The Long Haul - Softcover

Antony Johnston is an award-winning, New York Times bestselling author of more than thirty graphic novels and comic series, including The Coldest City (now a film starring Charlize Theron), the epic series Wasteland, Marvel's superhero Daredevil, the modern Shakespeare Julius, and more. He also writes video games, such as the seminal Dead Space and ZombiU. He has adapted books by bestselling novelist Anthony Horowitz, collaborated with comics legend Alan Moore, and his titles have been translated throughout the world. He lives and works in England.

Johnston and Barretto offer proof positive that westerns haven't yet given up the ghost, offering a hybrid of horse opera and caper film that's a solidly entertaining page-turner. Bank robber Cody Plummer has returned to society after a seven-year stretch in the hoosegow. When the opportunity to snatch a train shipment of $19 million in cash comes up, Plummer sets out to commit an impossible heist. The train is fortified with period-plausible safeguards such as 14 heavily armed guards and Pinkerton agents (led by the man who sent Plummer up the river), regularly scheduled telegraph security protocols and triple-thickness steel barriers for the safe car. Daunting obstacles all, but to a brilliant criminal strategist like Plummer they present both an intriguing challenge and a chance for get-him-where-it-hurts vengeance against his former pursuer. Assembling a team of specialists that resembles John Ford's answer to Ocean's Eleven, Plummer and his cohorts launch a nail-biting assault on the train, resulting in a blend of smooth planning and execution coupled with ticking-clock suspense that will keep readers entranced. Johnston's script is tight, with no wasted words, and Barretto's clean Joe Kubert–inspired visual storytelling communicates like a movie on paper, making this a must for western fans and definitely worth a look for the casual comics enthusiast. (Mar.)
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