November 15, 2013
Thanks to a popular Kickstarter campaign, comics fans can enjoy a story so unique yet so familiar it's like slipping on a pair of old slippers worn by a stranger. Famed treasure hunter Fabian Gray has the remarkable ability to channel ghosts of five archetypal figuresthe wizard, the archer, the detective, the samurai, and the vampirea power that comes in quite handy in the midst of his swashbuckling exploits. Barbiere's writing and Mooneyham's art are reminiscent of classic adventure comics, crammed with rubies to snag, helicopter ladders to lunge after, and biplanes that crash into deep jungles full of magic-wielding cults, all wrapped up in a plot dripping with revenge, regret, greed, and deep hubris. But Barbiere and Mooneyham aside, it would be a mistake not to acknowledge the book's colorist, S. M. Vidauri, whose muted tones and deep purples mix the nostalgia of iconic adventure tales with the rich, heavy visuals of contemporary comics, such as Alan Moore's League of Extraordinary Gentlemen, Scott Snyder's American Vampire, and Jeff Lemire's Animal Man.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2013, American Library Association.)