Queen & Country, Vol. 2: Operation Morningstar [Paperback]

Greg Rucka (Author), Brian Hurtt (Author), Christine Norrie (Author)

Book Description

Series: Queen & Country | Publication Date: September 18, 2002

Afghanistan is one of the hottest political spots in the world. When the taleban discovers foreign journalists are also serving as covert-agents for the SIS, the Minders are put on a mission to find a secret contact list before the enemy does; however, when Director of Operations Paul Crocker decides to send only his male agents into the field, it doesn't sit well with Tara Chace. Adding insult to injury, she's currently required to attend therapy sessions to deal with the effects of previous operations. Not content to sit on her hands, Tara spends her time trying to piece together the puzzle, aiding Minders Wallace and Kittering in their race against the clock. This second collection of the acclaimed series QUEEN & COUNTRY breaks new ground for comics, tackling tough subject matter in a realistic and intriguing way.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Greg Rucka is the award-winning author of both comic books and prose novels. Before entering the world of graphic literature, he had made his mark on the crime genre by writing the highly successful Atticus Kodiak novels—KEEPER, FINDER, SMOKER, SHOOTING AT MIDNIGHT, and CRITICAL SPACE—for Bantam. He made his comic book debut in 1997 with WHITEOUT, a collaboration with artist Steve Lieber for Oni Press, which was soon followed by a critically acclaimed run on DC’s Batman series, DETECTIVE COMICS, and the Eisner Award-winning WHITEOUT: MELT. Rucka has since written innumerable comics for various companies and written three comics-related novels, BATMAN: NO MAN’S LAND, GRENDEL: PAST-PRIME, and WOLVERINE/ELEKTRA: REDEEMER. Never one to rest, Rucka is currently writing the regular QUEEN & COUNTRY series for Oni; has taken over scripting chores on Marvel’s ELEKTRA and BLACK WIDOW series; collaborating with artist J.G. Jones on the Wonder Woman hardcover THE HIKETEIA (DC Comics); and is putting the finishing touches on his sixth novel, A FISTFUL OF RAIN.

Product Details

• Paperback: 88 pages
• Publisher: Oni Press (September 18, 2002)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 192999835X
• ISBN-13: 978-1929998357
• Product Dimensions: 10.2 x 6.7 x 0.2 inches
• Shipping Weight: 9.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,557,196 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
  • #85 in Books > 4-for-3 Books > Comics & Graphic Novels > Graphic Novels > Mystery

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

4 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars catering to comic book connoisseurs' tastes? Oni's specialty, March 25, 2003

By 

Philipp Knall (Vienna, Austria) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Queen & Country, Vol. 2: Operation Morningstar (Paperback)

If you ask for my favourite genre in comics (or any part of the entertainment industry, really), the first answer you'll get from me is unlikely to be "political spy thriller." It may not be the second one, either. But if you ask me if I appreciate a well-written, well-researched, and impressively well-drawn comic book, related to current world events, accessible to readers who've missed the initial 4 issues, you can count on a "Hell yea!"

Queen & Country: Operation Morningstar constitutes a perfect example of such a book. I have often felt the same frustration of being uninformed about political topics that Stuart Moore mentions in the introduction to this trade paperback, but it is clear that Greg Rucka, widely recognized as a master of his trade, has no reason to fear being caught with his pants down if it comes to a political discussion. Operation Morningstar deals with the Taleban (or Taliban, as it was referred to in the aftermath of September 11th, 2001). It was also written before most Americans removed their heads from the comfortable warm sand surrounding it and preventing them to look too far over their country's borders, after having one of their major cities attacked.

The art chores on Operation Morningstar are handled by Brian Hurtt, who has been cited as many a reader's favourite Queen and Country artist, with inks provided by Bryan O'Malley and Christine Norrie, both of them widely recognized for their own work for Oni Press (such as "Hopeless Savages: Ground Zero" and the recently published "Cheat", respectively)

Now, apart from a well thought out story and pretty pictures, what can you expect from this collection? Don't expect a Director's cut. There's a brief introduction and afterword with link providing more background info, plus illustrated creator bios. Considering the overall quality of the book, you shouldn't find it hard to deal with the lack of extras, though.

5.0 out of 5 stars What James Bond would be as a women, June 7, 2007

By 

Christopher R. Jones - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: Queen & Country, Vol. 2: Operation Morningstar (Paperback)

I love the whole Queen and Country series.
Cloak and Dagger, furious action , Political Intrigue.
Who could ask for More!

4.0 out of 5 stars Fun spy-thriller graphic novel, May 10, 2007

By 

DJ Joe Sixpack (...in Middle America) - See all my reviews
(TOP 500 REVIEWER)    (HALL OF FAME REVIEWER)   

This review is from: Queen & Country, Vol. 2: Operation Morningstar (Paperback)

This is a brisk, compulsively readable spy thriller, with the action split between London and the Taliban-controlled Afghanistan of the pre-9/11 world. The British spy network has apparently been compromised while SIS agent Tara Chase has been sidelined due to lingering depression over a hit mission she'd carried out in the previous volume of Q&C. Chase's detective work on the home front, however, enables the agents on the ground to complete their mission -- not the most action-packed spy story ever, but it sails along at a fast clip, setting a strong mood for the rest of the series. Chase's tart verbal jousting with the company psychologist is a highlight, giving insight into her character, but more importantly, into the psychology of the spy house itself. A good read -- recommended!