Bibliophilia: Neil Gaiman’s Murder Mysteries – Neil Gaiman & P. Craig Russell

Neil Gaiman’s Murder Mysteries – Neil Gaiman & P. Craig Russell

I think this may be the first time that a work by Neil Gaiman left me underwhelmed. It is Gaiman, and it has P. Craig Russell’s fine art work. But it just didn’t satisfy. 

Maybe I just can’t get past my dislike of angels. 

The angel Carasel is murdered, and Raguel, the “Vengeance of the Lord”, is awoken to find the murderer. And no, Lucifer wasn’t the murderer. 

The part that left me scratching my head, (oh sorry, maybe I should interject a spoiler alert warning here) is why or who apparently killed the woman Tink visited at the start of the story. I just didn’t understand what motivation there was. There didn’t appear to be any conflict between them. Did the vagrant/angel he met do it? And if so why? Probably missed something. I’m not sure it really grabbed my attention enough to want to go back later and give it another shot.

(I think this may be my most flippant book review.)

Bibliophilia: Good Omens by Terry Pratchett & Neil Gaiman

Good Omens – Terry Pratchett/Neil Gaiman

Seems to have been more of a Pratchett effort, than a Gaiman effort. Lazy description: the Omen as filtered through Monty Python maybe? Very enjoyable.

Bibliophilia: Marvel 1602 by Neil Gaiman

Marvel 1602 – Neil Gaiman

Characters from the Marvel universe, set in Elizabethan times. Not much of a fan of Marvel comics, but I am a big fan of Neil Gaiman. Not disappointed at all. He shows his usual flair. Some of the characters I wasn’t that familiar with. Some I was, but the way they were all handled was great. 

The covers for the eight individual editions were another part of what drew me to it. Done by Stratford, Ontario native Scott McKowen, whose work I’ve admired for a long time, they were a wonderful accompaniment to the art inside the books.

Bibliophilia: Fragile Things & American Gods by Neil Gaiman

Fragile Things: Short Fictions and Wonders – Neil Gaiman

American Gods – Neil Gaiman
It’s Gaiman, so it was bound to be good, and this one delivered. Loved the premise – do the gods from other parts of the world, have the same power in the US as they did in their homelands?

Bibliophilia: Sandman: The Dream Hunters – Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell

Sandman: The Dream Hunters – Neil Gaiman and P. Craig Russell

Absolutely spectacular! Russell’s art is incredible and the story is wonderful. I thought the collaboration between Russell and Gaiman for issue #50 of Sandman, “Ramadan” was great, but this one is even better.