Customer Reviews

Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft

5 star:		(44)
4 star:		(12)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I'm harder to scare these days than when I was a kid and horror movies were still black and white and filled with trademark Hollywood monsters. Currently, I've been through a plethora of Dracula, Frankenstein, Wolfman, and ghost movies and their spawn. It takes a lot to scare me these days.

Then Hollywood introduced me to FRIDAY THE 13TH, HALLOWEEN, and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET. George C. Scott's THE CHANGELING totally creeped me out, and Steven Spielberg's POLTERGEIST taught me to fear my television. Then I watched adaptations of Thomas Harris's novels, RED DRAGON and SILENCE OF THE LAMBS and learned to fear serial killers that were really among us.

However, I have to admit that somewhere in there I became jaded. I started watching horror movies for special effects and the snappy one-liners that became so popular. I ended up laughing through most of them.

Like I said, I'm hard to scare. Of course, I can still scare myself pretty good. Let me curl up at night with a Stephen King book or one of Joseph Delaney's THE LAST APPRENTICE YA novels, and I can give myself a case of the willies. These books, thankfully, still deliver the sheer, enervating atmosphere necessary to amp up my adrenaline gland.

But I found a new fear-inducer in Joe Hill. I discovered him in HEART-SHAPED BOX and got totally weirded out listening to that novel on audiobook. Then I got my hands on the first issue of his comic book series, LOCKE & KEY.

Imagine a family that falls victim to what appears to be a deranged teenager looking for some payback. That's pretty horrific by today's standards because the news is full of lethal teens - and others. This could happen, so I wasn't immediately getting the spook vibe.

The story is harsh and emotional. I felt Ty, Kinsey, and Bodie's pain over losing their father to violence. The way that Joe cut the action between the past and present really upped the suspense and impending feeling of doom. Gabriel Rodriguez's art is loose and captivating, and he plays with angles that pulled me right into the frames and turned them into movies. I was THERE, inside the story on several occasions. And I wasn't comfortable being there. Especially in the scenes when Bodie was talking to the thing in the wellhouse!

As it turns out, though, the teen that planned the murder of Papa Locke wasn't entirely there out of vengeance. He had made a pact with the thing in the wellhouse, and that just spins the whole story on its ear.

After their father's murder, the kids end up at the Locke House, a place so riddled with mysteries that Joe says he's got 70 issues plotted out for those bewitched doors, nooks, and crannies already. Personally, I can't wait. I love the puzzles and the mysteries, as well as the fact that THINGS are lurking inside the house and waiting to spring out on unwary victims.

Joe and Gabriel have created a whole WORLD of spine-chilling entertainment to come. It's no surprise that Dimension Films has already snapped up the film rights to the property, or that IDW publishing had to reprint the issues several times. I expect they'll have to reprint the new hardcover graphic novel as well, but I didn't take any chances - I've got my copy already.

In the various issues, Joe shifts the point of view around from Ty to Bodie to Kinsey, and all of them achieve a distinct voice that bring a different flavor to the emerging story. When I read the graphic novel all at once, the voices didn't quite stand out as much as waiting a month between, but that's only because I was trying to get to the end of the story faster and faster. I'd read the first three issues, then couldn't get my hands on the last three, so I was desperate to know what happened next.

The suspense ratchets up like a whipsaw rollercoaster cresting the top of the final plunge leading to a white-knuckled grip (thank God the book is a hardcover or it wouldn't have survived the read!).

I couldn't stop reading, and now I can't wait for the next volume in the Locke family's adventures. The old house as a lot of life (and UNLIFE) still waiting to be discovered and feared.

Horror fans will love this book because it delivers every delicious thrill and chill a reader could want. And Gabriel's art is absolutely eye-popping, alternately beautiful and then gruesome. LOCKE & Key is a definite, pulses-pounding winner.

Hey, here's some trivia for ya....Did you know that Joe Hill's Dad is Stephen King? So no surprise that Hill is pumping out stories of the macabre, right? And he sure is doing it as well as his Dad (especially lately) with Locke & Key.

I was first attracted to Locke & Key when I was reading a February 2011 New York Post article about comics and graphic novels that have been or will be turned into movies or TV series. Locke & Key will be one of the latter with a potential pilot episode airing as soon as the end of this year on FOX. So I thought that I'd get "the real story" from the actual author prior its release as a TV series. And so far, after Book 1, I am not disappointed. (EDIT: 7/2011 - Fox has scratched the Locke & Key pilot - see link in the comment section of this review.)

