Park (Les Bijoux
) presents a new series that is part fantasy, part horror and entirely intriguing. Pamela reads fortunes at the Tarot Café, helping a series of supernatural beings process lost loves, karmic traps and other mysteries. Her cafe attracts a vampire who meets—and betrays—his one true love over and over again; a puppet master whose greatest creation has fallen in love with him; a cat who changes into a person for love of his mistress; and a fairy trapped in the body of a young girl. The volume combines clear artwork with amusing dialogue and heartfelt situations; each chapter comes off as a fairy tale or fable, and is pleasingly imaginative as such. But it's difficult to engage with the book at times, because Pamela's own character is such a mystery. Her conversations with her clients and others in the lulls between stories are intriguing and deserve to be extended in upcoming volumes. Park's artwork is stellar, whether she is using b&w contrast to illuminate the horror of a vampire's appearance or crafting scenes that represent a story's emotional center. Already a bestseller in Korea, this series should be popular in the U.S. as well, particularly among tween girls, for its creativity and fantastic elements. (Mar. 30)
