Weekly Reader: Offset Children of the Gulf Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Despite Some Flaws, An Excellent Continuation to Bimshire's Legendary Heroes and Villains

 Weekly Reader: Offset Children of the Gulf Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Despite Some Flaws, An Excellent Continuation to Bimshire's Legendary Heroes and Villains

By Julie Sara Porter

Bookworm Reviews

Spoilers: When last we left the island of Barbados AKA Bimshire in Delvin Howell and Hans Steinbach's Offset: Mask of the Bimshire, Kyle Harding studied a form of martial arts that uses a sugar cane as a weapon.

With his new friend, Damien Collins and a group of friends and family members including his kid brother, Damien, Kyle had to face human gangs and various monsters from Bajan myths. Most frightening of this rogue's gallery is the Heart Man, a man transformed into a creature who removes hearts from his victims and Mrs. Pringle, a witch who transformed and controlled the Heart Man.

In the second volume, Children of the Gulf one year has gone by. Kyle and the others are trying to adjust to a normal life. But now some potentially supernatural events such as someone disappearing into thin air and Kyle being attacked by invisible enemies suggest that Bimshire's legendary monsters have returned to fight Kyle, "The Inheritor." Kyle has to fight both human and supernatural enemies while Collins and young Damien have their own encounters that set their own fates and destinies. Kyle also receives some unlikely help from Sniper, a former enemy to face the latest group of villains.

The Mask of Bimshire is a great volume. Children of the Gulf however is good but not great. It has some great terrifying moments and many of the characters, particularly the supporting ones, receive more depth and twists in their individual paths. However, it stumbles particularly with antagonists who are not as interesting or as memorable as those in the previous volume. Perhaps The Mask of Bimshire's excellence is a detriment to Children of the Gulf. The first volume left such a memorable impression that its successor either had to match it or falter. Unfortunately, in this case it pales in comparison.

In this volume, the supporting characters really shine through when their own paths are revealed. Collins discovers that his chance meeting and friendship with Kyle might not be coincidental after all when he is recruited by a secret organization known as the canecutters and is taught abilities that could help Kyle or cause him even more trouble. Their divergent paths may pit Kyle and Collins against each other.

Sniper, an antagonist from the first volume, shows some depth and vulnerability in this volume, saving Kyle a couple of times and questioning his life as a pelt-ing (a gang member that throws bottles at victims). He seems to emerge as an anti-hero and potential frienemy of Kyle's. Sniper could end up becoming a potential future sidekick if Kyle and Collins end up at odds. Sniper's trajectory is good, but Collins is a great character and his and Kyle's friendship is one of the highlights of the series. It's just a possibility hanging in the air.

Damien Harding however has a more potentially disturbing development. He is also being noticed by the dark spirits and they see potential in him. Damien is also going through a rebellious questioning phase against Damien and their guardian, Mr. Beckles. Damien begins meeting the spirits in secret and appears to be starting a darker nature. We could see the young boy develop as a potential villain selling his soul to the darkness around him. There is a potentially terrifying future for this young man.

Unfortunately, because the supporting characters are built up more in this volume, it emphasizes more how bland a lead Kyle is. There is one great moment when he reunites with a relative and instead of greeting them with a warm hug, he lets them have it for this destiny that Kyle ended up inheriting that he didn't ask for, wasn't consulted on until he was left alone to deal with it, and puts him and his friends in constant trouble.

However, except for this moment, Kyle does very little except fight villains. It was like once his hero story was revealed, there was little left for him to do, so instead the other characters got built up.

Kyle isn't the only character who is a distinct letdown. The villains are nowhere near as developed as The Heart Man and Mrs. Pringle in The Mask of Bimshire. For the most part these villains are practically interchangeable and their backstory isn't as compelling as The Heart Man's bargain with Mrs. Pringle in the previous volume. There are some pretty creepy moments when some sinister little spirits called the baku demand payment. But they aren't as memorable as the Heart Man's terrifying transformation from regular guy to heart stealing monster.

Also, this volume does a major misstep in failing to recognize a regular primary antagonist in Mrs. Pringle. She was a sinister delight pulling the strings behind the Heart Man's actions and viewed Kyle as an "Inheritor" and worthy opponent. Unfortunately, she is removed anticlimactically and her full potential is never realized. 

While there is some supernatural presence throughout this volume, it mostly remains in the shadows and isn't fully involved in the characters which means the dark and light magic in the previous book gives way to more physical action fights which are nowhere near as compelling or entertaining as they were before. That could be the point as the real villains may be saved for next time. But these antagonists are pretty lackluster.

Sometimes the second volume in a book series has greater characterization by developing the characters' journeys and widening the ensemble. Sometimes it has a weaker plot because it contains repetitive fights and little resolution to be saved for the next volume. In Children of the Gulf's case it has both: better development but a weaker plot and antagonists. That averages out to okay but could be much better. At the least the flaws aren't large enough to get in the way of good expectations for volume three.

Weekly Reader Offset: The Mask of Bimshire Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Graphic and Mystical Trip Into The World of Caribbean Myth and Legends

 Weekly Reader Offset: The Mask of Bimshire Written by Delvin Howell Illustrated by Hans Steinbach; Graphic and Mystical Trip Into The World of Caribbean Myth and Legends 

By Julie Sara Porter

Spoilers: And we're back in the Caribbean though not looking at its history this time. This time we are focusing on modern day with a fantasy that centers around legendary characters native to the islands.

