YOU ARE HERE by Kyle Baker

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YOU ARE HERE by Kyle Baker

The Overview:  Beware of Spoilers…

Noel Coleman has it all. He’s a successful artist. Helen, his beautiful fiancée, loves him. He owns an attractive house in the country.   For the past year that Noel and Helen lived together, life has been perfect.

Noel plans to ask Helen to marry him.  It’s just… he has secrets.  Noel wants to come clean.  But how do you tell your future (hopefully) wife that you were a criminal when you met her?  Noel decides he’ll figure out how to tell her when the time comes.

So Noel informs Helen that he’s going into the city to clean the last things out of his apartment. When he gets back, he’ll pop the question.

Noel heads in to the city and runs into his old crime partner.  They decide to have a drink.  The more they talk the more Noel realizes he misses the life.  His partner talks about a job he’s set up. He offers Noel a piece of the action if he wants to come.  Noel is tempted.  He decides once he comes clean to Helen, her reaction will decide the life he’ll live.

Then Noel learns that an infamous serial killer just got released from prison.  The killer has made it known he’s going to kill the bum that slept with his wife.  Noel is that bum!  Noel realizes he needs to get out of the city and quick.  Thank God Helen didn’t come with him.

Noel sees Helen at about the same time as he catches sight of the killer.  Unfortunately the killer has seen them.

Noel will have a lot of explaining to do if they survive.  And odds are they won’t.

Thoughts (beware of spoilers)…

The art feels very Disneyish and yet the story is noir.  The combination works.  Baker sets us up to expect one thing and gives us another.  The bathtub scene (in the preview below) is just one example.  I love the cartoony style used in this tale.  I also thought telling the story without word balloons was creative.  Having the serial killer resemble Robert Mitchum was icing on the cake.

This isn’t a story for kids.  There is sex and violence.  Happy endings are for Disney and this is noir.

YOU ARE HERE gets my highest recommendation!

YOU ARE HERE by Kyle Baker rates 5 of 5 stars.

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