Sage Stossel, a contributing cartoonist at the Atlantic and children's book author (On the Loose in Boston), soars onto the graphic novel scene with Starling.
Like many young women, Amy Sturgess works hard to get ahead in her career while wondering if her love life will ever pick up. But Amy is not an average person: thanks to toxic waste her mother encountered while pregnant, Amy possesses amazing strength, incredible speed and the ability to fly. Unbeknownst to her boss and coworkers, Amy moonlights as the masked vigilante Starling.
Her tendency to dash out of meetings has everyone at her ad agency convinced she's afflicted with a gastric disorder. To complicate matters, an underhanded coworker is trying to leverage Amy's absences to steal her accounts. Her personal life is in even worse shape: her younger brother, Noah, is crashing at her apartment, and while her ex wants to try again, he just got engaged to a wonderful woman. Then Amy finds out Noah's involved in shady dealings. If she's going to save her brother, land a big account at work and straighten out her love life, Amy's going to need help.
Luckily, former UFC fighter turned gambling den owner Matt McRae is a huge admirer of Starling--and Amy, too. With his heart of gold and her muscles of steel, they might find a way to save the day.
Stossel's soft washes of color and zippy dialogue make Starling more than just a superhero comic. Amy's juggling of her family, personal and work lives echoes every modern woman's struggle to have it all. --Jaclyn Fulwood, youth services manager at Latah County Library District and blogger at Infinite Reads