A gritty and sensual crime thriller, with an intriguing concept slightly let down by the execution. The idea of a "cop" and "robber" falling in love could have been a really interesting dynamic but it felt a little flat here, possibly due to the lack of dimension of the characters. They seemed quite flat, especially Mabel, and it was difficult to reconcile the dramatic shifts in personality as the book went on. I think as a whole it felt a little too rushed for me, and that left little time for the characters to develop in the way they really needed to for the book to be more successful. The drawing and artwork was fine, one thing I did notice was some good use of light and shade throughout the book.
2.5 stars overall
I read and reviewed an ARC from NetGalley

Grand Passion is a terrific little comic that rocks! Violence and sex and love at first sight. These are the stories that helped to launch such great titles as Preacher and Red. These are stories about people and not costumed clad superheroes. Great characters and action!

Grand Passion by James Robinson is an action, romance graphic novel following the love-at-the-first-sight of Mabel and Mac. They were polar opposites at the beginning of the graphic novel - he a well-behaved cop and she a half of a thieving duet.

I was not impressed with this graphic novel. I find it quite shallow and not well performed. The illustrations are average at most, nothing special or breathtaking about those. The characters are quite one-sided and not at all branched out. We know nothing about the main characters besides their undying love for one another before they even meet each other and how tough they both are. Yuck. I want to know what drives them, what they think about in the shower when the most bizarre thoughts hit them. I want to know what made them as tough as they claim to be and what could break their facades.

Taking everything in concern I can only say this - this graphic novel is average if not less. It had a hard time holding my attention since the plot was so basic. But the only thing I had a real problem with in this graphic novel was the insta-love. Why?
I warn you, there might be some spoilers in the remainder of the paragraph, but since it was publicised on the back cover I do not think I will reveal anything really spoilery.
The whole graphic novel is basically built around the love-at-the-first-sight, which I find quite weird. It was extremely unrealistic and I did not even understand the concept of thinking behind the idea of creating the love plotline the main plotline. I cringed every time the main two characters spoke of their feeling for one another since the dialogue was so badly written. Nothing could simply compensate for those things in my eyes.

I was sent this graphic novel in exchange for a review.

Sex, violence, robbery, murder, crooked cops and more sex. Fun to read, but neither believable nor profound.

I thought I was burned out on Bonnie and Clyde riffs, but this one won me over once the cop shoots her partner in crime, she looks in the cop's eyes...and realises the cop is the man she really wants, though of course she's still obliged to kill him. It could maybe have stood to be longer, but I guess better too short than too long. Definitely one for the 'hit' column of the wildly erratic James Robinson.

(Netgalley ARC)

Grand Passion is a romance novel written with men in mind. More gunshots and explosions than hearts and flowers grace these pages as a small-town cop falls in love with a bank robber. Meeting face to face during a shootout that leaves them both partnerless, they are destined to either kill each other or get it on. Grand Passion is violent, its romance unbelievable and its dialogue corny, but it is a fun ride. It definitely isn't for everyone. If your ideal story has plenty of explosions, bullets, sex and corruption, Grand Passion is the graphic novel for you. The art is sensational, even if the plot is simplistic. This is not for younger or more sensitive audiences.

3 / 5

I received a copy of Grand Passion from the publisher and Netgalley.com in exchange for an honest review.

--Crittermom

British takes on American noir can be suspicious: one only has to go to Kenneth Branagh's main protagonist in the movie Dead Again (and the perpetually wrinkled suit wearing laconic protagonist who was an amalgam of everyman in the USA) to get an idea of how it can be too stylized. So, too, do the characters feel hyperreal in Grand Passion; hedonistic, narrow minded, universally entitled and selfish - it's not a very likable lot of anti-heroes and certainly they aren't meant to be lovable. But despite the detractions, this title is worth the read in its modern homage to pulp 1950s crime fiction/serials.

Plot: Mabel and Steve are thieves traveling across the country knocking off banks. Mac is a cop new to a small town and feeling very unwelcome, especially after the death of his wife to cancer. The cop and the crook meet in a shoot out - across the street from each other as their partners - Steve and a local cop - are killed by Mac and Mabel respectively. Mac and Mabel fall instantly in love despite their Romeo and Juliet storyline - but Mabel has a code to follow that requires her to find and then kill Mac for his part in the death of Steve. Unbeknownst to the couple, things are not what they appear in that small town - there's a bigger set of thieves in town who have to take out Mac before he figures out their scheme.

The story is told by an unknown third person in a very 'hick America small town' type of voice. It does give the story flavor and it is consistent throughout the book. It is also a much needed conceit since our two protagonists are so unlikable. Mabel is uptight, intractable. Mac is slow, disaffected, and unemotional. Most of the personality in the story comes from the narration.

The illustrations work well and tell the story perfectly. The book also comes with a large selection in the back of storyboarding and layouts as well as notes from the author to the illustrator. This is a very adult and nicely modern noir piece that, although not treading any new ground plot-wise, was an enjoyable read. We don't see enough titles like this currently and I appreciated this title all the more reason for that lack. Moody and atmospheric, Grand Passion was enjoyable. Reviewed from an advance reader copy provided by the publisher.

A Bonnie and Clyde-type pair of thieves hit the same town over and over, always disguised differently so that they’re never recognized (narrator knows well enough, though). They even have sex on a bed of stolen money every time. One day their luck runs out and during the shootout, as they kill each other’s partner, the newly widowed cop and the female half of the duo fall into instant lust. But because he killed her partner, she has to get revenge no matter how much she wants him, because some code expects her to.
It’s one thing for the characters to speak in accents, but here the narrator does as well, and it’s annoying; perhaps it’s a case of the British writer overdoing it. The sex scene is all kinds of weird, yet it makes sense in the twisted perverted logic they’re using. This cop may be upstanding—unlike the others, it’s made clear long before it becomes a part of the story—but he’s an idiot. Doesn’t matter how “in love” he is, he loses situational awareness way too often in the gunfights. But calling it “The Battle of Buttercup Lane” is all sorts of awesome.
Best lines: “That. Is. Insane.” “Yeah, I know. Welcome ta “Me.’”
Didn’t love this—that last twist was no surprise at all—but it had some humorous moments amongst all the darkness. As a police procedural it’s lacking, but then what can you expect from a “one good cop” story where even he doesn’t turn out to be so good after all?
There’s over 20 pages of bonus material, including sketches and scripts, one of which describes the solo “making love on money” scene, with the author telling the artist, “This’ll be a fun page for you to draw.” Hope it was true.

Not my type of graphic novel. But it had a decent story line to it.