Batman: Nightwalker by Marie Lu

Hardcover, 250 pages

Release Date: January 2, 2018

Published by: Random House Books for Young Readers
Read from: January 19-22, 2018

DC Icons, #2

Source: Bought

For fans of:  Superheroes, Action, Sparkly Covers, Series, YA

     Before he was Batman, he was Bruce Wayne. A reckless boy willing to break the rules for a girl who may be his worst enemy.
    The Nightwalkers are terrorizing Gotham City, and Bruce Wayne is next on their list.
     One by one, the city’s elites are being executed as their mansions’ security systems turn against them, trapping them like prey. Meanwhile, Bruce is turning eighteen and about to inherit his family’s fortune, not to mention the keys to Wayne Enterprises and all the tech gadgetry his heart could ever desire. But after a run-in with the police, he’s forced to do community service at Arkham Asylum, the infamous prison that holds the city’s most brutal criminals.
     Madeleine Wallace is a brilliant killer . . . and Bruce’s only hope.
    In Arkham, Bruce meets Madeleine, a brilliant girl with ties to the Nightwalkers. What is she hiding? And why will she speak only to Bruce? Madeleine is the mystery Bruce must unravel. But is he getting her to divulge her secrets, or is he feeding her the information she needs to bring Gotham City to its knees? Bruce will walk the dark line between trust and betrayal as the Nightwalkers circle closer.

*MY THOUGHTS*

     When I heard of this series I was HYPE! Especially since
Wonder Woman was the first one! I was a bit worried about this one tho because
I haven’t had much luck with Lu’s writing. (Yes, I’m the black sheep…) But
after reading this, I realize I didn’t have anything to worry about.

“On either side of the gates, twin statues leered down at them[…] One of them held a balance scale in its frozen grasp. Bruce couldn’t tell if the figures were supposed to represent justice or death. Perhaps here, there was no differentiating between the two.”

pg. 39

     Bruce Wayne has
just turned eighteen and inherited his parent’s millions and their technology
company. But after a joyride, he lands in the middle of trouble with the police
and having to do community service at Arkham Asylum. There he meets Madeleine,
a girl who could either be really good for him or really bad; he hasn’t decided
yet.

“Only way you win these days is by cheating, isn’t it?”

pg. 58

     I already knew I
would like this a little because of Batman. I’ve been a long time fan of his
forever and it was so cool to see him in this type of story. I think what I
loved most about it wasn’t an origin story since Batman doesn’t really have
powers lolol It was just a story of what Bruce Wayne was like before he had the
title of Batman. And though that seems miniscule, it made a huge difference.

“Never trust tech. Anything made to your advantage can also be used against you.”

pg. 86

     I also really
liked the way the little nuggets of information in there. Batman was rich so he
was definitely privileged in many different ways and I LOVED the fact that Lu
wasn’t afraid to say mention all those ways. It made a difference to this
African American reader who doesn’t know much about the sort of privilege that Batman
(or anyone else for that matter) has.

“Trust nothing, suspect everything,”

pg. 98

     The only thing I
didn’t really care for was some of the middle part. At some point the middle
seemed a bit repetitive, but in the end I knew it was for a reason. It all
added up in the end it all added up and it was obvious that it was needed in
some way.

“Just because one can, doesn’t mean one should.”

pg. 187

     This was a bit of
a surprise for me, but it reads like some of my favorite tv shows. I know what
part of it that I liked so much. I just wasn’t expecting it.

 Overall, I give this

(Real rating but I rounded up!)