REVIEW – Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu

Batman: Nightwalker (DC Icons #2) by Marie Lu

Genre(s): YA Fiction, Fantasy
Pages/Edition: 272 (Hardcover)
Publisher: Random House (1.2.18)
Read: March 12, 2018

---

Synopsis

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.

---

Review

Have you ever wondered how it all started for Bruce Wayne? How, in fact, did he become the vigilante we have all come to know and love? If these are questions that have ever crossed your mind, then I feel this book will be perfect for you (as it was for me!)

I admit I was a bit hesitant starting this book before reading Wonder Woman (DC Icons #1), but I was continually told that it’s not required to read the books in order, and I’m glad I listened to those who told me that! It’s definitely not a requirement to read Wonder Woman first, so don’t worry that you’ll miss out on anything! You won’t, I promise!

Marie Lu starts off by giving us a little insight into the criminal(s) we’ll be chasing after in this story, and I found it to be quite an exciting introduction. This set up had me asking myself many questions. Who is this character they’re talking about? Someone we know or have learned about in previous Batman stories? It makes you wonder. It builds anticipation (and holds it throughout most of the book!). And that, I loved!

Personally, I’ve never thought Bruce Wayne to have a strikingly strong or appealing personality. In my opinion, he’s always been very much a “blah” type of character, if that makes sense. Dull. Predictable. Boring. Until he puts on the batsuit. Then he becomes this amazing, incredible hero. My thoughts on this haven’t changed after reading Batman: Nightwalker. Bruce Wayne is still the same, unexciting person he’s always been (even at a young eighteen). This doesn’t affect my views on the writing, in general, simply because I feel like that’s how he was meant to be portrayed. He’s just a serious, predictable type of guy… that’s who he is. My point being… this wasn’t a lack of character development on Lu’s end.

As far as other characters in the book go… well, there’s not much to write home about. Other than the crazy Madeleine. She was by far my favorite character in the book and I found myself appealing to her personality more and more. (To be honest, I wouldn’t mind a book solely based on Madeleine herself! Let’s hear more of her story!) She was a feisty, outgoing, truly badass criminal. (Why is it always the criminals I seem to root for these days?)

Something else I highly appreciated about this novel was that Lu took it easy on the romance aspect. One of the main things that have been bothering me lately with YA is the romance. (*runs and hides*) For the simple fact that it all seems the same. Each love story is (or seems) the same. And although this is considered to be a young adult novel (you’d assume the romance comes with the genre), there really wasn’t much of it. Thank goodness for that. Yes, there may have been some crushes… some romantic thoughts. But because it wasn’t the focus of the book entirely, this made it all the more great for me.

Yes, this is a “young adult” novel, but I could absolutely see older audiences enjoying this book, too. I loved basically everything about this book, other than the slightly defective character development in some of the secondary characters. But Lu did a fantastic job overall telling Batman’s story. She created an exciting, yet easy, read that will keep you entertained all the way through. As I said before, if you’re curious as to how Bruce Wayne became Batman, this is definitely the book for you. You’ll get inside info that you’ve never known before, and I feel like all Batman fans, no matter the age, will get enjoyment from this novel. Go check it out! You won’t regret it!

 

Until next time…

              ❤ FRANKIE