High Moon Vol. 1 by David Ellis

High Moon Vol. 1 (High Moon)

by David Ellis

It's cowboys vs. werewolves in this thrilling horror series from the
creators of THE ONLY LIVING BOY!
The HarveyAwardWinning collection of the
critically acclaimed webcomic series is reloaded and remastered.
Bountyhunter
Matthew Macgregor investigates a series of strange happenings in the dusty Texas
town of Blest where drought has brought famine and hardship to most of the town
and surrounding ranches.
Unfortunately, that's the least of the town's
worries! While the summer heat pushes the mercury toward further unbearable
degrees during the day, the nights are haunted by strange unnatural creatures
roaming the darkness. Macgregor, a former Pinkerton agent, seeks to uncover the
town's dark secrets and tries desperately to keep his own past steeped in
witchcraft and the supernatural hidden. At sundown... they'll be a showdown at
High Moon.

Reviewed by Quirky Cat on

3 of 5 stars

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I received a copy of High Moon Vol. 1: Bullet Holes and Bites Marks from NetGalley in exchange for a fair and honest review.

The cover art for High Moon immediately drew my attention to it – and that quality of art is maintained throughout. I honestly believe the artwork was the highlight of the graphic novel for me. It all appears to be hand drawn and inked, and done so in a beautifully striking style. The monsters (more on that later) are horrifyingly perfect and seem to almost jump off the page (or screen) at the reader.



I really wanted to love High Moon – the concept sounded interesting (werewolves and vampires meets the Wild West? Yes please!) and the artwork is absolutely stunning. Unfortunately on the whole I found myself to be less than impressed with it. I think it had a lot of potential, and with a little bit more work Gallaher and Ellis could have a thing of beauty on their hands.
High Moon is the sort of story that throws you right into the thick of things. We’re immediately thrown into a town that’s already having troubles – unfortunately given no time to know the main character (s) or understand their motives or reasoning. It made it difficult for me to get into the novel.
There were a few points where I actually had to go back and re-read a section, because I didn’t understand how we got from point A to point B (re-reading did not clear up my confusion). I felt this was particularly true during the fight scenes. While visually striking they were somewhat disorienting and confusing.
I still really love the concept of werewolves and vampires causing havoc in the Wild West – so I want to give the creators credit for this idea. It’s brilliant and has so much potential. I’m hoping that later volumes will spend more time on character development – that’s what this series really needs in order to start shining.


For more reviews, check out Quirky Cat's Fat Stacks

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 18 October, 2017: Finished reading
  • 18 October, 2017: Reviewed