Films revolving around superheroes have become wildly popular in the last several decades, bringing what used to be a niche interest in the world of comic books to the massses. As a result the general public has become intimately familiar with the tropes of heroes vs. villains. Enter James Wymore and his latest novel, "Thug #1." But this is not your typical superhero book; the nature of the protagonist sets it apart from other stories in the genre.
"This is an anti-hero," said Mr. Wymore in a recent interview. "And [the story is] told from an uncommon perspective the grunts who get no credit for the work the villains do. It's about a guy who has a moral code, but works in an amoral environment."
Fans of graphic novels and superhero movies will enjoy James Wymore's latest release, "Thug #1." Classified as an illustrated novel, Wymore feels devotees of graphic novels will see it as something of a halfway novel. Illustrations were done by artist
John Christian Perkins.
Mr. Perkins says of "Thug #1": "It was fun to work with James. He's an imaginative writer. I was never really into comic books growing up, but my best friend was. He eventually convinced me to draw comic books with him and a few other buddies, [which we then sold] in our high school. Working on Thug brought me back to those days. My style is comic book inspired but not as refined and chiseled as what you might see with serious comic book illustrations, and I think that fits. Thug #1is a story that shows a different side to the typical comic book hero story and so it makes sense for the art to be a little different too."
Mr. Perkins' favorite illustration? "I really enjoyed drawing the machine tear up the Denver Mint," he said. "Maybe there's a little bit of an anarchist in me." More of
John Christian Perkins' work can be found at drawformejcp.com.
About "Thug #1":
Superheroes and villains constantly battle for control of Denver, Colorado, so somebody has to do the heavy lifting. CJ Cruz found his niche working for whichever super-flavor-of-the-day happens to be running the show at the time. Since most of the self-labeled heroes claiming to be on the side of justice don't hire henchmen, he usually winds up doing the street-level work for supers operating outside the law. His family and priest just think he's a gangster, but CJ knows his motivation is pure. He keeps on the windy side of law enforcement by following a few simple rules, the first of which is keep your head down and never be the boss's right-hand man. People tell him he should get a new job, but he likes working around supers. Besides, except for intimidation and roughing-people-up he doesn't have any other skills necessary to make rent and pay child support.
"Thug #1 is a fast-paced, action packed book written in comic book style. The artwork is amazing, too!" - Holli Anderson, author of The Five trilogy and Myrikal.
"This is a fun, action-filled story of vigilantism and growing up. I love the giant POW! and ZAPS! that are inserted into the text along with the illustrations, they make this book about 75% novel and 25% comic book. Author James Wymore knows how to find the compassion-worthy human heart inside even a supervillain's grunts. I hope there will be more in this series!" - D.J. Butler, author of Witchy Eye.
Appropriate for Teens – Intriguing to Adults
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