Graphic Novel Review: BEAST by Marian Churchland

I took a chance with picking up artist Marian Churchland's Beast because I was unfamiliar with her work and knew nothing about the graphic novel itself I picked it up because most of the gems that I find are usually from artists and writers whom I'm not familiar with. I'm glad I picked up this graphic novel because it's one of the high lights that I've come across this year.

The story concerns sculptor Colette who is hired to do a piece on a mysterious benefactor. She goes to live with this benefactor simply called Beast who is dark and mysterious and doesn't exactly seem quite human but something draws Colette into wanting to know more about him. Colette learns more about Beast from his stories about a previous sculptor whose life mirrors her own. As she delves deep into the world of Beast she begins to wonder whether or not she has more of a connection to Beast than she could have ever dreamed.

The story is a character driven story that takes its time creating the story and developing all the characters including the supporting characters and it makes no bones about being influenced by the fairytale Beauty & the Beast, but Churchland creates her own story and fable which I believe readers will enjoy. Churchland's artwork also fits the story perfectly. It's very down to earth and "urban" while also giving the Beast a fairytale and dark presence that helps the reader get into her world.

I really enjoyed Churchland's style and this is a great piece of work to get audiences excited about other future works. I await her next personal piece and hope that it's just as magical as this one.