Book #20

Morning Glories: For a Better Future by Nick Spencer

Morning Glory Academy is one of the most prestigious prep schools in the country... but something sinister and deadly lurks behind its walls. When six gifted, but troubled, students arrive, they find themselves trapped and fighting for their lives as the secrets of the academy reveal themselves!

I've only just started reading graphic novels this year, and still can't call myself an expert on them in any way at all. I'm starting to find now, however, that I'm growing to love them. I love the fast pace, I love the gory pages, and I see them as quick adrenaline rushes of books. This is probably down to the fact that I have been recommended all the right books, but remains true nonetheless.

The story begins with the kids being brought to the school. This was done really well, with small flashes of their home life and backgrounds. They all fit into general stereotypes: the clever leader, the shy one, the mysterious one, the arsehole, the bitchy slut, the psycho. It reeked of The Breakfast Club, but they know that; someone even mentions Judd Nelson at one point. The students are collated in a prestigious boarding school, where strange things begin to happen. By strange I mean attempted murder from the teachers, ghosts, a cult in the basement, and a doppelganger who just blew my mind completely. Strange is perhaps an understatement.

I realise the book is first in a series of six, but I didn't finish it feeling completely satisfied. Nothing was explained, and this means you have to read the next one, then probably the next one, all the way to the sixth one. Surely something could have been tied up at the end? Something small? I feel a lot was thrown at me, and although I managed to deal with it, and follow the story, nothing was resolved.

This opening novel in the series seems to built on unanswered questions. There are layers upon layers of mystery just waiting to be unravelled in the following installments. My only issue is that with all the mystery points having been plotted, and all insinuations all made, I'm not sure the next chapters will be able to link all of these together. I suppose there's only one way to find out, and I will.