It's Lonely at the Centre of the Earth by Zoe Thorogood Review

Zoe Thorogood decides to chronicle her life for six months starting in July 2021. During that time, she goes to Thought Bubble (a comics convention in North England); she goes on a transatlantic booty call to boff a sad American cartoonist; she sees a dog being abused in the park; and there are flashbacks a-plenty to her very recent childhood (she was 23 when creating this book) where she was depressed and creative. It’s… meh… at the centre of Zoe Thorogood’s world.

Dandadan, Volume 1 by Yukinobu Tatsu Review

She’s into ghosts - he’s into aliens. Together, the two social outcasts at school form an unexpected friendship as they challenge one another to prove that their thing is real - and wouldn’t ya know it, they both are! But now they got both ghosts and aliens chasing them and ankfdndsfkjnfjgfhuusfjsd…

The Rope Artist by Fuminori Nakamura Review

Normally after reading a book I’m going to review I flick through it first to remind myself of some of the points I wanted to make and note down worthwhile details. But as my consistent feelings while reading this novel were of confusion and boredom, I think it’ll be more honest, and hopefully more entertaining, to not look back at the book to refresh myself of the story and key plot points but try to do it from memory.

Chivalry Review (Neil Gaiman, Colleen Doran)

Mrs Whitaker, an elderly widower, finds the actual Holy Grail in a charity shop. Which was nice. And who should show up on her doorstep shortly after? Only Sir Galaad, one of the Knights of the Round bloomin’ Table. It’s all kicking off for this pensioner!

Phantom Road, Volume 1 Review (Jeff Lemire, Gabriel Hernandez Walta)

A trucker comes across a car accident in the middle of the night. A mysterious object in the road seems to have caused it. When he touches it, both he and the survivor of the accident are transported to… nowhere. But different. Filled with mindless naked putty people. Their mission? Transport mysterious object somewhere. What’s going onnnn!?

The Librarianist by Patrick deWitt Review

Patrick deWitt is one of my favourite novelists working today because his previous four books were all fantastic. So The Librarianist was always going to be a must-read and one of my most anticipated novels of 2023. It’s quite disappointing then to say this was utterly terrible. It went from being one of the most anticipated to one of the biggest let-downs of the year.

The Cavalier Mr. Thompson by Rich Tommaso Review

Ross Thompson is a grifter from Chicago on the run after ripping off the mob of thousands of bucks. His escape lands him at The Cavalier Hotel in the small town of Big Spring in West Texas run by a former oil tycoon and his teenage son, Sam Hill. Sam’s busy, if mundane, life is about to become much more dramatic…

Local Man, Volume 1: Heartland Review (Tim Seeley, Tony Fleecs)

SPOILERS

Crossjack was once part of the superhero team Third Gen - now he’s simply Jack Xaver, washed up has-been back in his small town of Farmington, unemployed, broke and middle-aged. Coincidentally, Third Gen’s old villains begin getting murdered once Jack’s back in town - but whodunit?

Blood of the Virgin by Sammy Harkham Review

It’s early ‘70s Hollywood and young wannabe filmmaker Seymour has gotten his horror script, Blood of the Virgin, approved for production - though someone else is directing. The story follows the filming of the B-movie and the shenanigans that go on behind-the-scenes.

Where the Body Was Review (Ed Brubaker, Sean Phillips)

The summer of 1984 and a bizarre murder mystery unfolds to involve nine of Pelican Street’s residents, all of whose lives are entangled in one another’s in unexpected ways. But whodunit - and to who?