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Creatures Of The Night
From the New York Times best-selling author Neil Gaiman comes this collection, featuring two magical and disturbing stories lushly adapted to comics by veteran painter Michael Zulli (The Last Temptation). Rewritten by Gaiman for this graphic novel, these two ominous stories from the author's award-winning prose work Smoke and Mirrors: Short Fictions and Illusions feature animals and people not being quite what they seem.
In "The Price," a black cat like a small panther arrives at a country home and is soon beset by mysterious and vicious wounds. What is he fighting every night that could do this, and why does he persist?
"The Daughter of Owls" recounts an eerie old tale of a foundling girl who was left with an owl pellet as a newborn on the steps of the Dymton Church. She was soon cloistered away in a local convent, but by her fourteenth year word of her beauty had spread -- and those who would prey upon her faced unforeseen consequences.
46 pages, Hardcover
First published December 19, 2000
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews
June 25, 2021
Michael Zulli illustrates two of Neil Gaiman's short stories from Smoke and Mirrors. Gaiman has reworked both stories for the comics medium. The first "The Price" was my favorite. A man who rescues cats wonders why his black cat comes home beat up every morning and discovers more than he bargained for. Gaiman really knocked it out of the park with this one. I found myself completely enthralled.
The second half of the book is from "The Daughter of Owls". For as much as I liked the first story, I only found this one to be OK. It almost felt like the barest sketch of a story. There just wasn't much to it and could have used a second draft. Michael Zulli's smoky art works well with both stories.
Received a review copy from Dark Horse and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
The second half of the book is from "The Daughter of Owls". For as much as I liked the first story, I only found this one to be OK. It almost felt like the barest sketch of a story. There just wasn't much to it and could have used a second draft. Michael Zulli's smoky art works well with both stories.
Received a review copy from Dark Horse and Edelweiss. All thoughts are my own and in no way influenced by the aforementioned.
September 1, 2020
"Y luego está el gato negro. Que no tiene otro nombre que el Gato Negro y que apareció hace casi un mes. Al principio no nos dimos cuenta de que iba a quedarse a vivir aquí: se le veía demasiado bien alimentado para ser un gato callejero, demasiado viejo y desenfadado para que lo hubieran abandonado. Parecía una pantera pequeña y se movía como un trozo de noche(...) Me pregunto qué hicimos para merecernos al Gato Negro. Me pregunto quién le envió. Y, egoísta y asustado, me pregunto si aún le queda mucho que dar"
"Las ancianas del Pueblo dijeron lo siguiente: que la niña era hija de Búhos y que debería morir abrasada, porque no había nacido de mujer. No obstante. Cabezas de familia y Ancianos más sabios prevalecieron y llevaron al bebé al Convento(...)y el Convento había quedado vacío, porque la gente del Pueblo pensaba que era un lugar de Demonios y cosas por el estilo..."
Un gato negro que regresa a casa, cada noche, lleno de heridas...
Una misteriosa niña abandonada a la puerta de un convento...
Ambos son criaturas de la noche. Ambos nos mostrarán un mundo más allá de los sentidos.
La Adaptacion grafica de "El precio" y "La hija de los búhos". Dos historias cortas, mágicas y lúgubres, de Neil Gaiman, pertenecientes a la antología humo y espejos( dos de las que personalmente mas me gustaron de dicha antología) con unos hermosos dibujos de Michael Zulli(sandman, entre otros)
"Las ancianas del Pueblo dijeron lo siguiente: que la niña era hija de Búhos y que debería morir abrasada, porque no había nacido de mujer. No obstante. Cabezas de familia y Ancianos más sabios prevalecieron y llevaron al bebé al Convento(...)y el Convento había quedado vacío, porque la gente del Pueblo pensaba que era un lugar de Demonios y cosas por el estilo..."
Un gato negro que regresa a casa, cada noche, lleno de heridas...
Una misteriosa niña abandonada a la puerta de un convento...
Ambos son criaturas de la noche. Ambos nos mostrarán un mundo más allá de los sentidos.
La Adaptacion grafica de "El precio" y "La hija de los búhos". Dos historias cortas, mágicas y lúgubres, de Neil Gaiman, pertenecientes a la antología humo y espejos( dos de las que personalmente mas me gustaron de dicha antología) con unos hermosos dibujos de Michael Zulli(sandman, entre otros)
October 6, 2018
Creatures of the Night is 2 short stories about creatures told in Graphic novel form. I feel like I read 'The Price' about the black cat in a short story collection. The Daughter of Owls seems new to me.
The Price is about a family protected by a cat. The cat keeps showing up after being in fights getting beat up badly with plenty of battle scars. Poor thing. The owner does find out who is fighting the cat and you need to read it to find out. It sent chills up my spine.
The Daughter of Owls was a dark tale as well. A baby is left on the steps of a church and of course all the people in the village thinks she is cursed so they do the only sensible thing and send her to live a life alone in an abandoned convent. Poor girl can't even speak. The horror at the end of the story is terrible and you need to find out for yourself.
These were quick and fun October reads. Neil has a special way with words that is so natural and yet he gets to the deep part of a story, the heart of it in a way that you know it viscerally and like you are there. He is brilliant.
The Price is about a family protected by a cat. The cat keeps showing up after being in fights getting beat up badly with plenty of battle scars. Poor thing. The owner does find out who is fighting the cat and you need to read it to find out. It sent chills up my spine.
