a series and I have a feeling it probably ties in to the Black Widow book which I have not read.
Overall, a great book about a character that needs more love.
To be honest, at first I was not sure about this book, but as the story unfolded I found myself sucked in and wanting to know what the hell was happening. I don't think most people know who Domino is, and I was a little surprised to see that she got her own book, but I am glad she did. The book was a little hard to start as it felt like Domino mostly rambled on to me , but eventually I got used to Palmgren's Domino voice and story rhythm.
This book is like three stories in one. The stories are interconnected and adds alot to Domino as a character. While the story does jump around a lot there was never a moment for me, where I felt confused but rather it kep me reading like breadcrumbs leading me to the ending. I do wish we got to see more od Fomino interacting with her team. Despite this being a standalone, it reads like a second book in a series and I have a feeling it probably ties in to the Black Widow book which I have not read.
Overall, a great book about a character that needs more love.
August 2, 2020
This book had me riveted. I was kind of expecting a graphic novel and would have enjoyed illustration at times, but I loved the depth this was able to get into Dominos character and the story. I’ve always loved the world of Marvel in all of it’s multitudes of timelines and multiverses. I’ve always loved X-Force in particular but enjoy seeing Domino without the more attention grabbing Deadpool and Cable. I enjoyed the mix of past and present and getting to truly be inside Domino’s head. Really enjoyed this book and hope there are more.
September 5, 2020
I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Marvel Heroines book Domino Strays by Tristan Palmgren published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let these things cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
So lets get in to it, the book as the title suggests concentrates on Domino, the mutant whose power is luck, if you are familiar with the comics, this is set in the current timeline with her being the leader of the Hotshots and contains the rest of the team in supporting roles. If you are less familiar, she was played wonderfully by Zazie Beetz in Deadpool 2.
The story revolves around the Hotshots infiltrating the compound of a cult leader in Chicago to save her clients two children. It skips between three different time periods, giving us the reasons why Domino hates the idea of people being held in cages, and why she has a particular thing for crazy zealots.
Its told from a second person point of view with Domino telling the reader the story, given how closely Domino is associated with Deadpool, I think it would have been very easy for this to go down the route of breaking the fourth wall, but I think this works way better, because they didn’t do that. Honestly it feels like we are holed up in some seedy bar as Domino relates the story to us over drinks.
You get a fantastic inside look at the Hotshots, how they work and the relationship dynamic between them, especially between the closest three of them, those being Domino, Diamondback and Outlaw.
My favourite parts of the story were those that covered Dominos infiltration of the Project Armageddon compound in the Everglades and those about her childhood in a church orphanage. The present days story for me was more of a device to tie it all together, and it was really good at that.
Another positive was that they didn’t overly play on her superpower, she rarely relied on it, and as she points out, its not something that makes her invulnerable and isn’t very cinematic, she has to rely on honed skills and experience, only relying on her superpower when she absolutely needs to.
The only real issue I have with the story is the footnotes, which are in themselves great, but they are all at the end of the chapters, which are in themselves, not that long, but its a pain to have to keep flipping through to make sure you read them when you are supposed to. I would much rather they be at the end of the page they belong with, but I wonder if this is a limitation of the ePub format.
I was a big fan of the Domino: Hotshots series by Gail Simone and this was a fantastic deep dive into that team. You don’t need to have any background in the characters as the book does a great job of giving you all the background you need, but in a natural very easy flowing way. The dynamic between the team was just perfect, with the characters balancing each other out just like they do in the comics. The relationship between the core of Domino, Diamondback and Outlaw, with the other members was just perfect, especially with Atlas Bear, who is only reluctantly a member of the team.
Footnotes aside, this is a very good read and given that the characters are very much Marvel B-List characters (Other than Black Widow), means that its accessible to those who only really know Marvel from the MCU.
In short you have a great book looking at one of Marvels more interesting characters and its really enjoyable.
Domino Strays is going to be released on October 6th
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let these things cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
So lets get in to it, the book as the title suggests concentrates on Domino, the mutant whose power is luck, if you are familiar with the comics, this is set in the current timeline with her being the leader of the Hotshots and contains the rest of the team in supporting roles. If you are less familiar, she was played wonderfully by Zazie Beetz in Deadpool 2.
The story revolves around the Hotshots infiltrating the compound of a cult leader in Chicago to save her clients two children. It skips between three different time periods, giving us the reasons why Domino hates the idea of people being held in cages, and why she has a particular thing for crazy zealots.
Its told from a second person point of view with Domino telling the reader the story, given how closely Domino is associated with Deadpool, I think it would have been very easy for this to go down the route of breaking the fourth wall, but I think this works way better, because they didn’t do that. Honestly it feels like we are holed up in some seedy bar as Domino relates the story to us over drinks.