Like father, like son, Locke & Key is violent at times, bloody at times, scary at times, disturbing at times, but most importantly it is very well written. The Locke's are a seemingly normal young family in California. The father is a principal of a local school. So when the Locke's are rocked by the father's murder by a crazed student, their world turns upside-down, and they are invited to come live out east in a big old spooky mansion in, where else but..."Lovecraft", MA. And you can bet your bottom dollar that in a mansion in a New England town called Lovecraft created by the spawn of Stephen King...thar will be ghosts!

While well written, there are some recycled themes and predictable moments. But mostly Locke & Key: Welcome to Lovecraft is an excellent read for fans of the Fantasy or Horror genres. I'm hooked and looking forward to digging into Locke & Key Volume 2: Head Games and Locke & Key: Crown of Shadows with Locke & Key Volume 4: Keys to the Kingdom due to be released this year.

I'm also really looking forward to the TV series. It seems like it has a promising Supernaturalish chance of succeeding with War of the Worlds/Sarah Connor Chronicles writer Josh Friedman joining on to help Hill get it "out the door" and onto TV.

When I saw the title of this volume, "Welcome to Lovecraft," I had to give it a shot. The fact that it was written by Joe Hill was a bonus, as was the awesome sounding concept of the house with mysterious doors (which sounded--and looked--a lot like the House of Mystery, one of my current favorites). I thought it would be creepy and interesting and fun. And good.

Well, it didn't disappoint. However, it was very dark. Way more dark than I expected (yes, even with the word "Lovecraft" in the title, Sam). It was violent, creepy, shocking, horrifying...and very good.

The story starts with the brutal murder of a high school guidance counselor, which we see in flashbacks throughout the first chapter and the entire volume. After his death, his family moves across the country to the town of Lovecraft, New England, to live in his childhood home Keyhouse, a mysterious mansion where the doors can open to much more than just the next room--if you have the key. Each of the three children deal with their father's death and their new life in a new town differently (Bode, the youngest, finds he enjoys becoming a ghost and chatting with his echo in the old well). Their mother also has some difficulties adjusting. Mixed in with that are flashbacks to their old life and what led up to the murder...and then their past catches up with them.

The opening chapter is incredibly violent, bloody, and intense, and although the violence is turned down a notch after that, it didn't end, even when I thought it was over. It was pretty unrelenting throughout. There just kept being more murder, or more views of the earlier murder, or other violent acts, and then more murder. And when it wasn't violent, it could be pretty creepy or otherwise dark. This isn't meant to urge anyone not to read this, it's simply a warning about how dark it is. I would have liked to have had a chance to prepare myself, so I'm trying to give you that chance.

I will review all three volumes as a group here, as I would guess most people who may consider this series would go to Volume One first. I will avoid Spoilers.

The hardcovers and beautiful, with glossy graphics on a matt background. Volume 3 had a ribbon. (some people say their 1 and 2 did as well). Upon opening the first volume, I paused to examine the beautiful illustrations inside the covers and on the pages leading into the story. The author dedicates the book to his mother. I had never heard of Joe Hill before, but I did know of only one person named Tabitha King, so guessed who he was, 'Hill' or no 'Hill'. No matter, I can understand why he started out with a nom de plume.

BTW, some character names interest me in this book. The coach (vol 2) is Elsie Whedon. One of Rendell's old schoolmates (vol 2) was Lucas Caravaggio, and the admissions director (vol 3) is Calliope Ridgeway. Some of these may have meaning to the story, maybe some just to the author. For instance, I could see how Calliope could be seen as a muse to her drama teacher husband.

Hill excells in many areas. His characters are real, well rounded, and sympathetic. The story line is suspenseful, and as certain mysteries get cleared up, new information creates new questions for the reader (and the characters) to ponder. This series is just plain creepy - in a good way. He also drops in ...idk...language hints? to the text, relating to the key/theme at hand. Word jokes, puns. The Joe Ridgeway story, which opens vol. 2, bounces back and forth in time. The opening and the ending `bookend' the story nicely, and Hill manages to put a spin on the end which lightens some of the sadness therein.

Gabriel Rodriguez contributes wonderful artwork. I admit that I can have a hard time enjoying even a well written series if I hate the artwork (some arcs of Sandman come to mind). This series has the best of both worlds! The lines are clean, the facial expressions clear, and the colors are appealing yet somber in tone, as suits the series. Violence is not portrayed in too graphic a manner. Some is not shown at all. Rodriguez also uses a technique for which I do not know the name, where he repeats a setting several times with just necessary changes. Look at the preview pages for Vol. 3, Crown of Shadows, to see this technique. I feel as though this grounds parts of the story better than if he kept changing perspective. It is also almost cinematic. Hill also injects a good does of humor into the story (which is necessary, I think, to keep it from becoming oppressive), which Rodriguez translates nicely. I really liked the bit in vol. 3 where Bode tells his mother how to cook the alfredo sauce. The `nameless technique' works nicely there.

