The front line of the War of the Worlds has been taken to the red planet itself! After almost four decades of conflict, the British invasion of Mars has ground into a bloody stalemate. The nation is cracking at the seams, and liberties are being revoked as Prime Minister Spry struggles to maintain order at home while waging war another world away. What does Spry have up his nasty little sleeve? Robert Autumn, aged gentleman adventurer and hero of Scarlet Traces, is determined to find out!

The front line of the War of the Worlds has been taken to the red planet itself! After almost four decades of conflict, the British invasion of Mars has ground into a bloody stalemate. The nation is cracking at the seams, and liberties are being revoked as Prime Minister Spry struggles to maintain order at home while waging war another world away. What does Spry have up his nasty little sleeve? Robert Autumn, aged gentleman adventurer and hero of Scarlet Traces, is determined to find out!

2008-08-14 Good idea - could have been better

This is the follow up to the first Scarlet Traces graphic novel set more than 40 years on. The idea is excellent - a hideous conspiracy at the heart of the British Empire and Britain involved in a war with Mars that has dissolved into a disastrous war of attrition. It neatly picks up one part of the plot of The War of the Worlds (that I won't spoil) to continue the story.

The book is let down in one main respect in that it's really trying to tell a very large story, a story much bigger than what's contained within the book. Every panel matters in this intricate story and it's easy to miss out on vital detail if you read it too quickly. That said the dialogue and exposition are excellent the artwork beautifully vivid and detailed. I'd be intrigued to see the story continued in another volume.