The Daughter of Owls was a dark tale as well. A baby is left on the steps of a church and of course all the people in the village thinks she is cursed so they do the only sensible thing and send her to live a life alone in an abandoned convent. Poor girl can't even speak. The horror at the end of the story is terrible and you need to find out for yourself.
These were quick and fun October reads. Neil has a special way with words that is so natural and yet he gets to the deep part of a story, the heart of it in a way that you know it viscerally and like you are there. He is brilliant.
June 30, 2017
Two very short stories from Gaiman's own Smoke and Mirrors collection, The Price, which is a cat-lover's story that is also a confrontation with the Devil (in the shape of a woman as often is the case with Gaiman, sigh). A slight story with a quick ending, but as a cat-lover, it stays with me, and Zulli's cat illustrations are lovely.
The Daughter of Owls is also slight, but with some punch. It's a story within a story, a fairy tale, with a woman born of owls who protects herself through magical means against the assault of several men. Features the epic script lettering of the incomparable Todd Klein.
3 for the stories, 5 for the art and lettering, overall 4.
The Daughter of Owls is also slight, but with some punch. It's a story within a story, a fairy tale, with a woman born of owls who protects herself through magical means against the assault of several men. Features the epic script lettering of the incomparable Todd Klein.
3 for the stories, 5 for the art and lettering, overall 4.
September 7, 2024
این کمیک شامل دو داستان از داستان کوتاههای نیل گیمن از کتاب دود و آینهها بود:
بها(؟ پرایس. نمیدونم ترجمه اسمش چی میشه، همون گربهه)
و دختر جغد ها
در ارتباط با استایل طراحیها باید بگم که حس گیمن رو منتقل میکرد. بخصوص در مورد دخترجغدها خوب با جزییات پیش برده بود. البته یه مشکل بزرگی باهاش داشتم فونت اون قسمتیه که همین داستان رو تعریف میکرد.
چندتا پنل خیلی زیبا هم داشت.
محتوایی هم قسمت دختر جغدها، هم ذات انسانی رو نشون میداد هم اینکه خودمون باعث چه اتفاقات و عواقبی میتونیم بشیم رو.
بخوام یکم اسپویلی بگم، یه جورایی برعکس داستان زال خودمونه. این رو پرندهها رها کرده بودن پیش آدمها و آدمها باهاش بد تا کردند بجا فرزانه شدن فرال شد.
یه چیز جالبی کلا تو اون سری داستانها هست که میاد یه سری چیزای از قبل تو ذهن بوده رو تغییر میده.
برای گربهه هم، طبق اکثر داستان ها وقتی گربه سیاهی هست توقع اولیه اکثرا اینه که این گربهه موجود پلید و شیطانی و اینا باشه اگه قرار باشه چنین موجودی تو داستان باشه، نه اینکه گربه بیاد با این مقابله کنه.
بها(؟ پرایس. نمیدونم ترجمه اسمش چی میشه، همون گربهه)
و دختر جغد ها
در ارتباط با استایل طراحیها باید بگم که حس گیمن رو منتقل میکرد. بخصوص در مورد دخترجغدها خوب با جزییات پیش برده بود. البته یه مشکل بزرگی باهاش داشتم فونت اون قسمتیه که همین داستان رو تعریف میکرد.
چندتا پنل خیلی زیبا هم داشت.
محتوایی هم قسمت دختر جغدها، هم ذات انسانی رو نشون میداد هم اینکه خودمون باعث چه اتفاقات و عواقبی میتونیم بشیم رو.
بخوام یکم اسپویلی بگم، یه جورایی برعکس داستان زال خودمونه. این رو پرندهها رها کرده بودن پیش آدمها و آدمها باهاش بد تا کردند بجا فرزانه شدن فرال شد.
یه چیز جالبی کلا تو اون سری داستانها هست که میاد یه سری چیزای از قبل تو ذهن بوده رو تغییر میده.
برای گربهه هم، طبق اکثر داستان ها وقتی گربه سیاهی هست توقع اولیه اکثرا اینه که این گربهه موجود پلید و شیطانی و اینا باشه اگه قرار باشه چنین موجودی تو داستان باشه، نه اینکه گربه بیاد با این مقابله کنه.
November 14, 2020
3.5 for the artwork tbqh
I didn't realize this was two stories compiled in one volume. My rating is a reflection of how I found the tales overall.
The art is GORGEOUS, especially with "The Daughter of Owls." So much attention to detail and it looked like a fairytale to match the actual story! I would have liked to see a feature about the artist and his process for creating two varied styles for this book (perhaps "Snow, Glass, Apples" spoiled me)!
Content warning: sexual assault (implied, not graphic), nudity/disturbing supernatural imagery, and misogyny
I didn't realize this was two stories compiled in one volume. My rating is a reflection of how I found the tales overall.
The art is GORGEOUS, especially with "The Daughter of Owls." So much attention to detail and it looked like a fairytale to match the actual story! I would have liked to see a feature about the artist and his process for creating two varied styles for this book (perhaps "Snow, Glass, Apples" spoiled me)!
Content warning: sexual assault (implied, not graphic), nudity/disturbing supernatural imagery, and misogyny
February 26, 2018
Creatures of the Night is a collection of two short Neil Gaiman stories. The first is sublime! I, an avowed and proud misanthrope, have always been a big fan of animals." The Price" is a touching and wonderful tale about a cat that protects a family from a mysterious threat. An excellent and creepy tale. Be nice to cats (and all animals) since you just never know what they are up too. Very mysterious creatures.
