Title: Strange Cases (GN)
Publisher: Andrews McMell Publishing
Writer/Artist: Riotbones
Price: $ 22.99 US, $ 32.99 Can
Rating: 3 out of 5 stars
Website: www.simonandschuster.ca/books/Strange-Cases/Riotbones/9798881602192
Comments: Lazaro is an old city, and it is full of mysteries. The Lady of the Marrow is one of them.
Jude and Isa are attending a wake.
Jude immediately shows his character when he saves a dog from a fire.
The story features a lot of panels with little or no dialogue, allowing the artwork to carry the narrative, so it reads quickly. The art is solid, but nothing really stands out about it. There is mention of men aboard a ship vanishing, but then the story simply moves on. Not everything is explained outright, though readers can piece together a few things. Jude is something of a detective, just as his mother was.
As Jude investigates, he uncovers something very different from what anyone would expect. It’s a genuinely strange twist. The lone survivor of a ship’s crew is on trial for murdering the rest of the sailors, and Jude serves as his lawyer.
Jude also encounters some unusual people. One man living in a castle is especially strange, and it’s easy to tell something is off about him. Jude is defending him against accusations of starting a fire.
Jude is illustrated with a distinctive mark across his nose that immediately draws your attention. However, the story never explains how he got it.
Jude also has one more mystery to solve: the death of his mother.
The mystical elements of the story are handled subtly.
Jude works hard to clear an innocent woman, and the story goes in directions you won’t expect. Many aspects of the plot are left unexplained, and readers simply have to accept them as part of the world.
In the end, Jude is an ordinary man who gradually becomes something far from ordinary.
About Author
