Headless Shakespeare Press 2019
Written by Craig Hurd-McKenney
Illustrated by Gervasio & Carlos Aón
Cover by Tyler Smith-Owins
Layout and Additional Design by Kelli McCarthy
A spiritualist with a secret to hide. A choral performer who can't fit in. A Comtesse trapped against her will and in her own body. Victorian London & the evils within will bring these three together to fight against the darkness, both personal and phantasmagorical, that threatens to consume them all.
This book I found because I am a reviewer and I do company news so when I was a release regarding this I took one look at it and it instantly intrigued me. So I inquired about it and here we are. I am so glad that I did because I had no idea what to expect and I had never read anything from Headless Shakespeare Press before, I didn't research them until I had finished reading the book. This is surprisingly entertaining, educational and full of relatable characters and actually very poignant and in the now. I think this should make everyone's reading list and let the story open you up to a new view on both the past and the present.
I am a huge fan of the way that this is being told. The story & plot development that we see here through how the sequence of events unfold and how the reader learns information is really quite nicely done. How we see Prescott become the centre of the story and as his friendships grow while the weaves through and around them all is hypnotic and mesmerising in it's own unique way. The character development is utterly amazing to see play out before our eyes. The three people whom we are privileged to see, learn of and watch evolve throughout this book is gorgeously rendered. This is what makes us want to see more, to continue reading the tales that they will inevitably have. The pacing is absolutely delightful and as I takes us through the pages revealing it's secrets as we go we also see how all of this works together to create the books ebb & flow.
There is this really nice and different point of view going on here and a lot of folks should see this for a number of reasons. Not only is this an in-depth look into a portion of society that is often neglected and left out of the depictions we see in film and television. Though lately thanks to progressive writers we are starting to see them appear. This showcases a people lost in the annuls of history and the emotional story here is one that any person can find ways to relate to and/or empathise with.
The interiors here are very interesting to me. First when you work in black & white you have to be extremely confident in what you present. This medium of storytelling does allow us to see more than just varying line weights but also various techniques that are utilised to really bring this to life. I like how we see the faces and facial expressions and the body language we see here as they really do add that little extra something to the characterisation that words alone cannot convey. The utilisation of the page layouts and how we see the angles and perspective in the panels show a really good, strong eye for storytelling. I wish we didn't see blank backgrounds in this. There are times it's useful but when the entire issue is black & white leaving that stark nothingness, it leaves something to be desired, mainly because we see them in use and they are sensational to bring the era to life.
This may be my first read from Headless Shakespeare Press but it most assuredly will not be the last. Historical fiction with a supernatural slant to it is something a lot folks can enjoy and they should enjoy it. I am extremely impressed with quality and level of storytelling that we see within these pages. I feel like were transported to a time and place much like in The Alienist where when you leave it is a sad thing and want to return as soon as possible.