Volume 1 is taken up with the Locke family tragedy and their subsequent move to the family home in Lovecraft. Volumes 2 and 3 move briskly along, introducing many new and interesting characters and situations, which keeps the story fresh. After reading Vol. 1, I took out Heart Shaped Box, Hill's first novel, from the library and read it in two nights. (I could not wait for an Amazon delivery!) Hill's work is gripping and intense and I plan to read more of it!

Highly recommended series!

I rarely take the time to write reviews when I agree with the majority of opinions that have already been shared. However, in this instance I feel compelled to add to the praise that has already been heaped upon this book.

I've been reading comics for about 35 years and it's not often that a book will exceed my expectations to this degree. This is my first exposure to Joe Hill and upon finishing this trade paperback I was immediately perusing Amazon to find his other work. I know that he has an impressive pedigree, but he is a brilliant writer whose skills transferred perfectly to the medium of comics.

I agree with some of the other reviews that it's a very dark book, but it's so well crafted that you have to appreciate what Hill has developed in this story. The pacing is perfect and the dialogue feels natural. He quickly fleshes out the characters and makes it easy for you to empathize with each of them. His "villain" in the opening arc is creepy and is made even more so by the fact that he feels completely real and believable.

I've never seen any other work by artist Gabriel Rodriguez, but this guy is a superstar in his own right. He deserves equal credit for the creation of this brilliant piece of comic book horror/suspense.

I finished the first trade paperback last night right before I went to sleep, and I'm picking up the second one today. Without a doubt, Locke & Key deserves every accolade it has received.

I knew nothing of this book when I got it. In fact, I erroneously believed it to be a graphic adaptation of some of H.P. Lovecraft's stories. I was wrong, but the impulse buy paid off because this is some of the richest narrative and illustration you will find in any graphic novel of the horror genre.

I won't go into the storyline, because Mel Odom covers that pretty well in his review. What I will say is that there is tremendous depth in the characters, and the way Joe Hill uses the flashbacks to gradually reveal the plot's details rather than follow a linear progression makes this even more readable than it is. I suppose it could be conceived by some as a little jarring the way Hill bounces back and forth between past and present, but as long as you pay attention, I feel it only adds to the uniqueness of the tale.

I was completely pulled in from the first few pages thanks to Gabriel Rodriguez's stunning visuals and Hill's compelling story. I read it once...then again and once again the day I got it, finding something I missed each time. There is so much subtlety in the way the tale unravels, and you just know that Hill has much more of Lovecraft and the Locke family yet to reveal when the final page is turned.

I say this story has a little bit of everything because it does: the sociopathic killer who murders his victims without emotion, just staying on task and mission to get what he's after. The ghost/phantasm theme involving the books narrator, the elementary school-aged Bode. The monster living at the bottom of the well and the way she manipulates Bode and the killer Sam to further her own secret ends.

I've read that Dimension Films has already secured the rights to the Locke & Key franchise, and I'm looking forward to seeing this chilling tale re-told on the big screen.

When his father is brutally murdered, Tyler Locke and his family move to Massachusetts to live with a relative in Keyhouse Mansion. But the house has many secrets, and the Locke family may be in more danger than they think.

Welcome to Lovecraft is a creepy comic book. Not scary, but creepy and mysterious, the kind where you keep reading in order to find out what happens next. When a story starts with a murder, it takes a lot to raise the stakes, but Welcome to Lovecraft manages to keep things fresh and interesting.

One way it manages this is to throw chronology out the window - much of the story is told through flashbacks. While it may seem confusing at first, starting at the middle of action with no concept of who the characters are, you do get into the rhythm of it fairly quickly.

The art style goes a long way towards establishing the tone of the story. The color palette is subdued, almost muted, with only the occasional splash of bright color. Characters are stylized - not super-cartoony, but not extremely realistic either. The story makes good use of the comic book format to allow for more subtle transitions, and showing us the characters' emotions and thoughts in a non-intrusive way.

It is sometimes a little hard to figure out the characters' motivations, especially those of the villains. It's unclear what they want and why they want it. Also, the mysterious forces/spirits/energy seems to make some things a little too convenient, as if the writes made something happen simply to advance the story, regardless of whether it makes sense or not. These are minor complains, however, and don't detract from the enjoyment of the book unless you spend too long thinking about it.

