Alex Rider: Point Blank by Anthony Horowitz

One of our graphic novel readers has been asking for the next book to this series for some time now, so I decided to see what the buzz was all about. Alex Rider connected with my younger self, and from the beginning to the end the novel reads like a film. Alex Rider: Point Blank is the second book in the Alex Rider series; so far only three titles have been adapted as comics from the original series. The central story from the original books remains, albeit shortened. Alex Rider is a teenager and a secret agent of the British organization MI6. As cool as this sounds, for Alex this is a curse more than a gift because he has to work twice as hard to maintain his grades. Readers are engaged quickly through the introduction, where Alex catches some bad guys using unorthodox methods, which get him into trouble with his own agency. The story evolves at a fast pace and adds a few layers of complexity. There are some plot twists which readers may or may not see coming. This graphic novel is colorful and vivid, and that’s definitely part of the appeal-- all the gadgets, explosions and action in the novel are exciting, largely due to the artwork. --Claudio Leon