The second story is not as good, but still decent. "The Daughter of Owls" is the tale of a young orphan girl who has mysterious origins. This comes to bear when some ill-intentioned men assault her.
Both stories feature art that conforms well to the tone of the story. Both stories are quite good, but my affinity for animals has me biased towards the first. But this is a great volume for a quick read at night with the lights held low. Any Gaiman fan will like this.
The second story is not as good, but still decent. "The Daughter of Owls" is the tale of a young orphan girl who has mysterious origins. This comes to bear when some ill-intentioned men assault her.
Both stories feature art that conforms well to the tone of the story. Both stories are quite good, but my affinity for animals has me biased towards the first. But this is a great volume for a quick read at night with the lights held low. Any Gaiman fan will like this.
August 6, 2017
This was first published in 2000, but Dark Horse has republished a beautiful new edition. The contents are two short stories by Neil Gaiman - "The Price" and "The Daughter of Owls" - illustrated by the paintings of Michael Zulli. The paintings have a fairy tale, traditional quality to them, and this makes them feel very classic. The tone of the stories is typical Gaiman, fantasy and disturbing and strange and emotional.
Recent fans of Through the Woods by Emily Carroll might enjoy a visit to these stories in particular, as I found some similarities in tone.
Thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy through Edelweiss.
Recent fans of Through the Woods by Emily Carroll might enjoy a visit to these stories in particular, as I found some similarities in tone.
Thanks to the publisher for providing a review copy through Edelweiss.
March 20, 2018
Este volumen cortito reúne dos historias, de unas veinte páginas cada una, que adaptan al cómic dos relatos de Gaiman que fueron recopilados, entre otros, en "Humo y espejos". Los relatos no los he leído (todavía), pero el cómic me ha gustado mucho. Parte de la culpa la tiene también Michael Zulli, ilustrador que conocí en "El velatorio", uno de los tomos de "Sandman". Me gusta mucho su trabajo.
Poco se puede contar de estas dos historias sin desvelar la gracia, pero decir que me ha gustado más la primera. Ambas hablan de criaturas de la noche, como su propio nombre indica: la primera de gatos y la segunda de búhos, pero con el estilo Gaiman oscuro y siniestro que suele caracterizar sus creaciones. Es decir, no vamos a encontrar en estas historias "gatetes" y buhítos", sino "gatos" y "búhos" ;)
Poco se puede contar de estas dos historias sin desvelar la gracia, pero decir que me ha gustado más la primera. Ambas hablan de criaturas de la noche, como su propio nombre indica: la primera de gatos y la segunda de búhos, pero con el estilo Gaiman oscuro y siniestro que suele caracterizar sus creaciones. Es decir, no vamos a encontrar en estas historias "gatetes" y buhítos", sino "gatos" y "búhos" ;)
June 12, 2019
My first ever comics.
This includes 2 stories - The Price and The Daughter of Owls. The first one is about cats, so didn't like it much. The second was a lot more from the Gaiman's world. But for both something Gaiman-esque lacked.
Only one book left from Gaiman on my shelves, hope I don't get disappointed. Fingers crossed.
This includes 2 stories - The Price and The Daughter of Owls. The first one is about cats, so didn't like it much. The second was a lot more from the Gaiman's world. But for both something Gaiman-esque lacked.
Only one book left from Gaiman on my shelves, hope I don't get disappointed. Fingers crossed.
March 1, 2020
These ilustrations are so good to look at. And Gaiman produced a wonderful, surprising story about cats. Cats and writers go way back, almost as much as dogs and hunters, I would guess. This is like a fable, some narrative to be told and listened by the fire. The art is warm and alive, and suits the story.
August 7, 2017
Two delighful shortvstories awesomly illustrated.
As a cat lover, I ejnoyed "The Price" and because one of my kitten is black, it made me love it more!
The daughter of the owls was good, not as good as the first, but enjoyable in the fairy tale sort of way.
As a cat lover, I ejnoyed "The Price" and because one of my kitten is black, it made me love it more!
The daughter of the owls was good, not as good as the first, but enjoyable in the fairy tale sort of way.
March 29, 2023
I am surprised I have not written about this book before as I know I have read it several times. The short book (only 48 odd pages) contains two stories one of which the price always catches in my throat when I read it.
So of course when I sort out my book shelves and yes I do it quite often I have to stop and read it with the same effect every time.
And why the response - well I have cared for many a rescue cat over the years but the one I remember most fondly was a monster of black cat - the beast of Bodmin (those from the UK will understand). He would take you hand to the bone as soon as look at you - but with me we had a special bond - too many and too long to explain here - and reading this story I think of him, how fierce he was how loyal he was I still miss him all these years later and this story remind me of him every time.
So of course when I sort out my book shelves and yes I do it quite often I have to stop and read it with the same effect every time.
And why the response - well I have cared for many a rescue cat over the years but the one I remember most fondly was a monster of black cat - the beast of Bodmin (those from the UK will understand). He would take you hand to the bone as soon as look at you - but with me we had a special bond - too many and too long to explain here - and reading this story I think of him, how fierce he was how loyal he was I still miss him all these years later and this story remind me of him every time.
October 31, 2013
Stuff I Read - Creatures of the Night Review
I borrowed this book from my wife, who got it mostly because it combines Neil Gaiman and animals, so a win-win in most any book. And while the art is quite good and the stories are decent, this was something of a let-down, as the book really doesn't have the legs needed to carry an entire graphic novel. It's only two stories, and though both of them are fine, they are a little lacking in depth. At less than fifty pages that might be understandable, but I was hoping for a bit more from Gaiman, who has proven he can do a lot with limited space.
