Customer Reviews

Cat Burglar Black

5 star:		(4)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is a lot of fun and a good entry point if you haven't read Sala before. It has all of his usual
subjects-secret societies, homicidal maniacs, spooky houses and clever, attractive female protagonists-but they're not taken to quite the grotesque extremes of the Chuckling Whatsit or the Grave Robbers Daughter.
I hesitate to say it but it would probably be perfect for the Young Adult section of your local bookstore. But don't let that deter any of you well past the wonder years from reading it.
The charm of Richard Sala's art is especially evident in this book with its saturated blues and purples and
spontaneous linework. If you like this I recommend Peculia also.

Richard Sala's newest work, Cat Burglar Black, is a tightly plotted tale of intrigue and mystery. Many familiar elements pervade the story: cute girls of great talent, creepy adults with ulterior motives, wretched weirdos with nearly disfigured appearances, mysterious settings, and an acute sense of dread. But unlike much of his past work, Cat Burglar Black feels like it could appeal to an audience beyond Sala's loyal followers. The gothic and grotesque componants of his past are muted and Sala concentrates more on developing a fine mystery that must be solved by his well developed protagonist, K. Westree. Westree is probably Sala's best conceived main character so far and her murky back story interweaves brillantly into Cat Burglar Black's suitably strange storyline.

Another great departure for Sala in this book is the fact that it is in full color, not the sinister black and white ink illustrations that he is so well known for. The switch to color does work to temper the dark overtones of his work and it is wholly appropriate for this tale - where mystery, not dread is the prevailing theme. Don't get me wrong, the book it still a dark work that only the genius, Richard Sala could produce. But this book, as the previous reviewer stated, could easily appeal to the young adult reader market with its teenage girl driven mystery plot. I think fans of Sala's previous work will still love Cat Burglar Black, as I did, but I hope he will also gain many new fans with this fantastic new adventure.

The best news is that not all elements of the story are concluded with this book, opening up the door to a possible series. I truly hope that we can read further exploits of K. Westree and her fine cohorts.

This is my first time reading one of Richard Sala's books and it's...interesting. I had to read this book twice to fully appreciate the story and the artwork, although I still have some mixed feelings about the book.

Overall the story is pretty fantastic. A strong young female character who can stand up for herself doesn't come along as often as it should in stories. And Sala does a masterful job of portraying K with her strength and weaknesses and has created a character that anyone can identify with, particularly young women I think. My mixed feelings come from a what appears to be a couple of plot holes with introducing characters that, at least in this story, have no real impact. Perhaps Sala is planning a second story in which this will be resolved, but I've found no evidence at the moment of this. I also had to read the book a second time to fully appreciate all of the aspects of the story, but I'm glad that I did.

The artwork isn't quite what I expected either, but it grew on me by the end of the book. The watercolor quality fits well with the story and gives it a almost ghostly feel to it. The villains of the story have a slight Gothic feel to them and are quite enjoyable as Sala expertly captures their emotions so that we are clued in early to who they really are.

Overall I enjoyed the book and would really like to see a sequel as K finds out what happened to her friends and parents. Hopefully Sala will create one for us.

The book follows the story of a young girl - "K" - who goes to a strange town where she is told to burgle a number of residents whose houses contain paintings which if collected together will reveal a secret of buried treasure. But as K sees her friends being picked off on these dangerous missions, she begins questioning the direction of her troubled life and tries to find out about what really happened to her parents.

This is the first Richard Sala which is in colour, bringing to life the usual dark shadows for readers of this book, aimed primarily at younger readers. This is also the first Richard Sala book I feel is a truly great comic book. While his previous efforts have ladled on the grotesquery's of the horror genre and brought to life characters and settings in line with Charles Addams/Edward Gorey/Hammer Horror etc. Sala's work has always been eye-catching and unique but his books have never quite made for a compelling read. "Cat Burglar Black" is a more controlled story with a fervent plotline throughout.

The characters are similar to Sala's previous efforts, especially the Obtainers, but the driven, original story and fresh looking images make for a much more interesting read than his previous books. Definitely Sala's best so far, this is the place to start with discovering this somewhat flawed but always interesting comic book artist.

School aged girls often find themselves in uncomfortable circumstances not of their own making, and often without family support to help in problems resolution. Richard Sala, in an almost gothic setting, sees his hero through one tight spot after another, with the help of extremely interesting girl-school friends, a mysterious helper, and her own gumption and common sense! The beautifully rendered art is magnificent, the dialogue fun, and the evil doers a comic strip menagerie of mayhem!
Great fun for young and old alike, this one satisfies while leaving a hope for more adventures by this K.ourageous cat burglar!

A teenage girl dressed in black runs through a spooky forest something huge and hairy with tusks is chasing her! She scrambles up a dead tree when the creature, a wild boar lunges after her, snapping at her heels!

That's how the graphic novel CAT BURGLAR BLACK begins and every page after that brings new thrills, horrors, mysteries and surprises. Created by Richard Sala, the book feels like one of those old dark house mysteries you'd see on Turner Classic Movies, you know with Bela Lugosi, the Bowery Boys and a guy in a gorrila suit? But this isn't in black and white. It's in rich color with beautiful drawings. The story has elements of Nancy Drew and the Hardy Boys, film noir, b-movies with a nod to Oliver Twist.

The action takes place in and around the Belsong Academy for Exceptional Young Ladies. This is a fun, wonderful book that you can give to your young teen with confidence or keep for yourself. It would be right at home on a shelf between TinTin books and Harry Potter. The graphic novel is fun again, thanks to Richard Sala and First Second Books.