December Book Club Review

ReMIND

Average rating - 8.5

reMIND is part one of an independent graphic novel series which follows an inventor named Sonja and her cat Victuals in their attempt to discover the truth behind the secret of the lizard men of Cripple Peaks.

Mystery Bubbles

reMIND takes place in the fictional town of Cripple Peaks home to a lake that bubbles constantly and the legend of the lizard man. The legend of the lizard man comes from the late father of the stories man character Sonja an inventor who lives in the middle of the bubbling lake where the lizard man was first spotted.

“The story was unpredictable and pretty original “ - Dennis

“It drew me in, I felt like I was there the whole time” - Boutet

Despite the fact the story comes from her own father Sonja is not a true believer and finds the trappings of the legend, namely the lizard spotters on her lawn and the destruction of her fathers lizard themed gravestone a frustrating disappointment.

“It had a very strong Miyazaki movie vibe” - Remi

I’ve Seen The Lizard Man

Despite being a skeptic in the beginning the disappearance and then sudden reappearance of Sonja’s beloved cat Victuals starts to change her mind, mostly since Victuals returns with stitches in his head and the ability to talk. Through Victuals we are introduced the lizard men living at the bottom of the bubbling lake as he explains how he, one of the lizard people, came to be trapped in the body of Sonja’s pet cat and what really happened to the missing stone lizard from her fathers grave.

“The story was simple but enticing” - Mathieu

Finally a believer Sonja embarks on a mission to help Victuals return to the bottom of the lake and reclaim his body. Aided by Sonja’s inventions Victuals tracks down the source of the body swapping, Dr Sapience, who has himself become a victim and is now permanently trapped in the body of a dog. When Victuals finally reaches the palace and the chamber he last had his own body in he is shocked to find the King, up till now a father figure and friend, has been behind the body swapping from the start.

“ It was very difficult to see the king as the villain “ - Gabriel

Artwork

There really is no end to the great things that can be said about the art in the book. The story flows seamlessly through a wide variety of styles and mediums without a single panel looking out of place.

“ The art reminded me of video game graphics “ Rene

Despite the fact that many of the panels are heavily in black the overall appearance of the book is very colorful and the use of shadow and light are top notch.

“He only colored what he wants you to focus on” - Keenan

Summary

As a total package reMIND was a very impressive effort for an independent publishing, the book itself is gorgeous and the story is a really fun read. That being said the extremely abrupt ending to what at first appeared to be a stand alone story left some of us less than satisfied with the purchase. I personally went straight to the authors site and was bummed out to discover that I will have to wait an estimated two years to get the second half of this story especially when I expected this novel to have an ending…. which sadly it doesn’t. The novel cuts off at the end so suddenly you almost wonder if the publisher missed a few pages.

“The story was too simple, it was a very fast read” - Scott

“ I would have rated it higher if there was ending” - Brad

All for all it was a beautifully executed, fun to read story which left you wanting more, if you don’t mind waiting two years for the rest then it’s a definite solid read.

“The fact that the ending made me mad means it was a good read “ - James


“The ending was ok…. If book two gets made” - Matt

Ratings

Picked the book : Bruno - Rating 9

“ I picked this book but didn’t show up”

Harshest Critic: Rick - Rating 6

“ I feel I paid for the production of the book than the value of the story”

Besting Rating: Remi / Mathieu / Jenn - Rating 9.5

Next months selection : Criminal Macabre

Pick up a copy and join us January 25