Welcome to Lovecraft is the first book in a series. It does a great job of setting up the characters and settings, without seeming like exposition at all. If you're a fan of horror or a fan of comics, this is a good one to check out.

Tyler, Kinsey and Bode Locke are ripped from the only home they know and uprooted, along with their mother, to their father's family home--Keyhouse, in Lovecraft, Massachusetts--following his brutal murder by former guidance counselee Sam Lesser. Sam is locked up in juvie now and the kids are adrift without a paddle. And living in a house that has its own name, how creepy is that?


Rendell Locke had always told his wife that if anything ever happened to him that they needed to go to Keyhouse, to his brother Duncan; he told her that the house chose Duncan, not him. Whatever that means.

The house is not only old and mysterious but it contains secrets of its own. Young Bode finds a special door which allows him to become a ghost. Once in his ethereal form he is free to go to the other inhabitants of the house, either by thinking of them or by being thought of by them. When he draws a graphic representation of his summer vacation, including the murder of his father and his newfound ability to become a ghost, his teacher and classmates are disturbed, and his mother hears about it, warning him to keep that kind of stuff at home.

Tyler has issues of his own to deal with, concerning his father's death, and the part he may have played in it, and he takes a lot of cold showers. Kinsey, in an effort to not stand out in this new place, has removed her dreads, and tried to remold herself in a way that is her and yet not too much her. Nina Locke copes by drinking heavily. And Bode has the echo.

Although warned not to, Bode finds himself drawn to the locked well house, where he becomes acquainted with the voice inside the well, which calls itself his echo. The echo talks to Bode about the house and its special doors, and its special keys. If you walk through one door, it will turn you from a young person to an old one; another will take a girl and make her into a boy and vice versa. And then there is the anywhere key. The anywhere key opens almost any door, and you can step through it to anywhere you like, as long as you have a clear image of that place in your mind. But that key hasn't been seen for a very long time.

When it's learned that Sam Lesser has escaped from juvenile detention, the Bodes are naturally concerned, although the authorities assure them that Sam has no way of finding them all the way on the East Coast. He has no way of knowing where they are, or any way of reaching them. But to be safe, they are given police protection.

Sam isn't all there, you see. He's on a mission--and he has help. Will he find the Bodes? Will he get what he wants from them? Will their world come crashing down around them once more?

Where is the Anywhere Key?

This is a great start to a new series, written in the style of HP Lovecraft and Stephen King. It combines horror with mystery and fantasy to produce a riveting tale of a family whose life has gone horribly wrong. The artwork is great, very well done, and the characters are certainly memorable. I honestly could not put this down, I was so riveted on the story.

This reminds me of the old horror magazines that were once prolific but are no longer to be found. The story is certainly imaginative and very creative. I hope it continues in this same vein, and I look forward to reading more of the series.

All I knew when I purchased this book was that Joe Hill was Stephen King's son and that he was a novelist as well. I will leave out the details of the story as I like to come into a story completely fresh, I will just focus on Joe Hill's writing style and Gabriel Rodriguez's art work.

Just to be clear this is a horror story -- but a horror story that includes a great deal of thought and detail, and a low focus on blood and guts (thankfully). The storyline is imaginative and as long as you as a reader are willing to suspend reality for a while, you'll get sucked into the plot lines. The complicated story line, includes family conflict, adolescent angst, and down-right spooky themes. It is definitely an adult comic title, as the subject matter does focus on murder and all things mature, including sexual themes. The story involves flashbacks and and does a wonderful job of teasing the reader, making them wanting more and more information to be released on both the past and the present stories.

As for the art work, at first glance it seems like Rodriguez's drawing style is a bit awkward, but what you find as you continue to turn the pages, is that how detailed and how much care Gabriel puts into his work. Joe Hill creates some outrageous ideas and scenarios that Gabriel manages to translate into pictures, a feat that not every artist could accomplish.

If you are looking for a title that is something, scary, modern, and all around just refreshingly different, I would recommend picking up this title.

There's no question that this is a great story with wonderful art. The hardcover is a beautiful addition to any collection with a matte black finish and a red ribbon bookmark, but for those buying this Hardcover Edition for the presentation, be careful. I ordered all three hardcover editions at once and 2 of them came with heavy dents in the corners and scratches on the covers. It really should have been shrink wrapped like the second volume I got given how susceptible matte finishes are to scratches. The intro pages were bent up in the corners. It's easy to get past this the minute you open the book though. The story really sucks you in and the transitions between scenes are clever. Save yourself the trouble and just get all the volumes at once you won't want a breather to see what happens next.