I really enjoyed the art for this volume, however the story is just not for me I was in for about 2 issues and then everything was just to weird for me. This is about a group of people who mostly know each other at least from afar because they are all friends with one guy. this dude basically traps them at a vacation house while the world ends around them and now they have to cope with the fall out. It was a weird one my friends.

Every one of Walter’s friends knows he’s a little odd. He seemingly loves with his whole heart and cares about his friend’s lives more than his own. When Walter invites a select group of friends to vacation at a fancy lake house, no one thinks much of it. Plus, they each need a vacation of some kind, so why not do it while catching up with old friends? Sure, Walter is adding a little mystery to it by giving everyone a code name, but he’s always been on the eccentric side. At least, that’s what everyone thought until life as they knew it flies straight out the window.

When I picked this up, I wasn’t sure what I was getting into other than what was sure to be an excellent horror story since I’m familiar with the author’s other work. When I tell you that this volume goes from zero straight to 100, I am not joking. We follow a select group of Walter’s friends expecting a nice vacation with a little mystery thanks to whatever mini games and such their old friend has planned. What this group of people doesn’t expect is for the world to be turned upside down all while finding out that Walter is not who they thought he was. Did they ever really know Walter, and was the friendships they each had with him just a game? Every possible question is on the table as they find themselves stuck in the fancy lake house for the foreseeable future.

I honestly can’t think of a single bad thing about this volume. If anything, I’m left extremely interested in the follow up volume and I really want to learn more about Walter along the way. Right now, we know the bare minimum about who he truly is other than he seemingly really does care for the friends he chose for this so-called vacation. There’s enough mystery here to keep the story going for however long it’ll run, whether it’s a long or short one, and I know I’m going to be here for every volume.

That said, I do hope we get some character development along the way. Right now, we don’t know a whole lot about the characters given how early they are into the situation they’ve found themselves in. I’m really interested in seeing where this goes and what we’ll learn along the way. This is the type of TV show and movie I would sit down and watch, so I’m excited to see where the series goes.

2 stars. I finished this early in the morning and mainly it was because I was tired of being reminded I was still reading it. The plot has some interesting concepts, but it's boring and not well-rounded enough to engage me as a reader. I will not be continuing with the series. Full review to come.

A twisted story of lifelong friendship, an elaborate plan and the end of the world. I literally inhaled this one. I have already recommended this to a few friends.

Thank you #NetGalley and DC Comics for giving me the opportunity to read this.

This was such an interesting concept and I loved everything about these comics! They were creepy and weird and made me question things. I really liked the art style and the writing flowed nicely. I can't wait to read more and if hope to solve more puzzles and have more questions answered in future volumes! Thank you to NetGalley, the publisher, and the author for providing me wit an e-arc in exchange for an honest review.

How do think the world will end?

⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️ ⭐️

I may be a little five stars happy this year, but this one earned it! This may just be my favorite graphic novel series of all time. At least the first six issues having me feeling that way.

The Nice House on the Lake is a closed door horror graphic novel and features my favorite horror/thriller trope of a close friend group solving a mystery.

A collection of issues 1-6 comes out next month which is the best way to read the first half of the story! We'll hopefully the get conclusion later this year.

Qotd: do you like graphic novels? Any that you recommend or would you like a specific recommendation?

Thank you to #netgalley for the chance to review. #TheNiceHouseontheLakeVol1

I grabbed a @netgalley e-ARC of THE NICE HOUSE ON THE LAKE: VOL 1 by @tynioniv (thank you @dccomics!) solely by the cover alone. I MEAN WHAT IS HAPPENING HERE?

At first the friends and acquaintances of eccentric Walter believe they were invited to his bougie lakehouse for a weekend of revelry. Little do they know what is actually in store for them...

That's it. That is all you get! But I will say that I am ABSOLUTELY going to pick up the next volume of this graphic novel series as it appears to just be getting started and I MUST KNOW ALL THE ANSWERS - why them? is he lying? is Walter an evil genius? Is Walter a god? IS WALTER JUST FUCKING WITH US?

I had a bit of a problem with my e-galley download that distorted a few of the pages but it was still a compelling read.

What was the last book in a series that left you questioning if you would survive the wait until the next part in the series was released? This one. This is the one for me right now.

The Nice House on the Lake, Vol. 1 (issues #1-6) by James Tynion IV, Alvaro Martinez Bueno (Artist), and Jordie Bellaire (Colorist)
Publication date: March 1, 2022

Date read: March 14, 2022



They all know Walter - some from high school, some from college, one from more recently - but they've never hung out all together as a group. But after a difficult year, when Walter invites everyone to a week at an idyllic lake house, they all decide that they can put up with Walter's eccentricities for a short amount of time, reconnect, and relax. But when something goes wrong, they're all thrust into a new reality that will make them reconsider who to trust, and figure out how to survive.

I know that description was vague, but I really believe that the less you know about the plot going into this one, the better. I knew absolutely nothing when I started this, and I'm happy about that.

However, not being able to talk a lot about the plot does make writing a review a bit harder... but I'll do my best.

