Whiteout: Melt

Rating:
Summary: Good -- But Not Quite as Great as the 1st
Review: The sequel to Whiteout finds US Deputy Marshal Carrie Stetko on vacation in New Zealand, but still stuck in professional exile in McMurdo Station in the South Pole. When a Russian base blows up suspiciously, her bosses promise to bring her back to civilization if she'll cut her vacation short to go poke around the debris. Although Article I of the Antarctic Treaty prohibits any military use of the continent, the Russians are suspected of using their base as a weapons cache and her bosses want her to see if she can find anything out. While the first volume was a suspenseful procedural, this is a more standard thriller with higher stakes. Soon, Stetko finds herself pursing a team of elite Spetznaz troops gone mercenary who are fleeing across the ice with stolen nukes. Upping the cliché factor, Stetko teams up with a Russian GRU agent to track the rogue Spetznaz and recover the nukes.The art is quite good, and the story is pretty absorbing and filled with tidbits about the South Pole, but isn't quite at the level of the original Whiteout.

Rating:
Summary: Great follow-up to the original
Review: Whiteout: Melt exceeded my expectations for a "sequel". It's a great story about Carrie; an U.S. Marshall assigned to the coldest territory on Earth. While it is a cold and gritty spy/crime story, there's actually a little romance for our female Marshall. Greg Rucka (Keeper, Finder, Batman: No Man's Land) again does not fail to turn up the heat in this mesmerizing tale of cloak-and-dagger against a tundra backdrop. Steve Lieber's black-and-white art accentuates the hard-boiled mood and sense of cold in this espionage thriller. Highly recommended for anybody who likes great crime fiction or action/adventure.

Rating:
Summary: Great follow-up to the original
Review: Whiteout: Melt exceeded my expectations for a "sequel". It's a great story about Carrie; an U.S. Marshall assigned to the coldest territory on Earth. While it is a cold and gritty spy/crime story, there's actually a little romance for our female Marshall. Greg Rucka (Keeper, Finder, Batman: No Man's Land) again does not fail to turn up the heat in this mesmerizing tale of cloak-and-dagger against a tundra backdrop. Steve Lieber's black-and-white art accentuates the hard-boiled mood and sense of cold in this espionage thriller. Highly recommended for anybody who likes great crime fiction or action/adventure.