Resident Alien Volume 7: The Book of Love

Resident Alien (Collected Editions) #7

by Peter Hogan, Steve Parkhouse (Illustrator)

The comics that inspired the hit SyFy series continue!

The agent who was trailing Harry tries to help him resolve his issues with the government, as things quiet down a bit in Patience.

Harry and Asta grow closer, and all seems well with our alien and his found human family. But life always has a way of keeping things exciting, and big things can happen in small towns!

Writer Steve Hogan and artist Steve Parkhouse return to the quaint town of Patience in Resident Alien Volume 7: The Book of Love.

Collects Resident The Book of Love #1–#4.

Genres: Graphic Novels, Comics, Science Fiction, Aliens, Mystery, Romance, Fiction

104 pages, Paperback

Published July 11, 2023

About the author

Peter Kenneth Hogan is an English writer and comics creator who started out as editor of cult political British comic Revolver in 1990–1991, before working for 2000 AD and American comic book publishers Vertigo and America's Best Comics.

Reviews

[Anne · Rating 4 out of 5]

The Book of Love focuses on the love lives of not just Harry and Asta, but on a lot of characters we've grown to care about in the town of Patience.
Some very sweet awww moments but nothing so sappy I wanted to gag.



Of course, there's a bit of mystery. Because this is a cozy mystery series.
And there's the funny investigation into the missing FBI agent who left on the spaceship that was going to take Harry home from the last volume.



Loved the ending!




This was another quietly satisfying volume of Resident Alien.
Recommended.

[Michael J. · Rating 4 out of 5]

I needed to read some of the comics version of RESIDENT ALIEN, which I haven't done for many years, in order to realize how different this is from the television series. The only commonality is the premise, with the secondary characters all being revised and reimagined for the tv show.
I now regret my previous comments that Season One of RESIDENT ALIEN stayed true to the comics series. The tv show went off in wild and wacky directions and became less interesting as it moved forward.
With THE BOOK OF LOVE, the seventh collection of RESIDENT ALIEN, the creators show how much story possibility and versatility can be derived from that original premise - - an alien trapped on Earth and posing as a human in a small town. There are so many characters to appreciate, care about, and worry for. Volume Seven reads like a small-town soap opera, with romance and crime themes this time. At the core is the very human value of caring enough for others to take action in order to help them through conflicts. I appreciate the way those characters are depicted here so much more than the television series.
This is warm and charming. There just aren't many comic series that fit into that category. CONCRETE is the closest comparison I can make to this. There's a surprise at the conclusion, which sets up the plot for the next story arc. Keep 'em coming!

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Returning to the lives of Harry, Asta and co. in Patience, CO, feels like slipping into a nice, warm bath. And there's absolutely nothing wrong with that.

[Alex Sarll]

For the most part this comes off like a deliberate lowering of stakes, a respite after the season finale vibes of the previous volume. Sure, there are two criminal subplots to untangle, but as the title suggests, the story is more invested in the various romantic entanglements the cast have accumulated by this point. Except then...well, that would be telling. Now Hickman's departure has left X-Men more story-focused again, this is probably my favourite current comics soap opera.

[Dakota Morgan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Perfectly cozy reading. The Book of Love highlights the handful of romantic relationships in the Resident Alien world, while also providing a few gentle mysteries to be solved. It's a delight to return to these characters after some time away, and their realistic interactions are a treat after reading several bang-bang action comics.

Of note: the FBI's interest in Harry is neatly wrapped up in this volume, so presumably going forward there will be zero narrative drive from the "will he be caught?!" angle. Honestly, I'm happy to see that go so that we can focus purely on the population of Paradise.

[Julie Rothenfluh · Rating 5 out of 5]

Love is in the air in Patience, Washington. With some surprising results!

[Darth Reader · Rating 1 out of 5]

Disgusting. Misogynistic. Stupid. Tension created solely from characters being legitimately as dumb as possible. I am so disappointed.

[b.c. pellegrini · Rating 4 out of 5]

i’m a bit of a sucker for the harry/asta romance i can’t lie

[Daniel Shellenbarger · Rating 4 out of 5]

I have mixed feelings about this volume. As with the previous couple volumes, the mystery element of the series is largely absent, there is some crime-related drama, but it only involves Harry in the most peripheral way. Likewise, the big focus of the ongoing story prior to this volume has been resolved, so Harry's not wondering whether or not he wants to go home and the wannabe Men in Black aren't really hunting him anymore. Instead, mostly this is slice of life small town drama, feeling almost like an epilogue to the series, which is okay since I like the characters and the writing is amusing (though some of the plot points veer uncomfortably near soap opera territory), but it's not really what I got into the series for. This is one of those cases where I strongly wish Goodreads had a 10 star system so I could give it a 7 because I really don't think it's good enough for 4/5 stars and I really don't think it's bad enough for 3/5 but I'm being nice and rounded up. While I am interested in the future course of the series, I can't help feeling that the series has basically outlived its driving narrative, and that's a real problem.