The first of the stories, dealing with cats, was the better. Dealing with a man and a mysterious cat who shows up at his home, it is interesting to watch, and there is a slowly building suspense throughout the story that made me want to get to the end, to find out what was happening. Unfortunately, when it does make its way to reveal what's happening, the answer is rather weak and really not that satisfying. The visuals were good, the art solid, and the prose worked quite well. There just wasn't much there, and while I appreciated the story, I wanted more. Given that Gaiman has told much better cat stories even during his Sandman tenure, this one left me wanting more.
The second story was a bit weaker, told as a sort of fable of the daughter of owls. Again, this is a fairly straight forward story, but I don't think it really worked as much as a fable. Basically people think that this child is the daughter of owls, and every woman wants to kill her for being an abomination. The men decide no and send her away, and she grows up to be hot. The men then all go to rape her and instead are killed because she actually is the daughter of owls. And that leaves me with some questions. Because obviously the women at the beginning were then right? Or they were wrong, and the men were wrong, and...I'm not sure. I guess I just didn't like as much that every woman wanted to kill it and every man wanted to rape it. It was a morality tale, in that everyone was punished, but I couldn't get to invested in it because I wasn't sure exactly what should have been done.
So with these two stories there just isn't a whole lot to work with for the book. I wish there were more stories, or that these ones were longer, but so it goes. As it stands they are serviceable, but nothing really special, and not up to par with Gaiman's work on Sandman or most of his other graphic novel work. The art was the best part, and I would have liked for some more dynamic stories for the artist to really show off more. All told, it's not bad, but it could have been a lot better, and so I'm left giving it a 6.25/10.
I borrowed this book from my wife, who got it mostly because it combines Neil Gaiman and animals, so a win-win in most any book. And while the art is quite good and the stories are decent, this was something of a let-down, as the book really doesn't have the legs needed to carry an entire graphic novel. It's only two stories, and though both of them are fine, they are a little lacking in depth. At less than fifty pages that might be understandable, but I was hoping for a bit more from Gaiman, who has proven he can do a lot with limited space.
The first of the stories, dealing with cats, was the better. Dealing with a man and a mysterious cat who shows up at his home, it is interesting to watch, and there is a slowly building suspense throughout the story that made me want to get to the end, to find out what was happening. Unfortunately, when it does make its way to reveal what's happening, the answer is rather weak and really not that satisfying. The visuals were good, the art solid, and the prose worked quite well. There just wasn't much there, and while I appreciated the story, I wanted more. Given that Gaiman has told much better cat stories even during his Sandman tenure, this one left me wanting more.
The second story was a bit weaker, told as a sort of fable of the daughter of owls. Again, this is a fairly straight forward story, but I don't think it really worked as much as a fable. Basically people think that this child is the daughter of owls, and every woman wants to kill her for being an abomination. The men decide no and send her away, and she grows up to be hot. The men then all go to rape her and instead are killed because she actually is the daughter of owls. And that leaves me with some questions. Because obviously the women at the beginning were then right? Or they were wrong, and the men were wrong, and...I'm not sure. I guess I just didn't like as much that every woman wanted to kill it and every man wanted to rape it. It was a morality tale, in that everyone was punished, but I couldn't get to invested in it because I wasn't sure exactly what should have been done.
So with these two stories there just isn't a whole lot to work with for the book. I wish there were more stories, or that these ones were longer, but so it goes. As it stands they are serviceable, but nothing really special, and not up to par with Gaiman's work on Sandman or most of his other graphic novel work. The art was the best part, and I would have liked for some more dynamic stories for the artist to really show off more. All told, it's not bad, but it could have been a lot better, and so I'm left giving it a 6.25/10.
October 8, 2017
The artwork for this is absolutely gorgeous but the stories, while not necessarily bad, are still not my favorites / use tropes that I don't really like. The first one always makes me sad because I hate when animals get hurt in stories and especially when it's a cat I have to like go find my cat and make sure she's okay because I have turned into a sentimental fool apparently. So good story but it makes me sad and I am not one of those people who likes sad stories. The second story is again an interesting concept but I really don't like rape as a plot device so I honestly could have skipped that as well. However if those things aren't hard no's for you then you'll probably really this but for me it was just 'I can objectively see that this is good but it's not necessarily for me'.
May 13, 2013
I'll pretty much read anything with Gaiman's name on it, so when I saw this with the blurb of "Magic, mystery, and ethereal intrigue" it was a no brainier that I should check it out. Unfortunately, I've been left disappointed by what I got.
It's short. Like, unbelievably short. This book has two stories, one about cats and the other about owls, both of which are only some twenty pages long. Seeing it on the shelf made me think it was much longer than that. The hardcover is deceptive in its bulk.
Although, it should be said that the art is very beautiful and the writing is incredibly imaginative. I just don't understand the length! The stories here have tons of potential to be further fleshed out and frankly should have been for the sake of the stories themselves. Although the quality is there, the substance isn't. It's that comparison of going to a really fancy restaurant and ordering the salad only to be served a teeny-tiny piece of lettuce and one single cherry tomato. I need a little bit more bang for my buck, especially when it comes to a hardcover that would cost me $17 without tax here in Canada.
