Alex Segura, LA Times Book Prize–winning author of Secret Identity, returns with a clever and escapist mystery set in the world of comic books. In the present day, a comics legend is given the chance to revive a beloved but forgotten character. But at what price?

Annie Bustamante is a cultural force like none other: an acclaimed filmmaker, an author, a comic book artist known for one of the all time best superhero comics in recent memory. But she’s never been able to tackle her longtime favorite superhero, the Lethal Lynx. Only known to the most die-hard comics fans and long out of print, the rights were never available―until now.

But Annie is skeptical of who is making the offer: Bert Carlyle’s father started Triumph Comics, and has long claimed ownership of the Lynx. When she starts getting anonymous messages urging her not to trust anyone, Annie’s inner alarms go off. Even worse? Carlyle wants to pair her with a disgraced filmmaker for a desperate media play.

Annie, who has been called a genius, a sell-out, a visionary, a hack, and everything else under the sun, is sick of the money grab. For the first time since she started reading a tattered copy of The Legendary Lynx #1 as a kid, she feels a pure, creative spark. The chance to tell a story her way. She’s not about to let that go. Even if it means uncovering the dark truth about the character she loves.

Sharply written, deftly plotted, and with a palpable affection for all kinds of storytelling, Alter Ego is a one-of-a-kind reading experience.

I have been obsessed with superheroes since I was a kid, but funny enough, I’m not really into reading superhero comic books. All of my superhero consumption has come from TV shows and movies. Still, that didn’t take away from my enjoyment of this book, and I was honestly surprised by how intriguing I found this book to be.

The story primarily focuses on Annie Bustamante, a talented Oscar-winning filmmaker and comic book artist. Bustamante’s passion for the iconic superhero Lethal Lynx – a character she may have closer ties to than anyone realizes – is what thrusts Annie back into the spotlight after lying low for a while. When the opportunity arises for Bustamante to finally revive her favorite superhero, the offer seems a little too good to be true, but Annie has had an idea brewing for years, and she desperately wants the story to be told. Annie agrees to the deal, but when anonymous messages warn her to tread carefully, Annie begins to uncover some shady happenings – something that may be connected to the death of one of her closest friends.

It was really nice to see a strong female leading the charge in the male-dominated world of comic books. Annie was definitely a character I rooted for the entire way.

What I really enjoyed was how the author weaves together elements of filmmaking and comic books with shady deals, secrets, and a compelling mystery to create a plot that was completely unexpected. Though the synopsis hints at obstacles along the way, I wasn’t expecting the stakes to be as high and certainly wasn’t expecting murder and secrets and intrigue along the way. All of that was a pleasant surprise. Segura’s writing is engaging, the pacing is pretty tight, and the characters are strong and relatable.

A few minor complaints were that I felt like the few chapters after the opening scene dragged a bit, though once everything was set up, things picked up a lot. Another thing that made me scratch my head is that it’s mentioned several times that Lethal Lynx (the comic book character) was this long-forgotten character that hardly anyone remembers, yet the studio felt they would make millions off rebooting her. You’d think they’d make more money off rebooting a well-known superhero first and maybe reintroducing this character in that reboot, but what do I know? I guess I’m just going on how many times Spiderman, Superman and Batman have been rebooted.

This was another book that I alternated between reading and listening to, and once again, I have to give high marks to the narrator. Frankie Corzo handles all of the characters effortlessly. I also really liked the production value and the way they handled the comic segments peppered throughout the story.

Overall, I really enjoyed this one, mostly because I went in expecting one thing and ended up getting much more action and intrigue than I initially expected. If you’re looking for a book with a strong female lead, Annie Bustamante is your gal.

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