Author:Bryan Talbot
The third volume of the Grandville series - Anthropomorphic steampunk detective fiction from graphic novel master Bryan Talbot
The Badger is back!Follow the Badger!
At Toad Hall, lair of multibillionaire Baron Aristotle Krapaud, a cabal of industrialists and fat cats plot the violent overthrow of the French state. Meanwhile, the brutal murder of a famous Parisian artist is subject to the investigations of the tenacious Detective Inspector LeBrock of Scotland Yard, placing him and his faithful adjunct, Detective Sergeant Roderick Ratzi, in pursuit of the mysterious masked assassin stalking the cut-throat commercial world of the Grandville art scene.
As the body count mounts and events spiral exponentially out of control, aided by his brilliant deductive abilities and innate ferocity, LeBrock battles against outrageous odds in this funny, high octane thriller, an adventure shot through with both high art and comic book references, a glorious illegitimate offspring of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle and Ian Fleming - with animals!
'The bastard child of Conan Doyle and Beatrix Potter, it’s a gripping feast for the eyes' Observer
I have greatly enjoyed the Grandville books. I think they're superbly designed, beautifully conceived, admirably written - everything about them is terrific... A graphic novel built on the solid foundation of a strong story.
—— Philip PullmanThe third and finest stand-alone volume in the award-winning ‘scientific-romance-thriller’ series… These ingeniously plotted fantasies will make you bark with laughter.
—— Larushka Ivan-Zadeh , MetroThe bastard child of Conan Doyle and Beatrix Potter, it’s a gripping feast for the eyes.
—— Rachel Cooke , ObserverBoth acerbic and hilarious.
—— Mr. HydeThis ripping yarn of murder, mystery and the machinating arms tycoon Baron Krapaud of Toad Hall is both irresistibly exciting and sumptuously designed.
—— David Langford , TelegraphFlynn’s book is full of satisfying twists, turns and shocks ... The art is stunning, the story ingenious, and the in-jokes delicious, as our badger hero visits Paris to solve a series of art murders, including the demise of a crow called Gustave Corbeau.
—— Ian Rankin , ScotsmanA blindingly beautiful crime adventure comic.
—— Comicbuzz.comIf like me you’re new to graphic novels then trust me when I say this is the perfect starting point, and if you’re a regular graphic novel reader then please give this little volume a chance. It may be small but it has so much heart inside that you’ll never quite be able to leave it behind.
—— bookmonkeyscribblesHeartfelt and often heartbreaking.
—— Dog Eared DiscsThe First World War is often described as a literary war, but it was also the first great photographic war. This book is an extraordinary collection of photographs from the archives of the Imperial War Museums. Depicted are the machines of destruction, the battlefields, the trenches, the beaches but above all the soldiers. Nothing reveals the face of war quite so vividly as the faces of the warriors.
—— Ben Macintyre , The TimesA mini-masterpiece.
—— Independent on SundayHis silence first mirrors and then amplifies our own horrified stupefaction – and his inky crosshatching speaks for itself, sorrow and rage in every dogged line.
—— Rachel Cooke , ObserverUnlike anything you've ever seen before...renders the destruction on an epic scale but each of the thousands of soldiers is depicted with humanity and detail.
—— MetroUnfolds in breathtaking detail… Haunting and beautifully rendered.
—— Sunday TimesOne of the finest pictographic achievements in recent years… A vivid portrait of courage and honour which will astound you.
—— Haverhill EchoThe "comic book journalist" has gone into a new realm with this, a book that folds out into a single piece, 24ft wide, wordless pen and ink drawing of soldiers leaving the trenches.
—— Shane Hegarty , Irish Times[Sacco’s] ability to cram in detail is extraordinary. And it is the details that linger.
—— The EconomistWhen stretched to its 24ft length in the Saga Magazine office, we pored over it for ages. We predict you will want to do the same.
—— Saga MagazineAbout Joe Sacco’s The Great War, one can write only essays or short, ecstatic sentences... A beautiful accordion-book, it unfolds on the Western Front, with all its monotony and misery: simple, but intricate; wordless, but vocal; brutal, but beautiful. A masterpiece of quietly affecting numbers, the thousands of lines, dots, and crosses that demarcate the thousands of lives, deaths, and crises.
—— Reggie Chamberlain-King , QuietusThe detail in this work is phenomenal, capturing the aloof generals, death in the trenches, and the wounded... [Sacco] makes visceral one of the bloodiest days in history.
—— Socialist ReviewWordless and brilliant.
—— Donal O'Donoghue , RTE GuideSometimes words and photographs are not enough… [An] astounding book.
—— Michael Hodges , Mail on SundayA unique and unforgettable experience.
—— Matthew Turner , Ask MenA meticulous visual depiction.
—— Observer