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REVIEW: Wren #1
Book Title: Wren #1
Book Description: From the 13th Century through the 17th Century the plague killed millions of people in Europe. It struck like lightning and left just as quickly. The speed of it left people unable to figure out its origin and prevention. In 1664 the plague came across the English Channel and hit London. Businesses closed. The rich immediately fled for other cities. The poor were required to have ”papera of good health” to pass city gates. With a quarantine in place, London’s citizens were starved. People of the time believed plague was spread by a “Miasma” of bad air coming from rotting matter. According to theory, the best way to contain it is to burn the residence it dwells in down. Even if the human occupants are still alive inside the residence. In the meantime, the true culprit is hiding in plain sight on fleas that infest rats throughout Europe. A theory involving the rats being used as carriers of the disease is presented, along with a solution: Get more cats on the area to keep the rats at bay. The solution is simple enough. Unfortunately, there are bureaucrats and money involved. There are plans that go beyond the best interest of humanity in play.
Book Author: Peter Taylor
Book Format: Paperback
Publisher - Orgnization: Pottsville Books
Publisher Logo:
Illustrator: Peter Taylor
- Story(3.9)
- Interior Art(3.7)
- Cover Art(3.2)
- Dialogue(3.4)
- Mechanics(3.7)
- Editing(3.9)
Summary
I have always been a fan of historical fiction. For me, adding stories to key events in time always made it easier to remember what happened. Otherwise it was just prattling off a bunch of dates. That’s why I was so grateful to have my 8th and 11th grade history teachers. They made the class fun.
Wren is phenomenal at demonstrating how the rich and their corruption of the government dictate what happens in the world.
Committee: “We have figured out how to stop the spread of this disease with science.”
The Rich: “I don’t like your solution. You can’t trust science. It conflicts with what I want to do.”
I don’t know whether to find it comforting or extremely disconcerting that not much has changed in almost 400 years.
The artwork on the cover is very crisp. Seeing the village burning in the background makes sense after reading the story. Prior to reading the story, the cover doesn’t lend as much help as it could towards understanding what the story is about.
When you open the book you can see that Taylor and Yasser came ready to play. The artwork is well done as it pulls us back in time. I liked the panels with the plague doctor, and seeing karma at its finest.
I especially liked the history lesson at the beginning of the book. It simultaneously gives us a setting and helps us gain an appreciation for the trials and tribulations of a bygone era. I would love it if we could get information like that in every book that comes out.
As a geek on a budget I’m definitely in on Wren. It has a great premise and the artwork is up to the task of making some of the atrocities all those years ago feel fresh in our minds. I am looking forward to the opportunity to read the second installment of this series.
Get a copy: https://www.pottyville.co.uk/product-page/wren-issue-1-the-plague
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