Profiles in Awesome (and book review)

Review - Dark Entries and Filthy Rich (Vertigo Crime)

Many thanks to the good folks at the Inkwell Bookstore Blog!! Recently they did a book giveaway for folks that were following their blog. All you had to do was let them know the sort of things you were interested in, and they would try to find something that seemed appropriate to send you.

Prior to reading that post, I had already added them to my blog list, because I enjoyed their replies to my posts, and really liked what I had read on theirs. I hadn't gone in officially and followed them, but I righted that wrong and sent them an email anyway.

Not terribly long after that I got a package in the mail with a cute drawing of Oscar the Grouch on it, and marked BOOKS. It was very exciting, and even more exciting after I carefully opened the package.

They sent me two different Advance Copies of titles due out in may through the Vertigo Crime line. I have since had a chance to read both, and will talk about them briefly right here.

Dark Entries - Ian Rankin & Werther Dell'edera - This is a John Constantine mystery, and it's sort of an odd one. I am in a strange position of feeling that it was almost laughable, but also really enjoying it as well. I won't give much away here, but Constantine is paid to go on the set of a reality tv scare show called Dark Entries(I perked up at the title, as it is also a song by Bauhaus) . The show features a group of people locked in a 'haunted house' and subjected to all sorts of psychological torment. The only way they can get out of the house is to find the secret treasure room that is hidden in it somewhere. There is a problem when all of the contestants start seeing ghosts and visions prior to the real start of the game. The producers hire Constantine to go in and investigate. They put him into the game and he gets the feeling pretty immediately that things aren't all that they appear to be.

It's not a bad read. I enjoyed it, but I think some of the situations were a bit silly. The art and the writing are very good, regardless.

Filthy Rich (Brian Azzarello & Victor Santos) - This is a perfectly brilliant Hard-Boiled story of a former and somewhat disgraced football player and failed used car salesman who gets caught up in a world of privilege, sex and danger when he is hired to be the bodyguard of a spoiled rich girl with a penchant for getting herself into the tabloids. It is a perfectly fast and fluid read. The art is fantastic and only contributes to the feel and pace of the story. I have a feeling that anyone who has enjoyed Brubaker's Criminal, should enjoy this story. It has sex and doublecross, interesting characters and a glimpse at the dark side of privilege and fame. It's really good stuff. I recommend checking this out.