Enter the Detective

This was the very first graphic novel I picked up, and it's the one I compare every other series to. A masterfully done, totally enveloping work, "Ruse" takes you in and refuses to let you go, even after the last page. I have to confess that I've become a rabid fan and I'm counting the days until the next collection comes out.The story, in brief: Emma Bishop is the beautiful, intelligent assistant to Simon Archard, the greatest detective of the age. It turns out that Partington, the ever-so-slightly fantastic victorian town in which they live, is full of mysteries to be solved. The major one in this collection is the strange Baroness Miranda Cross who, along with Emma, posesses a strange power to stop time. Who is Miranda Cross? Why is she trying to control the higher-ups of Partington? The answer remains a mystery until the end, and even then the answer is not really known.The art in "Ruse" is very high quality and goes along with the crisp dialogue. Both manage very well to keep everyone in character, something that other Crossgen books, such as "Sojourn" don't quite succeed at. We sympathize with Emma through all her attempts to do the right thing, though she's never quite able to meet the standard of her employer. Simon, though terribly arrogant, is also a sympathetic character, who the reader learns to love. The bad guys are without a doubt bad. Miranda Cross is a delightfully conniving villainess who never wavers from her quest to screw things up in Partington.All in all, "Ruse" is certainly worth a read. My advice is that you keep the second volume close at hand, because you won't want to wait before reading it.

I bought this on a whim and was very happy with the purchase. Both for storage and portability, I really do like these compact collections. Beyond that, the story and art were both very strong. I still have two stories to go, but my favorite part of the collection is the interaction between the characters. For the money, I strongly recommend this purchase if you enjoy mysteries and banter.

The first volume of Ruse follows the adventures of Simon Archard, a cold but brilliant detective, in a world constructed like a twisted version of Victorian England (complete with mobile, bat-eating gargoyles leering from the rooftops). Archard's superhuman displays of logic and observation (and his subhuman empathy levels) are wryly observed by his assistant/partner Emma Bishop, who resents Archard's secretive nature while simultaneously keeping an enormous secret from him. With the addition of a devilish baroness with designs on world denomination and the re-appearance of Archard's old partner, Simon and Emma find their trust in one another being stretched to the limits.The world of Arcadia is rendered with magnificent attention to detail, and the tight plotting and snappy dialogue (with the banter between Simon and Emma always bringing a smile) elevate this title above the rest of the pack. Combined with the incredible price of the Traveler's Editions, this is a deal much too good to pass up.

Simon Archard is a master detective living in the city of Partington. The bane of the underworld, and the exasperation of his partner Emma Bishop, his razor-sharp mind collects information, allowing him to make lightning-fast deductions. This graphic novel covers two Archard adventures, and the start of a third. In the first adventure, the mysterious Miranda Cross comes to Partington, and immediately Archard finds himself faced with strange crimes on one hand and the strange hostility of the city elite on the other. In the second adventure, Emma Bishop, holding the fort for the missing Archard, must track down a murderer (there's more than one mystery here). The third adventure pits Emma and Archard against a bold murderer, who is also a master of disguise with a surprising background.I picked up this book on a whim, and must admit that I was rather dubious at first. I though, "Here we go again with another Sherlock Holmes rip-off." Well, such is not the case. In the fictional city of Partington, with its flying gargoyles, and strange happenings, Simon Archard is something of a combination of Sherlock Holmes and Professor Challenger (another A.C. Doyle hero). The adventures are quite gripping, as Archard maneuvers himself through the fantastic, his keen mind taking everything in.The illustrations in this book are surprisingly excellent, and quite pleasant to look at. So, let me just say that I liked the characters, the story, and the illustrations. In other words, I loved this book!

One of the wonderful things about the CrossGen line is that there really are books for fans of any genre -- "Negation" for hard sci-fi fans, "Sojourn" for the Tolkienites, "Route 666" for horror buffs, "Way of the Rat" for Kung-Fu lovers... "Ruse" is the book for fans of a good old-fashion Sherlock Holmes-style mystery... but with some big twists. Holmes and Watson were never the mysteries themselves, after all.Our heroes are Simon Archard, the brilliant detective of the city of Partington, and his assistant (or partner, depending on whom you ask), the beautiful Emma Bishop. This initial case introduces our heroes, Archard's cadre of "agents" he employs from time to time and also is a very good murder mystery.But our heroes are mysteries themselves, ones without easy answers. Emma has strange powers that she hides from Simon, and while this book does not appear to feature a "sigil-bearer" (the superpowered protagonists of many CrossGen titles), Simon himself discretely wears the sigil on his clothing. Why?The whole CrossGen universe is a mystery. "Ruse" gives it a detective. The best question left is, will the audience solve the puzzle before Simon and Emma?