You get a fantastic inside look at the Hotshots, how they work and the relationship dynamic between them, especially between the closest three of them, those being Domino, Diamondback and Outlaw.
My favourite parts of the story were those that covered Dominos infiltration of the Project Armageddon compound in the Everglades and those about her childhood in a church orphanage. The present days story for me was more of a device to tie it all together, and it was really good at that.
Another positive was that they didn’t overly play on her superpower, she rarely relied on it, and as she points out, its not something that makes her invulnerable and isn’t very cinematic, she has to rely on honed skills and experience, only relying on her superpower when she absolutely needs to.
The only real issue I have with the story is the footnotes, which are in themselves great, but they are all at the end of the chapters, which are in themselves, not that long, but its a pain to have to keep flipping through to make sure you read them when you are supposed to. I would much rather they be at the end of the page they belong with, but I wonder if this is a limitation of the ePub format.
I was a big fan of the Domino: Hotshots series by Gail Simone and this was a fantastic deep dive into that team. You don’t need to have any background in the characters as the book does a great job of giving you all the background you need, but in a natural very easy flowing way. The dynamic between the team was just perfect, with the characters balancing each other out just like they do in the comics. The relationship between the core of Domino, Diamondback and Outlaw, with the other members was just perfect, especially with Atlas Bear, who is only reluctantly a member of the team.
Footnotes aside, this is a very good read and given that the characters are very much Marvel B-List characters (Other than Black Widow), means that its accessible to those who only really know Marvel from the MCU.
In short you have a great book looking at one of Marvels more interesting characters and its really enjoyable.
Domino Strays is going to be released on October 6th
September 28, 2020
I received a copy of Domino: Strays in exchange for a fair and honest review.
Domino, the beloved mutant, is getting her own full-length novel! You read that right, novel, not graphic novel. Written by Tristan Palmgren, Domino: Strays is about to dive into Domino's past and present to bring a whole new story to the forefront.
There are two sides to the infamous Domino. There's her present, where she has worked so hard at creating a team of mercenaries and heroes that she can count on. Together, they take on the big cases, as well as the overlooked cases. Such as the case where two siblings could very well use some help escaping from a cult...
Then there's Domino's past. Her history with imprisonment, abuse, and experimentation. It's a history that many a mutant carries with them, even if the details alter slightly from one to another. Yet that side of her story unfolds as well, on these pages.
“I had known, at the time, that it was a mistake. But because I'm an idiot, that hadn't stopped me.”
Warnings: Domino: Strays portrays child abuse, experimentation (non-consensual), cults, and other similar subjects and themes.
First of all, can I just say that I absolutely adore that they've been making Marvel comics into novels? I adore the comics (obviously) but sometimes it's nice to have a bit more to sink my teeth into. Especially when it covers my favorite characters, such as Domino.
Domino: Strays is perfect for old and new fans alike. It pulls in themes and events that have happened in her recent series (including Domino: Hotshots). But it also takes the time to explain Domino's character, her past, and her connection to her friends, so a new fan could easily jump in here, if they so desired.
This was a surprisingly intense read, though perhaps it shouldn't have been. I know Domino's history, and I know how dark it gets. Yet the raw emotion in this novel, and the events that come alongside those emotions, cannot be avoided. Nor should it be.
“To do what I do, always take the first marshmallow.”
Despite the heavy tones, Domino does have a way about her. As such, Domino: Strays is full of her sass and flair. Sometimes that means things blow up. Other times that means her besties come in and start breaking stuff. Either way, it's going to be a lot of fun.
There are plenty of laugh out loud moments to be found within these pages, lots of little references, sometimes even poking at the other characters involved. It's perfect, and really did read like a longer running Domino series. I would love more of this, if possible!
Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
Domino, the beloved mutant, is getting her own full-length novel! You read that right, novel, not graphic novel. Written by Tristan Palmgren, Domino: Strays is about to dive into Domino's past and present to bring a whole new story to the forefront.
There are two sides to the infamous Domino. There's her present, where she has worked so hard at creating a team of mercenaries and heroes that she can count on. Together, they take on the big cases, as well as the overlooked cases. Such as the case where two siblings could very well use some help escaping from a cult...
Then there's Domino's past. Her history with imprisonment, abuse, and experimentation. It's a history that many a mutant carries with them, even if the details alter slightly from one to another. Yet that side of her story unfolds as well, on these pages.
“I had known, at the time, that it was a mistake. But because I'm an idiot, that hadn't stopped me.”
Warnings: Domino: Strays portrays child abuse, experimentation (non-consensual), cults, and other similar subjects and themes.
First of all, can I just say that I absolutely adore that they've been making Marvel comics into novels? I adore the comics (obviously) but sometimes it's nice to have a bit more to sink my teeth into. Especially when it covers my favorite characters, such as Domino.
