From Titan Books, Corbeyran, Djillali Defali, Alexis Sentenac.

Book two of this Assassin’s Creed trilogy from Titan Books increases everything loved in the first book.  Desmond continues to discover his true self.  Lucy shows that she’s not just a pretty face, not just an assistant.  In fact her story at times is more engrossing than Desmond’s.  Plus there is the much MUCH larger story of these two ancient groups fighting for the entire world.

The art looks like no other tale, and that’s perfect because the Assassin’s story is different than any other.  Defali has created unique and spectacular looks for each Assassin throughout history.  Even better, the looks are completely in place within their times.  Even Desmond’s “awakening” works within modern times.  I am again impressed at Defali’s skill in having many panels on the page yet each stretches and breathes on a splash page level.

Corbeyran is masterfully weaving many locations and times together into this much larger story that never once becomes confusing.  Every time has its own feel and the characters in each era are so unique they never jumble together.  Each Assassin has his own rich tale, enough to cover many books.  Jumping between members of this lineage gives just enough to have a fix of the tale but not nearly as much as the reader craves.  Knowing so little about each member primes the wallets of each and every fan.  We must know more, and we will pay any price to attain that information.

If there is any complaint it will be against the reader him/herself for not paying more attention in school.  The larger Eagles vs Vultures reveals explode leaving shrapnel that changes every single character.  The words are obvious, and in front of us all along, but only language scholars could have caught them all.  I knew I should have taken Latin in high school.

I’ll be reviewing the third volume shortly, but expect more glowing words about this series.  These amazingly crafted hardcovers will look perfect next to your XBox or your book shelf.