Caribbean Literature is a trend right now. One article, "The Rise of Caribbean Literature:Trends and Influences" by Sounds and Colors speculates that Readers and authors are looking for escapism as well as stories of survival, endurance, and exile. With the Caribbean islands' history of migration, slavery, and fights for independence as well as the colorful cultures of art, music, literature, myths, and legends, this is definitely an area worthy of exploration.

Offset: The Mask of Bimshire Written by Delvin Howell and Illustrated by Hans Steinbach is a mystical contemporary fantasy set in Barbados, also known as Bimshire, and involves a teenager's encounter with various creatures and characters from Barbadian or Bajan myths and legends.

Kyle Harding, has been orphaned and he and his younger brother, Damian are left in the care of their guardian, Mr. Beckles. Kyle has been studying a martial art that had been passed down through Bimshire since the days of colonialism when former slaves and local people practiced it to defend themselves from the colonists. It's a fighting style that implements a long sugarcane as a weapon. There are very few who practice it and Kyle is one of those few. However, he is helped by his new friend Damian Collins, a Rastafarian. Kyle uses his art in defending himself from bullies and thieves, like the Pel-tings, gangs who throw bottles as weapons. However, there are many worse things out there in the night that he has to defend himself, his friends, and family from. Things like a masked wraith that appears with the sound of a flute and dust not blood emerges from its body, an apparition that rips hearts from living people, and a seemingly sweet old woman with a lot of tremendous magical power and a sinister nature hidden behind her kindly facade.

Offset is clearly inspired by superhero comics and Japanese manga with the illustrations and the story of an ordinary boy with tremendous power who uses that power to fight evil. However, the Barbados setting and the use of characters and creatures specifically known to that island makes it a story of its own. 

The storyline is the basic one of the ordinary hero using his extraordinary powers and fighting evil forces that he thought were only fantasy stories. Kyle is somewhat bland as a lead character, but he has some impressive fights against his enemies. He is also protective of Damian and strives to defend him from the monsters that are all too real. In fact, many of his scenes with Damian show a surrogate parent-child relationship that evolved since the loss of their parents.

Kyle's friend Collins is a bit of a scene stealer. After he introduces himself to Kyle, he cements their friendship by…challenging him to a fight. (Bros forever right?) Then when he is convinced of Kyle's abilities, he acts as his sidekick and hypeman. Sometimes he and Kyle have to fight the dark spirits during what should be a fun night of clubbing with some attractive girls. Kyle emerges as a hero who knows that a regular life is denied him and Collins knows that it's his job to help his friend understand and use his powers. 

What makes this book stand out is the setting and the legendary characters that inhabit it. Howell really understands the country that he writes about from the history to the culture. Even the dialect is brilliantly evocative. ("Hey she mussy did want some of that King Sugar!") This writing makes Barbados as much a character as the people who live in it.

Barbados' legendary characters are also impressive. There are appearances of the Shaggy Bears, sinister little creatures who dance to their own beat and fight whoever is near them and the Steel Donkey, a large donkey covered in chains that throws rock stones on rooftops and sets fires to cane grounds. Their humorous names hide their fearsome and troublemaking intentions.

By far the most interesting antagonists are also the scariest: The Heart Man and his practitioner. The Heart Man roams the streets at night grabbing unsuspecting victims and removing their hearts. He's a terrifying creature that comes from the lowest depths of one's nightmares. He's the childhood monster in the closet come to life and because he's made of childhood and ancestral fears, that makes him more powerful. 

In the middle of the book, the Heart Man's story is revealed. He was once a human being who was injured because of a rival workmate. His hatred and desire for revenge fueled him as he found himself bound to a bargain in which he is healed and given immense strength but must take lives. He is also given an insatiable need, pain, and hunger that fuel his desire to collect those hearts.

Of course the Heart Man didn't get that way on his own and herein lies the most sinister character of all: Ms. Pringle. Okay, despite the innocuous name and the fact that she looks like a sweet old lady, the type who wears long dresses, spends time in her garden, and gossips with her friends in the market, she is anything but. Ms. Pringle describes herself as a practitioner, one who practices the Dark Arcs (magic). She casts spells on others for a price. She basically owns those she blesses or curses, particularly The Heart Man who she takes a sadistic delight in controlling. 

She is similar to the houngan in Haitian folklore who raises zombies from the dead and controls them. Ms. Pringle restored the Heart Man's health and now he owes her.

While the Heart Man is physically scary and is meant to be, Ms. Pringle reveals another truth. Sometimes the darkest most frightening hearts are in the people that we know, the ones we pass by every day. She is so scary because she appears not to be. You don't know what to make of her until it's too late. She is the center of the dark things that are happening and she has her sights set on Kyle whom she dubs "The Inheritor." They are on opposing sides and use all of their strength and power to prepare for a fight.

Steinbach's illustrations help propel the book. With plenty of shading and stark black and white coloring, it's clear that Steinbach gave his work a timeless sense of dark action with characters that hide in and out of the shadows. The characters' appearances definitely show a strong Japanese manga influence which Offset in plot and theme is somewhat similar to. Perhaps the illustrations could have shown a more Caribbean artform but the mixed style in drawings reveal the universal themes of good vs. evil and holding onto and believing in the regional legends and stories.

Offset Mask of Bimshire is a great trip exploring Bajan myths and legends. If one is familiar with the legends, it's like catching up to some old friends, some might be frightening friends but friends nonetheless. For first timers, it will introduce them to a new cast of interesting creatures and the stories in which they inhabit.