[Lora · Rating 5 out of 5]

As I've said before, this comic series is very different from the tv series. Harry is just a nice guy here, and this volume focused on relationships - not just Harry and Asta but others, too. Whereas the first omnibus contained standard detective stories and the second contained more interesting mysteries that Harry was more emotionally invested in.

Mind you, there were still some criminal activity to deal with in this volume, but the sheriff had a bigger role. We got to get to know him better - his backstory and his love life (note, this is not the same character as in the tv show). We also got to know other characters better.

Great illustrations, including a great fight sequence involving two women.

The volume ends on a cliff hanger and I can't wait for the next installment!

[📚biLi📖 Short 4 Bibliophile · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amazing. Thoroughly Enjoyed !

Resident Aline Volume 7: The Book Of Love promises a continuation of Harry’s shenanigans while living in Patience and that is exactly what happened.

Resident Alien Volume 7: The Book Of Love by Peter Hogan and Steve Parkhouse follow Harry as he deals with more shenanigans. The story was suspenseful, interesting.

The writing/prose was well written and the worldbuilding realistic.

The pacing was smooth which allowed events to segue into one another smoothly. However I have to say I am not a fan of Harry and Asta’s relationships, personally I didn’t see any of the signs it felt sudden.

Journeying with Harry through yet another series of challenges was enjoyable and I am excited to continue the series!

[Sean · Rating 3 out of 5]

The fun Resident Alien series continues here and while still charming this volume was a little boring. Love is the theme of this volume and its everywhere but there isn't much drama, especially with main character Harry (until the cliffhanger ending). The book is still full of all its normal charm but the supporting characters aren't interesting enough to be leads and their stories didn't resonate with me like Harry's. The art is still a very good match for the story. Overall, slow and lacking drama but still wholesome.

[Peter Holz · Rating 4 out of 5]

I was very surprised to discover this book as I thought the whole thing had wrapped up satisfactorily with volume 6. This book is less alien and more resident and has devolved into much more of a soap opera. Having said that, I still thoroughly enjoyed spending time with the characters and paddling in their world. It has a warm and comfortable feel to it without becoming overly soppy. Bit of a predictable ending, though.

[Lauren · Rating 5 out of 5]

Chris Sheridan, 2022: we decided not to go with Harry/Asta for the show, he's like her kid that's weird (/ableist)

Peter Hogan, 2022: so anyway nice to be back from hiatus here's a montage of Harry and Asta going on adorable dates and explicitly checking they have compatible genitals on the way to a motel and moving in together and talking about how it's literally every night for them and being committed and loving and the whole town ships it and

[Chris · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm glad there's another volume, despite Peter Hogan's comments in this book he did say in the last one that he wasn't sure if they were going to do another.

The series has a real Twin Peaks vibe and I enjoy spending time with these characters. The books just feel so short, although at least for once there's a clear indication of what's coming next.

[R.C. · Rating 4 out of 5]

A nice read, though the scientist in me had to roll her eyes at the last bit. A human getting knocked up by an alien is so biologically unlikely that I can't really take the premise too seriously. And even if they did, the pregnancy would likely spark so many deadly problems with [insert continued ranting about immune, anatomical, and biochemical incompatibility here...]

[Robert · Rating 4 out of 5]

Superior to the TV series it spawned, although this particular volume is a bit thin compared to it's predecessors.

[Andres Pasten · Rating 3 out of 5]

una agradable lectura, pero el dibujo se nota mal acabado

[John · Rating 3 out of 5]

Breathing room.

[Rick · Rating 5 out of 5]

Another brilliant volume. This story makes me feel good about being alive. The characters are authentic and rich with depth and layers. Gorgeous art and wonderfully written. What more do you need?

[Sem · Rating 5 out of 5]

I like that the series got a bit more ridiculous in its return, happy to take strange turns to tie threads together.

[Aven · Rating 4 out of 5]

A little more fluffy and laid-back, but still an enjoyable story. Excited to see what the next issue brings!

[KJ · Rating 3 out of 5]

*3.5?

Good to be back with these characters again. A nice quick read and very interested to see where it goes from here (didn't even realise it was still going tbh haha)

[Mee Too · Rating 3 out of 5]

Its just wholesome reading like 80s sitcoms.

[Brian · Rating 3 out of 5]

Well. that was an interesting story that was not covered in the TV series!

[Oleksandr · Rating 3 out of 5]

The book should have ended with previous part. The unnecessary stories about love where being alien is so weak that I forgot thay the book is about alien.