It's short. Like, unbelievably short. This book has two stories, one about cats and the other about owls, both of which are only some twenty pages long. Seeing it on the shelf made me think it was much longer than that. The hardcover is deceptive in its bulk.
Although, it should be said that the art is very beautiful and the writing is incredibly imaginative. I just don't understand the length! The stories here have tons of potential to be further fleshed out and frankly should have been for the sake of the stories themselves. Although the quality is there, the substance isn't. It's that comparison of going to a really fancy restaurant and ordering the salad only to be served a teeny-tiny piece of lettuce and one single cherry tomato. I need a little bit more bang for my buck, especially when it comes to a hardcover that would cost me $17 without tax here in Canada.
September 19, 2011
"Creatures of the NIght" takes two short stories Gaiman wrote for his collection "Smoke and Mirrors" and reconstitutes them into comic book form by artist Michael Zulli. "The Price" is about a black cat that protects a family from the Devil night after night without the family realising and "The Daughter of Owls" is about a beautiful girl locked away who defends herself one night against possible rapists, using magic means.
I've read "Smoke and Mirrors" and, though I remember them, they weren't the strongest ones in the collection and so they make average comic book stories. Illustrated nicely by Zulli using canvas and oils, it's an alright read but seems more of a cashcow for Gaiman, double dipping old stories into new books.
I've read "Smoke and Mirrors" and, though I remember them, they weren't the strongest ones in the collection and so they make average comic book stories. Illustrated nicely by Zulli using canvas and oils, it's an alright read but seems more of a cashcow for Gaiman, double dipping old stories into new books.
June 25, 2018
2 very shorts stories that have a folk lore feel that are beautifully illustrated. The first story called "The price" is excellent, its about a black cat the acts as a guardian to a old farm house. The second story called "daughter of Owls" was not as strong in my opinion. Daughter of Owls is about a young girl who is an orphan and kept away from society. Both are very fast reads but worth a look.
May 17, 2020
This presents two Neil Gaiman stories. I prefer the artwork in the second, Daughter of Owls, though the plot in that story was far more predictable.
I have a question about the writing, he refers to the devil as a he, even though the devil is portrayed as a naked woman (later the pronoun changes). Why the naked woman? It really wasn’t needed in the story/
I have a question about the writing, he refers to the devil as a he, even though the devil is portrayed as a naked woman (later the pronoun changes). Why the naked woman? It really wasn’t needed in the story/
December 1, 2017
This review originally published in Looking For a Good Book. Rated 3.5 of 5
This brief graphic novel, written by one of the world's premier fantasy authors, Neil Gaiman, features two short stories: "The Price" and "The Daughter of Owls."
Michael Zulli's illustrations really enhance these already powerful stories. The art here does what art should do in a graphic novel ... it helps tell the story. I noted that Gaiman rewrote the works to fit the graphic novel format. I haven't read the works prior to this, so I don't know what changes were made, but I suspect it had a lot to do with allowing the images tell some of the story.
"The Price" was easily my favorite of the two stories here. Gaiman keeps the reader in much suspense, slowly revealing the 'truth' of the story which is both heart-warming and frightening at the same time. It is Gaiman's skill to give us these contradicting emotions that really makes me appreciate him.
Though extremely brief, I struggled with "The Daughter of Owls." The story is interesting (it's Neil Gaiman - of course the story is interesting!) but the decision to have the lettering in a flowing, artistic script is strange. I understand the motivation for it, and how, artistically, it fits within the story, but it made it very difficult for this reader. It slowed me down. It took me out of the flow of the story in order to read the story.
(See the review on my website for an example of this lettering.)
At least on my computer I could enlarge the page a number of times so that I could read the words, but that made it more difficult to scroll through the book.
The art was also not as up to par in this story as it was with the first story. This art felt more like colored sketches than a stylized, finished work.
If this were only the last story, with this art and lettering, I'd struggle to recommend the book even though it's a Neil Gaiman story. But with the powerful story "The Price" leading this off, this is easily a book to recommend.
Looking for a good book? Creatures of the Night is a graphic novel with two stories by Neil Gaiman and art by Michael Zulli. If you have a collection of Gaiman books, you will definitely want to include this book. If you do not have a collection of Neil Gaiman books, you should start one and do so with this book.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
This brief graphic novel, written by one of the world's premier fantasy authors, Neil Gaiman, features two short stories: "The Price" and "The Daughter of Owls."
Michael Zulli's illustrations really enhance these already powerful stories. The art here does what art should do in a graphic novel ... it helps tell the story. I noted that Gaiman rewrote the works to fit the graphic novel format. I haven't read the works prior to this, so I don't know what changes were made, but I suspect it had a lot to do with allowing the images tell some of the story.
"The Price" was easily my favorite of the two stories here. Gaiman keeps the reader in much suspense, slowly revealing the 'truth' of the story which is both heart-warming and frightening at the same time. It is Gaiman's skill to give us these contradicting emotions that really makes me appreciate him.
Though extremely brief, I struggled with "The Daughter of Owls." The story is interesting (it's Neil Gaiman - of course the story is interesting!) but the decision to have the lettering in a flowing, artistic script is strange. I understand the motivation for it, and how, artistically, it fits within the story, but it made it very difficult for this reader. It slowed me down. It took me out of the flow of the story in order to read the story.
(See the review on my website for an example of this lettering.)
At least on my computer I could enlarge the page a number of times so that I could read the words, but that made it more difficult to scroll through the book.
The art was also not as up to par in this story as it was with the first story. This art felt more like colored sketches than a stylized, finished work.
