Overall, I liked it.

It does make me interested in reading some more series. This is actually the very first time I've ever attempted to read any Batman comics in any sequential order. I've read single issues before, but never was able to follow it. I started with the New 52 Batman, Vol. 1: The Court of Owls.

This book is a mixed bag. The stories are arranged well, which means they mostly tell the story of the Night of the Owls in a chronological fashion. But that means the first book is All-Star Western #9, which is a shame. That book has a brief appearance by a Talon, but the plot just motors right on past that.

I found myself having to Google a few characters, but it never felt obnoxious, and that really was just for my own completeness; the plot would have been perfectly understandable without the Internet.

There is some excellent plot development happening in both Batman #8 & #9, and I really enjoyed the origin of Mr. Freeze in Batman Annual #1.

The art is mismatched, because this is an anthology of one or two issues each from books across the whole Bat Family line. But overall most of it was good. I have no complaints.

I was surprised by the physical heft of the book. It's got a lot of pages, and it's a bear to hold & read. The binding was pretty nice. The book is actually easier to fold open to see the art in the spine than most comic trade paperbacks. Not sure if that was due to the size of this or a better quality binding. Probably the former.

Overall, a very nice way to read the entire crossover event for not much money.