Czechoslovakia, 1949. What Evil lurks within the walls of an ancient children’s infirmary? After the brutal murder of her parents, Sarah, a young orphan, is about to discover that and much more. From long-buried secrets to imminent battles, the fate of man, and monster, lie with young Sarah. A gothic tale of horror from David Muñoz (co-writer of Guillermo Del Toro’s The Devil’s Backbone film) and artist Tirso.

Whispers in the Walls is an interesting graphic novel in that while the story has very European roots (which will be discussed below), the art style has more in common with manga.

Written by David Muñoz, Whispers in the Walls is an entertaining read filled with double crosses and action, lots of action. It feels familiar, as the comic shares lots of familiar elements with other entertainment, most notably Underworld, but there’s enough there to make it stand out.

What’s interesting to me is the setting in 1949 and Czechoslovakia. With the specter of post-World War II on my mind when reading this I couldn’t help but think of some of the allegorical aspects to the story. On one side we have Nazis, on the other is Communists, and there’s the innocents caught in between. There’s an interesting aspect that had me trying to think which group represented what as I read this graphic novel and that upped by enjoyment factor in many ways. What could have just been a simple story about vampires, werewolves, and more, gets a layered added that adds to its depth. That sort of depth extends to the title, which while very clear its reference, could be interpreted to be so much more.

The art by Tirso is a cool mix that has an animated aspect to it mixed with manga. There’s a creepy style to it all that matches the horror roots of the series, but it also has a cool look that you’d expect in a story set in WWII. But, what really stands out to me is the fight scenes which definitely have a manga influence. Javi Montes‘ colors adds to it giving it an almost animated look to it.

Whispers in the Walls is an enjoyable read that gives us a slightly different take on the vampire/werewolf story. There’s a lot that’s enjoyable and entertaining and this is a world I’d love to see more of. While there’s a lot that’s familiar, there’s also a lot that makes it stand out.

Story: David Muñoz Art: Tirso Colorist: Javi Montes
Story: 7.5 Art: 7.95 Overall: 7.65 Recommendation: Read

Humanoids provided Graphic Policy with a FREE copy for review