Agatha H. and the Airship City

Starred review from February 14, 2011
The Hugo Award-winning Foglios (Girl Genius) present the first three volumes of their popular gaslight fantasy comic in novelized form, maintaining the zany energy, witty repartee, creative characterization, and innovative world-building of the original. Agatha Clay is a university lab assistant in a world filled with madboy scientists, dangerous automata, and not quite human soldiers with silly Germanic accents. She soon finds herself a pawn in political power struggles when her locket is stolen and she is taken hostage on the airship of the powerful Baron Klaus Wulfenbach. While trying to stay alive long enough to discover the truth, she begins to discover her personal history and genius talents of her own. This version keeps closely to the original plot, and uses most of the original dialogue, but also provides expanded scenes and character interiority that will delight regular fans of the series. Although this book is likely not the best way to experience the Foglios' talent for the first time, and cannot do justice to the sheer buxomness of its main character, it is entirely comprehensible and enjoyable on its own without its comic counterparts.