Domino: Strays is perfect for old and new fans alike. It pulls in themes and events that have happened in her recent series (including Domino: Hotshots). But it also takes the time to explain Domino's character, her past, and her connection to her friends, so a new fan could easily jump in here, if they so desired.
This was a surprisingly intense read, though perhaps it shouldn't have been. I know Domino's history, and I know how dark it gets. Yet the raw emotion in this novel, and the events that come alongside those emotions, cannot be avoided. Nor should it be.
“To do what I do, always take the first marshmallow.”
Despite the heavy tones, Domino does have a way about her. As such, Domino: Strays is full of her sass and flair. Sometimes that means things blow up. Other times that means her besties come in and start breaking stuff. Either way, it's going to be a lot of fun.
There are plenty of laugh out loud moments to be found within these pages, lots of little references, sometimes even poking at the other characters involved. It's perfect, and really did read like a longer running Domino series. I would love more of this, if possible!
Check out more reviews over at Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks
September 6, 2020
I received an advance copy of this book from the publishers in exchange for an honest review.
My friends know that I’m a massive Marvel fan! You can’t not love heroic ladies like Black Widow, Captain Marvel and more. When I discovered that I would be reading ‘Domino: Strays‘ about one of these ladies, I may have squealed a little.
I’ll be honest that I didn’t know who Domino was at first, but after learning about Domino from ‘Deadpool 2’ , I knew that I needed to learn more about Neena aka Domino. She seemed so sassy, sarcastic and I honestly wanted to know why. I never thought that she had had such a difficult life growing up. I know that most Marvel characters have traumatic childhoods but this really was something.
Not only was she experimented on for Project Armageddon to become the perfect soldier, but she was emotionally/physically tortured. The idea of this happening to even a fictional child was difficult to read! Domino developed a mutant power where luck was on her side. The way she explained it was that she could survive life-and-death situations but that her power had a sense of humour. She could jump from high up without serious injury and yet sprain both of her ankles.
The time-line skips took me a while to get into. One minute you were in present day, then during her captivity and then when she’d escaped. I was trying to keep track of everything that was going on! Once I got the hang of it, I really appreciated how well-written everything was from the action-packed fights (a staple in the Marvel Universe), the dramatic moments when she discovered who was in charge of Project Armageddon and then how she tackled present day.
She was hired by a distraught mother whose twins had gone missing. She believed that they had been enticed into a dangerous cult and she needed Domino to find them. What I loved about Domino was that she was brutally honest about a situation. If it didn’t meet her expectations, she flat-out denied. It wasn’t until she learned more about the cult leader from her friends that she took the job.
If you’re a fan of the Marvel Universe, then you will love the mentions of familiar characters! You have Deadpool (of course!), Charles Xavier, The Avengers and Black Widow. The latter actually joins in with the rescue mission!
The only thing that I didn’t like about this book were the footnotes. I appreciated them explained a little of Domino’s thought process but they were always at the end of a chapter. You literally had to look for each number and skip to the end to see what she was saying. Other than that, a book for every mutant to adore!!
My friends know that I’m a massive Marvel fan! You can’t not love heroic ladies like Black Widow, Captain Marvel and more. When I discovered that I would be reading ‘Domino: Strays‘ about one of these ladies, I may have squealed a little.
I’ll be honest that I didn’t know who Domino was at first, but after learning about Domino from ‘Deadpool 2’ , I knew that I needed to learn more about Neena aka Domino. She seemed so sassy, sarcastic and I honestly wanted to know why. I never thought that she had had such a difficult life growing up. I know that most Marvel characters have traumatic childhoods but this really was something.
Not only was she experimented on for Project Armageddon to become the perfect soldier, but she was emotionally/physically tortured. The idea of this happening to even a fictional child was difficult to read! Domino developed a mutant power where luck was on her side. The way she explained it was that she could survive life-and-death situations but that her power had a sense of humour. She could jump from high up without serious injury and yet sprain both of her ankles.
The time-line skips took me a while to get into. One minute you were in present day, then during her captivity and then when she’d escaped. I was trying to keep track of everything that was going on! Once I got the hang of it, I really appreciated how well-written everything was from the action-packed fights (a staple in the Marvel Universe), the dramatic moments when she discovered who was in charge of Project Armageddon and then how she tackled present day.
She was hired by a distraught mother whose twins had gone missing. She believed that they had been enticed into a dangerous cult and she needed Domino to find them. What I loved about Domino was that she was brutally honest about a situation. If it didn’t meet her expectations, she flat-out denied. It wasn’t until she learned more about the cult leader from her friends that she took the job.
