Plus Man: Not necessarily the guy you want to deliver your groceries. |
Our heroes happen upon this situation at the reading of Uncle Ben's will, where friends, family, and antagonists are all locked in the house until his murderer is revealed. This being a good mystery, of course there are many things that are not as they seem...
I very much enjoyed the murder/adventure plot of this book, but the best part of it was Sears's colorful artwork. He does superb work at world-building, and I spent much time looking over his deceptively simple-looking images. The buildings' architecture is inventive and fun, and I just loved looking at all the details, such as what people have on their kitchen counters in this world. Plus, there are lots of nods to classic murder story elements, like secret passages and paintings where the eyes follow people around. As with the other books in the series, this one is a true all ages book, with lots of features to please and amuse readers young and old.
All the reviews I have read about this book have been positive. Leonard Pierce wrote, "Sears’ strength is absolutely as a visual storyteller, but there’s enough happening in his engaging characters, involving storylines, and light-fingered explorations of contemporary issues that the books are always something to look forward to." James Ardis commented that "for a graphic novel accessible to both children and young adults to tackle gentrification in any capacity is quite ambitious." Tom Shapira opined that "charm is something Ben Sears has in spades. The art, the colors, even the lettering, everything in this story screams for unencumbered joy."
House of the Black Spot was published by Koyama Press, and they offer a preview and more here.
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