I'm fortunate in that Exfanding HQ is located near quite a few comics shops--there are five high quality stores within an hour's drive of my home. And, while I do not visit each of the on a regular basis, I do tend to haunt all five stores at some point during the year.
And, while five shops in close proximity may sound like a lot--and I'm sure there are readers out there who don't even have one store within an hour's distance--that number is a bit deceiving.
You see, when I was younger there were at least double that amount of comics shops and baseball card stores where I grew up. Many of those stores have long since closed, and the aforementioned five shops are all that remain in an area once booming with comics shops.
Not that I'm complaining, mind you. I fully understand how lucky I am not only to have five shops in my immediate area, but to have five excellent shops in my immediate are.
It's just that I want to drive home the fact that comics shops have been fighting against extinction for the better part of the past decade.
I bring this up because one of those five shops was robbed last week. Not much was taken--a mostly empty cash register and the register itself--but it was still disturbing news for a small family business to have to deal with.
The robbery took place overnight, and no one was in the store when it happened. The alarm went off right away and scared the crooks before they got into any of the expensive back issues, so as far as robberies go, this one was quite minor.
Still, it got me thinking about comics shops (and small businesses in general), and I guess I just wanted to remind everyone to every once in a while buy that kind-of-expensive hardcover from your local comics shop instead of from Amazon.
I know that's not always possible, and I'm as guilty of Amazon ordering as anyone, but I do try to pre-order certain books through my shops. Every little bit helps them out, and with the holidays fast approaching, don't forget about your local comics shops when it comes time to buy/ask for gifts.
Okay, that's all I wanted to mention. Let's get on to today's comic. From Dark Horse, House of Night, issue one, is in stores for the introductory price of $1.00
Apparently this is the comic spin-off of a hugely popular book series, though I don't think I'm exactly the intended demographic for that particular series. Honestly, I don't know a thing about this series other than it's drawn by Joëlle Jones (Madame Xanadu, 12 Reasons Why I Love Her), who is one of my favorite artists working today and that alone is reason enough to give this book a shot. Joëlle is a staggering talent, and one that needs to be on more people's radars.
Here's the solicitation information from Dark Horse:Until recently, Zoey Redbird was an average high-school student worrying about grades, boys, and breakouts. But priorities have a way of changing when you are marked as a vampyre, enroll in the vampyre academy House of Night, and have to figure out a whole new social hierarchy, affinities for elemental magic, and physiological changes that make you crave blood.
* The magical world of New York Times best-selling authors P. C. Cast and Kristin Cast comes to comics!
* Five million novels sold and legions of loyal fans!
You can also check out a free preview at Dark Horse's site. And with that, I need to hit the road. I'm headed to my LCS a bit early today because of afternoon meetings.
Before I run out that door, what are you Waiting for?
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