Current Readings

I discovered this author and his book through a U2 concert. They had used a phrase, “Smell the flowers while you can”, that struck a chord with me. I looked it up, and that search led me to a work that is nothing less than a soul laid bare. It was a testament from a man who, shortly after the publication of Close to the Knives: A Memoir of Disintegration in 1991, lost his life due to AIDS-related complications. The book had been sitting on my shelf for months. Perhaps it was waiting for me, or I for it, I'm not sure. And even though I wasn’t particularly in the mood to read something so intense at the time, I finally decided to start it. I hoped it might draw me in, and it did. It’s a heavy and often brutal book, raw and deeply realistic. It presents a side of American life that is rarely seen through any other medium. And I say rarely, because other forms of expression typically involve multiple layers of mediation: people, processes, and compromises that can dilute the original ...

This year, we're expecting a brand new Criminal story from my favorite creative duo in the comic book world. So, I decided to revisit the previous stories set in the Criminal universe by Brubaker and Phillips , both to refresh my memory and to enjoy them all over again with a clearer picture of how everything connects. The first volume is titled Coward , and it features Leo as the main character, a thief, and a very capable one. He's methodical, well-connected, and follows a personal code that’s both intriguing and strict. The title refers to him specifically, and I think it’s worth pausing to reflect on that. Since this story was originally published in 2006, I’ll be going into a few details. So, if you haven’t read it yet, some of the following may be considered mild spoilers. I won’t get too deep into plot points, but I think it’s fair to give a heads-up. When you hear the word “coward,” your mind probably jumps to someone who backs down, who prioritizes their own survival e...

Jeff Lemire’s Fishflies was released in its hardcover edition in March 2025. If you come across it anywhere, I strongly recommend picking it up – it’s of exceptional quality. As the years go by and I continue reading his work, my initial impression of him is consistently reaffirmed. I remember the first time I got my hands on something he had written, back when he had yet to become the well-known name he is today, with countless titles across small and major publishers. In some alternate reality, in a parallel universe where he might have been born earlier, or under different circumstances, he could easily have been one of the writers for The Twilight Zone , The Outer Limits , or Thriller . I think I once read a comment, perhaps in The Underwater Welder , suggesting that it could have been a story straight out of Rod Serling’s classic series, but I can’t say for sure. I also remember lending that book ( The Underwater Welder ) to everyone close to me, filled with excitement about my ...

Morningstar by David Gemmell was published in 1992, a decade when fantasy readers had an abundance of wonderful works at their fingertips. I often find myself envious that I was too young to fully appreciate them at the time. It would have been amazing to have experienced them as a teenager, to have held them in my hands. Still, it doesn’t matter, they're out there, waiting for me. For those unfamiliar with the author, David Gemmell was born in 1948 and sadly passed away in 2006 at the age of just 57. It was a great loss, as he was not only a remarkable artist but, in all likelihood, a good man as well. I say "likely" because I don’t know much about him personally, but what I do know leaves little room for doubt. I've encountered his work before, but given the legacy he left behind, four books is hardly enough to claim real familiarity. What I can say with certainty, however, is that I have immense respect for him. Everything I’ve read by him is of exceptional liter...

The One Hand & The Six Fingers is a comic by Ram V, Dan Watters, Sumit Kumar, and Laurence Campbell, published in 2024. It was recommended to me by a good friend, like almost all the beautiful things in life that come from friends and loved ones, this one was no exception. This work presents a detective story with a twist, a structural idea that worked perfectly and felt original, or at least I don't recall encountering a similar approach before. Here's what happens: the narrative alternates between issues, one following the person trying to solve a series of murders, and the other presenting the perspective of the one committing the crimes. I’m putting it this way, a bit vaguely, for obvious reasons. Ram V handles horror with subtlety and disarming precision. He builds his scenes with the human figure at the center, yet renders that figure powerless, first and foremost against themselves, and secondly against the problem they’re trying to solve.  On the other hand, Watters...