If this were only the last story, with this art and lettering, I'd struggle to recommend the book even though it's a Neil Gaiman story. But with the powerful story "The Price" leading this off, this is easily a book to recommend.
Looking for a good book? Creatures of the Night is a graphic novel with two stories by Neil Gaiman and art by Michael Zulli. If you have a collection of Gaiman books, you will definitely want to include this book. If you do not have a collection of Neil Gaiman books, you should start one and do so with this book.
I received a digital copy of this book from the publisher, through Edelweiss, in exchange for an honest review.
July 8, 2018
Wow the art in this is killer. Each panel is a stunning watercolor that fits perfectly the tone of the story. Sometimes more 'artsy' graphic novels can feel a little self-indulgent with their art, not so here. If this was rendered in black and white with plain ink drawings the panel design, layout, and general flow of each story would still work very well - the art just takes it to the next level.
As for the stories themselves, I wasn't really blown away to be honest. Like with other works by Gaiman (unpopular opinion): the build-up is terrific and the actual reveal is a bit of a let-down.
The first story, about a cat fighting terrors in the night, had a lot of potential but then the nothing really happened. In the second story, more happens, but it's left very surface-level. I was hoping for something a little more like Alan Garner's The Owl Service, but honestly it didn't even transgress into creepy.
Nevertheless, this is a nice couple of stories which are definitely worth getting out the library but I would be hesitant to recommend purchasing outright unless you're a diehard Gaiman fan.
3.5 stars, rounded up.
One of the great things about libraries is that you can take a chance on items you haven't tried before with zero risk.
On my most recent trip I decided to pick up 5 graphic novels that sounded interesting and had, at a minimum, an art-style I could tolerate. This review is the first product of that trip. Part 4 of 5.
As for the stories themselves, I wasn't really blown away to be honest. Like with other works by Gaiman (unpopular opinion): the build-up is terrific and the actual reveal is a bit of a let-down.
The first story, about a cat fighting terrors in the night, had a lot of potential but then the nothing really happened. In the second story, more happens, but it's left very surface-level. I was hoping for something a little more like Alan Garner's The Owl Service, but honestly it didn't even transgress into creepy.
Nevertheless, this is a nice couple of stories which are definitely worth getting out the library but I would be hesitant to recommend purchasing outright unless you're a diehard Gaiman fan.
3.5 stars, rounded up.
One of the great things about libraries is that you can take a chance on items you haven't tried before with zero risk.
On my most recent trip I decided to pick up 5 graphic novels that sounded interesting and had, at a minimum, an art-style I could tolerate. This review is the first product of that trip. Part 4 of 5.
July 11, 2023
Em "O preço", temos o dono de uma casa com vários gatos e o misterioso Gato Preto que apareceu repentinamente, sempre machucado. Quando o homem decide entender porque isso acontecia, o Gato passa a ser muito mais do que já era.
"A filha das corujas" nos prende com a história de uma criança deixada na porta de uma igreja. Ela então é isolada da cidade em um convento por acreditarem que é amaldiçoada, quando quem vem amaldiçoá-la ao crescer são os homens repugnantes do local ao saberem de sua beleza.
Duas histórias envolventes e maravilhosas! Vindo do Neil Gaiman tem que ser fantástico mesmo e as ilustrações seguem a grandeza das histórias!
Amei!
"A filha das corujas" nos prende com a história de uma criança deixada na porta de uma igreja. Ela então é isolada da cidade em um convento por acreditarem que é amaldiçoada, quando quem vem amaldiçoá-la ao crescer são os homens repugnantes do local ao saberem de sua beleza.
Duas histórias envolventes e maravilhosas! Vindo do Neil Gaiman tem que ser fantástico mesmo e as ilustrações seguem a grandeza das histórias!
Amei!
June 20, 2011
This graphic novel includes two of Gaiman's short stories from Smoke and Mirrors, and I'll provide separate reviews for them.
DAUGHTER OF OWLS:
Neil Gaiman penned "The Daughter of Owls" in style of one of his favorite authors, John Aubrey. I enjoyed it enormously; the prose set the mood of the tale quite right, for it felt as if it was really written a long time ago. The story is about a girl left on the steps of a Church, holding Owl pellets that when crushed would reveal small animal bones. She was isolated but she grew up beautifully, and when some of the men in town heard about her beauty, they went to her to rape her. Owls came to her rescue then; the chilling ending quite tied itself up with the beginning, with the mention of new owl pellets:
“On the morrow, when the sun was high, the good-wives of the Town went through Dymton a-hunting High and Low for theyr Husbands and theyr Sonnes; wch, coming to the Convent, they fownd, on the Cellar stones, ye pellets of owles: & in the pellets they discovered hair & buckles & coins, & small bones: & also a quantity of straw upon the floor.”
Creepy, indeed. This tale showed how versatile Gaiman is as a writer—no matter what style he uses, as long as he throws something....something Gaimanesque in it, you can be sure that you’re in for a great read, haha. I like twisted fairytales, and The Daughter of Owls sounds like one. While I think short fiction was not Gaiman’s particular forte (try his best-selling novel American Gods and you’ll know what I mean)—you can clearly see the commendable way he develops the plot and characters in his longer works—it is evident that his shorter works can leave their impact as well, just not as great as the impact of his novels. I still think the drabbles and short stories are praiseworthy, especially if you’ll compare them to other SF contemporary works that were longer and more florid but don’t make their points. Gaiman can always surprise, shock, or just plainly creep you out in his briefest writings.
