About this item
THE MAD MASK is book two in critically acclaimed author Barry Lyga's Archvillain series!Things haven't been going well for Kyle since Mighty Mike became the new town hero. He's pretty sure he could fix this disaster if he could expose Mike's secret (he's an alien) , but to do that Kyle would have to admit he is the Azure Avenger -- the unintentional town archvillain.One night a new masked hero, aptly named the Mad Mask, arrives, boasting to the Azure Avenger of an off-the-charts IQ and superior superpowers. Yet the Mad Mask has come seeking intellectual assistance in building Ultitron (the robot of all robots) . In exchange he offers to allow the Azure Avenger to use the awesome Ultitron to rid the world, or at least Bouring, of Mighty Mike. Forging alliances isn't usually Kyle's style, but it seems he has no choice. While Kyle agrees to help, he also has another plan: finding out who the Mad Mask is and how he got his powers. Because the last thing the Azure Avenger needs is another mindless archvillain hanging around town!
About the Author
Called a "YA rebel-author" by Kirkus Reviews, Barry Lyga has published more than twenty novels in various genres in his dozen-plus-year career, including the New York Times bestselling I Hunt Killers and Thanos: Titan Consumed for Marvel Studios. His books have been or are slated to be published in nine different languages in North America, Australia, Europe, and Asia.After graduating from Yale with a degree in English, Lyga worked in the comic book industry before quitting to pursue his lifelong love of writing. In 2006, his first young adult novel, The Astonishing Adventures of Fanboy and Goth Girl, was published to rave reviews, including starred reviews from Booklist and School Library Journal. Publisher's Weekly named Lyga a "Flying Start" in December 2006 on the strength of the debut.His second young adult novel, Boy Toy, received starred reviews in SLJ, Publishers Weekly, and Kirkus. VOYA gave it its highest critical rating, and the Chicago Tribune called it "...an astounding portrayal of what it is like to be the young male victim." His third novel, Hero-Type, according to VOYA "proves that there are still fresh ideas and new, interesting story lines to be explored in young adult literature."Since then, he has also written Goth Girl Rising (the sequel to his first novel) , as well as the Archvillain series for middle-grade readers and the graphic novel Mangaman (with art by Colleen Doran) .His most famous series is I Hunt Killers, called by the LA Times "one of the more daring concepts in recent years by a young-adult author" and an "extreme and utterly alluring narrative about nature versus nurture." The first book landed on both the New York Times and USAToday bestsellers lists, and the series has been optioned for television by Warner Bros./Silver Pictures.Lyga lives and writes near New York City. His comic book collection is a lot smaller than it used to be, but is still way too big.
