Spectacle Vol. 1

by Ro Salarian

Overview

Fan-favorite webcomic creator Megan Rose Gedris (Yu+Me Dream) crafts a compelling tale of magic, deception, and wonder in this stunningly illustrated graphic novel about the bond between sisters.

Pragmatic engineer Anna works as a psychic in the Samson Brothers Circus, but she doesn't believe in anything supernatural—until her twin sister Kat is murdered and comes back as a very demanding ghost. Sharing a room with her sister was hard, but now they're sharing a body while trying to identify the killer. With few leads, a troupe full of secretive folk, and strange paranormal occurrences popping up around the circus, solving the case seems near impossible. But the murderer in their midst may be the least of their problems...

"Humorous and heartfelt, creepy and captivating; readers will eagerly hope for another volume." - Kirkus

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781620104927
Publisher:	Oni Press
Publication date:	05/22/2018
Series:	Spectacle , #1
Pages:	136
Product dimensions:	6.60(w) x 10.00(h) x 0.40(d)

About the Author

Ro Salarian gave up their dream job of being a cheesemonger for their other dream job of making comics. They live in a probably haunted house in Chicago with their cat, Scrambles the Death Dealer.

Editorial Reviews

"Spectacle stars an amazing cast of exciting characters alongside expressive panels and wonderful dialogue—oh, and it's also a freaking supernatural circus murder mystery! Which has just become my new favourite genre, thanks to Megan Rose Gedris."

Sarah Graley

"There’s a lot to love here, and fans of comics featuring diverse casts of characters or readers looking for mystery or paranormal comics will be delighted."

BookList

"This graphic novel has a little bit for everyone: murder, mystery, a great setting of the circus, and quality artwork to enjoy."

School Library Connection RECOMMENDED

"It’s Geek Love for a new generation, with lush and expressive art to boot."

AV Club

03/01/2018
Gr 9 Up—Bold lines surrounding panels with equally bright colors are appropriate foils for an audacious story about a travelling circus. Anna and her twin sister, Kat, were taken in as members of the Samson Brothers Circus. Kat can throw knives with—usually—accurate precision. Lacking her sister's keen hand-eye coordination, Anna has compensated by "telling fortunes." Intellectual and skeptical Anna initially balks at working as a psychic, so she creates a conjecture engine that calculates probabilities and helps her reach scientifically based conclusions. Her life takes a tragic turn when she finds Kat murdered in their shared train car. Kat begins to inhabit Anna's mind and body as both of them attempt to find Kat's killer. Worse still, Anna discovers that she can see other ghosts, including the victims of a corrupt sheriff in one of the show's whistle-stop towns. Gedris makes a conscious effort to incorporate ethnically and religiously diverse characters and takes full advantage of the circus context to explore otherness with the circus "freaks." The abrupt cliff-hanger ending will leave readers anxiously awaiting the second installment. VERDICT While this title isn't explicitly YA, the plot, fascinating cast of characters, art, and strong protagonist will appeal to fans of paranormal and mystery plots.—Jodeana Kruse, R.A. Long High School, Longview, WA

School Library Journal

2018-02-20
Webcomic artist Gedris (YU+ME: dream Omnibus Book Two, 2014, etc.) delivers a compelling tale of supernatural mystery set in the Old West.Brown-skinned, curly-haired identical twins Anna and Kat are inseparable members of the Samson Brothers traveling circus. Anna is a pragmatic inventor working as the carnival fortuneteller, while Kat is an impulsive and performative knife-thrower. But when Anna wakes to discover Kat has been murdered—literally stabbed in the back—she is unsettled to find that Kat's soul hasn't moved on. Represented as a translucent, green, floating version of herself, Kat takes up residence in her sister's body, finding safety and security there while she teams up with Anna to solve her own murder. Gedris' expressive lines and bold colors bring to life the Old West setting, and the characters have varied skin tones, gender presentations, and body shapes. The marginalized identities of troupe members are hinted at but rarely explored, with the exception of a Chinese immigrant's experience working on the railroad. The cliffhanger ending satisfies, opening up just the right number of questions.Humorous and heartfelt, creepy and captivating; readers will eagerly hope for another volume. (Graphic fantasy. 12-adult)

Kirkus Reviews