If you’re a fan of the Marvel Universe, then you will love the mentions of familiar characters! You have Deadpool (of course!), Charles Xavier, The Avengers and Black Widow. The latter actually joins in with the rescue mission!
The only thing that I didn’t like about this book were the footnotes. I appreciated them explained a little of Domino’s thought process but they were always at the end of a chapter. You literally had to look for each number and skip to the end to see what she was saying. Other than that, a book for every mutant to adore!!
August 2, 2021
Eine unglaublich beeindruckende Heldin
Die ehemalige X-Force-Agentin Domino bekommt einen neuen Auftrag herein, eine besorgte Mutter möchte das Domino ihre Kinder aus einer Sekte befreit. Domino hatte aber schon sehr schlechte Erfahrungen mit Verrückten gemacht und ist immer noch nicht über ihre eigene Vergangenheit im Projekt Armageddon hinüber, weshalb sie absolut dagegen ist, diesen Auftrag anzunehmen. Allerdings kann sie die Frau nicht enttäuschen und nimmt den Auftrag trotzdem an, wobei sie sich mit ihrem Team in Gefahr bringt…
Die Protagonisten:
Domino ist der Hammer, sie ist nicht die typische Art von Heldin, wie man sie in den meisten Büchern erwarten würde. Sie versucht nicht das zu machen, was andere von einer Heldin erwarten, sondern was sie für das hält, was das Beste für alle ist, und das hatte sie für mich so sympathisch gemacht. Sie hat einen tollen Charakter und ist sehr authentisch. Ihr Team, bestehend aus noch ein paar anderen Heldinnen, fand ich ebenfalls klasse und die ganzen anderen Charaktere ob gut oder böse, haben auch einfach perfekt in die Geschichte gepasst.
Die Umsetzung:
Ich vergöttere das Marvel Universum und die Helden, die diesem entsprungen sind, weshalb ich dieses Buch unbedingt lesen wollte. Ich fand den Schreibstil und die verschiedenen Zeitebenen, in denen das Buch geschrieben wurde, unglaublich fesselnd. Das Buch spielt in Dominos Kindheitserinnerungen, einer Zeit vor sechs Jahren und der Gegenwart. Alle drei Ebenen sind gleich spannend und durch die unterschiedlichen Ebenen bekommt man nach und nach immer mehr Informationen über Domino und warum sie so ist, wie sie nun mal ist. Es war super aufregend ihre schwere Kindheit mit allen Umständen, mit denen sie fertig werden musste, hautnah mitzuerleben und Einblicke in das Leben im Projekt Armageddon zu bekommen, das im Klappentext schon so vielversprechend angeteasert wurde. Ich hatte zwar gehofft, dass die anderen Heldinnen aus Dominos Team, von dem auch Black Widow ein Teil ist, mehr thematisiert werden, jedoch war das auch nicht so schlimm, da Dominos Sicht trotzdem sehr spannend war und das Buch ja hauptsächlich über Domino ist. Das Ende fand ich dann tatsächlich etwas schnell abgehandelt, aber sonst hat das Buch ziemliches Lieblingsbuch potenzial.
Mein Fazit:
Ich liebe dieses Buch und kann es jedem nur wärmstens empfehlen. Domino ist eine der coolsten Heldinnen, von denen ich jemals gehört habe und ihre Geschichte ist einfach nur fantastisch. Mich konnte dieses Buch total überzeugen und ich werde es auf jeden Fall irgendwann nochmal lesen. Deshalb bekommt das Buch von mir völlig verdiente 5 von 5 Sterne.
Die ehemalige X-Force-Agentin Domino bekommt einen neuen Auftrag herein, eine besorgte Mutter möchte das Domino ihre Kinder aus einer Sekte befreit. Domino hatte aber schon sehr schlechte Erfahrungen mit Verrückten gemacht und ist immer noch nicht über ihre eigene Vergangenheit im Projekt Armageddon hinüber, weshalb sie absolut dagegen ist, diesen Auftrag anzunehmen. Allerdings kann sie die Frau nicht enttäuschen und nimmt den Auftrag trotzdem an, wobei sie sich mit ihrem Team in Gefahr bringt…
Die Protagonisten:
Domino ist der Hammer, sie ist nicht die typische Art von Heldin, wie man sie in den meisten Büchern erwarten würde. Sie versucht nicht das zu machen, was andere von einer Heldin erwarten, sondern was sie für das hält, was das Beste für alle ist, und das hatte sie für mich so sympathisch gemacht. Sie hat einen tollen Charakter und ist sehr authentisch. Ihr Team, bestehend aus noch ein paar anderen Heldinnen, fand ich ebenfalls klasse und die ganzen anderen Charaktere ob gut oder böse, haben auch einfach perfekt in die Geschichte gepasst.