As far as the plot goes, I really loved it. In horror, it's hard to come up with a completely new idea, and the "group of people brought to an isolated location" troupe is nothing new. But I wasn't expecting the direction this story quickly took, and I enjoyed being along for the ride. This is only Volume 1 of a series, so nothing is wrapped up at the end, but I can't wait to read more.

I thought that the art in this collection was also great. It is drawn in a somewhat realistic style (as opposed to a cartoonish one). I loved the expressions that the artist was able to create on the characters, and the scenery was gorgeous when it needed to be, and disturbing at other times. Both artist and colorist did a great job. (I will also freely admit that I picked this one up based on the cover art, which is wonderful.)

I did, on a few occasions, have a difficult time telling characters apart or remembering which was which, but I don't feel that I can blame the artists for this so much, because I read it on my phone (as an advanced digital copy) as opposed to a larger physical copy. I am purchasing a physical copy to have now, though, and plan to read it again to see if I have an easier time keeping them straight. (In the back of the volume is a page showing each character, their name, and their nickname, but it wasn't easy for me to move back and forth between the pages on the digital copy).

Overall, I loved this story. It went in a direction that I really wasn't expecting, but that I was completely on board with. If you like horror comics (a little gruesome, but not so realistic that it was hard to look at), I definitely recommend this one. I think you'll be pleasantly surprised.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Trigger warning: gore, death by fire

Thank you to NetGalley and the publisher for an advanced copy of this book

You know how sometimes you just catch lightning in a bottle? When Pete Best was replaced with Ringo Starr, a really good band became the greatest rock and roll band of all time. When Andy Serkis crawled onto the set and said “precious” for the first time, everyone heard Gollum in a whole new way, forever. He’s even narrated the newest version of TLOR audiobooks because he simply has to.

DC Comic’s Black Label has done something that will, over time be listed as one of the greatest combinations of writing, art, and colors of all time in The Nice House on the Lake. In fact, I have no doubt that like The Lord of the Rings, we will one day soon use NHTL to short-hand this epic story.

Jordie Bellaire is one of the top three colorists working today. Period. End of discussion. If you can get Jordie to color your book, you should be honored. She knows when to show restraint, which is the key for an excellent color artist. While I miss her writing skills on Boom! Studio’s Buffy the Vampire Slayer, when I see work like this, I understand why she felt she had to leave.

Álvaro Martínez Bueno is the guy who brings your nightmares to life. He is the guy who shows you that not all heroes wear capes and when they do, they look magnificent. His last name translates into English as “good.” It doesn’t do him justice. He is great.


James Tynion IV is playing chess while everyone else is just getting the checkers out of the box. He's been on a hot streak that could only be rivaled by Gail Simone and Tom King. This is not hyperbole people. He is that good.

Yes, I realize I haven’t talked much about this book. That is intentional. I don’t want to spoil one thing. It is important to note that I spent weeks thinking about these first six issues after I finished reading them. My brain hurts but in a good way.
Conclusion

Make time in your life to spend time at the end of the world with the folks at The Nice House on the Lake. You may lose a few hours' sleep, but that's totally fine. When this team holds aloft all the Eisner awards next year, you can say that you saw it coming.

I was on edge for parts of the story. The moody art evoked a visceral response, and the interpersonal dynamics of the story gave a paranoid bent to everything. It was fantastic. I highly recommend this to anyone who prizes the unease of figuring out a story of mysteries and unraveling minds.

Nice House on the Lake volume one graphic novel review
From: writer James Tynion IV, artist Álvaro Martínez Bueno, published by DC Comics Black Label.
A copy of this book was provided by NetGalley for review.
I am now fully down the Tynion rabbit hole. Reading everything he’s written, changing my pull lists, all of it. Recently the first six issues of Nice House on the Lake were collected just in time for issue 7 to come out. While friends of mine have read this comic all along and I’ve heard good things, I knew nothing going into the comic. A group of friends at the titular nice house on the lake and something happens. By the end of the first issue my mind was blown. Every single issue adds another level of mystery and horror and WTF to the story.
Walter has a group of friends who are all tangentially connected, some more than others. He invites all of them to this house to get together one more time. They’re lives have drifted apart as happens to all of us when we get older, and this might be the last time they could all get together. Walter makes it fun: the house is huge, fully stocked, and fun. There’s so much for entertainment. He even adds a fun little game to it all and gives everyone titles and symbols: the comedian, the writer, and so on. This could be a story about an affair coming out, or a murder mystery, or even a sex comedy.
Then at the end of issue one, something awful happens. I don’t want to say what because readers should have the same level of surprise that I did. This beautifully drawn comic in such a placid and serene setting immediately switches to grotesque terrifying horror and then right back to the quiet. It’s jarring and doesn’t get easier anytime this happens in the book. So much of the story feels normal and it’s easy to pretend everything is normal, which probably shows which character in the book I would most relate to.
The mystery grows and more secrets are revealed with one huge one at the end of this volume (the end of issue 6) which changes everything readers thought was true. I’m torn between jumping right into issue 7 or waiting until all of the remaining issues are out and reading it in one sitting.
It has been years since I started reading a book and then had to find everything from the writer. Tynion is arguably comics biggest star right now and his golden touch is about to extend to Netflix and beyond. If you love horror, mystery, or just great story telling not only pick up Nice House on the Lake but also anything from this writer.

