Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu- Blog Tour Review

Item: Batman: Nightwalker (DC Icons, #2)
Author: erinthebooknut

January 11, 2018 erinthebooknut Book review

Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu- Blog Tour Review

Batman: Nightwalker (DC Icons, #2) by Marie Lu
Published by Random House Books for Young Readers on January 2nd 2018
Pages: 272
Goodreads

Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.

The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.

One by one, the city's elites are being executed as their mansions' security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family's fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he's forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city's most brutal criminals.

Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce's only hope.

In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

We are super excited to be part of the BATMAN : NIGHTWALKER Blog Tour! Check out Erin’s review below, and make sure to enter the giveaway! Special thanks to Rockstar Book Tours and Random House for having us!

Title: BATMAN: NIGHTWALKER (DC Icons #2)

Author: Marie Lu

Pub. Date: January 2, 2018

Publisher: Random House Books for Young Readers

Pages: 272

Formats: Hardcover, eBook, audiobook

Find it: Goodreads, Amazon, Audible, B&N, iBooks, TBD

Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.

The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.

One by one, the city’s elites are being executed as their mansions’ security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family’s fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he’s forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city’s most brutal criminals.

Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce’s only hope.

In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

Marie Lu is the #1 New York Times bestselling author of the Legend trilogy and The Young Elites trilogy. She graduated from the University of Southern California and jumped into the video game industry, working for Disney Interactive Studios as a Flash artist. Now a full-time writer, she spends her spare time reading, drawing, playing Assassin’s Creed, and getting stuck in traffic. She lives in Los Angeles, California (see above: traffic), with one husband, one Chihuahua mix, and two Pembroke Welsh corgis.

4.5 Nuts

When people talk about their favorite authors Marie Lu always seems to be on that list. Well, confession time, I’ve never read a Marie Lu book. Until now that is.

I’ve gone back and forth about my feelings on Batman. As a kid I loved him and watched the animated shows and Batman Beyond religiously. As I became a teenager I decided I hated him, seeing as he was just a rich guy with an affinity for bats (We Are All Bat People, anyone?). I didn’t consider him a hero, just a guy with money. Now as an adult I’ve reconciled those two feelings and can say while I like him, he certainly has his issues as a character.

Now happily I can say Lu addresses a lot of those issues in this book. This is Batman pre-suit, pre-mission, but post parent death. And in case you’re wondering, no it does not tie in to Wonder Woman. These books remain complete standalones.

Book Bruce is so enjoyable to read about. He’s cautious with his feelings about people, he’s smart, and he’s got a good and generous heart. All in all, he’s not a hardened badass, he’s a kid. Because of this he does make some dumb kid decisions at times, all of which further the story and his character but don’t make you irritated with him. You want Bruce to succeed because he’s not a spoiled rich kid with an attitude problem. He’s genuine, if a bit naive.

That said, holy crap does Lu totally GET Batman villains. She uses two different kinds of villain characters in this narrative. You have the unredeemable bad guy (who sometimes borders on the classic Batman chewing-the-scenery type villain) and the sympathetic and intelligent villain who is a victim of circumstance. These are both CLASSIC Batman tropes but Lu works with them to shift the characters into realistic and believable characters while still retaining the essence.

I will tell you right now if you’re familiar with books and how plot twists work you’ll probably guess at least one if not both of these pretty quickly. The clues are there and they aren’t well hidden, but it is done in such a way that knowing does not ruin the suspense at all. In fact it might even make you more excited for the climax.

Between this one and Wonder Woman I think I prefer Batman. Just the way the characters are written, the pacing, it’s all just a little bit more solid. As expected in a Lu book (from what I’ve heard anyway) the use of technology is rampant but creative. Of course that style works perfectly for a Batman story.

I highly recommend this book to comic book fans and regular YA readers alike. As a non Lu fan this book made me want to go back and read the rest of her books (which I do own all of) and see if they can match the bar this book has set.

How do you feel about Batman, as a book and the character in general? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

From my shelf to yours,

Erin

3 winners will receive a finished copy of BATMAN: NIGHTWALKER, US Only.

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Make sure to visit the other stops on the BATMAN : NIGHTWALKER Blog Tour!

Week One:

1/1/2018- Pen and Parchment– Review

1/2/2018- Margie’s Must Reads– Review

1/3/2018- YA Book Nerd– Review

1/4/2018- Mary Had a Little Book Blog– Review

1/5/2018- A Gingerly Review– Review