Die Umsetzung:
Ich vergöttere das Marvel Universum und die Helden, die diesem entsprungen sind, weshalb ich dieses Buch unbedingt lesen wollte. Ich fand den Schreibstil und die verschiedenen Zeitebenen, in denen das Buch geschrieben wurde, unglaublich fesselnd. Das Buch spielt in Dominos Kindheitserinnerungen, einer Zeit vor sechs Jahren und der Gegenwart. Alle drei Ebenen sind gleich spannend und durch die unterschiedlichen Ebenen bekommt man nach und nach immer mehr Informationen über Domino und warum sie so ist, wie sie nun mal ist. Es war super aufregend ihre schwere Kindheit mit allen Umständen, mit denen sie fertig werden musste, hautnah mitzuerleben und Einblicke in das Leben im Projekt Armageddon zu bekommen, das im Klappentext schon so vielversprechend angeteasert wurde. Ich hatte zwar gehofft, dass die anderen Heldinnen aus Dominos Team, von dem auch Black Widow ein Teil ist, mehr thematisiert werden, jedoch war das auch nicht so schlimm, da Dominos Sicht trotzdem sehr spannend war und das Buch ja hauptsächlich über Domino ist. Das Ende fand ich dann tatsächlich etwas schnell abgehandelt, aber sonst hat das Buch ziemliches Lieblingsbuch potenzial.
Mein Fazit:
Ich liebe dieses Buch und kann es jedem nur wärmstens empfehlen. Domino ist eine der coolsten Heldinnen, von denen ich jemals gehört habe und ihre Geschichte ist einfach nur fantastisch. Mich konnte dieses Buch total überzeugen und ich werde es auf jeden Fall irgendwann nochmal lesen. Deshalb bekommt das Buch von mir völlig verdiente 5 von 5 Sterne.
October 4, 2022
Oggi sono qui per parlarvi di un'altra bellissima opera arrivata nelle nostre librerie.
Come sapete sono una grande amante del genere, quindi potevo mai farmelo scappare? Assolutamente no.
Domino: Strays, ci parla della protagonista (per l'appunto Domino), una dei mutanti del mondo Marvel.
Ammetto che solo dopo aver iniziato la lettura ho ricordato chi fosse, poiché la sua prima apparizione cinematografica è stata nel film di Deedpool 2 (ve la ricordate la tipa interpretata da Zazie Beetz? Lei).
Ma non è assolutamente un personaggio nuovo, seppur io non la ricordassi affatto, poiché è nata nella serie dei Nuovi Mutanti nel 1991.
Dopo questa premessa che mi sembrava giusta, possiamo parlare del resto.
Nel romanzo accade qualcosa che raramente succede nelle opere con personaggi già noti, un metodo di narrazione che amo terribilmente: verremo infatti catapultati negli avvenimenti che hanno portato Domino ad essere chi è oggi, partendo dalla sua infanzia alla sua crescita nel cercare risposte su chi è, sino al presente in cui lavora come mercenaria per recuperare i figli del suo datore di lavoro che sono diventati membri/vittime di una setta. Questa missione le sta molto a cuore poiché lei stessa è stata originariamente cresciuta come soggetto di prova in un programma governativo (Progetto Armageddon) , successivamente rilevato da un gruppo paramilitare semireligioso, per poi finire in orfanotrofio, quindi salvare i bambini dal subire qualcosa che lei stessa ha subito, è di vitale importanza per lei.
Il romanzo è scritto in modo semplice, si vede inoltre tutto l'impegno e lo studio che c'è dietro per scrivere il personaggio nel modo più canonico possibile. Purtroppo, però, al tempo stesso il libro è scritto come fosse un monologo da Domino, difatti qua e là troviamo i suoi commenti sulle situazione intervallati da una narrazione più fattuale, un po' come Deedpool che si rivolge agli spettatori o ai lettori. Però devo dire che forse proprio questa cosa mi ha infastidito poiché ok in un film o in un fumetto, ma nei romanzi non credo sia qualcosa di molto sensato.
Nonostante ciò, però, Domino: Strays offre una lettura divertente per coloro che si affacciano per la prima volta al personaggio, fornendo allo stesso tempo molti commenti discreti per i fan di lunga data.
Come sapete sono una grande amante del genere, quindi potevo mai farmelo scappare? Assolutamente no.
Domino: Strays, ci parla della protagonista (per l'appunto Domino), una dei mutanti del mondo Marvel.
Ammetto che solo dopo aver iniziato la lettura ho ricordato chi fosse, poiché la sua prima apparizione cinematografica è stata nel film di Deedpool 2 (ve la ricordate la tipa interpretata da Zazie Beetz? Lei).
