Criminal Macabre: The Eyes of Frankenstein

Criminal Macabre: A Cal McDonald Mystery #10

by Steve Niles, Christopher Mitten (Illustrator), Justin Erickson (Illustrator)

With ghouls dying all around him and the mystery of his own violent illness racking his body and mind, occult detective Cal McDonald takes on a new case from an old friend--Frankenstein's monster. To solve the case, Cal seeks help from a man billed as "the world's foremost authority on the supernatural." Cal must trust this wealthy entertainer to save his friends and cure his illness. But that trust leads down a dangerous path that will leave Cal changed forever. Steve Niles, the original creator of the comics series that spawned the film 30 Days of Night, returns with another of his ongoing series, Criminal Macabre, and the psychic detective, Cal McDonald.

Genres: Comics, Graphic Novels, Horror, Fiction, Mystery, Fantasy, Occult Detective

112 pages, Paperback

First published July 1, 2014

About the author

STEVE NILES is one of the writers responsible for bringing horror comics back to prominence, and was recently named by Fangoria magazine as one of it's "13 rising talents who promise to keep us terrified for the next 25 years."

Niles is currently working for the four top American comic publishers - Marvel, DC, Image and Dark Horse. He got his start in the industry when he formed his own publishing company called Arcane Comix, where he published, edited and adapted several comics and anthologies for Eclipse Comics. His adaptations include works by Clive Barker, Richard Matheson and Harlan Ellison.

Steve resides in Los Angeles in his bachelor pad with one cat. While there's no crawlspace, there is a questionable closet in one corner and no one is quite sure what is hidden in there...but we have an idea.

--from the author's website

Reviews

[Christopher · Rating 3 out of 5]

Whose grave are you visiting?

Just the fact that you have to ask me that question says how fucked up my life is.

Cal has become more of a whiny mopey old man since the spoiler happened. It's insanely old.

Frankenstein's monster (the real one) makes a return appearance though, which is nice. He seems like a cool dude to hang out with.

[Quentin Wallace · Rating 4 out of 5]

One thing I can say about the Cal McDonald character is that he's constantly evolving. First he turned into a ghoul, by the end of this series it looks like he's morphed into some type of demon.

This was another good series with Frankenstein showing up needing a new pair of eyes. There's also a strange disease going around killing ghouls. This series was a little funnier than the others, although there wasn't really that much more humor than usual. I think the jokes were just a little better.

Overall another good series, but I do wonder where things go from here.

[Mike Jozic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I would have given it 5 stars but i think it fell apart a little bit at the end. Still, that being said, it remains a great chapter in the ongoing adventures of Cal McDonald supernatural investigator.

[Kay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Since this is in the middle of series and the only volume I could find at my libraries, I read this feeling like I was coming into the middle of a story. Still, Frankenstein is well known to me so I thought I could hop in. The first chapter of this volume was confusing (as I got into the flow of the story, I went back and re-read it and it made MUCH more sense) although I enjoyed this as the creature known as the Frankenstein monster hires the supernatural investigator - who is a ghoul in this volume - to procure a new set of eyes. Having read this volume, I'll keep seeking the other volumes as this story made me interested in this version of ghouls and develop some empathy for them and that's not easy to do. My rating is 4 stars.

[Shannon McCrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

Steve Niles graphic novel, Criminal Macabre: The Eyes of Frankenstein, tells the compelling story about a detective named Cal McDonald who is trying to seek out a way to cure his illness. He finds that the journey may not be as simple as he'd expected and encounters ghouls, his disease and other obstacles along the way. This is a good read for fans of horror comics, because it is dark throughout the book. Although this book is dark, there is a lot to love about it. The two main characters are easy to love and the illustrations are superb.

Niles uses surrealism through the illustrations to tell the story. One thing I noticed that caught my eye was the difference in full page spreads versus spreads with multiple panels. The full page spreads are very apparent and stand out compared to the other pages which is appealing to the eye and makes the story more entertaining. Niles also uses a variety of different colors so that the reader can get a sense of what mood the scene is set in. Despite the wide array of colors, they are on the darker spectrum of the color wheel setting a somber/depressing/scary tone on the book. I definitely recommend this book for those who are interested in horror comic books or graphic novels.

[John Michael Cozzoli · Rating 3 out of 5]

Too many cigarettes, an itchy trigger finger, ghoul's blood, and a vexing inability to get a day off, ever, makes Cal McDonald more surly than usual. Shooting up Mo'Locks gift on wheels wasn't too smart, either. But let's face it, it's McDonald's too-nervous energy and paranoia that keeps us coming back for more dead and deader occult shenanigans. And Steve Niles and Christopher Mitten in The Eyes of Frankenstein do their best to shake them up for McDonald.


http://www.zomboscloset.com/zombos_cl...

[John Shaw · Rating 5 out of 5]

Very few books manage to be better at the
"disreputable urban mage/magic detective/"
schtick than John Constantine
but Cal MacDonald from the Criminal Macabre
series by the great Steve Niles
gives Constantine a good run
MacDonald finds himself in a series
of grim adventures
featuring vampires , ghouls,
and even Frankenstein's Monster
who needs MacDonald's help in acquiring a new set of
eyes as his begin to fail
Amazing Noir crime stories
brilliantly woven with with urban horror
Criminal Macabre is a treat for fans of both genres

[Doreen · Rating 3 out of 5]

6/12/14 Review tk.

6/24/14 http://www.iwantmytwodollars.com/2014...

[Meran · Rating 4 out of 5]

fun as always. Full review once I catch up to my Have Read pile.

[Rose · Rating 5 out of 5]

I can't get enough of Cal McDonald. He is one of the best written anti-hero in books today.