‘Those Not Afraid’ TPB (review)

Kyle Starks is one of my favorite creators out there. I’ll literally read anything that he has a hand in creating. I do enjoy it when he does the artwork but I really do enjoy when he writes as well. This book is one that he just wrote with Patrick Piazzalunga doing some amazing artwork.

Starks and his crazy sensibilities make their way onto the page quite well here, and I have to say that he is only getting better. I enjoyed the story from start to finish, I only wish that it was a bit longer as to make the story have a bit more depth to it.

Starks goes a bit further than most of his other work. This book is a true crime thriller that also serves as a completely crazy horror book. But for those who like it when Starks shows us his funny side, never worry. There is enough dark humor to be had here as well.

The story revolves around two different serial killers who come to the realization that the both of them are close to reaching the record of the number of kills in the state they are in. So what do these two maniacs decide to do? They decide to get into a terrible contest to see who could be the state champion in this particular field. The results, of course, are bloody.

We get to see the story unfold from the point of view of a true crime podcaster named Cece Galloway. Usually, I hate stories that start off with an obvious point of view, but in the capable hands of Starks, it is quite a pleasure. This storytelling choice makes it easy to determine just who the serial killers are as people. The two serial killers are called The Ladykiller and The Home Intruder and both are very deadly.

We then meet Mark, who is kind of an average guy. He’s married with a great wife and family and seems to be a bit of a fuddy duddy. But Mark, of course, has a secret. He is the serial killer called The Ladykiller. He’s got a trophy room in his house and everything.  Mark likes to hunt his victims and he enjoys every second of it.

One night while he is hunting his latest victim, he runs afoul of the Home Intruder. That is when they meet and make the ill fated bet. It is a tense scene for sure. But it is also highly original. There is a sense of reality about this that makes the gallows humor become all the more compelling. From there the pair go about their bet trying to murder as many people as they possibly can. It gets pretty wild too as the book goes on too. We get into some new and uncharted territory with this and the whole thing is strangely refreshing. It only gets more interesting from there.

The first three chapters of this book move along at one hell of a pace. Things move quickly but you can keep up well. Every twist and turn is felt and is impactful as can be. And the creative team does pack in a lot of twists and a lot of turns. It is pretty breathtaking overall. Then, the last chapter happens and it is not quite as exciting. It feels a little rushed compared to the others and makes the whole piece feel a bit abrupt. The ending feels a bit tacked on as well, almost like a bit of a fake out. I wish there was more meat to that last chapter. But this does feel like just a first part of a bigger story, so maybe there will be future volumes to expand on this work. I certainly hope so.

Even with those quibbles, this is a strong book with some great dialogue and some incredible scenes. Starks does a fine job writing this, and the characters are great. The artwork by Patrick Piazzalunga is incredibly strong as well, and it is unlike anything I had read before.

I do hope that there are more stories coming down the line with these characters.

RATING: B