Twofer: Chris Roberson – Cinderella: From Fabletown With Love / Bill Willingham – Jack of Fables, Vol. 7: The New Adventures of Jack and Jack
100. Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love by Chris Roberson, Shawn McManus, Lee Loughridge (2010)
Fables, spinoff
Length: 144 pages
Genre: Graphic Novel, Fantasy
Started / Finished: 19 August 2010
Where did they come from? The library
Why do I have them? More Fables!! More more more!
Summary: Everyone knows Cinderella: fairytale princess, shoe enthusiast… world-class superspy? Everyone knows her as the ditzy Fabletown shoe store owner, but in reality she’s the Fables’ best secret agent. There’s currently an influx of magical items from the post-war Homelands into the Mundy world, and it’s up to Cindy – with a little help from Aladdin – to track down the source… and put a stop to it.
Review: Spy stories have never been my most favoritest thing, and Cinderella manages to combine spy story with high-level socialite chick-lit (another genre that’s not top of my list.) Nevertheless, this book was good fun, if not exactly mindblowingly wonderful. If nothing else, it was a nice chance to slip into the Fables universe for an hour or so, which is always appreciated. I also really liked getting more info about Cinderella’s past as a Fabletown agent, as well as the quick glimpses we catch of some of the other Fables. (In particular, it seems like we get at least a few more clues about what Frau Totenkinder’s really up to, which is always fascinating.) The story was a little bit predictable, particularly towards the end, but it was a good time regardless. 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: I didn’t like it as much as a regular Fables volume, but if Jack annoys you, this might be a perfect answer to get more Fables into your life. While it might be readable on its own, and certainly doesn’t affect the continuity of the main Fables storyline, it does presuppose a fair amount of knowledge about the Fables universe, so I’d recommend it mostly for pre-existing Fables junkies (like me!) looking to get another fix.
This Review on LibraryThing | This Book on LibraryThing | This Book on Amazon
First Line: Everyone knows my story.
101. Jack of Fables, Vol. 7: The New Adventures of Jack and Jack by Bill Willingham, Matthew Sturges, Chris Roberson, Russ Braun, Tony Akins, José Marzán, Jr., Andrew Pepoy (2010)
Jack of Fables, Volume 7
Length: 128 pages
Genre: Graphic Novel, Fantasy
Started / Finished: 19 August 2010
Summary: After the events of The Great Fable Crossover, Jack’s world is left in a little bit of an uproar. After regaling Gary with a tale of his time in Africa as Jack of the Apes, takes his treasure and heads for the hills… just in time for a startling transformation. Meanwhile, Jack Frost has decided that he’s finally going to become a hero like he’s always wanted… but he finds doing so harder than he’d expected.
Review: I was pretty sad when The Great Fables Crossover wrapped up the main Jack of Fables storyline – I thought the Literals were a lot more interesting than Jack splashing his ego all over the page, and that it was a story with a lot more potential. However, that’s all over with, and it left this volume somewhat floundering in its wake. The Tarzan story didn’t do much for me (at least Jack’s part of the story didn’t. I did get a few good chuckles out of spotting the subtle ways other stories and legends were worked in, which is half the fun of any Fables volume.) And Jack Frost’s story was fine, and entertaining, but kind of bland and forgettable. Overall, I was left wondering: they got rid of the Literals for this? 3 out of 5 stars.
Recommendation: I’ll keep reading because I’ve gotten into the habit, but the new story arc is going to need to step up its game a few notches before I’ll be totally convinced it’s worth my while.
This Review on LibraryThing | This Book on LibraryThing | This Book on Amazon
First Line: “It is cold, Jack.”
Other Reviews: Have you reviewed either of these books? Leave a comment with the link and I’ll add it in.
© 2010 Fyrefly’s Book Blog. All Rights Reserved. If you’re reading this on a site other than Fyrefly’s Book Blog or its RSS feed, be aware that this post has been stolen and is being used without permission.
Fyrefly's Book Blog 
Meh, I do not think I will bother with any of the Fables spin-offs. The original series is a lot of fun, and I enjoy rereading it, but even within the series it occasionally starts to feel a bit gimmicky. More of the same might put me off.
Jenny – Probably wise, although I personally would make an exception for 1001 Nights of Snowfall (unless you’re already counting that as part of the main series?) and Peter and Max, which is an interesting story, and a different enough format that it didn’t feel like more of the same.
I read these but not too many of the other spin-offs. They weren’t too bad though.
Ladytink – I enjoy the spinoffs well enough, but never as much as the main stories!
I’ve heard such good things about the Fables series, now I just need to to find the first volume, in some library, somewhere. Interlibrary loan perhaps? But I think I’ll get into the original Fables before diving into some spinoffs.
Redhead – Oh, I hope your library can get it! The main series is so good… although the first volume isn’t the best, it definitely gets better from there.
I know I’ve seen some of the Fables volumes in their graphic novel area, but I don’t recall ever seeing volumes 1 or 2. Totally gonna interlibrary loan it.