Thank you to Netgally and DC Comics for a free copy of this book in exchange for an honest review.

This was way creepier than I thought it would be. One friend brings all his favorite people to a house in the middle of nowhere. He has made it perfect, everything they could ever want. But while they are there, the world ends. Or did it?
This GN kept me on the edge of my seat. I didn't want to stop reading because I had to know how it ended. This is just Vol. 1 and it seems there will be more and I cannot wait! I need Vol 2 like yesterday.

Great storline and visuals. Art is amazing! Read the digital version, can't wait to pick up the hard copy!

Utopia or something? Tynion IV seems to always nail what he's going for and he absolutely did it here too. Light mystery elements are more puzzle like. It reminds me of the better parts of Lost.

The Nice House on the Lake is literally the one comic from last year that everyone needs to read. It's relevant, eerie, cathartic, and just taps into something that we've all been feeling over the pandemic. It's wonderful to finally read the first six issue arc at once because reading it month by month was almost an excruciating wait and having this released right before the seventh issue dropped was wonderful timing. Yeah, I know, they set it up that way. This has all the wonderful unreality of a good haunted house story, but with a modern pandemic sensibility. I only wish that the digital arc had actually been of higher quality. I actually re-read my individual issues and the added cover variants, because at times this arc was totally illegible. Bad DC!

This was such a beautifully balanced and thought-provoking read. The author and artist found the perfect harmony with one another, capturing the tone and settings of both the main event and the narrative futures that each character’s arc opens the chapter with. The striking contrasts between the grim horror of the events happening outside of the Lake House and the mind-bending science fiction happening within the home and its surroundings will captivate and send chills down readers’ spines.

The mystery and character growth really shine through here. The mystery surrounding Walter and his origins are what draws the cast of characters into the narrative, to begin with, eager to learn why their caring and powerful friend has drawn them together on the eve of such a cataclysmic event. The examination of who these people were on the outside of the Lake House and the growing fears they each face play into the greater theme of isolation and the anxiety many are facing in this new era in our own world.

Oh baby. Now THIS is the type of horror that sticks with you and has been pegging away at my brain nonstop. The disaster that our main cast is not completely outright, if anything this first volume is more of a cosmic mystery than a cosmic horror outside of the whole apocalypse business that goes down at the beginning. Each issue is told from the perspective of one of the housemates where it seems the end times has caught up to them, and we are slowly piecing together what exactly lead to this end as they all start to unravel. I devoured this in a day and just craving more (which can be done by getting the individual issues for the impatient among us). The art is also incredibly beautiful, even the truly horrific scenes are done with such an artistry that you can't help but stare. The Nice House on the Lake gives me many of the same feelings I had when I first picked up 30 Days of Night in high school, and that is a feeling I had been chasing ever since.

3.7 star!
I am not a fan of comics but the twist and the suspense in this comic really brought me into it. Unfortunately due to the grainy quality of netgalley, I was unable to make out some words but overall I would say if you are a fan of horror then I would recommend this comic! This comic is a mix of dark and gritty into one and this comic starts off with Walter who wants to go to his lake house with his friends and everything goes downhill from there.

Anyone who’s ever met Walter knows that he’s a bit eccentric. However, when old acquaintances of his are invited to spend a summer getaway with him at his secluded lake house, the opportunity seems too good to pass up.

To their horror, they soon realize though that they can never leave and slowly they try to unravel the house’s secrets and the reason behind their imprisonment.

The Nice House on the Lake, Volume 1 by James Tynion IV (writer) and Álvaro Martínez Bueno (artist) is an eerie and captivating comic that takes classic domestic thriller tropes and gives them a fantastically bizarre horror sci-fi twist.

If you enjoy psychologically-driven stories like me, you’ll probably have a good time with this one. It feels like you’re watching a social experiment, and it’s fascinating to see how people with all sorts of personalities react to the claustrophobia and boredom of isolation.

To top it all off, the artwork is incredible and includes some wonderfully grotesque body horror.

Overall, The Nice House on the Lake is an unnerving horror mystery filled with twists and turns. It’s still an enigmatic puzzle so far, but I’m curious to see how all the pieces will come together.

Thank you, NetGalley and DC Comics for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.

This was an amazing, original story and not at all what I was expecting. Such a dark version of the end-of-the-world tale. The world is ending, people are dying, and this select group of people have been selected to survive at this house on the lake. Can't go into too much more detail without spoiling the story. The artwork was beautiful and so was the story. Really enjoyed this one, and can't wait to read the rest of the story when issue 7 comes out in March. If you're a fan of horror/sci-fi and also love comics/graphic novels I can't recommend this book highly enough. I thoroughly enjoyed all aspects of it.