The Knives: A Criminal Book

The Knives is the latest entry in the Criminal series, a stand-alone graphic novel that works on its own and also displays all the hallmarks of excellence of these comics. This particular volume is one that weaves together several tales and features characters who have appeared in prior stories, operating an as introduction to this world and these comics in advance of the premiere of the Amazon adaptation. One of the main plot threads is about a writer that mirrors some of Brubaker's experiences in Hollywood, and the others involve an orphan being raised by an ex-boxer/current bar owner/keeper of the peace, a kidnapping scheme, a doomed love story, and an ex-soldier falling back into a pattern of violence.

If have ever read Criminal, many of these themes and stories are familiar, but I still feel that good genre work done with skill and craft is worth reading. And this book features exactly that. There are suspense, intrigue, interesting character moments, sex, violence, and questionable moral choices abounding. The artwork is aptly atmospheric and expressive. I have consistently loved Ed Brubaker and Sean Phillips' collaborations, and this one is as good as any of their past work. If you are looking for some entertaining crime noir readings, this book is a good place to start.

The reviews I have read about this book have been mainly positive. Zac Owens called it "a book I truly loved to read." In a starred review, Thomas Batten summed up, "This ambitious and elegiac crime thriller is among the best of Brubaker and Phillips’s highly acclaimed collaborations." Steve Baxi has some issues with this book retreading familiar territory but also admits it is "charming more often than not."

The Knives was published by Image Comics, and they offer more information about it here. This book contains violence, sex, and profanity, and it is suggested for readers mature enough to deal with those things.