The New Deadwardians

Vampires crossed with zombies, in the middle of a Victorian murder mystery: this story is a marketing dream. It follows Chief Inspector George Settle of Scotland Yard as he investigates a body washed up on the shore of the Thames. The case takes the reader on a tour of Edwardian London in the postzombie years. Not only have the dead risen, but the city has been parceled into different zones for safety, and the upper classes have willingly transformed themselves into vampires. They have created a social order in which the most important mark of distinction is immunity to zombie bites. In his parallel emotional journey, Settle uneasily accepts immortality and grapples with how it changes people and morality, as he traverses the gutters and drawing rooms of London. Writer Abnett exceeds expectations with a reasonable suspense story and characters, and inventive supernatural elements. Culbard—already a well-known adapter of Lovecraft’s work—brings a crisp, slyly stiff-upper-lip-tone to the art. The book is definitely not a collection of hot genres, but its own unique story—and it would be nice to see more of George Settle in comics. (Feb.)