Review by C.J. Bunce
In writer-artist Norm Konyu’s next brightly-colored storybook of dark places, he moves from his own Gothic tale in Downlands and the Lovecraftian icon of A Call to Chthulu to create a decidely upbeat elegiac tribute to the one and only Edgar Allan Poe. Much closer in style and vibe to his A Call to Cthulhu, Edgar Allan Poe: A Tale of Mystery and Intervention, just published and now available here at Amazon, is Konyu as Andrew Lloyd Webber or Stephen Sondheim. When Poe reaches out to a theatrical producer to propose another dark and twisted project, his friend steps in to remind him of all the places he’s explored before and why it’s time to stop the brooding, and tales of murdrr, death, and dying. Call it a poem, call it a showtune or first song in Poe on Broadway, it’s a fun journey through Poe via his themes and Konyu’s singular, angular style of art.
The fun for fans of Poe’s writings will be revisiting themes, references, and stories you’ve probably forgotten. Remote locales, dead wives, seaside and seabound disasters, bodies stashed, strange parties, puzzles, and pastimes–Konyu weaves it all in.
Konyu sources and summarizes more than a dozen works for his poem/song, including, The Fall of the House of Usher, Ligeia, The Pit and the Pendulum, The Raven, The Black Cat, Hop-Frog, MS. Found in a Bottle, The Murders in the Rue Morgue, The Oval Portrait, The Cask of Amontillado, The Masque of the Red Death, The Gold Bug, The Tell-Tale Heart, The Facts in the Case of M. Valdemar, and The Sphinx.
The skull endpapers and the introductory blank for “This Book Belongs To” are lovely finishing touches to this glossy hardcover 8.5″ x 11″ volume.
It’s a great looking book and a nice tribute to the original detective and horror writer and “master of the macabre.” For your favorite fan of Poe and all things gothic, Edgar Allan Poe: A Tale of Mystery and Intervention is available now here at Amazon from Titan Comics.