Ma non è assolutamente un personaggio nuovo, seppur io non la ricordassi affatto, poiché è nata nella serie dei Nuovi Mutanti nel 1991.
Dopo questa premessa che mi sembrava giusta, possiamo parlare del resto.
Nel romanzo accade qualcosa che raramente succede nelle opere con personaggi già noti, un metodo di narrazione che amo terribilmente: verremo infatti catapultati negli avvenimenti che hanno portato Domino ad essere chi è oggi, partendo dalla sua infanzia alla sua crescita nel cercare risposte su chi è, sino al presente in cui lavora come mercenaria per recuperare i figli del suo datore di lavoro che sono diventati membri/vittime di una setta. Questa missione le sta molto a cuore poiché lei stessa è stata originariamente cresciuta come soggetto di prova in un programma governativo (Progetto Armageddon) , successivamente rilevato da un gruppo paramilitare semireligioso, per poi finire in orfanotrofio, quindi salvare i bambini dal subire qualcosa che lei stessa ha subito, è di vitale importanza per lei.
Il romanzo è scritto in modo semplice, si vede inoltre tutto l'impegno e lo studio che c'è dietro per scrivere il personaggio nel modo più canonico possibile. Purtroppo, però, al tempo stesso il libro è scritto come fosse un monologo da Domino, difatti qua e là troviamo i suoi commenti sulle situazione intervallati da una narrazione più fattuale, un po' come Deedpool che si rivolge agli spettatori o ai lettori. Però devo dire che forse proprio questa cosa mi ha infastidito poiché ok in un film o in un fumetto, ma nei romanzi non credo sia qualcosa di molto sensato.
Nonostante ciò, però, Domino: Strays offre una lettura divertente per coloro che si affacciano per la prima volta al personaggio, fornendo allo stesso tempo molti commenti discreti per i fan di lunga data.
December 21, 2020
I received this e-book from NetGalley. This does not affect my review or opinion. All thoughts are my own, and I’m being 100 percent honest. Thank you to NetGalley and Aconyte Books for providing me this book for reviewing purposes.
★★½
I really love this cover. I love all the colors together. Domino looks fierce and badass!
So when I requested this book on Netgalley (thank you @Netgalley for approving this review copy) I thought it was a graphic novel. This would've been my first step into the world of graphic novels. Sadly, this is not a graphic novel but just a book. A fun book, but still.
The plot is quite interesting. I love the all female mercenary squad. However, the different timelines just made it very hard to connect with the characters.
I also really enjoyed the writing style. It felt very Deadpool-y to me, which is always a good thing.
The multiple storylines were intriguing at first, but became really complicated once you really started enjoying the first chapter. I do get the whole 'there is no order' vibe, but it wasn't my thing.
Another thing I really appreciated were the footnotes. I found this quite original and fun. This was my first experience with footnotes, so I'm not an expert on the matter, but did find it fun. The only thing I have to say about the footnotes is that while you're reading the book you don't just want to go to the end of the chapter (where the footnotes are). So I often forgot what they were about.
Overall this was an okay book, but not exactly what I was expecting. I do really want to read another one of Palmgren's books because I loved the way he writes.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
★★½
I really love this cover. I love all the colors together. Domino looks fierce and badass!
So when I requested this book on Netgalley (thank you @Netgalley for approving this review copy) I thought it was a graphic novel. This would've been my first step into the world of graphic novels. Sadly, this is not a graphic novel but just a book. A fun book, but still.
The plot is quite interesting. I love the all female mercenary squad. However, the different timelines just made it very hard to connect with the characters.
I also really enjoyed the writing style. It felt very Deadpool-y to me, which is always a good thing.
The multiple storylines were intriguing at first, but became really complicated once you really started enjoying the first chapter. I do get the whole 'there is no order' vibe, but it wasn't my thing.
Another thing I really appreciated were the footnotes. I found this quite original and fun. This was my first experience with footnotes, so I'm not an expert on the matter, but did find it fun. The only thing I have to say about the footnotes is that while you're reading the book you don't just want to go to the end of the chapter (where the footnotes are). So I often forgot what they were about.
Overall this was an okay book, but not exactly what I was expecting. I do really want to read another one of Palmgren's books because I loved the way he writes.
About Marvel Entertainment
Marvel Entertainment, LLC, a wholly-owned subsidiary of The Walt Disney Company, is one of the world’s most prominent character-based entertainment companies, built on a proven library of more than 8,000 characters featured in a variety of media for over eighty years. Marvel utilizes its character franchises in entertainment, licensing, publishing, games, and digital media.
For more information visit marvel.com. © 2020 MARVEL
May 13, 2021
Tristan Palmgren beleuchtet in seinem Roman eine der X-Men-Heldinnen näher und erzählt hierbei parallel ihre Vergangenheit und eine aktuelle Mission, bei der sie versucht Zwillinge aus einer religiösen Sekte zu retten.
