Review: The Thief and the Sword

The Thief and the Sword (Cleopatra in Space, book two)
By Mike Maihack
Published 2015 by GRAPHIX

Read my review of book one here.

Cleopatra just recovered the ancient sword - and now a thief is trying to steal it! Cleo is determined to get it back, but her teachers have other plans for her. And what's the deal with that pesky prophecy anyway?

I read the first volume in this series for last year's 48 Hour Book Challenge and thoroughly enjoyed it - it was entertaining and diverse and an extremely quick read. I was eagerly anticipating the second volume. When it was ordered at my library, I put my name on the waiting list and finally got around to it in June.

Much like the first volume, this second entry in the series is highly visual - it's mostly action panels for the first several pages and continues in this vein for much of the book. There is not a lot of text, making this a very quick read (though not quite as quick as the first). This has a bit more of tween angst in it - Cleopatra is not really fitting in at the Academy and her friend Akila is a bit jealous of all the attention she's getting. There is still lots of action throughout, but the addition of some drama might make the story a bit more relatable for readers. I'm still anxious to see how the prophecy develops, particularly with the twists of this volume. I was extremely interested in the introduction of the thief here - I won't spoil his identity, but it definitely seems he'll be making many more appearances in future volumes. I really enjoy this series and I'll be happily recommending it to patrons all summer long!