Whoa, my Google Alerts just lit up with two reviews of You Have Killed Me
!Augie De Blieck Jr., I guy I knew from our days as young letterhacks (and look at us now), gives us a stellar lead spot in his weekly Pipeline column.
"I'm not nearly enough of a film noir nerd to pick out all of the influences, homages, and/or thematic points of the book, but I know it feels about right. All of the elements of what I'd consider a 'noir' storyline come together nicely, including the jazz band, the bartender, the femme fatale, the double crosses, the hard-bitten protagonist with a dark past who can't escape the same circles, etc. etc. And it all works for me. I liked getting lost in the ambience of the comic as much as I enjoyed the plot, which involves a locked door mystery, a missing sister, the smell of almonds, and a circle of potentially very bad people surrounding our private dick, Mercer, who also gets beat up an awful lot in the book. Poor guy. He got stuck in a noir."
Then Andrew A. Smith at Scripps News includes us in a round-up of recent books:
"- 'You Have Killed Me' ($19.95, Oni Press) is a treat for fans of noir movies and books. In fact, as one follows the treacherous story line, full of seductive women and tough talk and mistaken identity and backroom gambling dens, one is frequently reminded of Dashiell Hammett and Raymond Chandler, 'Chinatown' and 'The Grifters.'
In true noir fashion, our hero is a gumshoe down on his luck, despised by the cops and hired by a slinky dame with gams up to here. What follows is a delightful ride through the usual noir elements -- which I won't reveal, because the players (and author Jamie S. Rich and artist Joelle Jones) don't show all their cards until the final pages. And I wouldn't want to spoil the fun. Get me?"
Thanks, guys!
Current Soundtrack: Lily Allen, It's Not Me, It's You
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