There are more things in Heaven and Earth than are dreamt of in your philosophy.
I'm not a Harry Potter fan. Now that everyone has left, I'll explain. I found that series to be more constrained to the school system than to magic the way I enjoy it, like in the Witcher or the Dresden Files. That's where I go to find the magical stories that I enjoy, where the arts of wizards and witches can be handled with maturity, and the darker sides of the fairy tales come out to play. Now ,when Greg Rucka gets involved, you're surely not going to encounter some woman forcing a child to hurt himself with a pen without her getting all kinds of dead (though what is implied in the books is much, much worse, but it doesn't satisfy). You're going to have a very adult (not like Witchblade adult) story where magic can be woven into the tapestry of a story in such a way that it doesn't stick out at the edges and, in fact, can make you feel like the world of magic and sorcery could be quite closer to our own than we think.
Rucka delivers a very intriguing, small-town world where our protagonist is a witch who doubles as a police officer by day. The feel is very appropriate for the types of witches we're used to: buried in small New England towns surrounded by wild forests that carry a sense of mystery. And there's plenty of mystery to go around as Rowan finds herself hunted by forces she's not quite able to comprehend. Built with great tone and smart, interesting characters, this is a book that could stand on its own without the mystical side. It's very reminiscent of the quieter Dresden moments or those found in the Pendergast novels: supernatural without becoming natural.
This is the first time I'm seeing Nicola Scott's work that I can recall, and I really love it. I enjoy the more natural body types evident in the characters (told you, NOT Witchblade), the realistic tendencies in the artwork, and the seemingly evident, but subtly executed, palette choice. With the whole of the book being in grayscale tones, only magical energies and creatures show up in true color. Much like The Wizard of Oz, this gives us a clear demarcation in the worlds of the real and those of magic, as well as letting us see how practitioners might, with our world seeming drab and grey in comparison to the powers they can sometimes touch. There are so many amazingly detailed panels throughout this book, it's hard to fathom choosing a favorite, though the last splash page in what would be issue 6 is not only astounding for its artistic quality but the storytelling prowess within it as well.
This is a helluva strong team delivering a wildly interesting story that's sure to grab the attention of any fans of witchcraft and large-cast mysteries. With hints of a much larger world about to make itself known to this small town, there's a huge amount of potential for this series to be something truly spectacular.
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