THE PRICE:
The Price is a story of a middle aged writer living with a penchant of adopting stray cats. A newcomer to his feline family is this mysterious leonine black cat that shows up every morning with bleeding cuts and wounds. Curious about who or what this cat is fighting every night, the writer decided to spy and discovered that the cat is more than what it seems.
The Black Cat character quite struck a chord with me, since I’ve read the novella Coraline before I purchased Smoke and Mirrors (I think now that Gaiman took that cat and redesigned him into less of an angel and more of a guide for Coraline. That’s just an assumption though). Something’s lacking in this story, I think. Maybe it ended so abruptly—I really wanted to see more of this story. It was like, I was already drowning in the setting he’d created and then he pulled me back up to reality without any warning. At least that’s what it felt like. I think it was too short.
Also, it reminded me of the bonus story in the introduction of the collection, The Wedding Present. The part where the Black Cat was kept in the basement and all bad luck came rushing in, and how it ended when they set the Cat free again to loiter around their house and yard…it’s reminiscent of how the wedding description “sucked” all the bad luck away. Not in the same style, but the similarity is there.
Lovely description of the cats and the transforming Devil, though. I loved those parts immensely.
DAUGHTER OF OWLS:
Neil Gaiman penned "The Daughter of Owls" in style of one of his favorite authors, John Aubrey. I enjoyed it enormously; the prose set the mood of the tale quite right, for it felt as if it was really written a long time ago. The story is about a girl left on the steps of a Church, holding Owl pellets that when crushed would reveal small animal bones. She was isolated but she grew up beautifully, and when some of the men in town heard about her beauty, they went to her to rape her. Owls came to her rescue then; the chilling ending quite tied itself up with the beginning, with the mention of new owl pellets:
“On the morrow, when the sun was high, the good-wives of the Town went through Dymton a-hunting High and Low for theyr Husbands and theyr Sonnes; wch, coming to the Convent, they fownd, on the Cellar stones, ye pellets of owles: & in the pellets they discovered hair & buckles & coins, & small bones: & also a quantity of straw upon the floor.”
Creepy, indeed. This tale showed how versatile Gaiman is as a writer—no matter what style he uses, as long as he throws something....something Gaimanesque in it, you can be sure that you’re in for a great read, haha. I like twisted fairytales, and The Daughter of Owls sounds like one. While I think short fiction was not Gaiman’s particular forte (try his best-selling novel American Gods and you’ll know what I mean)—you can clearly see the commendable way he develops the plot and characters in his longer works—it is evident that his shorter works can leave their impact as well, just not as great as the impact of his novels. I still think the drabbles and short stories are praiseworthy, especially if you’ll compare them to other SF contemporary works that were longer and more florid but don’t make their points. Gaiman can always surprise, shock, or just plainly creep you out in his briefest writings.
THE PRICE:
The Price is a story of a middle aged writer living with a penchant of adopting stray cats. A newcomer to his feline family is this mysterious leonine black cat that shows up every morning with bleeding cuts and wounds. Curious about who or what this cat is fighting every night, the writer decided to spy and discovered that the cat is more than what it seems.
The Black Cat character quite struck a chord with me, since I’ve read the novella Coraline before I purchased Smoke and Mirrors (I think now that Gaiman took that cat and redesigned him into less of an angel and more of a guide for Coraline. That’s just an assumption though). Something’s lacking in this story, I think. Maybe it ended so abruptly—I really wanted to see more of this story. It was like, I was already drowning in the setting he’d created and then he pulled me back up to reality without any warning. At least that’s what it felt like. I think it was too short.
Also, it reminded me of the bonus story in the introduction of the collection, The Wedding Present. The part where the Black Cat was kept in the basement and all bad luck came rushing in, and how it ended when they set the Cat free again to loiter around their house and yard…it’s reminiscent of how the wedding description “sucked” all the bad luck away. Not in the same style, but the similarity is there.
Lovely description of the cats and the transforming Devil, though. I loved those parts immensely.
September 22, 2014
This anthology contains two very short stories of Gaiman's, adapted into graphic novel form, with illustrations from Michael Zulli. Both originally appeared in Smokes and Mirrors. It's an extremely quick read - only forty pages of graphic novel content. Still, I have somewhat different opinions on each story, so here are separate reviews.
The Price: 3/5
This was the weaker one of the two. I felt like it built up in kind of a roundabout way, and although the twist at the end was surprising, the villain was pretty dull, and kind of a cop-out on Gaiman's part. Still, the artwork was pretty good, and although it was a little explanation-heavy, Gaiman's language is still masterful.
Daughter of Owls: 4/5
I liked this one better. Gaiman very effectively captures a fairy-tale atmosphere here. I didn't feel like Zulli's artwork was as well-suited to this story as the last one, but it was still mostly effective. The story was pretty straightforward, but still entertaining, and the ending was very nice.
Overall, there's not a whole lot to say here. This was a mostly entertaining couple of short comics, and on the whole, I liked it better than the first volume of Sandman (the other Gaiman graphic novel I've read). I'd recommend it to fans of Gaiman - it might seem like something only an obsessive fan would care about, but it's entertaining, and a quick enough read that it's worth the fact that it's somewhat forgettable.
The Price: 3/5
This was the weaker one of the two. I felt like it built up in kind of a roundabout way, and although the twist at the end was surprising, the villain was pretty dull, and kind of a cop-out on Gaiman's part. Still, the artwork was pretty good, and although it was a little explanation-heavy, Gaiman's language is still masterful.
