Rose: A Graphic Novel (BONE Prequel)

Rose is definitely the best story out of the Bone series, but maybe I’m just biased because I love kickass stories about women being cool warriors doing cool stuff.

Jeff Smith's BONE: ROSE provides another fine Bone graphic novel and a prequel to the Bone saga. When a dragon attacks small towns, it's up to Princess Rose to defeat the evil beast even as her sister follows a dangerous evil path. Full color throughout adds to the epic's interest. A fine pick for libraries.

It doesn't get much better. Charles Vess's vivid and adaptable watercolor technique is the ideal vehicle for Jeff Smith's outstanding fantasy story. The pieces all look familiar, but handled well: princesses being trained in esoteric arts, ancient evil eager for a new incarnation, friendly familiar beasts, and more. Like a good chef proving that common ingredients can make uncommon treats, Smith combines them in ways that keep the reader guessing, but always adhere to their own inner logic. As you expect in the best illustrated fiction, Vess maintains a strong style throughout, while changing by moments to support the narrative. I have to admit, the Bone comics never grabbed me, based on casual inspection. If this is a fair sample of what I'll see there, I've deprived myself for way too long. Whether Bone stands up to my hopes or not, this one meets the highest standards. -- wireweird

It's doesn't have the comedy of the other Bone books but fills in a lot of backstory, is beautifully drawn and colored, and is actually quite scary.

Jeff Smith's, 'Rose,' serves as an excellent prequel to his much beloved 'Bone,' graphic novel series. Fans will find great interest in the earlier backstory of Rose and introductions of 'Bone,' mainstays such as Lucius Down, The Red Dragon and even the 'hairy rat creatures.' Smith's writing and story construction is as solid as ever - the only thing noticeably missing is the infusion of frequent humor. The artistic collaboration with Charles Vess pays off magnificently as readers are treated to a lush, vibrant artscape that Vess is well know for. Even those who have not yet read through,'Bone,' this book stands up perfectly fine as a stand-alone as well. Great stuff all around that will appeal to anyone with an appreciation for the graphic novel.

I had no knowledge of Jeff Smith's Bone series when Rose hit the stands. But I knew Charles Vess, whose artwork has never failed to captivate me, so I picked up the book even though it was a prequel to a series I didn't read. Not only does Rose stand easily on its own as a classic of comic-book fantasy, it also piqued my interest in Smith's long-running fantasy series. I will know more of these people, these creatures and these lands! But before I journey into the realms of Bone, let's focus on the book at hand. Rose boasts the kind of lush, layered and highly detailed art that has always excited my eyes and drawn my imagination into whatever stories he illustrates. His people -- and, in this case, his anthropomorphic dogs, dragons and rat-creatures -- are by no means photo-realistic, yet they are expressive and endearingly lifelike. The panels seem almost to be in motion as Rose, her sister Briar and the iron-jawed Captain Lucius Down play out their parts in the tale. Euclid and Cleo literally dance across the pages with canine excitement!