Listen, I’ve read a lot of books with ghosts. Most of those books have perfectly pleasant worlds I would live in with no problem. Dead Seas is not one of those books. It is not a happy world and does not have nice ghosts. Dead Seas is a gritty, slasher horror filled with ghosts, corrupt and powerful men, and covert commentary on the industrial prison complex. At its best moments, Dead Seas feels like a 90s slasher film. It’s unflinching, sometimes terrifying, and purposely a bit ridiculous. If you’re a fan of horror films, progressive storylines, and bittersweet endings, then this is a great pick-up for your collection.

For this graphic novel, Scott teamed up with artist Nick Brokenshire, also known for his work in the Star Wars universe. The colors used throughout Dead Seas captured the eerie feeling of the story while remaining colorful and, surprisingly, a bit playful. I loved how Brokenshire matched scenes and dark themes with equally dark colors and palettes. It’s effective and moody and works well in this comic. Scott and Brokenshire are the perfect comic pairing.

I really enjoyed Dead Seas and Scott's overall vision for the story. I wish he'd had a couple more issues to fill out the story because it felt a bit rushed at the end. Altogether, I quite enjoyed the finished product and would love to see more original non-fandom content from Scott and Brokenshire in the future.

Rating: 4.5/5 stars

Thanks to IDW for providing me with a review copy of this graphic novel. All the above art assets belong to them. All thoughts above are my own.

The full blog review will go live on Back Shelf Books on Thursday, December 7th, 2023 at: https://backshelfbooks.com/2023/12/07/graphic-novel-review-dead-seas-by-cavan-scott-and-nick-brokenshire/

I loved this story. The concept was original, interesting, and fun. The artwork was beautiful. I will definitely recommend this title to my students and will likely add it to my classroom library.