Love, loss, and rebellion!Pulled by some dark force, a hapless clerk dreams his way into a mysterious city called Rust, where builds a life, falls in love, but has that love stollen away by the brutish ruler who governs the city. In an effort to recover his bride, he must become the figurehead for a city-wide rebellion which is doomed to fail with bitter consequences.The Script Rebellion is a compelling graphic novella set in a mythical city at the heart of a world of dreams and nightmares. The book features artwork in a Mike Mignola style (Hellboy) along with additional artwork from a selection of indie artists.
Morgan Quaid is an Australian writer of urban fantasy and horror, specializing in fast-paced page turners set against expansive fantasy backdrops. When Morgan isn’t writing novels, comics, graphic novels, or short stories, he’s usually composing or producing music, or staring with longing and regret at a bar of chocolate.
Published works include: Whiplash Book 1 (Markosia), The Script Rebellion (Markosia), Shadow’s Daughter (Markosia), Idle Thuggery (Markosia). Upcoming works include: Rust Chronicles (Markosia 2022), The Blood Below (Markosia 2022), A Blade in the Dark (Black Caravan/Scout 2022).
The Script Rebellion is a dark story about a middle-aged man, Litmus, who runs an Inkery. His life is predictable and his routine for the days is set. When a young woman catches his eye, they fall in love and build a life together. He teaches her his craft and she excels at it, as if she has a gift. The cruel monarch, fearing magic, captures his beloved, sending Litmus on a quest to get her back. His descent into the underworld of his city and the drive to be with her again is heartbreaking to read. The art is stellar! It portrays the gravity and heaviness of the atmosphere really well. I felt that there were a few minor things that were introduced and will likely be fleshed out more in a follow-up book.
The Script Rebellion may be short, but it is packed with emotion and danger. I loved that the main character is a calligrapher and how his craft can be used to influence people in the city. Causing unrest and starting a revolution takes time and patience. Sometimes, the common man is the only one who can lead a revolution because more people can relate to him. This is portrayed distinctly through Litmus and his encounters with people once his wife is taken.
Content Notes include death, kidnapping, violence, human experimentation, riot, blood, gore.
Many thanks to the author for providing me a complimentary copy of the book for an honest review. I enjoyed it!
This horror graphic novel features a tyrannous queen and a meek clerk mourning his lost love and eventually turning to rebel against the injustices that separated and destroyed them.
The striking red, black and white pallet of the book highlights the bleakness and brutality of the blood, violence and despair and the illustrations perfectly capture the creepiness of the body horror and gore elements of the story – I was reminded of The Magnus Archive podcast and Full Metal Alchemist’s Tucker family at some points in the book.
I did find it a little hard to follow the story at times, or to connect to the characters fully, but was interested and intrigued by the story world and setting, and the idea of magic through calligraphy and words on paper. I did note that Litmus’ lost love felt like a perfect example of a ‘fridged‘ female character, existing only to give the main character emotional motivation for his story. She was too perfectly designed for his love and adoration to exist in her own right, which felt like a jarring note in an otherwise complex tale.
While short in form, this graphic novel packs a lot of horror and misery into each of its pages. I think I just wanted more detail and background than this format was able to give me, especially when it came to the characters other than Litmus.