Die Idee hinter dieser Reihe von Romanen ist eine sehr gute, denn die Frauen sind in Comics und Actionfilmen eindeutig unterrepräsentiert und die meisten Darstellungen sind immer noch sexualisiert. Dieses Buch zeigt eine starke, unabhängige Frau, die zu keinem Zeitpunkt auf ihr Geschlecht reduziert wird. Das ist schon mal ein großes Lob an dieses Buch.
Natürlich ist es ungewohnt eine Marvel-Geschichte in Romanform zu lesen, irgendwie fehlen dann doch die Bilder. Leider sind die Bilder, die einem in den Kopf gesetzt werden auch sehr einfach. Es gibt keine allzu ausschweifenden, blumigen Beschreibungen. Es wirkt als hätte der Autor einfach einen Comic verschriftlicht. Erst in den letzten Kapiteln nutzt Palmgren wirklich das Potenzial aus, das ein Roman bietet und nutzt Möglichkeiten, die es im Comic einfach nicht gibt.
Erschwert wird das Lesen, vor allem beim eBook, auch durch die Hochzahlen, die erst am Ende des Kapitels aufgeführt werden. Das Hin- und Herblättern würde schon bei einem Printexemplar nerven, aber bei einem eBook ist es fast unmöglich, sodass ich die Fußnoten bald einfach ignoriert habe, wodurch leider in witziger Aspekt der Geschichte und ein Charakterzug von Domino verloren gegangen ist.
Die Idee hinter dieser Reihe von Romanen ist eine sehr gute, denn die Frauen sind in Comics und Actionfilmen eindeutig unterrepräsentiert und die meisten Darstellungen sind immer noch sexualisiert. Dieses Buch zeigt eine starke, unabhängige Frau, die zu keinem Zeitpunkt auf ihr Geschlecht reduziert wird. Das ist schon mal ein großes Lob an dieses Buch.
Natürlich ist es ungewohnt eine Marvel-Geschichte in Romanform zu lesen, irgendwie fehlen dann doch die Bilder. Leider sind die Bilder, die einem in den Kopf gesetzt werden auch sehr einfach. Es gibt keine allzu ausschweifenden, blumigen Beschreibungen. Es wirkt als hätte der Autor einfach einen Comic verschriftlicht. Erst in den letzten Kapiteln nutzt Palmgren wirklich das Potenzial aus, das ein Roman bietet und nutzt Möglichkeiten, die es im Comic einfach nicht gibt.
Erschwert wird das Lesen, vor allem beim eBook, auch durch die Hochzahlen, die erst am Ende des Kapitels aufgeführt werden. Das Hin- und Herblättern würde schon bei einem Printexemplar nerven, aber bei einem eBook ist es fast unmöglich, sodass ich die Fußnoten bald einfach ignoriert habe, wodurch leider in witziger Aspekt der Geschichte und ein Charakterzug von Domino verloren gegangen ist.
December 16, 2021
Frauenpower auf Marvel
Als weiblicher Marvelfan fast schon ein Muss und super spannend geschrieben.
Man begleitet Domino nicht nur auf ihren aktuellen Auftrag als Söldnerin, wobei sie Geschwister aus einer Sekte befreien soll. Sondern auch in ihre Kindheit und zu einem "ehemaligen" Auftrag.
Diese drei Geschichten zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten weisen immer wieder Parallelen auf - was das ganze noch interessanter und spannender macht.
Durch Fußnoten bekommt man Zugang zu den Gedanken der Protagonistin wodurch man noch viel mehr eingebunden wird. Außerdem spricht sie dadurch mit dem Leser und behandelt einen wie einen Freund und Vertrauten.
Wer Fan von den Marvel-Geschichten ist, wird einige bekannte Namen und Gesichter wiederfinden. Was das Lesen noch um einiges lebhafter macht. Gleichzeitig bietet es die Möglichkeit eine eher unbekannte Marvelfigur näher kennen zulernen.
Trotzdem ist das Buch nicht nur was für Marvelfans. Sondern vielmehr für jeden Fan von Frauenpower und spannenden Actiongeschichten etwas.
Als weiblicher Marvelfan fast schon ein Muss und super spannend geschrieben.
Man begleitet Domino nicht nur auf ihren aktuellen Auftrag als Söldnerin, wobei sie Geschwister aus einer Sekte befreien soll. Sondern auch in ihre Kindheit und zu einem "ehemaligen" Auftrag.
Diese drei Geschichten zu unterschiedlichen Zeiten weisen immer wieder Parallelen auf - was das ganze noch interessanter und spannender macht.
