Gloomcookie Graphic Novel Review
By: Aceles
Gloomcookie
Written by: Serena Valentino
Drawn By: Ted Nafieh
Review By:
Aceles
“Once upon a time, there lived a sad, lonely monster in an ominous house at the top of a hill…”
This is the opening line of Gloomcookie, a masterful work of gothic fantasy that will send a pleasant creepy tingle down your spine.
Gloomcookie is the story of a shy boy and his wax girlfriend, a real monster under the bed, two people who loved each other but loved others more, a wicked monstrous beauty, gargoyles and monsters, and curses born of love.
You interested yet?
Gloomcookie, in essence, is a graphic novel of vignettes concerning characters all living in the same world, with multiple storylines going on at once. The main characters, one can safely say though, are Lex and Sebastian, though they are hardly even aquainted with one another.
Sharing mutual friends and enemies, the two characters represent the two main storylines of this book. Sebastian, who's girlfriend, though he doesn't know it, is a wax figure come to life, possesses true sight and a mysterious past. Lex, a tiny, feisty raven-haired beauty must deal with an evil queen and a curse spanning through several of her past lives.
As these characters move forward in their storylines, and loose ends are tied up, you will become unable to put this huge graphic novel down. By huge, I mean large for a graphic novel- A foot tall and half a foot wide, and an inch thick. If you rush, you can finish it in an hour, but it's best to savor it.
The story is masterfully written by Serena Valentino. The women weaves tales as cobwebs around your head, and quite unafraid of creeping you out. This story of gothic fantasy hooks you in, and much of this is due to the writing. With wonderful twists to the plot and twists on characters you thought you were well acquainted with, she never ceases o amaze.
Neither though, does Ted Nafieh. You may have heard of him before; he writes and draws a series of his own, Courtney Crumrin. While the writing is excellent, Gloomcookie would be nothing without the drawings of Nafieh. There could not be an artist better picked for this story-his style of drawing characters almost-real but still within the bounds of fantasy fits the tone of the story perfectly. Not to mention his masterful use of darkness and shadows, rivaling even Mike Mignola, the reigning king. Believe me, that's a high compliment coming from me. I love Hellboy.
When it comes down to it, I recommend this to anyone who enjoys a good old nasty ending, a spooky story, and a great graphic novel. I give this four out of four stars. You like JTHM? Pick this up immedietly.