After her parents’ accidental death by mushroom poisoning, young Aurora Grimeon is sent to live with her estranged grandfather on Ossuary Isle, deep in the southern swamps. Joined by her grandfather’s pet raccoon Missy, Aurora explores the fog-covered island of graves. Along the way she meets its sinister residents who care for the tombstones and mausoleums, living out their lives by the strange rules of Hoodoo magic. When ghostly things start happening out in the swamp and island residents start disappearing, Aurora thrusts herself into the middle of the mystery, uncovering secrets that might be better left buried.

Writer Tom Hammock and up-and-coming powerhouse artist Megan Hutchinson have put together a young-adult novel with a strong female lead in An Aurora Grimeon Story: Will O’ the Wisp. This is a story that’s a fun a creepy read for the younger set. I could easily see this series finding a big audience as a prose book and hopefully those same individuals will give this graphic novel a chance.

The series has a great setting to it, taking place in the swamp of what I assume is Louisiana. Mixing Hoodoo magic with ghosts the story is a solid ghost story for the tweenage set. The characters are interesting and fun playing their various roles. There’s a lot I liked here. The early parts of the story outright debates science versus magic, drawing the reader into the magical world more and more to a point you don’t question it. There’s also some events that were shocking they happened. Things I thought might be made “ok” were left tragic and sad. It’s refreshing…. in a twisted way. Aurora too is a fun character. She doesn’t belong in this world, but just like us the reader, she’s slowly dragged into it, eventually accepting it all.

Hutchinson’s line work is delicate, animated, and spooky, blending influences from Tim Burton and Mike Mignola. It’s a perfect fit for the spookiness of the story and each character is a unique design. Overall, the art is fantastic and Hutchinson is a welcomed addition to the comic world.

This feels like the beginning of a wonderful series of graphic novels. Hopefully we see more of Aurora and her magical world.

Story: Tom Hammock Art: Megan Hutchison
Story: 8 Art: 8 Overall: 8 Recommendation: Buy

BOOM! Studios/Archaia provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review