Morning Glories, Volume 1

This volume collects the first six issues of the hit comic book series published by Image Comics. The story is about six new students at Morning Glory Academy, an extremely prestigious private school with, it turns out, a sinister underbelly. The main character is Casey, blond, beautiful, and brilliant at physics. She is joined by her roommates Zoe, a spoiled brat kleptomaniac, and Jade, a small-town writer with a troubled past. As for the boys, there are Hunter, likable but nerdy, Jun, quiet and strong, and Ike, who is privileged, manipulative, and hedonistic. Together these students try to get to the bottom of their teachers' plans, explore the school, escape death traps, and figure out why they are there. The mystery and rebellion aspects as well as the characters' interactions make for some compelling storytelling.

This hit series is the work of writer Nick Spencer, who has worked on numerous series from DC, Marvel, and Image Comics. This interview with Comic Book Resources' Josh Wigler gets at the origins and early direction of the series. Joe Eisma provides the interior artwork while Rodin Esquejo illustrates the covers. Eisma spoke with Newsarama about his work on Morning Glories, and all three creators weigh in about the series here.

Morning Glories has received much positive attention, including an Eisner Award nomination for writer Nick Spencer and a YALSA nomination for Great Graphic Novels for Teens. The Tuscon Citizen's Rob Acosta wrote that Spencer has created an immediately intriguing story and that the twists and turns in the plot have really hooked him. IGN's Miguel Perez wrote that this is a series "to make the rest of the comic book world stand up and take notice." CBR's Chad Nevett noted that Eisma's art struggles to keep up with Spencer's plot but added that the writing is "fearless here and makes me wonder what’s in store as the series continues."

An 11-page preview is available from Comic Book Resources.