Durch Fußnoten bekommt man Zugang zu den Gedanken der Protagonistin wodurch man noch viel mehr eingebunden wird. Außerdem spricht sie dadurch mit dem Leser und behandelt einen wie einen Freund und Vertrauten.
Wer Fan von den Marvel-Geschichten ist, wird einige bekannte Namen und Gesichter wiederfinden. Was das Lesen noch um einiges lebhafter macht. Gleichzeitig bietet es die Möglichkeit eine eher unbekannte Marvelfigur näher kennen zulernen.
Trotzdem ist das Buch nicht nur was für Marvelfans. Sondern vielmehr für jeden Fan von Frauenpower und spannenden Actiongeschichten etwas.
August 13, 2020
Domino: Strays is a must read for Marvel fans. The writing makes the narration feel personable and like the reader is talking to Domino as a friend. Flipping back and forth between the present and the past, the story skips around quite a bit but it all comes out in the wash until Domino feels real and a complex, likable character. Leading a little group of mercenaries now that includes Black Widow, Domino is up for hire for the tough cases. A cult and mother's plea for her children leaves Domino pursuing her own brand of justice. The case has her reliving the parts of the past she can remember and revealing an enthralling back story that will quickly move Domino to one of your favorite Marvel characters. The story has me crossing my fingers and wishing for a little of that patented luck that Domino will be back for a multi-book series. My voluntary, unbiased review is base upon a review copy of the book from Netgalley. #Marvel #MarvelEnt #Aconytebooks #review
June 24, 2022
3.5 stars. I would call this book mostly pretty good. I didn't know anything about Domino prior to reading this book and I feel as though it's a pretty good primer for her character.
No story spoilers, but there are three competing story timelines in this book and it makes reading it somewhat confusing throughout: when she was a child, six years before the current story, and the current time. Periodically the book will switch between the three and the chapters won't always be clearly marked with what time period you're in. You just have to remember what is happening and when. This gets even more confusing at the very end because all three time periods will be happening during the same chapter. But sometimes it's also just Domino's memories of the past during the Current time. So people of the other time periods will be referenced during the current time, or the six years ago time period, and it all gets jumbled together.
The structure didn't really work for me.
No story spoilers, but there are three competing story timelines in this book and it makes reading it somewhat confusing throughout: when she was a child, six years before the current story, and the current time. Periodically the book will switch between the three and the chapters won't always be clearly marked with what time period you're in. You just have to remember what is happening and when. This gets even more confusing at the very end because all three time periods will be happening during the same chapter. But sometimes it's also just Domino's memories of the past during the Current time. So people of the other time periods will be referenced during the current time, or the six years ago time period, and it all gets jumbled together.
The structure didn't really work for me.
May 21, 2023
I enjoyed this book more than I expected. I read the Squirrel Girl book by the same author and wasn't a big fan, so I didn't have high hopes for this book, but I received it as a gift and decided to give it a try. I'm glad I did, because it exceeded my expectations. Domino makes for an interesting and unpredictable protagonist, and the plot had a lot of action and suspense. I enjoyed getting to know more of Domino's backstory and how she came to be the person she is. I normally don't like stories that go back and forth in time because they are often hard to follow, but in this case, the author did a masterful job of weaving together 3 separate stories / eras while maintaining cohesion and avoiding a confusion. My one complaint is that there are quite a few footnotes in the book that don't add anything to the story. They are just a distraction and make the book slower to read. Still, overall, I liked the book and would recommend it to any fans of superheroes, Marvel, or Domino herself.
October 9, 2021
I found this book very interesting and I give it 5 stars for its creative ability. I have read this book 4 times within 2 months, and I usually only read a book once or twice. Also the footnotes added give it a much more personal perspective, like I am really reading through the eyes of Neena. This novel is able to hook you very easily as well, given its humorous nature, but it also keeps you interested with its darker undertone about Project Armageddon. The way the story is told in 3 different time periods was kind of confusing at first, but I learned to appreciate it and come to love it.
Another thing I love is the interesting quotes and dialogue Domino and her crew have, my favorite quote being "For the kids who took the first marshmallow." because it explains her POV on her profession. This book is about Neena Thurman aka Domino, who is tasked by Rebecca Munoz to get her kids out of a cult disguised as a religious home, run by Dallas Bader Peterson. She .teams up with the Hotshots, White Fox, and Black Widow to free the kids and destroy the cult
Another thing I love is the interesting quotes and dialogue Domino and her crew have, my favorite quote being "For the kids who took the first marshmallow." because it explains her POV on her profession. This book is about Neena Thurman aka Domino, who is tasked by Rebecca Munoz to get her kids out of a cult disguised as a religious home, run by Dallas Bader Peterson. She .teams up with the Hotshots, White Fox, and Black Widow to free the kids and destroy the cult
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