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The Lost Colony

By Christine Pointeau
September 12, 2007 - 20:28

The Lost Colony

Book 1: The Snodgrass Conspiracy

The Lost Colony Book1: The Snodgrass Conspiracy is truly an odd number. The cover jacket stands out in color and design and effectively did its job of enticing me to pick it up. A quick flipping through the pages confirmed the impression that this should be fun and amusing to read, so I took it home. The printing quality itself is first class, as most First Second books tend to be in my experience.

First, the layout: For a book of this size, it boasts a range of 7-8 to 13+ panels per page. Out of curiosity, I randomly went back and counted. Some panels are truly tiny, with characters at times barely ½ inch tall, and the thing is, it works! The pages are packed, the action is happening, and the

characters/landscape take advantage of every inch available.

The art: Grady Klein has a style all of his own. The background is of a mat, layered pastel like color with no black outline, as too the bubbles, white with no borders. The reader gets a sense of truly beautiful surroundings, particularly with the bigger panels, where I stopped and even went back several times to take in the full beauty of the image. The characters are saturated and more intense, with strong black definition, giving them full command of the frame. They are whimsical and appealing, each with definite personalities, physically and otherwise.

Last but not least, the story: hmmm.

It’s all over the place. There is a lot happening here, not all of it makes sense, and some is rather strange. The Lost Colony presents an island forgotten by the rest of the world, inhabited by characters who strive to keep it that way. After a stranger happens onto the island advertising a slave auction down the river, the chase is on. Through an outrageous band of eclectic characters, Klein presents humor, plot twisting, scheming, and adventures of all sorts. The story jumps from one character, one subplot, one encounter to the next throughout the book without respite. Some things get resolved while others seem to drop off the story, presumably to be brought back at a later date in following books.

When all is said and done, The Lost Colony Book 1: The Snodgrass Conspiracy is entertaining though a bit confusing. After reading through the first time, I could honestly not say for sure how I felt about it. Still, I am curious to get book 2 nonetheless and see how Klein’s ideas evolve, what this wild bunch of characters come up with next, and whether it all becomes clear in the end.

 

Last Updated: August 31, 2023 - 08:12