Locke & Key, Vol. 1: Welcome to Lovecraft

Really really good. From the first couple of pages I was hooked. The story is captivating and unique. It's not like the majority of comics that I've read. The art work is really good too. Clean lines and interesting perspective points. Can't wait to read the next one.

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!

This is the first full length graphic novel which contains the first six issues of the Welcome to Lovecraft story arc. It was a really good collection. The drawings are beautiful and in full color and the story is creepy and intricate. There are two more full length graphic novels out already; Locke & Key: Head Games and Locke & Key: Crown of Shadows . The fourth is being released issue to issue this year and is called Keys to the Kingdom. After the murder of their father Tyler, Kinsey, and Bode Locke relocate to the Keyhouse with their mother. Bode finds that certain keys lead through certain doors that do things; the one he finds turns him into corporeal form for as long as he wants. Meanwhile the kid that murdered the Lockes' dad is trying to escape from juvenile detention to come back and finish what he started. Also Bode meets someone mysterious in a well outside the house. This book is very creepy in a number of ways. You have a brutal murderer on the loose at one point, a house with doors that lead you to mysterious place and do mysterious things, and a strange creepy person in a well. It was a great story and the illustrations are just wonderful. It was very engaging and very hard to put down. The characters are well done and you are really rooting for them throughout the book. This is definitely a horror novel. Overall a great graphic novel. It is on the borderline of being a bit too creepy for me. I am super curious about what else the Locke's will find in the house though, so I will definitely pick up the next full length graphic novel " Locke & Key: Head Games ".

It has been 30 years since I have read a "comic book" but I have to say that the term "graphic novel" is much more appropriate for this book. I have an appreciation for the genre and am looking forward to exploring the classic graphic novels. Welcome to Lovecraft was a compelling story in and of itself and the art work could not have fit more into the story line. I found myself completely entranced as both the writer and the narrator brought their own individual voice to this story. Some of my favorite scenes had no narration, just a perfect, often understated, picture that set the scene or delivered a jolt better than any narration could have. What is the old saying? It is certainly true here that silent pictures often spoke volumes. I took my time with this book, savoring each frame. Upon completing this book I can tell you that I will be constantly checking Amazon for when the second part is available in a Kindle edition. Which brings me to the second thing I meant to say---this edition looks fantastic on my Kindle Fire. You can set it to a blow up frame by frame mode which really enhances the reading experience, especially when the art is this good. Dark, compelling, and scary, Hill has set up what I am sure is going to be a wonderful series, tied together by a set of keys that unlock doors and lead to new adventures or horrors. I am really looking forward to reading this series.

I am a comic book lover from way back. I still have my childhood collection which I rejuvenate every few years with new backing boards and bags. But you really don't have to be like me to enjoy this book. What you do have to enjoy is being creeped the hell out. The artwork is beautiful and visually interesting, at times a little cartoonish, but very good overall. There are scenes in this book which really made me squirm and Hill does a great job of creating realistic villains. Several scenes of this book were like gutpunches to me: very emotional and rending. Also, this is a beautiful hardback edition with a gorgeous cover. For $16.49, I really didn't expect that. It really caught my eye when I opened up the Amazon packaging. It even has a pretty little red ribbon bookmark which I thought was a nice touch. There are lots of serious themes that dance around this book, yet it still has that childhood like whimsy to it, due to its fantasy elements. I hate reading reviews that spoil, so I'm not gonna. All you need to know is this book is solid, very adult in nature, and very creepy. (but all intertwined with this great element of adventure, almost like a Goonies type of feel) Get it now and read it so you can decide if you want the others. I'm currently waiting on the 2nd part, Head Games, from Amazon since it's on backorder. The point of this review was to appeal to people who don't normally read comics, or are just casual readers. No prior knowledge of anything is necessary. This is the 1st part of an original series.

Great story, great characters. I didn't find the art amazing right off the bat, but I quickly got used to it, and I've seen a lot worse. By the end of the book I couldn't imagine any other artist presenting these characters in any other style. The characters don't fit standard stereotypes, and they're all either really likeable or really interesting. The plot isn't predictable, and always keeps you on your toes. I didn't find it hard to follow at all. There are obviously some mysteries and things left unexplained, but this wasn't one of those books that completely leaves you in the dark. It just felt like what it was - the first book to a series. This is a good example of the kind of storytelling that can only be accomplished in a comic book. The characters thoughts, along with whatever was happening in the frame, came together countless times to show that the sum was more than the individual parts. Also, there was a scene that gave me such a start, I came as close as possible to actually jumping in fright, something I don't even do in movies anymore. The ONLY thing I didn't like was the names. The LOCKE family moves into a house named KEYHOUSE in a town named LOVECRAFT. It's so ridiculously heavy-handed, but the writing inside doesn't reflect the silly name choices, which makes me realize it was done on purpose. Why? Maybe Joe Hill was just having some fun.

I liked this book bcuz of the show and the more I got in this book rather than the show.

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.

What can i say? L&K is one of my favourite comic books, and definitely one of the best horror/fantasy works out there. The story is engrossing, characters are fun, very creative magic system, and the horror aspect is great as well. Just go ahead and read this masterpiece, there's no way you're going to be disappointed. P.S. if you are coming here after watching the netflix series, know this - the comics are a lot LOT better than the tv series. So if you liked the series, you're simply going to fall in love with the series

UNFORTUNATELY pages started falling out as I was reading it, but it is a very good book. I bought it because I already love it. Stupid glue...

I was searching for a good read, and found an absolutely gripping story with perfectly matching illustrations. I will not go into detail about the story, as there are a lot of reviews about that already and I don't wont to spoil here for the following parts... Just this: The story is great from the beginning and it gets better throughout the series. As the kids start to find more and more keys in the house and learn about their "special effects", I was not able to put the books out of my hand before I had finished them all (or as many as there are at the moment). The series is dark and sometimes brutal, but never in an offhand way with lots of blood (although there is that, too), but the horror is subtle, and creaps right into your heart. What really got me is the combination of text and illustration. It is very well written, which gives the characters depth but the illustrations give them real life. Body language, facial expressions, and it is unbelieveable how much you can say with just the eyes of a character. At the end of the day, there is only one thing to do: Read it, enjoy it, you will not regret it. The best graphic novel I have read so far!

Loved everything about this, the story epic, the characters were great, the art style was on point. I highly recommend it to anyone who is trying to step away from the superhero genre but still wants a bit of fantasy in their lives.

Locke and Key: Welcome to Lovecraft was an amazing graphic novel full of emotion and a horrific intensity. The characters were extremely fleshed out and the artwork was so impactful. Even the villain of this volume, Sam, was a character I could sympathise with. If you like bloody horror that preys on your deepest fears, this is for you.