Daughter of Owls: 4/5
I liked this one better. Gaiman very effectively captures a fairy-tale atmosphere here. I didn't feel like Zulli's artwork was as well-suited to this story as the last one, but it was still mostly effective. The story was pretty straightforward, but still entertaining, and the ending was very nice.
Overall, there's not a whole lot to say here. This was a mostly entertaining couple of short comics, and on the whole, I liked it better than the first volume of Sandman (the other Gaiman graphic novel I've read). I'd recommend it to fans of Gaiman - it might seem like something only an obsessive fan would care about, but it's entertaining, and a quick enough read that it's worth the fact that it's somewhat forgettable.
August 14, 2015
Spicuiri din recenzia finala care se gaseste pe blogul meu
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Povestirile sunt fantastice, în cel mai curat stil al genului. O pisică care are puteri speciale și care păzește o casă de demoni și o fată care ajunge să fie un fel de zeiță a răzbunării după ce este siluită când împlinește 14 ani.
Gaiman scrie frumos, cursiv, narațiunea este plăcută, șocantă pe alocuri, suficient cât să te facă să tresari, totul excelent susținut de Zulli care desenează cu plăcere panourile pe care textul lui Gaiman le cere.
Un volumaș fain care-ți va oferi câteva zeci de minute de delectare în preajma unora dintre cele mai bune povestiri scurte ale lui Gaiman.
De ce 3 stele: pentru că a doua povestire nu s-a putut ridica la nivelul primeia. Ok, am înțeles tenta moralizatoare și povestirea în genul basmelor vechi care erau menite a fi educaționale, dar parcă prea a fost trasă de păr. Per total, volumașul merită toată atenția chiar dacă Fiica Bufnițelor mai mergea bibilită pe ici-colo.
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Povestirile sunt fantastice, în cel mai curat stil al genului. O pisică care are puteri speciale și care păzește o casă de demoni și o fată care ajunge să fie un fel de zeiță a răzbunării după ce este siluită când împlinește 14 ani.
Gaiman scrie frumos, cursiv, narațiunea este plăcută, șocantă pe alocuri, suficient cât să te facă să tresari, totul excelent susținut de Zulli care desenează cu plăcere panourile pe care textul lui Gaiman le cere.
Un volumaș fain care-ți va oferi câteva zeci de minute de delectare în preajma unora dintre cele mai bune povestiri scurte ale lui Gaiman.
De ce 3 stele: pentru că a doua povestire nu s-a putut ridica la nivelul primeia. Ok, am înțeles tenta moralizatoare și povestirea în genul basmelor vechi care erau menite a fi educaționale, dar parcă prea a fost trasă de păr. Per total, volumașul merită toată atenția chiar dacă Fiica Bufnițelor mai mergea bibilită pe ici-colo.
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January 17, 2012
Creatures of the Night is two short stories by Neil Gaiman in a hardcover volume from Dark Horse Books, lavishly illustrated by the phenomenal Michael Zulli.
"The Price" is about a black cat who adopts a family but turns up more injured every day. The father decides to find out what goes on in his front yard every night...
"Daughter of Owls" takes the form of a fireside story told by one collector of stories to another; a cautionary tale of the Grimms' variety.
Both stories appear, I believe, in Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors in their original short story form. For Creatures, Zulli has transformed them into "comics" form. Zulli is an amazing illustrator, working in fine lines and muted colors to convey the mood of the stories; there is character and emotion in every line, every panel. He brings a whole seperate dimension to the original short stories. Which is what collaborations like this should do. (Like P. Craig Russell's illustrated edition of Gaiman's Murder Mysteries which I should also dig out and reread.
"The Price" is about a black cat who adopts a family but turns up more injured every day. The father decides to find out what goes on in his front yard every night...
"Daughter of Owls" takes the form of a fireside story told by one collector of stories to another; a cautionary tale of the Grimms' variety.
Both stories appear, I believe, in Gaiman's Smoke and Mirrors in their original short story form. For Creatures, Zulli has transformed them into "comics" form. Zulli is an amazing illustrator, working in fine lines and muted colors to convey the mood of the stories; there is character and emotion in every line, every panel. He brings a whole seperate dimension to the original short stories. Which is what collaborations like this should do. (Like P. Craig Russell's illustrated edition of Gaiman's Murder Mysteries which I should also dig out and reread.
June 26, 2018
Two stories from Neil Gaiman’s Smoke and Mirrors (one of my top three short story collections of all time), “The Price” and “The Daughter of Owls,” are illustrated in lush, fairy-tale-like paintings by Michael Zulli. A gorgeous volume. The stories focus on creatures of the night: first, a stray black cat who is injured by a mysterious enemy each night, and second, an orphan girl who is said to have been raised by owls. Content warning for sexual violence. This is a beautiful volume, and my only complaint was that the script of “The Daughter of Owls” was quite hard to read.
June 10, 2013
Neil Gaiman's story of the Black Cat, so gorgeously illustrated in this book by Michael Zulli always brings me to tears. Having had a gorgeous, sweet, but tough stray black cat ourselves...the idea of his protection of our family from the devil many nights is just so moving.
November 18, 2019
Maybe 3.5. I know I've read the cat story (The Price) previously, but it was lovely to see it illustrated. The Daughter of Owls seemed less interesting as an illustrated tale.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 287 reviews