'Jazz Maynard 1. Home Sweet Home' with story by Raule and art by Roger is a crime comic about a jazz musician. It's got a so-so story and above average artwork.

When we meet Jazz Maynard, he is tied back to back with his best friend Teo. He is home in Barcelona with his trumpet, just looking for a gig when trouble comes calling. He's been away in the states, but he comes home when his sister is in trouble. He finds himself in trouble over some missing diamonds, and the only way out is to break into a house and steal a precious coin. Along with ,this, there are strange, silent, sword-wielding assassins, and corrupt politicians. Can Jazz get himself out of this mess?

Jazz is the sort of action hero who can seemingly do anything and get himself out of any scrape. That kind of story gets a little dull after a while. This gets elevated by the cool angular art. The story is told in dusty brown tones which is a nice change from another noir ripoff. There are some interesting characters here. I just wish the main character had been allowed to be a bit more human.

I received a review copy of this graphic novel from Lion Forge, Diamond Book Distributors, and NetGalley in exchange for an honest review. Thank you for allowing me to review this graphic novel.

Excellently organized and entertaining. A real winner for the publisher and the reader.

Held off as long as possible to leave this - review file impossible to read, due to bug with Adobe that netgalley allege doesn't exist and blame entirely on me.

Jazz Maynard is from El Raval in Barcelona, where he grew up committing petty crimes. Now Maynard plays jazz but he also shoots guns. He’s tracking down his sister, who is being held captive in New York. Next thing he knows, he has a run-in with the Sons of Kain, a criminal religious cult. And with some other bad guys who think he heisted some diamonds. Maybe he did. But then he’s forced into doing a different heist by a childhood friend who is now an adult enemy. And naturally, a hot burglar who used to have a thing going with him is competing to steal the goods first.

Meanwhile, the crime boss of Barcelona is dating a journalist who has just received a briefcase of confessional crime stories from a mayor who is about to be killed, and the only reason the journalist (who happens to be Jazz’s sister) isn’t killed is that she’s dating the crime boss.

The story is complex but it makes sense, I think. Even if it doesn’t, there are plentiful fight scenes, all nicely drawn. The story’s noir feeling is enhanced by its dark characters. They might not be morally pure, but for thieves and scoundrels, they’re a decent bunch.

A Spanish John Wick in comic form. Jazz has been living in New York for the last 10 years. He returns to Barcelona when his sister gets into trouble with a sex slave ring and becomes embroiled with a couple of rival criminal gangs. He enlists his old friend Teo to help rescue his sister. Each story leads into the next, with Jazz next stealing a rare coin and then getting drug into a conspiracy that goes to the highest levels of Barcelona politics. The story is dark and gritty, delving into sex slavery and child prostitution. I'm always excited to see stories take place in Barcelona. It's one of my favorite cities on the planet. This one taking place in the Gothic Quarter, El Raval, the oldest part of the city, full of a character of its own. The art is fantastic. It's dynamic and portrays action extremely well.

Unfortunately I was unable to download so had to stand in bookstore during holidays .. from that kind of assessment it looks excellent and I wish I could have read: v expensive in English so I'll have to give it a miss.. looks wonderful ..

The artwork is almost another character in this story. Filled with sepia and chromatic tones, the graphics here highlight the story which bounces between Barcelona and New York and involves a guy who in between jazz gigs is out to take down international human trafficking rings.

I was unable to read this / review this because there were no pictures, just text bubbles.

Gangs, dirty cops, missing children, sex trafficking and murder explode across this noir crime thriller.

Childhood friends Jazz, Teo and Judas go down separate life paths that all involve crime. There is a significant flashback in chapter two explaining how the boys' paths diverged.

While rescuing his sister from poor decisions, Jazz runs into some unexpected luck in New York City. After escorting his sister home to a small town in Catalonia Spain, his luck runs out and he must rely on Teo and Judas' quick wits to rescue him from a bad situation. When approached by a local crime boss with a request that he can't refuse, Jazz starts down a slippery slope. Of course, there is always a dame from the past to muddy the waters.

Jazz Maynard is a good crime drama. The artwork is excellent. The scene is set in dusky but highly saturated greens, blues, reds and oranges. While dark, it is easy to see details and tell the characters apart. The only complaint is there is an excess of words on each page. It feels a bit clunky while reading. Still, Jazz Maynard is a good choice for noir or crime syndicate thriller lovers, where no one is wholly innocent. It is reminiscent of Reservoir Dogs or Chinatown. 3 stars!

Thanks to the publisher, Lion Forge, and NetGalley for an advanced review copy. This book will be published on December 26, 2017 but can be ordered now on Amazon.