Link: http://www.insomniapublications.com/

Leading up to the Bristol Expo and during the event itself there was a very definite buzz surrounding one book; Cancertown. Everyone was talking about just how good this book was so I figured I'd pre-order a copy along with Insomnia publication's other offerings Layer Zero vol.3 and Cages, all 3 for 20 quid - special expo bundle, how good is that?! I've been laid up since the expo with a pretty disgusting ear infection, having to lie on my side for most of the day so that my head doesn't explode in a mushroom cloud of yellow gunk I figured I'd tuck into my stack of books I picked up from Bristol and Cancertown was the top of my list.

I really wasn't sure what to expect, I'm relatively new to independent British books normally reading US titles from the big two publishers or at best some IDW or Boom! Studios titles. My first impression was just how polished the presentation of the book was, a stunning cover and a very professionally bound book that wouldn't look out of place next to anything you may find from any of the big American publishing houses.

The book grabs you by the throat right from the start and drags you kicking and screaming into the vividly twisted world of Cancertown. Your tour guide on this journey is Vince Morely, a man on the edge of sanity or does he just see things you can't? He's the sort of hero I can really get onboard with, full of piss and vinegar but with a level of self doubt that very much grounds this engaging character in the likeable range. I've heard him being compared to John Constantine which is a fair comparison, the story itself feeling like a mixture of Hellblazer and Alice in Wonderland. Moorely is more than the sum of his parts though, a truly human champion bringing with him all his own flaws and doubts.

Follow up:

The story feels like an acid-laced trip down the rabbit hole, only it's not talking rabbits with watch clocks you're chasing, no instead we've got giant floating teeth and giant eyeballs with legs. Everytime you pick the book up you can't help but feel slightly grimy as though some of the freakishness of Cancertown can somehow corrupt and cling to you after every visit. This first installment is clearly setting up the rules and themes that make up this world but the writer Cy Dethan manages to not only make this set-up interesting and vital but a fantastically intriguing and exciting journey that leaves you wanting more.

I can already see this book making the transition to celluloid very easily, helmed by someone with a distinct imagininative vision, maybe Gullimero del Toro or Terry Gilliam. But I'm getting ahead of myself, what we have here is a well crafted, fantastical story that demonstartes what a comic book should be. I for one can't wait to read more tales from Cancertown.
From Insomia Publications

Vince Morley is a man with big problems and a brain tumour like a baby’s fist, living with one foot in a monstrous alternate world he calls Cancertown. When the lost and dispossessed of London start tripping over the same cracks in reality he spends his life avoiding, Morley realises he must confront the residents of Cancertown - and risk finding his place among them.

* Cy Dethan (writer)
* Stephen Downey (penciller)
* Melanie Cook (colourist)
* Nic Wilkinson (letterer)
* Paul Cartwright (cover)
To Check out the book on Amazon click image below