A grim but well-executed fantasy of murder and creeping adulthood.
A stylish graphic novel tells a tale of death and drama at the theme park.
This collection of the first five issues of a comic-book series, written by Van Lente and illustrated by Panda, lays out its thesis early (“Growing up, then, is this not, also, a kind of death?”), then mashes up elements of corporate satire, dark fairy tales, and a whodunit soaked in theme-park nihilism. Directionless Tanith Leigh is the conductor of the Rock Candy Mountain Railroad roller coaster at a Disney-like theme park that’s filled with saccharine fantasy and festering dread. Her apathy curdles into horror when she’s doused in someone’s grandma’s cremains, midride, and then thrust into the starring role of Briar Rose after a fellow princess has an Instagram breakdown; the former princess then turns up stabbed to death. Tanith, now trapped in a corset and told never to break character, begins investigating. The story weaves together critique of corporate infantilization and the original, bloody purpose of fairy tales: to prepare young people for maturity’s terrifying arrival. There’s labor unrest, shady human-resources machinations, and the unsettling resurrection of obscure Brothers Grimm fairy-tale lore in the form of a Handless Maiden, now stalking Tanith’s colleagues in the park. Panda’s art serves the tone well; its crisp lines, expressive faces, and set pieces walk the line between whimsical and grotesque. Tanith uncovers the use of sedatives, a blackmail plot, and a secret affair, all pointing to a toxic kingdom built on secrets and suppression. A few clunky red herrings and an on-the-nose Agatha Christie reference threaten to trip up the pace, but the final unmasking delivers. The gore could be gorier, and the mystery twistier, but the themes resonate. In one lightly progressive note, union talk bubbles behind the park’s facade. This comic may not reinvent the horror genre, but it’s a clever, timely tale of growing up in a world designed to keep one helpless—and of the blood one must spill to break free.
A grim but well-executed fantasy of murder and creeping adulthood.Pub Date: May 20, 2025
ISBN: 9781960578785
Page Count: 112
Publisher: Mad Cave Studios
Review Posted Online: May 5, 2025
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
BOOK REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
A particularly nasty villain heightens the stakes in this thriller about a woman learning how to be her own hero.
An author is targeted by a fan who just can’t let her go.
Arden Bowie has had plenty of tragedy in her life, but now she’s finally on top. After her parents died when she was a teenager, she moved from Brooklyn to Ohio to live with her aunt, uncle, and cousins. She soon became part of their loving family and grew up to become a writer and bookseller. When her debut novel is published, she meets Dustin Dubecki at her first event. He showers her with praise, asks for writing advice, and wants to take her out for coffee. Arden tells herself he’s just a little awkward, but then he keeps showing up at her local events—and, even stranger, she’s sure she sees him lurking at her event in New York City. When he bursts into her apartment one night and assaults her, Arden’s calm life is shattered. Dustin gets a five-year sentence at a psychiatric facility; Arden spends most of that time rebuilding her sense of stability. Eventually, she moves to Oregon to start a new life where Dustin can never find her. But even though she has a beautiful home, a thriving career, a doting family, new friends, and even a potential love interest in a former cop named Gideon Riley, Arden can’t escape Dustin’s rage when his sentence is finally up. Roberts toggles between Arden’s point of view and Dustin’s, giving the reader occasional glimpses into his extremely twisted mindset. Although Arden’s attempts to escape Dustin are engrossing, the story stalls in the middle when far too many pages are dedicated to Arden purchasing and decorating a house. But the excitement picks back up when Dustin, a truly odious villain, re-enters the story. It’s also satisfying to see Arden grow into someone who refuses to be a victim, even as she deals with horrifying circumstances.
A particularly nasty villain heightens the stakes in this thriller about a woman learning how to be her own hero.Pub Date: May 26, 2026
ISBN: 9781250413581
Page Count: 432
Publisher: St. Martin's
Review Posted Online: April 20, 2026
Kirkus Reviews Issue: May 15, 2026
A feisty storm of Greek tragedy headlined by three very modern women.
On the isle of Capri, Helen Lingate seeks revenge on the people responsible for her mother’s death 30 years earlier—her own family.
When Sarah Lingate fell to her death on Capri in 1992, she left behind a 3-year-old daughter, Helen, and a legacy as a gifted playwright; her favorite necklace of golden snakes was lost to the sea. Thirty years later, Helen, chafing at the restrictions she’s grown up under as a member of the old-money Lingate family, hatches a plan with her uncle Marcus’ assistant, Lorna Moreno, to blackmail her uncle and her father with that same necklace, which mysteriously entered her possession a few months before. The novel begins on Capri just after Lorna disappears, and then traces her steps from 36 hours earlier. Interweaving chapters from the points of view of Helen, Lorna, and Sarah—as well as, later, a few others—we learn how Sarah gradually became stifled by the constant pressure of keeping up appearances until she became inspired to write a play, Saltwater, that was a not-so-thinly veiled tell-all revealing dark Lingate family secrets. It was shortly after this that she fell to her death. The loss of her mother has come to define Helen’s life, and if she can use the necklace as leverage to escape her family, and maybe learn the truth along the way, she’ll take the risk. Lorna’s motives are both murkier and more straightforward—she’s never had money, and she’s got a chip on her shoulder about it, so splitting 10 million euros with Helen sounds like a way to discard her past and start fresh. These strong, conniving women drive the drama and the narrative, and they are captivating enough that as twist after twist begins to unfurl, the novel still feels character-driven. The end—well, the end shocks. And it’s well earned. By the time the sun sets on the gorgeous excess and rugged coast of Capri, lives will have been destroyed.
A feisty storm of Greek tragedy headlined by three very modern women.Pub Date: March 25, 2025
ISBN: 9780593875551
Page Count: 336
Publisher: Ballantine
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2025
Kirkus Reviews Issue: March 1, 2025
BOOK REVIEW
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