Solstice started life almost a decade ago as a never-finished miniseries. Now, it’s a still-timely graphic novel about the excesses to which men, fearing death, go to to survive. Steven T. Seagle writes and Justin Norman draws the story of Hugh Waterhouse. Hugh’s father is a millionaire with a brain tumor, and he takes his son on a quest for the Fountain of Youth. His accomplishments, his money, his power, and his family aren’t enough for him; instead of being […]

Clockwork Angels, Lea Hernandez’s followup to Cathedral Child, is something of a departure from the romantic nature of the first book. The same ingredients are included — love, adventure, discovery — but they’re mixed in different proportions, resulting in a gripping chase across the Southwest as the main characters discover their true selves. Temperance and Amy are traveling from New Orleans to San Antonio. Temper, a young widow, is pretending to be a parlor magician, although she’s really a psychic […]

Cathedral Child is many things at once: an exploration of scientific discovery, a clever adventure with an evil villain, and my favorite, a romantic story of young love. Parrish has come to the rural West to build an “analytical engine” in a cathedral. Once his illegitimate daughter Glory gets involved with the computer prototype, it awakens into much more. At the same time, Glory and Sumner, Parrish’s adopted son, are growing up together and falling in love. There are a […]

This beautiful color anthology sums up its theme in its title, Flight. Most of these young cartoonists began doing comics online. As a result, readers may not be familiar with their names, but they will be impressed by their talents. A flip through the book reveals a wide variety of approaches, topics, and styles. Especially notable is the use of color, with subtle effects and impressive skill on display. The first story, by Enrico Casarosa, takes the title literally, ending […]

Writer Eric Stephenson’s Long Hot Summer is a story about two friends during the summer a woman came between them. Readers may find themselves expecting an Oni Press label on this graphic novel, given the subject matter, format, art style, and the characters’ interests in music and scooters, but Stephenson is Image’s Executive Director, so this becomes another example of that publisher’s diversity. Ken is a mooch. He’s always bumming drinks, cigarettes, and rides from Steve. One day, he shows […]

If you weren’t reading comics in the 80s, you might not be familiar with Coyote. He’s one of the transitional characters that appeared during that period: a superhero that doesn’t appear to be such at first glance, originally published by a new company (Eclipse) instead of an old stalwart, and creator-owned by Steve Englehart and Marshall Rogers. The origin story reprinted here originally appeared in Eclipse Monthly in seven parts, although it was written as one long story. That format […]

Avigon is a clockwork creation created by Pulsifer, who looks like a mad scientist but compares herself to God. In supplying her creations to various nobles, she must navigate a complex web of status and competition. Avigon demonstrates the pinnacle of Pulsifer’s creative genius, but to maintain her position in the court, she commits Avigon to battles she doesn’t believe in. In Avigon: Gods & Demons, the clockworks are kept in a pleasure palace, protected from those who would harm […]

There are so many hooks to Hawaiian Dick: Byrd of Paradise by B. Clay Moore I hardly know where to start talking about it. It’s been variously described as tropical noir, a hardboiled supernatural thriller with a tiki-influenced setting, and a retro island take on Sam Spade. (Younger folks might see it as Thomas Magnum as written by Raymond Chandler.) It’s 1953 in Hawaii. Byrd was a mainland police officer until a mysterious shooting drove him to semi-retirement. He works […]