I wasn't thrilled with this one. The big shockers of the book were nicely illustrated by the two-page spreads that I love, but I found It easy to tell when one was coming in this volume, which bothered me a little, like it took away some of the punch these usually pack. The last shock in particular was powerful, but when I thought about it for a few minutes, I couldn't imagine how something like that could be pulled off by one person, which is what was implied.
I'm tired of them keeping Negan alive. I think their reasons are ridiculous, especially in light of the less dangerous character who was punished with death in this volume. I know it was different people deciding that, but I don't know why that same person hasn't taken Negan's situation into her own hands anyway.
And Rick needs to shave. ( )

Hell of an ending.... ( )

I know why Kirkman moved the story so far ahead in time, and initially it left me impressed that the author would take such a risk, and also it was a great way to "refresh" the characters as we met them again, years later, for the first time.

Now, I'm finding it a touch less interesting, but with this volume, I can see the coming storm, and I'm hopeful again.

Overall though, while this one isn't my favourite volume, I still truly love this series. ( )

Two great moments in this volume, particularly in the last few pages. Gotta love the comic book cliffhangers. ( )

This is a truly great arc for The Walking Dead. While it is the same basic set up as previous encounters - new civilization/way of living found that is at odds with the characters we're following - The Whisperers are novel in that they aren't truly doing anything wrong per se. Their territory was invaded, their people were killed, and so they retaliated accordingly and have done all they can to de-escalate the situation. It's Carl who has escalated it, and now more...

This volume is following in suit with similarly strong storytelling. Characters are getting better developed, and the philosophy of The Whisperers is better articulated. We learn more about what our group is trying to accomplish, where Michonne has been over the years, and how Ezekiel has been holding up. We learn more about Eugene as well, an unsung hero of our survivors. Maggie makes some tough choices. The soap opera continues with considerably more uh... gore than these things usually have.

The ending had me set down the book for a good few minutes to let it all sink in. Man. [a: Robert Kirkman|12425|Robert Kirkman|https://images.gr-assets.com/authors/1238103316p2/12425.jpg] has some wonderful pacing. ( )